On May 21st at 7 PM, the New York Knicks arrived at their opponent's turf—the First Union Center in Philadelphia.
This arena had only just opened back in '96 and could seat 20,444 people. That made it the fifth-largest stadium in the league. Not only was it massive, but it was also fully equipped—offering everything from catering to hotel accommodations. It was fan-friendly and built for hype.
Trailing hard in the series, Philly was desperate to get some home-court momentum going. To turn up the pressure, they only offered New York 400 away tickets. That decision had the Knicks' front office fuming.
But there wasn't much they could do. Zhao Dong had already promised a sweep. If Philly couldn't protect home court, they'd be out 0–4 without a shot at redemption.
Starting Lineups:
Philadelphia: Theo Ratliff, Karl Malone, George Lynch, Allen Iverson, Eric Snow
New York Knicks: Ben Wallace, Charles Barkley, Zhao Dong, Latrell Sprewell, Chauncey Billups
"The lineups are the same as Game 2," Marv Albert said on NBC live broadcast. "So the Knicks are still going all-in on Zhao Dong in the low post. They're gonna try to win this one with efficient interior scoring."
Matt Goukas added, "Zhao's mostly stayed away from those violent, slashing dunks we're used to. He's been pounding them in the post this whole series. Credit to Philly's zone defense and size inside—they've forced him to adapt. But man, that versatility… it's deadly."
Marv chuckled. "If his driving game is like an F-22 Raptor—fast, unstoppable—then his post game is like an M1A2 tank. It'll just bulldoze through whatever's in front."
8:10 PM – Both squads gathered near the tunnel.
In the dark corridor just before tipoff, Zhao Dong stood in front of the Sixers lineup. He pointed toward the pitch-black court and said coldly, "You better listen up. I'm sweeping you tonight. Right here. In front of your fans."
"Not gonna happen," Iverson shot back, eyes locked in.
8:30 PM – Game 3 tipped off.
The Knicks won the jump ball.
Zhao Dong moved to the left wing—two meters outside the paint, just below the free throw line dotted arc. He didn't dive into the post yet. His matchup was George Lynch, Philly's starting small forward.
"Looks like Larry Brown switched it up—no more zone. They're going man-to-man now?" Marv raised an eyebrow.
Coach Don Nelson had shifted Barkley to the right wing, dragging Karl Malone out with him. Sprewell was set up on the same wing as Zhao Dong, playing off him. Zhao was on the inside, Sprewell outside.
Philly had a problem.
Zhao's positioning was close enough to the hoop to cause chaos, but not deep enough to lock him in. If they left him alone, he'd feast on Lynch. But if they sent help, and Zhao passed out to a cutter or the corner, the defense would collapse.
And with Barkley pulling Malone out of the paint, only Ratliff was left inside. That meant Iverson—who was defending Sprewell—would have to drop down if they wanted to double Zhao.
Zhao caught the ball.
Iverson immediately left Sprewell and came crashing down.
But Sprewell saw it coming. The moment Iverson turned his back, Sprewell cut inside like a bullet, zipping between Zhao and Lynch.
Zhao lifted the ball in his right hand—fake pass—and then hit Sprewell with a laser. At the same time, he shoved Lynch aside and followed behind, charging straight into the paint.
Sprewell caught it in stride, drew Ratliff's attention, then dished it to Ben Wallace under the basket before cutting out to the right wing.
Ratliff chased after Big Ben, but right then, Zhao came flying in.
BANG!
Ben flipped the ball to Zhao. One bounce. One gather. One massive two-handed slam.
"Wow! Back-to-back cuts and slick interior passes. The Knicks just carved up that defense!" Matt shouted.
"Beautiful sequence," Marv said. "No wasted movement. Tight coordination. Philly couldn't even rotate in time."
From the sideline, Larry Brown was livid.
"Mailman! Where's your help defense?!"
Karl Malone raised his hand, signaling he had it.
But Larry wasn't done. "You're guarding Barkley! Who cares?! I need someone protecting the paint, not babysitting a washed-up power forward!"
Barkley heard it and went red with rage. "Washed up?! Say that again!"
Though truth be told, his knees weren't what they used to be.
He jogged over to Zhao. "Give me the rock, I'm taking Karl down right now."
Zhao grinned and nodded. "Say less."
Philly pushed the ball up. The Knicks had now switched to man defense too. Zhao picked up Malone directly.
The Mailman ran a pick-and-roll with Iverson on the right wing. AI used the screen to slip inside, and Malone rolled toward the basket.
