basketball pope

Chapter 367 [Second record, fight for the best]

On April 4, the Wizards lost to the Kings at home 2-99, widening the gap with the East top Nets to 105 games. In theory, there is still a chance to compete for the first place.

After this game, the Wizards were on a simple schedule, winning streaks of underdogs such as the Eagles, Cavaliers, Heat, and Celtics.

Until the end of the season, the Celtics could not get out of the predicament. The management specially invited a doctor to help Weinbeck get rid of alcohol dependence. The result was little, and he was also punished by the team for drinking during the season.

On the 14th, the Wizards lost to the 100ers 107-76.

乔丹砍下33分6篮板3助攻，场均得分升到了20.1分, 还有6.1篮板5助攻，完成了个人一项重要任务。

The 76ers are trying their best to compete for the playoffs rankings.In the mid-term, they traded in Kenny Thomas from the Rockets, paired with Coleman in the post, and strengthened their defense.

Van Horn was relegated to the bench, and the 76ers' coaching staff was desperate for his poor defense, and was ready to send him off in the summer.

In the final battle, Yang Rui asked Jordan to truce so that his stats would not change.

On the 16th, the Wizards defeated the Eagles who played all off the bench at home and ended the regular season with a record of 58 wins and 24 losses.

Because the Wizards and the Nets are in the same Atlantic Division, the record is behind the Nets and can only rank third.However, in order to compete for the best coach award, Yang Rui still played seriously in the last few games, called a lot of timeouts, and let the core players run tactics and strive to win more games.

The Eastern rankings are as follows.

The Nets ranked first in the East with 60 wins and 22 losses. In Yang Rui's previous life, the Nets only won 49 wins this season, and the first Pistons only had 50 wins. The strength of the top players in the East has been strengthened a lot.

The second is the Central Division champion Bulls, 56 wins and 26 losses, and the Bulls' record fell after an injury to Marcus Fetzel.Thibodeau's main rotation is 8 people, and the traded Purzbila is only a blue-collar player. Although he has played many starts, he has little effect on the offensive end.

The Wizards have a better record than the Bulls, ranking third in the division. With his record, Yang Rui is very likely to be re-elected as the best coach.

Van Gundy's Pistons finished fourth with 47 wins.

The Knicks are fifth with 45 wins, and their record has fallen sharply in the second half.

Hill's injury was inevitable by accident. After his comeback, he still insisted on the past style of play, forcibly breaking through, changing directions greatly during the march, shaking himself while shaking the opponent.The only good thing is that his surgery in New York was a success and will not affect next season.

In Yang Rui's previous life, Hill suffered from a potentially fatal bacterial infection during ankle surgery in March 2003. He continued to have a 3-degree high fever and developed convulsions. He insisted on intravenous antibiotics for half a year before he was completely out of danger.This caused him to miss the entire 40-2003 season.

Without Hill, the Knicks won't have much future, and it's a blessing to pass the Pistons in the first round.

No.6 is the Pacers, "Assassin" Isiah Thomas finally led the team into the playoffs, and will face the Wizards in the first round.

The 76ers won No.7, successfully avoided the Nets, and played against the Bulls.

The Raptors ranked eighth, barely making the playoffs with 42 wins, and everyone believed they would be eliminated by the Nets in the first round.

9-15 are the Hornets, Celtics, Bucks, Magic, Eagles, Heat, Cavaliers.

The Hornets instinctively made the playoffs, but because of Mashburn's injury, they were overtaken by the 76ers and the Raptors in the later period.Mashburn saved the Raptors, or they would have been like the '99 Bulls, the defending champion team that didn't make the playoffs.

In the West, the Mavericks have a record of 60 wins and 22 losses, which means that Dirk Nowitzki, the core of the team, is likely to win the regular season MVP, which is the first foreign regular season MVP in NBA history.He averaged 39 minutes per game, scoring 25.1 points, 9.9 rebounds, 3 assists, 1.4 steals and 1 block, which is no worse than any superstar.

