Chapter 108: Chaos is a Ladder.
The Grizzlies' first day of training didn't involve full-court scrimmages. Han Sen primarily showcased his three-point shooting and defense.
Defense needed no further emphasis, as it was exactly what the Grizzlies were looking for. Even without displaying it, the coaching staff would have prioritized evaluating Han Sen's defense, considering he was the only player on the team's perimeter who had made the All-Defensive Team.
As for the three-point shooting, that was Han Sen's crafty move.
The Grizzlies' offense was built around the interior, so what did they need most?
Space.
Low-post isolation was the most susceptible to collapsing defenses. And to create space, three-point shooters were essential.
However, Han Sen noticed that none of the Grizzlies' three-point shooters were reliable.
At this time, neither Rudy Gay nor Mike Conley's three-point shooting was more than "usable" and couldn't support the team's tactics.
So, although it was just the first day of training, Han Sen had already surpassed Gay and Conley to become the primary passer when Randolph posted up inside.
Compared to Gay and Conley, who needed to cut to the basket after passing the ball to draw defenders, potentially causing Randolph to get double-teamed, Han Sen's ability to pass and then immediately space the floor was much more efficient.
However, feeding the ball inside wasn't an easy task. It had been a problematic area for teams like Yao Ming's.
Han Sen possessed this skill not only because of his stable three-point shooting but also thanks to his time with the Cavaliers, where he gained valuable experience feeding Shaquille O'Neal.
After the first day of training ended, the players returned to the locker room.
Han Sen sat in his corner resting, with Delonte West beside him.
Earlier, Theus had brought them to the locker room, and changing a locker position was a minor matter.
While changing his shoes, Han Sen sensed someone looking at him. When he looked up, he saw Rudy Gay quickly turn his head away.
It seemed Gay already had an issue with him.
This was expected. Gay's role in the offense was already limited, and Han Sen had taken away some of his touches as soon as he arrived. It was only natural for him to feel slighted.
But so what? Competition doesn't involve everyone sitting down peacefully to share the spoils.
The resources are limited, and no one wants to settle for less, so one has to fight for them.
Just then, someone came into Han Sen's field of vision.
Conley walked over with a smile.
Han Sen didn't know what he wanted but greeted him with a friendly expression.
Conley sat down, and Han Sen soon understood his intention.
This guy came over to discuss the nuances of passing to the post.
The difference between people was already apparent in that instant.
Because of his Cavaliers experience, Han Sen didn't judge people by their appearance, but Conley, in his current lifetime, was exactly as he remembered.
A player who played 17 years in the league, was never ejected, never received a technical or flagrant foul, and never fouled out. Moreover, he made the All-Defensive Team, won the NBA's Teammate of the Year award twice, and received the NBA Sportsmanship Award four times. It spoke volumes about how cleanly he played and how good a person he was.
During his chat with Conley, Han Sen learned a lot about the Grizzlies.
For example, the head coach, Lionel Hollins.
Hollins held significant power within the team not just because he could manage Randolph, but more importantly, because he was a 'three-time veteran' for the Grizzlies.
Back in the 1999–2000 season, when the Grizzlies were still in Vancouver, Hollins served as an interim coach.
Later, during the 2004–05 season, when Hubie Brown was fired, Hollins again stepped in as the interim coach.
Finally, in the 2008–09 season, when the Grizzlies were in turmoil and changed coaches three times in one season, Hollins took over once more and had been coaching ever since.
So, after talking with Conley, Han Sen could confirm that Hollins was a coach with actual power, and his authority was unquestioned in the Grizzlies.
This made Gay and Randolph's reactions even more understandable.
After about a week of tactical training, Hollins finally arranged for a full-court scrimmage.
The team was divided into three groups: starters, reserves, and bench players.
Starters: Conley, Han Sen, Gay, Randolph, and Marc Gasol.
Reserves: Delonte West, Tony Allen, Sam Young, James Johnson, and Hamed Haddadi.
Bench: Ish Smith, Acie Law, Rodney Carney, DeMarre Carroll, and Danté Alighieri.
The scrimmage started with a game between the reserves and the bench players.
Han Sen had previously only focused on key rotation players, and it was then that he noticed a familiar face on the Grizzlies' bench.
Carroll was on the Grizzlies at this time?
This was a player who would later earn a multi-million dollar contract with the Hawks.
However, once the game began, Han Sen realized that Carroll was still a very raw player at this point, possessing only a physical presence.
And it wasn't just Carroll; the Grizzlies' bench had players who were primarily defensive specialists with little offensive talent.
It was as if the Grizzlies had gathered all the league's players who could only defend and not score.