But Zhao stuck to him. Sprewell chased AI hard, not letting him dish it back to Malone.
AI found daylight inside, with Big Ben in front and Sprewell chasing from behind. He stopped on a dime, took a quick step forward, then pulled up from mid-range—splash.
"YEAH!" Iverson roared.
He felt it. That stop-and-go pull-up was his new weapon. He was gonna grind it all summer long. After this season, he'd master it.
Next Knicks possession.
Zhao held it on the left wing. He faked a drive, baiting Karl Malone toward the paint, pulling Ratliff's eyes to the right wing.
"Ball! Ball!" Barkley waved frantically.
Zhao zipped the ball cross-court to Barkley. Malone lunged out to recover, and Ratliff leaned that way too.
But neither of them noticed Zhao.
The second he passed it, he went backdoor.
Too late.
Barkley lobbed it perfectly.
BOOM!
Another alley-oop jam. This time Zhao dunked straight over Ratliff's shoulder, knocking the big man down under the rim.
The whistle blew—blocking foul. And-one.
"HAH!" Barkley beamed. He slapped chests with Zhao. "You see that, Mailman? That's how you run offense."
Marv laughed. "Malone got played like a rookie. Knicks just diced them up with strong-side swings and weak-side cuts. Too much ball movement for Philly to keep up."
Matt added, "And Barkley might be old, but his experience is priceless. He knew exactly where to place that pass."
Larry Brown lost it again.
"I said IGNORE Barkley! You gotta protect the paint, Malone! Use your head!"
Barkley smirked. "Talk that trash again and I'll knock you out."
"Shut up!" Malone barked.
"Come swing then!" Barkley growled, stepping up.
Malone clenched his jaw, fists twitching.
"Scared now? That's why Zhao bullies you every game," Barkley taunted as he walked off.
"F*** you!"
Malone looked like he was about to explode, but he turned away at the last second.
Zhao stepped to the line.
Swish.
Philadelphia pushed the ball up..
Under a tight man-to-man defense, Zhao Dong completely locked down Karl Malone, making the so-called "Mailman Duo" fall apart. With the pick-and-roll game broken, Allen Iverson had to go solo. He drove into the paint with a slick crossover, but Big Ben was waiting. Intimidated, Iverson missed the layup.
Zhao Dong, already sprinting back on defense, snatched the rebound with authority and immediately initiated a fast break. Spotting Sprewell dashing down the lane, Zhao tossed a no-look dime. Sprewell didn't hesitate—bang! Another two points on the board.
Zhang Heli chuckled in the broadcast booth:
"No matter how the opponents adjust, the Knicks always have an answer. With Zhao Dong's versatility, they can cook up a play for any situation."
On the other end, even though the Malone-Iverson pairing had more raw firepower than Utah's Stockton-Malone duo, Philly's offense lacked rhythm and complexity. Their pick-and-rolls didn't come close to the Jazz's smooth execution. The whole setup was rigid—Iverson would slash and dish, while Malone just lingered around the elbow waiting for a jumper.
But tonight? Zhao Dong shut all that down.
"How's AI gonna win by himself when Zhao Dong has Malone in a box?" Zhang Heli added with a smirk.
As the game went on, Philly doubled down—literally. The Philadelphia started stacking the paint, collapsing hard on Zhao Dong in the low post. At times, it wasn't even a double-team—it was three or four guys swarming him.
This opened up clean looks for Charles Barkley, who found himself wide open more times than usual.
Sure, Zhao's scoring was slightly limited. But his playmaking shined through—when the pressure came, he kicked it out with precision. Still, even with the triple-teams, he wasn't afraid to let it fly.
The result?
Same story as Game 1 and 2. Same as the regular season. No suspense. The Knicks grabbed the W—105 to 88.
Zhao Dong once again dominated both ends of the floor, finishing with an all-time stat line:
42 points, 13 rebounds, 10 assists, 2 steals, 4 blocks, just 1 turnover, and 4 fouls.
A complete triple-double performance.
Most of his buckets came from the low post, not from dunks or drives, but from jumpers over multiple defenders. Despite all the traps and physical defense, Zhao shot a staggering 64.8% from the field—lower than his last two games, but still lethal.
Barkley played longer tonight—28 minutes—and took full advantage. He shot 9 of 14, with half of his attempts coming from wide-open looks. That's 64% shooting for 18 points, smooth and efficient.
