NBA: Goat is actually me

Chapter 96 Quadruple-Double and 50+
"Oh no, Madonna is here today too, she's wearing the Bulls No. 1 jersey, which might cause some Knicks fans to be unhappy."

Knicks live commentator Albert had sharp eyes. He not only saw Madonna at a glance, but also saw the Bulls No. 1 jersey she was wearing.

"After scoring high points in consecutive games, Meng's popularity has skyrocketed recently. He was on the All-Star starting list announced by the NBA yesterday. The Bulls now have two All-Stars," said commentator John Andaris.

Before the game started, Knicks head coach Rick Pitino greeted Meng Jin. This time he did not chat and turned around immediately after the greeting. He was impressed by Meng Jin's trash talk when he greeted him last time, so he did not intend to give Meng Jin a chance this time.

The game started quickly. Ewing made a successful jump ball and Mark Jackson dribbled across half court with a tactical gesture.

In the first round of offense, the Knicks' tactics were simple. Gerald Wilkins went around to the wing to receive the ball, and then immediately passed it to Ewing in the paint.

This is the traditional start for most teams in this era. When the team's shooting is not good at the beginning of the game, letting the inside players handle the ball has the highest success rate.

"Snapped!"

Ewing lost the ball as soon as he turned around.

Jordan suddenly appeared beside him and slammed the ball down.

After stealing the ball, Jordan half turned around and threw the ball with one hand!
The basketball flew across half court and landed in Meng Jin's hands.

Knicks fans were shocked. How did this guy run to half court? Superman? Can he fly?
What’s even more exaggerated is yet to come.

Meng Jin stepped on the LOGO and pushed the ball forward before dribbling it and starting over.

Start two meters away from the three-point line!
Meng Jin took his first step to the top of the arc, and his second step was directly inside the free throw line!
Jump with your left foot, glide in the air, raise your right hand high and put the ball into the basket!

There was a commotion at the Knicks stadium. It was not cheering or booing, but an exclamation. This was a sound that the fans made unconsciously after seeing the ball.

The Knicks' substitute players were so shocked that their faces showed up. Pat Cummings turned to look at backup center Bill Cartwright and asked, "Was that a traveling shot?"

Cartwright shook his head: "I don't know. I didn't see it clearly."

The Knicks players couldn't believe that someone could dunk with just one dribble in half court!

Albert, the commentator on the scene, was silent for three seconds: "How I wish this wasn't reality, how I wish this was a scene from a movie, but unfortunately, this is a real scene, and even more unfortunately, the player who made this move is an opponent of the Knicks."

Commentator John Andaris shook his head: "He was so fast that I didn't even see how Michael Jordan stole the ball before he crossed half court."

Mark Albert said: "It's not just speed, this guy's basketball IQ and judgment are also first-class. I saw a detail. The moment Michael Jordan started to double-team Ewing, he was ready to run to the front court."

The first ball of the game was a connection between two MJs. No one expected that this was the only pass Jordan gave to Meng Jin in the first quarter.

Jordan's desire to attack was particularly strong today. I wonder if it was because he saw Madonna wearing the Bulls No. 1 jersey on the sidelines.

At the end of the first quarter, Jordan scored 14 points with both breakthroughs and shots.

Meng Jin was in good shape tonight and scored 9 points in the first quarter, including a fast break, a tip-in, a mid-range shot with a screen in a positional battle, and a 2+1 after grabbing a backcourt rebound.

Jordan's passes can help Meng Jin's scoring statistics reach a higher level, but he does not rely entirely on Jordan.

The Bulls led 28-21 in the first quarter.

Meng Jin and Jordan scored 28 points out of 23, while the other players were basically in a half-hang-up state.

In the second quarter, the Bulls' offensive pattern did not change. Coach Collins also observed that Jordan was reluctant to pass the ball tonight, but he did not say anything to Jordan. He knew that a scorer of Jordan's level could not pass the ball and play the role of a traditional point guard in every game. He needed to indulge himself occasionally. Now that the team was in the lead, Collins saw no problem.

Collins gave Jordan a lot of freedom.

His attitude towards Meng Jin is similar, so Meng Jin can often play the role of a free man, making fast breaks in advance and sweeping back and forth.

Collins is not afraid of people saying that he is a coach who only knows how to play superstar basketball. It would be crazy to play team basketball or average basketball with these two people under him.

Thinking of this, Collins turned to look at the two assistant coaches on the bench, Phil Jackson and Tex Winter. These two were loyal supporters of team basketball. At the beginning of the season, Tex Winter repeatedly emphasized to Collins the importance of team basketball and talked about triangle offense, which were topics that Collins disliked very much.

