NABC Chapter 92 The Strongest Regular Season in History! Surpassing a Record of 72 Wins and 10 Losses! [D
Chapter 92 The Strongest Regular Season in History! Surpassing a Record of 72 Wins and 10 Losses! [D
Chapter 93 The Strongest Regular Season in History! Surpassing a Record of 72 Wins and 10 Losses! [Daily Updates of 20,000 Words, Please Subscribe]
After achieving a 20-game winning streak, the Bulls team inevitably felt a sense of relief, but they lost their next game to the New York Knicks!
During the game, Ewing kept chanting, "1870 million! Michael, 1870 million!"
This trash talk deeply stung Jordan's heart!
It's worth noting that Jordan previously signed an 8-year, $2500 million maximum contract with the Bulls. Although he retired in the middle, the contract did not terminate, and the Bulls continued to pay him. This year is the final year of Jordan's contract.
He's about to enter the free market for the first time!
After Ewing signed a $1870 million contract, Jordan's estimate of his own value reached an extremely high level!
At the very least, the $2000 million annual salary that Krause mentioned earlier is definitely not enough to satisfy Jordan's appetite!
Unless the Bulls really think that Jordan is only $150 million better than Ewing!
The only good news is that perhaps the loss to New York spurred Jordan's pride, as he scored 40+ points in the next four games, leading his team to a four-game winning streak!
He continued to solidify his precipitous lead in the scoring title race. Some statistics show that even if Jordan averaged only 15 points per game in the next 20 or so games, no one else in the league could catch up with his average points per game!
This year, Jordan came with a thirst for revenge!
He's absolutely terrifyingly strong!
The Bulls' winning streak lasted for almost a whole month!
They didn't lose another game until early March!
Then, as usual, they started another winning streak!
By the end of March, when the regular season was down to its last two weeks and each team had only 7-8 games left, the Bulls' record had reached an incredibly impressive 66 wins and 8 losses!
They are already far ahead of all other teams, and even if they lose all eight of their next games in April, they will still take the top spot in the league!
Securing the top spot in the league half a month in advance is something that has happened before in the league's 50-year history, but it is extremely rare!
The Bulls' dominance this year is simply too exaggerated!
If the Bulls win three of these final eight games, they will tie the 1971 Los Angeles Lakers for the most wins in a single season in NBA history!
If they can win four of those games, they will become the first team in NBA history to reach 70 wins in the regular season.
The winning team and the best regular season team in NBA history!
Given the Bulls' current record and their remaining eight opponents, even if Jackson were to rest his key players, they could easily break the record!
By this point, almost everyone believed that the Bulls would achieve the best record in NBA history and more than 70 wins, and the only suspense was how many wins they would ultimately win.
In Las Vegas, following their principle that anything can be bet on, they've given out their odds!
Based on the final betting amount, 33% of people believed that the Bulls could achieve a 72-win season, which was also the most popular option.
Then there were 70 wins and 71 wins, which also garnered a significant number of votes.
在所有选项之中，选择人数最少的四项分别是74胜、66胜、67胜和68胜！选择这四项的人加起来都不到1%！
In other words, almost no one believed that the Bulls would lose all their games or end the regular season in a way that wouldn't break the Lakers' record, and no one thought that the Bulls could finish the season with an eight-game winning streak.
They all felt that after a long 82-game run, and with the players exhausted from endless travel, the Bulls would likely rest players after breaking the record, which is why so many people chose 70 and 71 wins!
As it turns out, Phil Jackson actually did just that!
He kept the team firing on all cylinders for four more games!
After bringing the team's record to 70 wins and 8 losses, securing the best record in history, he began his own rotation plan.
Jordan, Pippen, Kukoc, Lin Tian, Harper, Longley, and others rested in two separate groups during the next two games.
Perhaps the impact of breaking the historical record was too great, and the players were too excited. Even though the Bulls were missing half of their starters in the next two games, they still managed to defeat their opponents and continue to break their own records!
With only two games left to play, the Bulls have a record of 72 wins and 8 losses!
They caught up with the original winning record ahead of time, a record that only Lin Tian knew!
