On February 3, 1999, the regular season would officially start the day after tomorrow, and the Knicks' uniform team was busy preparing for the championship award ceremony.
Jeff Van Gundy has been having a headache these days.
Although he beca the youngest championship coach in the NBA, Sprewell, who ca to the team, did not buy it.
The 29-year-old Sprewell is at the peak of his career.
He was suspended for a long ti last season and his condition has declined, but he is still at the level of an All-Star guard.
Sprewell was not happy about joining the Knicks, and even publicly shouted to the dia at the press conference when he joined the team:
"Have you ever seen an All-Star guard serve as a substitute?"
The New York dia was not polite and gave an example with a smile:
"The Lakers' Kobe Bryant, an All-Star guard, was a substitute last season."
After being choked at the press conference, Sprewell was in a particularly bad mood:
"Who is Kobe Bryant? Is a rookie qualified to be compared with a three ti All-Star?"
The two sides parted ways unpleasantly after their first eting.
The New York dia hoped that this player would replace Starks and serve as a super scorer in the substitute lineup.
But Sprewell didn't like playing as a substitute at all, and vowed to ask the coaching staff for a starting position.
But after arriving at the Knicks locker room, Sprewell beca obedient.
Apart from having a sullen face every day, he did not interfere with his training.
The players are not stupid.
After being suspended for so long last season, they must get more good data this season to win trust.
General Manager Glenfield received unanimous praise for this trade.
He traded the declining Starks and rotation players for an All-Star guard in his pri.
This trade was a huge win!
As for whether the player is suitable, that is the head coach's problem.
Jeff Van Gundy is already numb to this.
He looks at Sprewell's stinky face every day and doesn't know what kind of chicken soup will work.
The Knicks' lineup also had so problems.
Veteran Buck Williams eventually chose to retire, which left only Chris Dudley and Ben Wallace in the inside rotation.
During the afternoon training session, Lee helped Ewing lose weight.
The fat gorilla was exhausted after only a few fast breaks in the ga.
"Speed up, Pat! A little faster, after the pick and roll, go down imdiately!"
He quickly advanced the ball to the half court.
Ewing had just stood at the top of the arc.
Lee, holding the ball in his right hand, quickly dribbled the ball, scooped it up with his left hand, turned around, and squeezed past Ewing's left side.
Sprewell put all his strength into chasing and defending, and while the gorilla was moving down, he rushed straight to Lee's side.
Lee, who was holding the ball in his left hand and carrying the defense, saw that Ewing, who was following him, failed to get to the basket in ti.
He paused slightly at the free throw line, relied on Sprewell to go straight into the inside, broke through to the lower left of the basket, and easily made a layup!
After several rounds of rapid return runs, the gorilla was exhausted and panted, and took the initiative to call a tiout:
"Rest for a while and let
drink so water. Shit! I have to replenish my water."
Last season, when completing a high pick-and-roll at the top of the arc, Ewing was able to quickly move down and frantically position himself under the basket, but now he is simply falling short.
He gained weight, and not only did his low-post offense fail to return, but his finishing at the basket also did not improve.
This season, Ewing's salary is as high as 18.5 million US dollars.
With such performance, Jeff Van Gundy has recently started to lose his hair.
The longer the training sessions, the more the gorilla's physical energy is overdrawn.
There is a high probability that Ewing had his energy drained away by the female fairies during the off-season.
He has been performing particularly poorly in training over the past few days, and he often appears to be fatigued.
Assistant coach Thibodeau called a tiout imdiately.
The Knicks didn't care and comforted the gorilla:
"Don't worry, Pat! The night after tomorrow we will play against the Bulls at ho. You know, the opponent has disintegrated. You still have ti to get back into shape."
Oakley was comforting Ewing carelessly, as if he felt that the Knicks had already won the ga.
Due to the shortened season, not only is the schedule extrely tight throughout the season, but so teams will not even et each other in many cases.
In theory, these situations do help the Knicks, but Lee looked at Sprewell who turned his head to practice, and then looked at Ewing who was still laughing, and was speechless for a mont:
"The atmosphere in the team is extrely harmonious."
