Champion, please stay!

Chapter 168, Section 166: The Final Sprint of the Season!

Yi Shui's 58-point performance this time was much more sensational than his 50-point performance against the Warriors, but the momentum didn't last as long. After the Husky team made it to the finals, basketball fans' attention was focused on the March Madness finals, which would start on April 4th.

After two rest days, on April 3rd, the Knicks will host the Pistons.

Iverson was not seen in Yishui tonight.

Two weeks ago, he saw the news that Pistons general manager Dumars said in an interview: "I hope Allen can take on the responsibility of a veteran. I am considering starting Rodney (Stuckey). I think he has the potential to become a superstar."

And then they really put Iverson on the bench!
Unlike Brand, Iverson didn't make a scene. After all, he's getting on in years. He went directly to Dumars to discuss a buyout, but Dumars didn't agree. Instead, he gave Iverson an indefinite leave of absence.

This move left Yi Shui feeling suffocated. In his memory, during the seven or eight years that Dumars had a smooth run with the Pistons, he could do anything and his moves all looked excellent... What kind of outrageous moves are these now?
He could only speculate that Iverson's aggressive play on the court might have affected the Pistons' tanking, and Dumars wanted to improve his draft position.
As for believing that Stuckey had the potential to become a superstar, it sounds like nonsense, but Yi Shui remembers that Stuckey later seemed to really become the core of the Pistons' team building, but his performance... Iverson had the worst performance of his career this season, averaging 17 points and 5 assists, while Stuckey never had an average of 15+5 in his entire career, and at his peak he was only a starter for a bottom-tier team.

In short, Dumars's move made the Pistons' already collapsed market even more dismal.

Before the All-Star Weekend, the Pistons had the highest attendance in the league, but now they're almost sitting at the same table as the Nets.

A high score is always followed by a high number of assists; this is the statistical pattern for Yi Shui this season.

After scoring 45 points in his debut, he recorded 7 assists in his second game; after scoring 36 points against the Mavericks, he achieved his first triple-double against the Heat; after racking up points against the Warriors, he recorded two triple-doubles in three games against the Hawks and the Heat...

This time, tonight, Yi Shui's assists are on fire again!
He started the game by repeatedly attacking the aging Rasheed Wallace, with the double teams coming faster and faster, and his assists becoming increasingly frequent.

出战37分钟，13投6中，其中三分球2中1，加上5中5的罚球，易水拿到18分11板13助攻2抢断1盖帽，且只有3次失误，这是他拿三双的比赛中失误最少的一次。

Under his leadership, the Knicks thrashed the Pistons 113-86, handing the Pistons their eighth consecutive loss!

...

With 8 triple-doubles, Yi Shui surpassed Magic Johnson to become the rookie with the most triple-doubles... even if we count Oscar Robertson alone.

This time, however, it truly transcended loneliness.

Dolan tried hard to steal the spotlight, giving extensive coverage, and major media outlets spared no expense in their coverage. But the excitement only lasted that night, and the next day, fans' attention was entirely focused on the 3rd Madness final... including Yi Shui himself.

He hadn't paid much attention to the Husky team's previous games before and after, just watching the live stream when he had time. But the final was completely different. He didn't even go to the gym early in the morning for extra practice. Instead, he couldn't help but check the Tar Heels' playing style this year, the players' performance, and so on.

After the team's afternoon training session, Yi Shui worked hard and finished his training early. At 8 p.m., he watched the live broadcast with Curry, Chalmers, Birdman, Swift and others who came to his house.

While chatting with his teammates, Yi Shui speculated on the Husky team's possible tactics, but none of them guessed correctly. After the game started, the Husky team cheated!
Calhoun benched Jerome Dyson and opted for a combination of Kemba Walker, Price, Robinson, Yad, and Thabeet, employing high-intensity defense and a physical, brute-force approach!

The Husky team scored only 19 points in the first half, which is lower than their score in the previous quarterfinals.

The Tar Heels weren't doing much better, with Lawson, Wayne Ellington, Dante Green, and other perimeter players all performing poorly.

