Chapter 492: Magic Tricks
Stan Van Gundy couldn't see any reason why the Magic would be beaten. In his mindset, the Magic were one of the top three teams in the Eastern Conference, while the Knicks were just this year's dark horse. They had finally made it to the playoffs, finally securing sixth place. According to the normal scenario, they should have been quickly defeated by the third-place team. How... suddenly, they were riding high , showing off their power and arrogance?
If Yang Mo's sudden strength disrupted the Magic's plans in the last game, then... they had no excuse for this game. The only reason was that they were not as skilled as their opponent, or... they couldn't keep up with the opponent's rhythm in terms of skills and tactics.
While the Knicks lacked strength, they were consistently ahead in spirit and strategic planning, leading the game. Most importantly, the Magic's players were far inferior to the Knicks in execution. The Knicks rallied closely around Yang Mo, and if Yang Mo said to go east, they wouldn't go west. The Magic's execution was clearly lacking. Besides the head coach's confusion, their point guard was like a headless chicken, buzzing around aimlessly, his integration with the team extremely poor.
Therefore, in the last minute or so of the first quarter, the Knicks once again had a small climax, which made the Magic almost unable to fight back. In the end, at the end of the first quarter, their lead was extended to 17 points.
Stan Van Gundy was at a loss for what to do, and the Magic fans in the arena were groaning. They had thought the Magic would definitely reach the Finals , or at least the Eastern Conference Finals. But reality was cruel. They were completely defeated by the Knicks, a team they had never taken seriously, and they were completely powerless.
"To be honest, the Knicks are more like the third in the Eastern Conference, and the Magic are the sixth in the Eastern Conference. Although it seems that the Knicks' lineup is nothing special, they can always play with precise cooperation, and everyone can perform beyond their level. Like Turiaf, he was almost a substitute among substitutes when he was with the Lakers, and he was just a rotation player when he was in Golden State, but tonight, he was almost first-class in limiting Howard. And Jeffries, we were still discussing that he was a garbage contract, and now... I think when his contract expires, there will definitely be more than ten teams making offers to him. His defensive adhesion is amazing, even better than chewing gum." Collins couldn't help but sigh during the timeout between quarters.
"Gallinani has also set an example as a shooter. Although Wilt Chandler still has problems with his offensive choices, this problem has been automatically blocked since Yang learned to pass the ball, because Super Yang will help him design the playing style, and he only needs to execute it, so he is becoming more and more efficient now." Barkley couldn't help but praise him.
"Indeed, since Young learned to pass the ball, the Knicks have become more like a whole. Everyone's strengths have been maximized, while their weaknesses have been hidden. I think this is probably why the Knicks now look stronger than the Magic." Collins nodded as if he had realized something.
"Do you know what the criteria for a great point guard is? It's making his teammates stronger. Super Yang clearly meets that criterion, and that's the real key to the Knicks' comeback. As for the Magic's struggles, I think besides Stan Van Gundy, who bears the primary responsibility, Nelson should be next on the list. He successfully demonstrated to us the serious damage a bad point guard can do to a strong team."
"You mean, Super Yang can already be called a great point guard?" Collins was a little surprised by Barkley's judgment.
"Why not? Super Yang is not just a great point guard now, he's also a great shooting guard, an excellent small forward, a power forward with superb rebounding ability, and a center with outstanding positioning ability." Barkley counted on his fingers and listed Yang Mo's five major advantages in a row: "Ordinary people only need to achieve one of to gain a foothold in the NBA, but Super Yang has achieved all five, so he naturally became the most well-rounded superstar in the league today. I look forward to him getting a triple-double, quadruple-double, or even a quintuple-double one day."
After Barkley finished speaking, Collins felt that it was a bit exaggerated, but when he thought about it carefully, he felt that there was some truth in it. Yang really did possess the abilities he mentioned, but... it was not as legendary as Barkley said. He still exaggerated in some places.
While Collins and Barkley were praising Yang Mo in unison, Jeff Van Gundy, who was sitting on the other side, quickly sent two text messages to Stan Van Gundy's assistant. One text message asked Stan Van Gundy to arrange a tactic to guide Yang Mo to work near the free throw line, and the other text message was to completely cut off Yang Mo's contact with other players and let him score alone. He firmly believed that Yang Mo would eventually give in and that it was impossible for one person to defeat the entire team.
After sending these two text messages, Jeff Van Gundy breathed a sigh of relief. He believed that his hope of winning was still great.
At this moment, Collins suddenly murmured, "Hey, why haven't I seen Milicic play tonight? He's the Knicks' only ace center. Is he trying to play the game of the King's Return again?"
Collins' whisper quickly woke Jeff Van Gundy up. He quickly stared at the monitor carefully. He looked at the Knicks bench for a long time and finally found that Milicic was indeed not there.
So, he quickly lowered his head and sent another text message: "Be careful of Milicic, he may very well be the Knicks' hidden trump card. You must continue to break into the penalty area and force the Knicks to play this trump card as soon as possible."
Stan Van Gundy, standing on the sidelines, quickly received three suggestions from his brother through his assistant. After careful consideration, he decided to implement the second and third options. On defense, he wanted to completely isolate Yang Mo from the other players, giving him free rein to shoot. Offensively, he instituted a strategy of constantly sprinting into the paint, forcing Milicic's vulnerability to emerge and avoiding a repeat of the tragedy from the previous game. He didn't want to become a stepping stone for the opponent's comeback twice in a row.
Soon, the timeout was declared over.
When Yang Mo walked towards the court, Dwyane Wade, who was sitting next to him, suddenly stood up and shouted to Yang Mo: "Come on, Super Yang!"
When Yang Mo heard the familiar shout, he subconsciously turned around and found that it was Wade cheering him on. He was a little dazed for a moment, as if he had suddenly returned to his days in Miami .
He was stunned for a while, and when the Magic team served the ball, he smiled slightly and expressed his goodwill.
In this smile, Dwyane Wade suddenly felt as if some of the ice had melted.
At this time, Yang Mo had already quickly run to the half court to participate in the defense .
When the Magic brought the ball to the frontcourt, Nelson quickly called a pick-and-roll with Ryan Anderson, then he rushed into the inside and, under the cover of Howard, directly collided with Turiaf's body. Turiaf tried to block the shot, but the referee had already blew the whistle, indicating that he had committed a defensive foul, and Nelson made two free throws.
When his defense was called a foul, Turiaf seemed a little annoyed. Yang Mo comforted him in time and encouraged him to get back on track in the next round.
Bang! Swish!
Nelson made one of two free throws, and his touch felt a little cold.
After the Knicks served the ball, Yang Mo walked forward slowly with the ball. He suddenly felt that the atmosphere was wrong. He found that there was no defender around him. Five Magic players were gathered in the half court. They kept following the Knicks players, looking like they were determined to fight to the end, while Yang Mo seemed to have given up completely.
After Yang Mo brought the ball to the three-point line, Nelson ran over slowly and made a defensive response. After Yang Mo stopped the ball and made a passing gesture, he quickly flew towards the trajectory of the basketball, as if he only cared about passing the ball and not shooting.
The Magic's defense was so adjusted that Yang Mo suddenly felt uncomfortable. After waiting for nearly two seconds without anyone coming to defend him, he shot directly... BANG! The ball missed the target!
