Generation Z Artists

Chapter 224 The Fearful Demon King
"A rising star in the martial arts world, with his unorthodox fighting style, crushes the martial arts alliance leader, the Purple Gold Lakers!"

The Southern Metropolis Daily used a headline with a strong martial arts flavor to extensively report on the victory in this match.

So what if they are enemies?
You'll be finished if I rub against you or not.

If even the media outlets were this excited, the rest of the media were naturally even more agitated.

"The Night of His Coronation! 62 Points in the Finals, Fang Xinghe Sets a Series of Historical Records!"

"China's Madman Revolutionizes Basketball Concepts! His Long-Range Three-Pointer Crushes OK!"

"62 Minutes Crushes Everything, Love and Hate End Simultaneously"

Shocking headlines, disparaging headlines, literary headlines, legendary headlines... each employing its own unique tactics, aiming for the annual sales champion.

Today's newspapers are selling exceptionally well.

Of course, the products endorsed by Brother Fang sell even better.

The competition ended in the morning Beijing time, and the shelves were emptied in the afternoon.

The enthusiastic Chinese people bought up everything related to Fang Xinghe.

The most unprepared beneficiary was Nike, which had just launched Fang Xinghe's Finals shoes, but due to the limited stock in China, they were severely short of inventory.

It's almost funny, but even though Fang Ge has reached such a high level in basketball, he only has one pair of signature basketball shoes.

Nike's designers initially planned to design an All-Star sneaker as a trial, but the actor went to film a movie, which caused a lot of criticism in North America, and he didn't participate in the All-Star Game, so the sneaker had to be postponed.

When he returned to the team, he glanced at the sample shoes Nike had submitted, frowned slightly, and casually remarked, "Not fashionable enough," before sending them back to be remade.

Nike designers had to work incredibly hard to come up with a design that would satisfy Fang Xinghe during the playoffs, and then they started mass production.

Code name: Galaxy Generation 1.

The sneakers are high-top with air cushioning, open at the ankle, and have adhesive straps wrapped around the top of the shoe that cross and wrap downwards like angel wings.

There are three color schemes in total: classic red and white, mysterious black and gold, and domineering gold and red.

And a special style – a lightweight pink and white women's shoe.

Released on the night of the finals, and launched globally simultaneously.

Considering Fang Xinghe's commercial value, Nike is optimistic that they can pursue a high-quality, high-priced fan-oriented strategy, rather than a low-price, wide-market approach.

Therefore, priced at a whopping $218, it is the most expensive basketball shoe in the world.

For comparison, consider this year's highly anticipated product, the Air Jordan XVII.

The standard version is priced at $165, while the special edition with a metal briefcase is priced at $200. A total of 15 pairs are in stock.

As for the Galaxy Generation 1, Nike gritted its teeth and made a bold move, stocking 100,000 pairs in North America, half for men and half for women.

Japan, South Korea, and Singapore will each send 2 pairs, while mainland China will send 5000 pairs

This takes into full account the reality that Fang Xinghe's influence in the basketball field is far less than Jordan's, but his good looks dominate the world, and he has more female fans than male fans.

They believed that the men's style might not sell well, but the women's style would definitely sell out, so they prepared for the big battle in advance.

result……

There was no sales war at all. Fang Ge just stood in the logo area and made a bunch of wild shots, leading Nike to an easy victory.

All the stockpiled goods across Asia were sold out in just one day.

In North America, there was a surge in queuing and resale – some female fans were giving so much that they wanted both women's and men's shoes!

On that day alone, the retail outlet raised the price of the sneakers to nearly $500, and they were still in short supply.

At that time, Nike had very few self-operated stores in North America.

There are more than 20 NikeTown+ factory outlets in total, less than 30, and most of them are still factory outlets.

Nike's main retail outlets are Foot Locker, department store counters, local shops, etc., and these outlets have very flexible adjustment power, and can sell the goods for whatever price they want after purchasing them.

The local capitalists are so rude! Before Brother Fang even had a chance to cash in on his fans, they've already slashed North American Starry Sky's reputation...

However, there is also good news—so many people who couldn't buy the shoes turned around and bought his books and photo albums instead.

Especially the new female fans who emerged from this match, each of them has a photobook, which can be considered as introductory material for following Fang Xinghe.

In just one day, the global sales of "Born to Sing" surged by a million copies. Clearing out the inventory wasn't enough, and orders were being sent to the publisher like snowflakes.

