Champion, please stay!

Chapter 193, Section 191: System Building in Progress
Wade was puzzled, while Yi Shui remained silent.

Seeing the second unit in action, he finally understood why the coaching staff worked so hard to build a defensive system, but their actual expectations were not high.

He was, after all, just a teammate who trained together and focused on his own team during training.

His perception of his teammates and his predictions about their defensive improvement deviated from the actual situation.

There's a significant difference between team practice and intra-squad scrimmages before a match and actual gameplay...

The coaches truly understand each player's abilities and attitude.

Mark Jackson and Cheeks are also in a bind.

Cheeks: "Stephen's help defense talent is much better than I thought; Tay (Gibson) is a bit impulsive, but has a good defensive foundation and is worth developing; Stromeyer... is very strong, and he can execute simple tasks very well."

I had imagined that with the three of them, plus Wilson's individual defense and Larry (Hughes)'s playmaking, their defense, while unlikely to match the starters, should at least have a basic defensive formation and rotation... It was even worse than I expected.

Larry... what a pity. I remember when he was 25, he was compared to Kirilenko and Garnett, and was selected for the All-Defensive First Team ahead of Kidd, Billups, and Wade. After being traded for the second time, he had lost his motivation.

I never expected the problem to be with Wilson. He was our second-best defensive forward last season, what happened to him?

Mark Jackson couldn't help but chuckle upon hearing this. He wanted to complain about his colleague's non-stick personality, but his abilities were undeniable. As long as he wasn't held responsible and was only given tasks, he could always do a good job within the limits of what was possible, and he was actually quite responsible, just like now.

But seeing Wilson Chandler get blown past Beasley in one-on-one defense, and Larry Hughes on the weak side not showing any intention of helping out, is really frustrating.

After Beasley hit a pull-up jumper, Wilson Chandler sprinted down the court, and Larry Hughes received the pass and quickly advanced the ball...

Mark Jackson said, "Wilson's mind is probably on offense. We emphasize defense, and it's impossible for everyone on the team to be happy with this decision."

Larry's fast break was excellent, no worse than Chris's, and Wilson was very aggressive in attacking the rim.

D'Antoni chimed in, "No, Mark, didn't you notice? Wilson isn't aggressive in attacking the rim, he's only aggressive in scoring. He doesn't attack the rim when there's no scoring opportunity... Look!"

The Knicks were on offense in a half-court set. Swift set a screen for Curry and drove to the basket, but was stopped by Joel Anthony.

Wilson Chandler, who was supposed to cut into the middle to draw attention, paced around outside the free-throw line instead of cutting in!

Mark Jackson instantly understood what D'Antoni meant.

During the counterattack, because they were the first finisher, they ran aggressively.

When the game becomes a half-court offense, the player becomes a distraction, creating opportunities for Swift to attack the basket, Curry to pull up for a jump shot, and Larry Hughes to receive the ball on the sideline. If the player doesn't have scoring opportunities, they become less aggressive.

Wilson Chandler is only thinking about racking up points!

This is a serious problem!
Although they need to build a defensive system, offense is their foundation!
As for why Wilson Chandler wasn't used as a finisher in positional warfare?
Not to mention Wilson Chandler, when Yi Shui plays alongside Swift or Birdman, he also needs to draw defenders away from those two teammates.

Because both of their inside players have limited basketball IQ.

During counter-attacks, Swift and Birdman can create a threat by relying on their running and jumping abilities; however, in half-court situations, the two can only do the simplest work of finishing plays. As long as the opponent has a player blocking their cutting route or leaves a big center under the basket, the two's threat disappears.

Mark Jackson was getting a little angry: "F**k, what is this guy doing?"

Cheeks: "I think... Wilson might have lost his purpose and couldn't find a direction to strive for."

Mark Jackson: "What?"

D'Antoni: "Is it because of Brook?"

Cheeks: "I think so. Wilson is a very ambitious player. He wants to be the star player and become a superstar, but playing with Brooks, he has no room to grow. He can't surpass Brooks. Brooks' performance in his rookie year is something he can never achieve in his entire life."

Cheeks phrased it delicately, but both D'Antoni and Mark Jackson understood what he meant—Wilson Chandler was discouraged by Yi Shui's strength and was tanking.

They didn't think Cheeks was talking nonsense; they were all "playing the field." Perhaps Cheeks understood Wilson Chandler's thoughts better.

They hadn't considered this possibility before because they never thought Wilson Chandler had the talent to become a superstar; that was ridiculous, just like Dumars thinking Stuckey had the talent to become a superstar.

