After the All-Star Weekend, our big bad villain, Zack, didn't head back to Oakland. Instead, he went straight to New York to meet up with the Warriors, who were about to embark on another East Coast road trip.
Just looking at the schedule this season, Zack could tell how much the league was gunning for the Warriors. Everyone knows the NBA has an 82-game regular season, but the difficulty of each team's schedule varies wildly.
For example, back when the "Big Three of Texas" (Spurs, Rockets, Mavs) were all in their prime, any team that faced that "Texas Triple Play" combo usually ended up severely battered, if not outright dead. And then there's the "High-Altitude Back-to-Back" in Salt Lake City and Denver; even the strongest teams find it tough to come out of those two high-altitude arenas unscathed.
The main characteristic of the Warriors' schedule this year is that when they face strong teams, they face them in multiple consecutive games. And when they play weaker teams, the league, being very "considerate," usually throws in back-to-backs to indirectly ramp up the difficulty of these "easy" games for the Warriors.
While David Stern, always a master of balance, typically arranges similar trials for every budding dynasty, for this current, short-handed Warriors squad, the challenge Stern set for them in advance was enough to give even Zack a headache.
To relieve some of the recent pressure and lead the team through the upcoming tough stretch in a better mood, Zack had an intense "training session" all night with Durant's goddess the day he arrived in New York.
How would you describe Zack's performance in that special training? In his past life, the famous Premier League WAG, Katie Price, once described her night with Liverpool's powerful striker, John Arne Riise, by saying, "Women want men to be rough but gentle, but he's different. He didn't want to make love to me; he wanted to kill me."
Scarlett Johansson's experience in that training session was similar to Price's later on.
The next day, Scarlett, utterly satisfied and nearly having met the Grim Reaper, finally understood who the real Superman in the NBA was. "He's Superman, without the cape," Scarlett said, with a double meaning, during an interview before the Warriors' game against the Knicks that night.
And even though Durant had no idea what his goddess had gone through the previous night, seeing Scarlett courtside at Madison Square Garden still fired him up. So, right after the tip-off, on the first offensive possession, Durant raised his long arms on the left side of the court and kicked off his scoring show with a "45-degree three-point slash."
However, to Durant's disappointment, his goddess didn't cheer for his three-pointer.
Warriors' ball. Looking at Shaq, who had completely "retired" in New York, Zack used a high pick-and-roll to get him switched onto him. Then, he suddenly accelerated, forcefully pushing past David Lee, who tried to help out on Shaq. Lee, who had also been mentally scarred by Zack in college, had clearly improved this season. But defense was never Lee's strong suit.
Slam!
At the Mecca of Basketball, as Zack violently slammed the ball, Scarlett, courtside, immediately remembered the previous night's events and completely forgot she was a native New Yorker.
But at that moment, was Scarlett the only one who forgot her old New Yorker, true-blooded American identity? At Madison Square Garden, as the overwhelming "MVP! MVP!" chants echoed through the arena's dome, Zack, feeling like he was playing at home, instantly fell in love with the Big Apple.
Why did New York need the Knicks to perform well? As long as the Knicks kept being bad, this place would always be a home court for the other 29 NBA teams!
Zack, who had been taking it easy during the All-Star Weekend and had his special training last night, already felt his scorching hot game-time form during the pre-game warm-ups.
Another possession, Zack, strolling casually, used a Shamgod dribble to shake off Lee's defense and drove straight into the restricted area guarded by O'Neal. Shaq showed his dignity as the former best center in the league. But Zack, without any regard, pulled up and released a floater during his quick stop.
Going fast when he wanted to, slowing down when he pleased... At that moment, besides O'Neal, perhaps only Scarlett could truly experience Zack's terrifying "man-ball cohesion" ability.
Swish!
On ESPN, A-Smith, a die-hard Knicks fan, exclaimed, "He sprinted at 180 miles an hour, then slammed on the brakes and hit a spectacular floater. For his height, his body control might even surpass Michael Jordan's back in the day."
Durant responded on the next possession with a pull-up jumper after a catch, sinking the ball into the Warriors' basket. This made Zack look at his little brother with newfound respect.
Amateurs watch the excitement, experts watch the technique. Zack knew this wasn't a simple shot. Durant's true height with shoes on was around 211 centimeters (about 6'11"). Therefore, being able to execute such a quick pull-up after a catch on the court meant Durant possessed far superior ball-handling coordination and body control than players of similar height.
Of course, compared to the KD of later years, the current KD still had flaws in various techniques. For example, on the next Knicks' offensive possession after Zack scored his tenth point of the game with a quick cut, Zack rotated in front of Durant and, with physical pressure, forced Durant to dribble the ball off his foot.
Regarding his little brother's elementary mistake, Zack laughed, "Your dribbling is still rough, KD."
