| The Super Bowl is filled with storylines.
Will the Chiefs become the first team in two decades to win back-to-back titles? Will Patrick Mahomes keep pace with Tom Brady? Will the 49ers avenge their loss to Kansas City four years ago and win their first championship in 29 years? Will Taylor Swift show up on time?
It's easy to envision another close title game, memorable performances from Christian McCaffrey and Travis Kelce, defensive havoc caused by Chris Jones and Nick Bosa, brilliant play-calling from Andy Reid and Kyle Shanahan.
But what if the Super Bowl ends with a two-time MVP being denied another ring after throwing two interceptions, if the victor scores just one offensive touchdown and is led by a late-draft, second-year quarterback and perceived game manager who throws for 145 yards?
In the 2001 season, that marked the start of the greatest career in NFL history. A similar template could be Brock Purdy's path to respect.
Like a young Tom Brady entering Super Bowl 36 against Kurt Warner, the greatest mismatch on Sunday appears to be under center, when the former Mr. Irrelevant battles the best quarterback of his generation.
But unlike Warner, who just two years prior authored his own Cinderella story in Super Bowl 34, Purdy's narrative strangely has earned him few fans outside of San Francisco, given the widespread belief that his success is attached to McCaffrey's presence, Shanahan's schemes and one of the most electric receiving corps in the league (a similar cast surrounded Warner in Marshall Faulk, Isaac Bruce, Torry Holt and offensive coordinator Mike Martz).
 With 2,023 yards from scrimmage and 21 touchdowns this season, Christian McCaffrey has understandably garnered much of the credit for the 49ers' success.
AP
Unlike Brady's first Super Bowl season nearly a quarter-century ago — when he finished 24th in passing yards per game (189.5) — Purdy has proven to be far more integral to his team's success.
As recently as Christmas, Purdy was the heavy MVP favorite (-215), before his nationally-televised four-interception outing against the Ravens and eventual award winner Lamar Jackson (Purdy finished fourth in voting revealed Thursday night).
Still, Purdy finished the season ranked fifth with 4,280 passing yards and third with 31 touchdowns. He tied for first in the NFL in QBR, also finishing tops in yards per attempt (9.6) while breaking Joe Montana's franchise record for passer rating (113.0).
His eight games with multiple passing touchdowns and zero interceptions made him the first player in league history with as many such games this early in his career. Advanced stats are Purdy's ally, too: He ranked first in expected points added per dropback, the best league-wide against blitzes and third-best in the league on third down.
The 49ers may be playing in their second straight Super Bowl if not for Purdy's elbow injury early in last year's NFC Championship. If not for his size (6-foot-1) and draft position (262nd overall), Purdy may not be entering the Super Bowl as the biggest reason why the team that's favored is drawing significantly less action at sportsbooks.
 Whether you gauge his season by traditional or advanced statistics, Brock Purdy had a strong case to be in MVP contention.
AP
It is a similar situation former sixth-round pick Mark Rypien experienced on a loaded team in Washington in 1991 before he left Super Bowl 26 with MVP honors.
An MVP performance from Purdy isn't necessary, however, for the 49ers to win, as Trent Dilfer and Brad Johnson could attest.
Purdy probably isn't going to be the best quarterback on the field on Sunday. He just needs to be better than the world expects.
Today's back page  New York Post
Trading up No superstar changed cities. No one swung for the fences on the final day before the NBA trade deadline. But the Knicks may have improved more than any other team on Thursday.
The Knicks improved their depth, scoring and size by acquiring veterans Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks from the Pistons in exchange for Quentin Grimes plus Evan Fournier, Malachi Flynn, Ryan Arcidiacono and two second-round picks.
Perhaps most importantly, the Knicks did not give up any of their first-round picks in their recent trades — including the season-changing addition of OG Anunoby — giving Leon Rose the assets necessary to make a potential move for an established star after the season.
With recent injuries to Anunoby (who will be sidelined at least three weeks after undergoing elbow surgery, the team announced Thursday), Julius Randle and Mitchell Robinson, Bogdanovic provides Tom Thibodeau with another frontcourt piece who can play major minutes.
The 34-year-old forward, who is averaging 20.2 points this season and shooting 41.5 percent on 3-pointers, has played on six playoff teams in his career, which began in Brooklyn in 2014.
