NBA: Two hands can’t carry championship rings

On April 13, Kidd returned early, and the Warriors challenged the Clippers away from home.

The recovery recommendation given by the team doctor is four weeks. Kidd has already rested for 22 days. If he really needs to follow the team doctor's recommendation and rest for four weeks, then he can go home to fish after he recovers.

There was no need to play any more games, as the teams had already been eliminated by that time.

Before the start of this game, the Warriors' ranking in the Western Conference dropped to ninth.

This is a record of 47 wins and 32 losses. It can only be ranked ninth in the Western Conference. The record of the Western Conference teams this year is really abnormal. It is the year when the Wild West reaches its peak.

Putting this record among the teams in the Eastern Conference, it would rank directly in fourth place in the top half.

Such a disparity has caused the Western Conference teams to express strong protests against the league. Media people and local reporters from each team have published reports on the strength of the West and the weakness of the East, listing various data comparisons between the Eastern and Western teams over the years.

NBA President David Stern is determined to change the situation, but this does not happen overnight. Who allowed the braised egg in the 1990s to be in the Eastern Conference, dominate the league, and bring many top players to Western Conference teams.

A protest is a protest, and changing the rules can affect the whole body. Now that the regular season is coming to an end, Stern is unlikely to make major changes at this time.

Against this background, the Warriors, currently ranked ninth in the Western Conference, have become big losers.

If they don't make the playoffs.

If they are in the Eastern Conference and the Warriors are firmly in the top four, even if they give up the next three games, they can still enter the playoffs.

But the reality is that the Warriors are a team in San Francisco. San Francisco is located on the west coast of the United States and is a thoroughly western city.

The Denver Nuggets, ranked eighth, currently have 48 wins and 32 losses, 0.5 games ahead of the Warriors.

The seventh-place Mavericks have 48 wins and 31 losses, one game ahead of the Warriors.

The Warriors already stand on the precipice of the playoff ranks.

At the end of the regular season, the three teams alternated between seventh, eighth, and ninth place. Whoever fell to ninth place would have their media reporters frantically protesting and complaining about the league's eastern and western divisions. Competition format.

Currently, Warriors media reporters are the team that is protesting the most fiercely, because while Kidd was recuperating from injury, the Warriors dropped all the way to ninth place.

As for the tenth-placed Kings, with a record of 36 wins and 43 losses, they have long lost the qualification to compete for a playoff spot. They are watching the show quietly behind them.

For the Warriors, if they win all the next three games, they still have a little chance. At the same time, they also have to pray that the two in front lose.

Of course, if you want to squeeze into the Western Conference playoffs, you must first win.

Staples Arena is a familiar venue. The opponent the Warriors faced this time was not a strong one. They were the Clippers, who were ranked 11th and had already lost their qualification for the playoffs.

But all members of the Warriors are under great pressure. They can no longer afford to lose and must win this game.

Kidd's return is great news for the Warriors, but he has just returned from injury and his condition is still unknown.

But as long as Kidd is on the court, all members of the Warriors have found the backbone, which is the core strength of the team.

As a team from the same city of Los Angeles, Los Angeles fans love the Lakers more. The Clippers have long been in a weak position, more like a stepmother. There are very few big names watching this game.

The playoffs are a bigger stage and the only way to the top. Captain Jackson frantically encouraged his teammates before the game and delivered a mellow pre-game speech. Under his encouragement, the whole team was high-spirited..

The game begins.

Before Yue Yi came on the court, the Clippers, with no pressure and a relaxed mentality, took the lead.

The Warriors starters are too tight.

Nelson replaced the team's starting shooting guard Jason after only 4 minutes in the first quarter and let Yue Yi play.

If possible, Yue Yi will naturally go all out to fight for the playoffs.

It has nothing to do with money or attribute points, this is the spirit of competition.

You shouldn't be an athlete by lying flat, going with the flow, and taking things as they come.

After using Harrington's screen, Yue Yi received Kidd's pass and easily scored in the mid-range shot.

Kidd's ball is always passed in a timely manner and people can catch it comfortably.

After the Warriors defended the Clippers' offensive round, the ball came into Yue Yi's hands again. The Clippers players learned the lesson from the previous round. During the run screen, Harrington's defender made a timely attack on Yue Yi. Interference left Yue Yi without a good shot.

In the past, Yue Yi would have passed the ball and passed it back to his teammates.

However, after a season of experience and the strengthening of his breakthrough ability, Yue Yi chose to single out the Clippers' power forward after switching defenses. He used his footwork advantage to break into the paint and pass the ball to the captain Jackson who was ambushing in the corner.

Jackson raised the knife with his hand and dropped the three-pointer into the net.

The improvement of Yue Yi's breakthrough ability is of substantial benefit to the team.

In two offensive rounds, the Warriors scored 5 points in a row and caught up with the lagging score.

The Warriors were more motivated to fight. After a tight start, they quickly regained the rhythm of the game and led all the way. 115:103, the Warriors won a crucial away victory.

After Kidd returned, the team's first and second scoring points both picked up on the offensive end. Biedrins scored 27 points and 11 rebounds, and Yue Yi made 11 of 17 shots and scored 26 points.

Kidd's personal touch was not good and he only scored 9 points, but he sent 16 assists to his teammates.

After this game, the Warriors' record reached 48 wins and 32 losses. Since they had a winning advantage with 3 wins and 1 loss in four games against the Nuggets, the Warriors squeezed out the Nuggets, who also had 48 wins and 32 losses, and were promoted to No. 1. eight.

The current situation of the Western Conference teams is so fierce that one game can change the team's ranking.

The local media reporters from the Nuggets began to follow the rhythm of the Warriors reporters and frantically talked about the NBA's division rules.

Temporarily back to eighth place, all members of the Warriors did not dare to relax for a moment. They returned to San Francisco that night and fully prepared for the Phoenix Suns who came to challenge the day after tomorrow.

The Suns currently have a record of 54 wins and 26 losses, temporarily ranking sixth in the Western Conference.

With two games left in the regular season, the Suns have a firm foothold in the playoffs, but they definitely don't want to fall down and run into two strong opponents, the Lakers and Spurs, in the first round.

This battle on April 15 will be the biggest stumbling block for the Warriors on their way to the playoffs.