20demayo Chapter 587 Go and win that damn championship, Alonzo!
Chapter 587 Go and win that damn championship, Alonzo!
Chapter 587 Go and win that damn championship, Alonzo!
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"
"Swish! Swish! Swish!"
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
"Beep beep! Beep beep! Beep beep!"
The first two games of the series ended so quickly!
The Knicks easily secured their second consecutive win at Madison Square Garden!
In the two games, they won by 18 and 13 points respectively, easily passing the test without any major incidents.
Meanwhile, their core trio of Lin Tian, Stoudemire, and Anthony played less than 33 minutes in each of the first two games!
This timeline shows that the Knicks won by 31 points in two games because they were too lazy to win by too much, not because they could only win by that much.
Before they could even exert their full strength, the Heat collapsed. The difference in strength between the two sides was indeed enormous!
比如尼克斯队的三剑客之中，林天两场比赛分别拿下24分11篮板12助攻和20分15篮板17助攻的三双数据，安东尼是一场31分一场20分，小斯是一场23分一场30分。
Relax and enjoy yourself, maximize your output in the shortest amount of time, and then go back to rest!
On the Heat's side, the good news is that the young players weren't nervous at all. They took their first playoff run quite calmly and played at a level similar to the regular season, with everyone performing to their potential.
Of course, this is probably not because they have particularly good mental qualities or strong abilities.
This is mainly because the Knicks basically don't play defense, letting them play however they want, which is why the Heat were able to perform as usual, and even developed the feeling that: the playoffs are just like that.
By Game 3 of the series, the American Airlines Arena in Miami was packed with fans, who had completely filled the arena early on.
Not only because this game was the team's best chance and the best opportunity to avoid a sweep, but also because the Knicks had Mourning in this game!
Fans are missing Mourning terribly!
Even though Mourning had already been here during the regular season, and even though he hadn't gotten many opportunities with the Knicks this season, playing only 40 games with an average of just 8 minutes per game, and averaging only 2 points, 1 rebound, and 0.5 blocks.
He is no longer the Miami star Alonzo Mourning. Injuries and advancing age have brought him to the brink of retirement, making him an absolute fringe player.
But this doesn't diminish the fans' love for him.
Fans love Mourning not because he's so great, but because this tough guy has brought them countless joys!
An hour before the game started, as the Knicks players entered the court to warm up, the fans in the arena couldn't contain their joy and excitement.
"Alonzo! Alonzo! Alonzo!"
"Go and take that damn championship!"
"We're waiting for you to come back!"
"Miami is your home!"
"Come back as soon as you win the championship!"
"Lin, you have to lead Alonzo to the championship!"
"Alonzo! You'll always be the MVP!"
"Lin! I cast a lot of votes for you during the All-Star voting! You have to lead your team to the championship!"
"Eliminate us! We want to see Alonzo win the championship!"
From the moment the fans saw Mourning, they started shouting and cheering wildly, giving him their sincerest blessings. Even Lin Tian received cheers from the Miami fans.
This is unprecedented for Lin Tian, after all, he and his team have crushed the Heat many times in the playoffs! It can be said that Lin Tian bears the greatest responsibility for Riley's previous team building that failed to win even a single championship.
It's all this guy's fault!
That's why every time Lin Tian came to Miami, the fans there would boo and yell at him like crazy; they hated Lin Tian!
But now, because of Mourning's presence, Miami fans have actually started cheering for Lin Tian.
Lin Tian was a little moved as he listened to the cheers of the fans.
This is what the NBA should be like! And that's why it attracts fans.
If it's just business, only about winning and losing, without sentiment and stories, and without those touching mutual sacrifices, then this alliance is just a cold, impersonal machine.
Only players like Mourning and fans like Miami can truly attract more and more fans to watch the games in this league!
Amid the cheers of the fans, Mourning was also moved to tears. He had barely uttered a word all season. He walked to the center of the court, waved to all the fans, and then bowed in four directions to thank them for their love and support.
Then the lights in the arena suddenly dimmed, and a highlight reel of Mourning's match was played on the big screen. This was a gift that Riley had prepared for him, and also Riley's way of showing his respect for Mourning!
The video wasn't long; the tribute video, just over a minute long, was gone in the blink of an eye. But for Mourning and the fans here, it represented their entire youth!
Then, at the end of the video, two lines of text slowly lit up on the big screen.
"Go and win that damn championship!"
"Miami's eternal pride!"
After those two lines of text went dark, the lights in the arena came on again. Riley and Heat owner Arison had somehow walked to the sidelines, each holding a Mourning jersey, and walked towards Mourning.
Amidst the wild cheers of the fans, the three embraced each other affectionately.