At this point, Jackson probably felt that the players hadn't rested enough!
He conveyed his decision to the players on the training field just before the team's penultimate game of the season.
"Our key players will not play in the next two games! We'll continue to rest them to ensure we're in top form for the playoffs! Please be mindful of your training intensity and avoid injuries at this time!"
After saying that, Jackson turned and left the training ground.
Jackson's news also made the team's key players very happy!
This is exactly what they want! They've played so many games in the regular season, they're exhausted!
Only Lin Tian, after glancing at everyone, followed Jackson to the outside of his office.
"Phil, can we talk?" Lin Tian looked at Jackson and got straight to the point.
"I guess you don't want to take a break?" Jackson looked at Lin Tian, seeing through his thoughts.
"Yes, I don't want to rest! In the next two games, we're facing the Raptors and the 76ers. They're not exactly strong teams, and I hope I can represent the team and beat them!" Lin Tian nodded, not denying it.
"Because they have Stoudemire and Stackhouse on their team, right?" Jackson laughed. "According to the latest rookie rankings, you're already third, while those two guys are first and second! At this point in the season, you definitely want to completely dominate them and prove yourself, right?"
"Yes, I hope to crush them! I want to prove to everyone that I am the best of this year's rookies! I am the one who deserves to win Rookie of the Year!" Lin Tian said without hesitation. "Of course, I also know that because of the gap in basic stats, it is very possible that even if I win these two games, I will not win Rookie of the Year."
"But I just want to try. I want to prove to everyone that my stats aren't as good as theirs because I'm not good enough. I just did what the team needed me to do! I'm the best rookie this year!"
Hearing this, Jackson didn't say anything more. He nodded and said, "Since you've made your decision, then you can continue playing. But let me make this clear: Michael, Dennis, Scott, and Tony won't be playing! I won't let others go crazy with you just because of your idea."
"I understand, Coach. I'll do a good job! If I can't, then it proves I'm not strong enough!"
Jackson nodded, said nothing more, and turned to go into his office.
Lin Tian stood at the office door, his heart pounding with excitement!
The day has finally come!
Lin Tian was determined to completely destroy Stoudemire and Stackhouse!
His goal is to complete the system tasks at an S+ level; he wants to become stronger again before the playoffs begin!
In the last two games of the regular season, the Bulls will face the Toronto Raptors!
The Toronto Raptors and the Vancouver Grizzlies are the first two teams to join the NBA this year! They are also strong evidence of the league's successful expansion of basketball into Canada!
Compared to Vancouverites who aren't particularly fond of basketball, Toronto's basketball market is quite good. Even in its first year, the Raptors, with no existing fan base, have already established themselves in Toronto, selling out tickets for 21 out of 41 of their home games!
This result would place you in the upper-middle of the league!
As a team entering the league for the first time, the Raptors' roster is actually very strong!
According to NBA rules, a new team entering the league must first undergo an expansion draft!
The so-called expansion draft is when a new team selects players from outside the protected lists of each team to join their team and build their first roster!
The so-called protection list means that each team can choose seven players to protect. Apart from these seven players, no matter who the new team chooses, that player must unconditionally join the new team and become a member of the new team!
Just by listening to these protection and support rules, you know that unless you're incredibly lucky, like the Bobcats in 04 who drafted their own leader Gerald Wallace, it's impossible for a team to draft any reliable players from this expansion draft!
Their role is simply to fill out the roster!
For example, the Raptors this season don't have any noteworthy players on their roster!
Aside from Damon Stoudemire, the team's all-time leading rookie selected seventh overall in the first round and the top contender for Rookie of the Year, the only other player worth mentioning on the team is Doug Christie, who was acquired in the second half of the season.
However, Christie's most well-known experience wasn't with the Raptors, but with the Kings! He was 21 years old.
In that glorious Kings team at the beginning of the century, he was an indispensable starting shooting guard and the number one defensive specialist!
Apart from these two, the other players on the Raptors team today are basically just passing through the NBA and haven't left much of their own mark!
But even with this roster made up of fringe NBA players, they didn't end up at the bottom of the league!
