warrior godfather

Chapter 754
When a team loses, whatever is said is wrong.

Zhang Yu told the truth, for the Warriors, the regular season is of little significance, only the playoffs are the most important. Putting too much energy into it.

The NBA's long 82-game regular season was originally set up to maximize broadcast and advertising benefits, and the playoffs are the real arena.

However, it can be said that Zhang Yu wins the game, and it can be said that he loses the game, that is, he is outputting against the wind.

Turn-based games are not just for fans, the coaches are also turn-based. The loser can only lie flat and let himself be ridiculed without any right to speak. Those who dare to defend themselves will only get more ridicule and accusations.

Whether it was true or false, the media took Zhang Yu's remarks as an excuse to lose, and the criticism and accusations doubled.

Of course, the Rockets fans will not let go of this opportunity, taunting across regions, and want to avenge all the losses to the Warriors in the playoffs in the past few years.

The Rockets sprinted all out this season, with a full rotation and frequent injuries. Paul, Capela, Mbah a Moute, Harden, Onuaku, and Ariza all suffered injuries to varying degrees, and the lineup has never been neat.

But even under such circumstances, the Rockets can still rank among the top two in the Western Conference. After winning this game, the Warriors rose to No. [-] in the Western Conference, giving fans great confidence and confidence.

Fans of other teams also ridiculed the Warriors in every possible way. Do you still expect leftovers to win?

Except for Cole's long rotation, the other teams have short rotations and sprint with all their strength.

This season's competition is too fierce, the stars are grouped together, more than a dozen All-Stars gather in five or six teams, if they can get a higher ranking, they can avoid strong enemies in advance.

No one wants to fight in the second round, worrying that the consumption will be too much, and even if they win, they will make wedding dresses for others.

So no one believed Zhang Yu's words, they were all cautious, how could Zhang Yu be so bold, who gave him the courage?

The Warriors' lineup is not as good as them!
The warrior who had just won [-] consecutive victories just suffered a defeat, and was thrown into hell, as if he would sink forever.

This is the NBA. The shelf life of victory is very short. Only by winning all the time can you win respect. As long as you lose, you have to prove yourself again.

This is especially serious for the Warriors. The Warriors are a thorn in the side and a thorn in the flesh of other teams. They don’t want the Warriors to die all the time. As long as the Warriors show any signs of decline, they will surround them like a group of hyenas, tearing off pieces of flesh and blood.

After losing to the Rockets, Zhang Yu continued to implement long rotations, strictly controlled Curry's time, and even made some substitutions. Even if the Warriors trailed by more than ten points, Curry would not be allowed to return to the court early.

Fortunately, Antetokounmpo soon returned from injury. The Warriors' record was not greatly affected, but they lost another game to the Nuggets, and then achieved a wave of three consecutive victories, stabilizing the second place in the Western Conference. ranking, maintaining the pressure on the Rockets.

The Warriors’ public opinion environment has also improved a lot. After Antetokounmpo came back, the Warriors’ inside defense also returned. After half a season of training, Looney and Zhou Qi have also grown a lot. bigger and bigger.

On January 1th, the Warriors challenged the Cavaliers away and won another big victory. Curry scored 15 points and 36 assists, and Bogdan returned from injury
On January 1, the Warriors defeated the Rockets 17:117 at home. Harden missed the game due to a left hamstring injury. Curry scored 104 points and 31 assists, overtaking Harden on the scoring list and rising to the first place.

After revenge against the Rockets, the Warriors once again achieved four consecutive victories, surpassed the Rockets in record, and returned to No. [-] in the Western Conference. It seems that everything is moving in a good direction.

The outside world's doubts about the Warriors died down, and the consecutive victories brought the Warriors back to the commanding heights of public opinion.

But then, the Warriors ushered in a wave of six consecutive away games, and they needed to challenge the Thunder, Bulls, Celtics, 76ers and other strong teams.

These teams are all ranked in the top four teams in the division. The top three are the favorites to win the championship. The 76ers are rising strongly and competing with the Raptors for home court advantage in the first round of the playoffs. They currently lead the Raptors by 0.5 games. Ranked fourth in the Eastern Conference.

The Warriors have to fight against strong enemies, and they have to challenge the 76ers and Celtics back to back. They only have one day off before they have to face the Bulls. The schedule is extremely difficult.

On January 1, the first stop of the Warriors came to Minnesota and beat the Timberwolves 20:123. Curry scored 102 points and scored the 33th consecutive 4+ game and the 30th 15+ game this season.

On January 1, the Warriors came to Oklahoma for the second stop. After a fierce battle, they lost the game 23:105.

Anthony gradually passed the pain at the beginning of the season, gradually integrated into the team, accepted the decline of the tactical low position, and no longer pursued the status of a superstar. The power of the Thunder's Big Four gradually manifested.

Westbrook's impact is extremely strong, Gobert and Grant are perfectly matched, one is still and one is moving, one is protecting the frame and sweeping, the inside advantage is great, just restraining the Warriors.

Zhang Yu also insisted on long rotations, and did not kill the main players due to the disadvantages of the situation. As a result, the Warriors were overtaken by the Thunder, who were the main players, at the beginning of the most critical fourth quarter, and finally regretted losing.

The only good news is that Curry scored 35 points, and the consecutive 30+ games were not interrupted.

Antetokounmpo was a little embarrassed by the combination of Gobert and Grant, but he also scored a double-double of 18 points and 11 rebounds, and sent 3 blocks.

No matter how targeted the opponent's defense is, he can score steadily, which is the most important sign of a superstar.

