In the first week of the new season, although the Knicks won all four games, they performed fairly well.

This is related to the weak opponents, and another part of the reason is that some teams seem to be more aggressive in their offense.

Facing the Pistons, the Bucks played 121 points of offense.

In the same day’s game, the Mavericks also defeated the Warriors 120:97 away.

New York fans thought that Lee would easily win the Player of the Week, after all, his efficiency was too high, averaging 28.3 points per game and shooting 60.2%!

As a result, after the NBA announced the Player of the Week for the first week, New York fans were silent.

In the three games of the first week, the Bucks had 3 wins and 0 losses, and Sam Cassell successfully won the first Player of the Week.

Averaged 29.0 points, 2.7 rebounds, 9.0 assists, 1.3 steals, 3.3 turnovers, shooting 69.4%, 3-point shooting 33.3%, and free throw shooting 85.7%.

The average playing time of 33.7 minutes per game really shocked many commentators.

Lee and Cassell played almost the same amount of time, with slightly more rebounds and assists, but their efficiency was not as good as the “Alien”.

Cassell, who is not very good-looking, is always easily overlooked.

This time, winning the award can be regarded as a relief for himself.

On the evening of November 8, the Bucks challenged the Knicks away.

The Bucks, who are also a team with three musketeers, were suppressed at the beginning of the game.

Larry Johnson sat on the bench with a depressed look.

When he woke up, his back was tense and his knees were sore.

He had to rest due to injury in this game.

Too many playoffs for three consecutive seasons not only made Ewing and Oakley’s physical condition decline, but Larry Johnson’s condition this year was also very average.

Even if he lost weight, the “grandmama” still couldn’t find the state of the previous seasons, and even his back-to-the-basket singles in the low post had problems.

Madison Square Garden was still noisy, and Jeff Van Gundy stood on the sidelines with his arms folded.

Oakley’s physical condition declined, and the coaching staff has begun to consciously control the playing time of the veteran.

At this time, there were 3 minutes and 36 seconds left in the second quarter.

The Knicks took Rashard Lewis, and the coaching staff wanted to strengthen the offense.

The Bucks only scored 22 points in the first quarter, but in the second quarter, the veteran Dale Ellis on the opposite side suddenly broke out and helped the Bucks score continuously.

43:50, relying on the advantage established by 33 points in the first quarter, the Knicks still maintained the lead.

Cassell was in average condition tonight.

He went up and down with Lee in the second quarter and returned to the court with 4 minutes and 50 seconds left in the half.

In the last round, the jump shot outside the three-point line was missed.

With the shouts of head coach George Karl, the Bucks quickly retreated.

It was difficult to score with the rotation lineup, and Lee was not in a hurry to attack after he came on the court.

Compared with previous seasons, the Bucks’ defensive discipline was better, and Ray Allen got more shots.

Amid the cheers of New York fans, Lee slowly crossed half court.

Alan Houston slowly moved upwards in the left corner, but Kukoc immediately set a high pick-and-roll for Lee.

At the top of the arc, far from the three-point line, Kukoc ran to the right side of Lee’s body.

Taking advantage of Glenn Robinson’s double-teaming of Lee, who was holding the ball in his left hand, he quickly broke away and moved to the right wing.

Facing the quick double-team of Cassell and Robinson, Lee suddenly turned around after receiving the ball, and then quickly passed the ball to Kukoc in an open position with his right hand.

The latter received the ball without pausing, and immediately put the ball in his left hand and went straight to the basket.

As a tall forward, Kukoc took a big stride and rushed to the paint area in two big steps.

Robert Traylor had just shrunk to the basket, and Kukoc completed a behind-the-back pass.

The basketball flew straight to the right corner.

When Lewis received the ball, there was no one in front of him.

He took a look for a while and hit the three-pointer steadily.

With smooth cooperation and beautiful assists, New York fans cheered loudly for Kukoc.

This former best sixth man of the Bulls is not good at carrying the ball alone, but as an organizing forward, he can play a brilliant performance.

Larry Johnson rested, and Kukoc, who started, had more opportunities to control the ball.

Coach George Karl immediately requested a timeout and stood on the sidelines with a serious expression, obviously very dissatisfied with this round of defense.