Yes, they are second to last in the Eastern Conference! And the team with the worst record in the Eastern Conference is the team the Bulls will face in their final regular season game: the Philadelphia 76ers!
So far, the Raptors have only won two more games than the 76ers!
If the Raptors knew that these two games were what caused them to miss out on Allen Iverson, a four-time scoring champion and one-time MVP, one of the most entertaining and explosive small men in history, I wonder if they would regret winning those two more games?
However, that's all in the future! Right now, at the United Center in Chicago, Lin Tian is about to face his penultimate opponent of the season!
In this game, the Bulls rested a total of four players!
Jordan, Pippen, Kukoc, and Rodman, four key players, are all sidelined!
Even so, the United Center was packed to capacity, and tickets sold out well in advance!
Even if the four main players don't play, there's still Lin Tian! Even if Lin Tian doesn't play, the fans are still willing to support the Bulls!
After all, this is Chicago! One of the best basketball markets in the US! Fans will definitely support their team without hesitation!
With all four key players absent, Phil Jackson fielded Lin Tian, Hubble, Buchler, and...
John Salley and Bill Wennington form the starting five!
Of these five people, only Lin Tian and Hubble have consistent playing time in the regular season; the other three are just extras!
Even this lineup isn't that much worse than the Raptors' lineup of Stoudemire, Christie, and three other amateur players!
After all, the Raptors' roster is just too bad!
"I thought even you didn't have the guts to challenge me!" Stoudemire chewed gum and walked over to Lin Tian, saying, "After all, the rest of your team is resting! I'm really worried that without Jordan's protection, you'll just hide in a corner and won't dare to face me!"
"A 70-win team afraid of a 20-win team? Are you out of your mind?" Lin Tian rolled his eyes and said, "You're short, so your head is small too, right? And have you forgotten who wiped out everyone in the rookie game and got a 40+ triple-double? Huh? Tell me louder, I can't hear you!"
"Kid! Don't get cocky! That time you only got good stats because neither side was playing defense! In a real game, how do you think you can get so many points?" Stoudemire wasn't afraid of Lin Tian at all. Although he was only 178 centimeters tall, his aura was anything but weak!
"A serious game? You mean the game against the Jazz, the one where I dominated Stockton and scored 40+ points?"
By the way, I didn't even play the fourth quarter in that game! Have you ever had a game where you put up impressive stats against one of the league's top teams? Hmm? "Stoudemire, the 'stat padder' who only won 20 games a season despite averaging 19 points and 9 rebounds?"
When Lin Tian starts arguing, he's never been at a disadvantage!
Stoudemire willingly came forward to be criticized, which made Lin Tian very happy, and he unleashed a barrage of criticism on him!
You, who put up 19+9 on a 20-win team, dare to mock me, who plays on a top team, for having bad stats?
After being rendered speechless by Lin Tian's barrage of insults, Stoudemire obediently turned and returned to his own half of the court, his eyes now filled with rage! He was determined to thoroughly humiliate Lin Tian in the game! To show him who the true Rookie of the Year really was!
In the CBS studio, this game was once again selected for a nationally televised broadcast!
At this time of year, there are plenty of exciting battles for position and do-or-die games, but CBS chose to broadcast this inconsequential game between the league's top team and the second-to-last team. Not to mention, the Bulls were missing four key players, which further diminished the game's appeal.
At the very least, according to CBS's Marcus and Smith, the only interesting thing about this game is the battle for Rookie of the Year between Lin Tian and Stoudemire!
"In this game, I think everyone, like me, is most focused on the battle between Lin Tian and Stoudemire, this top-tier rookie showdown! These two are currently ranked first and third in the rookie rankings, respectively! Stoudemire is at the top of the rookie rankings with his impressive regular season averages of 19.3 points and 9.2 assists!"
"While Lin's basic stats aren't as good as Stoudemire's, he still puts up a respectable 14.8 points, 4.5 assists, and 1.5 steals! Furthermore, although Lin is currently trailing in the Rookie of the Year race, he's a strong contender for Sixth Man of the Year!"
"Smith, by now in the regular season, everyone's stats are pretty much set. Do you think the outcome of this game will affect the Rookie of the Year voting?"
