191. Playoffs: First Win (4000)

In March, the Knicks defeated the Lakers, Miami Heat, Celtics, Supersonics, Trail Blazers, and Warriors, achieving a 13-game winning streak. Ultimately, their streak was ended by the Lakers.

It's worth mentioning that Li Chen won Player of the Month four times and Player of the Week eight times this season.

Li Chen's performance was astonishing. His Passing Ability was simply too strong. He often had more than ten assists in each game, and he almost always had a double-double.

He is currently far ahead of other players in the league, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, he will become the regular season MVP for the 2004-05 season.

To date, Li Chen has averaged 25.9 points, 15.2 assists, and 5.6 rebounds per game.

2: Steve Nash averaged 15.5 points, 11.5 assists, and 3.3 rebounds per game.

3: O'Neal averaged 22.9 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game.

4: Dirk Nowitzki averaged 26.1 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game.

5: Duncan's average stats were 20.3 points, 11.1 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 2.6 blocks per game.

6: Allen Iverson averaged 30.7 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 7.9 assists per game.

Li Chen has left the other regular season MVP contenders far behind.

During this period, Li Chen also obtained the Dream Footwork from the Functional Store, but his main task this season is to boost his teammates' stats. Therefore, he has not used this skill.

However, the next skill to unlock in the Functional Store piqued his interest.

This skill is called [God's Blessing]. It sounds impressive, but to Li Chen, it's just Headpat.

[God's Blessing: When the host strokes a teammate's head, it increases their flexibility, stability, coordination, accuracy, feel, speed, and defensive awareness by 10%...] In short, it's roughly a 10% increase in all attributes.

This skill is terrifying! However, each player can only trigger it once per quarter, with each trigger lasting five minutes, and the trigger probability is only 40%.

Therefore, if Li Chen possesses this skill, he must become a "head-patting" maniac.

Just then, the system notification sounded again.

[Note: Each time the host uses the God's Blessing, regardless of success or failure, the beneficiary will pay the price of a single hair.]

This prompt made Li Chen's eyes widen. He thought to himself, "Damn, this skill is too ruthless." He could already imagine the wonderful scene that would unfold.

However, what reassured him was that he didn't have to pay a price, which was the thing he was most grateful for.

However, this skill still requires three more honors to unlock, but that's not a big problem. As long as he puts in the effort, he should be able to use it in the Playoffs.

In early April, the media once again dug up a hot topic: whether the Knicks could tie the Bulls' record of 72 wins.

As for 73 wins, that's impossible, because the Knicks have already lost ten games.

As the regular season draws to a close, the regular season standings are now available to fans.

Western Conference Rankings:

First, the Suns, with a record of 61 wins and 20 losses.

Second place: Spurs, 58 wins and 23 losses.

Third place, the Supersonics, 52 wins and 30 losses.

Fourth place: Mavericks, 52 wins and 30 losses.

Fifth place: Rockets, 51 wins and 31 losses.

Sixth place, Kings, 50 wins and 32 losses.

Seventh place, Nuggets, 49 wins, 33 losses.

Eighth place, Grizzlies, 45 wins and 37 losses.

It's worth noting that both the Timberwolves and the Clippers missed the Playoffs with a record of 44 wins and 38 losses.

The Clippers, in particular, were a hot contender for the championship last season, but this season they missed the Playoffs, which is truly regrettable.

The Eastern Conference standings are divided into three tiers. The first tier consists of the Knicks, who have a record of 71 wins and 10 losses. With one game remaining, they have secured the top seed in the regular season.

The second tier consists of two teams, primarily the Miami Heat and the Pistons.

Second place: Miami Heat, 58 wins, 24 losses.

Third place: Pistons, 53 wins and 29 losses.

The third tier consists of five teams, including the Celtics, Bulls, and Wizards. These teams have between 45 and 41 wins.

Their number of wins is:

The fourth-ranked Bulls a record of 46 wins and 36 losses.

The Wizards are fifth with a record of 45 wins and 37 losses.

The sixth-ranked Pacers has a record of 44 wins and 38 losses.

Seventh place, the Philadelphia 76ers of 43 wins and 39 losses.

The eighth-ranked New Jersey Nets has a record of 41 wins and 40 losses.

The New Jersey Nets have a record of 41 wins and 40 losses, and they still have one game left to play.

The Cavaliers also have a record of 41 wins and 40 losses; they need to win their final game to have a chance to advance.

However, if the New Jersey Nets also win their final game, the Cavaliers, due to New Jersey Nets lower point differential, will have the same number of wins and will also miss the Playoffs.

