Jordan: I thought he was there to help me!

Chapter 608 You men just don't understand Lin's charm!

What does New York vs. Los Angeles mean?

Honestly, Stern didn't know either.

But he was well aware that this series would reach a whole new level in terms of viewership, economic benefits, buzz, mainstream appeal, and all sorts of other aspects!

The two cities look down on each other. New York thinks Los Angeles people are ambitious but ignorant, and that they are arrogant country bumpkins who think they are superior after making a few bad movies.

Los Angeles residents, on the other hand, think that New York is just a bunch of nouveau riche who have nothing but a few stinking bucks.

The mutual dislike between these two cities is ingrained in their very bones!

Just before this series began, all the major online forums related to basketball and sports across the United States were set ablaze with activity, with discussions and research on the series taking place everywhere. Meanwhile, television stations with NBA broadcasting rights devised various strategies to seize the few days leading up to the Finals and broadcast related programs at an alarming rate.

Match preview, match introduction, match prediction, head-to-head analysis, player analysis, tactical comparison, debate, player profiles, rivalries, past records, path to the next round...

It's fair to say that every possible topic linking these two teams has been thoroughly explored by media outlets across the United States. They've been frantically absorbing the traffic and buzz generated by this series, constantly pushing its popularity to new heights.

The NBA, on the other hand, is using this hype to attract fans and let more people know that this series is about to begin!

In order to maximize the benefits of this series and get more people to know and pay attention to it, Stearns even came up with some nonsensical reasons to postpone the series by one day!

Don't ask, the answer is we weren't prepared, the answer is the venue had problems and needed repairs!

Anyway, the match will be postponed by one day.

Although it was only one day, it was enough for the league and various media outlets to do more and continue to hype up this round of games.

At the same time, it is also to allow both teams to rest as much as possible. Only when both sides are fully recovered to their best condition can this series truly bring the greatest benefit to the league.

"A Game 7! Damn, we absolutely have to go to a Game 7!"

Even when Stern returned home at night, he would clutch a crucifix tightly and pray devoutly.

Of course, if you look closely, you'll find that this guy has a Quran under his pillow, a Buddha statue on his wrist, and a statue of Zeus hidden in his blanket.

The main idea is to ask everything you can, leaving no stone unturned.

What if there's someone who's particularly free and willing to lend a hand?

Anyway, Stern himself isn't at a disadvantage.

"O'Neal only played half of the regular season this year, and in the nearly 40 games he rested, he was quite healthy and injury-free in at least 20 of them." Before the start of the Finals, the Knicks held their pre-game analysis meeting as usual.

"This guy has no shame! For the playoffs, for the championship, he's skipping the regular season altogether! Never before has a team's star player been so shameless! So adept at resting!"

"All I can say is that this petty, opportunistic behavior will definitely be met with retribution! Those who try to gain an advantage through trickery will ultimately face their comeuppance!"

Old Nelson got more and more excited as he spoke, and said directly, "Damn it, no way, I'm calling Donnie right now and telling him to report the Lakers! I don't care if it works or if they get punished, I'm going to disgust them! They're shameless."

After Don Nelson's outburst, the Knicks' meeting room erupted in laughter as usual. Everyone was quite respectful of the old man; if you tell a joke, the guys will definitely laugh.

"Of course, the point is this: although O'Neal and Jackson have no shame whatsoever, they're in really good shape! O'Neal has truly regained his youth and turned back the clock."

"His performance in the regular season was unremarkable, just average output. But in the playoffs, his form improved round after round, and he became more and more like a monster!"

"In the Western Conference Finals, this guy averaged 38 points, 18 rebounds, and 4 blocks in 6 games! These prehistoric behemoth-like stats were the biggest reason why the Suns ultimately lost! They simply couldn't keep up with or defend O'Neal."

"If nothing unexpected happens, we won't be able to stop him! When he plays against us, O'Neal will likely put on a monster performance averaging 40 points and 20 rebounds per game."

"And then there's Kobe. This guy carried the team perfectly in the absence of Shaq this regular season, not only winning the scoring title, but also achieving his highest career average points per game so far!"

"But in the playoffs, this guy actually gave up his shot attempts to let O'Neal find his form and feel, giving O'Neal the most shots and the most ball possession on the team."

"Kobe's sacrifice was effective. The Lakers were virtually unstoppable in this season's playoffs; almost no one could gain an advantage against them, whether it was the Timberwolves, the Mavericks, or the Suns—they all defeated them with ease!"

"By the way, it's worth mentioning that although Kobe significantly reduced his shot attempts in the playoffs, he still scored 40+ points twice in six games in the Western Conference Finals, averaging 33 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists per game."

"Let me put it this way, Shaq and Kobe are unstoppable! They're both at their peak, giving it their all to win that damn championship trophy!"

"They're going all in this year!"

