On October 27, U.S. time, the day before the opening game, the Rockets arrived in New York.
They checked into the hotel and immediately accepted pre-match media interviews.
Facing the seemingly friendly Lin Yu on the other side, of course they could only return the favor with the same attitude.
McGrady said: "I will play against Lin. I have been looking forward to this moment for a long time. He is very good and his team is also very good. This will be a difficult game, but we will win this
The victory of the game.”
A very classic answer, so formulaic that even reporters are tired of hearing it.
Artest, who just joined, also said: "I can't reveal more about this game. I can only say that I will work with Tracy and Sean to kill Lin. If we succeed, it will be a great one."
achievements."
Artest's words seemed to be harsh words, but in fact they were wildly praising Lin Yu, so naturally they were considered friendly.
Finally, what Dayao said in the interview vividly demonstrated the character of the Chinese: "Ron has just joined, we are still in the running-in stage, and we will not take the outcome of the opening game to heart. The Knicks are very good.
, they will be a strong opponent, and winning or losing is an acceptable result for us."
"Reunion with Dayu? I'm very excited. He and I are both from China. We are very good buddies, but we will only meet twice in a season. Counting the All-Stars, we will meet up to three times. Perhaps, the few meetings will be the best.
This game is more important and I will have a good chat with him."
Dayao indeed seized this opportunity and had a good chat with Lin Yu.
Or to be more precise, it was Lin Yu who picked up Dayao from the hotel where Rocket was staying and took him to his home. As the host, he warmly entertained him.
He went to Chinatown in advance to buy some ingredients and cooked two home-cooked dishes. Dayao also showed his skills and cooked two home-cooked dishes.
The two just ate Chinese food, which is hard to find in the United States, and chatted for several hours, with a very tacit understanding not to mention the game the next day.
The two even made a naughty call to Alian, who was only separated by the Hudson River, and asked him to come across the river to meet him.
Of course, this is just a joke.
Dayao mentioned that after they finished playing the Knicks, they would go to New Jersey to play against the Nets, and asked Lin Yu if he wanted to take some time to go to New Jersey for a meeting between the three of them.
Lin Yu refused because traveling back and forth between New York and New Jersey would waste a lot of time, and he also had games to play.
Two or three private meetings in a season ended just like that.
The game on the second day was naturally a competition and show in front of the public, and it couldn't be real.
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The opening game is coming soon. On October 28th, US time, the NBA kicks off.
On the same day, in addition to the Knicks vs. Rockets, the Cavaliers will challenge the Celtics away from home, and the Lakers will face the Trail Blazers at home.
In these three sets of matchups, the Knicks vs. Rockets can be regarded as the Chinese Derby, Lin Yu vs. the new Big Three, the Lin-Mai battle, etc...
The Cavaliers versus the Celtics are considered a battle between the Eastern Conference's top powers, LeBron James versus the old Big Three, etc.
The Lakers vs. Trail Blazers is a battle between the old and new forces, a showdown between the two Mambas...
After three games, it can be seen that the league's idea is to develop the two metropolises of New York and Los Angeles, while not forgetting James, the chosen son.
As for the Celtics and Trail Blazers, they were dragged out together.
The Celtics have the old Big Three. Even if they encounter Waterloo one after another, they are still a popular team in the league. The Trail Blazers are considered a new force. Roy, Oden, and LaMarcus Aldridge are all young people who have attracted much attention.
people.
But undoubtedly, the most watched of these three games is the battle between the Celtics and the Cavaliers. After all, this is a duel between two truly strong teams. In addition, Zach Lowe brought some rhythm before the season.
This game added some excitement.
The showdown between the Knicks and Rockets comes second. Although it does not receive as much attention as the Cavaliers fight, as usual, David Stern will show up to watch the game.
The Knicks are able to get the league president to watch the game. This kind of treatment is brought about by the special status of New York and Madison Square Garden Arena.
Just because of the addition of Lin Yu, the Knicks have risen strongly, making the annual opening game and even the subsequent Christmas game less ugly.
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On the day of the game, the Knicks had no training scheduled.
Lin Yu practiced for a while at home and warmed up his hands before setting off for the competition.
Because his destination was Madison, Lin Yu's mode of travel became the subway.
He has taken the subway to Madison many times and has developed a safe way to travel.
"Liv, bring me my subway suit."
The so-called subway suit is a pair of sunglasses that can cover most of the face, a face mask that black people like to wear on the street, and a square scarf that can be worn on the head.
In a short period of time, Lin Yu covered his head so tightly that even his skin color could not be seen.
In order to unify his style, he also wore a colorful T-shirt and overalls, dressing up like a hip-hop black man.
The only problem is that he is a bit tall.
Although it may seem strange to cover yourself up like this, there are too many such strange people in the United States, and the people of New York have long been accustomed to it.
The entrance of the subway is not far from Lin Yu's home. It only takes more than five minutes of jogging. After getting on the subway, he arrived in Madison in just seven or eight minutes.
There is another subway entrance below the Madison Square Garden Arena, which is why Lin Yu chose the subway to travel.
Without him, it’s so convenient!
Arriving in Madison, Lin Yu saw the square with people coming and going, and many fans were wearing the Knicks' No. 23 jersey, which was his jersey.
It seems that the popularity of this game, not to mention the United States, at least in New York, is very hot.
Lin Yu circled around to the entrance specifically for players, found a corner, and quietly took off his mask and scarf. Now, he turned into a hip-hop style T-shirt with a
Lin Yu is wearing sunglasses.
With black hair and yellow skin, and a height of just over 2 meters, his characteristics are already obvious.
When he appeared at the entrance of the arena, he was immediately surrounded by countless media reporters and fans.
Lin Yu naturally kept waving his hands and entered the arena under the protection of Madison's security force.
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After Lin Yu arrived in Madison easily, not long after, coaches and teammates also arrived one after another.
It is worth mentioning that this season, Hollins' coaching staff has been enriched.
Joerger and Bzdelik from last season, as well as Patrick Ewing, Dav Hopla, and video editor Tim Grgulic all stayed with the Knicks.
Hollins relied on Lin Yu's relationship to find father-and-son assistants Brendan Malone and Mike Malone, who had left the Cavaliers because of Mike Brown's dismissal, as well as...
The Knicks' assistant coaching staff finally looks like a strong team.
With new assistants and excellent results last season, Hollins has become more confident.
Before playing, Hollins stood in the center of the locker room and clapped his hands: "Okay, everyone, the opening game is about to begin. We are about to start work. A new season, a new beginning. Our strength is recognized by the public. Therefore,
We have to do something good this season!"
He probably said something to boost the morale of the team.
Then, Hollins announced the starting lineup for this game.
Point guard Lowry, shooting guard Lin Yu, small forward Wilson Chandler, power forward Zach Randolph, and center Kwame Brown are no different from last season.
The difference is that sitting on the bench are James Posey, Ricky Davis, Nazr Mohammed... which gave the starting players a sense of crisis and at the same time a sense of security.
If they don't play well, they'll lose their starting spot, but if they don't play badly, they just need a substitute, and now that substitute is there, everything will be perfect.