Chapter 326 Another “Lord of the Rings”?
In the following period, the Knicks won consecutive games against the Trail Blazers and Wizards, and defeated the Warriors both at home and away, with great momentum, and won five consecutive games at the start.

This season, the illegal hand-using rule was officially implemented, restrictions on perimeter defense were strengthened, dribbling breakthroughs became more convenient, and outside scoring showed an overall explosive trend.

Steve Nash gained some advantages, as his scoring and shooting percentage both increased slightly after his breakthroughs became easier.

Iverson's situation is similar, with both his scoring and shooting percentage increasing.

LeBron James, when he breaks through with the ball on the outside, becomes an unstoppable tank, with his average points per game increasing from 27.2 points last season to 31.5 points.

For example, Kobe's average points in the previous few games increased significantly, reaching 36 points, eight points more than last season, and his shooting percentage also increased by nearly two percentage points.

He Zhongqiu won the scoring title last season, but he only averaged 32.4 points per game. Kobe is likely to compete with him for the scoring title this season.

This rule also had some impact on He Zhongqiu. The basket he protected was more likely to be blasted by outside breakthrough players.

When the perimeter defense is weakened, the speed of the outside ball-handling breakthrough is faster, and the difficulty of assisting defense for the inside players increases significantly, and that's how his basket was blown up.

However, when the outside breakthroughs were strengthened, it did not lead to a one-sided situation because each team also increased the intensity of their defense.

As a result, although the scoring of outside players has exploded, the average points per game of all teams in the league has dropped by about 1 point compared to last season.

After discussing with the coaching staff, He Zhongqiu also began to adjust his playing style.

He began to intentionally increase the pick-and-roll tactics in the high post and left and right elbow areas, and strengthened his cutting and dunking. This style of play made his opponents miserable.

In the five games so far, he averaged 38.4 points per game and had a shooting percentage of 62.5%, an increase of nearly 5 percentage points from last season.

So in terms of data, he is also one of the beneficiaries.

As the regular season progresses, there is more and more discussion about the illegal hand-defending rules.

On November 11, the Knicks went to Sacramento.

This morning, the league announced the first MVP rankings.

He Zhongqiu firmly sat in first place with the best team record and personal data in the league, and was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week in the first week.

However, the Pistons also won five consecutive games and are tied with the Knicks for first place.

The Spurs have 5 wins and 2 losses, and the Heat have 4 wins and 3 losses. The start was not very smooth.

On the 13th and 14th, the Knicks won back-to-back away games and arrived in Los Angeles on the 15th.

In the evening, He Zhongqiu took a leave and stayed in his own villa.

Director Zhang and his team didn’t come back until after six o’clock. There were eight people in total, including two editors, a translator and other staff members.

The chef had already prepared dinner. When it was served, He Zhongqiu asked, "Director Zhang, is the editing going smoothly now?"

Director Zhang smiled and said, "It's been quite strenuous these past few days, but it will go more smoothly later on."

Selkirk said with emotion: "This is a mythological film that has never appeared in Hollywood. It is a pure Chinese style.

This was my first time, and it was difficult to edit because I didn’t understand Chinese culture.”

Zhang Jiahui said: "I naturally have no problem with the culture aspect, but this is the first mythological movie with such a large investment. There are too many special effects shots. I have never edited such a large-scale special effects movie, so it was very difficult when I started editing."

"Take your time, there's no rush, make sure to cut it well." He Zhongqiu said.

……

On the 16th, the Knicks will challenge the Lakers away.

This is the team's fifth consecutive away game, which is quite tiring.

Playing this kind of consecutive away games is the most tiring. Basically, you have to fly every other day, which has a great impact on physical fitness. The team cannot even arrange daily training, and the condition is much worse than at home.

In the evening, the Staples Center is star-studded.

Lakers: Kwame Brown, Chris Mihm, Odom, Kobe Bryant, Smush Parker
Knicks: He Zhongqiu, Anderson Varejao, Shane Battier, Josh Howard, Nash
At eight o'clock, both sides announced their starting lineups.

During the TNT live broadcast of the game, Barkley said: "The Lakers put up a twin tower at center, but it's probably impossible to defend Wolverine with Kwame Brown and Chris Mihm."

