NBA: Start by torturing Jordan and add points to upgrade

Chapter 761 I believe you two are strong contenders for MVP starting next year!
On the court, Yi Jianlian's block failed to help the Hornets launch a counterattack. The ball fell into Lin Tian's hands, and Lin Tian made another mid-range floater, helping the team score 2 more points.

In the Hornets' next offensive possession, Lin Tian kept Deron Williams firmly locked down, no matter how hard he tried to find an opportunity, he just couldn't find a comfortable and suitable shot in front of Lin Tian's defense.

After Don Nelson's angry reprimand and lineup changes, the Knicks have greatly improved both their defensive capabilities and aggressiveness. Each player is tightly marking their assigned defender, and no matter how hard they run and look for opportunities, they just can't shake off their defenders.

With the shot clock ticking away and the ball returning to Deron Williams' hands after a spin, the chubby guy had no choice but to unleash his ultimate move once again. He executed a wide double crossover and charged towards the basket, then suddenly stopped and pulled up for a shot.

Lin Tian's interference was spot on. Although he didn't manage to block the shot, he completely disrupted Deron's rhythm. Deron could only pray for God's blessing on this play.

But I've already said that before.

God doesn't have that much free time to deal with such things.

"Boom!"

After Lin Tian secured the rebound again, he wasn't in a hurry this time.

Lin Tian knew that after the team had almost successfully defended the 24-second rule in two consecutive possessions, they were now bursting with confidence, eager to perform, and incredibly excited.

At times like these, it's crucial to avoid rushing, as it's easy to make mistakes in the heat of the moment.

Then that momentum will be broken!
Especially now that the Knicks are leading by 15 points, with only 49 seconds left in the first half and theoretically two more offensive opportunities, if the Knicks want to extend the lead to more than 20 points, they must make both of their last two offensive possessions.

The pressure is still immense!

So Lin Tian slowed down his pace and dribbled the ball to the frontcourt.

The Hornets certainly didn't dare to continue with their zone defense tactics, but it was noticeable that, apart from Deron Williams and Yi Jianlian, the Hornets' other defensive players were positioned significantly further back.

It's still the same strategy of preventing sudden attacks and allowing the ball to fly, just not as extreme.

Lin Tian has countless methods to deal with this kind of defense!

Facing Deron Williams' one-on-one defense, he turned around again and pushed hard towards the inside with his back to the basket!

You're going to adopt a more defensive approach, right?
Then I'll help you shrink the formation a bit more! I'll help you push the formation further inwards!
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

In the continuous clashes and head-on muscle battles, Deron was once again completely overwhelmed and forced to retreat step by step by Lin Tian.

But this time the Hornets' help defense came at just the right time.

After all, everyone has retreated to a defensive posture, and everyone is close together.

Almost at the same time Lin Tian approached the 3-second zone, Mason and Wells rushed over from the left and right respectively.

Three people double team!

"Are the Hornets crazy? They're letting Lin get double-teamed by three players in this position? Isn't that just giving away points?" Barkley exclaimed, his eyes wide. "If I were here, this would be a thunderous dunk that could destroy the rim in a heartbeat!"

"boom!"

No sooner had Barkley finished speaking than Smith, who was following up in the middle, spread his wings in mid-air, caught the basketball that Lin Tian had sent him with one hand, then pulled his whole body back into a full bow shape, and then suddenly burst out with all his strength, slamming the ball into the basket with one arm!

"Fantastic! This goal deserves at least a spot in the top three of today's top ten goals!" Payton exclaimed excitedly. "And I noticed that Lin didn't even glance back when he passed the ball! He just tossed it into the air from behind his head."

"Back in the day, this is how I teamed up with Sean, Wen, and the others! That's the vision of a top-tier guard!"

"Come on, you can make a pass like that? If you could make a pass like that, Shawn would have won MVP by now!" Barkley scoffed. "What are Lin's partner's stats? What are your partner's stats? You have the nerve to call this the vision of a top-tier guard?"

