Chapter 312 Defending the Title
Jordan really came up with what he said. In the next game, He Zhongqiu focused on defense and, following the last game, he once again feasted the Spurs with hotpot.

He played the entire first quarter and only scored 5 points with 3 of 6 shots, but just like in Game 4, he again blocked 5 shots in a single quarter, making the Spurs dare not shoot in the restricted area.

Duncan was blocked three times in one quarter, and even he was a little hesitant to shoot in the restricted area.

Under his defense, the Knicks frequently launched defensive counterattacks. After the first quarter, the score was 28:21, and they were already leading by 7 points.

At the beginning of the second quarter, He Zhongqiu rested for two minutes.

The Spurs did not take the opportunity to catch up, because up to this point, the physical fitness of the Spurs' five main players is not as good as that of the Knicks' main players.

Not only did they play four more games in the series, but they also had less rest time than the Knicks. In the first four games, Duncan and others also played more minutes than Nash and others.

So it’s not that Popovich doesn’t want to catch up, it’s that Duncan and the others can’t play anymore and need some rest.

As soon as He Zhongqiu came on the court, the Spurs also sent out Duncan.

The Spurs were on offense, and Duncan, who had been blocked three times, didn't dare to shoot easily in singles.

He waited for Horry to come over and block He Zhongqiu before turning around and sliding down the court with the ball, then shot over the Postman's head and hit the backboard.

But at this moment, He Zhongqiu had already squeezed Horry aside, leaped up and blocked the ball, directly nailing it on the backboard.

Even though his will was as strong as a stone Buddha, Duncan, who never had a second expression on the court, couldn't help feeling powerless at this moment.

"It was the sixth block. Zhongqiu went crazy on the defensive end." Yu Jia said excitedly.

Two minutes later, Tony Parker, who did not dare to break into the restricted area, made a quick stop and jump shot two steps away from the restricted area.

"Snapped!"

He Zhongqiu rushed over and blocked the shot.

"Seventh block."

Jordan shook his head and said, "Wolverine's defense speed is too fast!"

In the 7th minute of the second quarter, He Zhongqiu made his 8th block of the game and ran to the top of the arc to slap Bowen.

Bowen got a small open space at the top of the arc and took a three-pointer, but was slapped in the face.

After He Zhongqiu landed, he rushed forward, picked up the ball and launched a fast break.

There was no defender in front of him, so he jumped from the free throw line and completed the defensive counterattack with a space-walking tomahawk slam dunk.

"Clap clap clap..."

After this dunk, there was a lot of applause in the SBC Center Arena, and some Spurs fans were applauding.

"We're trailing by 15 points, and the Spurs fans are applauding Wolverine. The morale is low." Barkley shook his head.

"Every time the Knicks play away against the Spurs, the stadium is packed. In San Antonio, there are also many Wolverine fans," said Kenny Smith.

"Iron Eagle King is currently in theaters and has a good chance of becoming the top box office hit in North America this year," Jordan said with a smile.

After this block, the Spurs' shooting distance was further extended and they made more three-pointers.

For a while, the team had a good touch and after a barrage of three-pointers, the score difference was reduced to single digits, trailing by only 6 points.

But then, He Zhongqiu led the team in a wave of offense, which reversed the Spurs' momentum and widened the score difference to double digits again.

Then the Spurs' outside shooting cooled and they missed a few shots. By the end of the third quarter, the score difference had widened to 15 points.

In the final quarter, Popovich asked for less outside attack and more low-post attack, and Duncan had to stand out.

Duncan played well at the beginning of tonight, but as He Zhongqiu's defensive form came into play, his hit rate dropped sharply.

But at the critical moment, Popovich still only trusted Duncan.

"Snapped!"

Unfortunately, He Zhongqiu kept a close eye on Duncan today, and Duncan's first shot in the final quarter was blocked.

This was also He Zhongqiu's 11th block today, breaking his own block record.

But at Popovich's request, Duncan did not give up and continued to attack in the low post.

In the fourth minute, He Zhongqiu blocked Duncan for the 12th time, which was also his 7th time tonight.

At this time, the score difference widened to 20 points, and the morale of the Spurs, including Duncan, completely collapsed.

In the eighth minute, the Knicks led by 25 points. Duncan took the initiative to apply for a foul, pulling He Zhongqiu down from the sky while dunking, and getting his sixth foul.

With Duncan being ejected, the game truly entered garbage time, and both sides replaced their substitutes to finish the game.

"Di Di!"