Kenny Smith said: "The Lakers are at an absolute disadvantage in the interior, and it is impossible for two role players to deal with a super center.

The Lakers' advantage is still Kobe's breakthrough. With the current illegal hand-use rules, whether they can destroy the Knicks' perimeter defense is the only factor in whether the Lakers can win. "

Barkley smiled and said, "With Wolverine's shot-blocking ability, Kobe would also be grounded if he broke into the restricted area. The illegal hand-guarding rule does not apply to the restricted area."

"Wolverine, when will your Iron Fist 2 be released?" After He Zhongqiu appeared, he was stopped by Tom Cruise.

After the All-Stars, he went to New York to learn throwing knives from He Zhongqiu for a few days, and then practiced hard for a few months. After he got good at it, he used it when filming Mission: Impossible 3 in the second half of the year.

But he knew that Wolverine also used flying knives in Mission: Impossible 2, so he wanted to release his own Mission: Impossible 2 before Mission: Impossible 3 was released.

"It's still in post-production, the editing hasn't been completed yet, and there are special effects later. It should be the same as Iron Eagle King 1, and it will still be a summer movie."

After He Zhongqiu finished speaking, he asked, "What about you? The post-production of Mission: Impossible 3 should be finished, right?"

"Mine is finished and on the schedule."

Tom Cruise then asked, "I'm also planning on the summer schedule, how about we make a deal, how about I do it in May and you do it in June?"

"OK, no problem."

He Zhongqiu nodded. June was the most suitable month for him. The 6st Iron Eagle King was released in June and grossed 1 billion US dollars.

The game starts at half past eight.

He Zhongqiu and Kwame Brown jump ball and the Knicks attack.

The Lakers arranged two centers, so he didn't go into the low post. Instead, he stayed in the high post, set screens for Nash, and then went down to receive the pass after the break.

"boom!"

The next moment, Kwame Brown was hanging on the rim as he was knocked over.

"Clap clap clap..."

There was actually some warm applause at the Staples Center.

"Wow!"

Barkley screamed excitedly, "Did the Lakers fans betray the Lakers in the first second?"

Kenny Smith shook his head and said, "This is Los Angeles, this is Hollywood, there are countless fans. Wolverine is the most popular Hollywood super action star today, it's not surprising that he has a large number of fans here."

On the sidelines, Phil Jackson was thinking about how to defend against Wolverine.

In the 04 finals, the Big Shark + the Mailman were not defendable.

In the 05 finals, Duncan + Nazr were unstoppable. He considered this issue not because of the Lakers' current needs.

The current Lakers are too weak. They have no strength in the interior and lack the ability to coordinate in the low post. Kwame Brown's strength and basketball IQ are not enough to play a triangle offense. He can even lose the ball after receiving it.

So he considered this issue only out of consideration for his job as a head coach.

"He has too much power, too much explosive power, and very good physical strength. We need to use a meat shield to consume him, not a main center. Popovich used Nazir to defend Wolverine in the finals, and the tactical idea should be correct."

"But his dunks can't be stopped by a meat shield, so he needs a top-notch inside defense. But Rasheed Wallace can't help defend Wolverine, so who else can help defend him?"

After much thought, he didn't have a good tactic to defend against Wolverine.

To be precise, he searched the entire league but couldn't even think of any two inside players who could partner up to defend Wolverine.

This made him think of Shaquille O'Neal in his prime. At that time, the Shaquille had unlimited dominance in the low post and no one could defend him. Even if the league introduced a zone defense rule, it could not limit the Shaquille.

It was because of the invincible Shark that the Lakers won three consecutive championships.

Of course, in the last two championship periods, Kobe played an increasingly important role, but O'Neal was still the undisputed core of the team, attracting double-teams in the low post and attacking the city in the low post.

"The current Wolverine is the Shaq in his prime, because he has a mid-range shot and a speed comparable to that of a guard, which is even more terrifying. He is truly unstoppable!"

"Shaq stepped down from his peak after three consecutive championships. He was 30 years old that year, but now Wolverine has just turned 22 and is still eight years away from turning 30."

"Is the Alliance going to produce another Lord of the Rings 'Russell'?"

He shuddered at the thought.

"But Wolverine's fighting style is too physically demanding. A serious injury could kill him. His chances of becoming the second Lord of the Rings are slim."