The worst off was Hansbrough, who went 0-for-4 in the first half. When he went to the free-throw line, he missed the first free throw and didn't get the second one. He had 0 points, 0 rebounds, and 1 block!

The Tar Heels missed out on JJ Hickson from the 07 class, and also failed to acquire Kyle Singler, the 6th highest-ranked high school player in the nation from the 07 class. Ed Davis, a one-year-old power forward from the 08 class, is still not good enough... Hansbrough is isolated and helpless in the paint, struggling to protect himself, and unable to provide any help to his teammates on the perimeter.

The Tar Heels team only scored 22 points!
In the second half, the Husky team, having turned the game into their preferred pace, completely dominated, achieving a halftime score of 27-21.

With Wayne Ellington's buzzer-beating three-pointer to tie the game blocked by Robinson, the score was now 43-46.

The two teams' combined points didn't even equal the Huskies' rebounding total tonight—15 offensive rebounds and 33 defensive rebounds, for a total of 48 rebounds.

The Huskies narrowly defeated the Tar Heels by 3 points to become defending champions!

Only two players on the Husky team scored in double figures: Yad had 16 points and 11 rebounds, and Dyson, who came off the bench, had 12 points and 3 assists.

However, MOP has nothing to do with the two of them.

6分17板2抢断5盖帽，塔比特当选08-09赛季四强赛MOP！

After the live stream ended, the teammates saw someone's arrogant and smug face and really wanted to gang up on their leader.

But considering this guy wasn't afraid of Stephen Jackson... let's just forget about it. His fighting ability is unknown, so we can't make a move lightly.

The teammates chose to watch the elementary school student go looking for trouble, but all their punches and kicks missed.

Before going to bed, Yi Shui received a call from Yad, who invited him to participate in the championship parade and arranged a time for the parade to be held on the rest day before or after his home game. Calhoun also planned to give him a commemorative ring.

He naturally wouldn't refuse such a warm invitation. He checked the schedule and exchanged the time with Jerry Cook, who took the phone from the other end.

After hanging up with Yad, Yi Shui called Bartelstein, Dolan, Walsh, and others to talk about the matter, saying that they should still capitalize on the hype.

...

The university teams' season has ended, but the club teams' regular season is still ongoing.

5号，易水拿到26分6板8助攻1抢断3盖帽，率领尼克斯队在主场以112比103击败猛龙队，战绩提升到50胜25负，抢在老鹰队之前，成为本赛季第5支拿到50胜的球队！

After an eight-season absence, the Knicks have returned to the ranks of 50-win teams!
This victory has a significant impact on Yishui, no less than when he scored 58 points.

58 points is just an individual statistic, while 50 wins is a reflection of a team's performance! These days, people value a team's performance very much.

After the game, The New York Times reclassified the rookies (those born after 1976) into different tiers.

Tier 1: Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal, Ralph Sampson, Hakeem Olajuwon, Alonzo Mourning, Elton Brand.

Selection criteria: The team's record in the rookie season is relatively average, but the individual performance is outstanding. Only those who average 25+ points or 20 points and 10 rebounds per game are eligible for selection.

A tier above: Magician, Bird, Admiral, Stone Buddha, Emperor.

Selection criteria: outstanding team performance and exceptional individual performance.

Magic Johnson, 77 regular season games, averaging 18+7+7, playoff averages of 18+10+9, 60 wins and 22 losses, NBA champion and Finals MVP.

Larry Bird, 82 regular season games, averaged 21+10+4, 61 wins and 21 losses, once named Player of the Month and once named All-NBA First Team.

海军上将，常规赛82场，场均24+12+2+1.7+3.9，56胜26负，三阵二防。

石佛，常规赛82场，场均21+12+2.7+0.7+2.5，56胜26负，一阵二防。

大帝，截止目前打了75场，50胜25负，场均27.9+8.7+5.7+1.8+2，两次月最佳。

The New York Times was clearly well-prepared, waiting for the Knicks to reach 50 wins. Immediately after the game, they launched a new column on their website, which caused a sensation that very night.

Controversy naturally followed, but the controversy surrounding Yi Shui's ranking in the top tier was not that great; the main focus was on the positions of Jordan and Admiral.

Yi Shui's two best months were too hard.

