Champion Rules

Chapter 340, Section 336: Being liked by Lin Qi is never a good thing (Seeking monthly votes!)

Chris Paul ultimately failed to reap the benefits of the Eastern Conference.

Moreover, he has a completely new perspective on LeBron James.

In short, his journey can be summarized as: questioning James, understanding James, and now almost becoming James!
He really doesn't want to surpass James in the East.

This was the first time he sincerely hoped that his "potential" wouldn't be that great.

On the Pacers' side, Frank Vogel and his team also identified the root cause of the loss.

In fact, there's no need to look for it at all.

The reason we lost the last game wasn't because Chris Paul was foul-mouthed, nor was it because Paul George was obsessed with being forced into the top five.

It was because of Roy Hibbert.

This 218cm tall, big man with excellent defensive awareness and skillful low-post technique would have had a bright future in any era.

Even if he can't become a superstar center, he'll at least be selected as an All-Star once.

In an era where the rules were unfavorable to dominant centers and where monsters like Lynch existed, Roy Hibbert seemed like a product of antiquity.

His slow movements made it impossible for him to keep up with the Knicks' high-frequency 4-5 pick-and-roll offense initiated by Lynch.

Lynch's all-around skills were also a great counter to Roy Hibbert's defensive retreat.

Yes, Roy Hibbert has unparalleled rim protection, but Lynch doesn't need to attack the rim to smash you to pieces in a million ways.

This is so different from the Gulf War and the September 9.3rd military parade that it feels like a generational gap.

Just a few years ago, traditional centers weren't in such dire straits.

Players generally don't have that strong shooting ability, and even power forwards like Lynch aren't that strong—traditional power forwards don't have such powerful shooting ability, and power forwards with strong shooting ability rarely have such strong ball-handling and tearing ability.

However, two things last season completely destroyed the ecosystem of the traditional center.

First, Lynch started taking the ball more often and attacking the ball last season, and the results were outstanding.

Secondly, the Oklahoma City Thunder's desperate attempt to use a small lineup actually made them the strongest team in the West.

These two events suddenly turned the traditional center, once the most important player on the basketball court, into a burden.

Yao Ming's retirement seems to mark the complete end of the twilight of the center position, and the arrival of the darkest moment for big men.

The same applies to any industry; the times will not gradually eliminate you.

Instead, one day, without you even realizing it, you'll be left behind by the times.

This is even very unfair, because you haven't done anything wrong.

Just like how Nokia phones still maintain excellent quality and their designs remain relevant.

But just as it was enjoying its hotpot and singing, it was suddenly crushed by the wheels of time.

Evolution isn't always a good thing. For example, the damn live streaming industry destroyed the purity of karaoke.

But for basketball, at least under the NBA rules, evolution is essential.

Only by finding ways to increase speed and gain better maneuverability can you become a truly top-tier team.

Both the Knicks and Thunder have abandoned traditional centers, making them the current favorites to win the championship.

Last season, the Spurs were still playing a half-court twin towers strategy. This season, they have started to lower their pace and increase their speed. After undergoing a series transformation, their record has immediately improved.

Don't forget that in last season's Finals, the Knicks only managed to secure the series after benching DeAndre Jordan.

DeAndre Jordan's mobility is already much better than that of a traditional center.

All the facts prove that in high-level games and as the playoffs progress, the role of traditional centers is shrinking dramatically, or even becoming entirely negative.

The centers in the league today lack the low-post dominance of Shaq and Yao Ming, and are easily targeted by opponents on the defensive end.

It was a complete disaster, both offensively and defensively.

A new era has arrived, and the traditional center forward has become a casualty.

Frank Vogel is a coach who relies heavily on big centers, but now he has to consider one thing—pressing that cruel button in the next game and removing Roy Hibbert.

This is a huge challenge for the Pacers, who have never played a small lineup this season and whose defensive system has always relied on the center position.

In fact, this is why some coaches seem "inflexible".

