Chapter 235 Chapter 236 Champion

At half past eight, the competition officially began.

O'Neal and He Zhongqiu jumped the ball, but they still didn't jump, and the Knicks attacked.

Zhang Heliang said: "After Zhongqiu had the mid-range shot, he adopted more pull-out play on the offensive end, which saved a lot of energy.

Then, he used the energy he saved to defend against Shaquille O'Neal, and the effect was very good."

Xu Jicheng nodded and said, "Although this reduces the number of attacks under the basket and his hit rate drops, his number of shots increases. He averages 39 points per game, and his overall hit rate is still much higher than the Lakers' team's hit rate."

At this time, He Zhongqiu moved to the high position and played pick-and-roll tactics with Nash.

Nash dribbled the ball and broke through from his right side, but when he passed by, the ball fell into his hands.

He suddenly turned left with his back to the postman, stretched out his left elbow to hold the postman, and then jumped up and hit the board.

The Postman was already a little slow and was stuck on the left side, unable to defend properly.

Karl Malone has decided to retire after this season. He doesn't want to shamelessly cling to Wolverine anymore, so tonight's game is his last chance.

If you can't defend, then foul.

"Snapped!"

He rushed forward and swung his elbow, knocking He Zhongqiu to the ground.

"Di!"

The referee's whistle sounded, and the basketball thrown by He Zhongqiu hit the backboard and missed.

"The Mailman committed a defensive foul and the Wolverines made two free throws," said Kenny Smith.

"The Postman has no choice. Wolverine's mid-range shots from the free throw line are too accurate. But letting Wolverine shoot free throws is just giving away points, and he will also commit a foul in vain." Dream said.

Barkley joked: "It's just a gamble, it's a loss."

Next, He Zhongqiu made two free throws.

"Wolverine, get out of my way!"

In the Lakers' frontcourt, in the low post on the left wing, Shaquille O'Neal went all out, completely disregarding his physical strength as he began to squeeze in to get into a deep position.

The basket is no more than 2.5 meters away from the left sideline of the restricted area, and within 3.5 meters is considered a close shot area, but his close shot success rate is only over %, so you have to get as close to the basket as possible to be confident.

Unfortunately, there was no impact force when I squeezed hard, and after a few squeezes, I only got it in half a foot. Then when the three seconds were up, I had to withdraw, wasting my energy.

He changed the way he wanted to get in, trying to get around.

But He Zhongqiu was more flexible and faster than him, and was blocked every time.

Suddenly, there was a shark turn, turning upwards, he finally entered the penalty area, closer to the basket, only about two meters.

But when he was leaning against He Zhongqiu to ask for the ball, his feet were unstable. He Zhongqiu defended him from behind and pushed him forward half a step.

This time, the distance was widened to two and a half meters, and a lot of physical strength was wasted, but the distance to the basket did not change at all.

"It's so sad to see the Shaq trying to get into position!" Barkley said.

"Haha..." Kenny Smith laughed.

"Wolverine's power is truly amazing." Da Meng exclaimed.

Payton still passed the ball, hoping that O'Neal could use his back-to-the-basket technique to score into the basket.

On the left front side of the basket, O'Neal received the ball, dribbled with his left body, and then pushed back fiercely, creating a terrifying impact force in an instant.

He Zhongqiu used his chest to take the impact, and the moment the force of the impact hit his body, the blood in his body surged, and the strength of his muscles and bones burst out.

"Oh!"

The sound of extremely heavy bodies colliding was heard.

O'Neal's momentum was instantly halted, and He Zhongqiu was also knocked back with his upper body leaning back and his left foot stepping back.

"too strong!"

Dream was amazed in his heart. Even if it was him, he wouldn't dare to defend O'Neal like this. He would be knocked over.

The next moment, when O'Neal wanted to arch his back again and completely knock He Zhongqiu over, He Zhongqiu took the lead in getting close to him again and established a defensive position again.

"damn it!"

