NBA: Miracle Workers

Chapter 157 Ewing’s Advertising Effect (Daily Chapter)

After the 98-99 season, the 37-year-old Patrick Ewing has officially entered the "peak of his career."

After winning the second championship in his career, the already declining Gorilla was once again praised by the New York media!
In August, Ewing frequently appeared on some talk shows. With the promotion of the New York media, he became well-deserved as the "league's number one center".

The "New York Basketball" documentary produced by MSG during the offseason was very popular.

Different from previous reviews of the glorious years of the 70s, this documentary mainly focuses on the period from 96 to 98 when the team completed two consecutive championships, and most of the content is original sound.

Fans can watch the 98 Eastern Conference Finals from another perspective.

Before Li You completed the buzzer-beating buzzer-beater, he calmly arranged the sideline ball tactics. The documentary faithfully restored the situation at that time.

New York fans enjoy watching it. Even if they are loyal fans, sometimes they cannot see the details on the field, and documentaries can help fans understand the team better.

On the morning of Sunday, September 9, ESPN’s “The Sports Reporters” program invited local New York sports reporters Mike Luca and Mitchell Abramowitz to participate in the program.

In addition to host Dick Shepp and two New York sports reporters, the program team also invited Ewing. This program is considered a special topic on the Knicks.

Four people sat in front of the stage, and the topic of discussion was whether the Knicks could achieve three consecutive championships.

The hot topic in the past half month has been the Knicks' salary issue, and when it comes to salary, Ewing is still rude:

"There is nothing wrong with players getting high salaries. You know, last year, we won the championship again!"

"No matter how much the league's bonus is, that's what we deserve."

The gorilla's answer left two local reporters in New York speechless. High salary and low ability are Ewing's current situation.

When later talking about the championship issue, Ewing also appeared very confident:

"The Knicks currently have no opponents, retain the championship lineup, and have sufficient bench depth. It will not be a problem to complete three consecutive championships."

Gorilla took the opportunity to give a brief introduction to the Knicks' tactics. In summary, each position has huge advantages. When combined together, it is just one word:

"win!"

After the show was broadcast, Ewing brought huge advertising effects!
Many players don't believe in Ewing's bragging about the Knicks' strength, but what everyone sees is that New York does treat meritorious players well.

Ewing, who was fat as a ball and suffered serious injuries, could still get the highest salary in the team at the end of his career. This kind of pension status made many veterans jealous.
Since the freeze period lasted for a month and it came to September, many teams were still in a trading state.

The Knicks started training camp in mid-September. The goal of the new season is naturally to defend the championship. Training earlier will help the players get into better shape.

The shortened season also had a big impact on Li You. When he returned home to Tarrytown, his talent progress still failed to meet expectations:
[Michael Jordan’s extraordinary core strength] and [Michael Jordan’s extraordinary coordination] turned golden;

[Anfernee Hardaway’s excellent bullet speed] has become silver, and [Anfernee Hardaway’s excellent explosive power] has become gold.

Tim Grover believes that Li You's body has almost reached its limit and there is no need to continue to gain weight. Maintaining the current state is enough to cope with any competition.

On the talent panel, the values ​​​​have not changed, which also proves Tim Grover’s conclusion. Li You looked at [Karl Malone’s extraordinary physique] and it was still golden, and suddenly came up with a bold idea:

"Maybe I haven't practiced hard enough!"

In comparison, the metaphysics [Tim Duncan's excellent sense of position] has improved the most, changing from gray to silver.

It's just that Li You didn't feel much. Most of the offseason games were rough. Apart from being able to predict the position of the rebound more accurately, he didn't have any other feelings.
It is still not an easy task to completely digest these outstanding talents. Li You knows that this requires a large number of high-quality games.

On September 9th, at the Tarrytown Training Center, the Knicks players began simple physical tests early in the morning.

Ron Artest looked at everything in the training center curiously. He was the first to arrive and had already looked around twice.

Most young players are in very good physical condition. Whether it is Ben Wallace or Rashard Lewis, obvious traces of training can be seen.

Kurt Thomas has gotten even stronger. Apparently he also gained weight during the offseason and polished his muscles.