Often, it's not that they can't see the problems, nor that they don't understand the value of flexibility.

The core dilemma is that no coach can guarantee that a team will perform better when it completely abandons its familiar system.

Of course, the great Doc Rivers is an exception. Whether he's a good coach or not depends entirely on how good the point guards he coaches are.

After weighing the pros and cons, Frank Vogel ultimately decided to remove the center forward for the next game!

Yes, the Pacers are more familiar with the current style of play.

Even if this strategy is executed to its fullest potential, it can only snatch one or two games from the Knicks at most, but it will never win the entire series.

This is even the most optimistic estimate.

If we disregard any stroke of luck, and the Pacers stick to their old ways, there is almost only one outcome awaiting them: being swept out of the playoffs.

While the tactical change means significant growing pains, it at least creates a glimmer of hope for Indianapolis.

Frank Vogel told himself to be brave.

Indiana fans have an indomitable spirit; they would rather witness a team shattered in a bloody and courageous battle than see a defeated army lingering on in cowardice.

During the tactical meeting that afternoon, Roy Hibbert was practically in a daze.

He couldn't believe it was real.

He trained so hard and competed so seriously, yet in the end he lost the right to live in this era.

Frank Vogel went to his room in the Black Tower in Indianapolis alone after the meeting.

"Listen, Roy, this isn't your fault, and please don't deny your efforts."

But that's just how this alliance is.

Michael Jordan's emergence made purely offensive wing players like Dr. J less popular; defensive wing players became the more valuable ones.

Shaquille O'Neal made it so that every team had to have at least one giant with both height and weight, even if he couldn't play basketball at all.

Now, it's Lynch's turn.

Ultimately

Frank Vogelton paused, patted Roy Hibbert on the shoulder with a sigh, and looked out the window at the star-studded New York.

Beneath this colossal city, where splendor and coldness intertwine, individuals are as insignificant as dust.

Ultimately, the power to define an era depends solely on those who steer it.
-
It turns out that Frank Vogel wasn't the only person with a keen sense of smell.

Fox Sports writer Melissa Rowling wrote an article titled "Lynch, the man who steered the league into a small-ball frenzy" after Game 1 of the series, which sparked widespread discussion among fans.

For the first time in history, this veteran writer has combined "small ball" with "Lynch".

It's worth noting that during Lynch's collaboration with Steve Nash, he was never labeled as a "small ball" player.

Rowling's views are very sharp:
"Linche is forcing all teams in the league to optimize their rosters, and all championship contenders must abandon the traditional center role."

The era of small balls will therefore arrive.

This is indeed unconventional. From the era of George Mikan to Yao Ming's entry into the NBA, the entire basketball culture has devoutly believed that giants are the natural owners of the throne on the court.

But Lynch is breaking the ironclad rule that has been followed since the birth of basketball.

Future strong teams will no longer need bulky rim-protecting forwards, nor will they need centers to penetrate the low post.

Center players must possess excellent mobility, a great jump shot, and strong playmaking ability.

I don't know if that day will ever come, but believe me, when a center wins the MVP again someday.

That player will definitely redefine people's understanding of the 'center forward'.

When Lynch saw this article, he was surprised himself.

He never imagined that he would become the pioneer of the small ball era.

It's as if he never imagined that he would be able to resolve the labor dispute crisis last year and save a season that was shortened in the original timeline.

Lynch's influence has become so great that it goes far beyond simply influencing who wins the championship.

But what he cares about most is still who wins the championship.

Before Game 2 of the series began, when asked by reporters, Lynch simply shrugged:

"I don't know if the term 'small ball era' is accurate, even if all teams change their roster configurations for me. Well, I think I can still keep winning."

Lynch's confidence remains as strong as ever, but today he is about to face a challenge.

When people saw the Pacers' starting lineup, everyone was very surprised.

The 191cm tall "Brazilian Lightning" Leandro Barbosa was put into the starting lineup, replacing the 218cm tall Roy Hibbert.

