Forward to the basket

Compared with those reporters who paid attention to the "China Derby" between Yao Ming and Chen Feng, Rivers definitely paid attention to his opponent in the same profession as himself, the tough Jeff Van Gundy, a very difficult guy.

A coach who can bring the Rockets to the top six in the Western Conference is definitely not mediocre. What's more, this bald head once shaped the New York Knicks into the most amazing "Black Eight Miracles" in the league.

It is estimated that in addition to the two championship experiences of the New York Knicks in the 70s, the legend of the Black Eight made New York fans most bullish. It was one of their few shining moments.

Now many people who are tired of "Smiling Assassin" Thomas are loudly calling for Jeff Van Gundy, who once led them to perform miracles, to return to Madison Square Garden at one time!

It's just that the savior in the hearts of those New York fans is now in the process of taking off with the Houston Rockets.

Jeff Van Gundy, a guy called Forrest Gump, he neither has the elegant demeanor of Pat Riley, nor the calm and calm attitude of Phil Jackson. On the contrary, this guy is In the eyes of many media, she was even a little sloppy, at least not suave and unrestrained.

Not only does his appearance belong to the kind of ordinary appearance that can't be found immediately when he is thrown into the crowd, even when Van Gundy is being interviewed, his expressionless appearance has caused many reporters who are familiar with him to complain.

It's harder to get something out of him than to kill him, so Jeff Van Gundy has never been a pushover compared to those big-name star coaches.

It is probably because this guy has never played in the NBA, so the behavior of those players has never had anything to do with him, but he is different from Pitino's pure academic coaches.

Maybe these traits have something to do with Jeff Van Gundy's experience. He has never coached in college, and when he stepped into the NBA circle, he also started as a coach, starting from the bottom of the entire coaching circle.

It is such a guy who started as an assistant coach of the New York Knicks, and now he has led his Houston Rockets into the ranks of the strong teams in the West. His team has always been less star-studded, but He will cause trouble for a lot of people, this is Jeff Van Gundy, a guy with a pretty tough personality.

"The ability to reshape the Rockets into a strong team in the Western Conference is not as simple as relying on the two All-Stars Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming. Jeff's ability has been ignored by many people since he was in the Knicks."

Although Doug Rivers has also played in the NBA, which is far easier to integrate into this league than Jeff Van Gundy, who has no foundation at all, but also as a coach, Rivers does not think he More intelligent than Van Gundy, even in terms of diligence, Rivers is far inferior to him.

Jeff Van Gundy is a die-hard guy. On this point, Sprewell, who played under him, has the most say. In the mouth of this old hooligan who dares to strangle the head coach's neck, Van Gundy is a let He can't lose his temper, "Jeff's character is very tough, but he rarely reprimands you."

At the beginning, Sprewell made a fool of the head coach, because that guy's mouth was so stinky, so he almost strangled the other party when his mind was hot, although later when he was in the Timberwolves, this guy also Not a thorn in the side, but Sprewell made few mistakes under Van Gundy.

"At the beginning, I was able to reach the finals from the eighth place in the Eastern Conference. I guess many people didn't expect it, but only Jeff instilled in us the idea that we must win. Maybe in the eyes of that guy, anyone can be defeated."

Sprewell said this before he met the Rockets. He was not complimenting his former coach, but he was telling Rivers in this way that Van Gundy is definitely not a character to mess with, even if The Celtics had just beaten the Lakers away, and they had to be wary of a stumble in Houston.

Of course, Rivers knows what kind of opponent he is going to meet. Not everyone can achieve such results in the West. How about Zen Master?Didn't he lead the Lakers to struggle at the eighth spot?

Looking at Van Gundy on the other hand, the results of the 05-06 season were also very bad. Like the Celtics, due to the long-term absence of the main players due to injuries, they also failed to break into the playoffs. season, but their strong rise this season is even more ferocious than the Celtics.

Battier, Bunche Wells, and such a powerful team were all under Van Gundy's account, which immediately raised the competitiveness of the Houston Rockets by at least one level, and their good results followed.

If the strong rise of the Celtics is due to the chaos in the East, then it is self-evident that there are many strong enemies in the West. It is not only luck and the schedule that can survive in this environment. .

