Chương 182: Chapter 182: Suns vs. Knicks
"Coach Kidd is not fit to be a coach!"
After the second game, Coach Kidd was criticized even more harshly.
...
Post-game press conference.
Coach Kidd and Nash had already left, and seeing the head coach leave, Curry and Thompson followed suit. Only Wade Dong was left to face the media, which everyone was fine with.
The Suns knew that because Daisy and Li Jiajia were close friends, the reporters wouldn't give Wade Dong a hard time.
Of course, having only Wade Dong for the interview was enough for the reporters.
Seeing Wade Dong sitting at the table fiddling with the microphone, a reporter asked, "After losing two consecutive key games, fans are now blaming Coach Kidd's tactics."
"The team's chemistry does have some issues," Wade Dong said slowly, "but we can't blame Coach Kidd. He is a great coach, and we all trust him."
The reporter asked, "Will the Suns make any adjustments to the lineup for the next game?"
"Probably not," Wade Dong shook his head. "My teammates and I didn't have a good shooting touch in the last two games. We missed many shots that we should have made, which was the main reason for the losses. But this won't happen every night. We will adjust our form as soon as possible."
Wade Dong knew that the next opponent, the Knicks, would definitely be watching the Suns' post-game press conference.
As for whether there would be any adjustments to the lineup for the next game, Wade Dong wasn't sure, so he threw out a smokescreen. The more he said there wouldn't be any adjustments, the more uncertain the Knicks would feel, effectively playing a psychological game.
After all, losing to the Knicks would mean a three-game losing streak for the Suns.
The reporter asked a few more questions, and the post-game press conference ended.
Wade Dong didn't understand why the Suns, with such a strong lineup, had lost the last two games. Green and Middleton barely got any playing time, even though they were rookies, their performance this season was decent.
The Suns had the potential to win those games, but Coach Kidd's approach seemed like he was intentionally losing.
The only reason he might be doing this was to dampen the players' spirits and then make a significant adjustment to the lineup.
...
That night, Wade Dong video-called Li Jiajia for a while.
Li Jiajia didn't understand basketball well but mentioned that the Suns' current lineup arrangement was unreasonable. Even she advised Wade Dong to think of a solution.
After the video call, Wade Dong exchanged for the Coach Kerr skill package.
Coach Kerr wasn't a famous player, but Wade Dong knew that in his previous life, the Warriors' dynasty was built by Kerr. Kerr might be the best coach for utilizing Curry, Thompson, and Green.
Exchanging for the Coach Kerr skill package was to figure out how to reasonably arrange the Suns' current lineup.
In his previous life, the Warriors' "Death Lineup" made the entire league tremble. The current Suns, with Curry, Thompson, and Green being slightly inexperienced, had Wade Dong, who was a stronger version of Durant. With this lineup, the Suns' bench included Nash, Middleton, Tucker, Frye, and McGrady.
The bench was as strong as an NBA starting lineup.
However, Wade Dong wasn't sure what Coach Kidd had in mind, so he exchanged for the Coach Kerr skill package as a precaution.
...
March 3rd.
Suns vs. Knicks.
This was another strong opponent for the Suns in the second half of the season. The Knicks were ranked third in the East.
The Knicks had Anthony, the third-highest scorer this season, the veteran Stoudemire, the erratic Smith, and young talents like Kennard and Chandler.
The Suns had faced the Knicks once this season and went into overtime.
In overtime, when all the players were exhausted, Wade Dong stepped up and won the game.
This was the second meeting between the two teams.
During the warm-up, Nash was chatting with Curry when Stoudemire sneaked up behind Nash and covered his eyes, saying in a funny voice, "Guess who?"
"Hahaha..."
Nash laughed and removed Stoudemire's hand, turning around to hug him. "Brother!"
Nash and Stoudemire had a good relationship. After joking around for a while, Stoudemire said, "The Suns are the strongest team in the league. You can't let two losses affect your game mentality."
"Of course not," Nash said, thumping his chest. "We are the strongest."
Stoudemire sighed, "If I hadn't been traded last season, I would have a championship ring now."
"The Suns will always be your home," Nash said, patting Stoudemire's shoulder. There was nothing more to say.
This year, the Knicks had a chance to compete for the championship, but Nash wouldn't wish Stoudemire luck because the Suns were also aiming for the championship. They were still rivals, and bringing Stoudemire back to the Suns was complicated due to league rules.
"Good luck, brother!"
Stoudemire and Nash encouraged each other and then parted ways.
The game was about to start.
...
In the Chinese live broadcast room.
Yu Jia, "After two consecutive losses, will the Suns make any adjustments to their lineup?"
Coach Zhang, "I think Coach Kidd will make adjustments to the lineup."
Yu Jia, "It feels like Curry and Thompson are not very compatible with the Suns. With Wade Dong, they don't need too much scoring power."
Coach Zhang, "The Suns are the pioneers of the small-ball era. I believe Coach Kidd will find a way to make these stars compatible."
...
If this were two years later, Wade Dong, Nash, Curry, Thompson, and Green would form a true five-star lineup. They also had Tucker and Middleton, as well as the hidden McGrady.
The lineup on paper was very strong.
Ten minutes before the game started, fans saw the starting lineups on the big screen.
Suns: Wade Dong, Nash, Curry, Thompson, Tucker.
Knicks: Anthony, Smith, Stoudemire, Felton, Chandler.
The Suns finally changed their lineup, but fans were even more confused. Coach Kidd benched the only big man, Gortat, and replaced him with Tucker. This was truly a "Death Lineup," and a very risky one at that.
Was Coach Kidd crazy?
The Suns players weren't surprised by this lineup because they had practiced it before the game.
When Coach Kidd laid out the tactics, Wade Dong was a bit puzzled. There was no specific position assignment for the five players on the court, but the tactics were strong, reminiscent of the Warriors' "Death Lineup."
It seemed to work better than having Gortat on the court, but the improvement was limited.
It seemed that Coach Kidd still hadn't figured out how to maximize the potential of this lineup.
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