Chapter 258: Defending the Title and Sweeping the Championship!

"System, can I improve my ball-holding breakthrough skills?" he asked.

"No, you must first improve your basic skills." The system responded.

Zhao Dong immediately chose No. 1 and used 6 skill points to upgrade the step-back jump shot to level 95, thus creating the seventh gold medal skill.

Gold Medal Special Effect: Improve shooting stability by 30%, and increase the chance of getting rid of defenders by 40%.

"It's not bad. It has 10% more escape effects than the special effects of turnaround jump shots."

He spent the remaining skill point on throwing and raised it to level 81.

While Zhao Dong was improving his skills, the media was hyping up the dunk last night, and even the news that he was selected for the double first team was suppressed.

"The Jazz's most shameful moment! We want revenge!" Salt Lake City Sports News.

"All it takes is the mailman!" New York Sports.

"A horse in the air can be called a death button!" Washington Post.

"Flying over the double's death button, the aerial ballet blooming on the head of Jazz!" London Daily News.

"The pride of Asians!" Tokyo Daily News.

"The pride of the Chinese people!" People's Daily.

Countless media reprinted the above-mentioned media reports. Suddenly, Zhao Dong's reputation and influence rose rapidly, truly completing his gorgeous transformation from a world basketball superstar to a world-class sports superstar.

"Feilong, Time Magazine wants to take a cover photo of you."

At noon, agent Ringo Wells called with a very excited tone.

"Let's make an appointment first and then shoot when we have time." Zhao Dong said nonchalantly.

"Uh, okay, okay."

Wells felt like he was thrown into an ice bucket by Zhao Dong, and all the excitement in his body disappeared instantly.

Zhao Dong doesn't care about this magazine. In his previous life, Lin Kuangshen was also on the cover, but was he abandoned by the NBA later?

It can be seen that it is of no use. You have to rely on strength, and it is a strength that is superior to others.

Didn’t Lin Kuang have any strength back then? there must be,

But he didn’t have absolute strength and he wasn’t superior to others, so he was abandoned.

Just like he lost the election, there are a lot of people like him. Don't say he didn't pay attention. Even if he did, who would choose you, a Chinese?

If a Chinese wants to get ahead here, he must be so good that people cannot ignore you.

As long as you have strength, the media and capital will surround you like dogs.

On June 9th, the G4 game of the finals begins.

Knicks President of Operations Lewis was so busy that he was dizzy because there were so many people asking him for tickets, and they were all in the front row.

The average ticket price for this game has doubled compared to the G3 game. The price of front-row tickets has been adjusted to US$80,000, and demand is still in short supply.

The black market price has risen to 150,000 US dollars, which is very outrageous, but as long as a front row ticket falls into the black market, it will be bought immediately.

Not only front-row tickets, but other tickets, even tickets to the top of the mountain, are also hard to come by.

Therefore, he reduced the number of tickets for away fans and only gave 500 tickets to the Jazz. Anyway, those in Salt Lake City may not be able to afford such expensive tickets.

At 6 p.m., Stern arrived at Madison Square Garden with the championship trophy, accompanied by team and arena owner James Dowland and several executives.

Stern is very satisfied with the Knicks' current market, and the ticket sales for the G4 game were so hot that he couldn't believe it.

The Jazz are likely to be swept, and he also estimates that the game, which is likely to be one-sided, is not attractive enough, but looking at it now, the ratings situation may be very good.

Zhao Dong had three first-row tickets in his hand, and he was also interested in them. Many people asked through his agent Wells whether they could transfer them.

However, Wells refused directly. He knew that Zhao Dong would not agree and would rather keep it empty than transfer it. No matter how much money he paid, it would be useless.

At seven o'clock, both sides announced the starting lineup.

Jazz: Chris Morris, Karl Malone, Brian Russell, Jeff Horacek, John Stockton.

Knicks: Ben Wallace, Zhao Dong, Oakley, Alan Houston, Billups.

"I know what you are expecting? I will tell you now..."

Zhao Dong appeared on the stage, holding a microphone and shouting to the fans: "Tonight... our sweep will be unstoppable, and we will defend the title and win the championship!"

"Swiss sweep! Sweep sweep! Sweep sweep..."

