Chapter 187 186 It's getting more and more interesting
Zhang Yang can't withstand Childress, but Felton can!
Childress is in his third year in the NBA. He is completely different from the one who dominated the Pac-10 league with his shooting in college. When he first entered the NBA, he was a skinny shooter, but in order to adapt to the style of play that requires switching to defend power forwards or even centers, he has become a muscular man. His long-range three-pointers are basically gone. Out of his 7.5 shots per game, 5.5 are within the three-second zone. He scores by either breaking through the basket or cutting into the basket, nothing else.

Felton is very good at guarding such players.

Not only was Childress, the number one support point of the breakthrough + high-post support tactics, unable to get in, but Tyronn Lue, who initiated the attack, also suffered a setback.

Tyronn Lue, who is about to turn 30, is no longer the boy chasing Ai. He has a speed advantage against Felton, but his speed is about the same as Zhang Yang.

Tyronn Lue broke through to close range, and the inside and wing players didn't need to close in at all.

Millsap followed Josh Smith, Okafor covered the basket, Gerald Wallace stuck to Joe Johnson...

Tyronn Lue couldn't pass the ball, so he came by himself, quickly grabbed the ball, and tried to shoot... Zhang Yang, who was extremely focused, jumped up and touched the ball!

The ball was intercepted before it flew past the distance between the two of them. Zhang Yang jumped up again to grab the ball. Tyronn Lue wanted to counter-steal, but Zhang Yang dribbled behind his back to avoid it, and then started to counterattack!
The Hawks' 2-4 positions retreated very quickly. Zhang Yang entered the three-point line from the left side of the top arc and was blocked by Josh Smith and Joe Johnson. He jumped up facing the two defenders and passed the ball!
Gerald Wallace followed up and received the ball in the middle and broke through. Tyronn Lue, who was defending Zhang Yang, made up for him... but was crushed. Gerald Wallace broke through to the basket and made a layup!
Bickerstaff folded his arms and nodded, his expression saying 'good job'.

In fact, he was feeling lucky that he didn't call for a pause to tease the little friend, otherwise, who knows how the other person would laugh at him in his heart.

Use "impatient and mindless competition" to lure the opponent into a one-on-one duel, causing the other players on the Eagles to stand still and lose the rhythm of coordination at the beginning.

This strategy will also affect the Bobcats' own coordination rhythm, but their tactical qualities and team discipline are much better than those of the opponent, so the impact will inevitably be much smaller.

And this strategy doesn't stop there. The players had already discussed switching defenses and had a more suitable defensive matchup...

In addition to these, Zhang Yang's fast break pass reminded Bickerstaff of the one in Los Angeles.

In the All-Star Game, the player who was double-teamed during a counterattack passed the ball to Anthony like this, pretending to force a shot to make the opponent's double-teamed players jump to block the shot, giving Anthony who followed up better conditions to attack the basket, and he didn't care at all whether there were assists or not, just to create better conditions.

He went to the All-Star Game, worked with his high school teammates to improve his pull-up jump shot, and learned new ideas for counterattack organization during the game... There's a reason why he could reach the All-Star level at the age of 18!

When it was the Eagles' turn to attack, their good momentum at the start suddenly collapsed.

I don’t know how to fight!

They have been in a bad state for two and a half years. Their tactical skills and cooperation are poor. Joe Johnson played singles for so long and they just stood there watching. Their cooperation rhythm was quickly gone. As for adaptability, they did practice a lot of new tactics yesterday afternoon and this morning, but since they were new tactics, they were unfamiliar with them. After a few rounds, they forgot everything.

Of course, there are also people who remember the tactics - Tyronn Lue.

But after he broke through against Zhang Yang, his teammates still moved in the high-position pass-cut coordination at the beginning, so he could only shoot again facing Zhang Yang's block.

This time Tyronn Lue was not blocked, but he didn't make the shot either. The ball hit the rim and missed!
Zhang Yang turned around, grabbed the defensive rebound, and counterattacked again!
This time the Hawks players failed to keep up with Zhang Yang, who rushed to the frontcourt and made a layup.

1分多钟时间，张杨拿到4分2板1助攻1盖帽，山猫队以14比13反超老鹰队，局势逆转！

Joe Johnson had no choice but to ask for the ball and play against Gerald Wallace.