Lee walked to the bench and shook hands with Kukoc, smiling and simply praised:

“Nice pass! An open jump shot is also okay, find your touch.”

Kukoc shook his head helplessly.

After joining the Knicks, he shot open three-pointers in the past few games, 0 out of 4 in two consecutive games.

Unlike the Bulls who usually attack in the low post of the blocking zone, most of the Knicks’ offense this year is high pick-and-roll.

If the inside players who do not have the ability to attack independently want to participate more in the offense, pick-and-roll is a good choice.

“I’ll be able to adapt after a few more games!”

Looking at Jeff Van Gundy, Kukoc finally responded in a low voice.

Contrary to his expectations, the Knicks’ offense was too “free”.

After the timeout, the Bucks did not slow down the pace of the game.

Cassell dribbled across half court, and Glenn Robinson moved from the right corner to the right wing to receive the ball.

He swayed left and right, and the moment he received the ball, Robinson immediately put the ball in his right hand, crossed his steps and broke through, and went straight to the basket.

Kukoc’s sliding step was a beat slower, and his position in the blocking area could not keep up with the opponent’s rhythm.

At this time, he simply adjusted his feet, rushed to the basket, and jumped up to block in advance.

Ben Wallace also quickly assisted in defense.

Under the siege of the two, even if his teammates appeared in an open position, Robinson did not choose to pass the ball, but moved in the air, dodged the defense and reluctantly shot the ball to the basket.

The interference still worked, and the basketball hit the basket.

After landing, Ben Wallace jumped again and grabbed the basketball that had just left the basket.

The Bucks had already retreated quickly at this time.

Cassell stopped leading the defense as required by the head coach, but quickly returned to the half court and stood outside the three-point line in advance.

The Knicks’ transition offense was also very fast.

Lewis and Alan Houston ran to the bottom corners on both sides at the first time, and Kukoc also quickly moved to the left wing.

Ben Wallace stood directly at the top of the arc after rushing through the half court.

Cassell hurriedly moved again and stood in front of “Little Ben”, ready to squeeze through the screen at any time.

Lee, who rushed through the half court quickly, did not suffer any delay.

When his teammates just got into position, he held the ball with his left hand and paused slightly outside the three-point line, and then quickly pushed the ball to change direction.

After a large change of direction, Lee, who switched to his right hand, ignored Cassell’s sliding defense at this time, and the ball protector pulled away the opponent’s left arm.

While borrowing the force again, Lee did not slow down at all, flew close to the ground, and went straight to the basket!

JR Reid, who was near the baseline on the right, found that Cassell actually stumbled and lost his defensive position, so he quickly retreated to the basket.

Before he could make a defensive move, JR Reid saw Lee rushing up with three steps and already came to the basket, slamming down with his right hand!

“Boom!”

The basket rim roared, showing the great power of the dunk.

Seeing Lee jogging all the way after completing the dunk, and returning to the half court in the blink of an eye, the two inside players of the Bucks looked at each other, and finally had no choice but to serve the baseline ball.

The pick-and-roll on the line, the change of direction and acceleration, and the dunk, the simple and rough offense, the visual impact was so strong that the cheers of New York could not be stopped at all.

In the MSG commentary booth, Walt Frazier looked at Lee, whose style suddenly changed this season, and praised loudly:

“This is the secret of Lee’s efficiency this season. The closer to the basket, the higher the hit rate. When the opponent defends his three-pointer, there will be problems with the basket protection.”

The Bucks attacked, and Ray Allen also rushed after receiving the ball.

He cut in 45 degrees from the left wing, causing Alan Houston to foul and stand on the free throw line.

Commentator Mike Breen looked at the Bucks’ mutual attack without much comment:

“The Bucks’ offensive rhythm has not slowed down in this quarter. It seems that the opponent’s number of shots in this game has a chance to reach 85+.”

If you want to play a high-scoring game, the number of rounds is of course not less.

The Bucks’ way of swinging the ball is a new attempt by head coach George Karl.

During this year’s offseason, Ray Allen did not return to Hartford, but invited his Bucks teammates to train together in Milwaukee.

Unfortunately, Glenn Robinson did not buy it at all and went to enjoy life.

Only Cassell followed suit and gestured twice.