That is really an advantage accumulated by winning one game at a time. It's not that Rivers has never watched the video data of the Rockets' last ten games. The above technical analysis has been studied by him and Thibodeau himself.

Van Gundy is definitely not a talented coach with extraordinary talent. This guy is just a little honed command skills. He only completed the transition after six and a half years as an assistant coach with the Knicks.

That is to say, with this kind of low-level experience, Van Gundy can be meticulous in many things. His team also has this style and imprint, and it is definitely the whole game. Tactics that are practical to the bone, without any ups and downs, just slowly grinding you to death bit by bit.

The current tactical style of the Rockets is that they seldom kill others with one stick, but if they play the best water grinding kung fu with you, you will have a feeling that you have returned to the 80s game!

Now how many teams can calmly play with you, what kind of positional warfare, what kind of center-centered tactics?Everyone bombards, who has the time to fight you for 24 seconds!But Van Gundy just dragged others to play with himself.

It's okay if you don't play, you want to run?Your legs are tied up, and you still have a paw!If you want to play a fast-break counterattack with the Rockets, it is really a rare task than killing Shangdi Du. Van Gundy is a professional defensive player.

When he was in the New York Knicks, he was able to grind his opponent to death against the boos of thousands of people in Madison Garden. Not everyone has this kind of tough nerves, but his team is relying on defense to win in the league. neutral foothold.

The average points per game can only be ranked No.19 in the league. With this offensive ability, even the Bobcats can smile at the Rockets. Therefore, Van Gundy's team has never relied on sharp offense to defeat opponents.

The average conceded 92.1 points per game, which is a bit crazy defensive strength, is definitely the most important factor for the Rockets to rush to the top six in the Western Conference. No one, only the Spurs and Pistons can do more extreme than the Houstonians.

Even with the "Little General" leading the team, the Mavericks, the number one in the league, are willing to lose in terms of defensive efficiency and points per game. This is the most troublesome problem for Rivers.

And the Celtics just had a fierce battle with the Lakers. Although they left the Staples Center with a victory, the whole game was extremely fast-paced and the confrontation intensity was ridiculously high. That game was really not an easy one. During the period, they only had a one-day rest period, and their physical consumption was not replenished so quickly. However, positional warfare is definitely the most physical test, especially the ability to fight inside.

"If we're not careful, we're going to get our teeth knocked out by that Jeff guy in Houston."

Rivers was complaining to Thibodeau while watching the recent video of the Rockets' game. Rockets.

But for what kind of lineup Van Gundy will use to greet himself, Rivers has nothing to guess.

"Unless you are troubled by injuries, otherwise... Jeff's lineup is the same as those statues on Capitol Hill, which will remain the same for thousands of years...." This is not Rivers complaining, but Van Gundy's Rockets The team is really like this. As long as there are no injuries and downsizing, their main starting lineup will be unshakable.

If there is anything that Van Gundy can criticize in Houston now, it is probably this stubborn habit. He uses players who are comfortable, and as long as there is no illness or disaster, he will be firmly fixed in the starting roster.

There was no accident this time. When Rivers saw Alston, McGrady, Juwan Howard, Battier, and Yao Ming appearing on the sidelines together, he could only grin at Thibodeau beside him.

"I can only say that this is a good habit, and... Jeff really didn't let us waste any brain cells on it." Facing such an unshakable lineup, the cautious Thibodeau was a little helpless.

Not to mention him, even the Houston fans in the Toyota Center are used to it. The bald man in a black suit on the sidelines has never let them feel what is surprise. What that guy is best at is Carrying out orders step by step, I really don't know if Van Gundy has a bit of German blood.

However, Van Gundy's bald lineup made Rivers scratch his head a little. He really hoped that this guy could change, otherwise it would not be easy for the Celtics to win with such an all-main player.

Especially the Rockets are still waiting for work, coupled with their stable home win rate, Rivers and his gang of bandits, if they want to steal a victory here, they really need to pay a little price.

Once the dual-core at the Toyota Center is activated, the power is not for nothing. Rivers can only hope that the wild boys under him can continue the madness at the Staples Center here.

Especially the little guy who ran into his hometown, he was the key to the inside battle...