Hearing this, Durant awkwardly scratched the back of his head and smiled. Durant's temperament meant he was likely one of the few players in the league immune to Zack's trash talk. However, this also fully illustrated how much damage a future "Green Sports" host could do to a team. Because even with a player like Durant, Draymond Green could still talk him into leaving with that "We were champions before you came" line. One has to admire "Coach Green's" precise ability to get under people's skin.
In the first quarter, Zack shot 7-for-10 from the field, including 1-for-1 from three-point range and 6-for-6 from the free-throw line, tallying 21 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, and 1 steal. This was the eleventh time in Zack's career he had scored 20+ points in a single quarter. Unlike the old GOAT Jordan, who always preferred to slow-cook his opponents during games, Zack, who was currently second only to Kobe among active players in this statistical category, had proven his scoring explosiveness to the world on countless nights.
---
In the second quarter, thanks to the Knicks' excellent bench, known for being overpaid and underperforming, Zack sat on the bench for a full eight minutes before being sent back onto the court by Coach Malone.
At Madison Square Garden, as soon as he stepped on the floor, Zack used a pick-and-roll to switch Eddy Curry onto him. Compared to the "little Shaq" who averaged 19 points and 7 rebounds last season, Curry's decline this season was even faster than Zack remembered. After all, even an aging O'Neal was still O'Neal. So the little Shaq, who could only back up O'Neal this season, simply decided to give up. As of now, Curry was averaging only 5 points and 3 rebounds for the Knicks, but his annual salary was a whopping $11 million. Zack wondered what kind of spell "Smiling Assassin" Isiah Thomas, the Knicks GM before Walsh, had cast on James Dolan to let him wreak havoc on the Knicks for so many years.
High up, effortlessly leaving Curry behind, Zack charged into the Knicks' restricted area and hit a reverse layup over "Big Q" Quentin Richardson. Unlike the Big Q from when Zack first entered the league, who was well-proportioned and had nimble footwork, it wasn't until Zack completed this attack for the Warriors that he realized the big fat guy who had just come over to help on defense was actually the former Three-Point King. They say the local environment nurtures its people; just how good must the Knicks' team food be to produce so many big guys?
Too bad... Durant, naturally lean, was destined to struggle gaining any "boost" from the Knicks' team diet. Conversely, after stumbling his way into the Warriors' restricted area, Durant, attempting a high-arching shot, nearly flew out of bounds after a strong collision with Brown. "Baby KD" still needed to improve his physical conditioning.
Brown defended the play and immediately passed the ball to Zack. Originally, to avoid too many possessions, Zack wanted to deliberately slow the pace. But the Knicks' completely undisciplined transition defense made Zack feel utterly disrespected.
So, quickly dribbling the ball across half-court, Zack unleashed a wide-swinging windmill dunk, sending the Knicks fans into a frenzy and making a certain female spectator's "water flow endlessly." A kindred spirit finding her match – who says Scarlett Johansson doesn't appreciate the violent aesthetics of basketball?
Zack poured in another 10 points in the final four minutes of the second quarter. At halftime, he had already amassed 31 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks, and 1 steal. During halftime, Zack was interviewed by the courtside host and asked about the reason for his red-hot performance that night.
Seeing this, Zack smiled, "I don't think anyone would dislike New York. Every time I visit here, it feels like coming home." Zack was lucky. In this era before the Knicks' resurgence, he didn't have to worry about his spectacular performance earning him a chorus of "FUCK You!" from the entire arena.
---
After halftime, Zack, intending to leave his mark on the Mecca of Basketball with his hot performance tonight, besides sending Scarlett a message that left her utterly captivated, told Malone before the third quarter began, "Mike, you absolutely have to let me play the entire third quarter tonight."
Since strictly adhering to the "medical advice" of the Warriors' beautiful team doctor, Chelsea Lane, Zack had usually been subbed out early by Malone with four minutes left in the third quarter in previous games. But since Zack wanted to play tonight, and with the tanking Knicks posing little threat to the Warriors, Malone naturally wasn't foolish enough to stick to the rules at a time like this.
At the Mecca of Basketball, on a Warriors' offensive possession, Zack, who had only attempted one three-pointer in the first quarter, suddenly pulled up to the top of the arc after a screen to receive the ball. Beside him, Jack delivered the pass in time, assisting Zack on his second three-pointer of the game. On the court, after hitting this three, Zack, looking down at his hands that had extra practice with two-ball handling last night, immediately felt his rhythm and fired again in the same way on the next possession.
Swish!
Zack hit another three! The Knicks' defense wasn't just soft inside; in the game, facing the Warriors' perimeter offense, Knicks players mostly just interfered with their eyes. After all, the Knicks' main objective this season was to tank for the highest possible draft pick. No one was willing to play all-out defense for a team aiming to tank. And this also allowed Zack, who found his outside shot in the third quarter, to fully appreciate the charm of the three-pointer.