At this point, Don Nelson paused, then looked at the Knicks players in front of him and asked, "What about you guys? What do you think?"

"Is there any team in this league that is more unstoppable and harder to beat than us? Is there anyone in this league who is in better form than us?" Lin Tian said with a light laugh, "They are just almost impossible to beat."

"They're in great form, they're feeling great, but look at their path to the playoffs! Allen Iverson, playing as a lone star, can take a win off them, and the Mavericks can win against them too."

"The Suns even beat them twice!"

"What about us? Can anyone beat us?"

"No! Not a single team! Whether it's the Heat, the Wizards, or the Pistons, they won't take a single win from us! We are the best, strongest, and most unbeatable team in the playoffs!"

"Player form? Yes, O'Neal and Kobe are both at their peak, they're unstoppable, but I looked at their stats. In the first round, O'Neal scored less than 20 points in one game, and Kobe's field goal percentage was less than 30% in Game 4 against the Mavericks!"

"They have their ups and downs; they also have many times when they miss shots and when they are in bad form and their opponents win."

"And what about us?"

This time, the entire Knicks team opened their mouths simultaneously and said, "We didn't!"

"Yes! We didn't! We never slacked off, we never let our opponents steal our victory! We gave it our all, we are invincible!"

"Invincible! Invincible!"

The Knicks players shouted again, expressing their full confidence and determination to win.

"And, most importantly," Old Nelson added with a laugh, "their players are unstoppable, but do you think ours can be?"

"Lin's performance was enough to overwhelm both OK! Against the Heat, he easily won the series without breaking a sweat, including a 53-point triple-double. Against the Wizards, he also barely broke a sweat, including a 60-point triple-double and locking down Arenas in overtime."

"In the Eastern Conference Finals, what can the Pistons, who beat the Lakers last year, do against us? Our Lin scored 40 points on 15-for-15 shooting, breaking countless records."

"Comparing player form? Do you think those two could even hold their own against Lin Tian?"

At this point, Don Nelson casually spread his hands and said, "Maybe we can't stop them, but nobody in this world can stop us! As long as we give it our all and don't let our guard down, we can still sweep the Lakers in this series!"

"Our tactics remain unchanged. I will not study how to limit the OK combination, nor will I use the outdated 'Hack-a-Shaq' tactic to limit Shaq."

"This series is exactly the same as every series we've ever had!"

"Attack! Attack! Attack! I want you to attack like crazy! Understand?"

"clear!"

The Knicks players were completely ignited by Don Nelson's words, and they raised their arms in celebration, demonstrating their unparalleled confidence and determination.

Now, all that's left is for the match to begin!

On June 8, 2006, Madison Square Garden in New York was packed with people from the afternoon onwards, with cars and crowds blocking this holy site known as the Mecca of basketball.

People were everywhere, fans everywhere, die-hard Knicks supporters everywhere, singing and making all sorts of noise. Most of them hadn't been able to buy tickets and could only support their team from the outside.

This grand final, a head-to-head showdown between the two largest cities, is destined to generate countless topics and discussions, as well as subsequent chain reactions!

Inside the stadium, ticket holders were already seated in their places, ready to cheer on their team!

Even when Lin Tian walked into the stadium to warm up, he was taken aback by the enthusiasm and frenzy of the fans!

"Lin! Kill those Los Angeles hicks!"

"Let them know they're nothing but trash!"

"Making a few lousy movies is nothing! That's an industry we don't want!"

"So what if you can make a few movies? The investors in those movies are all New Yorkers!"

"We hold the lifeline of Los Angeles in our hands!"

"Fuck those Los Angeles idiots one more time!"

"Let them know the gap between us!"

……

The fans' shouts and trash talk came one after another, and just as Lin Tian was about to listen more closely to see if there were any new tricks, a new trick came, because the Lakers entered the court!

"Hick! Trash! Uncultured country bumpkin!"

"Go back to Los Angeles! You're all trash!"

"Weren't you awestruck by New York's dazzling splendor? You couldn't build a city of that scale even in a hundred years!"

"You idiots who make movies! You're just lackeys working for capital!"

"Half of New York City is bigger than Los Angeles!"

"You're not even as good as New Jersey!"

"My grandma just came back from Los Angeles, and she was terrified! She thought she'd traveled back in time to 18th-century New York!"

……

Listening to the New York fans' enthusiastic and creative tirade, Lin Tian gave them a thumbs up.

Well said, keep it up!

Lin Da Guanren was preparing to find some inspiration from it.

Lin Tian listened attentively to the fans' trash talk while casually chatting with his teammates and shooting hoops.

Then when he sees acquaintances watching the game on the sidelines, he goes over to say hello and chats with those familiar fans for a while.

For example, Spike Lee, who is present at Madison Square Garden almost every game but has not been seen by Lin Tian for a long time, gave Lin Tian a good hug.