Ray Allen, who made two free throws, also called on his teammates to get into position quickly when he retreated, but JR Reid, who was defending the pick-and-roll this time, subconsciously chose to retreat to defend.

At the top of the arc, Cassell failed to squeeze through Ben Wallace’s screen in the first time, and watched Lee, who was holding the ball in his left hand, make a quick stop jump shot on the three-point line.

45:58, the score difference was suddenly widened to 13 points.

After making mistakes on the defensive end, head coach George Karl started to scold his players again.

In the last few rounds of the first half, the Bucks started to double-team again.

Jeff Van Gundy on the sidelines was also a little helpless when he saw Ben spitting the ball.

His hands were indeed a little rough under the basket.

Throwing the ball to both sides, the result was a series of misses.

At the last moment, Lee picked up a long rebound in the frontcourt and assisted Ben to score in the second quarter.

The half time game was completely over.

47:60, the score difference remained unchanged, and both sides were somewhat dissatisfied with their own performance.

The Knicks spit the ball inside, and the Bucks missed the outside line and shot it blindly.

The content of the game was not exciting.

In the locker room, Artest, who had little playing time, was still full of energy:

“The opponent didn’t defend at all! We also have a chance to get 120 points tonight!”

Rashard Lewis nodded, and the substitutes were full of motivation, and everyone wanted to get more data.

Lee was a little distressed at this time.

The quality of the screen was average, and the inside attack method was single.

The Knicks completely became a jump shot team.

Pick-and-roll is also a technical job.

Ben Wallace’s screen quality fluctuates.

When he encounters a team with good defensive discipline, he is very easy to be targeted.

Last season, he could still surprise the opponent, but in this year’s 82 regular season games, some routines will definitely fail.

Jeff Van Gundy and the coaching staff are also aware of this.

The bald young coach returned to the locker room and repeatedly reminded:

“Actively participate in the offense. We are already ahead. We must be more resolute when there is an opportunity to finish.”

“Remember, everyone must take the responsibility of scoring!”

With a big lead, the Knicks usually make more inside rotations.

Jeff Van Gundy tried to find a lineup that can be both offensive and defensive.

Rashard Lewis has a good effect on the offensive end, but there are problems with the defense of the basket.

Artest likes to defend, but he is too active and always commits unnecessary fouls.

Kurt Thomas performed well in rebounding tonight and missed an open mid-range jump shot.

After trying for a while, Jeff Van Gundy found that Lee and Alan Houston were the stable scorers, Kukoc was the lubricant on the court, and the newbies were a little unreliable.

The Knicks made frequent adjustments, the Bucks did not seize the opportunity, and Cassell was no longer brave.

At the end of the third quarter, Lee, who had been passing the ball frequently, suddenly broke out.

Taking advantage of the Bucks’ consecutive single defense, he quickly scored a single.

Coach George Karl didn’t care about the outcome of the game at this time.

He called Glenn Robinson loudly to match Lee, and the Bucks also began to change positions.

Robinson, who threw the ball whenever he got it, performed very well in this quarter.

On the offensive end, he made another jump shot against Kukoc’s defense.

After hearing the coach’s instructions, Robinson began to lead the defense of Lee in the half court.

With a lot of pick-and-rolls, Ben Wallace also found some feelings.

This time, the quality of the screen at the top of the arc was very high, allowing Lee to dribble behind his back and get rid of the opponent’s pursuit.

JR Reid learned from experience and stepped forward to delay the opponent.

Just as he moved his feet, Lee, who was holding the ball with his left hand, suddenly changed direction under his crotch, lowered his center of gravity, switched to his right hand and squeezed through the two people.

He lost his defensive position again, and JR Reid, who turned around quickly, hurriedly called his teammates to help defend.

After breaking through to the paint area, Lee suddenly slowed down and leaned towards JR Reid who was accelerating and sliding.

The latter subconsciously pulled him and then quickly made a blocking move.

After jumping up, he realized that something was wrong.

Lee suddenly dribbled the ball, jumped with his right foot, held the ball with his right hand, and easily leaned forward to pick up the ball!

“Squeak! Swish!”

The referee immediately blew the whistle, and the basketball was thrown high and then went into the net.

JR Reid subconsciously glanced at the position where Lee passed the ball, and then saw that Traylor, who was helping to defend, was helplessly with his hands on his waist under the basket.