Magic Johnson had the most average regular season stats, but his Finals MVP award was incredibly strong.

Even the giant bird and the stone Buddha couldn't shake them.

The fact that Jordan was selected to the All-NBA Second Team in his rookie year and the Admiral was selected to the All-NBA Third Team in his rookie year has sparked endless debate, with people feeling that their records should not be directly compared.

David Robinson entered the NBA in 87 after being drafted in 89.

In 88, the Spurs selected Willie Anderson, a highly capable swingman, and in 89, they used their third overall pick to select the talented Shawn Elliott.

In the summer of 1989, upon learning that David Robinson was coming to the NBA, a bunch of talented players joined the Spurs. The second overall pick in the 1982 draft, after his 7-year rookie contract ended, jumped ship to the Spurs to team up with David Robinson. Maurice Cheeks, the Knicks' defensive assistant coach and a four-time All-Star, four-time All-Defensive First Team selection, and one-time All-Defensive Second Team selection, also went to join the team and put on an outstanding performance of 11 points and 7 assists per game during David Robinson's rookie year.

Jordan, on the other hand, truly started his career in his rookie year with a team that had just won the third overall pick, achieving 38 wins and making the playoffs, a performance no worse than David Robinson's.

However, Jordan himself said in an interview the next morning: "I am honored to be ranked in the first tier. Not in the highest tier? You want me to compare my rookie season performance with Yi? Don't do that, I will be so hurt that I will cry. They did perform better than me at the beginning."

When Yi Shui saw this interview video, he felt that Boss Qiao had some skill in showing off, even though he seemed modest...

King, on the other hand, has remained silent this time.

Some fans posted questions online – are these top-tier and elite rookies really performing this badly? 20+5+5, and they didn't even make the playoffs, they're so weak compared to these guys…

也有一些死忠粉坚持认为20+5+5比这些人厉害，应该是超一档，但遭到围攻和群嘲，毕竟场均28+6+5的乔丹也只是排在第一档。

On the 7th, the Knicks traveled to Toronto and defeated the Raptors 102-97, maintaining their perfect record against the Raptors in four games this season.

On the 9th, the Knicks arrived in Miami. After a high-scoring battle, the Knicks lost 115-122.

Yi Shui scored 33 points and 7 assists, while Wade scored 35 points and 6 assists. They were evenly matched, but Yi Shui's shooting percentage was slightly lower than his opponent's. Wade made 13 of 25 shots, while Yi Shui made 12 of 26 shots. However, Yi Shui made 4 of 10 three-pointers, while Wade didn't make a single one.

大卫-李21分11板，与替补上场的比斯利的19分6板3助攻表现也相当。

Beasley at least learned his lesson when facing Yi Shui. When Yi Shui guarded him, he stayed at the baseline to draw Yi Shui's attention and prevent him from helping in the elbow area. When others guarded him, he went one-on-one against players like Big Q, Wilson Chandler, and Harrington, playing like a superstar.

The Knicks lost tonight because of their point guard position. Conley went 12-for-20 from the field, including 3-for-6 from three-point range, and 1-for-1 from the free-throw line, scoring the third-highest points of the game with 28 points, along with 5 assists.

When Wade and Yi Shui got tired and needed to rest for a while, Conley stepped up and dominated Duhon, Curry, and Chalmers, while also holding Curry to 5-for-13 shooting for only 12 points.

The Knicks' four-game winning streak came to an end, bringing their record to 51 wins and 26 losses.

...

After two consecutive away games, the Knicks got two days of rest. Yi Shui hadn't experienced such a relaxed schedule in months.

After returning to New York on the 10th, the three-person team from the Class of 2008 went to Curry's house for a family dinner. In order to not seem too out of place, Yi Shui invited a Cuban female model who lived in New York and happened to be working in Miami to join them when he returned from Miami.

When Yi Shui visited the elementary school student's home for the first time, he finally understood why the student had been looking like he was about to go bankrupt. The house was much bigger than his own, with two buildings, a large garden, and a large swimming pool. It seemed like the student was trying to settle down in New York.