"Not really, because the difference in their basic stats is just too big! Five points and five assists might not seem significant in a single game, but over a long season, 14+4 and 19+9 are worlds apart, they're not even in the same league!"
Smith sat at his desk, talking animatedly!
"Of course I know that Lin's team won 72 games, setting an NBA record, while Stoudemire's team only won 20. I know all that! But I'm saying this is Rookie of the Year, not MVP! When has the Rookie of the Year selection ever looked at team records? Stats! Stats are the most important factor in this award!"
"So you think Stoudemire is the better one?" Marcus asked with a smile, setting a trap for his partner.
"No, I never said that! If I had to choose a better player, I'd choose Lin! But if I had to choose Rookie of the Year, I'd choose Stoudemire, it's that simple! Rookie of the Year is an award that doesn't consider team record!"
"It seems that Smith's opinion is similar to mine. I also think Lin is better, but Stoudemire will win Rookie of the Year! But I think there is one person who will never agree with either of us! That is Damon Stoudemire himself!" Marcus nodded, indicating his agreement with Smith's opinion.
"He absolutely refuses to accept the idea that he's worse than Lin! I think he'll give it his all tonight to prove he's the best! Let's see how these two top rookies from the 1995 class fare out!"
Smith added, "The good news is that the Bulls have rested four key players! This means Lin and Stoudemire are the absolute core of the team tonight, able to unleash their full offensive firepower! Let's see how they play!"
As the warm-up ended, Lin Tian stood on the court early. This was the first time he had started the game when several key players were absent. It was also the first time he had appeared in the game as the team's primary offensive point and number one core player!
You know what, I'm actually a little excited!
Lin Tian kept breathing into his palms, waiting for the match to begin. At the same time, he was also thinking about something else.
The system only says to crush the opponent, but what exactly constitutes crushing them? Is there a difference between slightly crushing them and completely crushing them? How is that difference defined?
After thinking for a long time, even after Wennington successfully jumped for the ball and passed it to Lin Tian, Lin Tian still couldn't find any clues in the system's one-sentence mission description.
But as Lin Tian received the ball and advanced into the attacking third, he made a decision!
That means we must get an S+ rating this time, no matter what!
At the very least, Lin Tian wanted to see just how different the rewards were between S-level and A-level missions!
Even if it's just to satisfy his curiosity, Lin Tian has to go all out!
Then you'll need to get yourself some insurance!
90-91 season Jordan experience card (full game)!
Lin Tian directly took out the strongest and best one-time use card he currently possessed from his system!
Last time, the '92 Jordan trial card allowed Lin Tian to score 25 points in just 3 minutes! This time, the '91 Jordan card is the full-court version. Even if it doesn't have the explosive power of 25 points in 3 minutes, scoring 50 points in the full court should be a piece of cake!
As soon as the 178cm tall Stoudemire saw Lin Tian advance into the frontcourt, he immediately charged forward fiercely. Lin Tian quickly turned around and faced the short guy with his backside.
"What's wrong, Lin! You're too cowardly to face me, afraid I'll steal your thunder? Turn around, you spineless coward—" Stoudemire's trash talk was only half finished!
Because the remaining half was knocked back into his stomach by Lin Tian's swift turn!
Lin Tian turned around and in the blink of an eye, he flashed past Stoudemire!
After bouncing the ball twice and bringing it to the mid-range area, Lin Tian pulled it up and threw it!
"Whoosh!"
With a crisp sound, Lin Tianzhong hit the target from a distance, taking the lead!
Turning around, Stoudemire dribbled the ball and advanced at lightning speed. Speed was his strength, and he always believed that he was the fastest man in the league!
So, he pushed through Lin Tian's defense and drove all the way to the frontcourt. After pausing for a moment to regroup, Stoudemire accelerated again, trying to force his way to the basket against Lin Tian's defense!
Ke Lintian's speed is the pinnacle of human speed in history! How could a "little flying squirrel" possibly break through with speed?
Lin Tian kept up with his speed, maintaining his defensive position beside Stoudemire, and then—
"Snapped!"