"Grand champion! Grand champion! Grand champion..."

At Madison Square Garden Center, nearly 20,000 Knicks fans began to shout wildly.

Tonight, there were very few Jazz away fans, only 500. Almost all of them were Knicks fans or Zhao Dong's personal fans.

"The Jazz's starting center and first backup center are injured, causing the Jazz's strength to continue to decline. It is almost a foregone conclusion that the Jazz will be swept."

In the TNT live broadcast booth, Bill Walton said excitedly.

"There is only one suspense left in the finals. How much resistance can the Jazz have in this game? Can they still show the strength of a championship-level team?"

Matt laughed.

In the CCTV live broadcast, Zhang Li smiled and said: "The Jazz are very strong and ranked first in the regular season, but this team was completely suppressed by the Knicks and was unable to show the true strength of the championship team.

The main point is that the postman was killed by Zhao Dongke. A person who is not afraid of his big elbow and can meet his elbow is his nemesis. So from the beginning, the Jazz had no chance of winning the championship under the Knicks.

In fact, what I want to say is that any team with Postman as its core will be suppressed by Zhao Dong. "

At eight o'clock, the game starts.

Ben wins the jump ball and the Knicks attack.

The Jazz retreated quickly, and the postman retreated to the low post, but Zhao Dong did not go down and stopped outside the left three-point line.

This time, Jazz was a little passive.

Because the Jazz are still in a two-one-two zone defense, there are two defenders on the left and right wings, Russell is near the free throw line, and the two inside defenders are in the low post.

Now facing Zhao Dong is shooting guard Jeff Horasek. This is a complete mismatch, and Zhao Dong's three-pointers are very accurate.

Zhao Dong fended off Jeff Horasek with his left hand and opened his right hand for the ball.

Billups didn't hesitate, pushed with both hands, and the ball came over.

Zhao Dong caught the ball with one hand, took advantage of the situation and switched to his left hand. At the same time, he moved a step to the left, avoided the defender in front of him, then calmly jumped up and shot a three-pointer.

Jeff Horasek tried his best to take off after moving, but his defensive height difference was far away and he could only reach Zhao Dong's elbow, which was not enough to hinder Zhao Dong's shot.

"Uh-huh!"

The water splashed and he hit a three-pointer.

"yeah!"

The first goal was a three-pointer, and the whole audience cheered.

"Haha, Jazz has been fooled now."

Zhang Lili laughed and explained: "The Jazz thought he would enter the low post, but no, he stayed on the outside, and the Jazz defended in a two-one-two zone. The outside defense was not high enough. This was an absolute mismatch. This three-pointer was It's too easy, no different from an open three-pointer. I estimate that with Zhao Dong's psychological quality, it is possible to make nine out of ten three-pointers.

But then, I think the Jazz will switch defense, allowing small forward Russell to face Zhao Dong on the wings, and shooting guard Jeff Horasek to defend at the free throw line. "

Jazz attack.

The Knicks are still man-to-man.

Facing Zhao Dong's marking, the Postman had no good chance. Jeff Horasek missed a three-pointer and Oakley grabbed the rebound.

"here."

Billups quickly responded to the ball.

Today's team's offensive tactics are different from those in the previous three games. With an absolute advantage in the score, Nelson is itching to play a small game.

Zhao Dong also agreed, which is why he is on the outside.

He had gotten rid of the postman, and while rushing across the center line, he looked back to see if the ball was coming.

Stockton had already entangled Billups who was receiving the ball, preventing him from passing the ball quickly. At this time, Oakley made a pick-and-roll, allowing Billups to get the opportunity.

Billu quickly observed the situation in the frontcourt and saw that Zhao Dong had rushed to the three-point line. There was no defender within two steps of him. He quickly combined the ball and pushed hard with both hands.

Zhao Dong rushed to the right elbow area and the ball arrived. He caught the ball and took one step into the paint area, then flew up.

Russell had just returned to the basket and had not yet stood firm. His expression changed when he saw it, and he hurriedly stepped aside.

The next moment, bang, a violent explosion of a basket sounded above his head, Zhao Dong's body swayed past his eyes, and the strong wind hitting his face made him feel suffocated.

"yeah!"

The whole audience cheered immediately.

