Champion, please stay!

Chapter 267, Page 265: The MVP Story
With the Lakers defeating the Thunder 102-91, the first games of all first-round series have been completed.

Some matchups were very close, such as the Nuggets vs. Grizzlies and the Magic vs. Bobcats.

The former was alright, the latter was rather surprising, and the poor singles performances of Felton, Gerald Wallace, and Kaman, who couldn't even seize their opportunities, were truly regrettable.

Gerald Wallace's offensive ability was largely diminished due to an injury last year.

Kaman, too, had his already limited athleticism destroyed by a major injury, and now he only has his shooting and mid-range jump shot left.

Felton is arguably the one who left fans the most disappointed. As one of the "North Carolina Four," he didn't have the same outstanding talent as Paul and Deron Williams after entering the NBA, but his immediate impact was still quite good.

Their offensive organization and tempo control were quite impressive.

His biggest flaws are poor shot selection and his skills not being well-suited for the NBA. He is very inefficient on offense against faster and taller opponents than he was in college.

However, the media and fans at the time believed that these issues could be improved because there was a similar situation with a former third overall pick – Billups. He had also experienced this early in his career, and after five years of training, Billups was able to lead the Pistons to the Eastern Conference Finals in his sixth year.

Who would have thought that in his fifth year in the NBA, Felton's fundamentals, playing style, shot selection, and skills... hadn't changed at all. His stats fluctuated purely based on his playing time.

There are teams with very large skill gaps, such as the Knicks vs. the Heat, the Lakers vs. the Thunder, the Celtics vs. the Pacers, the Cavaliers vs. the Hawks, and the Suns vs. the Spurs.

The gap in strength between the first two series was anticipated before the playoffs even began.

The next three groups all surprised the fans.

Although the Celtics were favored, the Pacers' complete lack of resistance and being thoroughly outplayed was still surprising.

The Celtics were ruthless in this game, intensifying their defense in the final quarter... but fans can understand why the Celtics were so aggressive.

Last year, the Pacers upset them and Randolph retaliated with a vicious foul on Pierce. Now that they have the advantage, of course they want revenge!
The pre-game atmosphere surrounding the Cavaliers-Hawks series was one of intense competition, evenly matched, and evenly matched. However, in the first game, James played like he was beating his son against the Hawks, driving and dishing out with incredible speed and effortlessly racking up a triple-double. After the game, media outlets, led by ESPN and NBC, went wild with praise, claiming that James single-handedly raised the Cavaliers' ceiling and crushed the Hawks.

They even brought Yi Shui into the comparison, because both of them achieved triple-doubles in their first games and crushed their opponents to win.

The Suns' crushing defeat of the Spurs was the most surprising thing, and it was also the most slap in the face to those media outlets and fans who were talking about the "eight-team upset".

There's another series that's hard to evaluate.

小牛队以109比105击败了爵士队，基德14投9中，其中三分球10中6，加上4中4的罚球，拿到28分9板7助攻，其中末节最后时刻连进3个三分球，率队翻盘。

The last time Kidd scored more points in the playoffs was during the 02-03 season.

To say the Mavericks weren't strong is an understatement; they still won.

要说小牛队比爵士队更强，又是靠基德飙分赢的，诺维斯基都只有19投8中、其中三分球3中1、加上5中5的罚球拿到22分7板3助攻。

...

The Knicks had a rest day on the 24th.

For the afternoon training session arranged by D'Antoni, Yi Shui arrived at the arena at 9 a.m., called the trainer and the two-meter-tall security guard, and started developing Xiao Pang's back-to-the-basket game and Da Pang's hook shot.

It's definitely not going to be used in the first round now, and it's hard to say whether it will be useful in the second round. But the first round match is easy, and there's room for extra practice, so let's practice more. Who knows, it might come in handy in the future.

The system provided precise training step by step. After one round of training, Yi Shui watched the recording and had to admit, the two fat guys' techniques were quite entertaining to watch!

Randolph's back-to-the-basket game and O'Neal's hook shot both emphasize stability. With good core control and excellent wingspan, it's hard for them to look bad.

But that's the difficulty. Both Randolph and O'Neal have an absolute advantage in strength in their respective positions, and their techniques are developed around this point.

Yi Shui has a similar advantage at the small forward position most of the time, but it's hard to say about the inside position.

After practicing for another round, he decided to first develop Da Pang's small hook shot.

Randolph's back-to-the-basket game is a 'way of initiating an attack', which requires a lot of learning. After learning it, you also need to train specifically to match the shooting method. It may not be more difficult, but it has more sub-items and takes more time.

O'Neal's hook shot is a 'shot method' and also belongs to 'low post offensive technique'. It can trigger 'low post genius (talent)', gaining a 100% training efficiency bonus. The close-range shooting training card can also provide a 100% bonus, as well as the 'quick start learning' bonus itself, which will make the progress faster. The key is that there are few sub-items, only the hook shot basics + O'Neal's unique technical details.

Yi Shui's main focus was practicing the left turn to shake off the defender, control the core, and then lean towards the basket for a hook shot. He practiced that move all morning, and to say the least, the motion is getting better and smoother...

On the 25th, Yi Shui and his team continued their first-round matchup against the Heat.

Tonight's main offensive threats are Curry, David Lee, Webster, and Gibson.

