warrior godfather

Chapter 355 I am the MVP
At [-] o'clock the next night, the Warriors sat at home to face the Eagles who came all the way from Atlanta.

For the Warriors, the Eagles, like the Grizzlies, are also a more difficult opponent.

In this game, they caused big trouble for the Warriors.

Zhang Yu's reprimand yesterday made the Warriors players dare not be negligent and slack. They put out all their strength at the beginning of the game, and must show their ""1 attitude in front of Zhang Yu. :
However, the impact of relaxation during the All-Star weekend will not completely disappear after a day. They just fought a fierce battle with the Grizzlies yesterday, and their physical fitness has not fully recovered, and their state is even worse.

Therefore, although the generals of the Warriors are very high-spirited, they feel colder than the previous game, and the Eagles' defense is also at the upper-middle level of the league. There are a bunch of jumpers with explosive athletic ability. Under the defense, the Warriors' shooting became even worse.

To make matters worse, Curry and Butler didn't have the touch of the previous game.

Just like girls have a difficult few days every month, a shooter will encounter a very difficult period every once in a while, and his shooting will become very hard.

It's just that the difference between a super shooter and an ordinary shooter is that a super shooter has a very long period of feeling cold, while an ordinary shooter is accurate for a few games, and they will have a ghost game.

Unfortunately, tonight's Curry is super ghostly.

In the first half alone, Curry made 6 of 1 shots from beyond the three-point line, and his shooting percentage was a very poor 16.7%.

In fact, iron is not so terrible for Curry. He has never been a pure shooter. Even if the three-pointer is not accurate, he can also show value on the offensive end through breakthroughs and organization.

But Hawks head coach Larry Drew didn't give him this chance. After the Warriors' shooters felt collectively cold, this old-school coach decisively adopted a defensive strategy of shrinking the inside line, sticking to the penalty area and defending against sudden shots. It is difficult to break through to the inside, and Butler, who has always been good at attacking the frame and causing damage, is also restrained and can only shoot in the middle and long distances.

Faced with such an unfavorable situation, Zhang Yu could only change the game plan that he made before the game. He changed the Warriors' offensive system that is both open and close, and also has a flexible pick-and-roll and pass-cut hybrid offensive system. Defensive counterattacks have been raised to an unprecedented degree of emphasis. All offenses start with defense, and all scoring ends with counterattacks. Try not to lose ground, resolutely push the pace, and win in chaos.

This is also a helpless move. The Warriors feel cold in shooting, and positional warfare is very difficult to fight. They can only avoid the reality and complete the attack before the Eagles' defense falls.

Zhang Yu's strategy has also worked. The Eagles mainly focus on team offense. Joe Johnson, Jeff Teague, Josh Smith, and Marvin Williams are all strong players. They cooperate tacitly and integrate offense and defense. However, under the tight defensive system of the Warriors, it is difficult for them to play that kind of teamwork, and it is also difficult to rush fast.

Especially when the generals of the Warriors don’t feel good and focus most of their attention on defense, the Eagles’ offense becomes more difficult and their efficiency plummets. Only Joe Johnson, the “King of Eagles”, supports the Eagles with his superb skills. attack.

The Warriors also rely on successful defense, or steals, or blocks, or interference shots, to continuously obtain the conversion of the ball in the live ball state, promote defensive counterattacks, and hit the Eagles' basket.

But the Eagles' defense is not a vegetarian either. Josh Smith, Marvin Williams and other strong men are most afraid of playing fast. Unable to easily break through the Eagles' penalty area, they can only rely on toughness and tactics to attack the frame.

The two sides finished the second half in this quagmire-like rhythm of the game. The Warriors barely bit the score by relying on defensive counterattacks and piecemeal scoring in positional warfare.

However, the efficiency of switching offenses is not as stable as the scoring in positional battles. The Warriors have played to the extreme on the defensive end and made a lot of mistakes by the Eagles.

And until the last moment, the Warriors players did not regain their touch, and naturally they failed to overtake the score. Although Curry hit a super long three-pointer with 18 seconds left in the game, it was just a flashback. 4 points behind the Eagles, and Joe Johnson turned around and succeeded in singles against Butler. He made a steady two-pointer and completely killed the game.

In the end, the Eagles defeated the Warriors with a score of 95:89, playing the role of a "giant killer".

After the Warriors lost, the players were very frustrated. They caused the Eagles to make a total of 25 turnovers, including 14 steals and 8 blocks. It can be said that they have achieved the ultimate defense.

But the Warriors still lost the game, because they made 40 of 8 three-pointers and made 20% of their three-pointers. Among them, Curry made 11 of 2 shots and Clay made 5. 1 shot, Green 3 for 0 shots, Leonard 4 for 0 shots, Yi Jianlian 3 for 1 shots, only Butler and Danny Green are normal, but they are only 5 of 2 shots and 4 of 2 shots. It's low and doesn't help.