Thinking of this, he breathed a sigh of relief again.

On the court, Kobe received the ball on the right wing three-point line, and the person defending him was Nash.

It's not that Nash wanted to defend Kobe, but the Knicks played a three-two zone defense, and he was responsible for the right wing. Kobe looked for him, not him looking for Kobe.

"These bastards all want to get their hands on me for free."

Although he was used to it, he still felt a little resentful.

"Oh!"

Kobe dribbled past the defense and broke through from the outside.

"correct!"

Nash reacted quickly and his feet were quick. This time he was lucky and his prediction was correct. Kobe broke through from the outside and he kept up with Kobe's breakthrough rhythm.

But the next moment, his chest collided with Kobe's left shoulder, and then a force made him lean back and sit on the floor.

Kobe knocked Nash over and his breakthrough speed was also slowed down. At this time, Battier quickly completed the defense and blocked Kobe in front of him.

And Nash quickly got up.

"Whoosh!"

After being double-teamed, Kobe did not force a shot, but chose to pass the ball to the main point guard Parker at the top of the arc.

This Parker is not that Parker. This Parker is tall, 193 cm, and moves very agilely.

But he lacks the ability to play as a point guard or a shooting guard, has no good offensive means, is emotional, lacks discipline, and has poor shot selection ability.

Seeing Wolverine rushing towards him from the restricted area, he still chose a three-point jump shot.

"Take it!"

The result was also a background image. As soon as he shot the ball, it was caught by He Zhongqiu with one claw.

Amid the cheers of fans, He Zhongqiu flew past Parker, launched a defensive counterattack, and rushed to the front court basket.

During the transition from offense to defense, he was at the front and no one could catch up with him.

Parker, who was closest to He Zhongqiu, lost three meters when he turned around to defend him. He was unable to make up for the three meters until He Zhongqiu took off at the free throw line.

"boom!"

He turned 360 degrees in the air and then followed up with a powerful tomahawk slam dunk. The Lakers' basket was blown up and the Staples Center was boiling.

On the sidelines, old Buss sat with Jim Buss and Jeanie Buss, looking at Wolverine who was blasting the Lakers' basket with envy.

If the Lakers had Wolverine, not only would they be able to rise straight to become a championship-level super team, but the team's market value would also skyrocket.

In the first two seasons, the average ticket price for the Knicks was as high as $156 and $216, and the attendance rate was %, both of which were first in the league.

This season, the average price of Knicks tickets is as high as $305, and the attendance rate is still %.

At the same time, season ticket sales also ranked first in the league, reaching 6325 copies, almost one-third of the ticket supply.

The Knicks' average viewership was 15.2%, ranking first in the league, even surpassing the ratings of many NFL teams.

The Knicks' peripheral revenue also ranks first in the league.

Last season, the Knicks' net profit reached $2.8 million, also the highest in the league and several times that of the Lakers.

After this season, the Knicks will sign a new regional broadcasting contract, which will increase their revenue by at least $1 million each year, and their profits will skyrocket.

And all this was brought by Wolverine.

The game continued. Kobe passed the ball to his teammates a few times at the beginning, but his teammates couldn't make the shot. Then he passed the ball less.

He started a crazy personal attack, attacking wherever Nash was.

Even though the Knicks had a strong defensive system and several people helped Nash to fill in the gaps, Kobe still scored 42 points on them.

The Lakers took 85 shots in total and scored only 92 points. Kobe made 36 of 14 shots and 14 of 13 free throws, accounting for almost half of the points.

With a hit rate of 38.9%, he only made one three-pointer, which he missed. The rest of his shots were all pull-up jump shots after breakthroughs and layups in the restricted area, which caused a large number of fouls for the Knicks.

In the previous three preseason games, neither side played much defense and Kobe's true strength could not be seen, but this game made He Zhongqiu truly realize Kobe's strength.

Of course, the strength he refers to is Kobe's strength under the illegal hand defense rules.

Under this rule, the Knicks' perimeter defense was weakened, and they couldn't stop Kobe's breakthrough no matter how hard they tried.

贺中秋自己轰下了35分17篮板3抢断5盖帽，尼克斯全队109分，大胜湖人17分。

(End of this chapter)