The loss stung the home crowd bad. They could feel it—there was no hope.
After the game, during a post-match interview, a Philly reporter asked in defeat:
"Zhao Dong, how the hell are we supposed to defend you?"
Zhao laughed. "Get your stars as good as me."
That got some New York chuckles, but a few local reporters weren't having it.
"Yo, God of Efficiency!" team reporter Thomas shouted. "You only shot 64% tonight. What's up with that? Under 70, man!"
Zhao Dong shrugged, flashing a cocky smile. "Yeah, guess I'm slippin'. Off night."
"Bullshit!"
Two Philly reporters stormed off, fuming.
"Ha ha…"
Zhao and the New York media just laughed it up.
Back in the locker room, Zhao learned the Spurs had swept the Suns too—just like the Knicks were about to do.
At the press conference, another reporter asked,
"Zhao, what's your outlook for Game 4?"
"There's only one option—sweep 'em," Zhao replied coolly.
The New York Times, on the 22nd, ran the headline:
"God of Efficiency drops 40+ Triple-Double! Knicks' sweep train ain't stoppin'!"
New York Sports Daily used Zhao Dong's words as their front-page slogan:
"Nothing but Sweepi!"
That night, two more series continued. The Bulls and Lakers both went up 3-0, setting the stage for potential full sweeps.
Commissioner David Stern was starting to sweat. All four second-round series were becoming blowouts.
There was already talk that the league might enforce a new rule next season: allowing double-teams only when the player has the ball. The one-sidedness wasn't a good look.
Media from small-market cities began voicing their frustrations:
"Big markets steal superstars, while small teams fade out."
"The NBA is splitting in two—Superteams vs. Cannon Fodder."
But no amount of complaining could stop the on-court storm. On the 23rd, the Knicks and Spurs both completed their sweeps. The next day, the Lakers and Bulls followed suit. Four series, four sweeps.
On the 24th, Lakers legend Magic Johnson gave an interview:
"I get why small markets are mad—but look at the Spurs. They're a small market too, and they're crushing it."
"Building a dynasty takes more than money. It takes luck, vision, and timing."
He continued:
"The Knicks got lucky when Zhao Dong fell into their lap. No trade, no picks—nothing. And now they got a franchise guy for the next ten years."
"The Spurs got Duncan. If they keep him happy, they'll be a powerhouse too."
"The Bulls drafted Jordan and built a dynasty."
"The Magic had Shaq, but they fumbled it. That's on them."
"So, it's not just about market size. If you're smart, if you scout well, if you get a little lucky—you can build a monster."
Then he added with a grin:
"Hey, the draft lottery's coming up on the 26th, right? Wash your hands—this year's got a few gems. Maybe another Spurs team is about to be born."
A reporter asked, "You talking about Elton Brand?"
Magic smiled mysteriously. "Can't say. Don't want to mess with anyone's board."
Meanwhile, over in Philly, things were falling apart. With the team eliminated, Karl Malone was officially heading into free agency.
That morning, Philly GM Devereaux Smith nervously called up Malone's new agent, Philier, to talk extension.
"We've discussed this before," Philier said calmly. "Karl's disappointed. He wants to take a break and explore his options."
"You're saying… he's entering free agency?" Devereaux voice cracked.
Devereaux knew what this meant—Philly had traded two first-round picks for Malone… and now he was about to walk after just one season.
At the airport, Philier ended the call and turned to Malone.
"What now, Karl?"
Malone sat in silence before speaking: "Maybe the Jazz get lucky in the lottery. There are a couple of good bigs in this class."
"You're thinking of going back?"
"We just got swept, man. I don't see a future in Philly. I don't have time to waste. My window's closing," Malone muttered.
---
April 24th – Back in New York
The Knicks returned home and immediately shifted their focus to the Eastern Conference Finals, starting on the 27th against the Bulls at Madison Square Garden.
Out West, the Lakers and Spurs would tip off Game 1 on the 28th.
That afternoon, Zhao Dong did a phone interview from his apartment.
"Zhao, any thoughts on tomorrow's draft lottery?"
He chuckled. "Man, that's all about luck. If you really wanna hit it big—wash your hands in boy's urine before the draw."
"…Boy's urine?" the reporter asked, confused.
"Yeah, boy's urine," Zhao repeated with a smirk.
By the next day, the phrase was all over the news.
Team GMs across the league were scratching their heads, trying to figure out if this "boy's urine" thing was some kind of lucky charm or just one more strange Zhao Dong moment.
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