Basketball trainer, I created a super giant

Chapter 328 Riding a Tiger and Being Difficult to Dismount
When asked about Carlisle's idea, Townsend's first thought was that the discussions among the media and fans had influenced him.

There has been a lot more discussion about this since the Lakers' winning streak was broken.

The media is seriously discussing whether the Knicks can break history and achieve 82 wins.

Seeing that Thibodeau and the others remained silent, Tang Sen deliberately teased, "Rick, don't forget, you've already been accused of throwing the game."

"I know."

When the topic came up, Carlisle shook his head slightly, somewhat annoyed. He still couldn't understand what was wrong with Silas that made him accuse him of throwing the game.

He expressed his thoughts.

exhausted.

Physical fatigue is secondary.

So far this season, the players have been rotated normally, and there has been little overuse of the starters.

However, the situation of relying solely on key players is rare to begin with. Other teams also rotate their players normally, allowing their core players to play for about 37 or 38 minutes.

Under normal circumstances, a full season consists of 82 games, including many back-to-back matches, which is quite taxing.

Many fragile players are prone to injury even when playing normally.

If we have to say something, Yao Ming used to play for more than 35 minutes, but now he plays for 30 minutes or less, that's what we call reducing his energy expenditure.

So, with almost half a season gone, players should normally be showing signs of fatigue.

Tang Sen's [Balance] badge may have alleviated some of the fatigue, but it only alleviated it, postponing the fatigue period.

More importantly, there is mental fatigue.

Carlisle said, "When a player goes on the field with the mindset that he must win the game, his reaction on the field is different."

Tang Sen nodded thoughtfully.

Under normal circumstances, such as if there is a game today, the players do not know whether they will win or lose before they step onto the field.

"I want to win" and "I must win" are completely different psychological pressures.

When you absolutely must win, you can't afford to lose, because a single loss would end your winning streak, then, as Carlisle said, your reaction on the field will be different.

Even so far this season, the Knicks have led by a large margin in every game and have rarely fallen behind.

But the opponent is catching up.

Under the psychological pressure of having to win, if the opponent gains momentum, you will naturally become nervous and try to suppress their momentum.

So they might play harder on defense and put in more effort on offense.

It might have been a normal layup, and whether it would have gone in or not was uncertain. But now, in order to make it, they chose a more difficult approach.

In that case, the probability of injury actually increases.

Moreover, these are changes that even the players themselves wouldn't be aware of.

Carlisle continued, "To be honest, we've only had one person injured so far this season, and I really feel lucky."

Leaving aside major injuries, they didn't even suffer minor injuries like twisted ankles or strained muscles. Carlisle really felt that the Knicks were blessed by Lady Luck.

Tang Sen thought to himself that it wasn't because you were lucky, but because you were able to monitor the players' physical condition anytime and anywhere through the system.

The problem was discovered and addressed promptly.

But Tangsen also felt that Carlisle's question made sense.

82 games, all undefeated—it's an impossible, even terrifying, thing to think about.

Just like in the NCAA, over the years, no matter how strong a team is, Tang Sen has never heard of a team that has a perfect season.

Carlisle continued, "We've had such a successful and brilliant season that all the media outlets are reporting on us, and now the whole of America is watching us."

"The players' own teams might be urging them to strive for the miracle of 82 wins."

Players all have their own teams and people they trust, and their thoughts will influence the players as well.

Moreover, when everyone is discussing this matter, even if the players don't want to care, they will still worry about it.

"Fans and media only want excitement and all sorts of incredible miracles. Their appetite will only grow bigger and bigger. When we have 40 wins, they will want 60 wins, and then an undefeated record."

"When we are undefeated, they will demand that we win the playoffs without losing a single game and win the championship all season long."

"And what I fear most is this situation happening."

There are 82 regular season games, and if the team wins the championship with a perfect record in the playoffs, there will be another 16 games, for a total of 98 games.

Carlisle couldn't even imagine how much psychological pressure the players would be under by the end of the season, given that they couldn't afford to lose a single game.

He believed that the situation he described would definitely come to pass.

You've already won all 82 games, so what's a perfect playoff record?

