Chapter 214 213. The legendary coach’s style is so wild
On May 5th, the second game day of the Eastern Conference Finals arrived.

In the morning, Zhang Yang watched the G1 video at home before leaving home and punching in for work.

On game days, Felton is always the first to arrive at the stadium and leads by example.

As soon as Zhang Yang arrived, Felton came up to him and said, "Jack, have you heard? We have a new player on the team!"

Zhang Yang: "New players? Can we sign new players at this time? That's not right. Players signed after March 3st cannot play. Unless they are injured and cannot make up the minimum 31-player quota, we can apply for special approval for the signed players to play. And players who report injuries cannot play."

Felton: "There is such a rule? Jack, you are indeed a scholar, you know a lot! Oh, no wonder, last season Yao Ming and his team signed a 10-day short contract due to too many injuries to players. I was a little puzzled at the time. The Rockets already had 15 players at that time, so how could they sign anyone? But I didn't check it out. It turned out to be because of this rule."

Rondo, who was following along, finally couldn't help but complain, "Boss, Jack, how come you guys always take the topic so far every time you talk?!"

Felton asked curiously, "Really? Jack, do we often go off topic?"

Zhang Yang: "It seems so. Emeka also mentioned this."

Felton: "Really, then we have to..."

Rondo gritted his teeth and interrupted: "Boss! Let's talk business! Let's talk about our recruitment!"

Felton: "Oh, yes, yes, Jack, we have brought in a coach! It's the most unlucky head coach of the 21st century that you mentioned before... Rajon, what's his name?"

Rondo was confused and responded helplessly: "Rick Carlisle."

Zhang Yang was surprised and asked, "Carlisle? Why is he here at this time?"

Felton: "Huh? Jack, don't you admire that coach? Why doesn't he look very happy?"

Zhang Yang: "Of course I am very happy that he can come. Bernie is old and his energy is declining. He can only be excited when coaching games. At other times, he looks exhausted. He has handed over a lot of work to Bernie JR, Randy, Chip and others. He wants to retire from the position of head coach. Bernie JR and Randy do not have the ability to be a head coach. Chip said he is an assistant coach but he is actually just a trainer, which is not acceptable either.

Carlisle is one of the most suitable candidates for substitute coaches after the owner and coaching staff observed him for a season. He is good at coaching a multi-core team like ours. The lineup that won the Pistons the championship that year was created by him. He brought together the lineup of Billups, Hamilton, Prince, Robinson (Clifford), and Wallace (Ben). Later, after the Pistons replaced the older Robinson with another Wallace (Rashid), the Pistons became the best defensive team in the league.

He also performed very well as a coach of the Pacers. In the 02-03 season, the Pacers had O'Neal (Jermaine), Artest, the two Millers, Harrington, Tinsley, Mercer... Thomas couldn't even get 50 wins as a coach. When Carlisle arrived at the Pacers, he started with 14 wins and 2 losses in the first month and eventually got 61 wins. O'Neal had the third-best performance in the league that season, second only to the two No. 21 players, and ranked third in the MVP rankings.

Being able to combine multiple outstanding players is a very rare ability. For example, Thomas and McHale, you give them a group of stars and they don’t know how to use them. Carlisle has this ability, and I think he will be a good fit for us. ”

Felton wondered, "Then why do you look so conflicted?"

Rondo responded: "I think Jack felt the timing was not right."

Zhang Yang nodded. "If he comes right after the regular season and is fired by the Pacers, and participates in the creation of the playoff tactical framework, even if he comes after the second round, it will be a good thing. It will definitely be a good thing to have another head coach to help Bernie adjust his playing style. But now he joins in the middle of the Eastern Conference Finals... Our boss has his old habit again, and he does whatever he wants."

Felton also reacted: "Yes, if he comes now and offers suggestions, it may conflict with Bernie's coaching philosophy, and there is no time for buffer and discussion. Even if Bernie agrees with his suggestions, we players don't have time to adapt... But let's see how the training goes in the morning. I don't think Bernie is the kind of person who will be affected by a new coach."

Zhang Yang and Rondo both expressed their approval and said they were very confident in Bickerstaff.

On the other side, in the general manager's office, Bickerstaff was also troubled by Carlisle's visit at this time, but he welcomed him warmly.

After the greetings, Carlisle got straight to the point: "Bernie, I came here today just to watch the players' training in person. Without a full understanding of the players and the team's current playing style, I may not be able to help you with anything."

Bickerstaff was relieved when he heard this. If Carlisle really wanted to intervene in the coaching, it would be a headache for him. This was a candidate for successor, and the boss had spent a lot of effort to invite him back. He couldn't ruin the relationship from the beginning, right? Then the successor might fly away, and he would have to look for a new candidate again.

He did not let down the three brothers' trust, and he was very firm in this regard.

But the surface work still needs to be done. Bickerstaff responded: "Rick, you are the best coach of the younger generation. You won the best coach award in your first year of coaching. You are much better than when I first started coaching. Even now, I may not be as good as you. If you have any ideas, just tell me. Your suggestions are very important to the team."