But given how far Dumars went, it's not surprising that Wilson Chandler was overconfident...

...

Although the second unit played poorly, D'Antoni and others chose to be patient and let the unit play for 3 minutes. When they made substitutions at the end of the quarter, they didn't replace Larry Hughes and Wilson Chandler, who had just entered the game, but instead replaced Curry with Chalmers.

Rotate the rhythm, and proceed according to plan.

In the second quarter, Yi Shui returned to the court, bringing along Chalmers, Larry Hughes, Barnes, and Harrington.

This is Mark Jackson's proposed 'center-less formation'.

Wade, who also returned to the court in the second quarter, immediately launched a fierce attack, wanting to continue his duel with Yi Shui... but the opponent ignored him.

Watching Yi Shui run a clumsy pick-and-roll offense with Harrington, Wade was annoyed, helpless, and a little jealous.

Both teams are aiming to compete for free agents in the next 10 offseason. The Knicks are actively strengthening their roster around Yi Shui and building a better offensive and defensive system to improve their strength.

On his side, the fortune teller would only say, "Dwayne, you need to be patient."

He also thought about his rookie year, when the fortune teller kept saying he was going to be like Jordan, but instead he was tasked with assisting Odom.

The Knicks, worried about hindering Yi Shui's development, eliminated all obstacles, trading away Jamal Crawford and Randolph for bargain prices! No hidden dangers left!
However, Yi Shui's ability to initiate offense through pick-and-rolls isn't that bad either; he spent time practicing this during the offseason.

However, there is a clear difference compared to what Wade saw last season: Harrington handling the ball and Yi Shui executing screens.

In terms of timing for screens, lateral movement around cones to generate power, full screens and half screens for retreat, etc., Harrington, who has 10 years of experience, is still not as good as him for now.

Furthermore, Wade himself is a master of pick-and-roll with the ball, so his standards are naturally higher... There was also a sense of jealousy at play.

Yi Shui focused on using real games to practice his pick-and-roll skills; Wade drove to the basket a few times but the opponents didn't respond, so he lost interest and handed the ball over to Beasley and Conley.

On the Knicks' bench, several coaches looked at Hughes on the court with surprised expressions...

Mark Jackson: "Why has Larry suddenly become so proactive?"

Cheeks: "Because of Brook? When he came on, the fans got even more excited, and Hughes was also caught up in the atmosphere?"

D'Antoni thinks it's highly likely!
In the next rotation, he substituted Chalmers and Hughes, bringing on Curry and Wilson Chandler... Wilson Chandler's performance was even more outrageous, focusing solely on fast breaks, as if he had been given a royal robe.

D'Antoni was somewhat helpless. He decided to just leave it at that and continue rotating the lineups he had discussed with the coaching staff.

His performance... continued to decline. In his first game, he played 6 minutes and 43 seconds and scored 24 points. In the following 41 minutes and a half, he only scored 74 points.

Ultimately, the Knicks lost 98-111, falling to the Heat in their first preseason game.

...

After the game, the players went out in small groups to have fun. It was the first game of the new season, so they had to get together afterwards. Losing the game was not a pleasant thing, but it was the preseason after all, so going to the nightclub was a way to relieve their boredom.

Meanwhile, D'Antoni was having a small meeting with two assistant coaches and an advisor.

The Knicks used seven different lineups tonight, which is why their offensive rhythm was continuously affected and their scoring efficiency kept declining.

However, the coaching staff doesn't look at that; instead, they look at whether the tactical coordination is smooth and efficient.

Of the seven lineups, two were proposed by D'Antoni, two by Cheeks and two by Mark Jackson, and one by lead assistant coach Dan D'Antoni.

The first item on the agenda was for each coach to analyze and summarize the performance of the lineup they had proposed, with others offering their opinions.

Dan D'Antoni completely rejected the proposed lineup of Duhon, Curry, Yi Shui, Gibson, and Birdman. Ideally, this lineup would involve Duhon pushing the fast break; Curry and Yi Shui initiating the offense with pick-and-rolls; both of the best perimeter defenders on defense being on the court; and the frontcourt trio having solid individual defensive abilities.

However, their actual performance was poor in both positional play and fast breaks. Gibson and Birdman were purely supporting players on offense, and in the end, they either had to rely on Yi Shui or Curry to finish the offense one-on-one.

