NBA M3 - Chapter 536: 8 Straight Wins, Flawless (Patreon)

The Suns had opened the preseason with four straight wins, and every one of them had been a blowout.

Even though preseason games carried far less weight than regular-season games, Phoenix had still caught the league's attention.

Some people praised them. Others dismissed what they were doing.

The arguments among fans only pushed the hype for the Suns' upcoming matchup with the Lakers even higher.

Yes.

Even though it was only the preseason, Phoenix had played so well that fans and the rest of the league wanted to know whether the Suns truly possessed dominant strength or whether they simply looked overwhelming against weaker teams.

The Lakers had added Paul during the summer.

With Paul and Kobe forming what could easily be called the league's strongest backcourt, Los Angeles had also looked impressive in the preseason.

They were currently 3-1.

And in their only loss, Kobe had not played at all while Paul had only played the first half before the Lakers narrowly fell to the Grizzlies.

In other words, everyone could see how strong Los Angeles was.

Phoenix, meanwhile, was 4-0, with all four victories coming by blowout.

Add in the Suns' status as defending champions, and naturally they drew even more attention.

And even more debate.

...

One day later, the Suns and Lakers met at US Airways Center.

In the first quarter, Blake and Curry came out hot from beyond the arc, knocking down threes one after another.

Kobe, fed repeatedly by Paul, answered with jumpers and strong drives to the basket.

Kobe scored 15 points in the quarter.

Blake had 12, while Curry added 8.

At the end of the first, Phoenix led by 5.

The second quarter began with the bench units.

Thompson led Phoenix's second unit, using his play on both offense and defense to keep the Suns in control.

After 5 minutes and 13 seconds with the bench units on the floor, Phoenix's lead had grown to 8.

"Beep, beep!"

Gentry called timeout.

The Suns brought their starters back.

The Lakers, however, returned only four of theirs.

Kobe stayed on the bench, leaving Paul to lead Los Angeles.

Phoenix kept widening the gap.

By halftime, the Suns were up 15.

In the second half, Phoenix did not send its starters back out.

Kobe led the Lakers by himself in the third quarter, repeatedly attacking Thompson one-on-one and helping Los Angeles trim 7 points off the deficit.

In the fourth, both teams used their reserves.

The two bench units fought evenly, but Phoenix entered the quarter with an 8-point cushion and held onto enough of it to the end.

The Suns won by 5.

Three days later, the two teams met again at Staples Center.

This time, the Lakers were at home.

The game, however, followed almost the exact same script.

After three closely contested quarters, Phoenix still held an 8-point lead.

Neither team used its starters in the fourth.

Paul and Kobe both wanted badly to win, but they remained on the bench as planned.

In the end, the Suns won by 6 on the road and completed the two-game preseason sweep of the Lakers.

That gave Phoenix six straight preseason victories.

The two highly anticipated Suns-Lakers matchups ended with Phoenix winning both, and the unbeaten Suns once again became the center of attention.

"Whoa... this is the Lakers with Paul and Kobe, and Phoenix beat them both home and away. That's how strong the Suns are!"

"What happened to 'the league's strongest backcourt' and the Lakers' 'Twin Stars'? Against the defending champion Suns, they don't look so special."

"Exactly. Against overwhelming strength and an unstoppable Blake—'The Emperor'—what can the Lakers do? They still lose."

"Six straight preseason wins and still undefeated. That's the defending champions for you. The Suns are starting their attempt to dominate the league before the regular season even begins!"

"Hahaha, after all the chaos in the trade market during the offseason, the strongest team in the end is still Phoenix."

"Of course. They're the champions."

"The Suns are awesome~"

"Heh, Suns fans, don't get too cocky. The preseason is for working on lineups and testing tactics."

"Nobody is going all out yet."

"It's more competitive than Summer League, sure, but it's still only a reference point. You can't draw final conclusions from it. So beating the Lakers in the preseason isn't anything to brag about."

"Exactly."

"That's right. If you want to know who's really stronger, wait for the regular season. Winning then is what actually proves something."

"Hahaha, that's funny!"

"Yeah, I'm laughing too. When the Suns were 4-0, you said they had to beat the Lakers before anyone could call them strong."

"Now they didn't just beat the Lakers. They beat them twice."

"And suddenly preseason wins don't count, and only the regular season matters? You people can really move the goalposts!"

"By that logic, do the Suns have to beat the Lakers in the Finals before you admit they're better?!"

"Oh, right. Phoenix and Los Angeles are both in the West, so they can never meet in the Finals."

"Guess the Suns can never be better than the Lakers."

"Now that's a double standard!"

"Hahahaha!"

"Tch. Believe it or not, that's simply how it is. Just wait. The regular-season opener is Lakers versus Suns."

"When that game comes, you'll see how powerful the Paul and Kobe combination really is!"

"..."

Fame always brought controversy.

Phoenix had now won six straight preseason games, including back-to-back victories over a Lakers team that had been heavily favored after the offseason.

With the regular season approaching, the Suns once again became the focus of fans and the media.

But Phoenix had entered this season aiming to dominate the league.

If their performance was already creating a stir and making plenty of fans uneasy, then they might as well make that uneasiness even worse.

The Suns' final two preseason games would be a home-and-away set against the Clippers.

One ended with an 18-point margin.

The other ended with a 27-point margin.

Two more blowouts gave Phoenix an 8-0 preseason record.

The Suns finished undefeated, closing the preseason in perfect form as they prepared for the new season.

...

Eight games.

Six blowouts.

Two wins over a strong team.

No matter what kind of games they were, no matter what happened during them, and no matter how seriously each opponent treated the matchups, Phoenix's performance had been flawless.

The defending champions' strength was beyond question.

"The preseason is almost over, and the Suns are 8-0. What a performance. I can't wait to see what the defending champions do in the regular season!"

"Too bad preseason wins don't count in the standings. Otherwise Phoenix would already be first in the league!"

"With this kind of strength, there's nothing to worry about once the regular season starts."

"Exactly. Go Suns!"

"The Suns may be 8-0, but last season's powerhouses like the Heat, Lakers, and Spurs have looked good too."

"And the Thunder Trio is getting more mature by the year. Add Ibaka, and this season's 'Thunder Quartet' is definitely going to be one of the toughest teams in the West."

"That's right."

"There are still great teams everywhere, East and West. That's exactly why the new season is going to be so exciting."

"Couldn't agree more."

"Bring on the regular-season opener already. Hurry up! I can barely wait!"