Chapter 1 The Playoff Begins

In the first round of the playoffs, the Raptors ultimately eliminated the Pistons with a score of 3-1.

In the four games, the Pistons' leading scorer, Stackhouse, was defended into an "iron block" by Su Feng.

On the 22nd, in Game 1 between the two teams, Stackhouse only made 7 of 29 shots, missing a whopping 22.

On the 25th, in Game 2, although Stackhouse only took 19 shots, he missed his first twelve attempts.

On the 28th, in Game 3, Stackhouse's touch warmed up a bit.

But his performance of 8 out of 21 shots...

Made the Pistons' home fans feel like their eardrums were about to burst.

And on the 30th, even though the Pistons' home fans were eagerly waiting, they did not witness Stackhouse's "divine descent"...

In the end, Stackhouse, possessed by the "iron block," ended his first-round playoff journey with an "outstanding" performance of 5 out of 22 shots.

It is worth mentioning that.

The only game the Pistons won in this series was thanks to Hardaway, whose legs were almost "crippled," blowing up Nash, and Joe Smith shattering Barkley's mentality.

Of course...

There was also a tiny, almost negligible reason: Su Feng was infected by Stackhouse's touch in Game 3.

TNT Television.

Kenny Smith, while commentating on Game 3 between the Raptors and the Pistons, felt for a moment as if he had returned to the 96/97 season...

You know, he hadn't retired yet then.

At that time, in every sunny afternoon in Philadelphia, Smith's favorite thing to do was to bet with his teammates on how many bricks Su Feng and Stackhouse could make in a one-on-one match.

Fortunately, unlike Stackhouse, who only had a tiny chance of finding the switch to divine descent...

In the other three games of the first round of the playoffs, Su Feng was mostly the Su Feng that Raptors fans were familiar with.

In the first round of the playoffs, Su Feng averaged 35.5 points, 8 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 3 steals, and 1.5 blocks.

In addition, his field goal percentage was 46.5%, his three-point percentage was 45%, and his free throw percentage was 90%.

Compared to the previous two seasons, this year in the first round of the playoffs, not only has Su Feng's playing time been increased to 48 minutes per game, but the Raptors' average score in the first round of the playoffs has also decreased.

This decrease is partly because the absence of O'Neal and Carter means that the Raptors' offensive pressure on their opponents is not as great as before.

On the other hand, the 00/01 season was the first NBA season to abolish the hand-checking rule.

As a result, in order to maintain the intensity of the playoffs, the referees relaxed their standards.

In his previous life, encouraging offense in the regular season and encouraging defense in the playoffs was one of Stern's basic governing philosophies.

The benefit of this was that fans could enjoy offensive performances in the regular season, while also seeing physical, hard-fought games in the playoffs.

Of course, there were downsides as well.

Namely, this undoubtedly greatly increased the risk of stars getting injured in the playoffs.

After the first round of the playoffs, players like Nash, Barkley, and Olden Polynice on the Raptors suffered minor injuries to varying degrees.

However, in this year's first round of the playoffs, the Raptors were already one of the luckiest teams.

In the other three Eastern Conference first-round playoff matchups, the Celtics swept the Bucks 3-0, and Philadelphia defeated the Pacers 3-1.

The tragic Nets eliminated the Heat 3-2, but Francis and Van Horn were out for the season due to injuries.

As a result, Pierce, who had always been stubborn, was about to cry after finally reaching the Celtics.

Because as his teammates fell one by one...

How was he going to conquer the Boston Garden?

According to the schedule, the upcoming Eastern Conference semi-final matchups will be Celtics vs. Nets, and Raptors vs. Philadelphia.

On the other side, in the West.

Perhaps because he was too excited about his marriage to Vanessa, Kobe also sprained his ankle in the first round of the playoffs against the Kings.

And it was unclear whether O'Neal, Kidd, Jones, and others were deliberately trying to embarrass Kobe...

Anyway, after watching the games Kobe missed, the Lakers fans at the Staples Center felt like the Lakers were playing more smoothly...

In the end, the Lakers easily eliminated the Kings, who only had Peja and Webber, with a score of 3-0.

