Chapter 219 218. Someone Has to Win
After starting with a 0-1 deficit and losing the decisive battle, and being suppressed for 5 games, the Bobcats won two games in a row and reversed 4-3 to reach the finals. The Bobcats put on a comeback performance in this Eastern Conference Finals that impressed the fans, and the evaluation of the coach and players also rose.

A month and a half ago, Bickerstaff won both the Best Coach and Best Manager awards. Although the reasons for winning the awards were reasonable, there were still a lot of complaints and criticisms.

After this Eastern Conference Finals, the media's evaluation of this has become well-deserved.

Of course, some people also complain about his coaching style - he likes to gamble on luck.

After Game 6, commentators, experts, and fans have been discussing the Bobcats' overall play style in this series, analyzing the strategies used by Bickerstaff thoroughly.

If the Bobcats had been a little unlucky in G2 and G4, even just in one of those games, they would not have made it past G5.

However, Bickerstaff won the bet, and the complaints were drowned out by the praises, and his title of "legendary coach" became even more famous.

The coach he defeated was Philip Saunders, who is one of the top five coaches of this era. In 03, he was able to get the first place in the Western Conference and reach the Western Conference Finals even with a three-headed monster, and his main small forward Szczerbiak was ruled out for the season early, otherwise it would be hard to say who would have won the championship that year. In 05, he took over the Detroit Pistons, who had been tossed around by Larry Brown for two years and were on the verge of collapse, and directly achieved the best record in the history of the Pistons. Last season, after Larry Brown led the Knicks to the last place in the Eastern Conference, many people believed that if it was Saunders who picked Carlisle's peach in 03, with his protective use of players, the Pistons' five tigers could have been a dynasty.

After this battle, Bickerstaff's historical status was greatly improved.

The domestic media used the commonly used adjective - more handsome than others and more than enough to make a breakthrough.

The performances of several key players of the Bobcats were also highly praised.

The one who received the most praise was, of course, Zhang Yang. Before the Eastern Conference Finals began, although the media and fans were not optimistic about the Bobcats' victory, they had high expectations for Zhang Yang's personal performance.

There are even some media outlets that are praising the Bobcats in a destructive way, most likely waiting to give them a hard slap after they lose.

结果，张杨7场比赛场均27投13中，以48.1%命中率场均拿到36分，外加4.3板2.7助攻2.3抢断，G1和G6两场40+……表现远超预期！
The highest prediction at the time was an average of 25+ per game, but he ended up achieving 35+!

In fact, if we really have to say how amazing this performance is... 50-year-old Pistons fans have been flooding major forums with messages, citing examples of crazy individual performances in a single series since the beginning of the 21st century.

00年总决赛，奥尼尔6场比赛场均38+16.7，投篮命中率61%。

01年季后赛，东部第二轮，艾弗森和卡特对飙50+；西决，科比打邓肯以51%命中率场均拿到33+7+7；总决赛，奥尼尔打穆托姆博场均33+15.8+4.8。

02年季后赛，西部第二轮，邓肯打湖人队场均29+17；东决，基德打凯尔特人队场均17+11+10场均三双；总决赛，奥尼尔场均36.3+12.3。

03年季后赛，西决，邓肯打诺维斯基场均28+16.7+5.8+0.8+3；总决赛，邓肯打肯扬-马丁场均24.2+17+5.3+1+5.3。

04年季后赛，第二轮，加内特打韦伯场均23.9+15.4+4.3+1.7+3.4。

In the second round of the 05 playoffs, Nash averaged 30.2+6.5+12 against the Mavericks; in the Western Conference Finals, Stoudemire played against Duncan, averaging 37+9.

06年季后赛，首轮，科比打纳什前4场；第二轮，邓肯打诺维斯基场均32.3+11.7+3.7+1+2.6；总决赛韦德打小牛队场均34.7+7.8+3.8+2.7。

In the first round of this season's playoffs, Kidd averaged a triple-double...

In order to let people "see the facts clearly", the 50-year-old Pistons fan not only cited the crazy performances of these superstars, but also disregarded the face of his own team's leading scorer and said that Zhang Yang could average 36 points per game purely because the person defending him was only defending the leaky Hamilton.

When Bobcats fans first saw this statement, they strongly refuted it and argued with the poster.

But there are too many posts and I can’t scold them all.

