The regular season of the 1997-98 season has just begun, and many teams are still in a slow-burning state.
As the third overall pick in 1997, Chauncey Billups has attracted much attention since entering the league.
Although he is not as good as Tim Duncan, the No. 1 pick in the same session, Billups still receives more attention than other rookie players as a member of the Celtics.
The Celtics also changed their head coach this season, with Rick Pitino taking over.
Billups didn't seem to adapt to the NBA's game rhythm, nor did he adapt to the whirlwind fast play required by coach Pitino. When he came to Madison Square Garden, he was beaten by Li You.
In the 30 minutes he played, Billups made 1 of 5, 3 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 9 turnovers and 6 fouls.
Six fouls left the game, and Billups was scolded by coach Pitino, which made the rookie's second-place circle turn red. When he returned to his seat, he completely shut himself up with a towel.
Celtics coach Li You is very familiar with him. He has played against each other in the NCAA, so the circle is so big. Before the game, he even went over to say hello and chat in a friendly manner.
But in the game, the Celtics, who had extremely poor discipline, were completely defeated in just three quarters.
After Walter McCarty joined the Celtics, he also got a chance to start tonight. Unfortunately, he felt stretched and was guarded by Oakley.
"Pat should really reduce some low-post attacks. In this game, he was very smart and participated more in pick-and-roll attacks. Lee can lead him to score. All he has to do is put the ball into the basket!"
In the MSG commentary box, Walter Frazier glanced at the data and briefly commented on Ewing, who has been in the news frequently recently.
"oh!"
The New York fans at the scene couldn't hear the legendary star's comments, but they still cheered as they watched the gorilla make an alley-oop under the basket and eat a pie and dunk.
At 49:72, with 5 minutes and 22 seconds left in the third quarter, the Celtics requested a timeout and the game was about to enter garbage time.
He didn't perform well in the last game, but tonight Ewing stepped up again. Before leaving the game, he made 7 of 13 shots and 8 of 10 free throws. He had already scored 22 points, 10 rebounds, 1 block, and 2 turnovers.
Smiling after winning the game, Gorilla walked to the bench and fist-bumped with his teammates in celebration.
Li You patted Knight before leaving the game. After joining the Celtics, his friend did get more playing time.
Jeff Van Gundy is very satisfied with the team's performance. Although it was a rough game, every player on the field performed well, which doubled the sense of accomplishment for the coaching staff!
Played 22 minutes, 5 of 9, 2 of 5 from beyond the three-point line, 6 of 6 free throws, 18 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, 4 steals and 1 turnover. Relying on the opponent's mistakes and fouls, Li You continued his efficient performance.
Seeing that the main lineup was no longer on the field, the fans at the scene were a little regretful, but they soon cheered for the atmosphere group that appeared.
Sitting on the bench, Li You saw the Celtics take Bruce Bowen, and a familiar memory suddenly appeared in his mind:
"Ghost-footed abalone hasn't evolved yet"
As a non-draft player, Bowen could only earn a living with the Heat last season. Unfortunately, he was not even qualified for the atmosphere team.
Joining the Celtics this season, Bowen has been promoted to the atmosphere group and can finally get some playing time.
The Celtics' mistakes continued to increase. Antoine Walker stayed on the court for a few more minutes. After bang bang, he finally had no shame to continue.
2 of 15, 9 points on free throws, true core Antoine Walker was completely outclassed tonight.
In this game, no one on the Knicks played more than 26 minutes.
70:108, the Knicks finally defeated the Celtics and won 3 consecutive victories!
Last season, Li You started as a substitute and didn't feel deeply about it. After all, the rotation players played very hard and tried their best to express themselves after playing.
After the start of this season, Li You can clearly feel the slackness of his opponents. Throughout November, it is most likely the time for the starting lineup to find its touch.
The last home game of the week is over, and the New York fans at the scene are still cheering enthusiastically. Next, the Knicks will play three consecutive away games in the Western Conference.
Walter Frazier, who was dressed in a formal suit and specially paired with a blue tie, earned the nickname "Clyde the Rogue" that year, deeply influencing the preferences of a generation of New York fans.
Old fans always miss the Knicks team that won the championship, and this has something to do with it.
After the game, Walter Fraser usually interviews Li You, and the two of them can summarize the game by the way:
"I'm glad to see you taught the rookies on the opposite side a lesson, Lee. Let's talk about the team's state since the start of the season!"
"I believe the Knicks are the earliest team in the league to prepare for the new season. This is our attitude. We must establish a lead as early as possible in the regular season."
"Everyone is in great shape, we all want the championship, and my responsibility is to get everyone involved in the offense, and the coaching staff has designed great tactics for this!"
After bragging, let's briefly explain the Knicks' routines in individual rounds to the fans. After these two games, it has become Li You's regular routine.
Ewing, who was walking towards the tunnel wearing a towel, noticed that the two of them were chatting and laughing on the sidelines, commenting on the game casually, and felt lemony again.
Thinking of the subsequent press conference, Gorilla secretly cursed the amnesiac media:
“What’s wrong with getting more salary?”
On November 6, 1997, the Knicks will challenge the Suns away from home that night, officially starting their road trip to the Western Conference.
There weren't many hot news at the beginning of the season, and the old guys were still finding their form through games and training. Therefore, Li You's record has been discussed for so many days, and it still remains popular.
Hook took the opportunity to do marketing. After Li You came to Phoenix, he took part in an event with his cousin Kidd to promote the "Big Eyes" sneakers.
Stockton was unable to play due to injury at the beginning of the season, and Li You and Kidd became the leaders in the assists list.