"The gap between you and Lin is about the same as the gap between me and Charles in three-point shooting," Miller nodded, giving a fairly respectful assessment.

“It’s not that exaggerated.” Kenny once again acted as a peacemaker: “It’s just the difference between me and Hakeem when we were on the Rockets. Back then, Hakeem was the team’s number one player, and I was probably the team’s 10th player.”

"If Lin is the best point guard in the league, then Gary is probably the tenth best."

"That's not that exaggerated. In the 90s, how many point guards were better than Gary?" Barkley frowned and said, "At most five!"

“I’m talking about history,” Kenny explained. “Gary should be a top ten guard in history.”

"That's bullshit!" Barkley and Miller both yelled at the same time this time.

"I can easily name 10 better point guards than him!" Barkley shook his head quickly, indicating that Payton was ranked too high.

"I could pick 20 better point guards than Gary even with my eyes closed and my fingers outstretched!"

"Shut the fuck up! What right do you two who just leech off others to win championships have to talk to me!" Payton cursed. "You two black bastards who are nothing without Lin!"

"I can still get MVP even without Lin!" Barkley said smugly.

"Without Lin Laozi, I wouldn't have left Indiana and wandered around!" Miller said smugly.

Miller then said, "You're from the grasslands, aren't you? A nomadic people, right? Always wandering the land, always clinging to others, always being enslaved, and then failing everywhere!"

Barkley chimed in, "I certainly don't have a championship without Lin, but you have Kemp, Baker, Schrempf, Malone, Mourning, and who the hell else is there? I can't remember, this guy's teammates are like a bunch of crabs, you can't even count them all!"

"With so many strong players around, you're constantly searching for championships, getting beaten and wandering aimlessly. And yet, how many championships or MVPs have you actually won, Gary?" Miller added the final, sinister blow.

Payton fell silent again.

Unfortunately, in terms of individual accolades, he doesn't have an MVP award, just a Defensive Player of the Year. But how can players of our caliber compare themselves to him in terms of defensive awards?

It’s not embarrassing enough!

In terms of team honors, he doesn't have a championship.

All I can say is, what bad luck! Extremely bad luck!

He really couldn't compete with the three people opposite him.

On the field, Deron Williams had once again dribbled the ball up the court and started running down the clock.

With 30 seconds left, he absolutely could not allow the team to fall behind by more than 20 points.

He needs to give the Knicks as little time as possible.

Lin Tian also lowered his center of gravity, focusing all his attention on Delong, his arms outstretched, ready to press and defend against him at any moment.

With only 5 seconds left on the shot clock, Deron Williams suddenly made a move!

He made a through pass, sending the ball directly to the basket!
At this point in the game, this guy chose to pass the ball directly!
It must be said, she was calm, truly calm.

Because he passed the ball to a very good opportunity, Yi Jianlian cut to the basket, grabbed the ball, turned around, jumped up, put his hands behind his head, and slammed it towards the basket!

If the Knicks' frontcourt trio right now consisted of Stoudemire, Anthony, and Okur, then those three really wouldn't be able to do anything about him.

One has poor physical fitness, and the other two don't play defense.

But the Knicks' frontcourt trio now consists of Okur, Wallace, and Smith!

So, Okur stretched out his arms in front, trying his best to block Yi Jianlian and make it more difficult for him to dunk. Smith and Wallace rushed over from the wing and slammed their hands on the basketball that Yi Jianlian was about to dunk almost at the same time.

These two guys are in terrifying physical condition!
"Snapped!"

With a muffled thud, the basketball was squeezed almost out of shape by the enormous force coming from three directions simultaneously, and then it lost control and flew high into the sky.

The three landed almost simultaneously, and then rose up again at the same time. This time, it was a contest of pure talent and skill!
Then the basketball was caught by Okur, who hadn't even jumped yet!
There's nothing I can do; although my physical condition is the worst, I'm the tallest.

Moreover, since he didn't jump just now, he doesn't need to bend his knees to prepare or wait for himself to stand firmly before jumping again.