"Come back after you win the championship. If you want to play, you can play for as many years as you want. If you don't want to play, I'll upgrade this jersey for you anytime!" Allison patted Mourning on the shoulder, giving the best promise a boss could make.
"I'm sorry Alonzo, I couldn't lead you to a championship, but at least I got you to a place where you could win a championship, right? I believe in you, I believe you can contribute your strength to the Knicks!" Riley kept patting Mourning's shoulder, his eyes filled with an indescribable emotion.
At that moment, neither the Knicks nor the Heat went up to act silly or disrupt their tribute ceremony; this was the respect Mourning deserved.
"Do you think we'll have this day someday too?" Anthony looked at the three people in the middle with a hint of longing in his voice, a touch of jealousy in his tone.
"We can do it!" Stoudemire patted his chest and said, "We will lead the Knicks to a championship, we will be an integral part of the Knicks team! Our jerseys will hang from the Knicks' ceiling!"
"I firmly believe this!"
"Me too!"
At this moment, the tribute ceremony ended, and Mourning, with red eyes, walked back to the Knicks' bench. Before he could speak, Lin Tian gave him a hug.
"All your hard work will pay off. This year, we will definitely be the champions!"
"Great, become the champion! For Alonzo!" Anthony was the first to raise his arm and shout.
"Become the champion! For Alonzo!" The rest of the Knicks players cheered as well. They were all stunned by what they had just witnessed. Now, everyone was filled with a strong fighting spirit. They couldn't wait to settle things with the Heat!
"We really are going to win the championship, and it's definitely for Alonzo," Lin Tian shouted excitedly as he turned to his teammates, "but also for ourselves! Charge! Today, let's tear Miami apart! Let's beat them to their knees and beg for mercy! Let's crush them!"
"Dry them to death!"
"Crush all the damn Miamiers!"
"We are the champions!"
Amidst the cheers of the players, Mourning's expression changed again; he was now in a state of utter bewilderment, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
Damn it, a tribute ceremony has given those Knicks bastards a shot of adrenaline, hasn't it?
He didn't even know whether he should join the others in chanting slogans.
Even Mo Ning felt that shouting this slogan was utterly rebellious.
In his heart, he is still a true Miamier.
I'm so conflicted! Absolutely so!
Fortunately, he only needs to keep his worries to himself.
Because he didn't play in the first two playoff games, he probably won't have much of a chance to play tonight either.
Although Mourning wasn't particularly eager for a championship ring that came entirely from freelancing with almost no contribution, he desperately wanted to play and make some contributions to the team. However, he was also well aware of his current status.
He won't talk to Don Nelson for playing time and opportunities, nor will he cause trouble.
At his age, and given his medical history, it's already incredibly fortunate and exciting that he can still be on the field. We don't ask for anything more.
"Relax, Alonzo." Just as Mourning was feeling a bit uncertain, Don Nelson sat down next to him, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "Do you really think I'd let a former top center sit on the bench forever? You'll have your chance in this year's playoffs."
"I'll make sure you win this championship rightfully!"
"Coach!" Mourning seemed particularly emotional tonight, and his eyes were already red as he looked at Nelson.
"But not tonight. You'll be on the bench today, and you'll be on the bench for the first two rounds of the playoffs. You're our secret weapon, our trump card to blow the opponent up in crucial moments!"
"Alonzo, get ready. I might call your name at any time and you could play for 20 or even 30 minutes, understand?"
"Understood!" Mourning nodded resolutely. "Even if you put me on the court for the full 48 minutes right now, I'm ready. I can do it!"
"I told you, not tonight." Old Nelson rolled his eyes.
Then, without saying anything more, he sat back down in his seat.
The third game of this series is about to begin!
Neither side made any adjustments tonight, continuing with their previous lineups.
Of course, the Knicks don't need to make any adjustments. They have the Heat completely under their control and have the upper hand, so there's no need for them to make any changes.
As for the Heat, they have no room for adjustment. The team only has so many players available, and making any more changes will only make the team perform worse.
This is the only way to fight!
"Beep beep!"
The referee blew his whistle, and the match officially began!
Dampier and Okur jumped at the same time, and the taller and stronger Dampier successfully won possession of the ball for the Heat on the first offensive possession.
Hinrich grabbed the basketball, first swinging his elbows a couple of times to prevent Lin Tian from stealing it, then raised his hand and said, "Don't rush, everyone! Let's take it one by one! Tonight, we'll show Big Brother what we're made of!"
"Let Alonzo know that we're doing just fine without him!"
"yes!"
On the Heat's side, the players were also shouting together! Clearly, it wasn't just the Knicks players who were ignited with fighting spirit and morale by the tribute ceremony.
The Heat team was just as fired up!
Let's get this fired up and have a duel!
Hinrich dribbled steadily to the frontcourt and then had Dampier come up to run a pick-and-roll with him. After the screen, Hinrich pulled up and shot, taking a three-pointer!