D'Antoni tried it in Game 1: by making good use of the Yi River's threat and having Curry and David Lee take the lead in offense, it was enough to counter Wade's full-on offensive power. They would be at a disadvantage, but within a controllable range. If they seized the opportunity to exert their strength, they could blow up the game.

With such a significant advantage, it's natural to focus on team offense with Curry and David Lee as the main offensive threats. This would allow Yi Shui to reduce their physical exertion in the first round, develop their playmaking abilities, and provide opportunities for young players like Curry, David Lee, Chalmers, Webster, and Gibson to gain experience.

This is something they didn't do in last year's playoffs. Although they made it to the Eastern Conference Finals last season, they relentlessly attacked Yi Shui in every round and every game, always going all out... especially the 4-0 sweep in the second round, with no opportunity to develop new players.

With such a significant advantage in strength, we should certainly give other young players more opportunities.

In this game, Spoelstra forced Wade to rest and strictly controlled Wade's playing time.

Wade played 35 minutes, achieving an exceptionally high field goal percentage of 11 out of 18 shots, and also had a high free throw percentage of 7 out of 8, remarkably missing only one shot.

29分8板6助攻2抢断2盖帽，韦德进攻高效，带队打出来的进攻火力也远强于上一场。

But the Heat collapsed very early on...

When Wade leaves the court, or when Spoelstra assigns him to defend off-ball movement on the weak side, the Heat's defense simply falls apart.

The Heat couldn't contain Curry's pick-and-roll drives, Yi Shui and David Lee's elbow plays.

In the last game, the Heat played a very good defense in the first half and the fourth quarter, during which the Knicks were limited to just over 100 points per 48 minutes.

Wade and Conley, one guarding Curry at the top of the key and the other collapsing to help defend on the wing, combined with Milicic under the basket and Haslem in the middle, to complete the defensive encirclement and interception of passing lanes.

Yi Shui was trapped in this encirclement in the first half of Game 1, and their shooting was greatly restricted. So they only started to launch a fierce attack in the third quarter when Wade could no longer defend them, thus avoiding the peak of the game.

But for a team like the Heat to have such a defense, those four defensive players are indispensable! Especially Wade, the All-Defensive Team legend, is the most crucial.

大卫-李13投9中，加上9中7的罚球，拿到25分10板2助攻；

库里14投7中，其中三分球4中2，加上3中3的罚球，拿到19分6助攻；

易水14投8中，其中三分球1中1，加上5中5的罚球，拿到22分8板5助攻1抢断2盖帽。

The Knicks easily defeated the Heat 117-105, taking a 2-0 lead in the series!

...

In this game, Yi Shui played very easily. They didn't even play drive-and-kick like they did in the first half of Game 1. They just ran around, passed the ball, and launched fast breaks. They rested for half a quarter in the third quarter and came back to score 7 points in that half quarter. In the final quarter, they watched David Lee dominate in the low post and won.

During the game, he felt that... Spoelstra was very good to Wade and genuinely cared about the player.

He recalled that in the first year after the Heat formed their Big Three, Spoelstra insisted on using Wade as the core, treating James as Pippen, and Bosh as a defensively weaker but stronger version of Garnett.

But Wade made a stupid mistake, relinquishing his core role in the shortened season to take on the role of perimeter defender, and instead of scoring on fast breaks, he would pass the ball to his teammates for alley-oops.

His knees were already bad, and playing like that caused his performance to plummet as soon as he turned 30. He managed to hold on for another year in the shortened season, but by the 12-13 season, he couldn't even maintain basic health.

If Wade had been tough enough and stuck to his core playing style, letting his teammates handle the regular tasks of attacking the paint and defending the opponent's offensive spearhead, just like the Lakers paired Kobe with Ariza and Artest, he might not have had a long peak period like Kobe or Jordan, but at least he wouldn't have declined so drastically just after turning 30.

In his final year in his career, Wade was 37 years old and served as the sixth man, focusing solely on driving and dishing out, averaging 25 or 26 minutes per game, and still managing to score 15 points and 4 assists with good efficiency... This shows that playing as the core player was the best choice for him, rather than being a supporting player.

But thinking back to when Da Jiabang was a freshman, he couldn't even get 2 points on an open-book exam and couldn't participate in competitions... Yi Shui thought it was quite normal.

Between G2 and G3, there are two rest days. On the morning of the second day, the 26th, Yi Shui arrived at the stadium early, just like the day before, to practice Big Fat's hook shot.

I notified the nutritionist to prepare lunch, and then stayed at the stadium. In the afternoon, I went directly to the airport with the team staff.

The more Yi Shui practiced, the more complex O'Neal's offense became.

It may seem like a simple matter of pushing the opponent aside and putting the ball in, but in reality, it requires a very high level of ball control, dexterity, and timing. Even the seemingly simplest move of pushing the opponent aside requires a high level of spatial awareness.

Yi Shui thought of Howard's powerful layup, the basic move of which was almost identical to the pure power play part of O'Neal's hook shot, but the actual effect was much worse. Even when O'Neal was tired, he could still squeeze his opponent and maintain a good hook shot accuracy. Howard was only 24 years old, and his offense would be ruined when he was tired.

After practicing non-stop all morning, it was noon. Yi Shui was about to take a break, take a shower, and have lunch when Chalmers and Curry rushed out of the locker room, shouting, "Big, you won an award!"