And Antetokounmpo's playing time is even less than Curry, only 32 minutes. If the time is longer, he will score more.Zhang Yu pays great attention to protecting Antetokounmpo's health. Curry is in a 12-6-12-6 rotation mode. He can output at full capacity in two quarters. Antetokounmpo's playing time is cut into pieces. It is a 6-3-3-4-6-3-3-4 pattern, that is, play 6 minutes in the first quarter, go down to rest for 3 minutes, come up and play for 3 minutes, start the second quarter, play with a substitute, go down to rest after 3 minutes , Play again until the last 4 minutes, finish the second quarter, and do it again in the second half.

The internal consumption is already high, and Antetokounmpo is the core of the Warriors' internal defense, taking into account the protection of the frame and sweeping, which consumes a lot of energy. Longer rest periods are necessary to reduce the risk of injury.

The Thunder also took advantage of the time period when Antetokounmpo and Curry were both off the court to establish a lead. When the Warriors' starting lineup was on the court, the Thunder lost points, but the lead was large enough to fail. Reversed by the Warriors.

After the game, people were very puzzled by Zhang Yu's rigid rotation method. If Curry and Antetokounmpo played for a while, the Warriors might have won.

But there are also people who understand Zhang Yu's approach. Jeff Van Gundy said:
"The Warriors will not use their full strength in the regular season. Coach Z will continue to implement the long-rotation strategy and strictly limit the playing time of Curry and Antetokounmpo. For this reason, he would rather sacrifice the record and reduce the risk of injury."

"This is a risk. Home court advantage is very important in the playoffs, and controlling the playing time of the main lineup may not necessarily prevent injuries. Therefore, other strong teams strive for the best record and do not consider illusory injuries. sick."

"The biggest dilemma for the Warriors is their weak lineup and poor defense inside. They only rely on Curry and Antetokounmpo to support them, so they have to do this. Others can be absent, but the Warriors can't afford the result of the two superstars being injured. , Coach Z controls the time so strictly, even to the point of rigidity, because he can't let go of the restrictions for a certain game, otherwise there will inevitably be a second or third game..."

Stephen A. Smith also said:

"I understand Coach Z's choice, but I'm still a little disappointed. This is not the Warriors who dominated the league. In the past, the Warriors could easily get the first place in the league. They swept all the way to win the playoffs. No one is the Warriors' opponent. , They don't need to save energy for the playoffs."

"The current Warriors have many weaknesses. They are still ranked second in the league, but they are only 1 game ahead of the Thunder, and they are about to face several very strong opponents. The Warriors should not trade Leonard and Green. If they hadn't left, the Warriors wouldn't be in such a mess, Coach Z is using one mistake to make up for another..."

They understand Zhang Yu, but they are not optimistic about Zhang Yu's choice, and Warriors fans have also begun to turn over old accounts during the offseason.

The Warriors' problem stems from the relegation of the lineup, which could have been avoided, but Zhang Yu took the initiative to dismantle the Dynasty lineup. The current difficult situation of the Warriors is all caused by Zhang Yu.

Even the Huaxia fans who supported Zhang Yu the most joined the ranks, and even scolded the worst, just like scolding Wang Zhizhi, Liu Xiang, and Yi Jianlian back then.

They can't tolerate failure at all, and they don't have the patience to wait another quarter of an hour. They have zero tolerance for losers, especially for Chinese people.

If Zhang Yu was not from Huaxia, they would be more tolerant, but when facing their compatriots, their requirements are a hundred times stricter, and anyone who disagrees will be cursed.

But Zhang Yu still goes her own way, insists on a long rotation, and will never extend the playing time of Curry and Antetokounmpo because of the outcome of a game.

Do the Warriors' role players still need to be tempered? Only Wiggins and Bogdan can support the offense, but they can only play supporting roles, but not the protagonists.

After the Warriors lost to the Thunder, they took the Knicks lightly, and then fought hard to win the 76ers and get two consecutive victories.

Embiid and Simmons are not afraid of tigers when they are newborn calves. They kill the ball when they get it. It is very reckless but very effective. Looney left the field with six fouls in the third quarter. Antetokounmpo scored 38 points. Wiggins received a pass from Curry in the last 24 seconds and made a key three-pointer. The Warriors narrowly beat the 13.5ers 114:111.

On January 1, the Warriors challenged the Celtics back-to-back, and Zhang Yu directly rested Curry and Antetokounmpo.

The Warriors faced the Celtics who were waiting in full battle, and lost the game without a surprise.

The Celtics double-killed the Warriors in the regular season. Durant fans were elated, and the Warriors fans fell into a disadvantage in the online matchup. They were embarrassed and turned their heads to vent their anger on Zhang Yu.

The league also divides the Warriors' behavior of resting healthy players in live broadcasts across the United States by dividing it by a fine of 10 US dollars. This is a new regulation just passed last summer, in order to limit more and more rotations.

Zhang Yu clearly violated this rule, and of course the alliance will not be relentless.

But Zhang Yu did not show any weakness. When the Warriors came to Chicago to participate in the pre-game interview, the reporter asked him his opinion on the league's punishment. Zhang Yu solemnly protested:
"The rest was not my intention, because the league arranged a back-to-back schedule. After the game against the 76ers, Stephen and Giannis were exhausted and could only carry out the necessary load management."

"I don't know why the league let us challenge two strong teams at the same time, maybe they didn't expect the 76ers to be ranked fourth in the East, but anyway, this is a scheduling error, I can't risk players getting hurt risk, just to have them play a nationally televised game."

"Of course, the Warriors will not fight against the rules of the league. I will pay a fine of $10. Tomorrow's game against the Bulls, Stephen and Giannis will also play normally. I am looking forward to the matchup with Brad. Defeated and returned home!"

(End of this chapter)