NBA: The Dynasty Crasher

On the NBC broadcast, Marv Albert was breaking down Zhao Dong's performance.

"A little while ago, Zhao Dong was struggling against double-teams. But man, after just a few games—especially dealing with two elite defenders like Rodman and Pippen—he's showing serious improvement breaking through those traps. It's honestly surprising."

Doug Collins nodded. "Marv, what do you think he's relying on?"

"He's moving way better around the basket, using his footwork more efficiently," Marv explained. "That's huge for beating double-teams, giving him room to work his low-post iso game.

"And the dude is a wrecking ball. That dunk he just threw down on Rodman? If a smaller big tried to contest that, they'd be wiped off the court in a second."

Doug let out a low whistle. "So, you're saying Zhao Dong is shaping up to be a low-post monster?"

Marv shook his head. "Not yet. Defensively, he's still got work to do—so dominance isn't the right word. Barkley was still getting buckets on him earlier. They were just going at each other, trading blows. And honestly? Rodman ain't at full strength. His injury is clearly holding him back, so his defense is shaky right now. That's why it looked one-sided out there."

Fourth Quarter Action

As the final quarter kicked off, the score was 92-92. Both teams were struggling to find their shots, and New York called a timeout.

Zhao Dong's stat line: 2-for-4 FG, 2-for-3 FT, 6 points, 2 boards. He still needed 11 points and 3 rebounds to hit his goal, but time was slipping away.

The Knicks' offense was spread out, with four guys already in double figures.

Meanwhile, on Chicago's side, Jordan and Pippen were controlling the ball—mainly MJ, who was burning a ton of energy. He hadn't taken a lot of shots, sitting at 2-for-4 from the field and 1-for-3 from deep, totaling 5 points.

Final Three Minutes – Bulls Attack

Coming out of a timeout, Chicago had the ball.

On the left wing, Pippen took his defender off the dribble.

At that moment, Jordan—who had been floating on the right wing—suddenly cut out beyond the arc, caught a quick pass from Pippen, and drilled a three-pointer with a smooth release.

Knicks' Possession

Zhao Dong shifted to the right wing while Allan Houston caught the rock on the left-side three-point line.

Seeing an opening, Houston blew past Rodman and attacked the rim.

His shooting tonight was iffy—3-for-8 from three—and this one? It didn't look good.

Clank!

The shot went long, bouncing off the rim and backboard before dropping right into Zhao Dong's hands.

Rodman was right there.

BANG!

Zhao Dong didn't hesitate. He went full beast mode, backing Rodman down with a brutal shoulder bump that knocked the Worm off balance.

Then, with a quick spin, he rose up and threw down a vicious slam.

BOOM!

Rodman got sent flying as the rim shook from the impact.

MSG exploded.

"That's 9 points and 2 rebounds!"

Zhao Dong let out a roar. Another putback dunk, another poster on Rodman.

Chicago's Counterattack

MJ got the ball on the right wing, hit a nasty crossover, and sped past the help defense before stopping on a dime for a pull-up jumper.

Splash.

94-97, Bulls up by 3. Knicks possession.

On the right wing, Zhao Dong spread the floor again.

In the left low post, Ewing caught the rock.

He had been struggling with his shot all night—8-for-21, all mid-range jumpers—and Zhao Dong had that stat memorized.

Ewing went into his shooting motion, but Zhao Dong saw it coming and rushed into the paint.

Rodman, however, was already in position.

Then—a split-second decision.

Instead of forcing the shot, Ewing kicked the ball out to Zhao Dong…

Zhao Dong caught the pass in a hurry. Rodman had already turned and set up in front of him, ready to contest. Without hesitation, Zhao Dong hit him with a nasty pump fake, making Rodman bite. The moment he jumped, Zhao Dong dipped low, blew past him, and attacked the rim.

"Breakthrough layup? Ah, shit…"

Zhang Heli was on edge as he watched Zhao Dong's shot bounce off the rim.

Seeing the ball miss, Zhao Dong quickly went up again, trying to tip it in.

BANG!

Rodman swatted it right at the rim.

But the whistle blew. The ref came in, signaling goaltending. Bucket counts.

"Hell yeah! Just 7 points and 1 board left. Rodman, you better not foul out now," Zhao Dong grinned, one step closer to his goal.

96-97. Bulls ball.

Jordan took control again. At this point, even Pippen wasn't looking for his own shot anymore.

Swish!

Another three-ball. Cold-blooded.

Doug Collins was in awe. "Man, when it's crunch time, Mike's trigger gets even deadlier. That's three straight, all buckets, eight points in a row."

"96-100, Knicks down 4. Who's stepping up for New York now? 85 seconds left, Knicks inbound and call a timeout," Marv Albert called.

Van Gundy stared at Ewing. Time was running out, every possession mattered. He needed his most efficient scorer to take the shot.

In the past, this would've been a no-brainer—Ewing, every time. But after Zhao Dong's recent performances, especially tonight against the Bulls, Van Gundy hesitated.

Would Ewing be cool with it? Or would he take offense?

Right then, Ewing glanced at Zhao Dong and said, "Tonight, it's him vs. Jordan. I'm not gonna steal the spotlight. Let me take the first touch and draw the defense."

The room went silent. Nobody expected that.

Oakley cracked a grin. "Bet."

Van Gundy was caught off guard, but he nodded. "Alright. Patrick takes it in the low post, draws the D. Houston stays outside to keep defenders honest. Oak, you get down low, crash boards, and set screens for Zhao Dong. Zhao, stay weak side and wait for the look."

Timeout's over. Game on.

Ewing posted up on the left block, with Luke Longley on him. The moment he caught the ball, Pippen doubled him.

Oakley wrestled Rodman under the hoop, freeing up Zhao Dong to cut to the right block.

The ball swung to him. As soon as it touched his hands, Jordan was on him.

"Rookie, you got the guts to pull that?" Jordan barked.

Zhao Dong ignored him. Instead, he made a sharp turn, looked like he was gonna back him down.

Jordan readied himself, taking half a step back for balance. That's when Rodman slid over to help.

"Pass it!" Van Gundy shouted from the sideline.

But Zhao Dong wasn't passing.

The second Jordan leaned back, Zhao Dong spun hard, planted at the waistline of the paint, and rose up for a jumper.

"Shit—!"

Jordan realized too late—he was fooled.

Swish!

Cash.

"Damn right!" Van Gundy nodded, fired up.

"Clutch as hell," Zhang Heli hyped.

98-100, Bulls still up.

Jordan came right back, looking for another dagger mid-range jumper. This time, he bricked.

Rodman grabbed the board and powered up for a two-handed slam.

Zhao Dong went up to contest, but the ball already had too much force.

BANG!

Rodman bricked it off the rim!

Zhao Dong boxed out hard, snatched the rebound, and immediately kicked it out. Then, he took off full-speed downcourt.

Rodman, now 36 years old, struggled to keep up. Jordan saw it and hustled back in transition.

Zhao Dong sprinted to the arc, saw Jordan in front of him, and slammed the brakes.

"Ball."

Charles Oakley, spotting up outside the left wing, lobbed the pass.

Zhao Dong caught it at the top of the arc. Jordan closed in fast.

He extended his right foot like he was about to drive. Jordan reacted instantly, getting into his stance.

Then Zhao Dong pulled it back, rose up, and launched a three.

Everyone locked in on the ball. Even Jordan turned to watch it sail.

Swish!

The United Center groaned.

"LET'S GO!" Zhao Dong roared, hyped after giving the Knicks the lead.

But he wasn't done. He needed two more points to finish his goal—and time was running out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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