With a crisp sound, Stoudemire's layup was slapped by Lin Tian and sent near the free-throw line!
After the block, Lin Tian's legs didn't stop for a moment. After landing, he immediately accelerated again and rushed towards the frontcourt!
Almost instinctively, Wennington, who had just received the ball, passed it to Lin Tian, who had transformed into lightning speed, and watched as Lin Tian dribbled the ball and sprinted towards the frontcourt alone!
Christie, the Raptors' best defender, immediately chased after him! Unfortunately, his speed was simply lacking; he tried to stick close to Lin Tian, but he couldn't catch up at all!
In the end, he could only watch as Lin Tian slammed the ball down with one arm, ending the round!
4: 0!
Stoudemire composed himself and tried to advance the ball again, but this time, Lin Tian immediately closed in!
"I heard you think you're the fastest in the league?" Lin Tian said with a smile. "Then come on, let me see how fast you really are! You can't possibly not even be able to beat me once, can you?"
"You're talking nonsense!" Stoudemire cursed, then suddenly accelerated and charged towards the frontcourt!
It has to be said that with his height of 178 cm, the stats he has achieved are top-notch, and his speed is absolutely among the best in the league!
Unfortunately, he was not mentally sharp enough!
"Bang!"
A muffled thud was heard as Standamer accidentally bumped into Hubble, who was already waiting there, during his advance!
This was all arranged by Lin Tian! He had Hubble choose a spot in advance, while he was responsible for provoking Standamer to lose his temper. Then, Lin Tian used his size advantage to force Standamer toward Hubble.
Then, a perfect offensive foul and a perfect team defense were born!
In the next round, Lin Tian moved directly to the low post, giving the ball control opportunity to Harper.
After all, this is a trial card of peak Jordan!
If you only drive to the basket and shoot, and don't use your back-to-the-basket moves, that would be a real waste!
Not to mention, the one defending Lin Tian now is a short guy who is only 178 centimeters tall!
If we don't kill him when he's at a lower level, then Lin Tian's trial card will have been wasted, right?
So, he received the ball in the low post and backed down!
Lin Tian quickly turned around and launched a fadeaway jump shot!
"Whoosh!"
A sharp crack made Jordan and Pippen, who were sitting on the sidelines, jump up!
"Michael, he stole your signature move!" Pippen chuckled, patting Jordan on the shoulder. It's unclear when it started, but Jordan and Pippen's relationship has been getting better and better! Thinking back, it seems to have started after that away game against Los Angeles, when Lin Tian flirted with a girl in public!
From then on, Jordan and Pippen became good buddies and often discussed how to get revenge on Lin Tian!
"It's not that he copied my special move, but the problem is, why doesn't he use it normally? Why does he only use it when we're not on the field?"
Jordan's doubts were shared by many others at the scene.
Lin Tian's turnaround jumper was truly fluid, beautiful, and elegant!
Why does he never use it normally, and only bring out his secret weapon when Jordan and Pippen are resting?
Before countless people could figure out why, Lin Tian told them another reason.
Those are things you don't know or can't understand; there are many more!
Lin Tian's subsequent performance was practically a Michael Jordan clone! He relentlessly drove into the paint to score, and if no one from the Raptors helped defend him, he would unleash a thunderous dunk! If someone did help defend him, he would repeatedly use a reverse layup to evade the defender and then score!
As for Stoudemire?
When Lin Tian attacked, he didn't even notice this person!
Too short! He's easy to beat!
Even without using the trial card, Lin Tian could still put up a fight against Stoudemire based solely on his natural height, wingspan, and abilities!
But now...
If Jordan came to this league in '91, wouldn't it be easy and effortless for him to beat anyone?
In the first quarter, Stoudemire was a bit stunned by Lin Tian's performance!
Lin Tian scored 16 points, 2 steals, and 2 blocks in the first quarter, with both the block and steal coming directly to Stoudemire!
而斯塔达迈尔，首节就只有5投1中，只拿到2分2助攻3失误的糟糕数据！
The Bulls are now leading by 9 points!
31: 22.
In the second quarter, the two players' playing time finally overlapped. Lin Tian went to the bench to rest, while Stoudemire remained on the court!
