pertwk Chapter 680 The fully-equipped Knicks finally reappear on the court!
Chapter 680 The fully-equipped Knicks finally reappear on the court!
After January ended, the Knicks faced another formidable opponent in their first game of February.
It's the Celtics again!
These two teams will be facing off in the regular season, which will also be their last match of the season!
After losing the first two games to the Celtics, the Knicks' chances of overtaking the Celtics in wins are extremely slim, and they have essentially locked up their second-place ranking in the Eastern Conference.
But no team wants to be swept by its rivals in the regular season, as that would have a significant impact on their morale and their morale when they meet in the playoffs!
For the Celtics, who were just formed this year, they are eager to sweep the defending champions and then have more confidence for their possible playoff encounter!
Even without Anthony and Stoudemire, the Celtics don't want to give the Knicks any chance!
It can be said that both sides are united in their determination and want to fight to the death with their opponent!
It's unclear whether this was a lingering effect of their overly aggressive play in January, or if the Knicks had pushed themselves too hard over the past month, causing them to finally run out of energy.
In short, once the game started, everyone noticed something was wrong.
That night, all the Knicks players, including Lin Tian, were out of sorts. Although they were playing at home, they failed to give the Celtics much of an effective response, and their performance was quite poor!
They were down by 8 points in the first quarter, and then in the second quarter, that gap widened to 15 points!
The entire Knicks team, from top to bottom, was shooting terribly. Everyone was playing like undercover agents, and no one could get the ball into the basket.
Until the second half begins!
In the third quarter, Lin Tian, who had a terrible performance in the first half, only made 4 of 16 shots and scored 11 points, finally broke out!
He scored 18 points in the third quarter, shooting 8 of 14, leading his team to narrow the gap to only 4 points!
Lin Tian's outburst naturally thrilled all Knicks fans! They had waited the entire first half, and finally, it happened! He finally exploded!
Just when all Lin Tian and Knicks fans thought Lin Tian's outburst was only the beginning, Lin Tian once again found himself in the predicament of constantly missing shots in the fourth quarter.
In fact, Lin Tian's performance in the fourth quarter was even worse than in the first half!
He took a crazy 16 shots in the quarter, but only made 3, without any 3-pointers or free throws. He only scored 6 points in the quarter.
Fortunately, the Celtics' performance in the fourth quarter was even worse. The entire team shot only 28% in that quarter. With such stats and shooting percentage against the Knicks, the Celtics' poor form speaks for itself!
With both sides in terrible form, essentially a contest of who had the worst shooting touch, the two sides somehow managed to stay in the game without a winner in regulation time, with neither side scoring a single point in the final two minutes! This forced overtime!
In overtime, both teams continued to struggle with their shooting. The Knicks only managed 6 points on 2-of-9 shooting, while Lin Tian scored all 6 points on 2-of-5 shooting and 2-of-2 free throws.
Apart from him, the rest of the Knicks went 0-for-4 in overtime and scored no points.
The Celtics fared only slightly better, scoring 9 points on 3-of-10 shooting.
It was thanks to those 9 points that the Celtics managed to secure a hard-fought and ugly victory on the road!
No matter how ugly or unsightly the process was, or how low the quality of the game was, a win is a win! The Celtics have successfully extended their lead over the Knicks once again!
They have a clear advantage in the battle for the top spot in the East!
This game was almost the worst shooting game of Lin Tian's career. He took 51 shots but only made 17, hitting a whopping 34 shots in a single game!
This record surpasses Kobe's 17-for-47 shooting!
He ranks first among active players and fourth all-time!
The only players with more missed shots in a single game than Lin Tian are George Mikan (35 missed shots), Wilt Chamberlain (37 missed shots), and Lin Tian himself will never be able to surpass this record, making it the most difficult record to break in NBA history.
Joe Fulks' 42 irons in a single game!
Of course, it's worth mentioning that Joe Fulks also had one 37-iron, one 35-iron, one 34-iron, and two 33-iron runs in his career.