This tactical change allows everyone to fully appreciate the changes in height in modern basketball.

David West, the most cultured player in the league, played center in this game, while Paul George, who in another timeline didn't play in the Finals but was widely regarded by fans as the Finals MVP, was responsible for guarding Lynch.

Currently, this is the most balanced starting lineup the Pacers can field.

Lynch stared at the young Paul George, a guy who was only in his second year of his career, and it was hard to say whether he was unlucky or lucky.

In his second year in the league, the Pacers decided to take a gamble on him, entrusting him with the responsibility of playing on the wing, and then traded All-Star player Daniel Granger for that number 3.

The arrival of number 3 boosted his stats, making him the Most Improved Player (one year ahead of the previous record) and turning him into a near All-Star.

But now, without any warning, he has been forced to stand in front of the world's most difficult player to defend.

Lynch jokingly asked him, "Hey, why are you wearing size 24?"

“Of course, it’s because of Kobe,” George from Palmdale, Los Angeles, replied.

"Kobe only won one championship after leaving Shaq."

"But that ring was stolen during your era, which tarnished your career and prevented you from ever becoming a perfect player."

Lynch has started to like Paul George; at least he's brave.

The game begins, and the Knicks have possession of the ball.

In the very first possession, the Knicks sensed the changes in the Pacers' defense.

Even without Roy Hibbert as a rim protector, breaking through the Pacers' defense will still be no easy task.

Because they applied better pressure from the outside than in the last game.

Chris Paul's tenacity towards Irving did not weaken despite the previous loss, and the Brazilian Lightning's defense against DeMar DeRozan remained tight.

Arron Afflalo continued his excellent play, cleverly cutting off Wilson Chandler's scoring opportunities. On the defensive end, Paul George was undoubtedly the most dedicated.

From the very first second the whistle blew, he was like a 360-degree cage surrounding Lynch, ready to cut off Lynch's receiving routes at any moment.

He did everything he could to do one thing: prevent Lynch from getting the basketball comfortably.

His meticulous footwork and proactive attitude on the defensive end really do have some of the spirit of the early Kobe.

The intense perimeter play largely compensated for the Pacers' lack of rim protection, and Kyrie Irving's first offensive possession ended in a missed shot against CP3's one-on-one defense.

The biggest unexpected takeaway from this game was that the Pacers became more comfortable on offense after playing a small lineup.

Chris Paul can finally confidently call on David Weiss to run pick-and-rolls.

In the last game, because Lynch was responsible for guarding the power forward position, Paul didn't use the 1-4 pick-and-roll much—no smart person would choose to pick the opponent's best defensive player.

But now, when Lynch guards Paul George, CP3 no longer needs to fear Lynch's pick-and-roll defense.

Chris Paul drove to the basket after a screen, and DeAndre Jordan immediately came to his defense. The former skillfully passed the ball to David West in the mid-range.

But Lynch rotated quickly, and the moment West received the ball, the King of New York still blocked him.

However, the Pacers' offense did not stop.

David West is a very strong playmaker. When he saw Lynch leave Paul George alone, he immediately sent the ball to the corner.

Paul George takes a three-pointer, and the ball goes in cleanly!
The Indiana Pacers take a 3-0 lead for the first time in the series!
Number 24 did not celebrate the goal, but immediately retreated to defend.

Lynch started making active runs, and he always liked to immediately respond with a shot when the team was behind.

But this time, when he finished his run and received the basketball, he didn't get any space to shoot.

Number 24 is relentlessly tracking Lin Qi!

As a future All-Defensive First Team caliber player, Paul George's defense is both good and bad.

The downside is that he's primarily a perimeter defender, with insufficient involvement in help defense. As a frontcourt player, he can't fundamentally change a team's defensive performance like Kawhi Leonard did when he wasn't playing against giants or Giannis Antetokounmpo.

The good thing is that Paul George is often able to perform his one-on-one defensive duties very well.