Wang Chali grinned so hard his mouth was practically ache.

No matter how many products the endorsed products sell, it will be a matter of next year or the year after if they want to increase their endorsement fee.

But "Born to Be a Madman" is purely a family business; each book earns a small but substantial profit of several tens of dollars, making it incredibly lucrative...

But Nike was devastated.

They finally got a trump card, but the sales outlets ripped off all the customers, leaving them filled with regret and remorse.

Xtep was overjoyed. Despite the contract ending and no further cooperation, their running shoes suddenly became incredibly popular again. The factory machines were running non-stop and couldn't keep up with demand, sweeping away the decline of ordinary new shoes and returning them to the center stage.

In addition, there are things like Nongshim ramen, Cororo gummies, Yakult, Casio digital watches...

They all ranked among the top-selling products in China, and all were out of stock.

There's no way to release the enthusiasm of the Chinese people.

At least for today, it's no exaggeration to say that everyone is a fan of Fang.

Based on television coverage and match viewership, the number of viewers in China is approximately 4 million. Fang Xinghe's domestic fan base has surged by 3.5 million, which means he has won over 87.5% of the audience.

Most of them may not understand basketball, but they understand what it means to win glory for their country and feel deeply honored.

Firecrackers were set off in the capital city.

Banners are hung everywhere in my hometown county.

At Hengdian World Studios, the Qin Palace has suddenly become a popular tourist attraction.

In Tokyo, Japan, the manga "Slam Dunk" has been re-released at the entrance of a bookstore.

Fans spontaneously marched in Washington, D.C.

Fang Xinghe's performance in this match was far more inspiring than just his first victory.

He proved the terrifying power of long-range three-pointers more than a decade ahead of time, and the visual impact he brought to people was unparalleled.

Sports Illustrated, as a professional authority in this field, wrote a lengthy article that did not focus on this particular game, but rather provided an in-depth analysis of the epoch-making significance of this style of play.

"Star Rivers has always been regarded by North American sports experts and fans as a traditional point guard who is not known for his offensive prowess, but whose tactical wisdom far outweighs his offensive threat."

His first priority is always to create offensive space for his teammates. Whether he's shooting three-pointers or driving to the basket, his overall strategy has never changed.

Team, team, team.

He knew that he needed to fully utilize the strength of all his teammates to achieve final victory.

Therefore, we praise his strategic vision, his wisdom, and his broad-mindedness in not caring about the data.

But today, everything has been overturned by Star River himself.

It turns out he wasn't without offensive power, he just lacked an opponent worthy of his full strength.

When Game 1 of the Finals ended amidst the wailing of Los Angeles fans, media outlets such as ESPN and TNT turned their cameras to the audience gathered in the stadium and plaza. What we saw were faces streaked with tears, some holding their heads, others covering their mouths, unable to believe what they had seen for a long time.

A total of 14 three-pointers, which may forever be etched in the history of the NBA Finals.

But can we blame Kobe's defense?

No, he was just strictly following the coach's instructions.

Can we blame the Zen master's strategy?

NO, cutting off SR's connection with the team and forcing him to solve the problem himself is the most unquestionable part of the Jordan Rules.

Compared to SR's passing and attacking the basket, forcing him to shoot from a meter beyond the three-point line is the least costly solution that Phil Jackson, the Lakers coaching staff, our professional media, basketball experts, and everyone else can think of.

Originally, SR should have struggled to break through Kobe's tenacious defense time and time again, and painstakingly organized his offense.

But when he unleashed that extraordinary, beautiful, Zeus-like long-range three-pointer, not only was this round of the Finals changed, but the entire basketball world was on the verge of being overturned.

After the game, we basketball reporters, who are always on the front lines, held a quick internal meeting to discuss only one question—

What do you think is the success rate of these long-range three-pointers?

None of us believe today's hit rate is the norm for SR, but we've been horrified to discover that we don't actually need to guarantee such an exaggerated hit rate. As long as it's consistently above 35%, then this is a deadly weapon that will completely change this round of the finals and the future..."

The columnist elaborated on the terror of this long-range three-pointer.

He claimed that a 35% shooting percentage would be enough to crush the Lakers. Lakers fans, of course, disagreed, and a heated debate ensued on forums between fans of "Full Sky Star" and neutral fans.

However, as people carefully reviewed the previous finals videos, the truth gradually became clearer through debate.