According to the Lakers' team doctor's report, Kobe will return in the Western Conference semi-finals.

In the other three Western Conference matchups, the Jazz eliminated the Timberwolves 3-0.

The Mavericks defeated the Trail Blazers 3-2.

And the Suns also defeated the Spurs 3-2.

There was nothing Garnett could do; he couldn't break through the iron-blooded encirclement formed by Malone, Kirilenko, and others.

The Trail Blazers, who were eliminated from the Western Conference semi-finals by Nowitzki's game-winning three-pointer in the final moments of Game 5, were even more aggrieved...

Because at that time, the young Dirk killed the Trail Blazers in the Rose Garden...

In the same spot where, in Su Feng's memory...

In his previous life, Roy hit his famous shot against Houston.

Fortunately, the Trail Blazers' fans hadn't seen the future games.

So at most, they just complained that the Mavericks were luckier than them.

As for the Suns vs. Spurs series...

Well...

In this life, with Bowen behaving himself, Carter would probably avoid Bowen's dirty tricks.

But his cousin wasn't so lucky.

Perhaps Popovich really had a grudge against the Suns because after this series, McGrady followed in Hill's footsteps and quit early.

Finally, with the strong performances of young forwards Lewis and Marion, the Suns managed to snatch a semi-final ticket from the Spurs.

And the Jazz, who had been waiting, were overjoyed.

Because the Jazz, as an older team, were very afraid of the Suns charging at them.

But now...

Without Hill or McGrady, the Suns couldn't rely on Fisher to charge at the Jazz, could they?

According to the schedule, the upcoming Western Conference semi-final matchups are:

Lakers vs. Mavericks, Jazz vs. Suns.

In the original 00/01 season, if Su Feng remembered correctly, the Raptors faced the Philadelphia thug squad in the conference semi-finals.

In fact, before that game, which was hailed as the battle of the century, the most exciting games of that year's playoffs were actually the scoring duel between Iverson and Carter in the conference semi-finals.

Therefore...

Although history had already deviated from its original trajectory, in the dark, Su Feng and Iverson, the former best outside duo in the league...

By various coincidences, they met again in this year's Eastern Conference semi-finals.

It must be said that fate is a mysterious thing.

According to the playoff schedule, Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semi-finals between the Raptors and Philadelphia will begin at 9 pm Toronto time on May 6th.

Because these two teams had various connections, the game became the most anticipated matchup in this year's conference semi-finals even before it started.

Online, some Raptors fans complained that Su Feng wasn't demonstrating his scoring ability this year...

Judging from the Raptors' schedule of facing the Pistons first and then Philadelphia, it was completely testing the defensive ability of Su Feng, the DPOY.

Some fans also joked that the half of the Eastern Conference that the Raptors were in this year was an internal war between the top three scorers in the league in terms of average points per game.

In addition, considering that Su Feng, Iverson, and Stackhouse had all ganged up against the Bulls back in the day...

Therefore, this year's PK also had the nickname of "Who was the fiercest against Jordan back then."

Of course, for the vast number of Chinese fans, Yao Ming and Su Feng's meeting in the Eastern Conference semi-finals was the topic they were most interested in.

And in New York...

Although the series between the Raptors and Philadelphia hadn't started yet, Stern had already smelled that damn fragrance.

Hiss————!

This is the fragrance of exploding ratings!

This is also the fragrance of money!

On May 2nd, major North American television stations announced that they would broadcast the series between the Raptors and Philadelphia nationally.

CCTV will bring commentary to Chinese fans for the first time starting from the playoff semi-finals.

With high attention from all sides, ESPN even boldly predicted that this series between the Raptors and Philadelphia would become the highest-rated overseas event in the history of the four major North American sports leagues.

On the 3rd, the Philadelphia thug squad, led by Carlisle, arrived in Toronto two days early.

Knowing that Davis liked to play off-court tricks, the Philadelphia front office simply booked the most luxurious hotel in Toronto.

Before the game, in an interview, Carlisle also said that he would not underestimate the Raptors just because they had key players missing.