Mark Jackson complained: "Dan, your thinking is too limited. You're still thinking about how to incorporate defense into offense. You need to broaden your thinking and treat defense as part of offense... Morris, you're the same. You're still thinking the same old thing. What we need is not to incorporate run-and-gun offense into defense, but what Brook said, an integrated offense and defense!"

Upon hearing the consultant's words, D'Antoni noticed the displeasure on Dan D'Antoni's face.

He didn't think Mark Jackson was wrong, and as a coaching staff consultant and defensive system leader, he should point out the problems, but the way he spoke... no wonder Jeff Van Gundy rejected his assistant coach job application back then.

Cheeks, on the other hand... has such thick skin, even boiling water can't break it.

After discussing it with his assistants, D'Antoni concluded that there were three lineups that could be further developed.

One was the starting lineup he chose himself, which was also the best performing lineup of all.

On offense, with Yi Shui as the main point of attack, Curry led the positional warfare, Duhon led the counterattack, Ben Wallace scored on the lobs, David Lee provided mid-range support and necessary isolation plays, and the team worked together very well.

On the defensive end, David Lee's elbow defense, Yi Shui's collapse defense on the rim or his outstretched defense, Duhon and Curry's dual point guard rotation defense, and Ben Wallace's orchestration of the inside and outside defense... the defensive performance was quite good!
In other words, if they had encountered Wade, the defensive effect would have been much better with another player who could drive and dish.

Hearing his assistant coaches praise the lineup selection, D'Antoni felt a little smug.

He knew it wasn't the teaching assistants flattering him; the other three people present—one his own brother, one stubborn, and one shameless—would never give him face.

After his initial triumph, D'Antoni lamented, "It's a pity that Ben Wallace is too old and has declined since last season. He played less than seven minutes in the first quarter, and his performance dropped significantly after that. I thought I could let him play five or six minutes in each quarter, but now it seems that I have to reduce that time."

Mark Jackson and Cheeks were also disappointed, and could only feel regret, as he was their only reliable interior defender...

The second lineup that D'Antoni decided to continue developing was the 'center-less lineup' proposed by Mark Jackson, with Yi Shui and Harrington partnering in the frontcourt. Their speed was very dominant, and the opponents couldn't suppress them. The spacing in half-court games was also wide enough. Although they didn't play well in this game, he really liked this lineup.

Another lineup was proposed by Cheeks: Duhon, Danny Green, Barnes, Gibson, and Birdman. This lineup is very similar to the lineup proposed by Dan D'Antoni, which is purely defensive and counter-attacking, but it is more reasonable.

After D'Antoni decided to practice three different lineups for the next game, Mark Jackson said, "I think we can try a lineup that revolves around Larry connecting the defense."

The lineup that Larry Hughes orchestrates the defense, also known as the second unit, was proposed by D'Antoni and approved by the demanding Mark Jackson, who was quite pleased.

But he still shook his head and said, "Larry and Wilson's performances were too disappointing. I know this lineup concept is in line with your philosophy, but it won't work. I tried to replace Wilson with Matt, but although Matt's defense was better when he played, his offensive awareness and skills were too poor to serve as the main attacking point on the front line."

Mark Jackson: "Replace Wilson with Brook! With him on the court, all the problems on the wing will be solved, and you forgot? Larry is much more aggressive on defense when Brook is on the court."

D'Antoni then remembered that there had been a period in the game when Yi Shui and Larry Hughes played together, and their defensive rotation at the two and three positions was indeed quite good! Later, he even tried putting Wilson Chandler back in, but the guy played even worse than when Yi Shui wasn't on the court, which annoyed D'Antoni, and he forgot about that incident...

He nodded: "We can try. Originally, I wanted to give Brook some rest during the second unit phase, but now it seems we can't do without him in the regular lineup. His stamina has improved a lot since entering the NBA, so we can try to relax our control over that aspect..."

After cutting three players from the roster that would become unsuitable in just one game, D'Antoni and his assistants discussed the tactics to be used tonight: what to keep, what to extend, and what to abandon...

...

The game ended at 10 PM, the meeting started at 11 PM, and it didn't end until 1 AM.

The two-hour meeting, despite some minor friction, saw D'Antoni, Mark Jackson, and Cheeks all working with great enthusiasm.

Tonight was their first attempt at a new offensive and defensive system, and their performance was far from ideal, but they didn't get discouraged, which was expected.

After all, it's a completely new path, unfamiliar and challenging.

Moreover, the coaches were very satisfied with the attitude of most of the team members!
Yi Shui, Du Hong, and Niao Ren all completed the tasks assigned by the coaching staff very well.

