"Why does it seem so much like the Spurs’ system? That’s not right! Before the Spurs’ style, I hadn’t heard of anything similar... Oh, right, Old Nelson is almost out of the picture. It’s probably just an attempt by a Mad Scientist, but he was fired before it was complete. The Spurs’ system was originally a fusion of various tactics with Duncan as the key. Popovich may have drawn from his mentor..."

to 21, the New York Knicks narrowed the gap to 6 points.

A very effective adjustment, this shot invigorated the Knicks’ players on the court, and they quickly retreated to defense, ready to keep the momentum going and bring the gap within 5 points.

However, Zhang Hao immediately posted up Little Anthony Mason at the baseline, fiercely bumping Little Anthony Mason back a big step and nailed the turnaround fadeaway!

This play, the Knicks didn’t even have time to double-team!

Ewing comforted his teammates, saying that if they act a bit quicker next time, they can prevent Zhang Hao from scoring, and then they need to take good care of their shots.

The Knicks’ players moved and passed the ball very actively, but with the experience from the previous possession, playing with the successful offensive coordination from last time, Zhang Hao saw an opportunity to intercept the opponent’s attack!

When Little Anthony Mason squeezed past Donyell Marshall to break into the paint and passed the ball to the high post after attracting Jason Williams, who was defending Ewing at the free-throw line, Zhang Hao shrunk back from the weak side ahead of time, lunging with a steal!

Zhang Hao, rolling on the ground, seized the ball in the process of diving out!

This steal elicited another gasp from the spectators!

Van Exel quickly came up to assist, and Zhang Hao, after getting up, immediately sprinted towards the frontcourt.

The Knicks, who had just been intercepted, were already in a disarrayed retreat; Zhang Hao and Van Exel’s onslaught left the Knicks’ defensive players clustering around them without any coordination.

The duo broke deep in, passing it back!

The trailing Donyell Marshall, from a step inside the arc, received the ball and sank the long two-pointer!

to 15, in an instant, the Lakers’ lead expanded to 10 points!

No way!

Seeing the situation, Ewing realized that if they keep playing coordinated, the opponent’s rookie, talented like a monster, could easily read them. They need to simplify the offense and let their teammates have the opportunity to pass directly to the shooting players.

Old Nelson’s team play system is good, but half a season clearly isn’t enough for them to fully grasp it.

This time Ewing went directly to the low post; though it’s exhausting to keep drilling in the low post, they need to keep the offense going.

When Ewing arrived at the low post, Zhang Hao switched defense with his teammate, coming up behind Ewing.

Ewing was initially planning to continue the first quarter’s strategy of extended singles play, and upon seeing Zhang Hao defending him, he got even more excited, received the ball, and posted up against Zhang Hao!

Ewing made a fierce push inside; Zhang Hao, at the perfect moment, swung his iron elbow to meet the collision with Ewing!

Ewing felt the feedback force, almost cursing!

He couldn’t use his body to push into a more comfortable position! This seemingly naive rookie not only had a strong character but was also a powerful beast; although he had an advantage, without shoulder sinking and elbow balancing, he couldn’t demonstrate it!

Typically renowned for his strength, capable of taking on O’Neal solo, Ewing’s face turned red, and the surprised cries from the baseline fans filled him with shame since he was supposed to be a full size larger than Zhang Hao!

An angry Ewing forced his way up but failed to carve out the turnaround space, then with an ape-like arm stretch, he forcibly attempted a shot...

"Pow"

Zhang Hao slammed his palm onto the ball, needing no anticipation for this linear floater!

The ball was swatted into a cluster of players and, amidst the scramble, was tipped out of bounds by a Knicks player, Lakers’ backcourt ball!

Stunning!

Exaggerated!

Zhang Hao single-handedly blocked Ewing from the front!

Though they didn’t manage to launch a fast break, the dead ball provided Lakers’ players a chance to swarm around Zhang Hao in a celebratory manner!

