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

Chapter 308 Refrigerated Anthony!The regular season is over!The playoffs continue to be cold!
In the second half of the regular season, Lu Yong took advantage of this momentum to completely show his fangs.

Regardless of the management's objections, Anthony was given the starting job and kicked out of the rotation.

Two months was enough time for the Knicks to complete a new run-in. Lu Yong created a new offensive system with Jokic as the core, and finished the regular season with a lineup without Anthony.

On the 18th, the regular season officially ended as the Knicks defeated the Bucks 116-102 at home.

Anthony missed the last two months of the game and was just sitting on the bench at first. Later, Lu Yong simply put him on the injured list, out of sight but out of mind.

This season, Anthony averaged 32.1 minutes per game and could only score 20 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists. He shot 39.7% from the field and 32.6% from the three-point range, which was extremely inefficient.

Regarding Lu Yong's abandonment of Anthony in the second half, only a small number of idiot fans loudly protested online. The New York fans who actually came to watch the game all acquiesced to this seemingly heartless fact.

The reason is simple. Lu Yong led the Knicks without Anthony to play very well, and the offensive fluidity was obviously smoother than when Anthony was on the court.

Since the game can be won without Anthony, New York fans naturally have no objection.

The regular season rankings are determined. The Western Conference Warriors rank first in the league with 63 wins, and the Spurs rank second with 62 wins.

As the third team to win more than 60 games, the Knicks finally handed over 61 wins and 21 losses, ranking first in the Eastern Conference and third in the league.

The Celtics ranked second in the division, with 53 wins and 29 losses in the regular season, which was quite an upset.

The Knicks saw internal strife in the middle of the season, and the Cavaliers, who threatened to compete for the championship, only ranked third, with 52 wins and 30 losses.

4-8 are the Hawks, Wizards, Raptors, Bucks, and Pacers.

The Bulls led by Rose only ranked ninth. The butterfly effect instigated by Lu Yong prevented him from being traded to the Knicks and he still remains with the Bulls.

After returning from injury this season, Rose is still struggling. His average of 17 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists per game seems good, but he only got it back with 15 shots. His three-point shooting rate is less than 30%, which is already very low. It's hard to get back to your peak state.

The Miami Heat are also quite unlucky. The team's record is only one win away from the Pacers, who are ranked eighth in the Eastern Conference, ranking tenth.

The disintegration of the Big Three has brought the Heat into a new era, but now it seems that it will be difficult for the Heat to return to the championship ranks, at least in the next few years.

Ranked 11-15 are the Pistons, Hornets, Magic, 76ers and Nets.

On the Western side, the Houston Rockets ranked third with 55 wins and 27 losses. The Clippers, Jazz, SuperSonics, Grizzlies, and Trail Blazers ranked 4-8.

The Rockets' record has improved a lot this season. After running and gun master D'Antoni took over as coach, the Rockets' offensive firepower has significantly improved to a higher level.

Although no one in the outside world is optimistic about the Rockets winning the championship, the Rockets thugs headed by Harden should not be underestimated. They are a force that is disrupting the situation in the West.

The most surprising team in the Western Conference this year is the Jazz. Not only did they make the playoffs, they also climbed to fifth place in the conference.

Jazz boss Gordon Hayward is not a top star, but he did play well this year. Coupled with the growth of core center Gobert, Snyder finally began to realize the potential of this Jazz team.

This is the first time Snyder has led the team to the playoffs after leaving Lu Yong. His coaching level is showing, and the Jazz will be a regular in the playoffs under his hands in the next few years.

The biggest unpopular team in the Western Conference is the Mavericks who added Barnes.

Last season, the team ranked sixth in the Western Conference. After strengthening the lineup this year, they did not even make the playoffs and only ranked 11th.

Nowitzki's competitive form is getting worse and worse. This season's personal data has dropped to 14 points, 6 rebounds and 1 assist, and his shooting percentage is only 43.7%.

King Nuo is one step closer to retiring. In at most two years, he will follow in the footsteps of his old rival Tim Duncan and give up performance opportunities to young people.

The Lakers are finally no longer at the bottom of the Western Conference this year, with 26 wins and 56 losses, slightly higher than the Suns, ranking second to last.

It's hard to believe that after Kobe retired, Lou Williams became the team's scoring leader, averaging 18 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 steal per game.

The former Purple and Gold Dynasty has lost its halo and has become one of the league's most hip teams.

In various data lists, Westbrook averaged 30.6 points per game and became the scoring leader.

Although Durant did not join the Warriors, he only played 26 games this season before suffering an Achilles tendon injury.

