Champion Rules

Chapter 102, Episode 098: When the Seeds of Fear Blossom and Bear Fruit (Seeking Monthly Tickets!)

Nike's promotion of Carmelo Anthony's 5000th career point was undoubtedly excessive.

Nike's marketing in the 21st century overemphasizes individual data while downplaying victories. Compared to the basketball empire built by the six-time champion dynasty during the MJ era, Nike now prefers to use quantifiable data to create epic personal stories.

They implanted data labels such as "youngest player to reach 5000 points" and "first in history in career plus-minus" into the public's memory.

Because of Nike's enormous influence, this value orientation not only reshapes fans' perceptions but also subtly influences the self-positioning of its contracted players.

In the league ecosystem of the 90s, no star player had ever triggered such a large-scale commercial operation when he reached his first 5000-point milestone.

Nike combined the concept of "superstar data worship" with the "brotherhood basketball" narrative of Anthony and James to build a market barrier against Lynch and Reebok brands.

Under this marketing strategy, Anthony was burdened with the double burden of "must win the game and score 5000 points in this game".

Even if he ultimately wins, the victory will be overshadowed in his eyes if he fails to meet the data targets.

This put immense psychological pressure on Anthony.

After being blocked by Lynch repeatedly, Carmelo Anthony felt even more pressure.

Under normal circumstances, he doesn't need to think about things like "I need 11 more points to achieve greatness".

But now, the phrase "I need to score at least 11 points" seems like a curse, constantly whispering in Anthony's mind.

The Pistons resumed their offensive, and Anthony tried to control his desires. Chauncey Billups's words that changed the team, "Everyone put aside your personal feelings for a while," made him stop his reckless one-on-one attacks.

He didn't want to be the one to break this unspoken understanding.

He patiently set a screen for Richard Hamilton, who cut to the basket and scored a mid-range jumper, breaking the Pistons' scoring drought.

This was a beautiful offensive possession, and Carmelo Anthony did not become a one-on-one liability because of his 5000-point milestone.

But the pressure of scoring 5000 points will affect him in other ways.

One possession later, Anthony had a fleeting scoring opportunity through off-ball movement.

Michael Pietrus was a fraction of a second too slow to catch up because of Ben Wallace's solid off-ball screens, and Eddie Jones, who was there to help defend, was too far from Anthony.

This is a great opportunity for Anthony to break his scoring drought and move toward 5000 points.

But his open jump shot bounced off the rim.

"Farke! Farke!"

Anthony cursed and swore, seemingly driven to madness by every missed shot.

Mike Brin shook his head: "Looks like Melo's not shooting well tonight."

Shooting touch is a very mysterious thing in basketball, something that neither coaches nor players can control. In the early 21st century, when the overall shooting level of players was not high, strong teams preferred to focus on defense rather than offense, precisely because they did not trust their shooting touch.

A team can execute a defensive tactic perfectly, but it can never execute a three-point tactic perfectly—even if the tactic is executed correctly, a player's open jump shot may still miss.

Sports psychologist Dr. John Elliott attempted to understand "feel" from a scientific perspective. His view was that a shot affects a player's psychology, and a player's psychology affects the next shot.

He attributed his hot streak of consecutive hits and his cold streak of consecutive misses to psychological reasons.

Lynch doesn't entirely agree with this view, but there's no doubt that psychology is indeed part of the reason that affects how well you feel.

Carmelo Anthony was desperate to score, but he couldn't break the Pistons' team atmosphere of "fighting for each other" by endlessly taking one-on-one shots.

Therefore, he has to cherish every opportunity to make a shot, which brings even greater pressure.

Chauncey Billups seemed to know everything, yelling after Anthony missed: "Don't feel guilty, Melo, just play normally. 11 points is like the morning mist, it will dissipate when the sun rises."

Anthony nodded. "Only 11 points, only 11 points. It's simple. I'll score on the next possession. I'll definitely do it next time!"
Then, at the end of the first quarter, Anthony still had 0 points.

Lynch's strong help defense already made it difficult for Anthony to play, and the Knicks have always been Anthony's nemesis.

In addition, he missed his chances due to a cold shooting touch, which resulted in him not scoring a single point in the entire first quarter.