In comparison, West was the most offensively threatening player on the court.
The disparity in offensive talent left Han Sen wiping away sweat.
It was clear that being overly one-sided could be a disadvantage at times.
After a series of missed shots, thanks to West's performance, the reserve team eventually won 9-6.
After a short break, it was time for the starters to play against the reserves.
The reserve team began on offense, and Han Sen rested on defense.
Tony Allen posed virtually no offensive threat, leaving Han Sen with little to do.
West made a mid-range jumper after a pick-and-roll with Johnson.
Despite his character issues, West had well-rounded skills.
Just like the last play, he had keenly identified Randolph's defensive weakness.
Although Randolph had a big frame, his mobility was on par with Shaquille O'Neal's, making him vulnerable to pick-and-roll plays.
Conley pushed the ball upcourt, and once Randolph established a good position down low, he passed to Han Sen, who then fed the ball inside. Randolph caught it and went one-on-one against Johnson, scoring with a beautiful post move and turnaround jumper.
Randolph's low-post skills were on full display, but what struck Han Sen even more was how truly old-school the style was.
Though it wasn't yet the small-ball era, passing and cutting were becoming more common in the league. Teams like the Cavaliers primarily relied on pick-and-roll plays and passing sequences.
But the Grizzlies, with their twin-tower approach and low-post focus, resembled the double-post Rockets led by Hakeem Olajuwon in the '90s.
However, this grind-it-out style was indeed effective against teams with limited offensive capabilities.
For instance, as Han Sen helped Randolph with defensive rotations, the reserve team could only fall further behind.
Midway through the first quarter, the score had already reached 10-2.
But it was around this time that a small incident occurred on the court.
When the starters pushed the ball upcourt, Gay asked Conley for the ball and began isolating.
It was a genuine isolation play, with no attention given to his teammates.
His style resembled Carmelo Anthony's during the All-Star game—seemingly triple-threat but essentially only offering two options.
Sam Young, who entered the NBA the same year as Han Sen and was last year's second-round pick for the Grizzlies, had decent physical attributes.
However, his talent paled in comparison to Gay's. After getting past Young, Gay hit a floater over him for the score.
Then, for several consecutive possessions, he continued to play solo.
The downside to this approach was that it left the other teammates disengaged. Even Randolph showed visible frustration on defense.
Observing Hollins' reaction on the sideline, Han Sen saw that he wasn't happy either.
Could Gay really be this reckless?
That didn't seem right.
Han Sen's impression of Gay wasn't that of an unruly player; if it were someone like Cousins, he'd understand.
After thinking it over, Han Sen figured out the reason.
Gay was expressing his frustration in his own way.
There was a subtle detail here: Gay had signed a five-year max contract with the Grizzlies this summer.
Before signing the deal, he dared not step out of line, knowing Hollins' high standing with the team. Any reduction in his role might have jeopardized his chances of securing a max deal.
But now, with his contract secured and given by a small-market team, his trade value was low, making it hard for the Grizzlies to move him.
So Gay was using this approach to demand a more prominent role in the offense.
From a logical perspective, it made sense; after all, a player with a max contract who didn't produce matching numbers would face heavy criticism.
However, this situation signaled an opportunity for Han Sen.
Gay's mindset would inevitably lead to friction with the coaching staff, and if Han Sen could capitalize on this discord, it could be his chance.
---
After training ended that day, Randolph was cursing in the locker room.
Although he didn't mention any names, everyone knew who he was targeting.
However, no one chimed in to support him; instead, Conley went over to try to calm him down.
After all, out of the young players on the Grizzlies, Gay had been with the team the longest, making him the leader among the younger players.
And Randolph was just a later addition and had a reputation as a league troublemaker.
Under these circumstances, most players sided with Gay, even if what he did today wasn't quite right.
For several days, Gay had been expressing his dissatisfaction in this way.
Hollins found himself in a tough spot.
He had already asked Joerger to communicate with Gay, but it seemed like Gay was determined to secure a bigger role in the team's tactics.
Moreover, Gay's isolation skills were indeed impressive.
Hollins tried putting Allen on him, but it wasn't effective.
Gay not only had the skills but was also very strong physically, which put Allen at a disadvantage in defending someone of his size.
Plus, Gay had worked hard on his game over the summer and had noticeably improved to a higher level.
The situation looked like Gay was demanding a bigger role in the game plan, and he was proving that giving him the ball was the better option.
This was the real issue causing Hollins' discomfort.
With less than ten days until the season started, if they couldn't rein in Gay's momentum, the Grizzlies might face internal strife when the new season began.