The Bulls completely fell apart, and before the regular season began, many sports dia were discussing the operations of General Manager Krause.
Scottie Pippen eventually left the Bulls, and with Barkley choosing to take a pay cut, the conscientious second-in-command was traded to the Rockets to play Big Three basketball.
Longley was also traded to the Suns in exchange for rotation players and a 1999 first-round draft pick.
Only Kukoc and Harper were left in the Bulls' main lineup, and the dynasty team eventually fell apart.
On the evening of February 5th, at Madison Square Garden, New York fans who had been waiting for half a year entered the venue early.
Everyone wanted to witness the championship flag rising over the arena.
Due to the drastic changes in the Bulls' lineup, everyone did not take their opponents seriously, and tonight's ga has turned into a grand party.
Before the ga officially started at 20 o'clock, the atmosphere on the scene beca more and more noisy.
On the sidelines, Spike Lee was greeting coach Calhoun and the freshn from the University of Connecticut:
"This is definitely a historic mont. Knicks fans have waited too long. Guys, in the future, you can also join the team like Lee."
"It's dangerous! The Knicks are the best choice!"
Coach Calhoun nodded with a smile.
Hamilton and several new players behind him were infected by the atmosphere and cheered with the fans.
Old Charles has invited many New York municipal officials and celebrities to the box to watch the ga tonight.
He is also the protagonist tonight and will present championship rings to all the Knicks players together with President David Stern.
At 19:30, David Stern, who had just reached an agreent with the players' union, returned to his usual appearance, shaved his beard, and appeared on the court with a smile:
"I'm very happy to be able to witness the Knicks' third championship in team history at Madison Square Garden tonight!"
"Thank you to the New York City governnt for its continued strong support for the league. It's ti to welco our champions!"
Old Charles did not steal the show.
He stood happily in the center of the venue, with championship rings placed on the table next to him.
The na of the New York Knicks is spelled out in diamonds on the front.
One side has a regular season record of 63 wins and 19 losses, and the other side has a playoff record of 15 wins and 2 losses.
Above the battle records on both sides are the nas of Lee and Ewing, indicating that this ring is a tribute to the two of them.
The whole body is mainly gold and white, which looks more gorgeous than the rings in the 1970s.
When the live DJ calls out their nas, the players who co forward to receive their rings will be enthusiastically cheered by the fans.
Although Ewing was as fat as a ball, no one cared at this mont.
He was the third to last to co on stage and there were constant cheers.
Old Charles presented the gorilla with a ring, and the gorilla put it on his right hand with his eyes red with excitent.
Lee, who was the second to last to appear, smiled.
After receiving the ring, old Charles gave him a hug and greeted him.
"Wow!!"
Starks was the last player to appear on the court.
The Knicks team applauded him, and the New York fans at the scene also stood up and gave the biggest cheer for the veteran.
Starks, dressed in a suit, was also very excited.
He didn't want to leave New York or play for the Warriors, but business is business.
As compensation, the Knicks chose to let the veteran play last and say goodbye to the New York fans on the scene.
Starks finally shed tears after receiving the ring.
Old Charles patted the veteran who shaped the Knicks locker room culture and handed him the microphone:
"John, it's a pity that you left the team, but I promise that the Knicks will always welco you and New York fans will never forget your contribution."
After adjusting his mood, Starks, dressed in formal attire, took the microphone and said excitedly:
"Thank you for all the blessings. I love New York. This will always be my ho. I will never forget the experience of winning this championship."
"."
Jeff Van Gundy watched Starks' emotional speech, wearing his championship ring, and the coaching staff applauded continuously.
Alan Houston, Larry Johnson, Oakley and others joked and showed off to each other, and the Knicks staff also received a ring.
On the other side, Sprewell, who was wearing the Knicks' white ho training suit, was a little envious when he saw this mont, and his heart ached for a mont.
Lee noticed the new player's gaze and whispered with a smile:
"If you want to win the championship, you always have to sacrifice sothing!"
...
By the way, don't forget to throw power stones and leave a review to motivate
:)
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