At the end of the game, the Knicks defeated the Spurs 83:106 and won the finals series with a score of four to one.

"Oh ho!"

When the whistle sounded, everyone on the bench rushed into the court, and hundreds of Knicks fans also cheered.

"Haha! I have defended my title, and I will continue to rule the dynasty in the future."

He Zhongqiu was very happy. He had just defended the title and was already thinking about winning the third consecutive championship.

“I won the championship!”

Winning the championship at the age of 42, and as a main player, the Postman was ecstatic and couldn't help but burst into tears.

He wanted to hug He Zhongqiu, but He Zhongqiu pushed him away with disdain and said:
"Doc, why are you crying about a championship? Look at your lack of ability! No wonder you can't beat Jordan."

"Thank you, asshole!"

The postman was so angry that his tears evaporated instantly, but he still thanked him happily, then turned around and hugged Nash who ran over to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival with him.

“Finally I won the championship!”

Glove Gary Payton jumped and danced with joy, just like any other young man, hugging this one and shaking hands with that one.

Although Duncan was frustrated, he still waited by the side.

Although he has two championships, he did not defend them, so he envied He Zhongqiu very much.

"Wolverine, congratulations."

At this time, seeing that He Zhongqiu was free, he hurried over and extended his hand.

He Zhongqiu advised: "Tim, I guess you haven't seen my movie yet, now you have time, go watch it.

Don't worry, I won't let you down. I believe this movie can make up for your regret of not winning the championship."

Duncan walked away without a trace of nostalgia.

"Tim, you are still young and the future belongs to you." He Zhongqiu shouted from behind.

"Haha..." Nash and a group of people almost fell down laughing.

Duncan stumbled and almost fell down, but fortunately his wife held him. He turned around and glared at He Zhongqiu, then pulled his wife and quickened his pace and left.

“Defended the title!”

At the end of the game, Zhang Heli cheered happily.

"Congratulations to the Knicks, congratulations to Zhongqiu, they are the defending champions!" Yu Jia said excitedly.

“中秋31分17篮板5助攻2抢断12封盖，再一次在总决赛中打出三双。”张合理笑道。“总决赛五场比赛，场均40分14.8篮板4.8助攻1.8抢断8.2盖帽，投篮命中率65.4%，罚球命中率92.5%。”于佳说道。

Zhang Heli said: "Stone Buddha Duncan's performance tonight was better than in the previous Game 4, but not much better.

吃了中秋7记大帽，21投8中，命中率38.1%，加上5罚3中，得到19分14篮板6助攻1抢断2盖帽4失误6犯规的数据。”

In the TNT commentary booth, Buckley said with a strange emotion: "The Knicks defended their title. This is the first time the team has defended its title. Under the leadership of Wolverine, it is moving in the right direction."

Kenny Smith said: "The Wolverines played a great finals. To be honest, it would be a huge pity if they couldn't win the championship with such a performance."

Jordan nodded and said, "The strong are the kings. I also congratulate Wolverine. You have become the most powerful active player in this league."

"The best player in the NBA, the Wolverine from China, the super center, happy Mid-Autumn Festival!" Barkley nodded.

At the scene, He Zhongqiu accepted congratulations from David Stern and Loswadelli, and then hugged Yang Xue.

He celebrated with a group of friends again, and a large group of reporters surrounded him to take pictures.

Next is the presentation of the championship trophy and the start of FMVP voting.

"Congratulations to the New York Knicks for winning the 2004/05 NBA Championship..."

David Stern gave a speech and handed the trophy to James Dolan with a smile on his face.

"The honor belongs to the Knicks, to New York..."

James Dolan excitedly raised the trophy high.

When He Zhongqiu raised the trophy, the cheers, applause, and shutter sounds from the media were particularly loud.

There were still thousands of Spurs fans at the scene, they should be fans of He Zhongqiu.

He Zhongqiu took photos with Yang Xue holding the trophy, and some Hollywood celebrity friends also came up to take photos with him.

"Wolverine, two championships in three years and defending title, what do you want to say most at this moment?" a reporter asked.

He Zhongqiu immediately said: "We won the championship again away from home without the participation of home fans. I feel very sorry."

"Haha..." People around laughed.

There was no suspense about the next FMVP either, as He Zhongqiu won with unanimous votes.

"Crack, click, click..."

He and Yang Xue stood together, each holding a trophy, and the bright flash lights of the media shone for a long time.

This photo soon spread around the world through the Internet.

He Zhongqiu's cell phone was in Yang Xue's bag, and she received so many congratulatory messages that she couldn't even read them all.