Jeff Van Gundy was relieved when he saw everyone's physical condition. Even if several veterans are not in good physical condition, there is a high probability that they will be able to survive if the rotation is increased at the beginning of the season.

Although Oakley is not as fat as Ewing, the old guy has obviously gained weight, and there is a layer of fat hanging on his belly that is visible to the naked eye.

Considering that the finals will not end until the end of June, it is understandable for the veterans not to practice.

"Look at my beautiful muscles, I swear, I will get back into shape again in the new season!"

Larry Johnson lost a small amount of weight. After completing the physical examination, he yelled loudly from the side and showed off the results of his offseason boxing training.
Alan Houston hasn't changed much either. He just kept in shape during the offseason and mostly rested and relaxed:
"It seems that everyone has had a good offseason. To be honest, the rest time is still too short. In two and a half months, we will start training camp!"

Li You had just completed the physical test and could only shrug his shoulders after hearing Alan Houston's words. Jeff Van Gundy was under great pressure and started training camp early to urge the veteran to actively recover:
"Considering that there are still some pre-season games in October, it is very reasonable to gather at this time!"

As a core player on the team, Li You naturally wants to express his support for Jeff Van Gundy.

Throughout the shortened season, Gorilla failed to lose weight. It is simply unreliable to expect the players to train consciously.

Ewing was in a very good mood. Although the team doctor kept shaking his head after the examination, the gorilla didn't care. Seeing his energetic teammates, he kept joking loudly:

"I know that everyone can maintain a good condition and we will keep winning in the new season!"

Oakley, who was in a particularly beautiful mood, was also grinning. This season there is a newbie carrying a bag.

This year's big man picked at the end of the second round doesn't look like he can survive in the league. The old guy decided to take advantage of this newbie this year.

When Ben Wallace saw Artest, the two started staring at each other.
Tony Cookic seems not to adapt to the atmosphere of the Knicks. He has not yet been able to confirm his position in the team, and the whole person is a bit dull.

Everyone in the training hall was bragging and chatting non-stop. Although the offseason was short, everyone was okay with it out of the desire to win three consecutive championships.

The Knicks are the first team in the league to open training camp. Naturally, everyone sacrifices their vacation time to get into the state in advance!
Jeff Van Gundy took a look at the physical test data and found that he was generally satisfied.

The players in their prime have not relaxed. This is the biggest guarantee for the Knicks to win three consecutive championships in the new season!
"Two and a half months of rest time is indeed very little for us!"

"The finals ended at the end of June, which means we have one month less rest than some teams." "But if we want to succeed, we have to be more strict with ourselves."

"I hope everyone can gradually find the feeling of the game in the preseason. In the new season, we must establish an advantage at the beginning."

"Taking a longer-term view, we want to win another championship. In addition to paying attention to the opponents in the Eastern Conference this year, the coaching staff will also collect more information about the Western Conference teams."

"I hope everyone can take every video session seriously. Hey, I'm tired of cutting wood. Remember, we have to play for each other!"

Jeff Van Gundy started to talk non-stop about chicken soup again. Artest's blood boiled when he heard it. He also watched the Knicks documentary during the offseason. Playing for his hometown really gave him a stronger sense of belonging.

Assistant coach Thibodeau is very satisfied with Artest's positive attitude.

In his rookie season, he planned to train this newbie. In the first year, the coaching staff positioned Artest as a defensive tool.

Rashad Lewis also seemed very excited. Assistant coach Don Chaney has communicated with him that he will have more playing time in the new season.

The Knicks hope that he can be a finishing point, just passable on the defensive end, open up space for the team on the offensive end, and the most important thing is to hit those open three-pointers!
Although he still doesn't know how much playing time he can get, Lewis is also full of motivation. New York is indeed not short of money. He will work hard for a big contract in the new season.

Sensing everyone's expressions, Jeff Van Gundy also completely relaxed. Although the veterans began to decline again, as long as they make good use of the fighting spirit of the young players, the team's performance will not be worse.

The Knicks were the first to open training camp, and soon the Lakers followed suit.

As a championship coach, Phil Jackson took complete control of the team after coming to the Lakers.

Although O'Neal was a little dissatisfied, out of his desire for the championship and his trust in Phil Jackson, the Sharks did not complain. Instead, they actively performed in training and gave Phil Jackson a platform.