Whether they can make the Playoffs is entirely in the hands of the Knicks.

The Knicks defeated the New Jersey Nets in their final game, securing the Cavaliers' place in the Playoffs for the second consecutive season.

The feeling of having one's fate in someone else's hands was extremely distressing for James, but he was powerless to change it and could only resign himself to fate.

On the other hand, Li Chen certainly wouldn't give up a victory just to prevent the Cavaliers from advancing to the Playoffs, because Knicks fans were still waiting for the Knicks to reach 72 wins, tying the Bulls' record.

The game ended on April 21 with the New York Knicks defeating the New Jersey Nets.

It's worth mentioning that Wang Zhizhi's performance after joining the Knicks was even better than when he played for the Clippers.

Meanwhile, Alvin Gentry also signed former Spurs player Malik Rose, which was Li Chen's suggestion.

As for the reason? You know why.

On April 25, the Knicks faced their first Playoffs opponent, the Cleveland Cavaliers led by Little Emperor James.

The game between the New York Knicks and the Cleveland Cavaliers was intense and exciting, and its high level of excitement was evident from the very first quarter.

The Knicks outscored Knicks Cavaliers 29-20, demonstrating their strength and excellent tactics.

In the second quarter, the Knicks maintained their lead, outscoring the Cavaliers 30-29.

Although the Cavaliers showed a strong desire to fight back, the Knicks not only had a powerful offense, but their defense was also as solid as a fortified wall, leaving the Cavaliers no chance to take the lead.

The Knicks had an extremely high shooting percentage and did an excellent job of protecting the boards.

At halftime, the New York Knicks still led the Cavaliers by a large margin, 59-49.

The third quarter began after a 15-minute halftime break.

In the third quarter, under Li Chen's constant brainwashing, JR Smith's offense flowed like water.

JR Smith's sudden outburst caught the Cavaliers off guard. Initially, Cavaliers head coach Silas didn't want to pay attention to JR Smith.

However, his three consecutive three-pointers stopped him from double-teaming Li Chen.

However, without an All-Star first team to defend Li Chen, they were basically feeding him. Helpless, Silas could only rob Peter to pay Paul and continue to double-team Li Chen.

However, Ariza, who had been left unattended, also erupted.

At this moment, Silas was somewhat helpless. The Knicks simply couldn't defend him, and there were always players who could step up in crucial moments.

He had the illusion that the entire Knicks team was made up of All-Star Player.

Not only did he feel this way, but the Cavaliers players felt the same way, especially James, whose brows were deeply furrowed.

Only he knew how incredible Li Chen's passes were, but he wouldn't admit defeat.

The Cavaliers struggled to improve their shooting percentage throughout the quarter and were unable to limit the Knicks' scoring. They were completely outmaneuvered by the Knicks.

The Knicks extended their lead to 33-21, outscoring the Cavaliers 12 points, and winning the Cavaliers 92-70.

In the final quarter of the game, the Cavaliers narrowed the score to within ten points at one point.

At that moment, the Cavaliers players shouted in their hearts, "We must hold on, we must keep the score close!"

However, the Knicks remained calm and composed. They did not panic and maintained a lead of about seven or eight points through excellent teamwork and efficient offense.

Halfway through the fourth quarter, Li Chen led the Knicks in a counterattack.

Li Chen started with a three-point Pull-up Jumper, followed by Wang Zhizhi, then JR Smith, Allan Houston, Ariza.

The Cavaliers were once again caught off guard by the Knicks' relentless attack.

They found the Knicks to be incredibly unreliable, giving them hope only to cruelly destroy it in the end.

In the end, the New York Knicks won their opening game 122-101.

Although Knicks fans had anticipated this outcome, they were still very excited when the moment arrived.

At that moment, Madison Square Garden was greeted with thunderous cheers.

In the TNT broadcast room.

Kenny Smith commented, "This was not a closely contested game; there was a huge gap in skill between the two teams."

"That's right, the Knicks outperformed the Cavaliers on offense. Although defense is a weak point for the Knicks, their 50% field goal percentage gives them a lot of confidence," Barkley added.

"Yes! Although the Cavaliers showed a strong desire to fight back in the fourth quarter, almost narrowing the score to within five points, they were unable to find a powerful offensive method."

"No, it's not that they can't find a strong offensive method, it's because the Knicks' three-point shooting is too strong," Barkley corrected.

