On the night of May 7, 1998, the return of the "King of New York" was a bit of a disappointment for fans.

Patrick Ewing can still defend the basket with his excellent defensive sense, but the Gorillas lose their offensive form.

In his first game back from injury, Ewing found it difficult to attack Divac in the low post, and in the third quarter he covered more and tried to finish from mid-range.

After a simple meal, he finally scored a goal in a sports battle.

But for the old fans in New York, everyone is a little nostalgic for Ewing's low-post attack in the past, facing a center like Divac, who should have shown his skills, but ended up playing like a pie striker.

Because in the first two quarters of the game, the Knicks led by a large score, and in the third quarter of the game, the defensive intensity of the Hornets dropped a little, so Ewing's score was a little undignified.

And from the team's point of view, Ewing's choice is not wrong.

After coming on the court, the gorillas fought hard enough, still tried to defend, ate cakes on the offensive end, and generally did not add to the chaos.

With the remaining 3 minutes and 25 seconds left in the third quarter, Divac kept his back to the right side of the low post, near the paint area under the basket, and after taking the initiative to exert power, he threw the ball to the basket with his left hand.

The basketball stumbled out of the frame, only for Divac to point for another rebound in the frontcourt, almost adding the ball to the basket, and finally Oakley struggled to protect the rebound in the backcourt.

Jeff Van Gundy, who was on the sidelines, noticed that Ewing was starting to gasp for air and knew that the gorilla was tired.

I haven't played a game for a long time, the first game is the playoffs, and Ewing is also a human after all, and he can't keep up with the pace of the game.

The Hornets didn't give up, and David Wesley still led Lee Yow throughout the game.

“Let's go Knicks！ Let's go Knicks！ Let's go Knicks！ ”

The New York fans at the scene continued to cheer loudly, and Li You also took the initiative to slow down the pace and wait for his teammates to all rush through the half, and then he dribbled across the halfway line in 8 seconds.

Coming to the left flank, he noticed that Ewing took the initiative to stop at the top of the arc, and Li You also took the opportunity to throw the ball to the gorilla.

Without the ball, Li You first pretended to move towards the top of the arc, and then his body shook continuously.

David Wesley subconsciously adjusted the center of gravity of the defense on the spot, but at this time, Li You suddenly accelerated to move to the top of the arc, and after completing the hand-to-hand hand with Ewing, he held the ball in his right hand, and Li You had already gotten rid of the defense.

Due to Ewing's mediocre performance in the half, Divac took the initiative to change the defense and delayed, and David Wesley also chased up from behind, attracting two defenders, and Li You took advantage of the situation to send a smashing pass.

After the rebound, the basketball bounced into Ewing's hands at the free throw line, and there was no one in front of him, and the Gorilla jumper hit the iron again!

"Shet!!"

Ewing secretly scolded and clapped his hands in annoyance, and many New York fans at the scene sighed again, there was a chance, but he couldn't throw.

From a low-post attack in the second quarter to a pie in the third quarter, Ewing spent most of the rounds playing iron.

Oakley was full of energy tonight, this time grabbing a rebound in front of Mason on the bottom left side of the basket.

Grabbing the rebound, the old guy noticed that the Hornets had begun to shrink inside, and immediately threw the ball to Alan Houston outside the three-point line.

Receiving the ball on the left flank, Alan Houston took advantage of the situation to give the ball to Li You, who bounced outside to the top of the arc to respond.

At the moment of receiving the ball, Li You lowered his center of gravity and suddenly changed direction quickly while putting the ball with his right hand.

David Wesley, who was chasing after him, adjusted his center of gravity unprepared, but mixed garlic under his feet, stumbled, and almost fell to the floor.

"Oh!!"

The beautiful and outstanding suddenly made the New York fans at the scene exclaim.

Seeing that his teammates lost their defensive positions, he noticed that Li You accelerated to break through to the three-point line with the ball in his left hand, and Phils on the left wing immediately assisted in the defense.

As soon as Fils moved, Lee Woo broke through to a position close to the paint area, attracted the defense, and immediately jumped up and threw the ball.

Alan Houston, who was close to the touchline on the left wing, received the ball, was empty in front of him, and made an open three-point jumper!

"Huh!" Three-point shot hollow into the net!

At 49:73, with 2:04 left in the third quarter, head coach Dave Cowens asked for another timeout.

Madison Square Garden, cheers kept ringing, victory was coming, and the Hornets couldn't stand it!