He played well individually, and even Gerald Wallace couldn't defend him.

But the more Joe Johnson played one-on-one, the less his teammates moved. If his teammates didn't move, he could only continue to play one-on-one and pass the ball...forming a vicious cycle.

And although Gerald Wallace couldn't defend Joe Johnson, he definitely interfered with Joe Johnson's shooting and consumed much more physical energy than Zhang Yang.

When Joe Johnson was on the offensive, the Hawks could still hold on for a while. When he got tired and needed to take a break, the Hawks could only rely on the unreliable breakthroughs and passes from a few 203-206 cm forwards...

The Hawks also have big problems on the defensive end. They have been in a slump for too long. Maybe the management and coaching staff did not take the initiative to do so in the past two seasons, but in fact, they are almost in a slump. The players have no enthusiasm. When the offense is good, they defend very hard. They are talented and defend well, but when the offense is frustrated, their defensive enthusiasm is gone.

As the game went on, the Eagles' offense returned to the old way of the past two and a half years!
...

After the first quarter, the score changed from 8 to 13 to 29 to 26, with the Bobcats overtaking by 3 points. In the second quarter, the Bobcats continued to advance, scoring 28 points, while the Hawks' score plummeted to 21 points. The score difference reached double digits after halftime.

During the halftime break, Mike Woodson made some adjustments, but the effect...it could only be said that it would have been better if he hadn't made any adjustments.

It took the Bobcats almost an entire regular season to figure out their tactical system and come up with a vague framework, which took until March last year.

Constantly adjusting the lineup through trial and error, cultivating tacit understanding among the players, and making sacrifices by reducing their own playing style... Although the Eagles have finally gotten the hang of it, the training only takes two days, and it is impossible to achieve success in just one halftime adjustment.

Mike Woodson's halftime adjustments not only failed to help the players' play, but also messed up the players.

Although the Eagles' offense did not play well in the second quarter, the Eagles players had a clear goal - to score single points.

After Mike Woodson's adjustments, the Hawks players didn't dare to score the ball casually, and they couldn't cooperate with each other... The score in a single quarter plummeted by 8 points again, and only 13 points were scored in the third quarter!
The Bobcats seized the opportunity to counterattack and scored 31 points in a single quarter!
88 to 60, the game was ruined!
The four core players did not play in the final quarter. Rondo brought the bully Matt Carroll, all-around defender Alan Anderson, artist Herman, and forward Paul Millsap to play in garbage time.

张杨打了23分钟，13投8中，其中三分球4中2，加上3中3的罚球，拿到21分6板3助攻1抢断2盖帽。

奥卡福12投7中拿到19分7板；费尔顿14投7中拿到17分9助攻；杰拉德-华莱士4投4中拿到12分6板4助攻2抢断3盖帽……

Matt Carroll scored 12 points in the final quarter, raising his personal score to 18 points, just a little short of 20 points in a single game. The Bobcats beat the Hawks 24 to 28 in the final quarter.

112 to 88, the Bobcats easily defeated the Hawks!
When the final whistle sounded, Zhang Yang stood up and high-fived and hugged his teammates to celebrate their first win in the second half. Their record is now 35 wins and 18 losses!
He looked across and felt that this opponent would definitely rise and become their strong rival in a year or two.

The management and coaching staff have the right idea. There are many talented players who have been in a slump for many years. They can be used as trading chips or for training.

But it's not enough now. From the enthusiasm shown by the Hawks players in garbage time in the final quarter, we can see the problem of this team - they have been in a bad state for too long. Many Hawks players don't think they have any hope of rising at all. They are much more motivated when they are brushing up their stats than when the game is tense.

However, Zhang Yang still hopes that the Hawks can rise quickly and that the Eastern Conference will become stronger so that the Bobcats can get more training...

The evil scene of Parker, Kobe, Josh Howard, Anthony, and Nowitzki grinning as they scored points in singles is still lingering in his mind a few days after the All-Star Weekend...

...

The Bobcats were very happy after winning the first game of the second half. In the words of Bad Boy Zhang San, this was a good start.

But the next afternoon, as the Bobcats were training for their next opponent, they were missing a teammate - His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.

Bickerstaff informed the players that Gerald Wallace hit his knee last night when he collided with the opponent's backup center Lorenzen Wright. He felt sore this morning and missed today's training. He may not be able to play in tomorrow's game.