Until a Bobcats fan leader who was well-known in various forums took the lead and said: "You are right. Jack is definitely still behind these superstars, but he can be compared with them instead of being compared with rookie contract players. Thank you for your recognition of Jack."

Bobcats fans came up with a new idea, deleting the replies to the insults, copying and pasting the words of the fan leader to reply...

A 50-year-old Pistons fan suffered a critical blow and accidentally helped Zhang Yang get promoted!
When other fans saw the remarks of the '50-year Pistons fan', they just found it funny. Their own team couldn't beat the Bobcats, their own star couldn't beat the bad boy Jack, yet they actually came up with this way to step on them.

The New York Times commented on Zhang Yang: the strongest under 20 years old!
That is to say, there is a magician blocking the way, otherwise the age could be increased further.

As for other players of the Bobcats, Felton had his highlight moment in the Eastern Conference Finals, making 6 three-pointers in a single game. Although his statistics in the entire series were average, he showed a very good overall view, dared to take responsibility, was willing to do the dirty work, and his leadership ability was highly praised.

Okafor receives less praise, but fans have gotten used to his consistent 15+ points, 10+ rebounds, and 2+ blocks per game.

Gerald Wallace is still dazzling. Apart from Zhang Yang, he is the one who received the most praise in the Eastern Conference Finals. He can do everything including scoring, rebounding, assists, blocks, steals...

In addition to the four young players, the Bobcats also have another player who became famous in the Eastern Conference Finals - Rajon Rondo.

7场比赛场均6.6分5板6.3助攻1.7抢断，其中有3场比赛得分上双。

In the crucial Game 3, Rondo got a triple-double, becoming the third rookie in NBA history after Oscar and Magic Johnson to get a triple-double in the playoffs!

Although there were times when he failed to score and times when he scored 2 points, the triple-double in a Game overshadowed all the bad performances.

Celtics general manager Danny Ainge said in an interview: "We also wanted to select Rondo, but the Bobcats got there first."

Rondo trembled all over when he saw this report, fortunately it was intercepted!

He couldn't imagine how it would feel to play for a team that was playing badly and competing for Oden!

He had an older classmate named Keith Bogans, who was the second-best high school player in the United States in 99. He was selected by the Bucks in 03. At that time, the Bucks had just lost Payton and played badly in the new season. Bogans had a devastating rookie season. In his sophomore year, he was picked by the newly established Bobcats and had another devastating year. In his junior year, the Bobcats got better, but he played in college for four years and entered the NBA at the age of 23. After wasting two years, he was already 25 years old. After entering the NBA, the two key developmental periods were wasted and he was not included in the Bobcats' team building plan...

It's fine if they just tanked, but the Celtics tanked for a year, which made Pierce want to leave. In the end, they didn't get the No. 1 pick, and they didn't even get the top three picks. How could Rondo not be scared by this!

...

The outside world was very noisy, but the Bobcats began preparing for the finals the afternoon after winning the Eastern Conference Finals.

As the last team to advance, the Bobcats only had two days of rest after the Eastern Conference Finals. They had to hurry up to prepare, and Bickerstaff only gave the players one morning of rest.

However, the Bobcats players did not complain and actively participated in preparations.

At 10 a.m., Felton called Rondo, Derek Anderson, Okafor, and Zhang Yang, who was watching the Spurs' second-round video at home, to the gym to watch the video and discuss and analyze it together.

In the afternoon, the preparation work consisted of only two training sessions and one tactical simulation battle training.

After the training, Felton complained to his younger brothers: "Why is our preparation training not targeted? It's not as targeted as the playing style we discussed ourselves!"

Rondo: "Yeah, it feels similar to the regular season training against the Spurs."

After they finished speaking, they looked at Okafor, meaning it was your turn.

Okafor looked at Zhang Yang, meaning that this little Duncan would not gossip about others.

Zhang Yang started gossiping: "I think the coaches probably didn't expect to make it to the finals and weren't prepared, so let's practice first, let's change the training rhythm, maybe tomorrow morning's training will be different."

Okafor nodded: "Jack thinks the same as I do."

Felton thought for a moment and said, "Then let's go back and think about what we did well or poorly when we played against the Spurs. Don't stay up late, go to bed early, and gather at the stadium at 8 o'clock tomorrow morning. We will have a meeting to analyze it first!"

Zhang Yang looked at the fat little boss, whose leadership qualities had greatly increased after playing in the Eastern Conference Finals, and gave him a thumbs up from behind.

