NBA: Start by torturing Jordan and add points to upgrade

The difference in the wealth gap between the two sides can be seen from the playoff records of both teams.

In the Eastern Conference, only 4 teams have reached 50 wins, and only 6 teams have a winning percentage of 5%.

Although the seventh and eighth teams made it to the playoffs, their records are far from 5%!
Furthermore, although the Knicks, who are currently first in the league, and the Celtics, who are second in the league, are also first and second respectively, there is a difference of as many as ten wins between them.

Furthermore, the third-placed Nets and the second-placed Celtics are also more than 10 games apart!

The huge gap between the top three in the East is evident!
Meanwhile, in the West, all eight teams in the top eight have more than 50 wins. The Spurs, who are first in the West, are only one game behind the Suns, who are third in the West, only two games behind the Warriors, who are fifth in the West, and only four games behind the Timberwolves, who are eighth in the West!
Furthermore, the second and third, fourth and fifth, and sixth through eighth teams in the West have identical records, so their rankings are determined solely by head-to-head results, divisional winning percentage, and point differential.

In the days leading up to the end of the season, fans and experts alike were working tirelessly to meticulously analyze the Western Conference standings.

They eventually reached an agreement: the Americans couldn't figure this out; they needed to find an expert!

Who are the experts?
Fans of the Chinese national football team are all experts in this area!
Unfortunately, the two sides are separated by the entire Pacific Ocean. So, although China was having a great time calculating the Heat's chances of winning, it couldn't immediately transmit effective information to the other side of the ocean and help the American guys who were racking their brains over the calculations. But no matter what, no matter how small the gap in the West was, they only secured their positions on the last day. And no matter how big the gap in the East was, even the 76ers and Hawks, who were ranked seventh and eighth, might have preferred to be in the lottery rather than be crushed by the league's first and second-ranked teams in the first round of the playoffs.

But in the end, the rankings have been set, and the playoffs for each team are about to officially begin!

April 12, Madison Square Garden, New York!
The Knicks, the league's champions for the past two years and the record holders in this year's regular season, awaited their first opponent in the first round of the playoffs at their home court.

The young Atlanta Hawks!
This marks the Hawks' second consecutive year making the playoffs. Although their regular season record hasn't shown much improvement in the past two years, and the team has been playing mediocrely without making any significant leaps in performance.

However, their former Rookie of the Year Brandon Roy and team leader Joe Johnson, the "Hawk King," also give Atlantans hope for the future.

The Hawks' roster this season is similar to last season's, except that Roy's stats have improved. He has become an excellent scorer averaging 22 points per game, and he and Johnson together can contribute 44 points per game. The firepower of this combination is quite impressive!

Besides those two, the team's starting power forward is Marvin Williams, who was drafted by the team back then. Although Williams was drafted very high, his development over the years has been lukewarm, and he has never been able to take it any further.

To call him a mediocre player would be an understatement. He's a decent player who can contribute immediately, and he's qualified, even an excellent, starter.

But with his lukewarm performance, which certainly wouldn't qualify him for the All-Star Game, it's hard to say whether he deserves his high draft pick.

Especially considering that the Hawks skipped Deron Williams and Chris Paul when they drafted him!

Compared to this, the Hawks' management seems even less intelligent.

The Hawks, who missed out on those two excellent point guards, made a trade at this year's trade deadline, acquiring the Nets' second overall pick, "White Devil" Mike Bibby!
What they valued was Bibby's Finals experience, leadership qualities, and shooting ability.

For Bibby, this was the second time he had been traded since leaving the Kings.

From the Kings to the Spurs, then to the Nets and the Hawks, the latter half of Bibby's career was filled with a sense of wandering and unfulfilled potential.

Fortunately, Bibby has now led the Hawks back into the playoffs. At least, although he has been traded repeatedly, everyone knows that it was not his fault.

It's just that it's not a good fit, it's just that my talents haven't been recognized.

Bibby, who averaged 16 points and 7 assists per game, is still one of the best white guards in the league!

The team's starting center forward is Zaza Pachulia from Georgia.

In addition, the team also has a super sixth man who can contribute 13 points per game, Josh Childress with an exaggerated afro hairstyle!
These six players are roughly the core of the Hawks' lineup that will allow them to make the playoffs this season!
If these six people have any advantage, it's their youth!

Apart from Bibby being a bit older, none of the other four players are over 28 years old. If this roster can continue to improve, they will surely be able to lead the Hawks further and further in the next 4-5 years and truly take flight!
"Lin, I'm not afraid of you." After warming up, Lin Tian was the first to step onto the court, ready to stretch his muscles and then quickly win the game so he could rest. But before he could even rest, someone had already impatiently come over and started to provoke him.

"Yes, I know you're not afraid of me. What you're trying to say is 'Don't underestimate a young man, you'll rise to prominence one day.' Today's huge gap in the regular season was just an accident. If you're lucky, you can get 70 wins, right?"