Fans and the media will put this kind of pressure on them, and the management and owners might also make similar demands.

Desire is endless.

Everyone wants to see miracles happen, to see you do what others can't.

Carlisle had already understood what Tangsen was saying.

He may be worried that towards the end of the season, all the voices will dictate the team's direction, leaving them in a difficult position.

Because it's not just the media and fans, but also the people around the players themselves.

His family and friends, his agents, his business team, his endorsers. If you aspire to build a tower to the heavens, everyone will hand you materials, eager to be a part of it.

In this situation, the phrase "just past the mark, easily broken" is the most appropriate description.

What's even more frightening is that the collapse might happen right during the most crucial playoffs.

Because one scenario could occur.

That was the Knicks, who had an 82-game winning streak, but ultimately failed to win the championship.

Wouldn't that be the biggest joke in the world?

To prevent that from happening, after your 82-game winning streak, you must fight with all your might and not lose the championship.

Everyone understood.

Thibodeau said, "Richard, you're right. Players aren't machines, they're people. We can't keep winning like this; the risk is too great."

Kruger nodded in agreement: "I can't even imagine how the world would laugh at us if we got 82 wins and still didn't win the championship."

Carlisle pointed at Kruger and said that's exactly the point.

The higher you stand, the harder you'll fall.

He then looked at Tang Sen.

Tang Sen shook his head to indicate that he had no objection.

Right now, the Knicks, having broken their winning streak, are enough to make other teams despair.

The opinions were unanimous.

The question that follows is how to lose.

"The key is that our second half of the season is quite easy," Kruger muttered.

The longest stretch of away games in the second half of the season was only four, and there were no back-to-back away games.

Then the opponent is also weak.

It would be too unbelievable if the Knicks lost to the Clippers, who are at the bottom of the Western Conference.

“So the next game is very important,” Carlisle said.

In his mind, if he was going to lose, he could only lose to a strong team.

The Lakers' two games are over, and they only have one game left against the Magic tomorrow.

Losing to them would be the best outcome, ending the winning streak at 39 games. After that, winning or losing won't matter, and we can relax our mindset.

Several people nodded in agreement.

Thibodeau asked, "Should we let Yao catch a cold?"

Yao Ming has caught a cold, which has almost become Carlisle's go-to method for resting Yao Ming.

“No,” Carlisle shook his head and said, “That would be too deliberate. The players might feel that we deliberately deprived them of a chance to create a miracle, which would be bad.”

Don't let the players think back and feel that they were able to achieve an 82-game winning streak just because Rick Carlisle wouldn't allow it, which would cause resentment and affect locker room harmony.

Tang Sen said, half-laughing and half-crying, "Rick, aren't you overthinking this?"

They're starting to feel anxious and insecure.

Tang Sen wondered if the Knicks were too strong this season and Carlisle wasn't paying enough attention, which was why he started to overthink things.

Last season, he was so focused on winning and considering tactics that he didn't have time to think about these things.

But at this moment, Tang Sen truly felt the pressure.

The appetites of fans, the media, and even the management have been whetted.

Losing at this point, you can imagine how much criticism you'll face.

If they keep winning without ever losing a single game, the situations that Carlisle feared could very well occur.

It’s hard to get off the tiger.

Carlisle crossed his arms and said, "We need to think of a tactical solution."

The teaching assistants exchanged glances, feeling a sense of absurdity.

Previously, tactics were considered to win; now, they're considered to lose.

Tang Sen patted Carlisle sympathetically, noticing that his hair had thinned even more, probably because he had been thinking about this for a long time.

This is also why Tang Sen felt that being a head coach was tough; there were too many things to consider and the pressure was too great.

The next day, the team hosted the Magic.

The Knicks' marketing department had already displayed a figure of 40 games on the LED screen outside Madison Square Garden.

When Tang Sen drove to the arena, he already saw a large number of fans holding up signs celebrating 40 wins.

40 wins, a significant milestone.

Once a team reaches 40 wins, fans will demand 50, then 60, and so on, until they reach 80.
Tang Sen now truly understands why Carlisle had such concerns.

I wonder if Carlisle has figured out a way to lose the game gracefully.

(End of this chapter)