Champion, please stay!

Chapter 227, page 225: The Pure Iron-Blooded Green Army is Born!

The Knicks and Suns have a bad relationship between their management and fans, but the coaches and players of both teams have a relatively good relationship.

Nash has always spoken very impulsively... to put it bluntly, he doesn't think things through, and he was even less concerned about anything else when playing against the Knicks.

At a press conference, he complained that Yi Shui had made Kobe the top seed in the Western Conference.

Upon hearing this, Yi Shui, who was at the other table, remembered this incident and immediately declared that he would also give Kobe a loss next time they played against each other.

As a result, a new hot topic emerged after the game – the Lakers, with their five star players, have become public enemy number one.

When Yi Shui saw the news, he waved his keyboard, but couldn't bring himself to type.

His banter with Nash was just between fellow students, but the media sensationalized it into this.

However, the Lakers have indeed become somewhat of a public enemy this season.

After a two-game road trip in the West, Yi Shui flew back to New York from Phoenix with the team at noon on the 5th.

On the plane, he received bad news—Ben was injured!
Chalmers: "I heard from Mike that Ben Wallace pulled a thigh muscle when he fell while blocking Stoudemire's shot in the third quarter."

Yi Shui: "Injured in the third quarter? Didn't Ben Wallace play for 3 minutes in the fourth quarter?"

Curry: "He was just putting on a brave face. I remember after that block, we had a few fast breaks, and he didn't keep up. I didn't notice at the time and thought he just didn't want to waste his energy. Now that I think about it, even if he couldn't keep up with the fast break, he would still run along and try to draw the defense away."

Chalmers: "Yes, because he was pushing through it, the team doctor determined that the strain was more serious and he might not be able to play for the next few games."

Yi Shui: "He really is... tenacious."

He said that, but he was really annoyed.

Ben Wallace's overconfidence is absurd. Doesn't he realize his importance to the team's defense? Well, perhaps it's precisely because he knows his importance that he didn't show any reaction after getting injured in last night's game. He silently endured the pain of his pulled thigh muscle and did his job of helping on defense, assisting on defense, and setting screens. He played a crucial role in the team's 20-10 run in the second half of the third quarter.

Fortunately, after returning to New York, Ben Wallace underwent a thorough examination and was diagnosed with only a muscle strain, with mild recurrent strain symptoms, but no muscle tear or inflammation that could end his basketball career.

It's not serious; he only needs to be sidelined for 2-3 weeks, and he can participate in competitive training as early as mid-month.

After receiving the message from the team, Yi Shui breathed a sigh of relief. Unlike some unlucky veterans, Ben Wallace didn't get injured and then just give up.

Moreover, Ben Wallace's playing style relies mainly on defensive intelligence and athleticism. As long as he can maintain his health, he can perform at his best when he is in good physical condition.

Let's just consider it a rest for Ben Wallace during the brutal schedule of January.

...

After returning from two road trips, the Knicks had two days of rest.

It took a day to fly back, and the coaching staff didn't schedule any training on the second rest day.

However, Yi Shui still came to the stadium and first did regular shooting and skills training. Then, after he had used up most of his energy by lifting weights, he practiced additional techniques such as setting up counterattacks and passing the ball in the middle of the game.

Get familiar with the newly acquired skill 'Charge at the Forefront'.

He has become accustomed to adjusting his offensive approach based on his physical condition. When he is tired, if he has a height advantage, he will usually choose to receive the ball and shoot quickly, or make a short run to use a screen to stop and receive the ball and turn to shoot.

He has an advantage in height and weight, and the opposing center is not tall either, so he will choose to sit in the low post and shoot high.

In the final moments, when they are "outlasting the old man" or "running the dog," they will launch a fast attack.

But now, there are new options!
After several fast-paced training sessions while under fatigue, Yi Shui gained a clearer understanding of the new skills.

The effect is mainly reflected in the start and the start of the competition. After the 'start phase' is over, the effect is gone and you have to rely on yourself.

But its effect is by no means small! The most energy-consuming part of launching a fast break is actually getting off quickly and avoiding the defender's movement.

As long as he can get going, everything will be fine. The momentum from starting will allow him to descend at a faster speed even when he is fatigued.

If you're not used to receiving the ball at the basket and passing it during a fast break when you're tired, then practice.

When you're so engrossed in a match, you might forget newly acquired skills. The solution is still practice! Practice until it becomes a habit!