Jordan looked down on Nowitzki's style of the inside line. In fact, Nowitzki's offensive threat is bigger than Garnett and Duncan, and he may be the most powerful offensive player among the power forwards.

However, it is difficult for the old Nelson to get the best coach, because the Mavericks record was not bad last season, not much progress.

The Kings ranked second with 57 wins; the Spurs ranked third with 53 wins; the Suns ranked fourth with 52 wins, gaining first-round home-court advantage.

5-8 are the Timberwolves, Trail Blazers, Lakers, and Rockets.

The strength of the West has weakened, and the Rockets have entered the playoffs with 42 wins, and will face the Mavericks in the first round.

The Lakers' seventh place is extremely bad news for the King. Obviously, the record is ahead, and every round has to be tough.

9-14 is the Sonics, Warriors, Jazz, Grizzlies, Clippers, Nuggets.

The regular season data king announced.

Kobe Bryant averaged 30 points per game and won the first point championship in his career. His outstanding performance will make the Lakers' contract renewal in the summer variable.

The conflict between Kobe and O'Neal has been made public. The media has repeatedly reported that O'Neal was dissatisfied with the Lakers' three-time Finals defeat and hoped that the team would trade Kobe for other star partners.Kobe Bryant won the scoring title, proving that he has more potential. He is younger than O'Neal. If the Lakers and O'Neal sign a long-term contract and build a team around the fat man, it may become a garbage contract in the future.

Ben Wallace of the Knicks won the rebounding championship, averaging 13.8 per game. With him around, Yao Ming would not be able to grab rebounds.

The assists king was once again won by Kidd of the Nets, averaging 9.1 times per game.

The block leader is Theo Ratliff of the Hawks, averaging 3.3 per game.

Iverson once again won the steals championship, averaging 2.7 per game.

On the 17th and 18th, the teams rested to prepare for the playoffs. Yang Rui and the coaching staff worked overtime to determine the 13-man roster for the playoffs.

Centers: Laettner, Haywood, Stoudamire.

Power forwards: Marshall, Gerald Wallace, Boozer.

Small forwards: Jordan, Maggette.

Shooting guard: Hamilton, Raja Bell.

Point guards: Alston, David Wesley, Tyron Lue.

Barnes and Padgett were excluded.

Compared to defense, Barnes is inferior to Bell and Wallace, both of whom can play multiple positions.Compared to the offense, Barnes is not as good as Alston and Tyrone Lue, and there is no place for him in the team.

Yang Rui has made a complete plan. The opponent's lineup can play small-ball tactics when the attacking power is average. Let Wesley come to the No. 2 position to speed up, and the Wizards have no shortage of people on the outside.

Padgett is in an awkward position in the Wizards. The only effect is to make three-pointers by relying on his height advantage. The confrontation is poor and the defense is not very good.Yang Rui dug him up as insurance, worried that the three-point shooter in the team was injured, and once Marshall couldn't play, Padgett would have to be brought in in the playoffs.

Now that the team has a neat lineup, Padgett is naturally not needed.

The Pacers also determined the lineup, mainly relying on the trident of Reggie Miller, Brad Miller and Jaylen Rose.

The old Miller finally met Jordan in the playoffs, but Thomas would not let him and Jordan match up, but planned to use Jaylen Rose as the main defense.This season, Miller's data has fallen seriously. He averaged 30 points, 12.6 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game in 2.4 minutes. Although the speed is OK, the confrontation is getting worse and worse, and there is basically no defense.

The first battle between the two sides was held in Washington, and there was no national broadcast. China's CCTV5 also went to broadcast the Knicks game. It was Yao Ming's first playoff trip.Compared with Yang Rui's previous life, Yao Ming entered the playoffs earlier, which is also good news.

The Wizards didn't get media attention because experts predicted it would be a one-sided game.

ESPN expert Nicholas said: "The first-round sweep of the playoffs is a habit of the team led by Yang Rui, and I think he will keep this record. The Pacers beat the Wizards in the regular season, but the playoffs are completely different. "

The Pacers' coaching staff and players kept a low profile. In the face of the media's pessimism, they did not refute and lacked confidence.

(End of this chapter)