warrior godfather

Chapter 189 When he recovers, no one wants to touch us!
In the first game after the All-Star break, the Warriors headed to Los Angeles to challenge the Lakers.

Due to Kobe's injury, Zen Master sent Shannon Brown, who participated in the slam dunk contest, as the starting point, and he obviously couldn't fill Kobe's vacancy.

Kobe's absence left the Lakers with an absolute strength on both ends of the offense and defense. After the whole game, the Warriors relied on strong outside firepower to keep suppressing the Lakers in terms of score, and finally won 110:100.

Curry scored 26 points, 8 assists and 7 rebounds. He averaged 5.6 rebounds per game this season, ranking among the best among guards. Although his body is still relatively thin, the Golden State Sharks have a very keen sense of rebounding. In the first game, Curry grabbed an offensive rebound between Gasol and Bynum, which made the commentator laugh.

But this victory was not perfect. After 52 games, injuries finally found the Warriors.

In the past, the Warriors were not all healthy, and it was difficult for a team in the NBA to maintain a healthy state. Continuous injuries are the eternal theme of this league.

But the Warriors players did not suffer major injuries, but minor injuries such as thigh contusions and finger sprains, but they returned after missing two or three games, and the injured were mainly substitute players, Curry, Butler, Azu Booker and other starters have played full time except for the necessary rotation, which will not have any impact on the team's strength.

This time it was different. Facing the Lakers, Azubuike scored 18 points, 6 rebounds and 3 steals. He performed extremely well. He accidentally sprained his ankle in a confrontation. After the game, the doctor judged that he needed to recuperate for a month. to recover.

When Azubuike was injured, Zhang Yu was very nervous. After hearing the news, he breathed a sigh of relief.

In his previous life, Azubuike played very well in the Warriors. It was because of frequent injuries that he gradually faded out of people's sight. Fortunately, he did not suffer any serious injuries this time.

Fortunately, Azubuike is not irreplaceable in the Warriors. Zhang Yu put Matthews in the starting lineup. His defense is even stronger than Azubuike, but without Azubuike's ball handling. ability.

But there is a saying that is good, good fortune comes, and misfortunes never come singly. After the Warriors won the Lakers, they returned to the home court against the Kings. With Curry's outstanding performance of 31 points and 10 assists, they won with a score of 119:114. Injury situation.

This time it was Varejao who was injured. He was hit by his left thigh during a rebound in the first half of the second quarter. He fell to the ground in pain and immediately returned to the locker room. Zhang Yu could only put Anthony Tolliver on the field. .

And this made the Warriors' inside defense much weaker. Kings coach Westphal saw the right time and asked the Kings players to resolutely attack the Warriors inside.

Chandler naturally refused to give an inch, but the resolute assault of the Kings quickly achieved remarkable results-only halfway through the third quarter, Chandler was fouled 4 times. In order to protect him, Zhang Yu had no choice but to Take him off the court for a rest, replace him with Big Z, and let him guard the inside line of the Warriors.

And this is a bit difficult for Big Z. Facing the energetic Evans, Big Z is determined to kill the thief, but he is powerless. It's easy to get past his help and put the ball in the basket.

He only played for 3 minutes, Zhang Yu immediately called a timeout, took him down, and put Roni Turiaf on the field.

Zhang Yu is a dead horse as a living horse doctor. Although Ronny Turiaf is a defensive insider with good mobility and a tough defensive style, he is also a foul machine. In an average of 15 minutes of playing time per game, he can 2.5 fouls were sent out, which is amazing.

Sure enough, after Ronny Turiaf came on the field, the whistle sounded again and again. Evans didn't look like a rookie at all, but like an experienced veteran point guard, he played Ronny Turiaf with the applause. In the game, he lost 6 fouls in just 3 minutes, and the Warriors' defense in the penalty area became precarious.

At this time, Curry stood up and started a confrontation with Evans. First, he made two three-pointers, and then scored 6 points in the penalty area. He scored 12 points in a single quarter, helping the team maintain the leading advantage , After Chandler returned in the fourth quarter, the Warriors stabilized the situation and finally won the game.