After two days of rest, the Knicks hosted the Celtics at home.

The Celtics have undergone a qualitative change in just two months!
The main point is Garnett!
At 33 years old, his athletic ability has declined precipitously, which is even worse than when Duncan suffered from plantar fasciitis at the age of 28 or 29. If it were someone else, they might have ended up with a bad contract and their career would be over.

But the Wolf King, with his tenacious will, withstood the ridicule and insults brought by one bad performance after another. When no one was optimistic about him, he adjusted his defensive habits in one difficult game after another, and managed to play a first-class level defense again in the middle of the season!

Incidentally, it also helped increase McGrady's market value, allowing the Rockets to sell him for a good price.

However, their mid-range isolation plays, back-to-the-basket moves, and even contact shooting on offense all fell apart.

07-08赛季和08-09赛季大伤前的加内特，攻防两端表现有多强？那一个半赛季打出了71%的篮下命中率、48%的近距离命中率、44.6%的中距离命中率、46.1%的长两分命中率。

In terms of passing, although he didn't have as many assists as he did during his time with the Timberwolves, the Celtics' offense was completely different when he was on the court versus when he wasn't.

As for defense, it goes without saying. Garnett wasn't injured last season, and Howard would have to wait at least another year to win Defensive Player of the Year. Even though he missed a third of the season, Garnett was still selected for the All-Defensive First Team.

Garnett's declining offensive ability has led the Celtics further down the path of pure, iron-clad defense planned by Thibodeau, relying on Rondo to orchestrate the offense and Pierce to score in isolation plays. Tonight, from the very beginning, the Knicks were bogged down in the Celtics' rhythm!
Other teams, even if they focus on defense, still have to consider offense. Even Larry Brown, who doesn't understand offense, just doesn't understand it, but he won't give up on offense.

The Celtics are different. They relentlessly slow down the pace of the game. From Christmas to tonight, they allowed their opponents only 77.5 shots per game in six games, while they themselves only allowed 76 shots per game. Their pace is the slowest in the league. Among all 30 teams in the league, only they have a pace below 80. The second-to-last team, the Spurs, have an average of 81.2 shots per game, while their opponents have 81.6.

With 19 points in the first quarter, 22 points in the second quarter, and 21 points in the third quarter, the Knicks only scored 62 points in three quarters, setting a new low for their three-quarter score this season. They didn't even score this low in the first three quarters of the game against the Bobcats when they scored 89 points!
Fortunately, their decent team defense limited the Celtics to 65 points.

At this moment, every Knicks player was missing Ben Wallace. With Wallace on the court, even if he only played for 15 minutes, he could effectively limit the opponent's clumsy offense for more than a quarter.

In the final quarter, the game became even more intense. Fortunately, the Knicks had acquired two tough guys, Webster and Barnes, and in 08 they also got Birdman, which allowed them to withstand the Celtics' physical battles and engage in a war of attrition.

In the first half of the final quarter, the two teams went on a 10-9 run, with the Knicks trailing 72-74 at the official timeout.

D'Antoni doesn't know how to play now; he's executing his plays but can't make the shots!

This is what Thibodeau learned from Van Gundy: the most authentic 90s iron-blooded defense, forcing opponents to rely solely on their star players to solve problems.

On their side, there's Yi Shui, a star player who's not afraid of anyone in one-on-one situations, and Curry and Webster's shooting consistency is also guaranteed after contact.

But the opposing team also has Ray Allen and Paul Pierce! These two are notoriously bad at leading their teams, but the former's clutch shooting and the latter's one-on-one skills are among the best in the entire league.

Yi Shui reviewed the opponent's movement in the first half of the quarter, made a firm decision, and proposed to the coaching staff that they should play a defensive counter-attacking game.

Mark Jackson thought it was unlikely and didn't support it, while Cheeks had no objection but didn't express support either.

However, neither of them could think of a better way. At least Yi Shui had an idea, and D'Antoni chose to play a defensive counter-attack.

So, after the official pause, Yi Shui led the team to charge forward!

The Celtics were completely unprepared for Yi Shui, who had started to rely on his height and positional play in half-court offense, to be able to launch such a fast break at this point!
Not to mention the opposing team, even the Knicks themselves didn't expect this...

Yesterday's extra training was put to use tonight. Regardless of whether the opponent scores or not, he charged forward, relying on the threat of his initial start to reach the frontcourt and receive the ball.

