The longest river

Chapter 184 Triple Doubles is That Simple

After the timeout, the Cavaliers adjusted their defensive strategy against Yang Shuai.

They left their weak-side players to double-team Yang Shuai on the strong side, forcing Yang Shuai to move the ball to the weak side.

However, Carlisle was prepared for this.

At his signal, the Trail Blazers' offense did not shift from the strong side to the weak side, but instead allowed Sabonis to hold the ball at the high post.

At the same time, Wallace moved to the low post to establish position, while Yang Shuai was running off-ball plays on the weak side using Grant's screen.

The Trail Blazers executed a multi-dimensional offensive strategy in this possession, while also fully utilizing their inside play in spacing the floor.

The Cavaliers' defense suddenly lost its focus.

Sabonis finally passed the ball to Wallace, who backed down Anderson in the low post and made his signature straight-arm shot after a turnaround.

Carlisle's starting lineup tonight is a typical big lineup, with Yang Shuai and Wallace both being mismatched.

The cameras immediately focused on Carlisle.

Carlisle had been heavily criticized before, but tonight, his tactical response was at the level of a tactical master.

I believe that after tonight, the outside world will re-evaluate this young head coach.

After Sabonis assisted Young on a catch-and-shoot three-pointer on the weak side while the Cavaliers were helping to defend Wallace, Fratello abandoned his defensive strategy of continuing to double-team Young.

He discovered that doing this actually made the Trail Blazers' offense easier.

In fact, since their game against the Lakers, the Trail Blazers have scored over 100 points in the last few games, which was quite impressive in the 90s.

They gradually grasped the essence of the spatial system and increasingly enjoyed the easier scoring method that the system brought.

But when Fratello gave up on double-teaming Yang Shuai, Yang Shuai once again started his one-on-one drive-and-kick mode.

Since no one on the Cavaliers can put pressure on them in one-on-one defense, there's no need for Yang Shuai to stop.

Or rather, there is no distinction between noble and lowly basketball tactics. The triangle offense is essentially a strong-side isolation tactic, and the core of the spacing system is simply to open up the paint. The purpose of pick-and-roll tactics is to create mismatches for isolation plays.

A good tactic is one that creates good shooting opportunities and gets the ball into the basket as efficiently as possible.

Fratello ultimately failed to find a good counter-strategy, and the Cavaliers eventually lost 89-101.

When Yang Shuai grabbed his 10th rebound with 4 minutes left in the fourth quarter and was substituted, James had already determined his future playing style.

Yang Shuai ultimately delivered a triple-double with 25 points, 10 rebounds, and 12 assists, while only committing 3 turnovers.

This couldn't be more perfect for a player playing point guard for the first time.

This is also the first time Yang Shuai has achieved a triple-double in his career.

This made him the focus of reporters' questions at the post-match press conference.

Triples are still very popular these days.

Even years later, there are still those amazing moments like Ricky Davis throwing the ball into his own basket in an attempt to get a triple-double.

In fact, this thing was very valuable until Westbrook started averaging a triple-double for the season.

Yang Shuai was also very happy.

It's not because of the triple-double, but because it can help the team end their three-game losing streak.

Winning is always the most effective way to solve problems.

Would you switch to point guard?

A reporter from the Cleveland Plain Dealer asked Yang Shuai a question.

Yang Shuai knew that the other party had been speaking up for him, so he replied with a smile.

"No, but I'll always fill in if the coach needs me to play."

If you ask Yang Shuai how he felt about tonight's game...

Aside from the joy of winning, there was also physical fatigue.

This ball-dominant style of play is so incredibly physically demanding.

This style of play, aside from making the stats look better and making oneself appear as an "all-around player," doesn't really help the game in essence.

Especially in the playoffs, someone who had experienced playing against the Bulls knew that this style of play was completely unfeasible.

Because the higher the level of the game, the more you need to put the ball into the basket in the simplest and most energy-efficient way.

If you don't have that ability, this false omnipotence won't bring you ultimate victory.

Of course, as he said, the team is in a special period right now, and if Carlisle lets him play like this, he can continue to do so for the team's victory.

After all, he has only recently improved his passing ability, and passing more in actual games will help accelerate his improvement.

时间转眼来到2月中旬，杨帅在过去的4场比赛场均贡献25分8.5板8助攻。

Under his leadership, the Trail Blazers went on a four-game winning streak after a three-game losing streak.

Although Kenny Anderson returned to the court after a two-game suspension, Carlisle still insisted on Yang Shuai playing point guard.

It's clear to everyone that Anderson's career with the Trail Blazers is nearing its end.

At that time, the 1998 NBA All-Star Weekend was just around the corner.