But now Collins can't hear it, because he has ordered that the old man Winter is not allowed to attend the coaching staff meeting. Collins' plan is to kick Phil Jackson out next. Phil Jackson is Winter's disciple and a firm executor of his will. He often opposes Collins' opinions in team meetings.

At the beginning of the second quarter, Collins asked Jordan and Meng Jin to rest.

Although the Bulls have 17 more wins than the Knicks so far, their second lineup is not necessarily better than the Knicks.

The Knicks' center Bill Cartwright went on a rampage right from the start, scoring 3 points in 7 minutes, and the Bulls couldn't stop him.

Although he plays as a substitute for the Knicks, Cartwright is no pushover. He is an All-Star center, but he has to take a backseat because his position overlaps with Ewing.

"This big guy is awesome." Assistant coach Bach whispered in Collins' ear.

Collins nodded: "We are missing a big man like this in the penalty area. If we have such a big man, our inside defense ability will definitely be improved."

The two chatted for a while. After Jordan switched to point guard, the Bulls' biggest weakness was now the center.

It's okay during the regular season, but this disadvantage will be infinitely magnified in the playoffs. As a team coach, I have to think about these issues.

But sometimes thinking cannot solve the problem. Although the Bulls seem to have a lot of chips in their hands now, Meng Jin and Jordan are not for sale and cannot be moved. The other players are just change, and Oakley is the larger change, so it is difficult for them to make big moves in the transfer market.

With about 8 minutes left in the second quarter, Collins replaced Meng Jin and Jordan at the same time.

The current score is 37 to 35, and the Knicks' second lineup has narrowed the gap to just 2 points.

In addition to Cartwright, the Knicks' backup swingman John Newman is also quite strong. He averages 10 points and 2 rebounds per game. As a sophomore, he is still in his rising stage.

Jordan made a mid-range shot to stabilize the situation right from the start, then stole the ball in the backcourt and quickly scored two points. Then he grabbed the rebound in the backcourt and drove straight in, making a pass without even looking at anyone to assist Meng Jin in scoring.

This was Jordan's first assist to Meng Jin tonight. The pass at the beginning did not count as an assist because Meng Jin dribbled the ball before dunking.

Jordan was very eager to perform tonight. After sticking out his tongue and making an exaggerated gesture to assist the ball, he did not forget to glance at Madonna in the front row.

As a result, Madonna didn't even look at him, and her eyes were always fixed on Meng Jin.

This hurt Jordan a lot, and he took out his anger on the Knicks players. He made consecutive steals and points in the next three minutes.

With 2 minutes left in the second quarter, the Knicks called a timeout, but Jordan went straight to the technical table instead of going to the bench.

"Hey, show me my current stats."

This is a habit Jordan has developed in the past few games. During the game, he would frequently go to the technical desk to check his statistics to see what data he is still short of a triple-double.

No one will not care about their own data, but some players put it before victory, and some players put it after victory.

"Where's Michael?" Collins was about to arrange tactics when he discovered that the boiled egg was gone.

"Go check the statistics." Oakley pointed at Jordan not far away.

Meng Jin glanced at Jordan, and he finally understood why some people were so obsessed with triple-double data. This thing is really addictive!
"Fuck!" Jordan cursed and returned to the bench.

"Michael, what are the stats?" Oakley asked.

Jordan wiped his face with a towel and threw it on the ground: "They didn't show it to me. They said the league has introduced new rules that say you can't check statistics during the game. This is clearly targeting me."

Meng Jin on the side felt that the league's rule was not aimed at Jordan, but at himself. How could he know how many assists he was still short of reaching double digits if he didn't look at the statistics?
Collins patted the tactical board and said, "Michael, you can complain after the game. Come here now."

After arranging the tactics, Meng Jin walked up to Jordan and pretended to be surprised: "Damn, Michael, you can get a quadruple-double tonight!"

Jordan looked confused: "Quadruple-double?"

Meng Jin nodded: "Do you know how many steals you made in the first half?"

Jordan shook his head.

Meng Jin: "I don't know either, but I remember 6 or 7 of them. You might get more than 10 steals tonight!"

Jordan's eyes lit up. He was a little tired of triple-doubles, but quadruple-doubles were quite interesting.

However, Jordan immediately remembered one thing, that is, he did not pass the ball much tonight. It would be funny if his points, rebounds and steals reached double digits but his assists were not enough.

Jordan decided to change his strategy in the second half, reducing shots and increasing passes.

At the end of the first half, the Chicago Bulls led the New York Knicks 59-50.

In the second half, the two sides changed sides and Jordan made an assist right at the start.

In the positional battle, he used Korsin's cover to break into the penalty area and passed the ball to Paxson.

Paxson made a long two-point shot.

61:50.

After switching to the No. 2 position, Paxson was obviously much more comfortable. Before, he had to think about controlling the ball across half court, launching counterattack passes and shooting as soon as possible.