The other two members of the 08 team learned during team training the day before yesterday afternoon that the eldest brother had come to practice extra in the morning. This morning, around 9 o'clock, they also rushed to the gym. They couldn't let the eldest brother secretly work hard and amaze others. However, after practicing a few sets of shooting, the two went to the lounge to play snooker.

Upon hearing this, Yi Shui exclaimed in surprise, "The MVP has been announced so early? I remember voting usually takes place after Game 4, right? Is it because there's no suspense and they're voting early?"

Curry couldn't suppress his laughter, but he forced himself to hold back and said, "It's not the MVP, but this award is even harder for you to win than the MVP."

Seeing the elementary school student struggling to suppress his laughter, Yi Shui realized that the kid was up to no good, but he was also curious, so he followed him to the lounge...

"Holy crap, you're a jungler! I actually won the NBA Curse Award!"

Yi Shui looked at the list of awards on the computer screen and immediately cursed!

Although Curry and Chalmers couldn't understand Chinese, they both burst out laughing when they saw Yi Shui's horrified expression.

Yi Shui glared at the two of them with annoyance, looking at the votes for the Most Improved Award.

He received 47 out of 115 first-place votes, accounting for a total score of 28%, and won the Most Improved Player award.

Second place is... Kevin Durant!

29 first-place votes, accounting for 20.3% of the total score.

Third place: Marc Gasol, with 13 first-place votes, accounting for 15.1% of the total score; Fourth place: Russell Westbrook; Fifth place: Derrick Rose; Sixth place: Brook Lopez…

The players who received the most votes were all second or third-year players.

Looking at it this way, Yi Shui sees that Yi Shui's average points per game have soared from 28 last season to 35.5, an increase of 7.5 points, which is higher than Durant's increase. It seems like winning an award is not a big problem.

But this award itself is problematic; it's considered unlucky!

Seeing the elementary school students still laughing, Yi Shui said, "Look, Stephen, you can't even make the Most Improved Player list. You weren't as good as me to begin with, and you haven't improved as fast as me..."

Curry's smile froze on his face upon hearing this. Displeasure and anger welled up inside him, and from his anger arose a wicked thought... he launched a sneak attack!
Yi Shui pressed the elementary school student's head down firmly, feeling satisfied as he watched the student flailing his arms and legs.

A minute later, the three members of the Class of 08 gathered around the computer to look at the other two awards.

Evans won Rookie of the Year without any doubt, receiving 110 out of 115 first-place votes.

80场比赛，场均20.7分6.4板5.8助攻1.5抢断，投篮命中率45.8%……

When the elementary school student saw Evans's stats, he looked envious, but then his eyes hardened, and he believed he could do better.

Looking at Evans' rookie year performance, apart from a 25% three-point shooting percentage, there were no obvious flaws! Even his turnovers were well controlled, averaging 3 per game. James and Westbrook, whose rookie year passing performances were similar, both averaged 3.5 turnovers per game.

Yi Shui noticed a news item on the sidebar that said the Timberwolves were discussing trading Mayo for Yi Jianlian with the Nets...

He remembered that after the All-Star Weekend, Mayo had complained that the Timberwolves were giving the ball to Evans and that he wasn't getting any opportunities to perform, and that he was unwilling to be just a shooter.

The Timberwolves' management is much better than the Kings' management. Although they often make questionable moves, they are very attentive to their core players, just like they were with Garnett back then.

If Mayo doesn't want to be a supporting player, then get out!
If you switch to the Kings, you might become hesitant and indecisive. Evans has the talent to play multiple positions, so you might make him play shooting guard, give the ball to Mayo, appease this genius who wants everything, and in the end, ruin all the other talents.

However, Evans' weak personality was also the reason for his early peak. If Evans had the personality of a little assassin, he wouldn't have been so easily manipulated by the Kings' management.

But too much of a good thing can be bad, and the young assassin ultimately failed because of overconfidence...

Personality, environment, and even luck can all be considered a kind of talent.

The Sixth Man of the Year award went to Jamal Crawford, who averaged 18 points and 3 assists per game. Eric Gordon came in second and Lamar Odom came in third.

Despite Bibby's collapse, the Hawks managed to barely crack the ranks of top teams in the regular season, thanks to the acquisition of Crawford with a multi-million dollar annual salary.

Crawford was alright in the regular season, but in the two playoff games, he was guarded by James and only made 10 of 28 shots, a shooting percentage of only 35.7%. Moreover, he was stripped by James in both games and committed a total of 7 turnovers in the two games. He dragged James down as soon as he stepped on the court. James had a combined efficiency rating of +38 in the first two games.

After lunch, the league delivered the Most Improved Player award trophy.

Walsh wanted to hold a press conference to make an appearance. There are many media outlets in New York, and it's during the playoffs, so it could be done quickly without causing any trouble. However, Yi Shui refused, and even declined media requests for exclusive interviews.

Those who didn't win the award, like Shubao, Rose, Turtle, Little Sister-in-law, and Cornerstone, are probably laughing at him now. Why did he publicly show his face to promote that he won the award? He should just keep the trophy to himself.

...

On the 28th, at 7 PM, at the American Airlines Arena in Miami, Game 3 of the Knicks' series against the Heat will tip off!
Back at their home court, the Heat adopted a do-or-die attitude.

They're already down 0-2; if they lose one more game, the series is basically over.

Although few people on the Heat thought they could eliminate the Knicks, Wade, Conley, Haslem, and others are all fiercely competitive players. Under their leadership, the Heat fought back!
The Heat's performance in the first half was amazing, dominating the Knicks 49-48 and taking a one-point lead into the second half.