LeBron James comforted Melo from the second row of the bench: "You played well in the first quarter, Melo. You played good defense, and you played as a team. It's okay, as long as you do the right things, success will come naturally!"

Spike Lee in the front row laughed loudly: "Save your breath, young Akron actor. Your playoff experience is cleaner than my socks, and you're here to teach an Finals MVP how to play? Nike is marketing you alongside Melo, but that doesn't mean you're really on the same level as him. Did Nike put you in an ad with MJ and you think you were on the same level as MJ?"

The vicious Spike Lee practically stripped James bare in public.

Beside her, Daddario couldn't help but cover her mouth and chuckle; she could clearly see James's jaw muscles twitching.

“Drink your beer and shut the fuck up,” James retorted awkwardly.

If this were on the field, he would definitely drag the referee to send that damn bastard off!
James absolutely hates New York fans, he absolutely hates those bastards.

He couldn't wait to see Carmelo Anthony make these arrogant fools bow down!

At the start of the second quarter, Sam Cassell and Jamal Crawford tried to capitalize on the opportunity presented by both teams fielding transitional lineups to close the gap, but the Pistons' defense remained very strong even with their transitional lineups.

The Pistons are a team with a short rotation. Apart from the starting five, only Antonio McDyess and Tayshaun Prince have played more than 15 minutes, while the others have only had sporadic playing time.

In crucial battles, the others didn't even get a few appearances; their main rotation consisted of only seven people.

No matter how these seven players are changed, it will not affect the team's defensive level. Even during rotation periods, they maintain a suffocating sense of pressure.

Three minutes into the second quarter, the Pistons took a one-point lead.

To defeat the defending champions, the Knicks will have to rely on their starting lineup to go toe-to-toe with the opposition.

Lynch and most of the starters were substituted back into the game, and Carmelo Anthony replaced Tayshaun Prince. The cheers from the Madison Square Garden crowd were once again at full power.

Lynch leaned close to Anthony, placed his hands on his knees, and whispered in his ear, "5000 points? You won't get a single point tonight."

Rashid Wallace shoved Lynch aside: "Stay away from him, you bastard."

Lin Qi wasn't angry; he simply spread his hands and said, "I've never seen an FMVP hiding under a teammate's shorts."

The game continued, and Anthony got a one-on-one opportunity in his first possession after returning.

In his view, Trevor Ariza, who came on as a substitute, was pitifully thin and completely unable to stop him.

He backed down Ariza, advanced a few steps, and saw Lynch preparing to double-team him. Anthony immediately twisted his waist and turned to shoot.

Ariza may not be as strong as Michael Pietrus, but his long arms give him a wider range of shot-blocking opportunities than Pietrus.

"Bang!"

Lynch grabbed the rebound and passed it to Marbury, then ran past Anthony.

"I can't get 10 points for Melo, I can't get 10 points for Melo."

Lynch's whispers displeased the entire Pistons team, and that displeasure escalated into a more aggressive defense.

As Stephon Marbury drove to the basket, Ben Wallace grabbed his jersey in mid-air and slammed him to the ground, yelling, "You fucking want to die!"

Lynch roughly shoved Ben Affleck aside and pulled Marbury to his feet.

Players from both sides surged toward the center of the conflict like a tidal wave. The referee's shrill whistle pierced the ceiling, and Spike Lee, on the sidelines, ripped his tie and roared, "Kill these Motor City butchers!"

The rivalry between these two teams is deepening, and who knows how it will turn out if they meet again in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Marbury eventually went to the free-throw line, but the violent collision just now meant he only made one of two free throws.

The score is now tied, and the defending champions have indeed demonstrated their championship strength. Defeating them is far more difficult than it was in the opening match.

However, it won't be as easy for the defending champions to beat the Knicks as it was in last season's Eastern Conference Finals.

After one possession, Anthony finally scored.

He drove into the paint and was retaliated against by Kurt Thomas, earning him two free throw opportunities.

Like Marbury, his shooting touch faltered due to the physical contact, resulting in him making only one of two free throws. Nevertheless, he broke his scoring drought.