Being blocked again, O'Neal was furious. Just as he was about to stand up and make a short hook shot for nearly two points, Mutombo's double-team attack arrived.

"Snapped!"

Mutombo slapped the ball away from O'Neal.

Nash rushed down from the high position and grabbed the ball.

"Steal? Great! Great defense!" Yang Jian shouted excitedly.

"Even if O'Neal scored into the basket, Mutombo was still waiting for him. When Zhongqiu and Mutombo were both on the court, O'Neal had no chance at all." Zhang Heli said excitedly.

At this time, the Knicks' fast break had reached the frontcourt basket.

Under Payton's pursuit, Nash did not force a layup, but pulled back under the basket and threw the ball to the free throw line.

"boom!"

He Zhongqiu rushed down from the free throw line, jumped up, caught the ball in the air, and then made a windmill slam dunk with his right hand, smashing the ball into the Lakers' basket.

Dream exclaimed: "When Wolverine made a fast break, O'Neal and the Mailman couldn't keep up, and Mutombo couldn't keep up. When playing against the Lakers, the Knicks' fast break was invincible."

"With four against three in the frontcourt, the Lakers can't defend against the Knicks' fast break." Barkley nodded.

"Although old Payton tried his best to delay Nash, he couldn't keep up with Nash," said Kenny Smith.

4:0, Lakers attack.

Kobe asked for the ball on the right wing.

When Payton passed the ball at the top of the arc, Wells immediately moved one step along the free throw line to the right elbow area, preparing to double-team.

After receiving the ball, Kobe faced the middle of the left wing and dribbled sideways inward.

"Both of them weigh about 100 kilograms. Battier didn't have a hard hold, so he just put it in slowly." Zhang Heli explained quickly.

"Wait for Wells's help." Yang Jian said.

Just as Yang Jian was speaking, Kobe crossed the three-point line, took one step further, and suddenly took the ball, jumped and shot backward.

Battier was a little slow, failed to defend, and Wells' double team was not in place.

"brush!"

A splash appeared and two points were made.

Xu Jicheng said: "This is the offensive method Kobe adopted when facing double teams in the finals. He would shoot after crossing the three-point line and before the double teams came. His hit rate was still good."

Zhang Heli said: "When Zhongqiu and Mutombo were both on the court, Kobe couldn't dribble the ball and break through.

If he breaks through again, he will be double-teamed by Bonzi Wells in the right elbow area. If he barely breaks through, the defense in the penalty area is stronger, and it is likely to be a three-on-one double-team. "

Yang Jian said: "Kobe can score some points with this offensive style, but as long as Wolverine defends O'Neal and then plays his own offense, the Knicks can take advantage on the offensive end. His efficiency is not as high as Wolverine's."

As the game progressed, the Knicks slowly and gradually took the lead.

O'Neal tried his best but still couldn't break through He Zhongqiu's defense. In the first ten minutes of the first quarter, he only made 4 of 1 shots and made two turnovers.

科比十分钟7投3中，三分球1投0中，1罚1中，拿到7分。

He Zhongqiu took 7 shots within ten minutes, including 4 of 3 mid-range shots, 4 fast break dunks, and 3 of 13 free throws, scoring points.

21:14, the Knicks led by 7 points and the Lakers called a timeout.

After the timeout, Kobe remained on the court for the Lakers and He Zhongqiu remained on the court for the Knicks.

Facing the double-team of Josh Howard and Charlie Ward, Kobe broke through with the ball three times in a row, scored a layup, made two points once, was blocked by He Zhongqiu once, and made 3 of 2 shots, scoring 4 points in a row.

He Zhongqiu also took advantage of the absence of the postman and O'Neal to attack the basket continuously, completing three dunks and scoring 6 points in a row.

After the first quarter, the Knicks led by 27 points, 18:9.

Barkley said: "Wolverine scored 19 points in a single quarter, Nash scored 5 points, and the Knicks' core combination of inside and outside scored a total of 24 points.