Carlisle: "You think too highly of me. I will be proud. If I have any ideas, I will talk to you first, but now I need to know more about the team."

After the Pistons and Pacers experienced realistic beatings, Carlisle's score made Bickerstaff happy.

Bickerstaff: "Pre-match training is about to start, let's go down."

Carlisle shook his head: "No, I can't help much. Can you help me find an empty room? I want to hurry up and watch the videos of the past two rounds of games."

Bickerstaff: "No need to find another room, just stay in my office. The environment here is better than any lounge... But if you just want to watch the video, why don't you let the team send the DVD to Michael's home? I remember he has a movie theater at home, and it's much more comfortable to watch it there than on TV."

Carlisle's expression froze for a moment, and he responded, "Their house is too big, I'm not used to it."

Bickerstaff: "Uh...Okay, you can watch the video here. If you need anything, just use that phone to dial the internal number and let my assistant help you. If you have any ideas, you can always contact me."

After Bickerstaff left, Carlisle sat on the couch and watched the video.

I just agreed to come and take a look yesterday afternoon, and I came to work at the Turkish Airlines Arena this morning. Carlisle was in a complicated mood - the God of Basketball was too social after becoming the boss. He stuffed two girls into the room as soon as I arrived, without considering whether my old waist, who is almost 50 years old, could take it. If I stay there any longer, I will be squeezed dry... Is this the God of Basketball's trick to force me to come to work?

If Jordan knew what Carlisle was saying, he would definitely respond - please don't talk nonsense, I was also like this before I became a boss.

...

It is normal to recruit players when you can’t win, but to introduce a head coach when you can’t win... Zhang Yang has never heard of this before.

During the pre-match training phase, Carlisle did not show up on the training ground, which made Zhang Yang feel relieved but also a little regretful. He really wanted to talk to Carlisle about the topic of zone defense. There are not many coaches in the league today who can play zone defense, and there is no demand yet. However, early double-teaming has been allowed for several years, and some coaches have begun to pay attention to zone defense. In addition, with the advent of the NHC era, there are more and more restrictions on outside defenders, and there may be strange adjustments to the cylinder rules in the future. The importance of zone defense will increase day by day.

But it doesn't matter. If Carlisle finally chooses to join, there will be plenty of time to chat in the future. If he doesn't join, he won't be able to chat about anything in the little free time he has while playing in the Eastern Conference Finals.

It was 8:40 in the evening, and the players from both teams entered the court, and the second game of the Eastern Conference Finals was about to begin.

Last night, the Spurs and the Jazz played the first game of the Western Conference Finals. The duel between the iron-blooded Popovich and the coach Sloan was really ugly and ugly - the score was 91 to 79, and the Spurs won in a crushing manner.

爵士队除了德隆爆锤帕克，21投11中拿到27分9板5助攻3抢断，同时与基里连科一起把帕克防得19投6中拿到17分，就没什么亮点了。

For the Spurs, Duncan had 19 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists and 5 blocks, and his performance was average.

Duncan averaged 26.8 points, 13.8 rebounds and 4.2 blocks per game against the Suns in the second round.

Yaodao was really good at playing this kind of game. He exploded in the first game, making 15 of 7 shots, including 5 of 2 three-pointers, and 6 of 6 free throws to get a team-high 22 points.

Ginobili had three highlights against the Suns, all of which led the team to victory, but he actually only averaged 3 points in the six games. In the entire series, he only had a 6% shooting percentage under Raja Bell's defense, and he played extremely poorly in the games he lost.

However, when Ginobili was in full swing for more than ten or twenty minutes, Raja Bell was helpless. Ginobili at that stage was almost no different from Kobe when the Lakers led the Suns 3-1 last season.

After the first game of the Western Conference Finals, the Eastern Conference Finals has attracted more attention, more topics, and higher ratings!
The game between the Bobcats and the Pistons in Game 1 was already exciting, and it became even more exciting with the comparison.

However, netizens who discussed this game in the forum were also mentally prepared for the intensity of the Eastern Conference Finals.

Both the Bobcats and the Pistons have a history of starting bloody battles over a disagreement.

Although former NBA coach Jeff Van Gundy vowed that the two Eastern Conference teams would not easily engage in a defensive battle unless they had no other choice, this guy is already a commentator, and of course he will say whatever he wants to trick fans into paying to watch the live broadcast. He did not make any final statements, but just said that it is unlikely.

Another unemployed coach, Larry Brown, expressed completely different opinions from Jeff Van Gundy in an interview. In the interview, he criticized the Bobcats' style of play in Game 1, saying that the only way out for the Bobcats was to play hard on defense, which won the recognition of many media and experts.

Therefore, most fans believe that the Bobcats, who have lost their home-court advantage, will play harder in G2. After all, the Bobcats have the conditions to play like that.

But even so, if fans are asked to choose between the Bobcats playing the Pistons and the Spurs playing the Jazz, fans would still prefer to watch the Eastern Conference Finals...

At 9 o'clock in the evening, the game began.