Alan Houston smiled and bumped fists with Li You, and the more he threw it tonight, the more accurate he was, and he was completely comfortable.

On the verge of victory, commentator Mike Brin praised the Knicks' performance with a smile:

"It's a beautiful outfit, Lee always takes a moment of opportunity and scores or assists easily."

"Pat didn't feel good tonight, but this was his first game back from injury and I'm sure he'll find his shot!"

Walter Fraser also feels that the current style of play makes sense:

'Offense wasn't a problem, we had a lot of scorers and Pat's return freed up Oakley, which is very important.

The two analyzed together on the commentary bench and finally came to the conclusion:

"Ewing is back, the Knicks are making up for their shortcomings, and the championship is beckoning to New York!"

Sitting on the bench again, Ewing was substituted, and the gorilla was still a little depressed.

Played 27 minutes, 4-of-11, 4-of-5 free throws, 12 points, 10 rebounds, 1 block and 2 turnovers.

Handed over two pairs of data, but did not make Ewing happy, he knows better than anyone about his physical condition, and his shooting touch has lost a lot.

In the last two minutes of the third quarter, the two sides scored consecutive points, and the time ran out quickly.

At 54:78, the 4th quarter game will go into garbage time.

On the Hornets bench, Glenn Rice had an ugly face, 1 of 8 in the half, and finally found his touch in the third quarter, but the difference in points became wider and wider.

After being 7-of-21 in the last game and 4-of-13 tonight, Glenn Rice found himself completely ignored by the New York media, with no one paying attention to his performance at all.

Everyone on the bench was in high spirits, and although the next two games were going back to Charlotte, the consecutive big losses seemed to have illustrated the difference in strength between the two sides.

The fourth quarter flew by, and the Hornets just wanted to get back to their home court as soon as possible, while the Knicks' atmosphere team played hard.

In the end, 80:102, the Knicks defeated the Hornets again, and the series score came to 2:0!

Despite the fact that the game was a crushing game, the atmosphere was still hot, and New York fans began to imagine the Eastern Conference Finals!

As a newspaper op-ed reported, this year may be the best time for the Knicks to win the championship!

Playing 29 minutes, 7-of-12, 2-of-4 from beyond the three-point line, and 4-of-4 from the free-throw line, Lee Woo efficiently chipped in 20 points, 4 rebounds, 11 assists, steals and 1 turnover.

20 points is also the highest score of the game, and after the game, MSG interviewed Li You for the first time:

"Lee, the series is 2-0, let's talk about the next two away plans, will the team make adjustments after Pat's return?"

Commentator Mike Brin was unceremonious and asked the questions that the fans were most concerned about.

He had already changed into training clothes, and Li You was also chatting at this time, and said confidently:

"The game plan is to end the series as early as possible so that you can get more time to recuperate!"

"The team will not be the first to make adjustments, we are the one who is ahead and we can still beat the opponent in the next two games."

"Pat's return has also taken the defense to another level of intensity, and we won't give our opponents any chance in this series!"

Walter Fraser on the side also smiled and nodded in agreement, and the three of them blew the sidelines, and no one mentioned Ewing's offense, which was considered to save some face for the gorillas.

In the Western Conference semifinals that night, the Jazz narrowly defeated the Spurs in overtime.

Stockton was 8-of-13 from the field, 1-of-2 from beyond the three-point line, 1-of-3 from the free-throw line, and finished with 18 points, 1 rebound, 12 assists, 1 steal and 2 turnovers.

Major sports media began to compare Lee You and Stockton, and the "No. 1 point guard" that the New York media jokingly called before seems to be really coming true!

On the morning of May 8, the sports section of the New York Post detailed the performance of Lee You and Stockton in this year's playoffs:

"The old and the new, the No. 1 position in the new era!"

didn't report the news of the Hornets, but provoked the veteran point guard out of the air.

In the afternoon, the Knicks set off for Charlotte, and after getting on the plane, Ewing looked at the newspaper op-eds and always felt that the New York media was mapping him.

The big win over the opponent in two consecutive games also made the Knicks start to pay attention to the Eastern Conference semifinals of the other group.

Alan Houston looked at the technical statistics of the previous two teams and said with emotion:

"The Pacers still have a chance to keep their home court, and if they can drag the series to a tie-break, they may be able to eliminate the Bulls."

"The intensive schedule is a test of physical fitness."