Ewing, who was blocked head-on, was utterly bewildered; how could this be? How could this rookie be this formidable?

Three blocks already!

In 8 minutes of play, Zhang Hao had accumulated 3 blocks and 1 steal!

Although there’s a factor of the opponent underestimating his defense, like Ewing’s current shock, largely due to his initial complete dismissal of Zhang Hao’s defense, that gap was too broad.

But being able to disrupt the opponent’s attack was Zhang Hao’s skill!

Following Zhang Hao’s audacious block on Ewing, the Lakers grew more and more excited as they played!

In the ensuing minutes, Zhang Hao’s scoring pace notably slowed, coming to a near standstill, but this was the result of the Knicks frantically surrounding him; posting up to receive the ball meant an instant double-team, and once Zhang Hao passed the ball out, his teammates had direct shooting or secondary passing opportunities.

The spot where he posted up provided excellent vision, making it hard for the opponent to spread back once they double-teamed. As long as he was on point in the game, with enough stamina to use the post-up to threaten the opponent, the Lakers’ offense could flow incredibly smoothly!

However, this was not the surprising part; this was the result Del Harris had conceived, because Zhang Hao’s threat that night was enormous, with a ninety percent probability of achieving such an offense.

The key was on the defensive end!

Since that massive block on Ewing executed by Zhang Hao, he stayed planted inside the paint, while his four teammates did their best to defend mid-to-long-range shots, allowing cutting opportunities. The Knicks found plenty of cutting chances.

But after Zhang Hao delivered a big block on Little Anthony Mason, who was trying to power dunk after cutting through, and combined with the previous block on Ewing, the Knicks’ subsequent attempts at cutting into the basket became very hesitant.

And hesitation means easily missing the best opportunity and giving the opponent a chance to intervene effectively!

Although Zhang Hao did not obtain additional blocks in the last two minutes, he constrained his opponents to just 1 for 4 on close-range and under-the-basket shots!

While Zhang Hao didn’t have many scoring opportunities, he seized every one he got!

The Lakers’ offense, on the other hand, was considerably steady, and as the Lakers missed a long two-pointer on their last attack, Zhang Hao cut inside, seized the opportunity for a putback, and got two points. By the end of the first quarter, relying on Zhang Hao’s energizing offensive plays, with his 8-for-10 shooting, including 2-for-2 from beyond the arc, plus 4-for-4 on free throws, he had amassed 22 points, 4 rebounds, 5 blocks, and 1 steal, while the Lakers racked up 42 points in the quarter!

As for the Knicks, in the last 4 minutes of the first quarter, due to Zhang Hao’s terrifying ruling power in the paint, they scored only 6 points, and with the 15 points from the first eight minutes, they finished the quarter with just 21 points!

At the end of the first quarter, Ewing, who played the entire first quarter, looked at the big screen... 21 points in a quarter, that’s not scary, the scary part is that the opposing rookie scored 22 points, more than their entire team!

They were shattered right in the first quarter!

Ewing nearly collapsed during the last four minutes of the first quarter, feeling shame, unwillingness, anger... desperation! He felt the opposing rookie was even stronger than him!

This was because the Knicks relatively underestimated, allowing Zhang Hao to show his characteristics; if his characteristics are displayed, with a 94 rated near-pure off-ball scoring and defensive interior, it’s invincible! Because of Zhang Hao’s singular technique, the bonus of the experience card highlighted his strong points to an extreme to boost his ability rating to 94!

Just when Ewing was thinking of simply giving up, a cold voice came from beside him.

"Yeah, you should give up, the Admiral could still give me some trouble, you’re still lacking, but don’t mind this, you’re the weakest among the Big Four centers..."

Ewing turned his head to see it was the rookie!

That nonchalant tone, those venomous words, the grim face that made one want to punch it... the fighting spirit Ewing had just lost reignited in an instant!

"Who says I’m inferior to the Admiral?"