But this did not alleviate Carmelo Anthony's anxiety; for the first time, he felt that scoring 11 points in a game was so difficult. Both sides' defensive actions became increasingly aggressive, while their offensive efficiency declined, and their shooting touch became dulled.

The field was filled with chaotic scenes of players falling to the ground, trash talk between players and the referee's urgent whistle rising and falling, and every attack and defense by both sides seemed to be squeezing out the chips of victory from a blood and flesh mill.

At this pace, Carmelo Anthony seemed to be under a spell, stumbling through a scoring wasteland.

His repeated mistakes made LeBron James in the audience nervous.

What the hell did I come here for?
Are they making such a big fuss to come and see if New York fans will be arrogant again?

Melo, what are you doing?
You got hit by something, so what the hell are you doing, just shrugging your shoulders?!
How can the referee blow the whistle if you don't lay your hands on the referee?

The low-output, inefficient game remained close until the fourth quarter, with the Pistons trailing by 5 points with 1 minute and 12 seconds left in the game.

Carmelo Anthony looked at the scoreboard; he had struggled to score 9 points today, shooting 4-for-11.

He is just 2 points away from reaching the milestone of 5000 career points.

The Pistons were on offense, and LeBron James was watching the game intently.

Chauncey Billups has the ball, and Carmelo Anthony begins to weave through the screens.

Michael Pietrus weaved through a dense jungle of muscles and finally caught up with Anthony.

But the moment Anthony received the ball, he used Pietrus's momentum to drive past him and break through. He entered the paint, leaned against Kurt Thomas, and made a layup. The dull thud of their muscles colliding made the spectators in the front row frown.

Kurt Thomas failed to jump fully under Anthony's powerful impact and was unable to complete the block.

But Lynch rose up from behind Kurt Thomas and once again kept Anthony's 5000th point away!
"If you can't get 10 points, Melo, I told you so!"

Amid cheers from New York fans, James covered his head with his hands.

Will Carmelo Anthony really get stuck at the 9-point mark tonight?
Aside from a complete waste like Scottie Pippen, which decent star player would fail to score even 10 points in a crucial game?

If you can't fight a positional war, why don't you launch a fast break beforehand?

Melo's basketball IQ is seriously worrying!

Carmelo Anthony gritted his teeth; Lynch was like a persistent nightmare, always waiting for him after he took a shot.

James was very anxious. At the same time, Stephon Marbury, who had picked up the basketball, immediately launched a fast break with a long pass. Eddie Jones crossed half-court and scored a layup, giving the Knicks a 7-point lead!
This layup greatly increased the Knicks' chances of winning, and the fans at Madison Square Garden all stood up, marking the climax of the game.

With the Detroit Pistons hanging by a thread, Larry Brown nervously shouted for them to slow down, not wanting the team to lose their composure because they were down by 7 points.

Chauncey Billups suppressed his urge to pull up for a three-pointer and passed the ball back to Anthony, who was tirelessly making off-ball runs, after crossing half-court.

Michael Pietrus was completely out of position, and Anthony raised the basketball to prepare for a jump shot.

As a result, Lynch immediately switched onto Anthony and they faced off one-on-one beyond the three-point line!

“Come on, Melon, put on a show for your Akron little lackey,” Lynch said, slapping the floor beneath his feet.

Rasheed Wallace leaned against Michael Pietrus and raised his hand to ask for the ball, but Pietrus's aggressive fronting defense made Anthony less confident in feeding the ball in.

He waved his hand, deciding to take on Lynch one-on-one!
"Cameron wants to personally score 5000 points over Lynch's head!" Mike Breen roared, clenching his fist.

Anthony made three consecutive probing steps to trick the defender into shifting his weight to the left, then suddenly dribbled the ball and drove hard to the right.

Lynch tried to catch up as quickly as possible. He might have a hard time mismatching and defending a guard one-on-one, but he had no problem defending a small forward.

The two men's shoulders collided with a loud crack. In most cases, Anthony could use his size advantage to squeeze out half a body length. But against Lynch, he couldn't create even a sliver of space.

Left with no other option, Carmelo Anthony suddenly stopped and retreated.

Seeing this, Lynch immediately jumped up and reached out to block. Anthony wanted to shoot immediately, after all, 5000 points was just around the corner.