In last year's playoffs, Alan Houston was overwhelmed by the monster's physical prowess, which left a deep impression on him.

Larry Johnson swelled up again at this time, and without looking at the technical statistics, casually commented:

"The Bulls are the oldest team in the league, and if they really hit the 7th game, I think the Pacers have a chance to kill their opponents!"

"Reggie Miller is not a good defensive player, he will bounce back, Eastern Conference Finals, maybe we don't see the Bulls."

The atmosphere group also nodded yes, and reassured themselves that the Bulls were no longer good.

Seeing that everyone was using the Spiritual Victory Method, Li You secretly shook his head, and when it came to it, he was still worried about meeting the Bulls:

"Michael Jordan is also a person, his playing time is not less than 40+, and he will be tired when he hits the back!"

'It's the same for both teams and that's our chance.'

Ben Davis of the atmosphere group immediately turned into a sycophant when he heard Li You's words:

"Lee is right! We're going to make it to the finals, we're going to win the championship, and I'm going to have a good career! ”

Soon the topic was distorted by the atmosphere group to what the Knicks' championship ring should be designed to look like.

Ewing was silent on the sidelines, and his past back-to-back losses to the Bulls made it difficult for him to blow X confidently.

That night, Jeff Van Gundy and several members of the coaching staff watched G3, another set of Eastern Conference semifinals.

At 103:106, the Pacers held on to their home court and managed to pull one back.

Jeff Van Gundy and Thibodeau both looked thoughtfully, and soon the bald young marshal spoke up:

"At 40:29, the Pacers lost the rebound, but still won the game, and the Bulls did slip."

Assistant coach Thibodeau seemed to gain confidence from the game and said quite confidently:

"With Pat, we don't necessarily have to be at a disadvantage in rebounding, and Lee and Houston can play like Reggie Miller, so we can also learn from the Pacers' style of play."

Hearing the discussion of several people, assistant coach Don Channey prayed in his heart:

"May the Pacers knock out the Bulls."

On the morning of the 9th, Li You saw the news in the newspaper, and the memory in his mind became clearer again.

This year, he paid little attention to the performance of other teams, and compared to last season, the lineup of several teams that made the playoffs has not changed much, they are a year older, and their strength has even decreased.

In this case, Li You goes to bed early and gets up early every day to ensure his physical condition, no matter who the final opponent is, if he wants to win, he still has to be hard enough.

In the morning training session, Ewing was particularly devoted, but his shooting state was no different from before.

Approaching the age of 36, it is very difficult for gorillas to recover from such injuries and diseases.

That evening, Hornets fans came to Charlotte Coliseum early to cheer on the home team.

Glenn Rice, who had been in a two-game slump, finally broke out when he returned to his home court, and quickly got into the groove as soon as the game started, helping the Hornets continue to cut points.

Throughout the first quarter, Coach Dave Cowens did not rotate any personnel, and the starting five all played the full first quarter.

At 26:24, the opponent stumbled the main force, and the Knicks still led by 2 points.

As if a punch was on cotton, the Knicks just ran tactics step by step, counterattacked, the starting 5 all scored, and Li You once again delivered 4 assists in a single quarter.

In the second quarter, both sides took the rotation lineup, and after less than 2 minutes of play, Glenn Rice was back on the court.

It's just that this rotation didn't do much at all, and the Hornets fell into a scoring drought again.

Ewing's finishing ability has decreased, but his defensive form is better than in the previous game.

Instead of choosing to speed up, but with better offensive efficiency, the Knicks gradually widened the difference.

After Li You and the others returned, the offensive firepower did not decrease, and they still took turns to cut points.

Seeing such a scene, the Hornets fans in attendance gradually fell silent, and when the team needed to score the most, Glenn Rice was dumbfounded.

At 28:17 in the first quarter, at the end of the half, at 54:41, the Knicks entered the second half with a 13-point lead.

At halftime, everyone in the Knicks locker room looked relaxed, and it seemed that it was no different from the regular season.

In the second half, there was a high probability that Glenn Rice would break out again and the Hornets would lose.

Everyone has seen this situation many times, and Jeff Van Gundy is also full of confidence, and he didn't nag about chicken soup anymore, but simply admonished:

"Defend well, reduce turnovers, and we're going to get match point in Charlotte tonight."

Ewing had a good half, shooting 3-of-7 from the field and 4-of-4 from the free-throw line to score 10 points.