Curry, Chalmers, and Swift all did their best to accomplish what they could.
The newcomers, Ben Wallace, Danny Green, Harrison Barnes, and Taj Gibson, each have their own strengths, but they also have more weaknesses. However, without weaknesses, they wouldn't be role players.

David Lee and Harrington don't have any particular defensive skills, but they have a very good attitude.

Although Hughes' overall performance was unsatisfactory, there is still some hope...

As for Wilson Chandler, who is overly ambitious, and Pavlovic, who suffers from obesity due to lack of self-discipline... if all else fails, just give up.

Without compromising the offense, we must focus on building a defensive system; this goal must be consistently pursued.

It's not just because they tasted the benefits of 'aggressive defense' in the series against the Cavaliers, but also because their performance last season was so good that even D'Antoni didn't know how to replicate it!

At the beginning of last season, few opponents took them seriously, which gave them a good opportunity to gel and achieve such good results in the first two months. Even when their record plummeted in January and March, they were still able to reach 55 wins.

It's foreseeable that opponents will take them very seriously this season. If they continue with pure run-and-gun offense, it will be almost impossible for them to achieve the same results as last season, given their roster.

Not to mention this Knicks team, even the Suns team's peak performance was in their first year of playing run-and-gun offense, and no matter how well they played afterward, they were never able to surpass that year's record.

Of course, D'Antoni knew that even if he put all his effort into building a defensive system, he couldn't do it very well. Just as Yi Shui had guessed, he didn't make any high demands, but there had to be 'visible' changes.

If he were coaching another team, D'Antoni wouldn't have this sense of urgency.

But this is New York!

With no salary restrictions and a super rookie like Yi Shui right from the start, it's fantastic, practically the perfect coaching conditions.

But the pressure is also much greater than for other teams!
...

The following afternoon, during the Knicks' team practice, D'Antoni made significant adjustments to the training content, and the players all felt... a lot less pressure!
During that week of training camp, there were a total of 7 different lineups, which made the players complain endlessly. Now the lineup has been cut in half!
Compared to that, dealing with tactical adjustments is much easier.

The only one who felt the pressure increase was Yi Shui... He felt that he was needed everywhere!

Of the previous seven lineups, there were two that he didn't need to participate in—D'Antoni's second unit and Cheeks' pure defensive counter-attacking lineup.

Three lineups that required his participation have been cut, but the two lineups that originally didn't require his participation and gave him rest time have been added back in. The training time from the three cut lineups has been spread over the remaining lineups.

Cheeks' pure defensive counter-attacking lineup, in which he replaced Gibson, increases one-on-one play, improves rim protection, and enhances counter-attacks.

He certainly had no objection to this, and it gave him even more opportunities to shine!

Increased playing time is even better. Compared to the beginning of his rookie season, his stamina has improved significantly. Whether it's output per unit time or increased playing time, he can handle it.

Moreover, his playing style doesn't require much adjustment; the coaching staff arranges for the other players in those two lineups to adjust their playing style around him...

For the next two weeks, D'Antoni, Cheeks, and Mark Jackson were racking their brains, thinking about how to improve the tactics even in their sleep.

D'Antoni once woke up in the middle of the night, took out a pen and paper and scribbled something down, then fell back asleep with the joy of having 'done a perfect tactic in my dream'... He woke up the next morning and stared into his notebook, lost in thought.

The notebook reads: 'Bananas are not as delicious as apples. The best fruit is the mango. This is what a mango looks like.'

Next to it was a mango he had drawn that looked incredibly lifelike.

Mustache: Luckily, I managed to resist calling my colleague before I was fully awake!

Under Yi Shui's leadership, the Knicks players have been working extremely hard in training and games.

Yi Shui has the heaviest training and competition schedule, but he is the most proactive. As the star player, his ability to do this easily inspires his teammates.

The atmosphere of playing at home is also one of the sources of motivation.

But most importantly, it's their record! Last season's 55 wins and Eastern Conference Finals appearance gave every player something to look forward to!
David Lee is unhappy with his two-year, $2000 million contract, but his teammates don't see it that way; many are quite envious.

During last season's All-Star Weekend, media predicted that David Lee's contract extension would be worth around $700 million, a multi-million dollar annual salary, nearly half again as high!
And then there's Birdman's contract, which is full mid-level pay! The media's assessment is that Birdman can't get such a salary anywhere else.

Dolan is really willing to spend money on players who perform well!

(End of this chapter)