Yao Ming and other members of the men's basketball team, a large group of domestic sports elites whom he met at the Olympics last year, as well as many coaches, the General Administration of Sports, the Basketball Management Center, the Martial Arts Management Center, the Mahjong Association, etc., all sent congratulatory text messages.

There were also a lot of text messages from the domestic and Hollywood entertainment circles, and everyone who knew his cell phone number sent congratulatory messages.

The same goes for all the advertising endorsements, sponsors, some boxing promoters, and a large number of domestic and foreign media reporters.

After celebrating with the fans on the field for half an hour, he returned to the locker room.

"Hoohoho..."

"we are the champion!"

"Boss, give me your bonus!"

The management prepared ten boxes of champagne, and after a crazy spraying, the entire locker room, including the floor in the bathroom, was covered with a layer of champagne.

After celebrating all night, He Zhongqiu woke up in bed at noon the next day.

In the evening, the Knicks' special plane arrived in New York, and then three days of continuous celebration began.

On the evening of the 17th, after the first day of celebration, Ross Lewis came to the villa.

He said: “Boss, King Kong was released yesterday, with a box office of 850 million US dollars on the first day, which did not have much impact on King of Iron Eagle.

Our box office decline is not that big, only 12%. Yesterday's box office was 1300 million, and there are 7200 screens. King Kong premiered on only 4500 screens."

"How much is it now?" He Zhongqiu asked.

Lewis said excitedly: "Today's movie hasn't come out yet. As of the 16th, it's been 12 days in total, and the box office is 2.7 million US dollars."

"Not bad." He Zhongqiu also laughed.

"Boss, the media now predicts that Iron Eagle King will gross over 4 million in North America," Lewis said happily.

"What about the overseas box office? How much is in China?" He Zhongqiu asked.

Yang Xuexian said, "The domestic box office statistics are somewhat delayed. What we collected yesterday was the box office of the first ten days, 2.1 million. Maybe it has already surpassed Director Zhang's Hero."

He Zhongqiu nodded happily and looked at Frank Zhang.

Ross Lewis said excitedly: "Boss, excluding China, the overseas box office is currently 3.9 million US dollars."

"So high?" He Zhongqiu said excitedly.

"Yes, Boss, excluding China, the overseas box office is 144% of the North American box office, which is a very good figure."

Lewis said this and added: "Except for China, the global total box office has now reached 6.6 million US dollars, and Iron Eagle King is expected to reach billion."

"A billion dollars?"

He Zhongqiu and Yang Xue both laughed.

Lewis smiled and said, "As long as the box office reaches $3 million, according to the step-by-step decreasing profit-sharing method, the producer will eventually receive 60% of the box office share."

He then explained, “The specific reduction method is that 90% of the first week’s box office goes to the producer, and then it decreases by 10% every week.

If the box office revenue reaches 10 billion US dollars, the producers can get at least 65% or even up to % of the box office share.

That means the producers and distributors can get at least $6.5 million in revenue.”

Yang Xue said: "According to this calculation, excluding the share of the publisher, Iron Eagle King's profit can reach at least 5 million US dollars."

"15% is, $7500 million? Plus the $5000 million in box office revenue, that's $1.25 million in total, not bad."

The total investment of this film is as high as 8000 million US dollars. He Zhongqiu's salary is 1200 million US dollars, all of which is counted as investment, accounting for 15% of the investment amount, sharing 15% of the profits, and 5% of the global box office share.

There was some profit on the distribution side, but not much.

In other words, his film salary plus investment income account for a quarter of the profit in total.

Of course, there will be huge and continuous peripheral income in the later stage, and it is hard to say how much it is, maybe hundreds of millions of dollars, or maybe tens of millions.

Ross Lewis said excitedly again: "Fortunately, we have invested a lot in Iron Eagle King 2. Boss, you have 22% of the box office share, and the company has received 30% of the investment share. Together, we can get at least 60% of the profits from this movie."

He Zhongqiu nodded. If The King of Iron 1 could reach a box office of 10 billion US dollars, the box office of The King of Iron 2 would not be too bad.

Even if the box office is only half of the first film, plus the peripheral income, it will be a huge profit compared to the production cost of 1 million US dollars.

On the 20th, as the celebration ended, Knicks President and General Manager Scott Layden also began to get busy.

The main structure of the championship-winning lineup will not change, but there will be major changes in the substitute lineup. It’s not that he doesn’t want to keep anyone, but that he can’t.

(End of this chapter)