The next day, Han Sen uncharacteristically arrived late for practice.
Hollins looked angry, clearly in a bad mood and ready to vent, and Han walked right into it.
However, what he said next quickly diffused Hollins' anger.
He didn't explain why he was late, only acknowledging that he was and suggesting that he should practice with the second team.
Hollins wasn't stupid; he had been an All-Star player during his career and had been in the league for over 20 years, so he could read between the lines.
"This is a one-time thing. Don't let it happen again!"
After reiterating his coaching principles, he motioned for Han Sen to rejoin the team.
Soon, it was time for the full-court scrimmage.
This time, Hollins set up a match between the starters and the reserves, swapping Han Sen and Tony Allen's positions.
Looking at the lineup across from him, Hansen felt a strong sense of familiarity because it was the Grizzlies' starting lineup he knew so well.
The scrimmage began quickly, with the reserves getting the first possession.
Han Sen took a pass from West and tried a one-on-one move, but his floater missed the basket under Gay's defense.
Gay's talent was indeed exceptional.
Spurs fans once had a classic 'what if': had Gay been drafted by the Spurs instead of joining later, would the team have found its 'Leonard' sooner and won more championships?
On defense, Han immediately double-teamed Randolph, forcing the latter to spin baseline for a shot, but Johnson's contest disrupted him, and he missed.
However, Gasol scored on a putback over Haddadi.
On the next possession, Han Sen changed his approach on offense, moving off the ball instead of handling it.
This adjustment allowed him to find an open shot, and West's pass was right on target. Han caught the ball and fired a three-pointer, sinking it with ease.
The Grizzlies' coaching staff all had a bright look in their eyes.
The Grizzlies had always played a structured, half-court style, making this type of offense quite rare.
Hansen and West high-fived as they got back on defense, showing great chemistry from having played together for a season with the Cavaliers.
What excited Han Sen even more was that in that last possession, he noticed a defensive weakness in Gay.
Compared to his ability to defend ball handlers, Gay's off-ball defense was quite average, even poor, as he seemed more concerned about what the ball handler was doing than his own assignment.
This reminded Han of an old acquaintance.
The starters continued to play through Randolph, with Allen moving to the far corner on the weak side.
But Hansen didn't bother with Allen and double-teamed Randolph again.
Randolph showed his passing vision, throwing the ball to Allen along the baseline.
Allen had an open three, but hesitated after receiving the ball. Eventually, he drove to the basket, but Han, who had recovered, blocked his shot, and secured the rebound.
Just like he showed in his one-on-one matchup with Durant, Han Sen's improved physical condition made his recovery and rebounding much better than last season.
After grabbing the rebound, he immediately pushed the ball forward.
The Grizzlies players were accustomed to half-court play, and it wasn't until he crossed the free-throw line that they reacted.
Conley came over to stop him, but Han Sen threw a long pass forward, where West was already past the three-point line.
Anyone who came from the Cavaliers was skilled at fast breaks.
West scored on the fast break layup, making it 5-2 in favor of the reserves.
For Han, who once led the Cavaliers' third team to dominate the first and second teams, this situation was familiar territory.
At this point, Gay reached out to Conley for the ball.
This time, Conley didn't hesitate and passed it to him right away. With the inside attack stalling, Gay needed to open things up.
Gay took the ball and drove past Sam Young, but as soon as he got by, Han was there to challenge him, putting pressure on the ball.
Forced to slow down, Gay tried to use his strength to muscle past him but quickly found that Han Sen wouldn't budge.
Although Han was 2 kilograms lighter than last season, his improved core strength didn't compromise his physicality.
As Gay was about to spin, he noticed Sam Young had recovered as well.
Despite the double-team, Gay didn't pass and tried to pull up for a jump shot, but Han timed his reach perfectly and stripped the ball away.
After the steal, Hansen accelerated quickly, leaving Gay behind.
West was already running on the other side for a fast break, and Conley couldn't cover both.
As for the rest of the Grizzlies, their biggest flaw with the 'twin towers' lineup was evident, just as Brown's Cavaliers had shown with O'Neal and Ilgauskas, transition defense was always an issue.
In the blink of an eye, Han was charging down the court. When Conley shifted off West to cover him, Han raised the ball with his right hand.
Conley tried to poke it loose but failed and quickly retreated.
Boom!
Hansen soared and slammed it down with one hand!
The sound was deep yet loud.
The players on the bench shouted excitedly.
As he landed, he glanced over at the sideline and saw the corner of Hollins' mouth curl upward.
Chaos is a ladder, and Han Sen was already climbing it.
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