This guy holds 5 of the top 10 all-time single-game ironball records! Especially his game where he only scored 35 points on 13-of-55 shooting, which is the greatest ironball performance in history!
Anyway, Lin Tian broke so many records and trampled so many senior stars under his feet, but as for this record, Lin Tian felt that he had no hope in this lifetime!
He gave it his all tonight, and even in a terrible state, he had no choice but to go all out.
Even so, Lin Tian only gave away 34 pieces of refined iron.
Compared to Folkes' 42 iron, it's really not worth mentioning!
Although Lin Tian still scored 41 points that night, and his explosive performance in the third quarter helped the team stay close and eventually go into overtime, his teammates' shooting percentage was only 16 out of 56, which was even worse than Lin Tian's own shooting percentage.
But clearly, none of these are excuses for Lin Tian's poor performance.
Lin Tian was not going to make any excuses.
After the match, Lin Tian did not say anything harsh, nor did he blame his teammates for their poor performance, nor did he make any other excuses.
When pressed by reporters about why he was in such bad form, Lin Tian simply said that he was in terrible form, played terribly, and it was nothing to brag about.
It's that simple.
Shifting blame and refusing to admit that he played poorly is something that Lin Tian will never do!
A good performance is good, a bad performance is bad!
There's nothing wrong with admitting it.
So what if they got swept by the Celtics in the regular season?
We'll make it back in the playoffs!
The best news for the Knicks in these three games is that neither Stoudemire nor Carmelo Anthony are playing!
Despite missing two key scorers, the fact that all three games were incredibly close, with one going into overtime, speaks volumes!
The Knicks are no worse than the Celtics; they just don't have a complete roster!
Anyway, after the game, the Knicks' morale was perfectly fine.
They have absolute confidence in beating the Celtics in the playoffs!
What's even more exciting for the Knicks players is that this game marks the 20th game since Anthony and Stoudemire were suspended!
After today, they will both make their comeback! They will both be back on the court!
This is something all Knicks fans and players have been eagerly anticipating and waiting for!
They're finally back! The complete Knicks are finally back!
Then why don't we sweep through the league and sweep away all our opponents?
Spurs, Celtics, Suns, Mavericks, Lakers, all of you come at me at once! I have nothing to fear!
2 Month 3 Day!
After a full 20 games and more than 40 days of rest, Anthony and Stoudemire have returned to the starting lineup!
Tonight they will face the Atlanta Hawks, one of the worst teams in the East for many years, at Madison Square Garden!
The Hawks' record has improved somewhat this year, and they have now won 22 games!
In today's rather weak Eastern Conference, it has already managed to rank tenth!
This team could make the playoffs at any time!
Their leader is Brandon Roy, the older rookie the team drafted last summer!
So far this season, there are two regular season awards that are almost a foregone conclusion and can be awarded ahead of schedule.
One is Lin Tian's MVP, and the other is Roy's Rookie of the Year!
Both of these people have a precipitous lead over all their competitors!
Of course, theoretically, a team ranked tenth in the East and a rookie fresh out of school are no match for the Knicks!
However, after the game started, the Knicks' entire rotation rhythm changed due to the change in the starting lineup, so many people on the team felt uncomfortable and played poorly.
Anthony and Stoudemire, who returned to the team, did not play well in their first game back on the court, or rather, they played quite poorly!
They both obviously need some time to find their rhythm in the game and their shooting touch.
After all, they hadn't played a formal match for a month. Even though they hadn't slacked off during training and had even done extra training as Lin Tian said, form isn't something that can be developed through training.
The best way is to find your rhythm in the game.
Use the game to hone your skills, then quickly regain your form and get back on track!
But that's a process that has to be done gradually.
At least tonight, Stoudemire and Anthony's condition and energy are not enough to help the team defeat the Hawks!
Of course, besides the fact that these two were out of sorts, the more important reason was that Lin Tian started to slack off!
