Coach: Coaching the Grizzlies at the beginning, playing the bantam

Chapter 258 The final sprint of the regular season!

After the All-Star Game, everyone in the Knicks returned to New York and had a day off to play against the Brooklyn Nets away from home.

This is the first season that the Nets moved from New Jersey to Brooks. The location is only across the river from New York. There is almost no difference between the home and away games for fans, and it is very convenient to drive there.

Although the Knicks seemed to be playing away from home, most of the people around the arena were Knicks fans, making it difficult to distinguish between home and away.

The Nets failed to cause too much trouble for the Knicks in this game. Because star Deron Williams was poached by Lu Yong, the Nets' overall strength has dropped a lot this season.Even though the management has successively strengthened outstanding players such as Joe Johnson, Gerald Wallace, and Reggie Evans during the offseason, the record is still average, currently 23 wins and 26 losses, ranking only ninth in the Eastern Conference.

The Knicks' starting five showed off their power together, beating the Nets in just one quarter, and the point difference reached double digits early.

The Nets' more capable players, Joe Johnson and Brook Lopez, failed to take advantage. The former was closely entangled by the young Jimmy Butler and was ineffective, while the latter was completely locked up one-on-one by Tyson Chandler. Damn, he got slapped three times in a single quarter, with depression written all over his face.

Because of the huge disparity in strength, the Knicks simply widened the lineup in the second half and changed the lineup randomly. The main players left the game early to rest, and there was no suspense about the outcome.

On the 21st, the Knicks challenged the Cavaliers in back-to-back away games.

Because he was worried that veteran players would not be able to stand the intensive schedule and travel, Lu Yong rested Turkoglu this time.

Against the weak Cavaliers, the Knicks don't need their strongest lineup yet.

Even if Cavaliers star Irving is selected as an All-Star, the overall strength of this team is still very weak. If it weren't for the Bobcats and Magic teams competing to be first, the Cavaliers would be last in the Eastern Conference.

The result was as Lu Yong expected. With Turkoglu absent, the Knicks still beat their opponents 116 to 89.Anthony, Stoudemire, and Deron Williams teamed up to score 79 points, almost catching up with the Cavaliers' scoring, and the game entered garbage time early.

Irving performed poorly in this game. He was obsessed with individual singles and was targeted by the Knicks' defense. He only scored 16 points, 3 rebounds and 5 assists, and his shooting rate was less than 40%. It will take time to settle down before becoming a true team leader.

On the other hand, Deron Williams cooperated with his teammates, making it easier to score. He made 16 of 9 shots, 4 of 2 three-pointers, and 3 of 3 free throws. He contributed 23 points, 5 rebounds, 12 assists, and 2 steals.

Lu Yong sits on the sidelines and rarely calls timeouts. He believes that the players will solve the problem on their own. This is a kind of trust and confidence in the Knicks' strong strength.

Anthony star did not take a nap after the game. After scoring 34 points against the Nets last night, tonight he scored 30+ again against Alonzo Key's defense. He made 23 of 12 shots from the field, 7 of 3 three-pointers, and free throws. 8 of 8, 35 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 1 steal, firmly occupying the top spot in the scoring list.

The Cavaliers are in urgent need of an experienced star to join them. It is difficult for the young Irving alone to regain his glory. This is the most intuitive evaluation of the Cavaliers from the outside world.

On a day off, the Knicks lost to the Jazz away from home, 103-107, and their offense was completely misfired.

The key to the Jazz's victory was defense. They defended a total of 4 types of zone defense to limit the Knicks' offense. They just used the most brainless way to bring down the Knicks' offense.

爵士球星保罗-米尔萨普一对一防住了斯塔德迈尔，出战41分钟，18投10中，罚球6中5，得到25分13篮板2助攻3抢断1盖帽，填满数据栏。

他对小霸王的防守作用明显，后者16投5中，罚球5中3，只得13分7篮板1助攻，还有3次失误。

Stoudemire's biggest headache is players like Millsap, who is short and strong, and moves at critical speeds very quickly. He can always get close to him in time after going around the screen, making him unable to exert his full power on air cuts, and his scoring efficiency drops sharply.

Jazz's Al Jefferson, Hayward, and Mo Williams all scored in double figures. They performed stably on both offense and defense, and successfully maintained their advantage until the end.

In fact, the Jazz's lineup this season is quite deep, but on paper they lack superstars who can make the final decision at critical moments, so their record is mediocre. They are still sprinting for playoff tickets and are expected to eventually rank 7-9 in the Western Conference.

