How much influence the head coach has on a team has always been a topic of discussion among many sports critics.
Wilkens, a coach with a thousand wins, has achieved far more in the NBA than Jeff Van Gundy, but the Hawks were suppressed by the Knicks.
After the end of Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, the sports media did not discuss the players' data, but instead began to discuss the coach's issues.
Since the Knicks rotated 9 players and no player played for more than 30 minutes, the bald young coach was praised to the sky again:
"The champion coach who is getting better!"
"Head coach Van Gundy has surpassed Pat Riley!"
On the morning of the 18th, many sports columns in New York newspapers were all articles praising Jeff Van Gundy's proper tactics and his victory over Wilkens.
Of course, the New York media did not forget to mock the Lakers who lost:
"The real MVP will not be restricted in the playoffs!"
81:87, in the game played simultaneously last night, the Lakers were restricted by the Spurs' twin towers.
In the game strategy of David Robinson's top defense and Tim Duncan's assist defense, O'Neal made 6 of 19 shots and 9 of 14 free throws, and scored 21 points, 15 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block and 2 turnovers.
Facts have proved that the Sharks are also confused when facing assist defense and double-teaming.
Most players are not good at one-on-two.
In this year's playoffs, all Eastern teams chose to delay Lee.
After the pick-and-roll, most of them were double-teamed.
Lee's response was to pass the ball.
O'Neal was different.
Facing the Spurs' twin towers, the Sharks chose to go head-to-head, and the Lakers were knocked down.
Rookie coach Popovich also received unanimous praise from the commentators after the game.
Van Gundy in the East and Popovich in the West became the biggest winners among the playoff coaches!
After the big win over the Hawks, Lee, who won the MVP, treated everyone to a party exclusively for the players.
Steve Kaplan is a loyal fan of the Knicks.
After a group of girls were airlifted, the Knicks were very excited.
On May 18, the NBA announced the best rookie of the 98-99 season:
Vince Carter of the Raptors won the award without any suspense.
There were only three nominees.
Jason Williams of the Kings and Paul Pierce of the Celtics were both just there to watch.
In the 10 a.m. video class, Ewing and Oakley were absent.
The old guys played overtime and their bodies couldn't stand it.
Larry Johnson was yawning, but Lee was refreshed.
"We also need to speed up the ball transfer, and attract double-teaming in the local two-on-two situation. Once the opponent helps defend again, there will definitely be opportunities on the other side."
"Always observe the position of teammates and quickly pass the ball to the open space!"
Jeff Van Gundy didn't care about the absence of the two veterans.
After watching the video, he gestured on the whiteboard.
Alan Houston nodded seriously.
This season, he has increased the number of three-point shots in the bottom corner.
The bottom corners on both sides can open up space and are also the best shooting positions.
As a shooter, the bottom corner three pointer is also his sweet spot since he was a child.
The Knicks' video class actually does not have much new content.
The coaching staff spends most of the time repeating precautions and repeatedly emphasizing some tactical coordination in a brainwashing way.
Sitting in his seat, Rashard Lewis listened carefully.
He is also good at bottom corner three-pointers, but he is not good at protecting rebounds and defending inside.
Jeff Van Gundy inherited most of Pat Riley's tactical concepts and is essentially still a defensive coach.
Therefore, Lewis, who focuses on offense and defense, can't even get too much playing time this season.
After the morning video class ended, Larry Johnson noticed that the two veterans still did not appear, and immediately teased:
"I guarantee that they must have been sucked dry last night!"
Facing a professional female fairy, ordinary people really can't stand it.
Everyone smiled ambiguously.
The overtime game was indeed exciting.
The incident at the beginning of the month gradually subsided, and Lee also resumed interviews.
During the lunch break, the media who came to the Tallydun Training Center would also chat with him.
Players can choose to pack up the food prepared by the chef and drive home for lunch, or they can have lunch on the spot and have a meal at the training center.
"If we make it to the finals, our opponent will most likely be the Lakers."
"I like the Spurs, their outside players are not very good, and Lee likes to play against small guards."
"But we can't limit Tim Duncan and David Robinson. The worst thing is that we didn't even play against them in the regular season."
"Why is no one optimistic about the Trail Blazers? They also swept their opponents in the first round!"
"."
The visiting reporters had a media meal and chatted non-stop.
Today, Clay Lee and Alan Houston chose to have lunch at the training center.
Everyone was also chatting while eating:
"Alan, you will be selected for the best team this year, and you don't have to worry about the next contract!"
Since the league is about to announce the list of the best team this season, Larry Johnson knows that he will not be selected, so he can only send his blessings at this time.
After the end of this season, James Dolan will officially take over the team.
Old Charles has revealed the news not long ago.
Considering that New York has no shortage of money, Alan Houston is in a good mood.
With a championship, the US dollar is even more important!
"Lee is the most unlucky. He has the opportunity to get a maximum salary like Garnett. This time the labor-management agreement has lost a lot."
Lee curled his lips helplessly when he heard Alan Houston's words:
"There is really not much room for bargaining. We can only make up for it in other conditions."
"How about a large endorsement contract!"
"Why not change to a better private jet so that we can enjoy it too." "
".."
In the Eastern Conference semifinals that night, the Pacers defeated the Bucks 88:110!
The Pacers were already leading by 14 points at halftime, and the Bucks were crushed by their opponents throughout the game.
Rookie coach Larry Bird easily defeated the famous coach George Karl.
