NBA: Starting with the undercut by Parker and Bowen

On the bus to the hotel after the game, Adelman approached Yao Ming and informed him: "Tomorrow night is a back-to-back game against the New York Knicks, Yao, you'll be resting."

Adelman has decided to rest key players as much as possible during back-to-back games against teams outside the playoffs.

Now Yao Ming is being rested, and when McGrady recovers from his injury, Yao Ming and McGrady will take turns resting.

After all, Adelman was worried about protests from the media and fans, or even punishment from the league, by resting two of the team's key players at once.

Why not give Yang Lin a rest day?

Who can blame him for being young!

He's just a second-year rookie; last season, he didn't even play many regular season games.

As league stars, they should play at least one round of home and away games with their respective teams!

Unlike Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady, he is young and has no old injuries, so he can take advantage of his health to rack up more regular season stats.

Yao Ming is clear about the team's goals for this year and also understands his own physical condition.

Therefore, upon hearing Coach Adelman's arrangement, he smiled and nodded in agreement:

"No problem, Coach, I'll follow the team's arrangements. I can get paid without playing time; this is a great opportunity."

After discussing Yao Ming's rest schedule, Adelman looked at Yang Lin and asked with a smile, "Yang, we're going to Madison Square Garden tomorrow. Don't you have any thoughts on that?"

Yang Lin is reading a message from his agent, Bill Duffy.

After tomorrow night's game against the New York Knicks, he will officially sign an endorsement contract with Nike at 10 a.m. the day after tomorrow.

The signing ceremony will be held publicly, followed by media interviews.

Bill Duffy sent him some instructions to prevent him from saying the wrong thing and causing unnecessary trouble.

Hearing someone call his name, Yang Lin looked up, a blank expression on his face, and asked, "What? What's your idea?"

Seeing his confusion, Yao Ming explained, "Coach Rick is asking if you have any particular thoughts on our upcoming game against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden tomorrow night."

"For example, how about getting a high score? 50+, or even more impressively, 60+?"

Upon hearing this, Yang Lin instantly snapped out of his daze, turned to look at 226 beside him, and asked with wide eyes, "Has any player ever scored 60+ points at Madison Square Garden?"

In his memory, Kobe's 61-point performance on Madison Square Garden wouldn't happen until next year, and Carmelo Anthony's 62-point performance wouldn't come until 14...

He wasn't very clear about the ancient NBA knowledge.

"How would I know? Who cares about these things if there's nothing wrong?"

Yao Ming couldn't help but roll his eyes.

He's not a player who can score high points, so he certainly won't break the highest scoring records of each team, and naturally he won't pay attention to these things.

Adelman smiled and explained to them, "Madison's highest score was exactly 60 points, achieved by Knicks legend Bernard King, more than 20 years ago."

"Young, if you can score 60+ points, you'll definitely shine at Madison Square Garden. The Knicks are going through a slump right now, maybe you'll get a roar from the home crowd."

The other Rockets players in the car, upon hearing Adelman and Yao Ming urging Yang Lin to rack up points the next night, immediately joined in the commotion.

Wilcox: "Yang, I can provide you with unlimited cover. Let's try to rack up a big score tomorrow night."

Matt Barnes: "Young, that's definitely a possibility. Didn't we just play the Knicks a few days ago? Their players are unguardable."

Veteran Chris Webber also chimed in, laughing and saying, "I can facilitate the offense from the center and distribute the ball; maybe I can even rack up assists!"

Yang Lin was somewhat tempted. Scoring on Madison, ahead of Kobe and LeBron, was indeed a tempting prospect.

But who knows how the game will go tomorrow?

And as for those trolls in the car, you can't overestimate their limits.

If Yang Lin really made a boast now, they might use it as a joke and spread it around later.

If a boast comes true, it might even become a legendary tale of keeping one's word.

But if he messes up tomorrow, won't Yang Lin be ridiculed by fans for the rest of his life?

Therefore, he scoffed and said, "Oh my, why do you guys make it sound like racking up points is such an easy thing?"

"How about you guys farm points tomorrow, and I'll provide support? I'm actually aiming for 20+ assists anyway! After all, I'm a point guard!"

As he spoke, he raised an eyebrow at Yao Ming and teased, "Brother Yao, why don't you skip your day tomorrow and come out and score 50+ points?"

"Whoa~~~"

The people inside the car made sarcastic remarks.

They really want to rack up points at Madison!

But they also need to have that ability!

January 9, Madison Square Garden, New York.

As night fell, Madison was packed with people and bustling with activity.

Although the Knicks' record is currently abysmal, it doesn't dampen the enthusiasm of New Yorkers to come and watch the games live.

Uh! Actually, it does have a slight impact.

The difference between them is that they are either packed or nearly packed.

The Madison Square Garden had 19035 attendees tonight, just a few hundred short of a full house.

But this doesn't mean that the Knicks' home game tickets weren't sold out.

Those wealthy people might have bought tickets, but didn't actually come to watch the game live.

The owners of other teams must have been moved to tears!

Despite losing Allen Iverson, the Philadelphia 76ers are still in contention for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference!

Last night, the attendance at a match at the home stadium of Vakovia Center surprisingly dropped below 10,000.

The New Jersey Nets are located a few kilometers from New York.

Currently ranked sixth in the Eastern Conference, the team boasts stars like Kidd and Carter, yet its daily attendance is only around 15,000 to 16,000 people.

The Knicks not only sell a lot of tickets, but they also sell them at high prices.

That's why everyone wants to come to New York!

After entering, Dog 226, dressed in a suit, crept up to Yang Lin and whispered:

"We only come here once a year, so don't miss this opportunity, brother!"

Yang Lin rolled his eyes and said in a low voice, "Brother, if it were possible, who wouldn't want to score a high score? But that takes timing, and I don't know how my touch is!"

Upon hearing this, Yao Ming chuckled happily.

"That's right, go all out, stop thinking about your crappy passing. The Knicks' defense is perfect for guards like you to score."

"Go up there and test your skills. If you're good, then try to score as many points as possible. 40+ is not too few, 50+ or ​​60+ is not too many."

Yang Lin looked up, staring blankly at 226, and asked suspiciously, "Brother Yao, I've noticed something's wrong with you! Since last night, you've been saying that I'm cheating to get a high score."

"Do you have a grudge against the Knicks? Or do you have a grudge against certain players on the Knicks?"

"Hehe~~" Yao Ming chuckled, pretending to be clueless and remaining silent.

At 7:30 p.m., the starting players for both sides took to the field.

With Yao Ming resting, Adelman fielded the following starting five for the Rockets: Yang Lin, Salmons, Battier, Wilcox, and Chris Webber.

The Knicks' starting five consisted of Stephon Marbury, Jamal Crawford, Quentin Richardson, Zach Randolph, and Eddie Curry.

New York's starting lineup just looks awkward no matter how you look at it!

But don't underestimate them. Their lineup may not be strong, but they're expensive!

It's only a couple million dollars cheaper than the Celtics' starting lineup with their Big Three.

Wilcox and Eddie Curry jump ball.

"Beep~~" The referee blew his whistle, and the match officially began.

The basketball flew out, and Wilcox jumped up with all his might. The little shark just waved and turned to run towards the defensive half of the court.

"Bang!" Wilcox wins the jump ball.

Yang Lin received the ball and immediately launched a fast break.

Dribbling to the top of the arc, Yang Lin saw that Marbury was standing far away and his defensive positioning was very loose, so he jumped up and took a three-pointer.

"Whoosh!"

Just over four seconds into the game, Yang Lin scored the first point at Madison Square Garden.

Basketball mecca, who wouldn't want to... have a go?