Facing the Bulls without Lin Tian, Stoudemire suddenly found his rhythm. He first hit a pull-up three-pointer, then drove into the paint for a strong layup while drawing a foul from Wennington!
After making the free throw, Stoudemire scored 6 points in less than 40 seconds, narrowing the gap to 3 points!
Then, having found his rhythm, Stoudemire continued his momentum, suddenly stealing the ball from Harper and driving to the frontcourt, where he made a comeback three-pointer that is almost unheard of in this era!
"Whoosh!"
With a crisp sound, less than a minute into the second quarter, Stoudemire scored 9 points in a row, tying the score!
Then, Stoudemire did what might be the thing he regrets most this season.
He stretched out a hand towards Lin Tian, then pointed his thumb down and waved it twice at Lin Tian!
I've got the hang of it! Nobody can stop me!
I will smash everything!
If you've got the guts, come up here!
This simple action contains a very simple meaning!
Since the opponent had already provoked him so openly, Jackson certainly wouldn't let Lin Tian rest any longer. He patted Lin Tian on the shoulder and told him to come back on stage!
As soon as he entered the game, Lin Tian once again backed down Stoudemire in the low post and then reached out for the ball!
With a height difference of over 13 centimeters, Lin Tian can easily score baskets whenever he comes into the paint!
This time, of course, is no exception!
After receiving the ball with his back to the basket, he quickly turned and stepped back to shoot! Another one of Jordan's signature moves went in!
Clearly, this back-to-the-basket move was just the beginning!
In the next 3 minutes, Lin Tian called for the ball in this position 5 times in a row!
Then, as if showing off his skills, he used the same rhythm, movements, and techniques to launch attacks every time!
Receive the ball with your back to the basket, turn and step back, then shoot a fadeaway jumper!
Including the first one, Lin Tian chose to shoot like this for 6 consecutive attacks, and he made 4 of those 6 shots!
The hit rate is ridiculously high!
Of course, the primary contributor to his accuracy is Jordan's experience card, and the second contributor is Stoudemire. Lin Tian has to thank him for his selfless help, for refusing Christie's request to switch on defense, and for his hard work on defense that posed no defensive threat at all. Otherwise, Lin Tian would hardly have been able to be this accurate!
"Coward! If you've got the guts, face up and drive against me! If you've got the guts, compete with me in speed and dribbling! You're just tall, all you do is bully people with your height, right? What's so great about that! You have absolutely no skill!" Stoudemire, who had been hit by six balls in a row by Lin Tian, finally broke down!
Fuck, how can you bully people like this?
The last time he was bullied like this and beaten was when he was 6 years old!
That time, he showed off his fancy dribbling skills to his dad for a full minute, and then his 170cm tall but 99kg dad said directly: "Ready? Your dad's about to post up!"
How similar the scene is tonight!
In response to Stoudemire's provocation, Lin Tian held up one finger and said, "One!"
"What? You're throwing another one so you can duel me right in front of the frame? Why are you throwing another one, you coward! We can duel right now!"
"I mean, you've blocked one!" Lin Tian laughed as he turned and blocked the position, pinning Stoudemire's resisting arm down with one arm. "If you block one, I'll change my playing style! Otherwise, others won't be able to sense the difference in our strength! Your provocation was so stylish, are you regretting it now?"
"FUXX!" Stoudemire was already starting to regret it! But he couldn't say it; he could only continue to defend desperately!
Then, to no avail, Lin Tian scored another one!
Lin Tian's jump shot was truly unstoppable in front of Stoudemire!
"Damon, let's switch, I'll guard him!" Christie finally couldn't stand it anymore and volunteered to switch, helping the team leader out of his predicament. Voluntarily switching when they're too embarrassed to ask is one of the things the younger players need to do!
"No need! I'll take him down! You guys just do your jobs!" Stoudemire remained defiant and continued to shout!
But his shouting was clearly only effective verbally; he was still completely unable to withstand Lin Tian!
On the defensive end, he was backed down by Lin Tian one after another!
Lin Tian pulled up for one mid-range shot after another!
