Monster-level physical fitness
On June 8, 2000, American sports media continued to report on Game 1 of the Finals, which concluded last night.
The peak viewership for the 1998 Eastern Conference Finals once exceeded 30 million, but by the Finals, viewership plummeted by half.
The Utah Jazz simply lacked appeal.
Most viewers tuned in for the New York Knicks.
1999 was even worse.
Affected by the lockout-shortened season and the San Antonio Spurs' lack of appeal, even with Tim Duncan and David Robinson, viewership didn't reach 15 million.
After the first game of this year's Finals, the NBA was completely relieved.
A big market showdown, with intense hype from both sides' media before the game, coupled with explosive statistics, heated up the excitement and maximized expectations.
Although the final score difference in Game 1 seemed significant, during the game, the Lakers repeatedly narrowed the gap, almost completing a comeback, making the game intense and pushing viewership past 20 million again.
USA Today and the New York Times featured the same headline on their front pages:
"Superman!"
This title previously belonged to Shaquille O'Neal, but after last night's game, it began to describe Clay Lee.
In Game 1, the Lakers shot 2-for-12 from three-point range as a team, while Clay Lee alone shot 6-for-14!
His attempted shots and made three-pointers completely dwarfed the entire Lakers team.
Truly, one man against a team!
In the Finals, the last player to shoot so many three-pointers was Clay Lee.
In 1998, he shot 9-for-17 from beyond the arc in Game 4, so this wasn't the first time this had happened, thus, after the Lakers' loss, Phil Jackson and the coaching staff were forced to take the blame.
With a 2-3-2 schedule, the New York Knicks secured an away victory, and the Lakers lost the initiative.
Their upcoming home games cannot be lost.
He set a new personal playoff scoring record and achieved his second 40+ point game in the Finals in his career.
In team history, Clay Lee has completely surpassed team legend Willis Reed, becoming the first player in the Finals to score 40+ points twice.
Scoring 40 points in the Finals is never an easy feat, so even though Shaquille O'Neal lost, many people praised him afterward:
"The Lakers lost, but Shaq didn't!"
With only one day of rest, Phil Jackson and the coaching staff found it difficult to make effective adjustments.
During the afternoon practice on the 8th, seeing Shaquille O'Neal still full of vigor, Phil Jackson felt relieved.
Without Shaq, the Lakers would be in serious trouble.
Throughout the entire Western Conference playoffs, O'Neal's playing time was mostly 40+ minutes.
In Game 1 of the Finals, after being worn down by pick-and-rolls throughout the game, O'Neal wasn't exhausted.
Instead, he became highly motivated.
This situation not only stunned the Lakers' coaching staff but also bewildered all his teammates.
The New York Knicks did not conduct any training today, focusing entirely on stretching and recovery.
Ewing, Oakley, Ben Wallace, and Kurt Thomas all had sore muscles.
Guarding O'Neal is physically demanding.
He is strong yet very agile, has a soft touch near the basket, and with his physique, he can still run on fast breaks, requiring constant vigilance on defense.
"Playing over 40 minutes for so many consecutive games and handling so much of the ball, shouldn't he be tired by now?"
Ben Wallace was completely dominated by Shaquille O'Neal.
One-on-one defense was futile, as there was a significant size difference between them, and Shaquille O'Neal also had more game experience.
After Ben mumbled this while stretching, Oakley stroked his chin and said in an uncertain tone:
"There should be a significant drain He defended near the three-point line for most of the second half, which should have taken a toll on him."
Ewing wasn't sure about O'Neal's condition, but as for his own body, the Gorilla had been sore since waking up.
He hadn't played such a physical game in a long time:
"We still have a chance to win one more game. As long as Shaq doesn't perform well, the remaining players are no match for us!"
Ewing consoled himself, constantly cheering himself on, and Kurt Thomas, fully agreeing, immediately nodded.
Even with four players taking turns defending, they couldn't contain Shaquille O'Neal, who still shot with extremely high accuracy.
Jeff Van Gundy was still in a cheerful mood from the win.
According to the game plan set before the series, securing an away victory had already met the team's expectations.
For Game 2 tomorrow night, the coaching staff didn't make many arrangements, still leaving the game in the players' hands.
Larry Johnson secretly marveled after looking at the Game 1 box score.
In his impression, the entire New York Knicks team participated in the Defense, yet O'Neal still managed to shoot 60%.
"Doesn't this guy get tired? Just 30 shots alone consumes a lot of stamina, and he still has to protect the rim on Defense. I don't believe he can maintain this efficiency indefinitely."
Allan Houston, who was practicing free throws, wasn't as surprised by what "Grandmama" said:
"Perhaps this is talent; this is a gift from God!"
"..."
Looking at his teammate who had suddenly turned into a mystic, Larry Johnson was immediately speechless, wanting to complain about God's favoritism, but considering that the person in front of him was a devout believer, he swallowed the words he was about to say.
Clay Lee was still on the other side, being interviewed by NBC.
Jim Gray has been covering the New York Knicks for several years, and during the Finals, news about the New York Knicks was mostly broken by him.
Noticing that Clay Lee hadn't collapsed like some of the veterans, and was still doing basic drills during the afternoon practice as usual, Jim Gray secretly nodded and smiled as he posed a question:
"After securing an away victory, returning to New York, you will have the chance to end the series at home."