The hook was blown loudly before the game, and the cliché point guard duel was introduced again. As a result, half of the game that night was wasted.
61:35. After several days of publicity, this is the result?
During halftime, the Phoenix fans who bought tickets to watch the game were so angry that they booed!
Li You showed some strength in the first quarter, scoring 5 of 8 in a single quarter, 3 of 6 from beyond the three-point line, 2 of 2 free throws, 15 points, 1 rebound, 4 assists and 1 steal.
At 34:14, the Knicks led by 20 points in the first quarter.
In the live commentary booth, commentator Kevin Harlan, who had just joined TNT, helplessly summarized:
"14-for-40 at halftime, 0-for-8 from beyond the arc, a disastrous first half! The Suns don't seem to be in game mode yet."
The point guard duel was naturally broadcast live across the United States, and it was no wonder that the Suns fans booed when the result was like this.
In the end, the game came to an end. The main players of both sides played no more than 25 minutes. The Knicks started early.
In garbage time, the happiest thing is Ben Wallace. This situation is much better than his situation with the Bullets last season.
But no one cares about the performance of the undrafted player. Ben Wallace played 9 minutes and scored 4 points and 7 rebounds, including two offensive rebounds.
Steve Nash has officially entered the rotation this season and is currently playing as a substitute for Kidd. As a result, he made 0 of 8 shots tonight, with 2 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 turnover.
This performance made head coach Danny Ainge frown secretly.
Played 25 minutes, 3 of 7, 6 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists and 1 turnover. Kidd got to the back and completely caught the fish.
At 108:75, the Knicks finally defeated the Suns and continued their winning streak.
After this game, the Knicks flew to Los Angeles overnight. Tomorrow night, they will challenge the Lakers back to back.
After the point guard duel, there was a center duel. After a few games of rest, O'Neal returned from injury.
The narrow-minded O'Neal does not deserve Ewing's salary. He also has $12.86 million this season. What makes the Sharks unhappy is that the New York media ranked Ewing ahead of him again.
Among the four major centers, only Olajuwon has won the championship. Every time they play against each other, the media has to discuss the ranking of the four.
Maybe David Robinson didn't care about this, but O'Neal secretly remembered it.
On the night of the 7th, the stage was set at the Great Western Forum Arena, and the Los Angeles fans who bought tickets to watch the game were looking forward to a head-on center showdown.
The entire Knicks team naturally wanted to support the Gorilla, and Ewing frequently caught the ball and hit singles that night!
It's just that in addition to the iron-blooded jump shot, Ewing frequently hit the iron in several low-post attacks.
O'Neal, who was playing at home, tried his best to beat the gorilla.
The game was not bad to watch. Li You and Van Exel would take the lead in giving the ball to the center after halftime, and then the players from both sides would pull away and watch the two play one-on-one.
There was no defensive double-teaming, and the young and strong O'Neal scored easily with several low-post attacks, turning hooks.
But once he got to the free throw line, the Sharks, who had just returned from injury, started to hit the ground running.
Ewing's situation is just the opposite of O'Neal's. He can't attack in the low post. When it comes to free throws, he makes them all steadily!
In the end, this center duel was enough for the Los Angeles fans at the scene to watch.
105:98, the Knicks successfully defeated the Lakers and won their 5th consecutive victory!
The Knicks can win mainly because Li You, Alan Houston, and Starks performed well enough from beyond the three-point line and gave the Gorillas enough support.
The Lakers on the opposite side shot 2 of 14 from behind the three-point line tonight. They were able to widen the point difference mainly by relying on transition offense.
Van Exel has been very sluggish in recent games. He made 3 of 10 tonight and shot another 30% shooting rate.
Kobe Bryant, who got more playing time, came off the bench and made 1 of 9, scoring 4 points, 1 rebound and 1 assist.
Although they lost the game, the Lakers fans at the scene did not care. O'Neal made 9 of 15, 3 of 9 free throws, and scored 21 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocks, and 2 turnovers.
Two 1-on-1 frontal blocks on Ewing made the Los Angeles fans at the scene scream with excitement.
"The Lakers lost, the Sharks didn't!"
When the Knicks won, everyone was naturally in a good mood. Only Ewing felt that he had lost face and his smile was forced.
8 of 20, 9 of 10 free throws, 25 points, 13 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 4 turnovers. His low post dominance is no longer there, he is soft.
This is not the first time this has happened. In the playoffs last season, Ewing had difficulty digesting the ball efficiently. This is also the reason for the increase in Li You's usage rate.
In tonight's game, Li You made 5 of 10 shots, 3 of 7 from beyond the arc, and 2 of 3 free throws. He efficiently scored 15 points, 2 rebounds, 8 assists, 1 steal, and 1 turnover.
With the center as the core, he continues to score and play. As an outside fort, Li You is still the most efficient player in the team.
Jeff Van Gundy naturally noticed this situation, but the stage was set and it was really impossible to let a super center worth 20 million serve as a forward.
"Keep this momentum going! Strive to achieve a complete victory in November."
"A good record also helps the fans vote!"
The bald young marshal impressed everyone again. When it came to the All-Star Game, the gorilla's eyes lit up and he no longer worried about his performance tonight. He wanted to be the vote winner!
Alan Houston poked Li You next to him and whispered:
"I think you can get the starting job this year, and the Magic are not in as good shape as we are."
Li You doesn't care about the All-Star starting position. The one competing with him is Anfernee Hardaway.
Fan voting will not consider record issues at all. Who can get the starting position depends on player popularity:
"You have to pass the ball when you start the All-Star game. Maybe this is McDuck's last All-Star game."
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(End of chapter)