The larger buildings are for living, while the smaller buildings contain indoor basketball courts, game rooms, billiard rooms, cinemas, card rooms, and even children's playgrounds.

Upon hearing Yi Shui say, "Stephen, you're such a kid, actually liking to play this," Curry went berserk, baring his teeth and claws as he lunged at Yi Shui...

However, seeing Curry's indoor court, complete with a bar, rest area, and treatment room, Yi Shui also wanted to get one, but his family didn't have the means. He remembered that there was a private club for sale nearby, which he could buy and renovate as an investment, since the property prices in this area would skyrocket in the future.

After spending the night at the elementary school student's home, Yi Shui drove to Storrs, the capital of neighboring Connecticut, the next day to participate in the championship parade with millions of participants and receive a commemorative championship ring prepared for him by the school, with the same appearance as everyone else.

In the evening, Yi Shui attended a celebration banquet and chatted with his old teammates about the future.

Yad, Robinson, AJ Price, and Thabeet have all announced their candidacy, and Thabeet has signed with renowned agent Terry Dennis.

Yi Shui knew this person. When their Yellow, White and Black team was choosing an agent, they had seen Jerry Cook's evaluation - good at planning the draft, he was Bogut's agent, and he is currently the agent of Tyrus Thomas, the 4th pick in the 06 draft. He promoted the two to positions that did not belong to them during the draft.

For Yi Shui, whose expectations for the draft were already very high at the time, it held little appeal, and he simply tossed his self-recommendation materials aside.

No wonder Thabeet's nickname "Super Mutombo" has been making headlines every day since the end of 3 Madness, overshadowing even top draft picks like Griffin, Harden, and Evans.

All-Big East All-NBA First Team, All-American Defensive Player of the Year, All-American Second Team, Wooden Award finalist, two-time champion, MOP... indeed, he deserves to be praised.

Yad and Robinson have been in contact with Bartelstein recently. Being in close proximity, Bartelstein predicts that the two are likely to be selected in the second round, so of course he wants to use this connection to secure them.

Price, with his two championships and mature on-field performance, has good draft prospects, ranking 62nd and is expected to be selected.

After a two-day break, the Knicks' fifth-to-last regular season game arrived on the 12th, as they hosted the Bobcats at home.

Elvis demonstrated his tenacity, and through extensive training, his performance gradually improved over a month, but it was still far from what it was in the first half of the season.

I saw Gerald Wallace's stats during Christmas. He was considered one of the top small forwards, averaging 19.8 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals per game, and was considered a candidate for the All-Defensive Team.

The previous season he averaged 19.4 points, 6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 2.1 steals per game.

But now, with the regular season nearing its end, Elvis's stats have dropped to an average of 16.8 points, 7 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.7 steals per game. It is estimated that he will find it difficult to reach his previous level of performance in the future, let alone the 'peak' that people are expecting.

这次山猫队表现比全明星周末刚回来那次好很多，首节比分27比26、第二节比分28比25，山猫队半场以55比51领先尼克斯队4分。

However, this performance didn't last. Gerald Wallace's performance declined in the second half, and the Bobcats' performance also collapsed. They only scored 18 points in the third quarter, while the Knicks scored 27 points. They improved a bit in the final quarter, but only scored 22 points, while the Knicks steadily scored 26 points...

Yi Shui made 10 of 24 field goals, including 3 of 9 three-pointers, and 4 of 4 free throws, scoring 27 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 3 blocks. He was a bit of a slump, but he managed his shot attempts very well, helping the team maintain a smooth offense and preventing the team's tactical plays from being disrupted by the tough defense of Raja Bell, Gerald Wallace and Okafor in the first half.

The problem was that he had 4 turnovers more than 3 assists, which was a bit embarrassing. He also almost got into foul trouble, but fortunately, 2 of his 5 fouls occurred in the final quarter.

The Knicks defeated the Bobcats 104-95 at home, bringing their record to 52 wins and 26 losses!
On the 14th, the Knicks will face off against a Western Conference team for the last time this season – the Hornets!

In January, the Knicks played against the Hornets in New Orleans and got soundly thrashed.