The shooting percentage in the Finals is different from usual. Apart from superstars like Fang Xinghe, Jordan, Kobe, and Shaq, other players can only be described as godlike if they can achieve a 40% mid-range shooting percentage under the defensive intensity of the Finals.

In the 04 NBA Finals, Hamilton shot 44.3% from mid-range, far exceeding Kobe's 38.1%, making him an absolute contributor to that championship.

Back then, on offense, Prince's long arms made Kobe want to cry.

On the defensive end, Kobe was exhausted from chasing Hamilton.

These two points are the root causes of his inefficiency.

However, if the Lakers had another player with a 38.1% mid-range shooting percentage at that time, they wouldn't have needed to produce too many shots to force a win.

This is the level of intensity of the NBA Finals in recent years.

If we were to use this year as a preview, a 35% shooting percentage wouldn't guarantee a win, but it would certainly make things very difficult for the Lakers.

If Kobe doesn't go out to defend him, it's like letting Fang Xinghe shoot at will with a 52% two-point shooting percentage.

Even if you remove the extra rebounding opportunities, the actual efficiency is still amazing.

If Kobe were to follow up and closely guard the perimeter, it would break the Lakers' zone defense and rotation, effectively fixing their perimeter defensive anchor outside the three-point line and rendering their help defense completely ineffective.

In addition, Robinson's presence on the other side of the three-point line draws attention from the power forwards, meaning that the vast space inside the Lakers' three-point line is limited to three pairs of players: Danny vs. Fox, Hamilton vs. Fisher, and Campbell vs. O'Neal.

As is well known, Shaquille O'Neal couldn't leave the paint when he was on defense.

Alright, the huge space on both sides allows the long-distance runner to move back and forth freely, and also allows Jordan to post up.

Kobe can't come back, and power forward Horry and veteran Grant have limited defensive value, so let's just go for it, one against one without saying a word.

"...

The terrifying aspect of this weapon lies in the devastating impact it has on existing defense systems.

Let's imagine what a group of modern guards, larger than SR, with a standard 30-foot shooting range and decent ball-handling skills, would bring to the league.
The expanded running lines and more complex defensive perimeters have completely relegated regional joint defense to the dustbin of history.

Aside from the 96 Bulls' all-team pressure and endless switching defense, I can't think of any way to deal with this kind of spacing expansion, but how difficult that would be.
Even the Bulls would probably have a hard time dealing with the outside shooting of two SRs at the same time.

The new generation of guards don't need to have the athleticism of Superman. All they need is accurate three-pointers and smart positioning to be a high-performing, low-salary championship piece.

Traditional guards and wingers will face a hellish situation at that time. They will not have enough range to attack and will be forced to fight in the elbow area, and they will not even have the opportunity to play.

Star Rivers has repeatedly emphasized his spatial philosophy. I didn't understand it well before and even looked down on it, but now I finally believe that he has opened Pandora's box for basketball and released a terrifying monster.

Of course, the tentacle defense rules can keep this monster in check for a while; not every guard can play like SR. But one day, the sharpness of the spear will pierce the strength of the shield, and we will have to establish some new rules to limit this unreasonable style of play...

Perhaps modern basketball is destined to struggle through this ordeal.

After the lengthy article was published, the author was widely criticized for "implying that the alliance should use rules to restrict Fang Xinghe."

In fact, regardless of whether he wrote an article or not, the Los Angeles media were already doing this.

"This is not fair!"

Nicholson angrily clenched his fist at the Hollywood entertainment media: "I fucking love basketball. I love a bunch of men clashing like a fucking pack of beasts in the paint, hormones surging in the sweat, real men getting knocked down and getting back up again and again, not some pretty little pup standing in front of the center and fucking jumping to shoot!"

Screw those long-range threes!

Fuck Star River!

The league must restrict this! Listen, you can't encourage players to play like this!

In fact, he is a big fan of Fang Xinghe's Phantom Attack and a huge admirer of his inside scoring techniques. He absolutely loves flashy basketball.

But this is the Lakers, his home team, so his stance is naturally fixed, and he must and inevitably stand on the front line of the opposing Xinghe.

There are many Hollywood stars like him, and the Los Angeles media are complaining wildly—complaining about this and that, even complaining that the referees "did not respect Los Angeles."

It means, you guys deserve to die for not being given home-field advantage.

In fact, this was the greatest compliment Fang Xinghe could give, because he inspired fear in people.

The arrogance of Los Angeles residents stems from fear.

When interviewed, the Lakers were unusually low-key.