O'Neal, who has always been lazy, started to train hard. Even if the training camp assembled too early, no one on the Lakers dared to complain.

Kobe was completely brainwashed by Tim Grover's "white hot space" theory. He spent almost the entire off-season in the training gym and polished his physical condition very well.

I wanted to go all out when the training camp started, but after the morning training session ended, in the afternoon Phil Jackson instead asked the players to start boring basic training:

"Run - catch - pass."

There was no talk about the high-end triangle offense. After the boring training, Phil Jackson led everyone to stretch again and again, and finally just relaxed and meditated.

Kobe was feeling uncomfortable, and O'Neal also had a question mark on his head. Only veteran Harper seemed to have gotten used to Phil Jackson's tricks, and he seemed very calm throughout the whole day of training.

After the training session in the evening, Phil Jackson didn't let everyone go back to their homes. Instead, he asked Harper to treat everyone!
Also starting from this day, the Lakers started team-building training mode.

The New York media began to report on Jeff Van Gundy's bloody training camp, and the Los Angeles media did not lag behind, praising Phil Jackson's unique training method.

The two major markets began to compete from a distance, and neither side seemed to pay attention to other teams.

On the evening of September 9, Li You attended Jimmy Fallon’s birthday party.

Already established on Saturday Night Live, Jimmy Fallon's popularity has skyrocketed thanks to his outstanding talent.

We specially asked the party company to arrange a single-family villa so that everyone can relax and have fun.

A lot of NBC staff came, and Tina Fey also stayed up at Saturday Night Live. After getting high, she joined the crowd in cheering.

Preferring private fun parties, Li You usually invites the depressed Connery to come out and have some fun.

The aloof and beautiful girl has her own aura, but after drinking a few glasses of wine, she basically forgot some of her troubles.

"Believe me, you will succeed in Hollywood again. Don't forget to thank me after you win the Oscar!"

Connery, who was twisting and turning to the music, suddenly laughed when he heard Li You's words, leaned into his ear and whispered:

“Don’t expect too much from women in Hollywood!”

Li You just raised his eyebrows and let the other person lean against him and swing around.

Li You would routinely care about every girl he knew.
Tina Fey on the side had drunk too much and kept complaining that Li You was an amorous person. Then she turned around and started complaining that Jimmy Fallon was the most incomprehensible man.

With the sound of music and Tina Fey's complaints, everyone started laughing. Jimmy Fallon didn't care, but took the opportunity to pull his drunk partner and start singing.

There are always endless parties in New York.

The advertising effect brought by Ewing has also caused some veterans who want to realize their dreams to contact general manager Glenfield through their agents.

It's just that the Knicks don't need an atmosphere team at this time. Jeff Van Gundy's target is a meat shield type big man.

The remaining two spots were eventually vacated, and Grunfield planned to check the situation before and after the All-Star Game, and then make final reinforcements for the Knicks.

On the morning of September 9, after repeated confirmations, the team doctor believed that Ewing would need at least two months of recovery before he could officially return to the team in early December.

Jeff Van Gundy patted the gorilla on the shoulder and briefly comforted him, but Ewing didn't care about the issue of returning from injury:
"After this contract ends, it's time to retire. Compared to other people's careers, I'm already very lucky."

The gorilla finds it difficult to maintain the self-discipline to stay in shape, and his desire for the championship is gradually fading.

This offseason has been marred by drinking and sex, but Ewing knows this is just the beginning, and he does prefer another ball game.
Since joining the Knicks in 1989, Jeff Van Gundy has witnessed most of Ewing's career.

After hearing the gorilla's words, the bald young commander was filled with emotion:

"Pat, work harder! Three consecutive championships is the same achievement as Michael Jordan!"

　Thank you book friends for your subscription support ￣﹣￣
　　There will be a big chapter later. There will be no small chapters updated tonight.
　　There will be one big chapter at noon tomorrow and one big chapter in the evening.
　　To explain again,
　　Contents marked (Daily Chapters), book lovers can choose to subscribe ~
　　Because there will be no competition involved, the content is indeed watery.

　　But it’s really hard not to write this, so I’ll mark it in advance.

　　The protagonist will not be a pure basketball player;
　　It won't be training a ball-playing robot.
　　
　
(End of this chapter)