Zhang Yang's mouth twitched when he heard the news. He remembered that when Gerald Wallace and Lorenzen Wright collided and fell, it was at the end of the first quarter, right?
In the second and third quarters, Gerald Wallace flew around and played for 6 minutes and 8 minutes respectively!

If the situation gets tense, this guy will probably play the entire final quarter!
He admired and felt bad for the Crown Prince's life-threatening spirit. But this was Gerald Wallace. If he didn't play like that, he wouldn't be the same player, and his effectiveness on the court would be reduced by more than one level.

He not only fights hard himself, but also motivates his teammates.

If you want to enjoy the help that Gerald Wallace can provide to the team, you have to accept that he is often injured.

After the preparatory training, Zhang Yang cleared his mind and continued to practice three-point shooting.

I am less than 10 away from 3000 shooting value. I will be able to get 1 point of shooting talent soon. The three-point distance of 80 is getting closer and closer. Keep missing shots and keep practicing!

At 2:17 p.m. on February 6, Zhang Yang and his teammates entered the stadium. Their opponent tonight was the Timberwolves.

Felton looked at Garnett, who was looking very sullen, and said to Zhang Yang, "Jack, have you heard? Garnett and the Timberwolves have fallen out."

Zhang Yang: "What's going on? Tell me about it!"

Felton: "I heard that during the All-Star Game, the Timberwolves and the Celtics discussed a trade involving Garnett. The Celtics asked Garnett to promise to renew his contract before they were willing to trade him. The bargaining chips seemed to be Al Jefferson, a high school student like you, Ryan Gomes, who is in the same class as you, and Green, who just won the Slam Dunk title. Garnett refused to promise to renew his contract with the Celtics..."

Zhang Yang was very surprised by this news. Kaizi took action in advance?
He asked, "Isn't Ainge trying to pick Oden with the No. 1 pick? How can he choose Oden if he trades for Garnett at this time?"

Felton: "Pierce may be out for the season."

Zhang Yang: "That iron man who was stabbed 13 times in 35 seconds and didn't miss the new season is actually out for the season?"

Felton: "Stabbed 13 times in 35 seconds? How can he take it? I heard he tore his rotator cuff due to overtraining. He missed 3 games before the All-Star Game.

A reporter from Boston broke the news that after Pierce failed to be selected as an All-Star, he requested a trade from the Celtics, so Ainge wanted to trade back Garnett to appease him, and he can opt out of his contract this summer.

Zhang Yang: "Oh, so the Celtics traded for Garnett, and they will probably continue to play badly, and Garnett doesn't want to go."

Felton: "Yes, Garnett was unwilling to give up in the Timberwolves. This was the biggest conflict between him and the Timberwolves. The Timberwolves wanted to compete for Oden this season, but Garnett was unwilling to give up.

Since he is going to change teams, it is even more impossible for him to play badly. And it is said that he is unwilling to take the risk of Pierce leaving the team to go to the Celtics. After he refused to promise to renew his contract, the conflict with the Timberwolves management intensified. The Pistons' head coach Saunders is regarded as a father figure by him. When Saunders was fired, Garnett had a conflict with the Timberwolves management. Now the conflict has intensified..."

Zhang Yang listened to the fat boss's conversation turning to gossip, and his attention was distracted. He just needed to respond to these things.

He looked across. The Iron-Blooded Wolf King was comparable to No. 24 in terms of paranoia, apart from anything else.

There was no way out during his rookie season. Starting from his sophomore year, Garnett refused to be a substitute and never played as a substitute again. When he was almost 40 years old, he still said that he would retire if he played as a substitute.

Moreover, throughout his career, he has never played badly. No matter how bad the team is, he will fight for victory in every game. Since his sophomore year, he can still get more than 30 wins except in the worst time of the shortened season.

The Timberwolves have been clearly in a bad state this season. Apart from Garnett, the Timberwolves do not have a single player with an annual salary of tens of millions this season. This is the first time since the new century. Before the start of the season, all major media outlets had classified the Timberwolves as "Oden competitors", but Garnett led the team to a 35-win level of strength, and anyone dared to beat them. The Suns' 17-game winning streak was ended by Garnett.

But this also made the team miss out on a high draft pick...