Don't be fooled by the number of times Paul George has been a background player. In fact, just like Tim Duncan, he is prone to being a background player precisely because he plays defense diligently.

Players who have already run to the other half of the court for a fast break while the team is on defense are naturally unlikely to be dunked on.

His excellent off-ball defense left Lynch with no space to receive the ball and shoot, so Lynch lowered his center of gravity, called for a screen, and prepared to continue his attack using the screen.

The moment the pick-and-roll was set, Paul George immediately switched onto David West without hesitation.

This deprived Lynch of the space to shoot.

He drove straight into the paint, where he was double-teamed by George and David West.

Lynch pushed past David West and raised his hand for a layup, but behind David West, Paul George leaped up and swatted the ball away over his teammate's body!
The crowd gasped in surprise; it was a very rare sight to see Lynch get blocked here.

Paul George's outstanding performance in the opening possessions drew attention; after blocking Lynch's layup, number 24 quickly sprinted forward.

Chris Paul found him in the crowd, pushed the basketball through the gaps in the crowd, and sent it straight into Paul George's hands.

#24 scores with a one-handed dunk, putting the Pacers up 5-0!

On the sidelines, Frank Vogel was deeply shaken.

He simply removed a traditional center forward, yet the team underwent such a dramatic change?

Paul George's emotions finally erupted; he looked up to the sky and roared, full of pride and high spirits.

He knew that his parents must be watching the game and must have seen this scene!
But the pride was only there for a moment before it was overshadowed again, replaced by another diligent defensive effort.

Paul George spread his arms and continued to crouch in front of Lynch.

This time, Lin Qi didn't call for a pick and roll, but instead made several triple-threat moves outside the three-point line.

As Lynch tentatively stepped forward, Paul George cautiously took a half-step back.

Lin Qi seized that half-step space and immediately jumped to shoot!
George first had a bad feeling, then prayed in his heart: "Half-step space, it shouldn't have any problems, right?"

but--

"brush!"

For Lynch, killing his opponent only required this half-step of space!

With the score at 3-5, the New York Kings displayed their prowess, immediately ending the team's scoring drought.

What's even more resilient is that, after conceding the goal, Paul George once again did his best to mark Lynch, as if the defensive failure had not affected his mentality at all.

Pacers backup forward Ron Artest, Lynch's former teammate, stood up and cheered for his younger teammate: "Well done, just as tough as me!"

In this attack, Lynch provided support from the high post and passed the ball to DeMar DeRozan, who was cutting in.

But Brazilian lightning Barbosa was clearly faster than DeRozan, and he overtook DeRozan midway through the game, cutting off DeRozan's position and disrupting his pass.

The ball is temporarily out of control, and both teams have a roughly equal chance to fight for possession.

Lynch started almost instantly, but Paul George was just as fast.

The two fell to the ground almost simultaneously, both gripping the basketball with both hands.

However, with his greater strength, Lynch still managed to get the ball back into his hands and quickly passed it to Kyrie Irving, who was there to receive it.

The Knicks continued their offense. Lynch had just gotten up and immediately raised his arm in the low post to call for the ball, but the moment he raised his hand, he felt a force shoving him violently from behind.

Paul George, who had just been wrestling with him on the floor, was now sticking to him every step of the way!

Facing the best basketball player in the world, he showed no fear or stage fright.

His tenacity on the defensive end far exceeded everyone's expectations!
Paul George knew this was an opportunity to make a name for himself.

He must give 100%, no, 120% effort to seize this opportunity.

Lynch was also spurred on, and the matchup against Paul George reminded him of the recent All-Star Weekend.

That feeling of going head-to-head with Kobe was incredibly exhilarating.

Tonight, Lynch caught some of that feeling in Paul George.

It must be said that the Black Mamba has a huge influence in California, and many children idolize him and emulate his spirit and behavior.

Many of his famous quotes have undoubtedly taken root in the hearts of children in California.