Now that there are still two months until the end of the regular season, the Jazz still have a chance to improve and compete with the Rockets for the last ticket to the playoffs.

After losing to the Jazz, the Knicks suffered their ninth loss of the season, with a total record of 9 wins and 42 losses, ranking first in the league.

There are 31 games left in the regular season. As long as the main players are not injured, everyone believes that the Knicks can achieve a guaranteed result of 65 wins and maintain the league's first position.

The Knicks are still expected to hit 70 wins. Although the chance is slim, it is not impossible in theory. This has made the media pay attention to Lu Yong and want to see how high he can take the Knicks.

Even more bored fans are analyzing online and feel that the Knicks will win a lot of honors this year, including regular season MVP, and usher in a bumper harvest.

Among other things, regular season MVP Anthony, Best Sixth Man JR Smith, and Best Defensive Player Tyson Chandler, all Knicks players are leading the way in these awards.In addition, Lu Yong is also the frontrunner for the best coach. What limits him from winning is never his opponents, but whether the league allows him to win the best coach for three consecutive years. As long as there is fair competition, no coach can shake Lu Yong's achievements this year.

"Lou is simply the son of God! His existence is to create miracles. If he wins again this year, this record will be forever buried in history and cannot be broken in the future!"

"The Knicks barely made it to the playoffs last year, but Lu Shuai turned them into a championship team just one season after taking over. Apart from miracle, I really don't know what other words to use to describe it."

"If the Knicks win the championship this season, I suggest Lu Shuai retire and give other coaches in the league a way to survive. What a beast!"

Not only fans, but even experts find it incredible that Lu Yong has turned a weak team into a championship team more than once, which in itself is a symbol of strength.

From the fans' point of view, Lu Yong is already the number one coach in the league, and his lack of qualifications will not limit his ability to rise to the top in one step.

Time has come to mid-February, and the league's trade deadline is approaching. Teams that want to seize the opportunity to hit the playoffs are seizing the last opportunity to strengthen.

The management of the Rockets, currently ranked eighth in the Western Conference, is the most active. At the end of February, it completed a seven-person transaction with the Kings and Suns.

In the deal just completed between the Rockets and Kings, the Kings traded power forward Thomas Robinson, small forward Francisco Garcia, small forward Tyler Honeycutt and a future second-round pick to the Houston Rockets. The trading chips are Patrick Patterson, Cole Aldridge and Tony Douglas, as well as some cash.

In another deal, the Rockets traded Marcus Morris to the Phoenix Suns in exchange for a future second-round pick.After Morris joins the Suns, he will have the opportunity to play alongside his brother Markieff Morris.

In addition, the Eastern Conference powerhouse Heat also made a reinforcement. They signed Rockets discard Josh Harrelson, but the Miamians did not disclose the details of the contract.After the two parties officially signed the contract, Harrelson immediately expressed his excitement on Twitter.Interestingly, he imitated LeBron James' tone when he joined the Heat in the summer of 2010, writing on Weibo: "I want to bring my talents to the South Coast! Heat, let's move forward together!"

Last season, Harrelson played 37 games for the Rockets, averaging 14.6 minutes per game, 4.4 points and 3.9 rebounds, and shooting 33.9% from three-point range.This summer, he was waived by the Rockets after playing two summer league games on behalf of the Rockets until he was signed by the Heat not long ago.

Despite his average reputation, Harrelson is a rebounding expert who is good at participating in fast breaks.Last season, he, Kevin Love and Ilyasova were the only players in the league to average 36 rebounds per 9 minutes and hit at least one three-pointer.

In fact, the Heat's first target to strengthen the fifth position is "Birdman" Anderson or veteran Okur. However, due to salary space constraints, the Heat can only offer these two people minimum-salary contracts, but they were rejected by both of them. .

In desperation, the Heat could only settle for the next best thing, signing Harrelson as a "spare tire" at the juncture when Joel Anthony was accidentally injured, striving to compete with the New York Knicks for the Eastern Conference championship.

The Miami Sports Express even used an entire article to brag about Harrelson’s strength and his wonderful resume from high school to college to the NBA. Those who didn’t know better thought that this guy was a star, but it was not true. Harrelson is a fringe player in the league. If the Heat don't sign him, the media won't even bother to take the time to study his past, let alone make the news.

After seeing the news about Harrelson being trumped by the Miami media, Lu Yong scoffed.

In order to confront the Knicks in public opinion, the Heat management has no shame. This kind of marketing method is not clever at all, it is just self-deception.

The Knicks did not make any moves before the trade deadline, and Lu Yong is very satisfied with the team's current lineup.