This time, the tables turned, with the Knicks defeating the Hornets 121-109!
Paul went 11-for-19, dominating the Knicks' inside and outside game, scoring 29 points and 10 assists.

但还是不敌27分11板6助攻的易水、23分14板的大卫-李。

Before the All-Star break, the Hornets had a record of 33 wins and 19 losses, making them one of the "top six teams in the Western Conference." However, after the All-Star break, the Hornets ran into big problems.

场均8.8分8.8板1.8盖帽的泰森-钱德勒重伤，休息了6周才复出，复出后状态也不好，最近3场比赛场均3分5板。

Although Chandler has been criticized for his inability to fully realize his potential, and many people even think that his six-year, multi-million dollar contract is a waste, his help defense and rotation performance have always been solid.

His injury and declining performance have caused the Hornets' defense to collapse. Before his injury, the Hornets only allowed 93 points per game on average, but now they allow an average of 94.9 points per game.

Rebounding performance also plummeted. It wasn't just Chandler who saw a decline in rebounding; when Chandler was boxing out, David West averaged 9 rebounds per game, but without him, David West averaged only 6 rebounds...

In the past 25 games, they have only achieved a record of 15 wins and 10 losses. After tonight, their record has dropped to 48 wins and 30 losses, turning them from the second seed in the West into the bottom half of the bracket, competing with the Jazz and Suns for a playoff spot.

Coincidentally, Paul's team suffered a major injury that caused their record to collapse, and Deron Williams also suffered a setback. Not long after Garnett was sidelined for the season, Boozer also suffered a serious injury and missed four weeks. The Jazz, who had just returned from injury, had a record of 8 wins and 4 losses in February and had improved to 36 wins and 20 losses by the end of February. In the past 19 games, they have a record of 10 wins and 11 losses, and are currently 46 wins and 31 losses, ranking eighth in the Western Conference.

On the 16th, the Knicks hosted the Magic for their fourth regular season game.

Before today, after the Knicks lost to the Heat, they had already lost any hope of catching up with the Magic and moving up to third place.

After acquiring Alston and overcoming the adjustment period, the Magic have embarked on a winning streak and currently lead the Knicks, who have a record of 56 wins and 23 losses, by 3 games.

Even if the Knicks win all three of their remaining games and the Magic lose all of them, resulting in a tie between the two teams, the divisional record still matters. The Magic have a 13-3 record in the Southeast Division.

The Hawks lost all four of their games against the Magic, with the Magic's offense exceeding the Hawks' defensive capabilities.

The Heat lost both of their first two games against the Magic at the start of the season, but after acquiring Conley and Milicic, they went 1-1.

The Wizards are just there to offer help.

In the Southeast Division, only the Bobcats and the Magic have a 2-2 record.

They performed better than the Knicks in the Atlantic Division.

Tonight, the Knicks played better than in their last game. Through D'Antoni's tactical adjustments, they pulled Howard out of the paint. Yi Shui scored 27 points, David Lee scored a season-high 32 points, Wilson Chandler scored a season-high 22 points off the bench, and Curry recorded his third career double-digit assist with 10 points and 10 assists... The team scored a total of 119 points.

但魔术队那边，霍华德17分14板、刘易斯23分、特科格鲁18分8助攻、阿尔斯通21分6助攻、考特尼-李15分、雷迪克14分……全队轰出126分。

Compared to the Magic team at the beginning of the season with a full roster, Yi Shui could clearly feel that the current Magic team seemed stronger!

It's not just about the improvement after a season of integration; the roster structure and tactical rotations have also become better.

The Knicks suffered a narrow 7-point defeat to the Magic in a high-scoring game, bringing their record to 53 wins and 27 losses.

The next morning, Yi Shui flew with the team to Cleveland for their 41st and final away game of the season.

After playing the Cavaliers, they will play their final game at home against the Nets from neighboring New Jersey.

That evening, Yi Shui watched the Hawks' game live. The Hawks defeated the Suns, bringing their record to 53 wins and 28 losses, securing sixth place in the league. Apart from the Lakers, no team in the Western Conference had a better record than the Hawks.

For the Knicks to hold onto fourth place in the East and fifth place in the league, they must win their remaining two games!

(End of this chapter)