For most of the regular season, Westbrook led the team with a single core and performed the best performance of his career.

Drummond, the second-best player in the league, is still very weak. He averaged 13.8 rebounds per game but lost to Whiteside, who averaged 14.1 rebounds per game and was elected as the rebounding leader.

Harden of the Rockets leads the league in assists with 11.2 assists per game, while Jimmy Butler of the Knicks leads the league in steals with 2.2.

The shot-blocking leader has also changed. Jazz center Gobert averaged 2.6 blocks per game, defeating Davis and being elected for the first time in his career.

Before the playoffs started, the New York media broke a piece of news.

Anthony's name was not included in the playoff list submitted by Lu Yong to the league.

Although Lu Yong put Anthony into the cold palace as early as the regular season, the outside world speculated that the two were only temporarily at odds.

With the arrival of the playoffs, the management will definitely come forward to mediate and persuade Lu Yong and Anthony to put aside their personal conflicts and target the championship.

Unexpectedly, Lu Yong still insisted on his own approach and would not re-activate Anthony even if the team entered the playoffs. It seemed that he wanted to use the lineup without Carmelo in the latter part of the season to win the championship!
What’s even weirder is that except for Anthony, who kept jumping up and down to express dissatisfaction in front of the media, the entire Knicks team and the fans fell silent, seeming to acquiesce to Lu Yong’s behavior without any questioning.

You know, Anthony is a three-time MVP and the star who led the Knicks to establish a dynasty. He has an irreplaceable position in the hearts of New York fans.

But even so, when the news came out that Lu Yong would exclude Anthony from the playoff roster, the management still did not come forward and remained mute throughout the process.

The same goes for the fan group. Most people's reaction was very dull. Except for a few die-hard fans who stood up to complain for Anthony, everyone else turned to Lu Yong, acquiescing and supporting Lu Yong's behavior of relegating Melo to the cold palace.

At this moment, the outside media was completely uneasy.

Although I had known that Lu Yong was the number one active coach and had a transcendent status in New York, I didn't expect that he would push the league's No. 1 team into the cold palace without any backlash.

When the two sides openly broke up, all Anthony, the current No. 1, could do was complain to the media, but it had no real effect.

This kind of influence is not terrible enough. Even the big boss James Dolan intends to compromise. Naturally, other people in the team will not stand up to speak for Melo.

The management talked to Lu Yong several times in private, but found that the conflict between him and Anthony could not be adjusted, so they simply turned off the microphone and chose to watch.

Anthony seemed to become an outcast in New York overnight. After being banned from entering the stadium by Lu Yong, he didn't even have to report to the team.

In the playoffs, I can only lie at home and watch the game, always under the mental pressure of the Knicks possibly winning the championship.

Facing an opponent like Lu Yong who was willing to overturn the table, Anthony found that he seemed to have taken the wrong path.

What's heartbreaking is that when the media learned that Anthony's name was kicked off the playoff list, some experts jumped out and threatened that the Knicks, who lacked Melo, were the biggest favorites to win the championship in the Eastern Conference. Lu Yong might lead the team to complete an epic this year. Super counterattack! The ESPN expert panel conducted an anonymous poll, and the result was that the support rate for Lu Yong to lead the team to win the championship was as high as 78%.

Only 22% of people think Anthony is an indispensable member of the team, which undoubtedly deeply hurts Anthony's self-esteem.

On April 4, the first round of the playoffs arrived as scheduled.

The Knicks sit at home to face the challenge of the eighth-seeded Pacers.

The Pacers just changed their head coach in the summer, defensive coach Vogel dismissed get out of class, and McMillan, who is good at arranging offensive tactics, took over.

This guy can be regarded as one of the first batch of Lu Yong's losers. As early as when Lu Yong was coaching the SuperSonics, the Blazers he led were often eliminated.

For this game, Madison Square Garden was full, and fans arrived early to take their seats.

I want to see how the Knicks can perform in the playoffs without Anthony.

A large number of reporters interviewed Butler and Jokic, the two new team cores, before the game. Both of them were selected as Eastern All-Stars this year.

In this playoff trip, the two have undoubtedly become the biggest beneficiaries of the spotlight.

Anthony sat at home and watched the live broadcast. He now wants the Knicks to lose more than anyone else.

It's not that he is narrow-minded, but if the Knicks win the championship this year, the consequences will be a devastating blow to his career.

Even if he can win a championship ring, the fans' evaluation of him and his historical status will not improve.

On the contrary, there will be a visible decline.

What Lu Yong wants to do is obvious. He wants everyone to know that the Knicks can build a dynasty because he is the coach of New York. Whether Anthony plays or not, the team has the strength to compete for the championship!