"Oh yeah, yeah, the flat-basket tomahawk dunk in the fast break, the flying dragon's performance has officially begun." The on-site commentator roared excitedly.

"Boy, why don't you defend? You disappoint me so much. My dunk lost its soul because of your incompetence. Don't do it next time. Jump up, let me knock you away and then dunk in. Only then can you have a soul. .”

Under the basket, Zhao Dong was so excited that he spat trash talk at Russell.

"Shit soul!"

Russell was furious, but there was nothing he could do.

"Kacha kacha..."

The camera reporters behind the baseline waved their cameras quickly, and a few microphones even reached into the court, trying to capture Zhao Dong's trash talk.

"Speak louder, Feilong," a reporter encouraged.

"Gentlemen, would you mind paying attention?"

The referee was very helpless and signaled to the reporters to be calm and not to affect the game.

0:5, Jazz attack.

Seeing that the postman was being stared at by Zhao Dong again, Stockton had no good chance, so he had to set up a pick-and-roll with Russell, get into the paint, and then pull to the right.

Oakley was taken away from the basket. There was no one under the Knicks basket for the time being. Because of the three-second defensive rule, Ben was still in the low post on the left wing and was entering the basket at this time.

Russell rushed into the paint, received Stockton's pass, and then hit the basket with a flying dunk.

"Snapped!"

Big Ben's movement was good, he arrived in time, and in a sudden burst, Russell was blocked.

"Beautiful, an iron-blooded shot, Ben Wallace showed good ability to protect the basket." The on-site commentator shouted excitedly.

Zhao Dong, who returned to defend the basket, grabbed the basketball and was caught by Malone. He immediately passed it to Billups and then started to play quickly.

Starting from the basket, Zhao Dong fell behind. The Knicks did not fully pick up the rhythm of this fast break.

When he ran to the free throw line, he was blocked by the postman. He turned around and asked for the ball. When he received the ball, Russell jumped down from the high post, forming a double team.

The moment the left hand catches the ball, the right foot is the axis. When the left foot moves, he suddenly turns right.

This action immediately shook the postman to the right.

The next moment, Zhao Dong quickly swayed to the left, stepped back with his left foot, and dribbled the ball with his left hand. After turning left, he pulled the ball up from the floor with his right hand, held down the reacting postman with his left hand, and stepped into the paint area.

"Bang!"

Russell jumped down from a high position and hit the postman.

Jazz substitute insider Morris had already returned to defend the basket. Seeing the fierce Zhao Dong coming down, his nerves suddenly became tense.

He leaped past the postman, taking a big step followed by a smaller step. Although the impact was not strong enough, Zhao Dong still jumped up to face Morris without fear.

With a 98-level bounce and the assistance of the Silver Demon, his assist jump, although the impact was not enough, still reached a height of one meter. More than one of Morris's heads was caught, and he was completely crushed over the reasonable collision zone. potential.

The next moment, he crashed and sank Morris.

"boom!"

A violent explosion sounded.

"yeah!"

A ferocious flat-basket dunk made Madison Square Garden boil.

"Bang!"

Morris hit the floor hard.

His upper body was knocked over and his back landed directly on the ground. He turned pale and his heart almost fell out of his body. The severe pain in his back cracked his canthus and teeth.

"Did you see it? The most violent flat-basket dunk, this is the complete interpretation of violent aesthetics! There is no doubt that Feilong has taken over the banner of Rain Man's violent beast style. He is the most violent super player with the most violent aesthetics in today's basketball world. Superstar."

The on-site commentator roared excitedly.

"40 million, we broke through 40 million again. This is the second time the ratings have reached 40 million after the Eastern Conference Finals..."

At this time, in the TNT live broadcast booth, Matt shouted excitedly.

0:7, Jazz attack.

After serving, Jerry Sloan called a timeout.

"The Dragons played too violently, the Knicks' momentum was too crazy, and the Jazz were completely out of control. I have already seen the result of the Jazz being swept."

Bill Walton shouted excitedly: "But thanks to Feilong's violent performance, the ratings of this game are still huge. This is the influence of the league's signature superstar."

"Or is everyone waiting for the dragon to fly over the postman's head?" Matt laughed.