But in the third quarter, Yi Shui rallied again. He came on in the fourth minute and in eight minutes, he made four of six shots, including two of two three-pointers, all of which were made directly against the defense. In addition, he made one of one free throws, scoring 11 points and 3 assists, leading the team to score 23 points in eight minutes. Combined with the previous nine points, the Knicks scored 32 points in the quarter!
However, Wade's offense picked up this time! He made 5 of 8 shots in the quarter, and also made all 3 of his free throws, scoring 13 points and 2 assists in the quarter. He went head-to-head with Yi Shui and led the team to 26 points.

After three quarters, Wade led his team to keep the score close, trailing the Knicks by only 5 points at 75-80!
Having withstood the fierce attack from the Yi River, the Heat players entered "do-or-die" mode again in the final quarter, putting up an even better defense than in the first half and launching a furious counterattack.

打到11分20秒，热火队打出了23比18的比分，将总比分追至98比98平，且拥有球权！
Wade executed a crucial offensive play. When he received the ball in the frontcourt, there were 32 seconds left on the clock and 16 seconds left on the shot clock, so he didn't run down the clock and went straight for the shot!

Wade used a crossover and his strongest first step to get into position, but just as he brushed past Yi Shui, his hand that was pressing down on the ball failed to reach it!

Yi Shui took a gamble, turned around and pressed behind Wade, reached back and snatched the ball down! He flicked the ball towards the center line!
Yi Shui intercepted the ball before Wade could turn and pounce on him, and immediately launched a fast break, scoring a layup despite Wade's pursuit and defense.

The Knicks have regained a two-point lead!

The Heat called a timeout, and after discussing it with Wade, Spoelstra decided to take a gamble.

Compared to Yi Shui, who seemed to be coasting through the first half, Wade's physical condition is now extremely poor. The reason he was just stripped of the ball is largely because Wade's energy was only enough to accelerate for a moment, leaving him no time to protect the ball.

They don't have the conditions to play overtime, so they can only take a gamble.

After the timeout, Wade had run down the clock and passed to Conley. Conley used Haslem's screen to shake off Curry and launched a three-pointer before Birdman could switch and get into position...

He shot with determination and courage, but his skill was lacking. He hit the rim hard and missed... It didn't go in.

The ball bounced out and was caught by Yi Shui. He turned around to avoid Wade's tackle. Wade tried to foul again, but the final whistle blew...

20投11中，其中三分球6中4，加上6中6的罚球，易水拿到32分8板3助攻3抢断2盖帽。

24投13中，加上12中9的罚球，韦德拿到35分5板8助攻1抢断。

The Knicks narrowly defeated the Heat 100-98, taking a 3-0 lead in the series!

The time has come to April 30th, the fourth day of the Knicks vs. Heat series.

The competition started at 7 p.m.

Compared to the day before yesterday when every Heat player was gritting their teeth and fighting like their lives depended on it, tonight, most of them have lost their fighting spirit.

The difference in strength is too great. Even if the Flash can fight the Emperor to a standstill, it's useless!

David Lee alone is a tough opponent for them. Beasley was defended by Yi Shui and Barnes, making only 1.8 of 5 shots per game, a shooting percentage of only 36%, and was therefore benched.

On the other side were Curry and Chandler. They fought hard until the very end, only to have Embiid steal the ball and deliver a near-game-winning shot...

While his teammates lost their fighting spirit, Wade continued to fire away, taking more shots than in the previous three games.

However, his teammates on the perimeter couldn't make their shots, and the opposing team collapsed the defense. When he drove in, he lost his accuracy from the first three games, taking 30 shots and only making 11. In addition, he made 6 of 9 free throws, scoring only 28 points, 12 rebounds, and 3 assists.

易水20投9中、其中三分球9中4、加上10中9的罚球，轻松拿到31分7板5助攻2盖帽。

大卫-李20分13板1助攻、库里24分6助攻、钱德勒8分8板、休斯11分……

The Knicks thrashed the Heat 106-84, sweeping them 4-0 to advance!

...

On the night of their advancement, Yi Shui took his teammates to a nightclub to have a good time and celebrate their victory.

Although both are South Coast teams, he felt that Miami was much better than Orlando. The outcome of the game did not affect the locals' mood. When they went to nightclubs, local fans would ask them for photos and even throw themselves at them.

If they win in Orlando, they won't dare go to nightclubs, for fear of causing trouble.

Of course, this is only his feeling as a player on the away team...

The next day, April 1st, a new month began.

At noon, Yi Shui flew back to New York with the team. After arriving home, he began to work on his training plan.

Before the second round began, they had several days of rest. Their opponents had already been determined. On the 29th, James led his team to a 4-0 sweep of the Hawks to advance.

The progress of most of the first-round series differed greatly from the media's predictions before the playoffs began!
In the East, the gap in strength was much larger than expected. The Celtics led the Pacers 3-1, and that was after leading 3-0. However, in Game 4, they were defeated by Randolph, who scored 20 points and grabbed 25 rebounds, and lost the game because of the rebounding.

Although Howard was struggling against the Bobcats' interior defense, the Bobcats couldn't capitalize on their outside shooting, and despite each game being tough, the Magic still managed to take a 3-1 lead.

The second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs is basically set: Knicks vs. Cavaliers, and Celtics vs. Magic.