On the right side of the court, using a jab step to shift Lee's weight, Zack stepped back and shot a three.
Swish!
Another possession. Zack simply pulled up to the left side of the court, a step behind the three-point line, and launched a wild shot!
Swish!
On ESPN, A-Smith exclaimed, "The Knicks have to find a way to rein in the Messiah! He's running wild at Madison Square Garden!" Given the Knicks players' defensive attitude that night, how could they rein in Zack?
In front of the scorer's table, after being forced to call a timeout, Knicks head coach "Smiling Assassin" Isiah Thomas could only look at Jamal Crawford with a deep expression. As a former legendary point guard, Thomas, who always knew who his best player on the court was, understood that rookie Durant's scoring explosiveness was limited. Therefore, Thomas could only place his hopes on Crawford at this moment, hoping Crawford could narrow the ever-widening gap created by the Warriors with a burst of high-scoring.
Crawford responded to Thomas's trust on the first offensive possession after the timeout with a fading three-pointer after two consecutive crossovers. And in the next seven offensive possessions, Crawford only missed once.
However, what was heartbreaking was that Crawford's burst still couldn't fill the huge hole the Knicks had dug for themselves.
On the court, with three minutes left in the third quarter, Zack's scoring had already reached 53 points. He was now just 7 points shy of the Madison Square Garden single-game scoring record, held by Knicks legend Bernard King.
Knicks' ball, Durant's pull-up shot missed, Zack grabbed the rebound and quickly initiated a fast break. Then, after faking out Lee, the only player trying to defend effectively but uselessly in the game, Zack drove for a layup and drew a foul on Nate Robinson. The 175cm (5'9") dunk champion wanted to prove himself with a brave help defense. But with a "bang," Robinson was instantly knocked out of bounds by Zack. This fierce collision of muscles made some people's blood boil, while others blushed.
Zack calmly sank the free throw after the "and-one." At this point, the home crowd at Madison Square Garden, strangely enough, all stood up. These old-school, true-blooded New York fans, at this moment, no longer cared that Zack was the Knicks' opponent. They just wanted to see how Zack's great scoring performance would conclude.
On the next Warriors' offensive possession, Zack, transforming into a dazzling butterfly on the perimeter, first left Lee wobbling. Then, driving into the Knicks' restricted area again, Zack executed an amazing hang-time glide to evade O'Neal, hit a reverse layup, and made it look incredible.
On ESPN, A-Smith commented, "He just scored his 58th point of the game with a magnificent shot!" In the Knicks' restricted area, even though it wasn't the first time he'd experienced Zack's incredibly agile waist, O'Neal still found Zack's entire, baffling sequence of moves difficult to comprehend.
As for Durant's goddess courtside, who could appreciate Zack's waist even better than O'Neal?
"I hope I don't die tonight," Scarlett Johansson thought to herself.
Back on the court, Robinson, intending to slow down the game and prevent Zack from tying Bernard King's record in the third quarter, once again became a clown. Due to being overly concerned with controlling the clock while dribbling, Jack, noticing Robinson's attention wasn't fully on the ball, quickly stepped up and executed a precise steal from Robinson's hands.
Warriors' offensive possession. Receiving the pass from Jack, Zack, facing an early double-team, incredibly agilely performed a "ghosting through walls" move normally only seen from small guards. The Madison Square Garden single-game scoring record held by Bernard King was tied the next second by Zack with an elegant pull-up mid-range jumper.
The cheers at Madison Square Garden immediately rose in waves. Finally, before the end of the third quarter, Zack set his scoring for the game at 62 points with an incredibly flashy fadeaway turnaround jumper.
In the final quarter, since the Warriors were already leading the Knicks by a massive 38 points, Zack, who never deviates from his principles, did not return to the court. But in the first three quarters, he had given the Knicks fans in attendance a great scoring performance, earning him a full quarter of cheers.
21 points in the first quarter, 10 points in the second quarter, and a monstrous 31 points in the third quarter. Zack, desperately needing a game to vent his emotions, had undoubtedly become the King of New York in the hearts of Knicks fans in this era!
The final score was 128-91.
After the game, Zack, who successfully set the Madison Square Garden single-game scoring record, naturally became the focus of the world's attention. However, more shocking to Zack than setting the record itself were the words his little brother said to him during the handshake line.
"Her body is really something else!" Durant said, looking suggestively at Scarlett Johansson, who was heading to the parking lot to wait for Zack.
Hearing this, Zack chuckled wryly, "She certainly is."
Then, Durant expressed his true feelings right in front of Zack: "If I could just drink her bathwater, I'd die happy!"
Seeing this, Zack cleared his throat a couple of times and said, "KD, if you really want to drink it, I can definitely make that wish come true for you."
"Huh? Huh?"
---