But Evans still shocked the Warriors fans at home into a cold sweat. He scored 27 points, 7 assists and 9 rebounds in a quasi-triple double. Among them, he made 14 of 13 free throws and made crazy kills, showing a strong impact. .

In 53 games, he averaged 20.6 points, 5.6 assists and 5.8 rebounds per game. If it weren't for Curry's outstanding performance, the Warriors would have remained in the playoff sequence. The best rookie of the season Definitely Evans.

After the game, Varejao underwent an injury check. The doctor told Zhang Yu that his hamstring muscle in his left thigh was slightly damaged and he was expected to be out for one to one and a half months.

This is very bad news for the Warriors. The team is at a critical moment in the playoffs. The team already lacks inside players. Only Chandler and Varejao have reached the starting level. Anthony Tolliver cannot Defense, Big Z is old and slow, Ronny Turiaf is too rough, Anthony Randolph is just a water cooler, unusable.

With Varejao's injury, Zhang Yu couldn't make up a balanced offensive and defensive inside combination. He could only count on Chandler to be a pillar, and he only played 3 games for the Warriors, and the degree of running-in with the team is far Not enough, and the opponent will definitely make a fuss about him deliberately.

Zhang Yu looked at the next schedule of the Warriors, smiled wryly and said to Ron Adams:

"Ron, I need you to help Tyson integrate into the team's defensive system as soon as possible. We can only rely on him."

Ron Adams nodded solemnly:

"Of course, but you know, our defense emphasizes tight rotations and high intensity pressure on the ball in local areas. Although Tyson is a very good defender, it takes a while to get used to it... unless you let He guards the pit, so there is no need to adjust at all.”

Zhang Yu thought for a while, then shook his head slowly but firmly:

"No, this is too much of a waste of Tyson's mobility, but I will choose the most appropriate defensive plan depending on the situation, as long as Anderson comes back... Our lineup is too unbalanced, even the second qualified insider The players couldn't find it."

Ron Adams comforted:

"One month will pass quickly, and Anthony can provide more space, we still have to play."

Zhang Yu smiled:
"Of course, I believe that such a small matter will not trouble the warrior!"

……

April 3, San Antonio, AT&T Center.

Zhang Yu crossed his arms around his chest, pacing back and forth on the sidelines, looking at the field with a livid face, anger rising in his heart, but he had nowhere to vent.

The game between the Warriors and the Spurs came to the end of the fourth quarter. The score on the big screen was 140:110. The Spurs led the Warriors by 30 points, and there were only 2 minutes before the end of the game. garbage time.

Beside him, Curry, Butler, Chandler and others sat on the bench with dejected looks on their faces.

After spending a quiet and long 2 minutes, the game finally ended. Relying on a few goals from the bench, the Warriors recovered some points and finally lost to the Spurs 117:141.

After the buzzer sounded to symbolize the end of the game, Zhang Yu didn't even shake hands with Popovich, and went straight to the player tunnel.

In desperation, Silas went to exchange a few words with Popovich. The Warriors didn't delay too much when they saw this. After greeting each other hastily, they returned to the locker room.

As soon as they entered the door, they saw Zhang Yu leaning against the wall, turning a marker in his right hand, watching them quietly.

When all the Warriors players returned to the locker room, Zhang Yu met their apprehensive eyes and suddenly said:
"What do you think of this game?"

Everyone looked at each other, but no one spoke. After a while, Curry said:

"We lost the game, played badly, I missed a lot of threes, I should have made more..."

He scored 27 points, but used up 24 shots, including only 14 of 4 three-pointers, and his efficiency was terrible.

And this is not the first time he has performed like this. After winning the Lakers and Kings, Curry suddenly seemed unable to play. The scoring average has dropped below 20 points, and the three-point shooting percentage has dropped to only 37.6%, which is not bad for others, but for Curry, it is already out of the sky.