This monster, who averaged 45 minutes of playing time and 53 points per game in January, has started to coast.
Of course, it wasn't that Lin Tian wanted to slack off; it was Old Nelson who couldn't stand it anymore.
In this game, Don Nelson strictly controlled Lin Tian's playing time. He only played 7 minutes in the first quarter, and in the second quarter, he was only substituted in when there were only 6 minutes left!
The third and fourth quarters followed almost exactly the same rhythm!
So although Lin Tian scored another 38 points tonight, he only played 29 minutes! This playing time clearly indicates that Old Nelson has started to rest Lin Tian and reduce his playing time.
Lin Tian's playing time was drastically reduced, and Stoudemire and Anthony combined for a dismal 12-for-33 shooting performance. With the Knicks' trio all underperforming, the Hawks seized the opportunity and, thanks to Roy's 25 points, 5 rebounds, and 6 assists, successfully won the game!
The Knicks started February with a two-game losing streak!
Old Nelson significantly reduced Lin Tian's playing time because he genuinely felt sorry for him.
Old Nelson was genuinely worried that if Lin Tian continued playing like this, and his fatigue continued to build up, he would eventually get injured due to overexertion!
With the playoffs fast approaching, neither Don Nelson nor the Knicks can afford the risk of Lin Tian getting injured!
Of course, the more important reason why the Knicks dared to let Lin Tian rest on the court is that they have almost no pressure regarding their performance!
With a record of 37 wins and 13 losses, they are now 6.5 games behind the Celtics, who are first in the East with a record of 44 wins and 7 losses. In addition, they have lost all three of their previous games against the Celtics, so the Knicks have given up on overtaking them.
Their feud will have to wait until the playoffs.
The Cavaliers, currently third in the Eastern Conference, have a record of 30 wins and 20 losses, and the gap between them and the Knicks has reached 7 games!
As things stand, the Cavaliers have virtually no chance of overtaking the Knicks!
That's the situation in the East right now!
The top three teams are separated by 6-7 games, so there is virtually no chance of them changing positions during the regular season!
So Old Nelson can really relax completely and let Lin Tian get some rest!
Even if the team suffers a series of defeats while Lin Tian is resting, the Knicks have enough leeway to simply increase Lin Tian's playing time whenever possible!
Moreover, so far this year, Lin Tian has averaged a terrifying 43.2 points, 9.4 assists, and 11.5 rebounds per game!
Although Lin Tian only ranks fifth on the assists list, behind Nash (11.6 assists), Paul (10.6 assists), Deron Williams (9.6 assists), and Kidd (9.5 assists), and given Don Nelson's current tactical arrangements, it will be difficult for Lin Tian to surpass Nash and reclaim the assists title in the remaining two months.
However, his average score of 43.2 points per game already puts him far ahead of all other players.
Allen Iverson, who is second on the scoring list, is now averaging only 33.5 points per game.
Closing that 10-point gap would be far more difficult than having Allen Iverson lead the Magic, who currently have a record of only 19 wins and 30 losses, to a playoff run!
After all, even if Lin Tian only averages 30 points per game for the next half of the season, Iverson would need to average at least 45 points per game to catch up with him.
If Iverson had the ability to do this, the Magic would have been a powerhouse in the East long ago.
Therefore, with little chance of becoming the assist leader, the scoring leader being a sure thing, and the team having no pressure on their record, Don Nelson had plenty of time and space to let Lin Tian rest.
Therefore, in the first two weeks of February, which was the eight games before the All-Star Game, Lin Tian did not miss a single game, but his average playing time dropped to 30.5 minutes, and his average stats during that period dropped to 27.5 points, 11 assists and 10.5 rebounds.
Lin Tian's reduced playing time also contributed to the Knicks' less-than-stellar performance in the eight games played in February.
In particular, the team lost to the Celtics in the game before Stoudemire and Anthony returned. After their return, they needed to find their form, and the team needed to readjust and adapt, so the team lost two more games in a row.
Fortunately, after a three-game losing streak at the beginning of February, Anthony and Stoudemire finally got into form and started playing with the same feeling they had at the beginning of the season and when they won the championship last season. The team won four and lost one of the next five games, quickly stabilizing the situation.
After all, Lin Tian wasn't injured; he was just playing half-heartedly. With him in charge and his teammates able to get back into form, there was naturally no problem.
With the season now at this point, stars, fans, and media alike have finally arrived at their annual celebration.
All-Star Weekend!
This year's All-Star Weekend theme is the same as last year's, which was about everyone praying for New Orleans and carrying out various aid activities.
This year, the game will be held directly in New Orleans, which has just completed its reconstruction!
Although the Hornets' record is still terrible, their second-year guard Deron Williams is averaging 15 points and 9 assists per game this season, and has become one of the league's top players of the new generation.
He, along with Chris Paul of the Warriors and Richard Felton of the Bobcats, are known as the three best point guards of the 05 draft class!
These three players all benefited from the golden age of point guards brought about by Lin Tian, Iverson, Nash, and others. They received a huge number of opportunities and more space in their respective teams than Lin Tian remembered.
In this year's All-Star Game, Deron Williams successfully gained the upper hand in the comparison among the three 05 stars!
He became the first of the three to be selected for the All-Star Game, albeit as a substitute, though this was also due to New Orleans needing an All-Star to represent the city.
But once you're selected, you're selected!
Besides Deron Williams, another new face on the Western Conference All-Star roster is Chris Bosh, who has earned his first All-Star selection thanks to his outstanding performance this year!
With him added, the Spurs now have three active All-Stars!
The other two are James and O'Neal, who are starting!
LeBron James even surpassed Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal to become the Western Conference All-Star vote leader for the first time in his career.
Although O'Neal has been plagued by injuries this season and has only played 20 games so far, his popularity and strength are still there. Even if he only plays 20 games, he can easily make it into the All-Star starting lineup!
The other three starters in the Western Conference are Kobe Bryant and Tracy McGrady of the Lakers and Steve Nash of the Suns.
Of these five people, four have been teammates with each other. Now that they have changed partners, they have reunited at the All-Star Game, which can be considered a different kind of fate.
Yes, people with a positive outlook see this as a reunion of old friends, a chance to rekindle old flames, and a tearful reunion.
But Lin Tian, with his rather insidious mindset, must have some... things popping into his head.
Tauren, friend's invasion, teammate swap, passionate night, old flame reunion...
Shaq, you probably don't want LeBron to know that you'd be happier working with me, do you?
Tracy, I miss you so much.
LeBron, I haven't been happy lately.
……
Ahem, the style is getting weird.
Let's talk about the bench players in the West.
Garnett, Nowitzki, Bosh, Deron Williams, Marion, Billups, and Ray Allen were all selected!
Among the players not selected from the Western Conference, Jermaine O'Neal's poor performance this year is due to serious injuries that have caused the Jazz to struggle, and his own performance has also been mediocre.
After arriving in Portland and becoming the city's leader, Randolph still averaged 24 points and 10 rebounds per game, but he completely let loose without anyone to discipline him, becoming the new head of the Portland prison.
Then there's Milicic, who's been called the biggest snub of this year's All-Star Game.
He is averaging 22 points, 10 rebounds and 2 blocks per game this season, making him the Nuggets' leading scorer, and he and Billups have led the team to fifth place in the Western Conference!
Unfortunately, there are just too many top forwards and too many excellent players in the West. Even with Milicic's 20+10 performance, he still couldn't make it into the All-Star Game.
Besides these three power forwards, the fact that players like Chris Paul of the Warriors, Ray Allen of the SuperSonics, and Rashard Lewis failed to make the All-Star team has also sparked considerable debate.
Compared to the West, where many talented individuals were overlooked, leading to considerable controversy over who should and shouldn't be selected, the situation in the East is much simpler and clearer! (End of Chapter)