This year's All-Star Game is being held in New York, which naturally attracts more attention than last year's Cleveland.

Putting aside everything else, there were many more celebrities attending the All-Star Game this year. Although Hollywood is in Los Angeles, New York is the most bustling metropolis in North America, home to world-class art venues like Broadway and Lincoln Center.

You can easily bump into celebrities on the streets of New York, in coffee shops, and even at NYU, let alone at a sporting event like this.

Especially this year, with Jordan possibly retiring.

Yang Shuai arrived in New York a day early, and this year's All-Star Weekend will be even busier than last year's.

After all, Paul had previously signed a series of new endorsement contracts for him, so it was inevitable that he would be paid to do the work and participate in promotional activities.

During a break from their busy schedules, Yang Shuai, Rondo, Paul, and Ray Johnson discussed Rondo's earlier suggestion to start a company.

If they were to start a company, choosing New York as their office location would be the most convenient for them.

After discussing it, the group realized that although the matter was still far from being settled, even the composed Johnson felt that it had potential.

Paul agreed, but he believed that the current business should be limited to the brokerage firm, and there was no need to rush into developing peripheral products.

After discussing it, they decided to classify the company as a brokerage firm.

Then there's the matter of the company name.

Everyone has different ideas.

In the end, Yang Shuai decided to name the company HARK Company using the initials of the four of them.

And coincidentally, there is such a word in English, which means "to listen," and it's easy for people to remember.

His decision excited the other three people.

Because Yang Shuai was placing them on the same level as himself.

These seemingly insignificant details greatly increase their sense of belonging to the company.

Because it's easy for friends to break up when they start a company, but this company is now officially owned by them.

After deciding on the company name, Rondo and Paul went to handle the company registration, while Yang Shuai and Johnson continued to attend events.

Before parting ways, Yang Shuai asked Paul to learn about the internet situation.

He needs to get his hands on this information before he can make any further investments, because without it, he could easily miss the right time to invest.

Even though he was a time traveler, as a post-00s generation, he only knew that some companies would grow bigger and stronger in the future, but he didn't know anything else.

The individual events at this year's All-Star Game received significantly less attention than in previous years.

The main reason is that the number of participants this year is lower than in the past two years; even Tracy McGrady didn't participate in the dunk contest.

If it weren't for Yang Shuai and Kobe's impressive performances in the Slam Dunk Contest over the past two years, this year's contest would probably have been canceled.

This has drawn more attention to the All-Star Game itself.

During the open training session before the individual competitions, the All-Stars only had a brief training session before being surrounded and interviewed by a large number of reporters.

As the top vote-getter in this year's All-Star Game, Yang Shuai is naturally the focus.

He was also asked a lot of questions related to this year's All-Star Game, such as starting alongside Kobe, his thoughts on Jordan possibly playing his last All-Star Game, and his goals for this year's All-Star Game.

Yang Shuai has no plans to win the MVP award this year.

He expended too much energy in previous games to help the team win, and if the team doesn't make any moves by the trade deadline, he'll likely have to continue playing like this.

In addition to the busy All-Star Weekend, while he might not tank like Butler, he certainly won't play with much intensity.

He also had no interest in performing with Jordan.

In fact, Yang Shuai doesn't want anyone to help him with any retirement tour when he retires in the future.

When he really wants to retire, he will definitely do it like Duncan: give a heads-up, leave fans with a backdrop of endless imagination, and then turn around and leave gracefully.

However, he was quite interested in starting alongside Kobe.

Having known Kobe for so many years, he has only ever been Kobe's opponent, never his teammate.

In fact, besides Yang Shuai and Jordan, Kobe was also surrounded by a large number of reporters.

His selection was accompanied by huge controversy.

Because of Yang Shuai, Kobe no longer holds most of the youngest records.

However, his selection as a starter this year still set a record: he became the first, and probably the only, player in NBA history to be selected as an All-Star starter while playing as a substitute for his team.

Just by looking at this record, you can tell how controversial it is.

Kobe was fearless on the court, but he still felt a lot of pressure in front of reporters.

After Yang Shuai finished his interview, he saw Kobe scratching his head and struggling to cope. Out of a desire to protect his top fan, Yang Shuai walked behind Kobe, placed his hands on Kobe's shoulders, and pressed down on them firmly.

Kobe tensed up, felt someone press down on his shoulder, turned around sharply, and smiled when he saw it was Yang Shuai.

"Relax, the people who voted for you are waiting to see your performance."

After Yang Shuai finished speaking, Kobe's body swayed with Yang Shuai's exertion, and he gradually relaxed.

Yes, he was chosen by the fans.

Just like Yang Shuai last year, no matter how much doubt the media and reporters have, it can't stop the fans from loving to watch.

(End of this chapter)