With a boss who does all the dirty work and takes the initiative to take responsibility for troublesome things, Zhang San can be his scorer happily. No wonder Ben Wallace was selected as the "most popular inside partner" in many player surveys...

The Bobcats coaching staff also gathered together to chat after training.

Bickerstaff: "Rick, Randy, go back and think about how to play the Spurs. Come to the arena early tomorrow and tell me your ideas."

Carlisle nodded in agreement, then asked uncertainly, "Bernie, we're going to play the finals the day after tomorrow, and we're only going to decide how to play tomorrow morning?"

Bickerstaff: "After the Suns were eliminated, I prepared some information about the Spurs' game, but I didn't think about the preparations. Before yesterday, I wasn't sure we could make it to the finals, so how could I prepare for the finals... Would you think about how to play in each round of the playoffs at the beginning of the playoffs?"

Zhang Yang and Okafor guessed right...

Carlisle was about to say 'of course' but shut up in time.

He remembered that this legendary coach really didn't seem to be good at making long-term plans. It was only after Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals that he found the weaknesses in Sanders' Game 1 strategy and formulated an extreme gambling strategy.

Bickerstaff also fell silent. He remembered that their team's new consultant had won 50 games in his first year, ranked second in the Eastern Conference and was the best coach. He was definitely aiming for the championship when he entered the playoffs. Moreover, he had been a player for the Celtics, the Eastern Conference champion team in the 80s, and as an assistant coach he had been under championship coaches like Bill Fitch and Sloan. His vision, pattern and ambition were much higher than those of someone like him who came from a wild background.

The overtime arrangement had ended, and Bickerstaff ended his small talk and went home to work overtime.

He doesn't want to be the head coach anymore because he's too old and doesn't want to work overtime, but now that they have reached the finals, he is very motivated to work overtime!

Although the outside world generally does not think highly of them, he does not care about that. Among those series he won, how many times were he won when he was favored?
Carlisle also went to the parking lot with a bunch of video discs full of energy.

He didn't expect that he was just moved by Boss Joe's seven visits to Charlotte, but he saw the Bobcats, who he thought had no chance of winning, win the Eastern Conference Finals and make it to the Finals he dreamed of!
Then, in excitement last night, he signed a contract with Jordan and became an official coaching consultant.

The weekly salary is $5. If the decision is made to switch to head coaching before July, the salary will be renegotiated.

The contract has been signed and we are already locked in, so we have to work hard!
At 7: the next morning, Carlisle, with panda eyes, came to the stadium and handed the preparation plan he had written all night to Bickerstaff.

Assistant coaches Randy Brown and Michael Bickerstaff also submitted their preparation plans, and Engelland submitted an analysis report on the shooting habits of the Spurs' main scorers.

Bickerstaff first looked at his son's preparation plan, and secretly sighed that his unlucky son did not inherit his coaching talent. He started writing the preparation plan the night before, but now it is only at the level of a review. He will definitely lose if he uses this plan.

Randy Brown's preparation plan is a good idea, but it is unrealistic. It would be better for him to be a defensive assistant coach instead of his son.

When Bickerstaff saw Carlisle's preparation plan, his eyes lit up. He came to the newly-signed consultant's office and said to Carlisle, who was drinking coffee and preparing materials for the meeting, "Rick, you are worthy of it. You made such a complete preparation plan in one night! It is more thorough than what I have done!"

Carlisle was very proud. Of course he had spent the whole night writing this battle preparation plan, and he even called for help.

His 70-year-old teacher Bill Fitch was even woken up by his phone calls in the early morning.

He also called Sloan, who cursed him and was about to hang up, but when he heard that they were going to deal with the Spurs, he immediately made a cup of tea and chatted with him for two hours.

How could there be any difference in the preparation strategies that were jointly discussed by the former legendary coach, the contemporary legendary coach, and himself, who believes that he will be a legendary coach in the future?
But Carlisle said modestly: "This plan still has many deficiencies in details..."

More than an hour later, at 9:, the Bobcats' game preparation meeting began.

Bickerstaff first gave a pre-match mobilization to motivate the players, and then began to talk about the overall strategy for this finals.

Although he praised Carlisle's war plan, the strategy Bickerstaff prepared was very different from the advice Carlisle provided.