For a moment, he could only curse inwardly:

“Shit!”

JR Reid, who received his fourth personal foul, was replaced.

The fans in the front row followed and cheered loudly.

The two inside players of the Bucks were tossed silly.

Lee didn’t care about scoring, but quickly pointed to Kukoc.

There was a chance of mismatch in this round, and the big forward should quickly ask for the ball in the low post.

The score difference reached 16 points, and there was not much suspense in the game.

Jeff Van Gundy simply hung up and discussed the lineup with the assistant coaches.

In the last quarter, the main lineups of both teams played for less than 3 minutes before entering garbage time.

Ray Allen, who lost the game, was a little depressed.

When he met the Knicks, who had better defensive discipline, the team’s offense was silent.

Coach George Karl’s big cake was no longer sweet.

If he wanted to become a championship team, it was highly unlikely that he could rely on offense alone.

In the end, the Knicks won the mutual stabbing battle 95:116, giving the Bucks their first defeat of the season.

The high score made the New York fans at the scene cheer loudly.

The hearty offense is indeed more beautiful than the melee.

Alan Houston was in excellent form tonight, with 10 of 18 shots, 2 of 6 from beyond the three-point line, and 4 of 4 free throws, scoring 26 points efficiently.

Clay Lee made 10 of 17 shots, 3 of 6 from beyond the three-point line, and 7 of 7 free throws, scoring 30 points, 6 rebounds, 8 assists, 1 steal, and 1 turnover.

Although Kukoc made 1 of 5 three-pointers, he eventually contributed 11 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 turnovers, and 1 block.

All the players who appeared on the court scored points.

In a game with low defensive intensity, basically everyone fought bravely.

The Knicks’ iron-blooded defense disappeared for the most part.

Although they won the game, Jeff Van Gundy didn’t smile.

Walt Frazier, on the MSG commentary stand, noticed that the Knicks shot 26 three-pointers in one game.

Even though Lee’s three-pointers were strictly guarded, the Knicks’ three-point production increased a lot compared to last season:

“Although there are still some problems on the defensive end, we can respond on the offensive end.”

“Considering that the regular season has just begun and Oakley and Pat are still in the recovery period, I believe we will find our defense again in the next game.”

Commentator Mike Breen looked at the technical statistics and could only follow with the blessing:

“Coach Van Gundy has the Knicks play a different style of play, and the team will get better and better!”

“.”

Ray Allen has been competing with Glenn Robinson this season.

Both of them want to be the boss.

Ray Allen is very dissatisfied with the lazy Robinson.

Fortunately, the conflict between the two is only about basketball, and coach George Karl is also happy to see the competition between the players.

His buddy flew to Charlotte overnight, and Lee could only send a text message to wish him a happy return.

He could not help with the internal relations of the Bucks.

In the second week of the game, the Knicks had a relatively easy schedule.

After two days of rest, they faced back-to back games again.

After easily defeating the Celtics and the Magic, they successfully won 7 consecutive victories!

After finishing two away games, the Knicks did not have a holiday on the weekend.

Jeff Van Gundy decided to practice the team’s defense well, at least to make it a little tougher.

On the afternoon of the 13th, at the Tarrytown Training Center, assistant coach Thibodeau was pulling Artest to have a private practice.

Most of the edited videos were his unnecessary fouls.

“You don’t have to steal the opponent. You have to trust your teammates. Defense is never a one-person job. Many times, all you need to do is to pressure the ball holder and send the opponent to the inside.”

“Ben’s assist defense speed is very fast. You need to communicate in time on the court. Ron, we hope you can take on more tasks.”

Thibodeau’s chicken soup has never been very good, and Artest didn’t care.

He nodded when he heard the assistant coach’s words.

For rookie players, the most important thing is playing time.

If the defense can get more opportunities, Artest is also confident that he can squeeze into the rotation.

How to restore the iron-blooded defense of the past is a difficult problem for the coaching staff.

Clay Lee and Alan Houston are not excellent perimeter defenders.

In the past, the Knicks relied more on fast rotations to pinch the opponent’s core, but the decline of Oakley and Larry Johnson has caused loopholes in the defense system.

The new recruits are not muscular players.

