Basketball trainer, I created a super giant

Chapter 330 The Last Hope After Losing
As Madison Square Garden turned into a sea of ​​celebration, Rivers sighed softly, composed himself, rose, went to the scorer's table, and shook hands with Carlisle.

"Congratulations, Rick, you guys are really terrifying."

Rivers even offered a compliment.

Carlisle said thank you, but felt incredibly awkward.

Back in the locker room, the awkward feeling intensified when Leiden pushed a huge three-tiered cake over.

The number 40 was written on the cake.

Leiden also delivered a passionate speech.

He shouted, spittle flying, that the summer before last, when they decided to rebuild around Yao Ming, traded away Sprewell, and tore the team apart.

At that time, everyone was laughing at the Knicks.

But who could have imagined that the Knicks would grow so quickly, making it to the Eastern Conference Finals last year and going on a winning streak this year?

"Guys, we're going to have an absolutely great season."

"Even 30 years from now, fans will remember us. Your names, along with this great season, will be forever etched in NBA history."

He further announced that he had discussed with Dolan that if the Knicks win the championship undefeated this season, they will erect a statue in the plaza outside Madison Square Garden.

To commemorate this great season, and then to everyone.

"That's right, it's all of you. We're going to erect a huge statue and carve all of you into it, to be displayed forever in Madison Square Garden, so that all New York fans will remember you."

"Guys, we are creating an incredible miracle, like the Great Wall, a wonder of the world."

Leiden proudly raised his right hand, like the Statue of Liberty.

Every player on the field felt a surge of excitement.

They will be remembered in history.

unprecedented.

Bang!
Leiden popped the champagne, and the revelry began.

After the celebration, a man soaked in champagne, Renden pulled Townsend and Carlisle aside to thank them for helping the team achieve such a miracle.

Forced to work, Tang Sen turned to look at Carlisle, eager to know what he was thinking at that moment.

What if Ryden announces the statue plan tomorrow?

If we really lose and don't reach 82 wins, what will New York fans think?

At this point, both Leiden and Dolan were in high spirits, and even if Carlisle went over to them and told them that an 82-game winning streak was too difficult and that they might collapse in the end, they probably wouldn't listen.

It's just that it might collapse, but it's not a 100% certain collapse.

In extreme cases, they might even change coaches at the last minute.

If you, Carlisle, want the team to lose and ruin the team's great plans, then replace the coach with someone who listens to you.

With the players on the court, this season's Knicks could win even if you leashed a dog off the bench.

Sure enough, the New York Times revealed the Knicks' statue plan the following day.

The headline of the report was: "40 wins achieved, is 82 wins far behind?"

When you were undefeated at the start of the season, everyone found it unbelievable and incredible.

When you have 20 wins, 30 wins, crush the Magic in three quarters, and thrash the Lakers, everyone is already numb.

Now, with a 71-point victory over the Cavaliers and 40 wins under his belt, even if it seems unbelievable, you can accept it.

Therefore, Tang Sen believes that the threshold for media and fans has been raised infinitely, and they may think that 82 wins is nothing special.

You already have 40 wins, if you do it again, you'll have 82 wins.

In its report, the Times also did the math for the Knicks.

They said the upcoming schedule is relatively easy, with no six or seven consecutive away games, and no extreme schedules like two back-to-back games in between.

There are no more formidable enemies.

In the past, the Times believed that teams like the Spurs and Mavericks were so powerful that they were invincible.

Nowadays, what are they anyway?

With a quadra kill by the Magic and a double kill by the Lakers, who in the entire league can rival the Knicks?

They even thoughtfully considered the issue of a long season and the high level of player fatigue.

The Knicks could win the game even if they fielded a starting lineup off the bench.

It was also suggested that if Yao Ming is too tired, he can be given appropriate rest. As long as he is on the roster, he can come on and save the game if things go wrong.

Finally, of course, there was plenty of praise, revealing the statue project and proclaiming how great a success it would be to have a perfect season.

There was a knock on the door.

It was Carlyle, his expression serious; clearly, he had also seen the Times report.

He pulled Tang Sen and several teaching assistants into his office for a closed-door meeting.

"Guys, I really think we can't keep winning like this. The further we go, the greater the mental pressure on the players will be," Carlisle said first.

He even used an analogy, saying it's like writing numbers from 1 to 1000. It seems simple, but when you actually do it, you realize how difficult it is to keep writing without making mistakes.

"I really don't want our players to be so tense."

Carlisle's eyebrows furrowed deeply as he asked everyone what they thought.

Now the management has gone mad too.

Dolan has been called a playboy for so many years, and the media has been clamoring for him to get out as soon as possible, sell the team, and find a better owner.

He had long wanted to win the championship and prove himself.

This unprecedented victory will only drive this playboy even crazier.