The Zen master replied somewhat absentmindedly, "We will find a solution. Of course, we have the ability. Losing one game is just the beginning. This is not hell. The battle has only just begun."

Indeed, this is far from hell. At the very beginning of Game 2, the Zen Master presented his so-called solution—

Kobe Bryant relentlessly harassed Fang Xinghe, controlling his shots and drives, starting from the logo area.

This was indeed an extremely effective way to stop Fang Xinghe's long-range three-pointers.

A three-point shooting percentage of 90 is far from enough to guarantee a high shooting accuracy from half-court like Curry.

Beyond 30 feet, the stability of the two-stage jump shot begins to decrease significantly.

But he doesn’t need to do that—now that the snake has finally been brought out, he can drive if he can, and pass if he can’t. He can solve the problem by using the big perimeter screen and pick-and-roll. Wouldn’t that be easier?

In Game 2, Danzi managed to get some solo plays despite the opponent's tight defense.

26 points isn't a lot, but the shooting percentage was high enough, and every point was crucial.

Fang Xinghe basically abandoned any unreasonable outside shots and focused on playmaking and driving to the basket. However, the game was played with a relatively high degree of freedom, and the interior players of both sides were rarely called for fouls when defending.

At first glance, it seems fair, but the problem is this: under the same defensive standards, the value of O'Neal not fouling and the value of Campbell not fouling are clearly not the same.

When O'Neal could play more freely, Fang Xinghe's ability to attack the basket was significantly limited.

In this game, Kobe and Shaq were essentially targeting him with all their might, which gave Jordan the opportunity he needed, and Jordan seized it. Meanwhile, they gave Robinson and Hamilton the most opportunities, but Robinson underperformed.

Han's performance was impeccable, shooting 52% from wide-open positions and scoring 34 points.

But Robinson didn't capitalize on those opportunities; he was just a reliable support player, not a reliable attacker or shooter.

The two teams remained neck and neck until the final three minutes, with the Wizards trailing by 8 points but still having a chance.

"Should we cut down the shark?"

During the pause, Ah Gou was sweating profusely with nervousness and came up with what he thought was a perfect idea.

"Then they create opportunities for you to shoot a few three-pointers and score..."

Fang Xinghe glanced at the other side, where Phil Jackson was staring blankly. He shook his head and said, "Let them have it."

"what?"

Ah Gou and his teammates were all confused and stared wide-eyed.

But Jordan nodded immediately, smiling nonchalantly: "OK, I'm tired anyway."

Who says Danzi doesn't understand social etiquette?
If he truly didn't understand, there wouldn't have been so many 4-2 victories in the six championships.

When Phil Jackson coached the Bulls, he would always give the opposing team a home-court advantage to prevent them from playing too aggressively, while also giving the league some face.

A 4-0 sweep in the finals—who will like it?!
The league definitely can't accept it, and fans don't like watching it either. Not to mention broadcasters, sponsors, and advertisers, they're all going to be the ones who suffer.

Therefore, unless absolutely necessary, the leading side will generally not go all out.

Realizing that the Lakers had the upper hand in officiating today, Coach Fang was naturally willing to give the league face. Why risk it if something bad happens in the end, as it would hurt both sides' reputations?

And just like that, G2 was let go.

The two teams played a very intense and exciting game, and in the end, the Lakers defended their home court and won a victory.

The Wizards lost the game but didn't lose face, fighting until the very last moment, though they ultimately suffered a narrow defeat.

The perfect script thrilled the whole world, keeping them awake at night with excitement over this "evenly matched" showdown.

Barkley's commentary was the most interesting: "The Wizards ultimately didn't choose to 'Hack-a-Shaq'! They decided to keep their secret weapon hidden until the crucial moment, keeping the Lakers on edge and unable to let their guard down..."

The old-timers know perfectly well who benefits from the referee's decisions, but they just keep quiet about it.

After the match, Fang Xinghe did not explain his tactical choices at the last moment, but pointed to the camera and said softly, "See you at the MCI Center."

After saying that, he got up and left his seat, displaying his arrogance with the wind.

The end of G2 left many viewers wanting more, and a sense of emptiness lingered in their hearts. However, Fang Xinghe's attitude greatly amplified the anticipation.

As soon as Game 3 began, viewership hit a new record high, achieving the highest ratings in the history of the four major American sports leagues, excluding the Super Bowl.

Under such intense scrutiny, Fang Biwang finally unleashed his full power.

(End of this chapter)