In addition, Carlisle jokingly said at the time: "In my opinion, this Raptors team is very similar to the Bulls in terms of roster structure.

So, since the Bulls of the 96/97 season couldn't stop Allen...

I believe that Allen will shine in the upcoming series."

In Toronto, on the Raptors' side.

After Su Feng and Davis saw Carlisle's interview, the taciturn master and disciple duo smiled bitterly.

Because...

They both knew very well that what Carlisle was articulating...

Was the unsolvable problem that had been plaguing Su Feng and Davis for the past few days.

In Su Feng's previous life, many Iverson haters liked to hate on Iverson for being selfish and not having a championship.

But in fact, in the long history of the NBA, players of Iverson's height, let alone being able to take shots like him, just leading a team to the Finals as a single core...

Even Chris Paul couldn't do it before Su Feng transmigrated.

Based on Su Feng's understanding of Iverson.

If you want to effectively limit Iverson, you must meet two conditions.

First, you must have a player on the perimeter who can keep up with him, and second, you must have a tall interior barrier in your paint that can effectively limit the success rate of driving players.

But right now...

Unless Su Feng, who is 201cm tall with shoes on, can shrink to 191cm, and Ben Wallace can suddenly grow taller overnight like in some fantasy basketball novel...

Otherwise, where would the Raptors find such two magical characters?

And once the Raptors can't limit Iverson in the game, then based on Iverson's cooperation with Yao Ming and other teammates this season, he can easily drive the entire Philadelphia offense in the game.

Therefore, at this moment, the Raptors were facing the same dilemma that the Bulls faced when they played against them back then...

And originally, if O'Neal could stay healthy, the Raptors would at least have one player on the inside who could manage Iverson.

In addition, Carter could use the advantage that Snow and Christie couldn't both manage him and Su Feng to offset the points and assists brought by Iverson on the offensive end.

Therefore, in Su Feng's opinion, Carlisle wasn't joking with the reporters...

This guy was clearly telling Davis and himself...

He knew where the weaknesses of the current Raptors were, and he knew where the advantages of the current Philadelphia team were.

And he didn't intend to hide it.

Because, in his opinion...

Iverson was the unsolvable problem for the Raptors.

"Coach, although it sounds discouraging, if I were a judge this year, I would definitely vote for Rick for the Best Coach," Su Feng said with a wry smile to Davis that day.

At this time, Davis patted Su Feng on the shoulder and said, "Su, to be honest, if I were a judge, I would definitely vote for Rick too."

Vaguely, he didn't know why...

Anyway, Su Feng and Davis missed Larry Brown a lot.

However...

Although the Raptors couldn't solve Carlisle's blatant scheme, Su Feng and Davis didn't fall for the trick hidden in his scheme.

Because, on the surface, Carlisle was conveying to Su Feng and Davis in a joking way that he had seen through the Raptors.

But in reality...

This guy was trying to attack the confidence of the Raptors.

See, what does it mean to have a dirty mind when playing tactics?

Whenever you think you have reached the fifth level, others have already reached the stratosphere.

Admittedly, in the tactical aspect of this Eastern Conference semi-final, the Raptors were destined to lose to Philadelphia due to the roster restraints...

But basketball games, tactics are only one of the factors that determine the direction of the game.

On the 4th and 5th, in the team training before the semi-finals, the Raptors players clearly felt the fighting spirit that had already begun to burn in Su Feng.

At this time, looking at Su Feng's serious face, Barkley on the training ground also sighed.

Because if Barkley could be a few years younger, he would really want to follow Su Feng to see what kind of great achievements Su Feng could achieve in the future.

……

May 6th, Toronto, Air Canada Centre.

As the former Philadelphia home DJ, when Martin looked at the draft he had written in advance, preparing to start the entrance ceremony for both sides of the battle tonight according to the content on it...

He really, really...

Could not forget the summer of 1997 in his dreams.

That was the summer of the Philadelphia Twin Stars.

That was the summer that belonged to all Pennsylvanians.

In that 90s dominated by the Chicago Bulls, Su Feng and Iverson jointly fired the first shot for the entire league to resist the Bulls.