Basically, Wolverine led the Knicks' offense alone, accounting for 70% of the points."

Kenny Smith said: "Kobe scored 11 points, O'Neal scored 2 points, and the Lakers' core combination scored 13 points in total. The two of them scored more than % of the Lakers' total points."

Dream said: "The defensive intensity of both sides was very strong, and the other players didn't have good touch and couldn't attack.

湖人这边，佩顿打威尔斯2投0中，邮差打穆托姆博1投0中，德文乔治打纳什2投1中。

The Knicks were similar. Apart from Wolverine and Nash, only Battier made a three-pointer, and no one else scored. "

Barkley said: "At the critical moment, when everyone's offense can't play, that's when the superstars of both sides will decide the outcome."

"Shaq, if he could average 30+ points per game, with the addition of Kobe, the Lakers would definitely win. What a pity!" Dream smiled and shook his head.

肯尼史密斯说道：“00年总决赛，奥尼尔场均38分16.5篮板，01年场均33分15.8篮板，02年总决赛36.3分12.3篮板，

Last year, the Lakers were eliminated by the Spurs in the second round of the Western Conference. The Sharks' stats were 25.3 points and 14.3 rebounds per game, which was a clear drop. Kobe was the Lakers' top scorer.

Dream said: "This year's performance continues to decline. Only the Sharks at their peak during the three consecutive championships can compete with Wolverine."

"But this is only Wolverine's second season. His physical fitness is really strong and he is improving so fast!" Kenny Smith sighed.

Barkley said thoughtfully: "This Knicks team really didn't have much chance against the Lakers during their three consecutive championships, but now, it's hard to even win a single game."

On the Lakers bench, Phil Jackson saw no chance of winning because his biggest support, the Shaq, couldn't beat the Wolverine.

With no other options, in order to survive, he had to give Kobe one power on the court, that is, unlimited shooting rights.

The second quarter began with the Lakers attacking.

As soon as Kobe arrived on the court, he took over the Lakers' offense. Everyone else moved out and started his crazy attack.

After the gap widened, Wells' assist defense became more difficult, and Kobe got the opportunity to single out Battier.

In the first half of the quarter, he took 7 shots and made 4 of them, including 3 of 1 three-pointers, plus 2 of 2 free throws, scoring 11 points in a single quarter.

He Zhongqiu followed the routine, mainly shooting from close range and mid-range, and continued to keep defensive pressure on Shaquille O'Neal. But this was a trick of the Lakers, and his physical strength and energy was wasted on O'Neal, but the Lakers' offensive point was Kobe, and O'Neal was only responsible for attracting his defense and playing fake attacks to assist.

After half a quarter, the score was 38:33, the Lakers had pulled back 4 points and the Knicks were only leading by 5 points.

The Knicks called a timeout and Rick Carlisle rearranged his defensive tactics.

"Wolverine, Kobe hardly passed the ball to O'Neal in the finals, especially after they had a conflict, not once, so when Kobe is attacking with the ball, you can let O'Neal go at the right time."

"Dikembe, if you are under the basket and Wolverine lets O'Neal go, you can switch defense."

"Others should double-team Kobe, increase the intensity, prevent him from taking comfortable shots, and lower his shooting percentage."

"Also, strengthen your control of rebounding."

"Steve, speed up the tempo. Let's play a few fast breaks and try to overpower the Lakers and keep the score difference to double digits."

Then he replaced Mutombo.

After the timeout, the Knicks attacked.

He Zhongqiu moved to the right wing, performed a pick-and-roll with Battier, then faced Devin George in a mismatch and hit a long two-point shot.

40:33, Lakers attack.

Kobe held the ball again and launched an attack on the right wing.

He Zhongqiu kept one eye on Kobe, and when he was forcing his way past Battier, he had already let go of O'Neal and moved to the right front side of the basket.

O'Neal took the opportunity to enter the basket and stretched out his hand to ask for the ball.

The Mailman was on the right wing, not entering the paint, and Mutombo was guarding the low post on the right wing.