 The Knicks added Bojan Bogdanovic in a savvy trade before the NBA trade deadline.
AP
Burks adds another strong shooter off the bench, following the loss of Immanuel Quickley. The 32-year-old guard, averaging 12.6 points with the Pistons this season, has shot over 40 percent on 3-pointers in each of the past five seasons, including two years with the Knicks (2020-22).
Bogdanovic and Burks are expected to debut Saturday night against the Pacers, reinforcing a hollowed-out rotation that couldn't keep up with the Mavericks in Thursday night's loss.
As The Post's Mike Vaccaro wrote, "This deadline-day bonanza not only will help the Knicks come spring, when presumably all their missing parts return, it helps them right now."
The Knicks' only sacrifice in the deal was surrendering Grimes, the 2021 first-round pick who voiced his frustrations in a diminished role this season.
The Knicks (33-19) now have the third-best odds to win the Eastern Conference (+650 on FanDuel).
The Nets, ranked last (+26000) after going 8-22 over the past two months including Thursday night's loss to the Cavaliers, made a pair of deals before the deadline, yet didn't move much closer toward rebuilding or contending.
 Swapping Spencer Dinwiddie for Dennis Schröder isn't likely to change the Nets' postseason chances.
AP
Spencer Dinwiddie's disappointing second stint in Brooklyn ended with a trade to the Raptors, who sent back fellow guard Dennis Schröder and Thaddeus Young.
Schröder, 30, is the only player in the deal who won't be a free agent before next season, when he is owed roughly $13 million. Schröder is averaging 13.7 points and 6.1 assists this season.
The Nets also acquired three second-round picks from Phoenix in exchange for Royce O'Neal, who was acquired in June 2022 for a first-round pick.
Wonder woman The only record set on Super Bowl Sunday may come hours before kickoff.
Following Thursday night's 27-point performance in No. 2 Iowa's 111-93 win over Penn State, Caitlin Clark is 39 points away from setting the all-time NCAA women's basketball scoring mark Sunday at Nebraska.
 Clark, who is looking to surpass former Washington star Kelsey Plum, is averaging 32.2 points per game this season, while also leading the nation in assists (8.2).
Road sellouts have been common in the sharpshooter's final season, and watching the groundbreaking Hawkeyes star break the record in person could set fans back as much as four figures, according to secondary ticket markets.
To see it on TV could also make you part of history.
In Iowa's win over Maryland last weekend, Fox drew the most viewers (1.6 million) for a women's basketball game in the network's history, making it the second-most-watched regular season game since 2010. Clark's presence is the biggest reason why last season's national championship game attracted nearly 10 million viewers.
 Caitlin Clark signs autographs for an adoring crowd after Iowa's win Thursday night.
AP
"It's honestly hard for me to wrap my head around," Clark recently said of her fame. "It's crazy, it's crazy the way people scream my name and really support us and I try to make time for as many of them as I can. Like whenever I walk off the court, it's so special just the way people scream our names and are so excited for our team. And that's something that never gets old. I was that kid a few years back, so it's crazy how time flies and I just try to soak it all in, every single moment."
What we're reading 👀 🏈 Jets owner Woody Johnson unloaded on the 2023 team, slighting Zach Wilson by saying "we didn't have" a backup quarterback, and came close to issuing a playoffs mandate for Joe Douglas and Robert Saleh.
🏒 The Islanders hung six goals on the Lightning to move within two points of a playoff spot. The crowd at UBS Arena chanted Patrick Roy's name as the clock wound down.
⚾ What's so special about outfield prospect Spencer Jones that the Yankees were keeping him out of trade talks?
⚾ The frenzy surrounding the Dodgers after their offseason spending spree, as The Post's Joel Sherman observed at their camp in Arizona, comes with intense pressure.
🏒 How the Rangers are getting back in sync in Peter Laviolette's defensive system during their three-game winning streak.
🏊♀️ Katie Ledecky lost an 800-meter race for the first time in 13 years.
🏀 Liberty star Breanna Stewart scored a buzzer-beater to help Team USA avoid an upset against Belgium.
⛳ This dude really shot a 57, a new record for a PGA-sanctioned event.
⚽ Wait, soccer's going to have blue cards now?
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