Therefore, on this night, Martin decided to make an exception for the visiting team's players.

In the center of the court, just as Iverson, wearing the Philadelphia No. 3 jersey, was about to step onto the court...

The live DJ Martin used his magnetic voice to say:

"He is the pride of Hampton!

He is a four-time NBA All-Star player!

He is the Philadelphia Answer that cut through the night sky of Chicago!

His name, from Pennsylvania to Toronto, is known to everyone!

He is...

Allen——————Iverson!"

In front of the TV, when Philadelphia fans heard this long-lost introduction, no one knew how many people burst into tears at that moment.

On the court, after a moment of shock, Iverson also turned his gaze to the Raptors' half of the court.

Look, that Chinese boy who still needed him to teach him how to dribble back then...

He is now the famous Northern God.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I don't know what the most romantic fairy tale you have ever heard in your life is.

But for me, the most romantic thing in the world is that on April 25, 1997, a young man from China jumped onto the technical table at the United Center.

Then he told the world that he wanted to defeat Michael Jordan!

My God, do you know what I wanted to say the most at that moment?

That is...

Screw Michael Jordan!

Now, please let us give our most enthusiastic applause to our No. 23!

He is our 'Phenomenon'!

He is a two-time NBA Regular Season MVP!

And a two-time NBA Finals MVP!

To hell with First Team All-Defense! What do those honors count for in the face of all the honors he has created?

Cheer! Toronto!

Use all your strength to let his name resound through the sky! Resound beyond the universe!

He is...

Su——————Feng!"

Holy crap!

On the court, on the Raptors' side, Su Feng was almost scared to death when he was preparing to play.

Because even he, who was well-informed, had never seen such a scene tonight...

"This Martin, didn't he take drugs? Playing so hard?" At this moment, Su Feng silently thought in his heart.

And in front of the TV...

God knows how many Philadelphia fans had already cried themselves to death?

On the spot, as the entrance ceremony for both teams ended, the big screen had already given the starting lineup for both teams tonight.

Philadelphia: Yao Ming, Ratliff, Christie, Iverson, Snow.

Raptors: Ben Wallace, Barkley, Jackson, Su Feng, Nash.

It is worth mentioning that, just before the jump ball between the two teams began in the center of the court...

On the Philadelphia thug squad's side, Yao Ming suddenly walked to the technical table.

At this time, in front of the technical table, the staff thought that this giant from the East was planning to rub some magnesium powder.

But who would have thought that in the next second...

Yao Ming...

Actually flipped onto the technical table in public!

His height of 226 points, plus the height of the technical table at this moment, was simply as majestic as a mountain.

Then, after rolling up the magazine he didn't know where he took it from into the shape of a microphone...

Little Yao, who was only 20 years old, recited in both Chinese and English:

"I want to defeat Su Feng————!"

Su Feng: ".......”

No cap...

In the space-time he was in now, this Yao Ming was definitely someone Su Feng had never seen before.

And at the Toronto Air Canada Centre, looking at this scene that suddenly appeared on the court, nearly 20,000 fans on the scene were also stunned.

"Good guy! Su Feng said he was going to defeat Jordan as soon as he came up back then, and now, Yao Ming also said he was going to defeat Su Feng!" Zhang said excitedly on CCTV.

"This is the completely different spirit that Su Feng has brought to Chinese basketball!

That is, we either be the strongest or play the strongest!" Su Junyang also echoed excitedly.

"Cool, it's so cool, Seth, when I play in the NBA in the future, I want to do this too!" Stephen Curry said excitedly on the Raptors' bench.

And he didn't know why...

LeBron James, who was sitting not far from Curry...

Suddenly, he also wanted to do this when he entered the NBA in the future...

……

ps: According to the original plan, this chapter should have been chapter 425, because April 25th, just corresponding to Su Feng's famous scene on April 25, 1997. However, due to physical reasons, some of the later chapters were too short, resulting in some extra chapters for nothing, so...I'm short, I confess!

The second update of 5400 words is here! Continue to beg for basic monthly tickets, recommendation tickets, and subscriptions!