Ben Wallace and Kurt Thomas cannot support the entire defense system.

Most of the training sessions are about practicing offensive routines.

Jeff Van Gundy also stopped the game continuously at this time and kept explaining the team’s positioning problems.

After just running a few routines, the bald young coach was a little helpless.

In his expectation, the quality of “Little Ben”‘s cover should be higher.

During the timeout, Lee talked to “Little Ben” about the pick-and-roll again:

“Ben, pay attention to the angle of the pick and-roll and the timing of the roll. There is no need to open it too early. You are not slow and can easily receive some advance passes.”

“Facing some big men, your speed is faster, these are your advantages!”

During the finals, Ben Wallace would open it in advance, then catch the ball and go down, and quickly attack the basket.

It’s just that this offensive routine can be used for two games in a series.

After the start of the new season, most teams have been prepared, and the current routine is a bit out of order.

It is not difficult to limit a forward, and “Little Ben” has also discovered his own problems through these games.

Just listening to the pick-and-roll angle and the timing, Ben Wallace was a little confused.

He played by feeling, and what Lee said was basically not within his consideration.

“Maybe I should stand still during the pick-and-roll, would it be better?”

“You know, sometimes it’s hard for me to finish at the basket.”

Lee heard Ben Wallace’s whispered suggestion, pondered for a while, looked at “Little Ben” who was scratching his head, and finally nodded helplessly.

You have to eat one bite at a time.

It’s too late to make up for these basic things now.

Oakley and Ewing have been losing weight in the past half month.

The impact of too many rounds is more running.

If the old guy wants to keep up with the rhythm of the game on the court, he has to lose weight appropriately and strive to restore his physical condition.

Oakley was in a good mood.

Even though the outside world was saying that the Knicks’ defense had declined drastically, the old guy was still confident:

“It’s just the regular season. Once we recover our physical condition, the team’s defense will be back!”

“Pat, how are you feeling recently? The team doctor said you can play at the end of the month!”

Oakley, who had completed aerobic training, paid special attention to his old teammate.

However, Ewing was not as optimistic as his friend.

He had a hard time losing weight:

“Maybe the recovery period will be longer than I thought. It may take another two months to get back to my original physical condition.”

Looking at the gorilla with a difficult expression, Oakley realized his age and patted his shoulder.

The two stopped talking.

Sometimes, you have to accept your own decline.

On November 14, the Knicks challenged the Timberwolves away.

In this game, the Knicks’ interior defense was completely penetrated for the first time in three seasons.

Facing Kevin Garnett’s successive attacks, Oakley and Ben couldn’t hold on.

They watched the other side grab and shoot and continue to score.

Although Lee scored a game-high 40 points and Alan Houston also contributed 24 points, the rest of the offense was silent and the Knicks suffered their first defeat of the season.

93:99, the big pit dug in the second quarter eventually made the Knicks lose.

The first loss of the season was to a Western Conference team.

Jeff Van Gundy looked a little ugly.

The bald young coach knew that the bored media would make sarcastic remarks after the game.

There were only 11 turnovers in the whole game, and 8 more shots than the opponent, but the free throws of 16:31 showed that the Knicks lacked aggression in this game, and the shortcomings of the jump shot team were completely exposed.

Smiling after winning the game, Kevin Garnett called everyone “Bro” after the game!

He played 46 minutes, 13 of 26 shots, 2 of 4 three-pointers, 7 of 7 free throws, and scored 35 points, the second highest in the game, and also grabbed 14 rebounds.

Garnett, who has explosive athletic ability, got rid of his anger tonight and beat Oakley.

After defeating the defending champion, the Timberwolves fans did not leave the court after the game and continued to cheer for their team.

“You can’t beat me with jump shots, Bro, remember to say hello to Oakley for me!”

Garnett was so inflated that he held Lee tightly.

Oakley was in a bad mood, and he would not show off in front of the old guy at this time.

Lee was speechless.

Most of Garnett’s points in this game were jump shots.

He also had a lot of luck outside the three-point line.

He hammered the opponent twice and simply joked:

“The next time we play, we should go back to New York. Believe me, jump shots can also win the championship!”

“.”

….

By the way, don’t forget to throw power stones and leave a review to motivate me 🙂

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep