Champion Rules

Chapter 60 057: He is mine (Please read!)
At noon the day after the game, the flight carrying the entire Knicks team was passing through the clouds and returning to Xinxiang.

Grant Hill leaned against the window, flipping through a book when a shadow suddenly blocked out the light. He looked up and saw Lynch leaning against a chair with a cup of coffee, steam rising from his mug.

"Hi, the man called God." Hill put the bookmark between the chapters of "The Republic" and greeted Lynch.

"Don't say that," Lynch waved his hand, "The Israelis will be angry, and when they are angry, they will beat those poor Middle Eastern guys. So for the sake of world peace, don't say that," Lynch sat down in the empty seat next to Hill.

"Want to talk?"

"Yeah, let's talk about Stephen."

Hill glanced over Lynch's shoulder at New York No. 3.

On the other side of the cabin, Mabry tilted his head, his sweatshirt rising and falling gently with his snoring.

After beating up Nash last night, Marbury immediately went to the most noisy nightclub with a few teammates. After all, he had played there before and was familiar with every neon-lit corner of the desert city, and knew which nightclub had the most active girls.

Grant Hill never liked to participate in this kind of activity, but he didn't think the occasional revelry would ruin anyone. The media always liked to exaggerate and demonize nightclubs and other entertainment venues. But the truth is, as long as it wasn't a night of drinking before a game, there was nothing wrong with occasionally relaxing.

Hill thought Lynch came for this matter. He thought young Caesar was angry about Marbury going to the nightclub.

"It's okay, Lynch. In Europe, maybe your basketball culture doesn't have this kind of thing. But in America, even though I personally don't approve of it, I don't object to my teammates letting off some steam now and then. We're all human after all. As long as Steph can keep up his form, who cares?"

"You're mistaken. My teammates in Europe aren't any easier to deal with. I don't care how much that jerk fucked last night. I'm just curious how a hopeless guy like Stephane Silva Marbury could suddenly find himself."

Hill shrugged. "The human heart is like a mystery. Who can say for sure? Perhaps a moment of enlightenment can change everything."

"But Stephen is definitely not the kind of person who will wake up on his own. Stop pretending. He has laid his cards on the table for me. You have talked to him, right?" This was Lynch's purpose in looking for Hill. He wanted to confirm this fact.

The cabin ceiling light reflected a sharp light in Lynch's eyes, as if it wanted to cut through all the cover.

Grant Hill could only nod. "Yes, but my conversation with him was insignificant. What really awakened him was the belief you established in the locker room. Those..."

"Thank you, Grant," Lynch interrupted him. "Thank you for doing this for me. If I were handling this, Steph would have been involved in trade rumors by now, and the team would be in chaos."

Lynch sipped his coffee and looked out the window. "I will not let you down for everything you have done for me. We will both become a great part of New York. I am lucky to have met you, Grant."

Outside the window, the Manhattan skyline was approaching. Marbury had already sat up straight, rubbing his eyes, and looked around with sleepy eyes.

He had no idea that his fate had been changed by Lin Yunlong and Hill Gang.

Immature talents often need the right environment and a change of mindset to make their careers more brilliant.

The flashy white chocolate Williams met Pat Riley, and he became the championship point guard of the 2006 Miami Heat, a high-assist, low-turnover, and accurate three-pointer control master.

AI met the strict Larry Brown. He gave up the ball, restrained his solo dance like a butterfly among flowers, increased his off-ball plays, and played like a real shooting guard, thus having a short but brilliant glory in 2001.

Before encountering the triangle offense, Michael Jordan was just a guy with gorgeous personal statistics but always a little short of his ultimate goal. As his playing style became more down-to-earth, his victories came more and more easily.

Lynch's advantage is that he experienced his own transformation in Europe early on and can face the NBA with a more mature mentality.

And Stephen Marbury finally completed the transformation in this Knicks team.

The Knicks' flight landed in New York. After getting off the plane, Stephen Marbury took the initiative to say goodbye to his teammates and then prepared to drive home.

Turning on the car radio, Steve A. Smith's voice came through the airwaves.

"Stephen mentioned Minneapolis in yesterday's interview. Yes, his decision to leave the Timberwolves puzzled me. You and KG were such good friends, but you complained about the cold every day. Don't you have a coat? Don't you have air conditioning? Don't you have a blanket? Didn't KG offer you hot coffee? If we were brothers, I wouldn't leave you for these reasons.

The only human thing Steph did was say hello to KG before he left.”

Marbury's fingers tightened on the steering wheel until he heard the second half, then slowly loosened them.

"But I have to be fair now. Stephen has finally grown up. Welcome back, son of New York. Now I am more looking forward to the Knicks' performance this season. Guys, maybe the playoffs are no longer the standard for measuring everything. We can be bolder. Maybe we can win a series this season? As long as Stephen doesn't get sick again, everything is possible."

This was followed by an interactive session with fans calling in.

Most New York fans expressed their love for Lynch, but some also included Stephon Marbury's name.

"Now after every game I tell my kids, 'Look, this is the breakout star your dad was obsessed with in high school!'"

"Focus Steph, as long as you stay focused, you are the second best player in New York. Hahahaha, I hope you don't mind me saying that."

"It would be the most beautiful fairy tale in the NBA to see the son of New York succeed in New York. Don't miss the opportunity to be the protagonist of the fairy tale, Steph, and don't be like the son of Cleveland who can't even make the fucking playoffs."

People are so warm and lovely. This is the first time Marbury has felt this since coming to New York.

And that's exactly what Marbury needs as a person.

The scorching sound waves made Marbury roll down the car window, and the early spring breeze and the hustle and bustle of Times Square poured into the car. He suddenly realized that this city that once suffocated him was now giving him an unprecedented sense of belonging in the most crude way.

The regular season continued, and after winning Phoenix, the Knicks lost to the San Antonio Spurs at home.

Lynch hadn't considered Duncan's prowess in the Olympics, but under Popovich, the Stone Buddha truly reached his full potential. Every position he blocked was calculated to the millimeter. When Lynch unleashed his unstoppable back-spin attack and his newly learned Eurostep, he was always met with arms that anticipated every attack path. Duncan's top-notch defensive strides kept him constantly close to him.

And after getting to the basket, no matter how Lynch fakes out, TD will not make a wrong judgment.

Once Lynch really plans to attack the basket, Duncan will raise his hand 0.5 seconds in advance to interfere as if he can predict the future.

The most annoying thing was that every time Lynch missed, he would hear that calm voice in his ears: "Nice try."

This mild comment is more mentally damaging than any trash talk.

The offense under the basket was blocked, and his shooting touch was not very good today, so Lynch only scored 21 points with a shooting percentage of 43%.

As a power forward, this shooting percentage is indeed a bit embarrassing.

At the Olympics, when Yao Ming suppressed Duncan in the low post, Lynch was basically not disturbed by him.

But in the NBA, when Duncan looks at you personally with a kind smile, you'll discover his strength hidden beneath his unpretentiousness.

TD is not a guy who relies on superficial violent aesthetics to dominate the court. He combines perfect basketball IQ, defensive skills, psychology and experience into an invisible cage to restrain the wings of geniuses.

Apart from KG, Duncan is the second person who makes Lynch feel defensive pressure. They are worthy of being the two best power forwards of this era.

Of course, Lynch had reason to suspect that Sam Presti was acting as a double agent and was giving Duncan special treatment based on his own characteristics.

It wasn't just Lynch who was in a mess. Under Bruce Bowen's defense, Marbury's offense was also struggling.

The Spurs are most good at punishing guards like Marbury who attack the basket. Bowen will stick to your steps and can quickly get back to you even if you use a screen.

He'll force you into the paint and put you right up against the greatest Spurs player ever.

Of course, considering that Duncan's defensive range is not as abnormal as KG and Lynch, if you have the ability to hold the ball and shoot in high-speed confrontation, you can also kill the Spurs.

But unfortunately, just like other breakthrough guards such as Rose and Westbrook, Marbury's shooting with the ball is a mess.

The only quality that makes Marbury better than other breakthrough guards is that he is very accurate in shooting after receiving the ball at a fixed point, but he does not play without the ball very often, which makes his advantage completely useless.

The Spurs won, and in order to punish Sam Presti, the double agent, Lynch asked him to treat him to a meal.

A day later, the Knicks lost to the Supersonics, who were thriving in three-point shooting, and suffered their first consecutive losses of the season, bringing their record to 6 wins and 3 losses.

Then, the media found a very interesting narrative angle - the Cleveland Cavaliers and the New York Knicks both started with 6 wins and 3 losses. The Cavaliers and Knicks, who are of similar strength, will fight for a playoff spot. This competition will start from the beginning of the season, from the first encounter on November 29!
The Cavaliers' trajectory this season is slightly different from that of the Knicks. LBJ started with three consecutive losses, but then had a gorgeous six-game winning streak.

During the six-game winning streak, LBJ proved his strength. The scene of him crushing the opponent's defense like an armored vehicle has become a fixed picture of ESPN's daily top five plays. More and more people believe that he and the Cavaliers are fully prepared for the playoffs.

Nike and the media also began to launch a public opinion war. They did not forget Reebok's provocative advertisement in the summer.

Looking at the two teams that will meet for the first time at the end of November on the schedule, Cleveland Plain Dealer ace reporter David McMenamin finally opened fire.

"When the real one-on-one matchup comes, I hope Lynch can still be as calm as in the commercials. After all, LeBron's chase-down block isn't scripted like a studio commercial."

Before this showdown came, LeBron James wrote a magnificent prologue - in the game against the defending champion Detroit Pistons, facing another destined opponent, Melo, he led the team to victory with 43 points, while his teammates scored only 44 points in total.

He saved the team and defeated the defending champions, and the halo of personal heroism shone above his head.

After the game, an ESPN reporter turned the microphone to Cavaliers point guard Jeff McGinnis and asked the question the entire league was waiting for the answer: "After defeating the Pistons, nine days later at Madison Square Garden, the mecca of basketball, how are you going to deal with Lynch?"

"Come on," McGinnis said with a disdainful grin. "LeBron just put all the melons in the freezer tonight. Lynch won't go directly against LeBron. He's not as fast or strong as LeBron. He can't defend LeBron. When LeBron launches his death charge, poor old Grant Hill will be uprooted and probably end up in bed again. Lynch can only watch this talented execution happen."

McGinnis' words made all the media believe that no matter what the outcome, it would be a tragic night in Grant Hill's career.

LBJ is really hard to stop this season, especially for the injury-ridden Grant Hill.

Only Grant Hill himself doesn't think so.

He won't claim to be better than LBJ now, but Lynch won't let him become a tragedy.

His trust in his 18-year-old teammate has reached an incredible level.

However, Lynch's reaction was more intense than Grant Hill had imagined.

In the locker room interview after training the next day, Lynch angrily yelled at the camera.

"This is the last time he disrespects Grant, I promise!"

Ever since that heart-to-heart talk above the clouds, Hill had long been classified by Lynch as "inviolable", just like a medieval lord branding his family crest on a knight's armor.

Lynch has already treated Grant Hill as his own.

He will always keep him under his wings.

(End of this chapter)