In this quarter, Lin Tian scored a total of 10 goals!
Not a single free throw, not a single drive, and not a single three-pointer!
Lin Tian scored 10 goals from almost the same spot using the same technique!
The Raptors' coach was incredibly slow to react. Throughout the second quarter, he simply watched as Stoudemire was completely outplayed by Lin Tian, without offering any response or adjustments! With a coach like that, the Raptors truly deserve to be at the bottom of the league!
After being dominated by Lin Tian on the defensive end for an entire quarter, Stoudemire was completely out of sorts on offense. Apart from his initial 9 consecutive points, he only made 1 of 5 shots against Lin Tian in this quarter, scoring only 2 points and 1 assist, and also committed 3 turnovers!
With such a huge gap in performance between the two teams' star players, the score at the end of the first half was 61-40!
The Bulls are leading by a whopping 21 points!
而林天半场比赛就轰下了36分4篮板3助攻4抢断3盖帽的超全面数据！
It's worth mentioning that all three blocks and four steals were given to Stoudemire!
而斯塔达迈尔半场只有13投5中，拿到了13分3助攻6次失误！
Actually, if we put aside the facts and only look at Stoudemire's scoring and shooting percentage, he actually played quite well in the first half!
But if you look closely at the game, you'll find that although he scored 13 points, 9 of them were scored when Lin Tian wasn't on the court!
When Lin Tian was on the court, Stoudemire's performance was absolutely disastrous!
10投2中，拿到4分3助攻6失误！
If Lin Tian's targeted attack on Stoudemire in the first half doesn't count as a complete blowout, then Lin Tian really doesn't know what would be considered a complete blowout!
At halftime, Jackson said directly in the locker room, "Five minutes, Lin! You play five more minutes in the second half and then come off! You've proven enough in the first half! There's no need to waste your energy in the second half, unless you don't want to play in the next game!"
"No problem, Coach, I'm fine with it." Lin Tian nodded in agreement. "Just five minutes. I'll use five minutes to completely crush the game! Eliminate all suspense! Then I'll go off the court to rest!"
In the second half, Lin Tian kept his word!
He continued his full-court press on Stoudemire, using his top-notch speed, long wingspan, and overwhelming height to make Stoudemire even more miserable than in the first half. The poor guy even made an embarrassing mistake by not crossing halfway in 8 seconds!
Lin Tian, on the other hand, continued to score at will. In the third quarter, he was too lazy to go inside to establish position and simply pulled up two three-pointers from the top of the arc, one on the left and one on the right!
With the NBA three-point line shortened this year, these two three-pointers weren't much different from mid-range shots for Jordan, and Lin Tian easily made both of his shots!
After those two three-pointers went in, the point difference between the two sides exceeded 30!
So even though there were still 9 minutes left in the third quarter, and 2 minutes left before Jackson's allotted time, Jackson still substituted Lin Tian!
Lin Tian's move immediately made the fans at the United Center understand what it meant.
Lin Tian will not be playing anymore!
So, the seasoned fans, who were used to this kind of situation, didn't hesitate to boo Jackson loudly!
They wanted Lin Tian to continue playing, hoping he could break his own scoring record!
But both Jackson and Lin Tian ignored this request and the fans' desire!
最终，这场比赛林天拿下42分5篮板6助攻5抢断4盖帽的完美数据！
The hit rate is as high as 76%!
There was nothing Lin Tian could do; the Raptors insisted on one-on-one defense and refused to double-team, so he had to punish them!
Lin Tian knew that the Raptors' bad habit of not double-teaming would bring them an extremely painful experience 10 years later, making them a historical backdrop!
As for Stoudemire, who wanted to go head-to-head with Lin Tian before the match?
He didn't even dare to pad his stats during garbage time tonight, and he left the game less than 3 minutes after Lin Tian went off.
He played terribly against Lin Tian! He only made 6 of 20 shots, and while dishing out 5 assists, he also committed 10 turnovers!
Almost all of these 10 mistakes were caused by Lin Tian!
What does "smash" mean?
That's a total blast!
Completely and utterly crush them, showing them no mercy whatsoever!