"Okay! Okay! Charles, I admit that the New York Knicks' offensive ability is unstoppable. In this game, they displayed an extremely high level of competition and teamwork. Li Chen's sharp Passing Ability maximized their strength."

Kenny Smith took a breath and continued, "The Cleveland Cavaliers, on the other hand, need to further improve their defense and their offensive performance."

Despite the Cavaliers' loss in this game, they are sure to perform even better under James' leadership.

"Haha! I'm really looking forward to the next game between the New York Knicks and the Cavaliers."

"Me too," Kenny Smith said.

Next, I'll look at the stats of the two teams' star players.

LeBron James of the Cavaliers played 47 minutes, shooting 14-for-25, scoring 36 points and dishing out 6 assists, including 1-for-4 from three-point range and 7-for-9 from the free-throw line.

"I have to admit, James is a physical monster. He handles both offense and defense from start to finish, and he was able to keep going until the end of the game despite the high-intensity competition with Li Chen," Kenny Smith remarked.

Knicks' Li Chen played 45 minutes, shooting 10-for-16, scoring 28 points and dishing out 20 assists, including 5-for-8 from three-point range and 3-for-3 from the free-throw line.

"Although Li Chen's scoring isn't as high as James', his 20 assists are truly terrifying. That means the Knicks scored 40-50 points from his assists. Only Magic Johnson could do that," Kenny Smith remarked.

"Kenny, the regular season MVP stats for this year are out, right?" Barkley asked.

"Yes, Charles, but let's take a look at who's on this year's Rookie of the Year first!"

The NBA Rookie of the Year award for the 2004-05 season went to Emeka Okafor, the Bobcats' second-best center.

2005 NBA Rookie of the Year Team

First lineup

JR Smith, Ben Gordon, Dwight Howard, Andre Iguodala, Emeka Okafor

Second lineup: Luol Deng, Ariza, Nenad Krstic, Milos Milojevic, Josh Smith.

"It's worth mentioning that JR Smith averaged 19 points and 5.1 rebounds per game. Although they lost to his former teammate Okafor, the Bobcats regretted making that trade, which they were so proud of at the time."

Barkley lamented, "If JR Smith had joined the Knicks earlier, he would have been this year's Rookie of the Year."

"Yes, Charles, his stats with the Bobcats."

Barkley nodded, then, as if remembering something amusing, burst into laughter. "Haha! My idol's taste is far superior to Michael's!"

Jordan was speechless; I somehow got dragged into this.

"Now comes the main event."

"Kenny, stop talking nonsense. Isn't the regular season MVP my idol?"

"Charles, you and I both know how difficult it is to win back-to-back regular season MVP awards?"

Hearing this, Barkley was taken aback and asked in surprise, "Is there a player with better stats than Li Chen?"

Kenny Smith was speechless. Charles, this guy's a real actor! He really should be an actor.

"No! Li Chen's stats are impressive. He averaged 28.4 points and 16.5 assists per game, with a field goal percentage of 50.2% and a three-point percentage of 53.1%. His assists set a new career high, and he once again won the season's assist title and ultimately became the regular season MVP."

It's important to know that in the original timeline, the MVP competition that year was also very fierce, with neither James nor Kobe managing to crack the top five.

However, with Li Chen's emergence, the MVP award became less significant, as Li Chen's stats were enough to overwhelm Nash and others.

The next morning, around 8 a. m., Li Ruping called Li Chen.

The reason for this call was to report on the Village BA Battlegrounds Authority) situation.

The Village BA program is doing very well, and villagers from other counties also want to participate.

Li Ruping called to ask Li Chen's opinion on whether to expand on the topic.

Of course, expansion is necessary. This is actually Li Chen's ultimate goal: to expand nationwide so that with a huge influence, advertising revenue can be sold at a high price.

Just then Li Chen suddenly remembered something, "Oh right, Sister Ping, remember, players who fight during the competition cannot be tolerated. Anyone involved in a fight will be permanently disqualified..."

At this point, Li Chen felt it was too lenient, so he spoke again, "No! That village should be permanently disqualified from the competition."

Li Chen knew that if a fight broke out, things would get complicated.

"Understood," Li Ruping nodded.

Meanwhile, Avril is leaving again to prepare for this year's concert.

It's worth mentioning that Kobe didn't make the Playoffs this year, which frustrated him greatly.

You see, Li Chen, someone he used to easily manipulate, is thriving in the Eastern Conference, while he himself couldn't even make the Playoffs. How could he possibly feel balanced, how could he not feel frustrated?

So Kobe started making a scene, demanding a trade.

But...