Just reach out and grab it. Okur grabbed the basketball and quickly tossed it to Lin Tian, ​​who then dribbled rapidly towards the frontcourt.

When he received the ball, there were less than 10 seconds left in the first half. But by the time he got to the frontcourt and stood outside the Hornets' three-point line, there were still more than 6 seconds left in the game.

This shows how fast Lin Tian advanced, considering he had to contend with Deron's harassment and defense along the way!

After reaching the frontcourt, Lin Tian suddenly slowed down, as if he wanted to calm down and play steadily.

But Delong didn't relax at all; he knew Lin Tian's tricks all too well!

This guy is definitely going to shoot right away; he's definitely going to take this opportunity to launch a long-range three-pointer!
This time, Delong saw through Lin Tian's thoughts.

That's exactly what Lin Tian was thinking! He wanted to end the first half with a long-range three-pointer that he took early!

Deron Williams rushed in to try and disrupt Lin Tian's shot. He was determined to keep the score difference and didn't want it to widen to more than 20 points!
But it's no use!
Lin Tian didn't use any tricks, feints, or unnecessary dribbling on this play.

To put it simply: I'm going to pull you out right now!
Despite Deron Williams' defense, Lin Tian fearlessly and without hesitation launched a long-range three-pointer!
Deron Williams' defensive prediction was absolutely correct!

His defensive choices were impeccable, his timing was perfect, and his hand was almost touching Lin Tian's wrist.

He did everything a defender could do.

but……

"Shh!"

With another crisp sound, Lin Tian still managed to sink that long-range three-pointer!
Ignore the defense! Ignore all defense!
I'm going to throw it in, I'm going to score!
I don't care if it's reasonable or not!

"Amazing! 20 points! 20 points! The Knicks are up by 20! The Hornets can't hold on! They couldn't keep up in the first half!" Kenny shouted excitedly. "The Knicks have a decisive advantage!"

After Lin Tian scored that goal, there were actually 5 seconds left in the first half.

So Deron didn't give up. He used his elbow to push Lin Tian aside, creating some space for himself to receive the ball, and then waved to Mason, who had already run to the baseline, to pass the ball to him.

After getting the basketball immediately, Deron Williams dribbled at lightning speed towards the frontcourt, driving all the way to the Knicks' three-point line, ready to respond with a buzzer-beating three-pointer.

"Snapped!"

But what greeted Delong was a merciless, crisp sound.

Lin Tian, ​​who had just been elbowed by Delong, was certainly not unable to catch up with Delong. The elbow strike, with such little force, only caused Lin Tian's upper body to lean back slightly.

He could have caught up with Deron Williams long ago, but he didn't.

He waited behind Deron Williams, anticipating his opportunity, and then suddenly appeared from behind Williams as Williams jumped, slapping the basketball Williams was about to shoot with a heavy blow.

"Buzz!"

The first half of the game is over!
The Knicks led the Hornets 70-50, a full 20 points, going into the second half!

During halftime, Don Nelson didn't give many instructions. He simply said a few words to everyone and then turned around to find someone.

He needs to find Stoudemire and Anthony. He gave those two a good scolding in the first half, so they're probably not in a good mood right now. He needs to cheer them up and give them a boost.

Difficult!

Don Nelson said: "I haven't done this kind of thing in at least 10 years. At least when I was with the Mavericks, Nash and Nowitzki didn't give me this kind of trouble. It's only because of these two immature guys that I'm so worried."

There's nothing we can do; the old man earns the highest salary in the entire league.
If you take someone's money, you have to do their bidding!
However, when Old Nelson turned his head and glanced at the scene, he saw Lin Tian sitting between the two of them.

As for the two younger brothers, they lowered their heads and turned their heads away, listening to Lin Tian's lecture.

It's so nice to have Lin Tian!
That saves trouble.

Old Nelson nodded with satisfaction and happiness. To be honest, Lin Tian should actually share a portion of his head coach salary.