But under Lynch's long arms, he didn't have even the slightest space to back away.

The shadow of New York No. 20 once again loomed over him, planting the seeds of fear in his heart.

Carmelo Anthony's shot was frozen in place. The immense pressure of reaching 5000 points caused his brain to short-circuit at that moment, and his survival instinct led him to make an absurd choice.

Facing Lynch's block, he neither passed the ball nor attempted a jump shot, but instead took a step forward with his right foot, intending to drive. But the moment he took that step, he immediately sensed something was wrong. Wait, was that his second or third step? He froze on the spot, his legs crossed in a comical pose, staring blankly around at the fans, until the referee blew the whistle: "Traveling!"

Anthony's bewildered reaction is normal, because not all basketball players can handle traveling smoothly and naturally.

This was a truly surprising offensive play; Anthony squandered the opportunity with an extremely awkward traveling move.

"Damn it!" James exclaimed in utter disappointment.

Mike Brin exclaimed in the commentary booth, "Lynch and Hakim's dreamlike dance moves might dazzle their opponents, but Melo just dazzled himself."

All the players on the Knicks' bench burst into laughter. Lynch casually snatched the basketball from his petrified opponent's hands and pointed to his crossed legs: "Nice form, Melo."

Anthony has completely destroyed his past self; he was so close to 5000 points!

He didn't realize that the more he cared about 5000 points, the more he thought about it, and the more unnatural his offense became.

Fortunately, Lynch's next jump shot also missed the rim, and the score difference remained at 7 points, giving the Detroit Pistons and Anthony a chance.

In this play, Billups attempted to drive past Marbury after a pick-and-roll, but Marbury attacked from behind and knocked the basketball out of Billups' hands.

Billups almost made a mistake, but luckily Anthony picked up the ball and took advantage of the chaos to drive straight into the paint, leaning on Lynch who had his arms raised high to make a layup.

The intense competition and immense psychological pressure caused the layup to bounce off the rim again. Ben Wallace elbowed Lynch in the waist, delaying his jump and creating space for Melo with a foul-level confrontation.

Carmelo Anthony grabbed the offensive rebound and immediately jumped again to prepare for a standing dunk.

LeBron James stood up and raised his arms in advance.

Needless to say great!

At this moment, no one can stop Anthony from scoring his 5000th career point!

But Anthony doesn't think so.

He knew Lynch was right beside him; he had already been blocked countless times by Lynch today. In fact, a huge shadow had already enveloped the entire three-second zone.

Lynch's suffocating defensive presence made Anthony nervous, and the seeds of fear began to sprout and bear fruit at that moment.

Anthony didn't want to be blocked by Lynch at this crucial moment, so before his body could reach the right height, he hastily swung his arm, trying to slam the ball into the basket as soon as possible.

In the end, as James raised his arms in celebration, Carmelo Anthony jumped up and dunked, hitting the rim directly!

James:? ? ?

The basketball bounced away, but Kurt Thomas caught it cleanly, and the Pistons' bench erupted in a sigh of despair.

Carmelo Anthony's traveling violation and missed dunk in crucial moments made him the biggest joke, and he was repeatedly tortured in slow motion under the dome of Madison Square Garden.

“It all comes down to Lynch’s defensive intimidation,” Mike Breen explained. “Carmelo Anthony is afraid of Lynch. This isn’t Melo’s fault, because Lynch is already one of the most fearsome defensive players in the league.”

The Pistons can only resort to tactical fouls; they're out of time.

Kurt Thomas was sent to the free-throw line. This hardworking blue-collar player doesn't have much of a role on offense, but he has one particularly fatal flaw—his free-throw percentage is 81% this season.

Kurt Thomas made his first free throw, bringing the Pistons down by 8 points; they were practically doomed.

At this moment, the live broadcast camera gave Anthony and Lynch a close-up, capturing a historic moment.

Carmelo Anthony, who hadn't scored 5000 points or won a game, looked serious. Beside him, Lynch, like an elegant hunter, bent down, his playful gaze piercing through Anthony's tense profile.

Lynch said nothing.

But this contrast in expressions was enough to make Carmelo Anthony leave with an even greater humiliation than Raja Bell.

(End of this chapter)