Although the Celtics were able to effectively shut down Yi Shui with their team defense, their stamina was also severely depleted. After being double-teamed, it was too late for them to spread out, and they even struggled to close out and defend the weak side cuts!
Yi Shui recorded 3 assists in half a quarter, and with the help of Du Hong and Webster's follow-up and control, he helped Curry and Birdman get a lot of opportunities to drive to the basket.

They outscored their opponents 15-9 in just half a quarter!
At 10:26 p.m., the final whistle blew.

易水打了41分钟，25投10中，其中三分球4中1，加上7中5的罚球，拿到26分16板6助攻1抢断3盖帽。

Tonight, the Knicks managed to stay close in a game they'd never faced before, thanks not only to the team defense they'd honed over the past two months; the shooting of Yi Jianlian and Curry; the physical defense of Webster, Barnes, Birdman, and others; but also to a crucial factor – a 47-37 rebounding advantage!

The Celtics' rebounding ability was already mediocre, and Garnett's declining athleticism has further exacerbated this decline. This season, they are averaging only 39 rebounds per game, the worst in the league, and are giving up 42 rebounds per game. While this may not seem like much, they have managed to make their net rebounding deficit look less bad by simply slowing down the pace of the game and reducing their shot attempts.

This can also be considered Thibodeau's ability.

In the final quarter, if Yi Shui hadn't rushed the fast break and had continued to grab rebounds, he would definitely have broken his career high in rebounds, and might even have gotten a double-double... Yi Shui's career high of 17 rebounds in a single game was achieved last season against the Celtics.

However, Yi Shui committed 5 turnovers tonight, a new season high, and the team's total score of 87 points was a season low...

87比83，尼克斯队4分险胜凯尔特人队，将战绩提升到29胜5负！
...

After a day of rest, the Knicks hosted the Pacers on January 9th.

再赢1场，尼克斯队就能成超越06-07赛季的小牛队，成为新世纪以来第二支拿到30胜时、负场数只有5场的球队，追平99-00赛季的湖人队。

The New York media has now learned how to use 'limited records', and has even surpassed them. Many new basketball data concepts this year were proposed by the New York media, namely selective data filtering.

比如，截至目前场均9.6板4.75助攻的易水，有希望成为30+10+5级别的超级全能球员。

Although the data hasn't reached 30+10+5 yet, there's hope, so we can bring it out and hype it up; the topic's popularity and buzz will be off the charts.

This 'limited record' also excludes the team from the 1990s that won 40 games before losing their fifth.

But tonight, the Knicks felt the power of the Celtics' tough, physical style of play.

Their shooting was still terrible tonight! Their physical condition was also worse than usual after a day of rest.

Facing the Pacers led by Granger, Randolph, and Hibbert, the Knicks made only 35 of their 89 field goal attempts, a shooting percentage of less than 40%, and only 6 of their 22 three-point attempts, less than 30%... Including the team's 19 of 25 free throws, they only managed to score 95 points, 41 of which were scored by Yi Shui alone.

33投15中，其中三分球3中0，加上13中11的罚球，拿到41分7板2助攻1抢断3盖帽，外加4失误。

This is the first time Yi Shui has lost a three-pointer this season. The game against the Celtics had a really strong aftereffect!
He was actually alright; he shot quite well at the start of the game. Granger is good at using physical contact to delay his breakthroughs and using his height and wingspan advantage to interfere with shots. He just happened to run into Yi Shui's gun. He is least afraid of this kind of defense.

It had the effect of 'Function Repair Card Day 7', so that match didn't affect him much, but his teammates suffered greatly.

After understanding their offensive situation, Pacers' new head coach Frank Vogel began to double-team them, which also affected him, causing his shooting performance to decline.

If they were to go through a series against the Celtics...

The Pacers pulled off a major upset, defeating the league-leading Knicks 107-95 on the road, improving their record to 20 wins and 15 losses!
This also prevented the Knicks from catching up with the 'limited record', bringing their record to 29 wins and 6 losses.

Fortunately, after playing against four top or near-top teams in a row, the Knicks welcomed a weak opponent to their home court.

The Washington Guard is here to offer their warmth again!

The Knicks crushed the Wizards 119-91 at home, securing their 30th win of the season!
The Wizards had just suffered a crushing defeat in the holy land of basketball, and the next morning they were back in the news, having successfully sold themselves!
The Wizards and Mavericks completed a trade, with Caron Butler and Josh Howard swapping teams!
(End of this chapter)