Even if veterans Kidd, Kenyon Martin and Oden don't have many opportunities to play, as the team's third rotation, they are already strong enough, and there are no good candidates to reinforce them, so it is better to remain unchanged.

In addition, the Knicks' biggest recent move is to invite the team's famous Ewing as a consultant, responsible for one-on-one coaching of Stoudemire, Chandler, and McGee.

The so-called consultant is actually a false name. He does not participate in management decision-making or team tactics. His job is to teach players techniques.

It doesn't actually matter whether it has any effect, because Ewing's return to the team as a consultant is more about the management's determination to win the championship and enhance the cohesion of the fans.

What the Knicks did was a mockery of the Heat's management. It's disgraceful that even a big deal is hyped in the news.

Lu Yong himself has no objection to this. As long as the management does not interfere with the team's construction, other things do not matter.

With the support of James Dolan, the Knicks will definitely not suffer.

The Knicks defeated the Warriors and Celtics in the last two games of February and continued to lead the Eastern Conference.

Entering March, the Knicks lost their first game again, losing to their old rival Spurs 107-112 away from home.

However, losing was not the worst part. "Little Bully" Stoudemire accidentally sprained his ankle when he landed while assisting in blocking a shot. He left the game midway to undergo examination by the team doctor.

He played only 18 minutes in the game and scored 12 points, 5 rebounds and 1 block.

Stoudemire's injury made Lu Yong feel nervous. What he fears most is injuries. Seeing that the regular season has entered the final sprint, he does not want the team to stage a tragedy.

Fortunately, the news from the team doctor made the coaching staff breathe a sigh of relief. After an MRI examination, it was found that Stoudemire's ankle injury was not too serious and he is expected to be able to return to training after being absent for two weeks.

For Lu Yong, this is definitely a blessing in misfortune. There are only 7-8 games in two weeks. The Knicks can afford to wait. As long as the playoffs are not delayed, everything is a minor problem.

安东尼这场火力全开，26投13中，三分球8中4，罚球7中7，砍下37分8篮板5助攻1抢断。

Unfortunately, the Knicks' internal strength was damaged and there were gaps in their regular tactics, and they eventually lost the game away from home.

The Spurs' offensive points are relatively scattered. A total of 7 players on the team scored in double figures. They performed team basketball to the fullest and are the Knicks' biggest opponent for winning the championship this year.

蒂姆-邓肯打了36分钟，16投9中，罚球5中5，得到23分9篮板4助攻1抢断2盖帽，托尼-帕克18分3篮板7助攻、吉诺比利21分3篮板3助攻2抢断，就连莱昂纳德也有16分8篮板入账，比去年成熟不少。

After the loss, people were still optimistic about the Knicks. This was only their 10th defeat, so it was harmless.

Although Stoudemire's absence due to injury will somewhat affect the Knicks' offensive firepower, Lu Yong still plans to let him recuperate and come back quickly, and does not want to take risks.

He knows better than anyone that Stoudemire's body has become more and more fragile in the past two years. He must take every slightest sign of trouble seriously and cannot take it lightly.

In Lu Yong's previous life, Stoudemire suffered constant injuries in the latter part of his career. Especially after joining the Knicks, his attendance rate was less than 50 games in three seasons and less than 40 games in two seasons. He retired due to injury not long after and had to go to the CBA League. Make a living.

Now, Stoudemire is out for 2-3 weeks due to injury, and the Knicks can still lock in the playoffs.

In the face of the absolute advantage, Lu Yong naturally does not want to let Stoudemire take risks. Only if he returns his physical condition to its peak can the playoffs truly target the championship!
On March 3, the Knicks narrowly defeated the Pacers 3-109 at home to avoid a losing streak.

At the press conference, Lu Yong praised the Pacers players for their iron-bloodedness and resilience, saying that the Pacers are a major rival for the Knicks to break out of the Eastern Conference.

The reason why the Pacers are affirmed is that their defense is very tough but not dirty, and the star Paul George also played an excellent performance. This kind of opponent deserves praise.

The Pacers once led the Knicks by 11 points in this game. Unfortunately, the Pacers' offense lost power at the critical moment and made 8 of 0 three-pointers in the final quarter. This gave the Knicks a chance to come back.

安东尼成为了赢球关键，23中12，三分5中2，罚球11中10，砍下36分8篮板4助攻2抢断1盖帽的全面数据。

　We have guests at home, let’s cook. If you don’t drink too much, there will be another chapter in the evening. If you drink too much, it will be tomorrow...

　　
　
(End of this chapter)