"Lee, can you talk about the team's plans moving forward? Will there be more adjustments in the subsequent games?"
Having been praised too much last night, Lee was much more modest during this interview:
"We all hope to win the championship at home; that would be the ideal situation."
"As for tactical adjustments, perhaps that's what the Lakers should be doing. We'll still start with pick-and-rolls. Tomorrow night, everyone will fight with all their might for the win!"
After secretly noting Lee's physical condition, Jim Gray asked a few routine questions and then smiled and wished him well:
"Go, Lee! Many people are looking forward to you achieving a three-peat!"
"…"
On the morning of June 9th, TNT's program was still discussing Game 1 and also preheating for Game 2 tonight.
Mike Fratello, as a member of the coaching circle, did not follow the trend of criticizing Phil Jackson's tactical choices:
"As I said before, throughout the entire Western Conference Playoffs, the Lakers have never encountered an MVP-level core guard."
"Jason Kidd and Anfernee Hardaway are also superstars, but currently, they cannot display the dominance Clay Lee has on the offensive end."
"Shaquille O'Neal takes on a lot of scoring tasks on offense, so the Lakers must lighten his burden on the defensive end."
"The Lakers' game strategy is not a problem. It's just that Lee responded, and that's what an MVP does!"
As for role players missing shots, Kenny Smith didn't dwell too much on that issue but pointed out Shaquille O'Neal's flaw:
"Whenever the Lakers close the gap and are about to complete a comeback, Shaq's free throws become a problem."
"This gives the New York Knicks too many opportunities. Free throws and stamina will be key in this year's Finals!"
"It's a pity that the New York Knicks have the advantage in these two aspects. In the Eastern Conference Playoffs, they swept all their opponents and also got a lot of rest time before the Finals."
"I predict the New York Knicks will successfully defend their title!"
Ernie Johnson saw that Mike Fratello on the other side did not refute, knowing that he had also lost some confidence in the Lakers, and finally concluded:
"This should be a long series. Currently, the New York Knicks only have a slight advantage. I'm looking forward to the Lakers' response tonight."
"…"
After a loss, problems were everywhere.
Before the 7:30 PM tip-off that night, Phil Jackson was annoyed by these fair weather fans and finally laid out his cards:
"The team won't make too many adjustments. We will still give the ball to Shaq, and the role players will also respond."
"In tonight's game, we will put the ball into the basket again and again. This is the Lakers' response!"
Staples Center once again erupted as the Lakers fans entered.
For tonight's game, the Lakers were determined to win.
After the game began, Shaquille O'Neal showed his aggressiveness, constantly attacking the basket.
Glen Rice, who was 1-for-8 in Game 1, finally found his shooting touch, responding from beyond the arc.
At 50:52, the Lakers couldn't pull away at halftime, leading by only 2 points.
However, the New York Knicks also had their own troubles, with Ewing picking up three fouls in two quarters.
O'Neal was 5-for-14 from the free-throw line at halftime, and although he only had 15 points, the Lakers showed a trend of multiple players contributing.
After the end of the 3rd quarter, the difference between the two teams was still only 3 points, and in the subsequent final quarter, Shaquille O'Neal once again displayed his dominance.
4-for-4 from the field in a single quarter, 6-for-12 from the free-throw line, O'Neal efficiently scored 14 points in the final quarter!
Ewing and Oakley were both fouled out one after another with 5 minutes and 17 seconds left in the game.
At 100:106, the Lakers finally successfully protected a home game, achieving their expected goal.
Playing 45 minutes, Shaquille O'Neal was 12-for-20 from the field, 13-for-30 from the free-throw line, with 37 points, 17 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks, and two turnovers. Shaq once again delivered an unsolvable stat line.
30 free throws truly stunned Jeff Van Gundy.
After the game, seeing O'Neal's playing time on the stat sheet, the Bald Young Coach couldn't help but secretly complain to himself:
"Simple and crude tactics, monster-like stamina."
Playing 41 minutes, 7-for-16 from the field, 20 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 turnovers.
After securing his first career Finals victory, Kobe immediately put the Game 1 loss behind him when interviewed after the game:
"This is the Lakers' true strength. We play for each other. Shaq dominated the game!"
"Although the next three games are on the road, all of us are confident we can regain the initiative."
"Tonight, the Lakers were the better team!"
Facing the camera, Kobe spoke eloquently, excitement overflowing.
As he walked towards the player tunnel, he continuously waved to the fans on both sides.
At the post-game press conference, Jeff Van Gundy still couldn't help but complain to the media reporters below:
"Ewing quickly picked up two fouls after the start, and then Charles also ran into trouble."
"Our offense was fine, but we simply couldn't exert ourselves on defense. I didn't like the officiating tonight."
The New York Media below had already put this loss behind them, and at this point, they continued to ask inflated questions:
"Jeff, we have a chance to end the series at home. Can you talk more about our players' condition?"
The schedule was indeed more favorable, but Jeff Van Gundy still didn't get carried away, simply answering in a standard manner:
"The team has had a long rest, and everyone's condition won't be affected by the loss. Tonight, our perimeter players were still very efficient."
"As for ending the series at home, we haven't considered those things yet. You know, in the playoffs, you have to play one game at a time!"
"However, being able to lift the championship trophy at Madison Square Garden is indeed an incredibly wonderful thing, and we will work towards that goal!"
"…"
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