"I didn't say that!" The person who came to talk to Lin Tian was Roy, the future hope of the Hawks. This guy was obviously not good at or liked to tell jokes. After Lin Tian said that, he immediately said righteously, "I'm not going to say those things. I don't think we can get 70 wins either."

"I'm here simply to say: We are much stronger than you think! We are much better than you think!"

"If you think you can easily defeat us, send us to hell, and crush us like you would the WNBA girls, you're wrong!"

"You've beaten up a WNBA girl? Can you elaborate?" Lin Tian didn't even think about Roy's trash talk and immediately changed the subject to tease him.

Lin Da Guan Ren had no interest in actually having a debate with these young, hot-headed fools on the court!
If I, Lord Lin, were to open my mouth, it would inevitably be with profanities and insults directed at my family. Who would want to have a serious debate with you?

"I didn't! Don't talk nonsense!" Roy's face actually turned a little red at this moment, which made Lin Tian feel like he had discovered a new continent. He said, "Then which girls have you slept with? Tell me, we can exchange experiences."

"I don't need it! I don't have it either! I have no experience to share with you. I'm going to crush you tonight! I'm going to end your winning streak today!" Roy remained defiant, acting as if he was too tough to back down.

"Good, good, good." Lin Tian patted his younger brother on the shoulder and said, "I like your style. You have a bit of an old man's feel to you from the last century. Keep it up, keep working hard!"

"Maybe you can surpass Kobe and become the best shooting guard in the league?"

“But I think he should surpass Joe Johnson first,” Carmelo Anthony, who has become increasingly cunning over the years, chimed in. “He’s not even as good as Joe now, how can he surpass Kobe?”

"Who said that? I think he's better than Joe! He's a better finisher, scorer, and clutch player, and he has better physical attributes. I think someone with Joe's level of physique would be better suited to playing disabled basketball."

“My grandma can jump higher than him, don’t you think, Brandon?” Lin Tian said, then turned to look at Roy, asking for his opinion.

"No!" the young man said firmly.

"Insincere." This time, Lin Tian and Anthony shook their heads and sighed at the same time.

"Young people need to be energetic, brave enough to fight for their rightful place, and if they have the ability to be the leader, they must do everything they can to become the team's leader!" Anthony earnestly advised Roy.

"And what about you? Why don't you fight for the top spot?" Roy felt he had discovered a blind spot and immediately seized on it to counterattack.

"First of all, are Lin and Joe even on the same level? Is it the same thing to compare who's better between you and Joe and who's better between me and Lin?" Anthony snorted and said disdainfully, "And how do you know I didn't compete?"

"We have one-on-one matches every day. I'm just hoping that one day I can beat Lin so badly that he'll have to admit how good I am!"

"And what was the result?" Upon hearing the word 'one-on-one,' Roy immediately declared that he was no longer sleepy!

"The result, of course, is..." Anthony suddenly realized that since family scandals should not be aired in public, he shouldn't tell Roy the truth now. Why should he spread his shameful secrets around?

"I'm not telling you! You can tell me after you win!"

"You two, stop bullying the kid!" Johnson chimed in, standing up for his little brother: "Brandon's only in second grade, he's not old enough to be exposed to this stuff yet."

"The team's second-in-command shouldn't get involved in the conversation between the team's leaders." Lin Tian waved his hand, indicating that you're not qualified to participate in our conversation.

"Isn't Carmelo talking here too?"

“He’s the third option on the team.” Lin Tian sold Anthony without a second thought. “He said you’re the third option on the team, so you’re content to be third?” Johnson said, indicating that he had also found a blind spot.

"Stop talking nonsense." Stoudemire chimed in, "I've never seen a 35-win team talk so much nonsense in my life."

"Have you forgotten that you didn't even win half as many games as we did in the regular season?" Stoudemire mocked. "Anyway, I'd be embarrassed if I only won 35 games."

"Especially against the NBA's all-time best regular season team, the team with the highest winning percentage in history, the all-time best team, with four All-Star players and three All-Star starters, and the NBA's greatest player of all time, the best power forward and the best small forward."

"The greatest basketball player in Turkish history, the greatest shooter in the NBA, the greatest beastly forward in the NBA, the greatest offensive kaleidoscope in the NBA, the greatest head coach in the NBA, the greatest team of physically explosive beasts in the NBA, the greatest in the NBA..."

"That's enough, Amaree, that's enough." Lin Tian was surprised to find that this little guy could spout so much nonsense, so many titles and utter rubbish. What was he thinking? When he wasn't training and was just spacing out, was he thinking about and researching this kind of thing?

"You guys are all ready." The referee glanced at his watch, then beckoned the group over and said, "The match is about to begin!"

Pachulia and Okur both walked to the center circle at the same time, preparing for the jump ball.

Well, according to Stoudemire, it's Georgia's all-time greatest player versus Türkiye's all-time greatest player, or the league's top high-scoring player versus the future dirtiest player.

"Dudu!"