And then there's Raiden, his mind filled with his grand plans, eager to prove how brilliant his vision was; he needed that kind of victory too.

At this point, the two fanatical individuals were beyond persuasion and unable to remain calm. Even the players were captivated by his grand plan.

The problem is that Carlisle feels these players themselves don't realize how difficult it is to have a perfect 98-game winning streak.

The group remained silent, unable to come up with a solution.

Carlisle tried to manipulate the tactics, but Billups saved him every time.

So, is Carlisle going to contradict him and adjust the tactics back to their original state?

If the tactics are working perfectly, wouldn't it be too abnormal for you not to continue?

In other words, after yesterday's game that Carlisle wanted to lose, the Knicks actually became a bit stronger.

"Fake."

Carlisle scratched his head hard, never imagining that one day he would have a headache because the team was too strong.

He looked up at Tang Sen and said, "Tang, why don't you go and talk to Scott and tell him that the players are too exhausted and that if this continues, it might affect our chances of winning the championship."

Tang Sen's words still carry weight.

As he spoke, he glanced at Kruger.

He initially brought Kruger into the teaching assistant team hoping that Kruger, Townsend's mentor, would put in a good word for him at a crucial moment.

But Kruger didn't say anything.

Tang Sen was his disciple, and he couldn't help outsiders make things difficult for Tang Sen.

He thought to himself that, from Tangsen's perspective, if the Knicks really did achieve the feat of winning the championship with 98 wins this season, Tangsen's reputation would reach an incredible peak.

After all, the Knicks' rise was not due to Redden's keen eye for talent, nor to Carlisle's brilliant tactics, but to Townsend, the league's greatest talent scout and top-notch trainer.

Therefore, the more successful the Knicks are, the more successful Townsman will be.

Tang Sen shook his head: "Rick, you've worked with Scott for so long, you know him, and James too, they won't agree."

Putting aside his abilities, Leiden was first and foremost a good person with enough courage and a low-key attitude.

From the perspective of his subordinates, he was actually a good leader.

He just has a slightly ambitious and boastful personality.

That's normal; everyone has vanity, and he also needed to prove his abilities to Dolan.

Dolan, like Leiden, is a playboy who has turned over a new leaf, running the family's insignificant business and constantly trying to prove his abilities to his father, Dolan.

He won't listen to your criticism at this point.

Tang Sen really felt there was no need to provoke this bad luck.

"Rick, let's try again. Maybe we'll lose," Tang Sen said.

Carlisle pursed his lips, said nothing, and sighed, "I really hope Greg can give me a surprise."

Until the end of the month, the remaining opponents are teams like the Heat and the Hawks.

Just as the Times said, even a starting lineup made up of substitutes can win a game.

The only hope of losing is to face the Spurs.

Popovich, this cunning old fox who will stop at nothing to win, always manages to surprise and delight people.

With a relatively easy schedule and weak opponents, the Knicks unexpectedly found a tactical system that suited them.

As Wade became the ball handler, his scoring stats saw a surge.

Tang Sen had previously told him to work hard on his step-back jumper and three-pointers, and see if he could break into the top five scorers by the end of the season.

Now, he has that opportunity.

In the six games before the Spurs, he averaged 17 field goal attempts per game.

He shot 52 percent from the field, and with a lot of drives to the basket, drawing fouls and getting 8 free throws per game, he averaged 28 points per game in just six games.

If he can maintain this form in the second half of the season, he could very well break into the top five in the scoring charts.

On January 27th, the Knicks will host the Spurs.

The winning streak has now reached 46 games.

According to some media outlets, the Spurs have become the last hope to end the Knicks' winning streak.

However, Popovich didn't respond.

At the pre-match press conference, Popovich spoke eloquently and even joked with reporters.

"My God, you guys expect us to do something that even the Lakers and Magic couldn't do?"

"Jonathan is back from injury and he's back in good form. The Knicks have a full roster now, and even a player like Antonio has to come off the bench. Tell me, how are we going to win?"

The shrewd Popovich wouldn't follow the media's lead.

He knew that the Spurs had an advantage at the power forward position.

But he must have been out of his mind to let Duncan play the whole game and score forty or fifty points in order to win a game.
The Knicks are in the East and don't have much influence over the Spurs.

Popovich's bigger headache now is how to get past the Lakers. If he can't even get past the Lakers, why should he worry about the Knicks?

Not to mention this is a back-to-back road game, having just played the Bucks in Milwaukee yesterday.

The players were also exhausted, and rather than fighting tooth and nail against the Knicks, they would rather save their energy to strive for a good ranking in the playoffs.

Therefore, the match was uneventful.

Duncan scored 31 points.

But Wade also dominated Parker, scoring a whopping 34 points.

The Knicks easily defeated the Spurs 114-91, a score of 23 points.

Carlisle's hopes of a "reasonable" loss were completely dashed with this victory.

(End of this chapter)