Carlisle was not surprised. His coaching style was completely different from Bickerstaff's. The other party wanted his preparation plan for reference. Even if he wanted to use it, he would only use the on-the-spot contingency tactics he thought of and the strategies against a certain team member or opponent player.

But after listening to Bickerstaff's strategic plan, Carlisle was still shocked!

While working overtime all night last night, Carlisle complained more than once that this old man had no vision and no ambition. He was already No. 1 in the Eastern Conference, but he didn't even think about playing in the finals. He only saw the opponent in front of him.

But now, Carlisle finally understood why Bickerstaff was able to defeat the strong so many times.

The preparation plan he discussed with two teachers last night was to consider how to defeat the strong from the perspective of the weak. The preparation content was mostly about how to improve his own shortcomings and how to "steal" the championship.

Bickerstaff is completely different. His entire strategy is to seize the strengths and advantages of his team... to win! To beat the Spurs!

This kind of heroic spirit that didn't even consider the issue of losing made Carlisle feel that his own preparation plan was so petty.

Carlyle: I said that old people have no sense of the overall situation and no vision, but it turns out that I am the comedian...

Prepare for the match, fly to San Antonio, take a night's rest, and continue to prepare...

In order to allow the players to prepare quietly in a limited time, Jordan refused to accept any pre-game interviews from the players, and was fined by the league for this, but his attitude remained tough.

Although I lost a lot of exposure and was attacked by the media, what if, just what if, I win the championship, what does this little exposure and this little criticism matter?
Two days and one day of preparation passed quickly. At 2007:6 p.m. on June 11, 8, at the ATT Arena, Zhang Yang and his teammates came to the player tunnel.

The entrance ceremony was about to begin, and the fans at the scene had already begun booing and cursing at the away Bobcats players.

Zhang Yang looked towards the sky above the court, and saw the Spurs’ three championship flags from 99, 03, and 05 flying in the sky.

The lights at the scene went out, and the spotlights were shone on the visiting team's player tunnel. The DJ introduced the Bobcats' starting players in a low voice, and the boos from the fans at the scene instantly rose.

Zhang Yang was the second one to enter the stadium, following Felton. The boos from away fans did not scare him, but made him even more excited!
After the entrance ceremony, Zhang Yang accepted a pre-match live interview from Chaoting TV.

Zhang Weiping, who was there to commentate on the game, joked: "Yang Yang, it's not easy to interview you once."

Zhang Yang cursed in his heart, "Your whole family is Prince Duan", but he still had a smile on his face. Who made the former No. 1 player in the history of the Chinese men's basketball team also have the surname Zhang? There is nothing wrong with calling him affectionate.

He responded: "We refused to accept the interview in order to better prepare for the game. We only have two days to prepare after the Eastern Conference Finals, and we don't want to be distracted by the interview."

Zhang Weiping: "Haha, I understand. But it's rare for a young player like you to be patient and not accept interviews or appear in the news... But domestic fans really want to know more about you and your team. This is the first time that a Chinese player has been so close to the championship. Can you tell us how you feel about reaching the finals? Are you confident facing such a strong opponent?"

This question surprised Zhang Yang.

He was not very willing to accept domestic interviews during the playoffs because he saw in previous years that Yao Ming only made it to the playoffs and was not even in the top four in the Western Conference, but the domestic media kept calling him a "champion". He put himself in Yao Ming's shoes and felt that he could dig out a manor as big as Jordan's with his toes.

After the Eastern Conference Finals, the Bobcats' performance in the Eastern Conference Finals was praised for a day, but yesterday, when the media and fans began discussing the finals, they were not very optimistic about the Bobcats.

Even the media and fans who support them feel that they have no hope of beating the Spurs. This level of pessimism is even deeper than after they lost to the Pistons in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals!
So he strongly supports Boss Joe's refusal to be interviewed. With public opinion like this, the questions asked by the media will definitely be more pointed. He is fine, he is open-minded and can take it easy. He is worried that his teammates will be affected.

But I didn’t expect that the domestic media would ask questions so implicitly now!

It seems that the Houston building collapse incident has effectively reorganized the domestic media.

After a few sighs in his heart, Zhang Yang said to the camera: "Reaching the finals has exceeded our expectations before the start of the playoffs and far exceeded our expectations before the start of the season. I feel this is incredible now. I am proud of my teammates. In the finals, we are ready to play one game at a time. As for the goal...

Someone has to win, why can't it be me?"

(End of this chapter)