At this time, he saw Wolverine let O'Neal go, so he immediately went to the basket to switch defense. The postman was handed over to Wolverine, and he stood in front of O'Neal.

Kobe saw O'Neal at the basket, but had no intention of passing the ball.

"here!"

One step inside the right corner, the postman clapped his hands and shouted.

Kobe ignored the Mailman. He didn't believe in the Mailman's current offensive ability at all. Now he only believed in his own ability.

"squeak!"

When he forced his way to a position two or three meters outside the right waist position, he did not dare to break inward any further, but instead made a sudden stop and passed the ball, followed by a fadeaway jump shot.

"squeak!"

When Kobe made an emergency stop, He Zhongqiu took his first step and rushed out.

At the same time, Wells had already rushed to one step away from Kobe, and one more step would form a double-team.

The next moment, when Kobe jumped up, he faced blocks from Battier and Wells on the left and right wings, while in front of him, He Zhongqiu was already flying like a dragon in the sky, covering him with his big hands.

But he still shot firmly, adjusted the shooting angle, flicked his wrist, and the basketball flew towards the basket.

"predict!"

He Zhongqiu grabbed the basketball with his big hand and kicked it high into the air, where it was caught by Battier.

"Block? Beautiful! Zhongqiu jumped really high! Definitely over one meter." Zhang Heli said excitedly.

"Quick attack! It's time for a quick attack during the Mid-Autumn Festival!" Xu Jicheng shouted excitedly.

After He Zhongqiu landed, he immediately started a fast break, following Kobe who was returning to defense.

Battier passed the ball to Wells, who passed it to Nash in the middle. After receiving the ball, Nash immediately changed direction to get rid of Payton.

But although he got rid of Payton, he also fell behind.

When he rushed to the center line, he saw Wolverine rushing towards the penalty area from the left wing. Although Kobe was running in front, he did not hesitate and passed the ball immediately.

He Zhongqiu jumped up and caught the ball in the air above his right waist. Kobe had already returned to the basket. He landed and flew towards the basket.

Kobe cursed inwardly and dodged to the side.

"boom!"

The next moment, the Lakers' basket was blown up.

At this time, O'Neal and the Postman who were returning to defense had just reached the center line.

"Once Wolverine starts a fast break, the Lakers have no way to defend." Barkley shook his head.

"David Robinson's fast break was also very powerful back then, but Wolverine has more strength and explosiveness, and his fast break has a greater impact. Even if O'Neal stood under the basket, he would be knocked away." Dream shook his head.

"The best way is to prevent Wolverine from charging," said Kenny Smith.

Barkley said: "Wolverine's impact force now can only be compared with a 140-kilogram shark. The shark at that time was really scary."

"Yes, the Great Shark in his prime period had speed, explosive power, and great bounce." Da Meng nodded.

Kenny Smith said: "In his prime, no one could defend the Big Shaq, so he won three consecutive championships, and then the league allowed zone defense, because only the league could limit the Big Shaq."

In the following game, Kobe was caught in a fierce double-team and his offensive efficiency plummeted.

He Zhongqiu frequently switched defense with Mutombo when Kobe was attacking, and there was no connection between Kobe and O'Neal, so even if O'Neal got in position under the basket, he couldn't catch the ball.

On the offensive end, Nash repeatedly launched fast breaks, and with He Zhongqiu's ability to launch fast breaks, the offensive efficiency was greatly improved, scoring 16 points in half a quarter.

In this way, at the end of the second quarter, the score was 54:39, and the Knicks widened the gap to 15 points.

湖人下半节只得到6分，科比上半节7投4中，下半节却是6投1中。

During the halftime break, some Lakers fans left the stadium and never returned. At the beginning of the third quarter, one-fifth of the seats were empty.

After the start of the second half, the Lakers' situation did not change. As the score gap grew, more and more fans left the stadium.

After the third quarter, the score difference widened to 20 points. If Kobe hadn't refused to give up and continued to shoot frantically, the final quarter would have been garbage time.