With a whistle, the referee tossed the ball into the air, and Okur and Pachulia, two mediocre floor-bound big men, jumped simultaneously. Ultimately, the taller Okur, with his longer wingspan, successfully secured the first possession for the Knicks!

"The game has begun!" Barkley's voice came from the television: "This may be the most lopsided series in NBA history! The 76-win Knicks against the 37-win Hawks."

"How will this doubling of their regular season win rate manifest itself in this series?"

“You could tell from the regular season,” Kenny said. “The two teams played each other four times in the regular season, and the Knicks had a crushing 4-0 advantage. They also won by an average of 18.5 points per game against the Hawks. It was an absolute sweep, an absolute crushing victory.”

"This gap might widen even further in the playoffs."

"After all, the Knicks have never shown any mercy or consideration for others; they always aim to win as much as possible." Payton was clearly not optimistic about the Hawks' prospects.

"The most important thing is the mentality of these young Hawks players," Miller said, shaking his head. "Last year, they made it to the playoffs and were completely crushed by the Celtics, whose record was almost twice theirs."

"This year they make the playoffs, and they're going to get crushed by the Knicks, who have more than twice the record. What I'm worried about now is Roy's mental health."

"I hope he doesn't get traumatized by this."

“If necessary, I can give him a few counseling sessions. I really like this kid; I think he has potential, and I won’t let him just sink into despair.” Payton nodded, indicating that Miller’s words made sense.

"That's right, you do have a lot of experience in this area, experience in losing! You've never won once in your life, Gary. You lost all the way from the SuperSonics, and you continued to lose after you went to the Heat. After that, nobody cared where you went. Whether you won or lost, nobody cared anymore!"

"Fuck you!" Payton cursed out in anger.

He was helpless!

There were four people there, and he was the only one without a championship ring. What could he do?
Even Barkley, who has the fewest rings, can say directly: "One ring is enough. I'm really too lazy to get more. Otherwise, if I hadn't retired, I would have at least gotten three more rings with the Pacers!"

He retired late in his prime due to weight gain, which has now become something Barkley can brag about!
What can Payton do?
Without a championship, he's inferior to others; what can he do?
As for whether the four commentators are right or wrong, whether their predictions are accurate or not.

That's absolutely right, incredibly reasonable, and as accurate as it gets!

80: 114!

99: 121!

2: 0!

After two games in Madison, the Knicks had won by a total of about 50 points against the Hawks, and the Knicks' crazy team had completely stunned the Hawks.

The gap in strength was too obvious. The two teams were not even in the same league. The Hawks lost much worse than they did in the regular season!

But there is nothing we can do.

The regular season is a series of encounters. Teams like the Knicks don't bother to study the Hawks' tactics and devise strategies specifically to counter them. They just play normally and they can win.

But in the playoffs, which are series, the two teams play so many games in a row. Even if Don Nelson is confident, arrogant, and conceited, he still has to do his game planning, analysis, research, and targeted deployment.

The result was that the eagles got beaten even worse!

Aside from Roy and Johnson, they didn't have a third player who could consistently score; the whole team played terribly.

And it just so happens that right after the first two games ended, the league started handing out awards!

Despite his team being soundly defeated and routed, sixth man Josh Childress won his first individual award in Atlanta's home arena.

League's best sixth man!

He defeated strong players like Ginobili and Barbosa to be named the best sixth man!

However, the team's current situation...

This award, while perhaps a little embarrassing to call it one of the most embarrassing in NBA history, is definitely one of the most embarrassing.

The fans weren't in the mood to cheer, and Childress himself didn't seem to be smiling either.

After all, it's hard for anyone to be happy just because of a Sixth Man of the Year award when they've lost by 50 points in two games and are about to lose by 30 points tonight.

"Joe, we can't go on like this." Roy sat on the sidelines receiving physiotherapy to ease his increasingly painful knee, and said to Johnson beside him, "It's one thing to lose on the road, but we can't lose like this at home. So many fans come to see us, not to see us get beaten up!"

"But this is the Knicks. They won 76 games in the regular season, and we only won 37, didn't we?" Johnson lowered his head, and every gesture he made proved that he had chickened out.

"But they only have 76 wins, not 82, right? They can be beaten! Why can't it be us? Even if they get 82 wins, they can't keep winning forever. Wouldn't it be better if we took them down and handed them their first loss of the season?"

Roy reached out and pressed Johnson's head down, rubbing it hard a few times, saying, "We can't just give up like this, Joe! We can't give up!"

"If we win this match, we might still have a chance! I know there's a big gap between us, but if we just surrender like this, there's no point in playing any more matches. We can just look at both teams' lineups, make some predictions, and then hand out the prizes!"

“I know, Brandon, I know, I know what you mean. But the gap between us is just too big! We are no match for the Knicks! We have to accept that fact. You are young, you have drive, which is good, but you also have to know: some things can't be forced.”

“I’m going to insist!” Roy said, then stopped arguing with Johnson and looked at the court, the fans, and the Hawks’ logo. “I love this team, and I’ll give everything for it!” (End of Chapter)