This situation made many media follow and shout:
"Old coaches can't keep up with the times!"
Considering that Chuck Daly and Pat Riley were eliminated in the first round this year, this view was recognized by many fans.
On May 19, the NBA announced the best rookie team of the season again:
The first team of five players are:
Mike Bibby, Vince Carter, Matt Harpring, Paul Pierce, Jason Williams;
The second team of five players are:
Michael Dickson, Michael Doleac, Antoine Jamison, Cutino Mobley, Michael Ogwokandi.
The No. 1 pick fell to the second team, and the Clippers were ridiculed again.
That night, the Knicks also ushered in the Eastern Conference semifinals Game 2.
With Ewing and Oakley in poor form, the Hawks gave another big gift.
In the whole game, Mookie Blaylock made 7 of 20 shots and Steve Smith made 2 of 16 shots.
The two players' sleepwalking performance really amused New York fans.
On the Knicks side, Lee, Alan Houston and Sprewell scored more than 20 points and easily won the game.
72:102, the Knicks beat their opponents at home, and the series score came to 2:0.
After the game, feeling the joyful atmosphere in Madison Square Garden, head coach Wilkens' face turned black.
He could naturally see that the Knicks were in average condition, and Ewing and Oakley were slow to react on the defensive end, but the team still lost so much.
Many tactics were arranged before the game, but the players were unable to shoot and could not get the ball into the basket, so no matter how good the tactics were, they were useless.
In the simultaneous game, the Spurs narrowly defeated the Lakers 76:79.
When O'Neal was double-teamed, Kobe Bryant stood up again.
He played 47 minutes, 12 of 25 shots, and scored a game-high 28 points!
However, Kobe made 12 turnovers in two games, and his weakness of lack of game experience was still exposed.
O'Neal was silent at this time, and no longer shouted "I am the better one".
In terms of statistics, the Shark was suppressed by the rookie Duncan, and his big mouth was completely shut!
On May 20, the NBA announced the best defensive team of this season:
The six players in the first team were:
Tim Duncan, Jason Kidd, Alonzo Mourning, Gary Payton, Karl Malone, Scottie Pippen;
The five players in the second team were:
Mookie Blaylock, PJ Brown, Eddie Jones, Dikembe Mutombo, Theo Ratliff.
After the results of the selection were announced, New York fans were delighted.
The 76ers had one player selected and the Hawks had two players selected.
As a result, the two teams were suppressed by the Knicks and had no chance to fight back, which made everyone laugh.
The good news is that the losing Hawks will have two days of rest after returning to Atlanta.
The bad news is that after the rest, the two sides will have a back-to-back game.
On the morning of the 21st, the NBA announced the best lineup of this season:
The first lineup of five players are:
Clay Lee, Allen Iverson, Karl Malone, Tim Duncan, Alonzo Mourning;
The second lineup of five players are:
Gary Payton, Alan Houston, Grant Hill, Chris Webber, Shaquille O'Neal;
The third lineup of five players are:
Tim Hardaway, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett, Antonio McDyess, Patrick Ewing.
After the best lineup was announced, the New York media climaxed again and loaned the championship neatly!
The Los Angeles reporter wanted to interview O'Neal as soon as possible, but was rejected by the team on the grounds that the team was preparing for the home game.
Chamberlain II only got the second team of the best players, and the shark became a laughing stock for a while.
On the evening of the 22nd, O'Neal, who got the anger buff again, failed to respond.
103:91, the away Spurs successfully got the match point, ending the suspense of the series.
People are in high spirits when they are happy.
Tim Duncan made 9 of 19 shots and 19 of 23 free throws, and scored 37 points, 14 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, 1 block and 4 turnovers!
With the help of his big brother, rookie Duncan completely blew up the Lakers' inside line.
8 of 14 shots, 22 points and 15 rebounds, O'Neal, who got a double-double, did not accept an interview after the game.
On the evening of the 23rd, in a back-to-back game, 118:107, the Spurs sent the Lakers fishing!
In the simultaneous game, 98:78, the Knicks also defeated the Hawks again.
In the back-to-back game on the second day, the fans of the Hawks were even more stunned!
100:66, Wilkens, the thousand-win coach, also went fishing with the veteran coaches.
In the Eastern Conference semifinals, Lee's playing time did not exceed 30 minutes, and he clocked in for all three quarters.
Since the Pacers also swept the Bucks at the same time, head coach George Karl also went home, and the veteran coaches are now only Mike Dunleavy and Jerry Sloan.
On May 27, 80:92, the score was 4:2, the Trail Blazers successfully entered the Western Conference Finals, and Jerry Sloan went home to fish!
So far, there are three rookie coaches in the Eastern and Western Conference Finals.
For a while, the commentators followed and made a fuss:
"The new era of head coaches has arrived!"
In the morning training session on the 28th, Jeff Van Gundy smiled confidently throughout the whole process, hanging up on the side, watching the assistant coach greet the players to practice routines.
Lee looked at the mysterious confidence of the bald young coach, and was speechless for a while.
[Karl Malone's extraordinary physique] has turned golden, which is the biggest gain from the shortened season so far.
Lee noticed that Ewing kept moving his left foot.
After the training session, he asked immediately:
"Pat, how does your left foot feel?"
Noticing that everyone was looking at him, Ewing showed a relaxed expression and said confidently:
"No big problem, it was just a slight sprain before, and it has recovered in the past few days."
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