When Bickerstaff called out to him, Zhang Yang put away his distracting thoughts and returned to the bench to concentrate on listening to the coaching staff making the final arrangements before the game.

Without Gerald Wallace, there will still be pressure against the Timberwolves and we cannot be careless.

However, thinking about what the fat boss said, Zhang San felt that the NBA was becoming more and more interesting!

...

At 7 pm, the game between the Bobcats and the Timberwolves will start at home!
The Bobcats were missing one of their two big defensive players and they did a poor job defending Garnett tonight.

加内特上半场出战21分钟，10投6中，加上4中3的罚球，半场拿到15分6板4助攻，率领森林狼队首节拿到30分、第二节拿到27分。

The Bobcats' offense was also okay, with 29 points in the first quarter and 26 points in the second quarter, but they were unable to suppress the Timberwolves. Zhang Yang was limited in this regard in the first half, shooting only 10 of 3.

Gerald Wallace cannot play, and Zhang Yang is the most affected.

Without Gerald Wallace's mid-range backup, Garnett's offense was easier and he could devote more energy to defense. Without Gerald Wallace's impact on the inside and compressing the defense, Garnett also did a better job of backing up Zhang Yang from mid-range.

After the halftime break, Zhang Yang changed his playing style. In the first attack of the third quarter, he held the ball and attacked the inside with Okafor's pick-and-roll. He used the European step to avoid Garnett who was shrinking his defense, made a layup, and caused the Timberwolves center Mark Blount who was defending to foul, making it 2+1 and overtaking the score right away!
Without a big center under the basket, Garnett's rim protection performance was average, as can be seen from Okafor's easy 11 points and 7 rebounds in the first half with 16 of 8 shots.

Zhang Yang did not play like this in the first half. It was Bickerstaff who pressed him. Playing like this would be more physically demanding. Since the score could be maintained by team offense in the first half, there was no need for meaningless consumption. Zhang Yang could just take the blame and shoot. Playing like this would help him absorb the shots that his teammates could not get and consume less physical energy.

As Zhang Yang opened up the game with a pick-and-roll, Felton and Jumaine Jones, who came off the bench, also started shooting three-pointers.

张杨第三节6投4中，单节拿到10分2助攻，加上费尔顿的6分、奥卡福3分、朱梅因-琼斯5分、轮换上场的隆多的2分……山猫队延续了上半场的进攻火力，单节拿到26分！
The Timberwolves wilted in the crucial third quarter, and no one could step up to help Garnett share the pressure.

Mike James averaged 20 points per game last season, but it was a flash in the pan. This season he has gained weight. At the age of 31, he makes $600 million a year, but he has no ambitions anymore.

Ricky Davis was quite aggressive, just making 7 of 2 shots in a single quarter and scoring 4 points, but he might as well not have rushed.

The Timberwolves only scored 20 points in the third quarter, and the Bobcats went into the final quarter, overtaking the Timberwolves by 81 points with a score of 77 to 4.

In the final quarter, Zhang Yang continued his performance in the third quarter. He came on the court in the 4th minute and played for 7 minutes. He made 3 of 2 shots and 4 of 3 free throws, scoring 7 points and 1 assist, helping the team to a score of 23 to 21 and suppressing the counterattack momentum initiated by Garnett.

At 9:23 pm, the final whistle sounded.

加内特21投11中，加上7中5的罚球，拿到27分14板7助攻3抢断1盖帽的全场个人最佳表现，但森林狼队最终还是输了。

奥卡福上半场撑住球队进攻，全场16投9中拿到23分14板2助攻4盖帽，全队表现最佳。

张杨19投9中，其中三分球6中2，加上5中4的罚球，拿到24分7板6助攻2抢断1盖帽，得分不算高，有17分是下半场山猫队需要球员单打得分时拿到的。

费尔顿12投6中，其中三分球7中4，加上5中3的罚球，拿到19分9助攻，表现也很出色。

加上出场27分钟靠着反击拿到12分7板5助攻的隆多，9投4中拿到10分6板的米尔萨普……山猫队5人得分上双，以104比98险胜森林狼队！

Looking at the Bobcats team with well-organized defense, clear offensive priorities and progressive tactics, Garnett, who played 21 minutes in the first half and 22 minutes in the second half tonight, was envious and jealous!
(End of this chapter)