"Amazing achievement! Xi Meng, you can now stand shoulder to shoulder with Larry and Craig, at least on the stage of the Three-Point Contest, you are kings of equal standing..."
At the post-game awards ceremony, Jordan, the "God of Basketball," volunteered to present He Xi Meng with the Three-Point King trophy. In such a historic moment, how could Jordan miss a chance to steal the spotlight?
The Larry and Craig mentioned by Jordan are Larry Bird and Craig Hodges! The former won three consecutive Three-Point Contest titles from 1986-1988, and the latter from 1990-1992. Now, there is another three-time champion in the history of the Three-Point Contest: He Xi Meng!
In the realm of three-point shooting, He Xi Meng can already be compared to the legendary sharpshooters in league history, officially becoming a top-tier player. As for whether there will be successors... He Xi Meng himself believes there certainly will be. However, fortunately, He Xi Meng is not old yet. Before any successors officially enter the league, He Xi Meng can widen his lead as much as possible, making it take a little longer for those who follow, especially comrade Curry, to chase him...
Finally, after Jordan finished his congratulatory remarks, He Xi Meng accepted his third Three-Point King trophy and smiled, "Thank you, Michael, for your blessings and the trophy! Before participating in this Three-Point Contest, I said this would be my last time participating in the Three-Point Contest... I have no intention of breaking Larry and Craig's records, nor do I intend to monopolize this event... This league has too many excellent shooters, and many more have won this trophy! Ray, Peja, Dirk, Steve, Brian, Allan, Sharad..." He Xi Meng listed all the participants of this year's contest and said slowly, "You all deserve this trophy..."
Amidst thunderous applause from the crowd, He Xi Meng waved and stepped off the stage, concluding his journey in the Three-Point Contest.
After the Three-Point Contest came the Slam Dunk Contest.
Last year, Carter was too dominant, so strong that no one could match him. Although Carter explicitly stated before this year's All-Star Weekend that he would not participate, no one believed him. Fans didn't believe it, and players didn't believe it either. Everyone thought Carter would continue to compete, at least aiming for a repeat win, if not a third consecutive title. Consequently, many of the league's top dunkers politely declined the invitation to the contest, unwilling to challenge Carter.
As a result, Carter had no intention of repeating his victory and stayed true to his word, not participating in this year's Slam Dunk Contest.
However, the other top talents had already politely declined the league's invitation and could not go back on their word... The final outcome was a drastic decline in the viewing quality of this year's Slam Dunk Contest, essentially a world of difference compared to last year, and even less exciting and thrilling than this year's Three-Point Contest.
Ultimately, Desmond Mason, a first-year rookie from the SuperSonics, defeated Corey Maggette, Stromile Swift, Jonathan Bender, Baron Davis, and DeShawn Stevenson to win the 2001 Slam Dunk Contest.
Looking at this list of participants, an estimated 90% of the fans in the arena would struggle to distinguish who was who, only able to identify them by the jerseys they were wearing and infer who was dunking based on their team affiliation.
Carter and his peers had managed to give the Slam Dunk Contest a lifeline, but this group of young players almost extinguished that life this year.
Fortunately, this year's Three-Point Contest was spectacular, making up for some of the fans' disappointment, and the main event, the All-Star Game, was also very exciting!
This year's All-Star Game, due to Shaquille O'Neal's absence from the Western Conference, meant the Western Conference's frontcourt was not overwhelmingly dominant.
If O'Neal had been healthy, the combination of O'Neal, Duncan, and Webber would have been enough to make the Eastern Conference despair! Even with the Eastern Conference boasting three top guards in Iverson, McGrady, and Carter, they would have likely struggled to beat the West.
This is because integrating three point guards can be difficult, and the distribution of the ball can be a headache.
However, the three big men could complement each other, especially on defense, forming an impenetrable wall that would make any player daring enough to drive to the basket tremble.
Now, with O'Neal out, the Western Conference's advantage in the frontcourt is no longer so apparent. But the Zen Master unethically promoted Garnett from the bench to the starting lineup, forming a starting trio of Duncan, Webber, and Garnett, with Duncan shifting to center. Combined with Kobe and He Xi Meng...
To be honest, this starting lineup was enough to make the Eastern Conference despair. If nothing unexpected happened, this was a lineup of five future Hall of Fame players.
In comparison, Larry Brown's strategy was to choose the right players, not necessarily the most expensive ones.
In addition to the three guards Iverson, McGrady, and Carter, he selected the lesser-known Antonio Davis and Anthony Mason as starters.
Larry Brown's thinking was likely to give the three guards more shooting and ball-handling opportunities, using the perimeter to counter the Western team. The Eastern Conference's frontcourt, strictly speaking, only had Mutombo left on the bench... while the Western Conference's bench still had David Robinson, Malone, Divac, and Rasheed Wallace... how could they compare?
The game began, and Duncan easily won the tip-off against Antonio Davis. He Xi Meng brought the ball up past half-court for the game's first possession.
Guarding He Xi Meng was Iverson, who had transitioned to playing shooting guard. On the current 76ers team, Eric Snow was the point guard. While he couldn't shoulder as much playmaking responsibility, Iverson was a point guard by origin, and his old skills were still intact, making it effortless for him to play point guard on the All-Star stage.
"Come on, Three-Point King, let me see your three-pointers..." Iverson, leaning in and playing a retreating defense, took advantage of the relaxed atmosphere at the start to taunt He Xi Meng.
He Xi Meng's relationship with Iverson could now be described as a love-hate dynamic born from fierce competition. In the past, He Xi Meng was often shut down by Iverson, just like he was against Stockton. But now, with his three-point shooting reaching its peak, He Xi Meng no longer feared Iverson as much. Although on defense, He Xi Meng still had little answer for the peak-form Iverson, offensively, He Xi Meng could at least make Iverson helpless through his scoring.
Players like Iverson, like Kobe, respect you more the stronger you become. Therefore, the past He Xi Meng did not earn Iverson's full respect, but now, especially after helping the Lakers and Spurs win championship trophies, He Xi Meng had earned Iverson's respect and was qualified to call him brother.
Iverson's opening taunt carried more friendliness than unfriendliness.
Therefore, He Xi Meng responded in a joking tone, without much fiery intent.
"Don't rush! Let me gather my thoughts... This possession... I'll give it to Kevin first..."