"Sorry, boss, I played badly, I just couldn't make shots, and I don't know why." Butler said with some frustration.

He played 34 minutes, made 10 of 2 shots, 6 of 3 free throws, scored 8 points, and lost 4 fouls on the defensive end, with a shocking plus-minus value of -23.

And this is not the first time Butler has produced such statistics. In the past half a month or so, his performance has fluctuated, with three games per game, almost no scoring in double figures, and even a much lower free throw percentage. .

Chandler also spoke:

"I also played poorly and let the Spurs score a lot of points in our paint..."

Soon, other players began to reflect on their own mistakes, and each of them took the responsibility for the loss of the game on themselves.

Zhang Yu looked at the people who blamed himself, and his livid face gradually improved. After everyone finished speaking, his expression had returned to his usual gentleness, and he said in a deep voice:
"We lost so badly, it must be because we didn't play well enough. I'm glad that everyone can see their shortcomings, but the good news is that the Thunder also lost. Seventh, you are in a favorable position, you don’t have to take this loss to heart, go back and rest well, we still have 14 games to play.”

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, and Chandler took the lead in replying:
"Don't worry, coach, we will find ourselves. Tonight was just an accident. In the next game, I will definitely not let my opponent score easily at the basket again!"

After Chandler spoke, others responded one after another, and the atmosphere in the locker room became less dull, but Curry and Butler still looked a little gloomy.

Zhang Yu glanced at the two, then looked at Chandler:
"Tyson, you and I will go to the press conference today."

Tonight, Chandler was the best performer in the Warriors. He scored a double-double of 12 points and 13 rebounds. Old, and he is the only one in the Warriors who is struggling to support him, and he has tried his best.

When the two walked out of the locker room, Zhang Yu exhorted:
"Journalists will definitely ask some tough questions, don't be fooled."

Chandler nodded yes, and followed Zhang Yu to the venue.

After the two sat down, the reporters first asked Chandler questions. According to Zhang Yu's request, he answered perfectly. The reporters had no choice but to turn their attention to Zhang Yu:

"Coach Z, you lost to the Spurs tonight. In the past month, the Warriors played a total of 14 games with a record of 6 wins and 8 losses, and there were 3 big losses with a difference of more than 14 points. What do you think of the Warriors? What is the current situation?"

"Our condition is not very good, and we have lost some games that should not be lost." Zhang Yu replied with an unchanged expression.

"Can you tell me in detail who is not in good condition??" The reporter asked.

"The whole team has some problems." Zhang Yu said lightly.

"Really? Stephen Curry's data in this month is 19.5 points, 4.2 assists and 3.4 rebounds, shooting 42.3% from the field and 37.6% from the three-point range. Compared with before, there has been a comprehensive decline. May I ask why? ?”

"He's just a rookie and I think he's doing good enough right now, next question."

Another reporter asked:
"I noticed that Jimmy Butler's data has also dropped significantly compared to before the All-Star Game. Is this a coincidence, or is it due to other reasons?"

Zhang Yu still said lightly:

"They're just tired and need time to rest, they're not going to stay like this forever."

"Okay, so who do you think should bear the responsibility for the Warriors' loss?"

Zhang Yu said:

"We have been affected by some injuries. Kelanna and Anderson are important members of the team. Without them, our game will have a great impact. When they return, I believe the victory will come back to us around."

"So you're saying the Warriors lost because of injuries?"

"Yes."

"But the data show that Varejao and Azubuike didn't play a very important role in the Warriors. Curry is the core of this team, and his performance is so bad..." The reporter is still reluctant It's better to bring the topic to Curry.

Zhang Yu interrupted him:

"Steph is just a rookie, he's not even the No. [-] pick, he's been good enough."

"But as a core player of a team hitting the playoffs, does he need to be better?" The reporter said with emphasis.

"Believe me, he will be better, he just hit the rookie wall, when he recovers, no one wants to touch us!"

　Breaking my promise, there are still some Calvin...

　　
　
(End of this chapter)