"Whoosh!"
After a crisp sound, Hinrich scored a three-pointer to open the scoring for the Heat!
"This guy didn't play like this in the first two games." Lin Tian smiled and gestured for his teammates to pass him the ball from the baseline, while looking at Hinrich and saying, "Going all out, huh?"
"Tonight is different, Lin! We'll be even more determined than before! For Alonzo, we're going to win this game!"
"If it's for Alonzo's sake, shouldn't you have lost cleanly and decisively?" Lin Tian couldn't help but complain. "The best way for Alonzo to win is to let us advance easily!"
silence.
Lin Tian's words silenced Xinliqi completely.
His response turned into a physical one. Hinrich's defense became even more aggressive, and he pressed Lin Tian from behind, applying intense pressure on him!
However, although one of Hinrich's selling points is his defense, Lin Tian had experienced a much fiercer level of play from Payton 10 years ago. He didn't react at all to this, but instead raised his hand to signal Stoudemire to come forward, and then it was a pick-and-roll play.
After another single screen, Lin Tian created some distance and pulled up for a three-pointer!
"Whoosh!"
3: 3!
"Decisive? Resolute?" After scoring, Lin Tian continued to mock Hinrich, "We play like this every day, and you only bring out this thing today? Who do you expect to beat?!"
After saying that, Hinrich received the ball from his teammate on the baseline, but Lin Tian attacked even more aggressively this time, almost sticking right up to Hinrich.
This is Lin Tian's response to the Heat!
Want to see who fights more fiercely? Want to see who's tougher?
Then let's go!
Let's see who's fiercer!
Hinrich's composure prevented him from forcibly breaking through Lin Tian's defense; instead, he chose to pass the ball the moment Lin Tian closed in.
The basketball came into the hands of the team's star player, power forward Lamar Odom.
The multi-talented Odom is called a power forward, but in reality, only his rebounding ability and height qualify him as a power forward.
His playing style, technique, and other aspects are more like those of a swingman.
Dribbling, orchestrating the offense, pick-and-roll, passing and playmaking, post-up moves...
This guy knows almost every skill on the basketball court, and he does them all quite well.
He is a player who can truly play from position 1 to position 5.
Unfortunately, while Odom did all of these things well, none of them reached the top level. He was more like a versatile, top-tier piece of the puzzle than a leader of a team.
Besides his incredibly comprehensive yet not proficient skills, another problem with Odom was his personality.
This guy's personality is too unrestrained; he's always cheerful and rarely gets really into a fight to the death. Another issue is his lack of concentration, which is what people criticize most.
This guy always gets distracted during matches and makes some incredibly basic and laughable mistakes.
If it weren't for the absence of the original "Shaqtin' a Fool" in this era, Odom would definitely have replaced McGee and become the king of the original "Shaqtin' a Fool"!
Odom's overly carefree personality and easygoing temperament limited his potential.
But his skills and talent are enough to guarantee his survival!
For example, in this play, when Odom dribbled the ball to the frontcourt and faced Stoudemire at a 45-degree angle on the right, he didn't stop. He continued dribbling towards the right sideline while gesturing to his teammates, as if he wanted to create space and pass the ball to them to organize the offense.
But in the next instant, this guy suddenly made a sharp and rapid change of direction. The basketball was on his left side in the blink of an eye, and he stomped his foot hard, shooting off like a rocket! Stoudemire could only watch from behind and had no time to do anything else!
too fast!
Odom's speed was so great that even Stoudemire, who had top-tier mobility for the power forward position, couldn't keep up with him!
Of course, this is partly due to Stoudemire's terrible defense and inability to defend, but the more important reason is that Odom is truly gifted!
He blew past Stoudemire in one step and rushed into the paint in the blink of an eye. Odom faced Okur and pulled up directly, dodging Okur's block in mid-air with a layup, and then easily sent the ball into the basket with a left-handed layup!
After scoring, a jubilant Odom triumphantly raised his leg high as he quickly retreated to defend, his mouth agape in a wide grin that seemed to stretch all the way to the back of his head.
That's just his personality: cheerful, easily amused, and full of joy.
In a regular season game or an All-Star game, Odom's personality can get the whole arena buzzing.
But on the playoff stage, while he was celebrating triumphantly, the Knicks' baseline ball had already been launched at high speed and arrived behind him. By the time he realized it and prepared to turn around and defend, Lin Tian had already driven to the Heat's three-point line!
Facing Hinrich, Lin Tian made full use of his overwhelming physical advantage, playing a simple and efficient game. He didn't bother with Hinrich at all, but instead used a change of direction and acceleration to get past Hinrich and directly penetrate the Heat's empty interior.
(End of this chapter)