"Kill these bastards Lin! Ideally, dunk on Shaq twice. If you can do that, I'll make you the lead in my movie!"

"Come on, Spike. If I wanted to make that lousy movie, I would have done it three years ago. Why would I wait until now?"

"I told you he wasn't interested. This kid's a total realist!" Dolan said, puffing on a large cigar and wearing a rather flamboyant floral shirt. As usual, a sexy woman sat on each of his left and right sides.

"Lin, you win tonight. Both of them are yours," Dolan said with a lewd grin. "I know your taste. I brought two 'newcomers' that I haven't touched before. You'll definitely be satisfied!"

"James, make your little pet move aside and give me some space." Then, Hilton's incredibly familiar voice came over. This woman with an aura of 2.8 meters tall stared at Dolan, and even though Dolan was from a top-tier wealthy family, he couldn't help but shudder.

Then he patted one of the girls on the butt and obediently made room for Hilton.

Hilton sat down with satisfaction, then stared directly at Lin Tian without any pretense and said, "If you can beat the Lakers, I don't need you to accompany me."

Hilton's words surprised Spike Lee and Dolan. What was going on? Had New York's number one carnivore turned to vegetarianism?

Of course, ever since she got involved with Lin Tian, ​​Hilton's scandals have gone from flying everywhere to nothing. Paparazzi have never been able to take pictures of her fooling around again. This girl has been very well-behaved these past few years!

Even when Nick Carter of the Backstreet Boys, a top star who was once famous throughout the media and the streets, took the initiative to express his love for Hilton and expressed his desire to develop a relationship with her, Hilton rejected him without even thinking about it.

She also stated quite bluntly, "I don't like pretty boys, I'm afraid I'll drain you dry!"

This direct rejection, which essentially told him he wasn't good enough, really made Carter lose face.

But what could he do? He couldn't afford to mess with Hilton.

Even celebrities like them have to defer to the whims of truly wealthy families like the Hilton family.

Proof? How can he prove it?

Wouldn't that be exposing our own weaknesses?

He could only swallow this bitter pill and obediently go looking for other prey.

Of course, outsiders thought Hilton had reformed and was going to focus on her career and work hard to develop the family business, but those in the know knew that the woman was completely infatuated with Lin Tian.

She's so infatuated with him that she's willing to remain chaste for him!

It's simply a myth!

For example, Spike and Dolan are both insiders.

But now Hilton is saying he doesn't need Lin Tian to accompany him if the Knicks win? What kind of logic is this?

The two were incredibly curious and strained to hear Hilton's plans.

Hilton didn't hide it from her.

Instead, he pouted and gestured towards the seat opposite him, indicating that everyone should look in that direction.

Then Lin Tian saw three girls.

The two looked exactly alike. The other one was slightly younger, but had already grown up. Although her eyes weren't big, her slightly squinted expression exuded a charming and alluring quality.

Who else could it be but the Olsen sisters?

Lin Tian thought back carefully and realized that the Olsen sisters had never appeared in front of him together again since that night.

Usually it's just one person, occasionally an older one with a younger one, but seeing all three of them together in one frame seems to be the first time since then.

"Really?!" Dolan's eyes widened in surprise.

"That can't be right." Spike's face was also full of disbelief.

"What's impossible about it?" Hilton curled his lip, looking like he was making a fuss over nothing. "You men just don't understand Lin's charm."

"Yes, yes, yes, I never want to know in my life." Dolan shuddered, then looked at Lin Tian and Hilton, and couldn't help but ask, "Which one did you get? The older one or the younger one?"

"Lin is a law-abiding citizen. The youngest is only 15 or 16, I guess," Spike said. "I bet he's the boss!"

"I'd guess it's the second son." Dolan snorted, then looked at Hilton with eager curiosity.

"The two that look most alike." Hilton sold Lin Tian out without hesitation.

"Can you guys please stop talking about this in front of me?" Lin Tian couldn't take it anymore. Who talks about this like this in front of others?!

"Can you please stop bringing women to my hotel all the time? Can't you take them somewhere else? Is there only one hotel in all of New York?" Hilton snorted in dissatisfaction, then suddenly turned her eyes to Lin Tian.

"Or is this more exciting?"

"I can't be bothered with you three hooligans." Lin Tian decisively turned around and went to practice shooting, no longer wanting to waste words with these three.

"Really, two Pascals?" Dolan still didn't believe it.

He's slept with twins before, and even with super beautiful triplets.

But he had never actually tried being paired with a top-tier American celebrity and a billionaire self-made beauty twin.

You can't win over a girl like that with money.

Charm?

Dolan knows he's very charming, even one of the most charming people in all of New York, but 99% of his charm comes from his money. Take away the money, and he's not charming at all.

So he couldn't understand how Lin Tian had done it. (End of Chapter)