In the west, progress has also fallen far short of expectations.

29号晚上，纳什14投9中，拿到25分9助攻，率队以117比112险胜马刺队……马刺队0比4被横扫出局了！
The Lakers lead the Thunder 3-1, failing to deliver the suspense some media outlets had hoped for. The Mavericks won their first game, but then lost three straight, falling behind the Jazz 1-3 and likely out of contention.

There was only one series that was closely contested.

On the night of the 29th, Rose scored 23 points, 5 rebounds and 11 assists on 10-of-17 shooting, leading his team to a narrow 118-115 victory over the Nuggets in double overtime, tying the series at 2-2. The pivotal Game 5 will be played on the night of the 2nd at the Grizzlies' home court, with the outcome decided as early as the 4th or as late as the 6th.

If no unexpected events occur in the other series, the Knicks' second-round series could start no later than the 6th.

We can't afford to be idle these next few days. Even if we don't achieve anything remarkable, we at least can't let our form be ruined like the Lakers in 01.

With enough time, when Yi Shui made training plans, he didn't just practice Da Pang's hook shot anymore.

The gorilla's 'jump step turn'; Lan's dribbling technique of faking with his pivot foot before receiving the ball and then switching pivot feet to create shooting space – he wants to practice these two moves.

Last night he tried to back down Haslem and found an opening, but his previous back-down footwork was based on Beasley's mismatch isolation plays, and his basic skills were not good enough to take advantage of it.

If you find room for improvement, write it down, practice it until you're proficient, and it will be helpful for future development.

Making the training plan didn't take much time; after all, the time wasn't short, but it wasn't long either. After finishing, Yi Shui turned on his computer and checked the news.

There are no NBA games today. The day before yesterday, on the 28th, the draft registration began. This year's deadline is May 8th, and the waiting period ends on the 18th.

According to the latest NCAA rules, players who are officially drafted after the 18th will lose their eligibility to participate in future NCAA games.

When Yi Shui saw that the talented players he remembered had all announced their registrations immediately—Wall, George, Cousins, Hayward, Monroe… none of these players were related to them; they only had the 30th pick in the first round and the Cavaliers' 54th pick in the second round.

He also saw a name that interested him on the list of players who had announced their candidacy—Hassan Whiteside.

But he doesn't plan to let Walsh use the 30th pick to select Whiteside, who just left college and is a pure big man; anyone who steps on him will go crazy.

Other teams need to be tested first, and Whiteside needs to be tormented in the G League and undergo two years of "socialist reform" before he can be signed to a two- or three-year minimum salary contract. Only then will he be truly effective.

Moreover, this only applies to the base salary stage; when it's time to renew the contract, the employee must be sold off.

Yi Shui remembers that after Whiteside signed a four-year, $100 million contract, he became a major liability for anyone who signed with him.

Camby's years of stat-padding were terrible, weren't they? But his reputation was still better than Whiteside's during his max contract period.

Whiteside is the first player in NBA history to put up top-tier stats of 15 points, 13 rebounds, and 3 blocks per game in the previous season, winning the blocks title, and then no team wanted him in the offseason, only to receive a veteran's minimum salary at the start of the new season.

After writing down his plan in his notebook, Yi Shui checked the news related to the playoffs.

The Knicks swept their series 4-0, making little of a splash, because before the playoffs started, this was the only series predicted to be a sweep, and it simply 'met expectations'.

The player who received the most praise in the first round was James.

He averaged 31.5 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 8.8 assists per game, including two triple-doubles in four games.

Yi Shui saw that his performance was criticized!
4场比赛场均28.5分8.5板6.25助攻1抢断2.25盖帽。

比不过詹姆斯的场均31+10+8，也比不过韦德的场均31.75+7+5。

Some media outlets even brought up their regular season loss to the Hawks.

At times like these, Yi Shui felt deeply that his skin was still not thick enough...

After a day of rest, on May 2nd, D'Antoni arranged for the team to practice together in the afternoon. Yi Shui still came to the stadium early in the morning to practice his jump steps.

The gorilla's jump step, turn, and step-back attack to the basket, combined with the big man's hook shot, actually work quite well together. Or rather, the gorilla's fundamentals are so solid that he can be compatible with most inside offensive methods.

Around noon, Walsh and NBA Vice President Stu Jackson arrived at the training ground, chatting and laughing, and presented Yi Shui with the MVP trophy.

Both men established themselves in the NBA in the 80s and knew each other for a long time, but they didn't have much personal relationship. Stu Jackson served as the head coach of the Knicks for two and a half years in his early years. After Donnie Walsh came to work in New York, he mainly communicated with the league through Stu Jackson, so they are now quite familiar with each other.

Dolan followed closely to the training ground, and under the cameraman's lens, Yi Shui received the trophy from Stu Jackson.

Although he had already known he would win the award, Yi Shui couldn't help but feel excited as he looked at the small statue in his hand!

Well, the trophy is alright made, but the little statue is a bit ugly. The proportions aren't as good, and the face is sculpted strangely...

After taking a group photo, Dolan and Stu Jackson left together, and they definitely deserved a treat.

After remarking on Yi Shui's performance this season, Walsh suddenly showed a regretful expression and said, "What a pity, you were only one vote short. ESPN people are really unfair..."

Yi Shui, who was in the midst of his excitement, was taken aback by what he heard. What did "one vote short" and "not particular" mean? After a moment of confusion, he suddenly realized that "one vote short of MVP" meant he would get all the votes?