Now he just needs to think about running and shooting, and doesn't need to worry about anything else.

New York Knicks offensive round.

Mark Jackson lobbed the ball to Ewing in the paint.

Jordan quietly approached Ewing from the other side.

Ewing saw Jordan out of the corner of his eye and quickly raised the ball over his head.

Jordan failed to steal the ball. Ewing glared at him and said, "You still want to come? Do you really think I'm stupid?"

After Ewing confirmed that it was safe, he passed the ball, backed up, and turned around. "Bang!"

As soon as the ball left Ewing's hand, it was nailed to the backboard.

Turning around, it turned out to be Meng Jin.

Ewing was helpless. How could the team play with two old guys?
Meng Jin took the ball with both hands, then passed it to Jordan immediately, and then started a 50-meter sprint.

Before Meng Jin started to speed up, Knicks small forward Kenny Walker tried to pull his jersey. When this trick failed, Kenny Walker immediately realized that Meng Jin could not be stopped in this round.

Meng Jin was like an armored vehicle with a sports car motor, rushing at full speed towards the Knicks' defensive half.

Jordan doesn't need to think too much in this round. He just needs to observe Meng Jin's position and throw the ball into the air when it's almost time. It doesn't matter if it's a little far off. Meng Jin is a monster anyway, and he will find a way to convert his pass into an assist.

Jordan threw the ball into the air.

Meng Jin caught the ball with one hand, and after it stayed in the air, he used both hands to powerfully slam the ball into the basket!

“Bang!!!!”

63:50.

The Knicks substitutes stood up collectively. The connection between the two MJs was really exciting to watch!

The vibration of the basketball hoop made Madonna feel aroused, and no one knew what her fetish was.
Madonna stood up and applauded Meng Jin. Her action caused dissatisfaction among some fans around her, but Madonna didn't care about that. She rolled her eyes at them and continued, thinking that she could do whatever she wanted.

Mark Jackson dribbled across half court, and the Knicks played a smooth offensive coordination in this round.

Mark Jackson passed the ball to Gerald Wilkins at the corner three-point line.

Gerald Wilkins took one dribble and passed the ball to Ewing in the high position.

Ewing didn't dribble, but immediately passed the ball to the top of the arc outside the three-point line to find Mark Jackson.

While passing the ball, Ewing used his body to screen Mark Jackson, who broke through the Bulls' inside line with a slow but well-paced breakthrough.

The Bulls' four players retreated, and Mark Jackson seemed to have nowhere to hide, but he still found a passing route in desperation.

After jumping, Mark Jackson scooped the ball behind Oakley and passed it to Kenny Walker who was unguarded at the baseline.

Meng Jin missed a man in this round and rushed into the inside to block Mark Jackson.

Kenny Walker flew up and dunked.

63:52.

There are both advantages and disadvantages for coaches to give players great freedom. The scene just now was a disadvantage. If the players roam everywhere, the defensive formation may become chaotic.

Bulls offensive possession.

After getting into position, Jordan lobbed the ball to Meng Jin in the mid-range corner.

After getting the ball, Meng Jin didn't stop, he turned around, took one dribble, squeezed Kenny Walker away, and then dunked with both hands!
65:52.

This was a response to Kenny Walker's dunk just now.

In the next round, the Knicks attacked and Ewing missed the mid-range shot after the pick-and-roll.

The ball bounced very far. After Paxson picked up the ball, he turned around and looked for someone immediately. He has developed this habit over time.

Paxson made a long pass to Meng Jin.

In this round, except for Ewing, the other four Knicks players immediately retreated to the defensive half.

Sidney Green was near the midline, and the other three were near the free throw line.

After receiving the ball, Meng Jin took a step and received the ball directly at the top of the arc!

First, he quickly took a step diagonally to the left, and then took a big step to the right!
Not only did he pass Kenny Walker in two steps, but he also stepped directly into the penalty area.

Meng Jin pushed off the ground and jumped, while Mark Jackson on the other side just jumped symbolically and then watched Meng Jin smash the ball into the basket in the air.

"BOOM!!!!"

"Wow! It's this inhuman step again. Before the game, I kept praying that Meng Jin would not use this step, but I still saw it on the spot. In my opinion, this step cannot be defended, but now the NBA seems to have acquiesced to this step, and the referee basically will not call Meng for traveling." Commentator John Andaris said.

"According to the definition of the rules, this step is indeed not a foul, but I bet Dr. Naismith, the inventor of basketball, certainly did not expect that someone would be able to take a step of 4 or 5 meters with just one step!" said commentator Albert.

Just as the on-site commentator said, Meng Jin's pace is indeed unstoppable, and he has already regarded this as the ultimate killer move in his arsenal.