The starting lineups of both teams remained the same. Okafor defeated Rasheed Wallace to win the jump ball. Felton advanced to the frontcourt and passed the ball to Zhang Yang who was leaning against Hamilton in the high position.

Zhang Yang received the ball and turned away from Hamilton. He pulled the ball with his left hand and shot it behind him. He took a step sideways. Hamilton tried his best to block him. Zhang Yang received the ball with his right hand and shot it under his crotch, then pulled it back to the top right corner of the free throw line.

Billups, who was one step inside the arc, rushed forward to block the shot, but Zhang Yang did not stop, but started to rush towards the basket!
Billups couldn't catch up, Hamilton was completely shaken off, Zhang Yang rushed into the inside at full speed without any hindrance, and McDyess could only watch Zhang Yang fly over and make a layup.

The commentators exclaimed repeatedly, saying that the rhythm of this ball was so good!
Bill Walton, commentator for Time Warner Sports, said that Zhang Yang's breakthrough this time was like a combination of early Kobe and Nash. Like Kobe, he is tall and good at taking advantage of confrontation in the back line, and like Nash, he has an amazing sense of rhythm.

The fans at the scene screamed and cheered wildly.

Dribbling behind his back, connecting with dribbling between his legs, making continuous fake moves to shake off the defender and break through to the basket... Zhang Yang's first attack was full of momentum!
Unlike netizens who were worried about this and that, the fans at the scene didn't care at all whether the team played offense or defense. As long as the Bobcats could score goals and win, they thought it was a good way to play, even if the score was 60 to 58.

When it was the Pistons' turn to attack, just as the media and fans had analyzed, the Bobcats' defense was strong tonight. As soon as Billups reached the top of the arc, he was closely guarded by Gerald Wallace.

Felton chased Hamilton and put up more resistance.

However, the Pistons are very good at attacking under high-confrontation conditions. They relied on this to win the championship that year.

Billups broke into the paint with the help of McDyess's screen and passed the ball to the left side of the three-second zone. Rasheed Wallace received the ball, stepped into the basket, and shot high against Perkins... He missed, but got two free throws.

Rasheed Wallace made both free throws, tying the score at 2-2!
When the Bobcats attacked, Felton advanced across half court, but was blocked by Billups before he reached the three-point line.

The Bobcats are stepping up their intensity, so naturally the Pistons players must also step up their intensity.

If other teams encountered this situation, they would first try to see if they could open up the situation by playing offense. In fact, the Pistons head coach Saunders did not want to respond immediately with iron-blooded defense, but the Pistons were one of the most representative iron-blooded teams in the early 21st century. When the Pistons players encountered opponents who wanted to break through the defense, they would naturally react. When he arranged tactics, he could only follow the players' instinctive reactions.

Zhang Yang also encountered Hamilton's front-line defense.

Felton protected the ball and waited for Gerald Wallace to move to the 45-degree angle on the left before lobbing the ball over.

At the same time, Okafor moved to the left baseline, Zhang Yang cut to the right baseline, Perkins went out to help Zhang Yang block Hamilton, and Gerald Wallace received the ball and crushed Prince into the inside.

Rasheed Wallace stepped out to block Zhang Yang who cut in with the help of a screen, then turned around and moved back to provide defensive support... He was a beat late, as Gerald Wallace broke into the paint and made a layup!
The fans at the scene cheered and screamed again, and the commentators also praised Gerald Wallace for his tough shot.

On the sidelines, Sanders frowned, he felt something was wrong.

After a few more rounds, watching Zhang Yang and Gerald Wallace take turns scoring the ball... I finally found the problem.

How could the other party be fighting a bloody battle? It was obvious that they were still attacking!

When Zhang Yang made the first attack, Sanders felt something was wrong, but now he finally realized it - it took the Bobcats only 11 seconds from winning the jump ball to Zhang Yang's layup!

The Bobcats' second attack started with a backcourt pass, and it only took 13 seconds for Gerald Wallace to make a layup!

And the play is extremely simple, relying purely on the players' personal abilities and one-on-one attacks!

Over the past two days, the media and fans have been saying that the Bobcats lost Game 1 because the scoring was concentrated on four players. Rondo, the fifth highest scorer, only scored 4 points and the team offense was not good enough. They said that if the Bobcats want to win, they must get more people involved in the offense to have a chance to win.

Saunders also believes that the Bobcats will make adjustments tonight and play more as a team, and he is prepared for this on defense.

Who would have thought that instead of trying to open up the team offense, the opponent concentrated the shooting rights more, allowing the two forwards and guards who had the positional advantage to concentrate their firepower output!
The Bobcats played like this, and the Pistons didn't defend well at the start and couldn't keep up with the offense. Halfway through the first quarter, the Bobcats led the Pistons by 17 points, 10 to 7!
Onlooker Carlisle: I've heard that this legendary coach has wild styles, but I didn't expect him to be so wild!
……

……

I got home from get off work, had dinner and continued writing. There’s another chapter tonight!
(End of this chapter)