...

At noon on May 2nd, the NBA officially announced the final two individual awards of the regular season.

After the awards were announced, there wasn't much discussion about the best defensive player, nor about the MVP himself. But one person became a hot topic – Dave McMena Minn, ESPN's Cleveland beat reporter.

Yesterday morning, after the official NBA voting concluded, Mien posted his voting receipt on his ESPN column, showing his first vote for LeBron James, second for Yi Jianlian, and third for Amar'e Stoudemire.

Since the Cavaliers drafted LeBron James, Mien has been a regular with the team for seven years. Thanks to James' popularity, his column on ESPN has over a million subscribers, making him a sure-fire big-name reporter in the future.

When he posted the receipt, it attracted a lot of attention, but it didn't cause much of a stir at the time. Only Cavaliers fans were happy, and he gained a few thousand more subscribers.

However, after the NBA officially released the detailed voting results, Mien became the target of criticism.

Howard received 104 out of 115 first-place votes, accounting for 52.46% of the total score, and was named the best defensive player.

The number of first-place votes and the percentage of total points are both second in history, with the first place held by Ben Wallace in the 01-02 season.

Yi Shui received 114 out of 115 first-place votes and 1 second-place vote, accounting for 38.37% of the total score, tying Shaquille O'Neal's record from the 99-00 season, and was named the regular season MVP.

He's just one vote away from being the unanimous MVP!
Dave McMena Minn, this name appeared in the public eye outside of Cavaliers fans for the first time, and major TV stations' midday news and various online media reported on this matter... Minn was subjected to cyberbullying.

In the afternoon, media outlets reported that Mien was stunned when she saw the voting results.

Yesterday morning when the voting was underway, several reporters told Mien to cast his first vote for James. Mien, of course, also voted for James, since he was one of the stakeholders who made his living by following James, and his million-follower account was built up by James... In the end, he was the only one who voted for James!
Even the two votes held by the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the votes from other ESPN reporters all went to Yi Shui!
In the evening, Mien updated a new article on his ESPN website column account—in my mind, LeBron is the MVP, he is my Michael Jordan, and it is my freedom to vote for whomever I want.

This column quickly attracted the attention of fans, with hundreds of comments appearing within minutes.

The first comment: It's your freedom to vote for whomever you want, and it's my freedom to criticize you.

Of course, there were also comments supporting Mien.

The comments section ultimately devolved into a flame war.

Some Cavaliers fans are also quite skilled with their keyboards; they could easily take on ten opponents at once...

This incident has caused a huge uproar, far more intense than the controversy surrounding Iverson taking one of O'Neal's first-place votes in 2000. Over a decade has passed, and information and communication technology has made a qualitative leap. Back then, fans' voices were quieter; now, almost everyone can express their opinions online.

With such a hot topic, major media outlets will definitely hype it up, and the league is also adding fuel to the fire to increase its popularity.

Even the hook company came up with a promotional topic – Who is the MVP?

If a few more people hadn't given Yi Shui their first vote, the commotion wouldn't have been so big, but only Mi En didn't... The development of the situation has already become less about 'unanimous MVP' and more about a traffic frenzy, with all parties vying for this massive amount of traffic.

The same goes for the team behind Yi Shui...

...

The topic of 'MVP by one vote' continues to generate buzz, and the NBA playoffs are still ongoing.

Two matches were played in the evening.

雷-阿伦15投9中、其中三分球5中5，加上2中2的罚球，拿到25分，率队以92比87击败步行者队，大比分4比1晋级；

卡特16投7中拿到21分、尼尔森12投4中拿到18分、霍华德6投2中拿到6分13板8盖帽、刘易斯11投5中拿到15分……魔术队以92比90险胜山猫队，大比分4比1晋级。

The Celtics and Magic will face off in the conference semifinals.

In Game 5, the Grizzlies defeated the Nuggets 92-89 thanks to their defense. Carmelo Anthony's three-pointer in the final moments failed to shake off Shawn Marion and was swatted away, losing the chance to tie the game. The Grizzlies now lead 3-2.

On the 3rd, in Game 5 between the Lakers and the Thunder, Kobe threw a tantrum tonight and refused to shoot because someone said he shot too much on the 30th, almost causing the Lakers to lose. Kobe only took two shots in the entire first half, passing the ball the whole time... and then the team was down by 15 points at halftime.

However, in the third quarter, Kobe returned to his normal playing style and led the team to launch a counterattack, scoring 17 points on 6 of 10 shots in the quarter.

In the final quarter, the Lakers tied the score, and the two teams entered a close back-and-forth battle.

In the final moments of the game, Kobe Bryant drove and dished to the left side of the rim, where Pau Gasol dunked for the game-winning shot. Durant then missed a three-pointer despite being closely guarded by Kobe, giving the Lakers a 96-94 comeback victory over the Thunder and a 4-1 series win to advance to the second round.

After losing Game 1, the Jazz won three straight games to take a 3-1 series lead. Tonight, in a crucial game, the Jazz gave the Mavericks no chance. Deron Williams went 10-for-20 from the field, including 1-for-1 from three-point range, and 4-for-4 from the free-throw line, scoring 25 points, grabbing 3 rebounds, and dishing out 10 assists. He dominated Jason Kidd and led the Jazz to a comfortable 112-104 victory over the Mavericks, completing a gentleman's sweep of the series 4-1.