"I don't understand, why are they fighting among themselves?"

"It's too bad. How come the Knicks are so united while we are fighting among ourselves?"

Many Lakers fans began to complain about the OK combination. They believed that if O'Neal and Kobe could join forces, they might still lose, but the situation would not be so bad and the loss would not be without suspense.

Battier, Bonzi Wells, Josh Howard, and Charlie Ward, these four players with very good defense took turns to defend Kobe, preventing Kobe from making only 12 of 1 shots in the final quarter.

The Lakers fans who stayed behind saw that Kobe was still shooting continuously at this time, and their complaining mood gradually changed.

"Kobe hasn't given up yet, he's still working hard, and we shouldn't complain about him."

"Kobe, why don't you give up?"

Many emotional female fans had red eyes and even shed tears.

At this time, Kobe, whose reputation had plummeted after the Eagle County incident and the internal conflict with O'Neal, miraculously won back the recognition of many Lakers fans.

When the time was almost up, all the Knicks players stood up, excitedly waiting for victory.

"Sister Xue, the big monk is going to win the championship!"

Liu Yifei grabbed Yang Xue's arm and whispered excitedly.

"Ok!"

Yang Xue was very excited, extremely excited.

In the CCTV commentary booth, Zhang Heli said excitedly: "Winning the championship is definitely a sublimation of status for Zhongqiu in the NBA and in the sports world.

With his current strength and influence, plus the championship, MVP, scoring title, and first team all-conference honors, he will definitely win the Finals MVP, and he will be a true NBA superstar in the future."

"Beep! Beep!"

A sharp whistle sounded and the game ended.

"We win! We win!"

Under the basket, He Zhongqiu raised his arms and roared excitedly.

"Oh!"

Nash dribbled the ball and excitedly threw it into the sky, then ran towards He Zhongqiu with his teammates, cheering.

On the bench, Knicks players and coaches, owner James Dolan, and chairman Scott Layden all cheered and headed to the court.

"Oh oh oh……"

Five hundred Knicks fans and all the players' families and relatives cheered and jumped non-stop.

On the sidelines, David Stern, Loswa Daley, all the Hollywood stars, Yang Xue, Liu Yifei and others stood up and applauded.

"106:72, the Knicks defeated the Lakers away from home and eliminated the Lakers with a big score of four to one. Congratulations to the Lakers for being the runner-up!" Kenny Smith said loudly.

"Congratulations to the Knicks! This is the third NBA championship since the Knicks were founded, and the first in the last 30 years."

At this point, Barkley said with envy: "Wolverine won the championship in his second season. He is so lucky."

Da Meng nodded and said, "Yes, some people never have this luck in their entire lives."

"Hey, Hakeem, who are you talking about?" Barkley said angrily.

"Ah, ha ha, Charles, I'm not talking about you."

Dream quickly changed the subject and said, "Yes, Wolverine is very lucky to have met a torn Lakers team. If it was the Spurs who made it to the finals this time, the Knicks might not have won."

“也恭喜金刚狼，本场轰下38分15篮板，五场总决赛场均轰下39分12篮板2.4助攻1.8抢断3.6盖帽3.2失误3.6犯规的豪华数据，投篮命中率62.5%。”肯尼史密斯又说道。

In the CCTV commentary booth, Zhang Heli was so excited that he shed tears.

"Great! That's great! We can eat dumplings for once, haha!"

He has watched the NBA for so many years, and finally saw a Chinese win the championship, and he led the team to win the championship as a core leader.

Butt's championship was a free win. He didn't even make the 12-man roster. It's nothing compared to He Zhongqiu's championship.

"Congratulations to Wolverine! He defeated Shaquille O'Neal. If it weren't for the black whistle in Game 3, he would have definitely swept the Lakers." Yang Jian said excitedly.

"Yes, it's a flaw!" Xu Jicheng smiled regretfully.

(End of this chapter)