The so-called killer move is something that others cannot defend against and is difficult to imitate.

Those who take bigger steps than Meng Jin do not have his coordination and impact, and those who take smaller steps than him cannot produce the same shocking effect.

In the past eight games, some referees would occasionally call for traveling by Meng Jin, but most of the time Meng Jin was able to get through safely. It seems that David Stern's magic is working.

Now some fans have begun to accept these steps, especially children. Children have strong receptive ability and learn quickly. In North American schools, this kind of step can often be seen. When someone stands up and denounces it as traveling, these children will yell back: "Meng also uses this step!"

But this phenomenon has caused dissatisfaction among a group of people who cannot accept this pace, such as some Knicks fans at this moment.

In the audience, some Knicks fans were cursing Meng Jin, and the war even spread to Madonna.

When Meng Jin returned to the defensive half, he saw Madonna arguing with several fans.

"Bichi!"

"You're a bitch, a bitch wearing a Bulls jersey, you shouldn't be in this arena!"

"Get out of Madison Square Garden!"

Madonna is not the kind of person who will swallow her anger. Her response was very wild. She took off her coat, turned around and showed her Bulls jersey to the Knicks fans behind her, while her mouth was like a machine gun to warn the Knicks fans.

This move directly angered the Knicks fans, and fans in the stands started to trash talk her.

Seeing this, Meng Jin walked directly to the sideline, pointed at the Knicks fans and shouted, "This is a man's fight! Don't let women get involved!"

The Knicks fans' firepower suddenly shifted to Meng Jin. A middle-aged man wearing glasses in the front row yelled at Meng Jin, "Go back to the court, that's your area. Also, put away your rubbish steps! You can't score without this cheating step, right?"

This fan is none other than Spike Lee, a longtime Knicks fan.

"My garbage footwork is specifically designed to punish the garbage team you support. Do you want to call me for traveling? Become an NBA referee first!"

Faced with the fans' insults, Meng Jin did not pull the referee to complain, he chose to confront them directly.

Finally, order was restored with the coordination of the referee. From this goal on, Meng Jin entered a state of anger and selflessness.

Fast break dunk, open cut to the basket, and flying tip-in!
He made several difficult jump shots in a row. In this quarter, Meng Jin performed absolutely beyond his level!
Meng Jin scored 21 points in the third quarter. At the end of the quarter, the Chicago Bulls' lead had reached 20 points.

"He was amazing tonight. Find a way to stop him." During the intermission, commentator Albert could only say such weak words.

In the fourth quarter, Knicks head coach Rick Pitino changed the lineup and sent in shooter Trent Tucker.

At the beginning of the final quarter, the Knicks used the three-point tactics. The Knicks' three-point tactics are definitely not random shooting. Head coach Rick Pitino has specially developed multiple sets of three-point tactics. When he coached the NCAA in 1987, he had in-depth research on three-pointers.

Trent Tucker made two three-pointers in the first minute after coming on.

Trent Tucker's average three-point shooting percentage is 41.3%, which is considered a top shooter in this era and the highest among all players on both teams.

Rick Pitino's three-point tactics gave the Knicks a respite, while on the Bulls side, Jordan was desperately trying to increase his assists.

"Michael, good shot!" After receiving the pass from Jordan, Meng Jin flew up and made a layup.

"How many assists did I have?" Jordan asked.

"It seems to be 6?" Meng Jin replied.

"Wasn't it already 6 just now?" Jordan was a little confused. He had been passing the ball and giving assists, so why didn't the number go up?

"That's 7. I'm not sure, Michael. You have to pass me a few more to be safe."

Jordan continued to pass the ball in the final quarter.

With four minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Knicks surrendered and boos broke out again in Madison Square Garden, which is a signature feature of the Knicks.

Knicks fans have always been picky. They only look at the results and not the process. They have high standards and only the championship can satisfy their appetite. However, the reality is far from their ideal. This year's Knicks are basically out of the playoffs. The only thing the angry fans can do is boo the home team players.

Rick Pitino shook his head helplessly. He had a lot of ideas and could always design some advanced tactics, but they didn't seem to help with winning.

The NBA is not a college league. Rick Pitino is too gentle and cannot control his players. When his players are unwilling to work hard for you, no matter how good the tactics are, it will be useless.

At the end of the game, the Chicago Bulls won another victory with a score of 115 to 96.

Jordan got a quadruple-double tonight, with 28 points, 17 assists, 10 rebounds and 10 steals, which is also his first quadruple-double in his career.

When Jordan got the statistics after the game, he wanted to curse, "Damn it, when did I give out 17 assists?"
Meng Jin looked at his own statistics and nodded with satisfaction. This was the first time in his career that he scored 50+.

(End of this chapter)