They will meet the Lakers again in the playoffs!

On the 4th, the first round of the regular season finally came to an end.

罗斯19投7中、加上12罚全中的罚球，拿到26分7助攻，率队以97比90击败掘金队，在1比2落后的情况下连胜3场，大比分4比2晋级，与太阳队会师分区半决赛！

Rose averaged 27.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, 7 assists and 1.3 steals in 6 games, a remarkable performance. Although his shooting percentage was a bit low at 39.6%, the opposing team's two leading scorers weren't much better off.

安东尼场均30.5分，但命中率只有37.5%，场均24投9中；比卢普斯场均18分6助攻，命中率也只有39.3%，场均14投5.5中。

Rose's performance in the tough battle against Anthony was already quite remarkable.

The Nuggets were unlucky, running into what is probably the team in the West that counters them the most. The Knicks' fast-paced offense didn't work well against the Grizzlies, and the Nuggets' track-and-track style of running and shooting was also severely damaged.

May 5th has arrived, and it's the first day of the second round of matches.

Three days have passed, and the topic of "MVP just one vote away" which had begun to cool down has become lively again today.

Because there's only one game today—the first game of the series between the Knicks and the Cavaliers!
New York fans and Cavaliers fans have engaged in another day of verbal sparring.

Cavaliers fans are one of the strongest fan groups New York fans have seen in the past two years, with only Lakers fans being comparable.

The bustling day came to an end at 7:30 pm, and the players' entrance ceremony began at the basketball mecca.

When the first four starters entered the court, there were boos from the fans, but they weren't loud. However, the sound gave the Cavaliers players a sense of deliberate suppression.

When the DJ called out James' name, the boos from the crowd suddenly rose, and the shouts were deafening!

When it was the home team's turn to enter the field, the fans immediately started chanting "MVP"!
Because the Knicks pulled a stunt tonight, the other starters and reserves all stood together at the player tunnel entrance...

Tonight, the Knicks' entrance ceremony is reserved solely for Yi Shui!
...

After the lights came on, the two teams did not exchange any pre-match pleasantries.

Actually, the Knicks players don't have any hatred or resentment towards the Cavaliers, since they haven't lost to the Cavaliers much.

When the MVP was announced on the 2nd, Curry and his teammates were indeed very excited. But three nights have passed, and D'Antoni arranged a lot of intense training yesterday and the day before. That feeling of frustration that might have affected the game has been gone.

But today the media has started hyping it up again, and the fans are very excited. With the atmosphere already set up like this, they naturally won't do anything to offend the fans. So, they'll skip the small talk with the other side.

And although they didn't harbor any animosity towards the Cavaliers, they didn't think much of them either...

Soon, the staff were ready, and the awards ceremony began.

The crowd erupted in unison once again chanting "MVP!" Yi Shui received the MVP trophy from Dolan, raised it high, and the cheers rose even higher!
Time Warner Cable Sports commentator Bill Walton said, "This scene is familiar. We saw it last year too. It's the same two teams, but the players who won awards last year are now standing on the sidelines..."

After the awards ceremony, Yi Shui participated in a pre-match group interview.

Since receiving the Most Improved Player award, Yi Shui hasn't given any interviews in the following days. There's no other reason; he just finds it troublesome. After the MVP voting results were announced, the public opinion was too overwhelming, and he didn't want to be too distracted during the playoffs.

After all, if he didn't get that vote, he didn't get it. Even if he went out and cursed, he couldn't turn 114 first-place votes into a unanimous vote.

The first to ask a question was again the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

Yi Shui thought the other party would ask about the MVP, but the other party probably wanted to lay the groundwork and asked: "Big, the Cavaliers players said that the regular season record is just the regular season record. The playoffs are a completely different game. They are confident that they can beat you. How would you respond to this statement?"

Yi Shui: "I will sweep them aside, just like last year."

Honest Man's Reporter: "..."

Seriously, not even a few polite words? Although he knew Yi Shui was straightforward, this was way too blunt!
A reporter from Los Angeles asked, "The Cavaliers beat reporter didn't give you the final first-place vote because he thinks LeBron James is the MVP, which prevented you from becoming the first unanimous MVP. Are you unhappy about that?"

Yi Shui's lips twitched upon hearing this. How could it be the 'last vote'? And this claim came from ESPN. Yet, this easily debunked lie actually had many fans believing it. That reporter named Mien... well, you could say he suffered. He gained hundreds of thousands of followers in just a few days, and they were all 'active netizens,' which was equivalent to the number of followers he gained in two or three years while he was involved with the Cavaliers fan community.

“I don’t really feel much about it. Losing one vote won’t stop me from winning the trophy,” Yi Shui said, picking up the trophy and shaking it. “But I also want to know how the Cavaliers are different in the playoffs compared to the regular season…”

The group sampling session was short, lasting less than 5 minutes. The staff cleared the area, and the two teams entered the final preparation stage before the match.

Yi Shui returned to the bench, and a system notification appeared!

One of the prompts reminded him that there was a mission in this series: the fourth stage of 'Royal Power', which he received after the fourth game of the regular season against the Cavaliers. Defeating the Cavaliers would grant him 1 random physical attribute point.

The other notification is a new task!
"You missed the MVP by one vote, while the rival who stole that vote is on the other side of the court... Mission: He said he is the MVP. Triggered."

Goal 1: In this series, you need to average more points per game than LeBron James.