In the locker room before the game, Lu Yong stood at the door facing the players with a smile on his face, looking as relaxed as ever.

"Nicola, Jimmy, this year's playoffs are your chance to prove yourself. Cameron's absence has made the United States pay attention to us. If you don't want to be embarrassed, you should know what to do."

"Don't worry, coach, I've been waiting for this day for a long time." Butler clenched his fists and said with firm eyes.

Jokic also nodded and responded: "The team will use its best attitude to defeat the opponent. We must not fail in the playoffs."

Lu Yong patted Jokic on the back. "Don't take any pressure and treat the game as a regular season. Believe me, you will be an excellent leader."

Jokic smiled shyly and scratched his head with his hand.

This isn't Jokic's first playoff appearance.

Lu Yong has confidence in his performance, and no one inside the Pacers can guard him.

At [-] p.m., players from both teams appeared on time, and the game was broadcast live across the country on TNT.

After watching the Knicks players' appearance ceremony, Barkley expressed emotion: "The Knicks players seem very confident. Anthony's mental state is obviously better if he doesn't play with the young players on the team, but I don't know if he can withstand the playoffs." level of confrontation.”

Kenny Smith said: "Last season Anthony was absent due to injury, but the Knicks still played very well. Lu Shuai is a capable coach. I believe he will have a solution."

The starting lineups of the two teams were announced on the big screen.

Knicks five: Brogdon, Butler, Artest, Harris, Jokic.

Pacers five: Jeff Teague, Miles, Paul George, Thaddeus Young, Myles Turner.

Lu Yong did not let rookie Caruso start in this series, but sent veteran Ron Artest.

Although his feet are no longer as flexible as when he was young, with teammates on the wing to help defend, he is still the Knicks' most reliable player in defending George alone.

On the offensive end, Lu Yong does not need Artest to contribute much. He only needs to squat in the corner and smoke, waiting to catch the ball and shoot. His biggest role is defense, limiting Paul George's performance.

This lineup can advance, attack, retreat or defend. Lu Yong sat relaxed on the sidelines and was not affected by Anthony's absence at all.

The Knicks won the jump ball. Artest picked up the ball and passed it to Brogdon. He followed the tactics and ran to the left corner to open up space.

Brogdon gestured for his teammates to pull away, played a pick-and-roll with Jokic in the middle, and changed directions to break through.

Teague's defensive habits are inherently poor. When he was going around the defense, he was blocked by Jokic and lost his defensive position.

Seeing this, Brogdon accelerated a second time, used Jokic's containment to get to the basket, and scored an easy layup with his left hand, 2-0.

Myles Turner is 2 meters tall and weighs 11 kilograms. He moves very quickly and can block 109 shots this season.

However, Jokic's smooth play on this ball prevented him from rashly assisting in defense. By the time Brogdon got to the basket, it was too late for him to make up the defense, and he could only watch the opponent's sky blue.

As one of the centers most suitable for the small ball era, Turner's defensive ability is actually pretty good, but he is destined to suffer a loss against Jokic in this series. The tonnage gap is too big, and he cannot withstand a hard fight.

In addition, Jokic entered the league a year earlier than him, and his own strength is superior, making it easier to fight against the small ones.

In Lu Yong's previous life, Turner often suffered losses from Jokic. Whenever he came into contact with the pork belly, he was beaten and he never had the upper hand.

There was nothing Turner could do against Jokic, or it could be said that Turner was beaten to the point of losing his temper by Jokic.

The Pacers attacked. Teague played a pick-and-roll with Turner in the middle. He broke through to the right and attracted Jokic's attention. He hit the ball to the ground and passed it to Thaddeus Young, who was cutting on the weak side. The latter caught the ball and faced Harris. The throw hit the board, 2-2.

The Knicks attack, Brogdon and Jokic play pick-and-roll again.

Teague pursued the defense very quickly this time. Brogdon used his shoulder to knock out the space and passed the ball to Jokic.

According to the tactics arranged by Lu Yong, Jokic took the ball from a high position to observe his teammates, faked a jumper and made a three-pointer, and quickly passed the ball to Butler who was running back towards the basket.

Reverse running was Butler's most relied-upon scoring method before he became famous. With the help of Harris's off-ball screen, he easily got rid of the defense, received the ball in the three-second zone, jumped high, and dunked against Turner with both hands!

boom!
4:2.

This was a wonderful collaboration between the two, and the home fans gave them applause.

Without Anthony, the ball tyrant, to cause havoc, the Knicks' dazzling team offense seems to be playing more aggressively!

(End of this chapter)