It's just that on the Knicks' side, Alan Houston was in explosive form, 6 of 10, 2 of 2 from beyond the three-point line, 4 of 4 free throws, and scored 18 points in the half.

Li You frequently makes balls for Houston, the Knicks' offense is simple and efficient, and Ewing has nothing to say even if he is depressed, and the efficiency explodes!

This game is crucial, as long as the match point is obtained, the Knicks will basically lock up the Eastern Conference Finals.

Ewing had no choice but to become a tool man again.

In the third quarter, head coach Dave Cowens began to make frequent substitutions, trying to find the best player to open up the situation on the outside.

It was only as the game progressed, and eventually it evolved into Glenn Rice's repeated singles, and with a sigh of relief in between, Anthony Mason Jr. took over the singles responsibility.

Divac can only be a tool man, and after coming to the upper line to respond, the offense is none of his business.

Glenn Rice scored 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting in the first quarter, and at the end of the third quarter, the score was fixed at 79:62, and the margin was widened by 17 points.

After the start of the fourth quarter, the point difference did not narrow, and no Hornets fans left the game early.

Lee Woo reappeared with 8:08 left in the game, and the opposing teamup will continue to play tonight, and the Knicks will not be able to fish.

Ewing thought he would gradually find his touch, but with two missed low-post attacks in the fourth quarter, the gorilla had no choice but to simply eat the cake.

“Defense！ Defense！ Defense！ ”

Despite falling behind, the Hornets fans were still cheering for the home team's defense in the final moments.

Ewing walked to the right side of the free-throw line to receive the ball, and instead of opting for a single, he protected the ball sideways, ready to give Alan Houston a hand.

Phils, who was chasing the defense, saw through this tactic, and under the chase to the death, Alan Houston simply left the left wing and no longer received the ball.

The first set of tactics failed to be achieved, and Li You quickly ran to the left side to enter the baseline position, and then left a baseline from left to right.

On the right side of the bottom line, Li You used Oakley's cover to quickly bomb!

Coming to the right elbow of the free throw line and briefly escaping David Wesley's pursuit, Lee Yoo took the pass and then used Ewing to cover and get to the free throw line.

After the gorilla makes a pass, he immediately moves to the right side of the block.

At the free-throw line, Lee noticed David Wesley back behind him, and Divac was ready to delay the defense, and when the two were about to close, Lee Yo, who had just dribbled across the free throw line, quickly threw the ball behind his back.

The basketball flew straight to Ewing in the right blocking area, and the latter received the ball and cut into the basket, and easily put the basket with his right hand!

"Shhhhh

The Hornets fans at the scene booed wildly, and Jeff Van Gundy on the sidelines laughed but clapped his hands, signaling that the offense was playing beautifully, and at the same time reminded loudly:

"Retreat! Don't give each other any chance! ”

Being able to eat cakes efficiently is also a technical job, and Ewing did a good job this time, and by the way, Li You added an assist.

Although Glenn Rice languished again in the final quarter, Divas's form picked up, attacking in the low post and making consecutive free throws to help the Hornets continue to cut points.

But as the game passed for most of the quarter, the noise became quieter and quieter, and when the final hum sounded, there was only some noise left on the scene.

At 103:90, the Knicks crushed the opponent again, and the big score came to 3:0, and there seemed to be no suspense in the series!

"Shhhhh

In the Charlotte Stadium, after the commotion, there was another huge boo.

On the commentary bench of TNT at the scene, Dick Stockton glanced at the technical statistics and immediately praised it:

"Even though the Hornets readjusted their defensive strategy and delayed Lee more, they didn't have a significant impact on the game."

"21 points, 4 rebounds, 11 assists, 2 steals and 2 turnovers, playing 35 minutes, Lee played a perfect performance again!"

7-of-16, 3-of-7 from beyond the three-point line, and 4-of-5 from the free-throw line, although Lee You's efficiency declined, Hubby Brown didn't care, and continued to praise:

"Ewing's offensive form hasn't recovered yet, and Lee and Houston have carried the team's offense tonight."

"With a 3-0 lead, the Knicks won't waste such an opportunity, and I'm sure they'll reach the Eastern Conference Finals again."

In the visiting locker room, the Knicks' atmosphere group was cheering loudly as the team reached the Eastern Conference Finals for the second year in a row.

Ewing sat in his seat and pulled out a smile, but the gorilla looked at the technical statistics and felt a little uncomfortable:

"A wrist injury, does the body slip?"

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(End of chapter)