Objective 2: Defeat the Cavaliers and advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.

Basic bonus: Burst power +1.

Advanced Reward: If you complete the sweep, you will receive an additional Premium Blind Box.

Explosive potential! There are blind boxes to open!

Yi Shui's eyes lit up, but she quickly calmed down.

This opponent is really not easy to score against... We'll see, if we have the opportunity, then we'll go for it!
...

The pre-match preparation time has ended, and both teams have started their respective teams on the field.

Mike Brown continued with the starting lineup from the first round, with Mo Williams, Anthony Parker, James, Hickson, and O'Neal starting.

He glanced at Jamison on the bench, feeling a pang of pity.

Before the playoffs began, he hesitated for a long time, but finally chose to go for the tough style, abandoning the endless rotation defense and positioning Jamison as a backup shooter in the paint.

He knew that if this continued for too long, Jamison might be ruined, but without this approach, they wouldn't be competitive enough in the playoffs. There was no other way; the star player wasn't willing to give Jamison any ball possession.

On the other side, D'Antoni fielded a starting lineup of Curry, Hughes, Yi Shui, David Lee, and Chandler.

This is the best starting lineup against the Cavaliers in the regular season, mainly because of Hughes, who really shines when facing the Cavaliers.

At 8 p.m., the highly anticipated duel between the emperor and the king began!

Chandler beat O'Neal to win the jump ball, giving the Knicks the first possession!
When Yi Shui leisurely ran to the frontcourt and received a pass from Hughes, Curry had already directed his teammates to take their positions. He then faced James' defense and started a one-on-one attack!
James was even more aggressive on defense than when he faced Jamal Crawford in the first round. His pressure defense was extremely fierce, and his interference with perimeter shots was so tight that it felt like there was no room for anything.

But for Yi Shui, there were too many openings. He seized the opportunity, took a half step back, changed direction in front of his body, jumped and pulled to the side, then pulled back, creating space for himself and then broke through on the right!
Yi Shui intended to pull up and shoot as close to the basket as possible, but an unexpected situation arose. When he drove into the three-point line, Mo Williams, who was guarding Curry in the right corner, did not move up...

In a flash, Yi Shui changed his offensive strategy and drove straight to the inside!
For Yi Shui, it was just a matter of a few steps from driving to the three-point line to closing the distance. By the time O'Neal reacted, Yi Shui had already closed the distance!

O'Neal tried desperately to step in and stop him, but as soon as he lifted his foot, everything went black...

"bang"

When Yi Shui caught the ball and jumped, he switched the ball to his left hand, dodging O'Neal's instinctive outstretched hand to block, and slammed the ball into the basket over O'Neal!
O'Neal, who was standing on one leg, took two steps back and sat down on the floor with a thud.

The fans in the stadium erupted in cheers! Embiid blew past King! He dunked on Shaq!

After switching sides, Yi Shui and his teammates high-fived and punched each other before retreating to the backcourt.

The first attack was very inspiring, but we also need to do a good job on defense!

James received the ball in the frontcourt and, facing Yi Shui's defense, did not attack directly. Instead, he set a pick-and-roll with Hickson. The timing of the pick-and-roll was excellent. Chandler, who had come out to defend the pick-and-roll, was unable to stop James, and James drove into the paint!

Curry and David Lee quickly closed in on the elbow area, and Chandler also showed good awareness, avoiding pointless actions like trying to defend a pull-up jumper. Instead, he drove straight to the middle to block James' passing lanes to the left and under the basket.

However, it still gave the opponent an opportunity. James passed the ball to the right 45-degree angle, and Mo Williams moved up when Curry collapsed, avoiding Curry's pass interception.

Yi Shui left Hickson open and tried his best to cover the right 45-degree angle. He anticipated that Hickson would probably not be able to block the shot, and that Mo Williams' fast shot would definitely avoid his interference... However, Mo Williams, who always played recklessly and never cared about the threat of the help defender, did not rush the shot. Instead, he properly prepared the shooting motion, giving Yi Shui the opportunity to close in!

Moreover, after seeing Yi Shui make his save, Mo Williams stopped shooting, protected the ball, and passed it back to James after James ran out, continuing to pull away towards the sideline.

James muttered "What the hell?", but with only 7 seconds left on the shot clock and unable to pass the ball out, he could only grit his teeth, push past Yi Shui who had retreated to defend him, and drive into the paint, only to miss his floater despite being blocked by David Lee, closely guarded by Yi Shui, and disrupted by Chandler.

With these three people blocking his way, he couldn't even move!
David Lee secured the defensive rebound, and O'Neal had already retreated on defense when James threw the ball out. The rest of the Cavaliers also retreated aggressively, preventing the Knicks from launching a fast break.

However, Yi Shui looked at Mo Williams, who was quickly retreating on defense... Mo Williams' performance on both offense and defense was strange just now!

After a few more possessions, with 3 minutes and 15 seconds left in the first quarter, the Cavaliers called a timeout.

Yi Shui started strong, making 3 of 4 shots for 6 points and 1 assist. David Lee made a layup and drew a foul on O'Neal, making the free throw as well. The Knicks took a 9-2 lead over the Cavaliers!
After a few rounds, Yi Shui... no, everyone understood what had happened on the Knights' side.

Mo Williams has stopped shooting recklessly! He won't shoot unless it's a good opportunity! He's also stopped risking leaving his defender open!
(End of this chapter)