For example—Shaq did it too.

Paul George truly inherited the spirit of number 24, and this spirit was like a drug to Lynch, instantly putting him to the test.

Lynch exerted force from behind, and even with the weight reduction, he still held a strength advantage over Paul George.

The Pacers' defense immediately collapsed, and Lynch did a turnaround fadeaway before the collapse was complete.

Paul George defended Lynch to the extreme, pushing his height, wingspan, and jumping ability to the limit to disrupt him.

Lynch used the angle created by his fadeaway jumper to get a valuable shot off, and he acknowledged that Paul George has enormous defensive potential.

His reaction time, awareness, and resilience are all far superior to those of ordinary players.

He truly deserves to be a future member of the first defense team.

Paul George turned around immediately after landing, wanting to see the results of his hard-fought defense.

Unfortunately.

No results were achieved.

The basketball swished through the net, and Lynch scored 4 points in a row. Under Paul George's flawless and tough defense, he responded with his even stronger ability to break through!

"That's a superstar!" Mike Breen exclaimed. "Paul George's defense is impeccable, but the point of a superstar is to still score against perfect defense!"

After scoring this goal, Lynch did not flaunt his victory, did not adopt the contemptuous attitude he displayed in the previous game, and did not utter any trash talk.

He laughed, clapped at Paul George, and then pointed at him: "Hey, I like you, kid, keep it up!"

In this league, very few players can earn Lynch's personal approval.

You could even say that this unexpected praise was almost an honor for Paul George.

Paul George also gained confidence, and he ran forward, wanting to play the whole game with a more resilient attitude.

However, in the next quarter, Paul George was almost completely destroyed by Lynch.

Lynch's offensive desire was higher than ever tonight. In the last game, he only took over the game in the decisive moments, but this time, he aggressively demanded the ball whenever he had the slightest opportunity and challenged George one-on-one.

After the three threats, Lynch unleashed a barrage of pull-up jumpers, a powerful breakthrough, and a low-post back-to-the-basket shove, as if dumping his entire arsenal on George, each move deadly.

With eight minutes left in the first quarter, when Lynch scored his 16th point of the quarter with a delicate hook shot after a dreamlike low-post move, the Pacers were already down by eight points.

The Pacers were stopped by Lynch.

Paul George was puzzled; he couldn't understand what he had done to offend Lynch.
Since the start of the match, he hasn't even exchanged more than a few words with Lin Qi.

After scoring, Lynch glanced at George, who was soaking wet and panting, gave him an approving look, and gave him a thumbs up.

"here you go."

Faced with praise again, Paul George felt no excitement, only resentment.

After leaving the court, Paul George sat down next to Ron Artest and threw down his towel, saying, "Lynch is just a pretentious jerk!"

Ron Artest, standing nearby, asked with concern, "Why do you say that?"

"He's all phony and pretends to be magnanimous! He's a petty bastard at heart! He'll retaliate fiercely against anyone who dares to challenge him! Look at him! He went all out against me today! Damn it, does he think this will make me back down? I won't let him beat me!"

Ron Artest smiled as he looked at the furious George.

As a former member of the Knicks, he knew Lynch.

He knew that Lynch was neither narrow-minded nor hypocritical.

“I think he really likes you,” Artest told George. “He definitely admires you, but that’s the problem.”

Artest turned his head, stared intently at George, and patted the young man hard on the shoulder:

"Being liked by Lynch is never a good thing."

This means that he will give 100% of his strength to show the highest level of respect.

Actually, you don't need to worry too much. Going against Lynch is never easy; you have to take it one step at a time.

Why not set yourself a small goal first, such as...
Try not to let Lynch score 50 points like this.

Paul George was taken aback. Was it something to be proud of for Lynch to score 40+?
“No, his score will be at least lower than the last game (37 points)!” Paul George answered decisively.

Ron Artest didn't say anything more, he just shook his head.

Young people these days are a bit too ambitious.

(End of this chapter)