"Haha..." Bill Walton laughed suddenly.

After the timeout, the Jazz attacked.

The Postman suddenly pulled to the right three-point line to set up a screen for Jeff Horasek.

Zhao Dong was not left behind and immediately chose to double-team Jeff Horasek.

The reason why I don't follow the postman is because the postman is on the three-point line and can be shorted.

He took a very quick step back and got in front of Jeff Horacek.

At this time, Alan Houston's double team was in place, he grabbed the ball from behind, completed the steal, immediately turned around and went down quickly, and when he reached the bottom of the basket, Stockton caught up behind him, he pulled to the left and passed the ball.

Zhao Dong came down quickly behind Alan Houston, and immediately flew up after catching the ball.

"boom!"

Amidst the violent explosion of the basket, Stockton was unable to dodge and was dunked directly on his back, and was knocked over under the basket.

Fortunately, Zhao Dong followed quickly this time, his speed was controlled, and the impact was not terrible.

But Stockton's body still couldn't withstand such a big impact. After hitting the floor, he opened his mouth to breathe out, like a fish that landed on the beach, and was about to lose its breath.

"John, how are you?" Malone rushed over and asked hurriedly.

"Oh...oh...oh..." John Stockton gasped.

"Remember, don't stand in my way. Next time, I will let you fly out of the field." Zhao Dong pointed to the bottom line and said to Stockton.

Several Jazz players, including the postman, looked at Zhao Dong as if they were looking at a devil. They did not dare to reply to his threatening trash talk.

"This was a wrong pick-and-roll. Wyvern moved very fast. Jeff Horasek faced Wyvern. There was no dislocation advantage at all, only the dislocation disadvantage in height and strength."

Bill Walton analyzed.

"When Feilong is following the defense, the Postman is actually not suitable for pick-and-rolls, especially not suitable for pick-and-rolls at the three-point line. Jerry Sloan should pay attention to this." Matt analyzed.

"right."

Bill Walton nodded and said: "The Postman doesn't have three-pointers. He goes to the three-point line to pick and roll. After the split, the opponent can let him go to double-team the other one, just like Feilong and Alan Houston did just now.

Also, even if the defense is switched and Jeff Horasek faces the Dragons, he has no mismatch advantage. If passed to the postman, would he dare to take a shot from the three-point line? Moreover, he has no offensive ability with the ball and can only pass the ball, which can easily cause opponents to double-team. "

Matt said: "When the postman is being targeted by the flying dragon, the Jazz's pick-and-roll tactics should be focused on the outside. In this way, although there is no mismatch advantage, at least there can be small openings to shoot.

The Postman should go inside to grab offensive rebounds. Anyway, he has no offensive opportunities. What he should do most is to do a good job in blue-collar work. This is in line with Feilong's positioning of him. "

"Pfft!"

Bill Walton burst out laughing, his shoulders shaking non-stop.

"0:9, the Jazz's offense can't be played at all. If the offense can't be played, morale is not good, and the strength is not as good as the Knicks, how can we play this game? Look at how worried I am. On the other hand, the Knicks are not only They played a violent offense and also played a suffocating defense. This is a rhythm that is going to kill the Jazz. Poor Jazz!"

Zhang Lili shook his head and sighed.

"Pfft! Haha..." Sun Zhenping laughed.

Jerry Sloan looked at the field blankly, feeling desperate.

Now, he vaguely agrees with Zhao Dong's evaluation of Karl Malone. Is a super giant who does not have strong offensive ability with the ball, and a super giant who does not have the ability to attract double teams, really considered a super giant?

When the postman's elbow has lost its intimidating power, what's left of him?

Can he one-on-two? Can he beat three? Can he take over the offense when his teammates can't score? Neither can, he can only wait for his teammates to create opportunities for him.

"well!"

He sighed and sat back on the bench.

Next to him, Jazz general manager Ham secretly shook his head. From Jerry Sloan's behavior, he knew that the head coach had given up on the game.

In fact, he had given up long ago because everyone knew that Jazz could not beat him.

Yesterday, he had been informed by owner Larry Miller that Karl Malone would be traded and the team would enter reconstruction.

An hour and a half later, as the whistle blew, Madison Square Garden was in a state of revelry.