Lin Tian has helped with a lot of the work that an assistant coach should do.

He boosts the team's morale, encourages everyone, addresses players' psychological issues, helps them regain confidence, finds the right playing style, and provides advice and suggestions to many people during training.

Even when it comes to things like talent shows, Lin Tian's advice is always incredibly useful and effective!
For example, the player the team drafted this year, Landry, has been dominating in the G League lately and is almost ready to become the G League MVP!
In other words, the team is not short of players, and young players obviously need more playing opportunities than sitting on the bench. Otherwise, Don Nelson would have brought Landry to the team to play with him long ago.

That's truly a great employee who does multiple jobs for one paycheck!

“In Tang’s mind, you two are going to compete for the MVP next year.” Lin Tian’s way of comforting Stoudemire and Anthony was quite simple: “His expectations for you are no lower than his expectations for anyone else.”

"In his mind, the reason why you two have not been selected for the All-NBA First Team or become strong contenders for MVP is simply because there are too many talented and strong players on this team. As a result, your playing time has to be reduced, and your impact and statistics have naturally been compromised."

“He didn’t have high expectations for you guys before because he didn’t need to, but next season, he’s planning to mold you two into the new generation of unparalleled stars and top three in the MVP rankings. If that’s the standard, then you two haven’t been up to the task at all this year.”

"Anyway, that's what Tang told me, and we agreed on it. We even made a bet privately on who would be the MVP next season."

"So who did you buy?" Anthony was clearly embarrassed by Lin Tian's words. He hadn't expected his older brother and coach to have such high expectations of them! They actually believed in them so much!
But he couldn't help but ask a question.

Although Stoudemire didn't ask a question, his thoughts were clearly exactly the same as Anthony's.

They all wanted to know who Lin Tian had bought.

"You'll find out next year," Lin Tian said with a smile. "But what you need to do now is not to disappoint Tang. I have another secret to tell you."

"James and Donnie have thought about it and discussed it many times, whether or not to rebuild this summer. They considered that after I left, the team's record might decline rapidly, and in that case, was it still necessary for them to maintain the current high expenditure?"

"They asked me, they asked Tang, and Tang and I gave the exact same answer: Even without me, with just the two of you leading the team, the Knicks would still be one of the best teams in the league!"

"You two are fully capable and have the opportunity to lead the team to the finals and win the championship!"

"With Tang and I insisting, our strategy for next season, or even the next 3-5 seasons, has already been decided."

"We'll use the two of you as the absolute core to chase the championship!"

"That's why Tang has such high expectations for you two this season, even to the point of being a bit harsh. He believes you two can do it, but what you two have done so far is indeed not enough."

"I understand!" Hearing this, Anthony was clearly completely fired up. He patted his chest and said, "I won't let you down! I will be the best!"

"Me too!" Little S said with a similarly solemn expression, conveying his absolute confidence!

"I will follow the tasks Tang assigned me, train hard, improve my skills, and become a better player and leader!" Anthony continued.

"Me too!" Little Si patted his chest, unwilling to be second to anyone.

"I will become the invincible 'Melo' again. I will prove that I am the best of the 03 draft class, the best in my league, and that everything I have achieved is the result of my hard work, not something I picked up by riding on someone else's coattails!"

"me too!"

"Very good!" Lin Tian looked at his two younger brothers with satisfaction, patted their legs heavily, and said, "You won't let me down! All the changes will officially begin now!"

“After today, I will never say these things to you again. I don’t like repeating the same things over and over, and I don’t like talking nonsense. If you can’t do that, if you completely forget what we talked tonight in a week.”

"Then I can only say that Tang and I both misjudged people, and we both made the wrong choice."

"That day will never come!" Anthony and Stoudemire's passion and belief were completely ignited. The two reached out and gave each other a high five, once again demonstrating their absolute confidence!

With both players displaying absolute confidence and determination to change, the second half naturally became a nightmare for the Hornets.

(End of this chapter)