After the whole game, Curry made 25 of 10 shots, 11 of 2 three-pointers, and 6 of 6 free throws. He scored 28 points, 6 assists, 4 rebounds, 3 steals and 3 turnovers. The efficiency was very low, but he played very poorly.

Except for him, only Butler and Clay scored 14 and 12 points respectively, and none of the others scored in double figures, and their performance was lackluster.

As for the Eagles, there are more blooming points. Although the offensive efficiency of the Eagles players is not high, they still maintain a normal level of shooting. Joe Johnson has 24 points, Josh Smith has 14 points, Jeff Teague has 15 points, and Ma Wen. Williams 14 points, Pachulia 12 points, five starters all scored in double figures, helping the team win this precious victory.

After the game, the Warriors waited anxiously for Zhang Yu who was being interviewed in the locker room. Curry had finished the interview before him and returned to the locker room.

He told his teammates that Zhang Yu was praising everyone's positive performance in front of the media, saying that the team's defense tonight was the best in all games this season, and he was very satisfied with the players' performance tonight, and the loss was just an accident.

But this made the players feel that disaster was imminent. They knew very well that no matter how badly the team played or lost, Zhang Yu would never publicly criticize the performance of the players in front of the media. Bad, the more he praises, and this often means that he will lose his temper in the locker room.

In particular, they were scolded yesterday, and lost immediately after today, and lost in such a regrettable way, which made everyone feel uneasy.

pat.

Soon, the door of the locker room was pushed open. Under the nervous gaze of the crowd, Zhang Yu stepped in with a relaxed expression. He didn't forget to turn around and gently close the door before coming to the crowd.

He blinked, looked around, and suddenly smiled in the dead silence of the locker room:
"Why are you all looking at me? It's hard to finish playing back to back, and you can have a good rest tomorrow. Why do you all look unhappy?"

"call……"

The Warriors players breathed a sigh of relief. Zhang Yu's words meant that he was not angry. Now that he had finally escaped, everyone looked relaxed.

"But—" Zhang Yu still had a smile on his face, but dragged out his tone, "I am very dissatisfied with your shooting today. In the next month, after the regular training time is over, we will collectively practice shooting for half an hour—— Same goes for game day!"

When everyone heard this, bitterness appeared on the faces that had just relaxed.

Half an hour of shooting practice doesn't seem like much, but it's an extra practice after all the training is completed. I'm extremely tired, and it will last for a month, which can be regarded as a relatively heavy punishment.

This is, the smile on Zhang Yu's face gradually subsided:
"To be honest, I'm very satisfied with your defense tonight. I can see that you listened to what I said yesterday. No one slackened in the game. It's good. However, your shooting today is really bad. , It's so bad that it's outrageous. I allow you to miss shots. After all, even Michael Jordan has inaccuracies, but he can't be inaccurate to this extent. So, practice shooting for me, don't Another game like this - especially not in front of our home fans!"

Everyone responded in unison:

"Yes, sir!"

……

On March 3, the Warriors, who had a day off, came to Philadelphia to challenge the 2ers away.

After the 76ers defeated the Thunder, they returned to Philadelphia, rested for two full days, and waited for work before ushering in the game against the Warriors.

But this was an extra day of rest, but it did not bring a victory for the 76ers. Their style of play is somewhat similar to that of the Eagles. The offensive end focuses on team offense, and the defensive end does its best. It is a team based on defense. , The scoring points are scattered, and there is a lack of superstars who can make the final decision.

However, this game does not need superstars to make a final decision. The Warriors are better than the 76ers on both ends of the offense and defense. After the opening, they took the lead. It got off to a good start in the six consecutive trips.

After the whole game, Curry scored 27 points, 12 assists, 4 rebounds, 2 steals and 3 turnovers. The 76ers coach Doug Collins made a targeted defensive arrangement for him. The role of personal offense is mainly to drive teammates with passes after attracting the attention of the defense.

After the game, Zhang Yu said in an interview:
"Stephen showed his organizational ability as the league's top point guard in this game. Without his passing, it would be difficult for us to maintain our offensive performance under the tough defense of the 76ers. He is the key player in this game. MVP, and the Warriors' MVP this season, he deserves an MVP trophy!"

Later, the reporter interviewed Curry and asked him about Zhang Yu's remarks. Curry said without hesitation:
"Every season has an MVP, why can't this season's MVP be me? Derek's award last year inspired me deeply. I did everything I could on the court to help the team. We are ranked No. [-] in the league. One, I am the MVP!"

The reporters were very surprised. Curry, who has always been humble off the court, even shouted the slogan of competing for MVP directly in front of the media. This is really rare.

But what they don't know is that this is not Curry's original intention. He also wants to win the MVP, but with Curry's humble character, he hopes to conquer the fans and the media with his performance, and he will be elected naturally instead of declaring it in front of the media. in the mouth.

But both Zhang Yu and Jeff Austin talked to Curry and explained to him the importance of publicity and campaigning. This is for himself to win the award, so Curry can only agree to come down, let out bold words in front of the media, and personally be the MVP Vote for momentum.

And in this way, the popularity of the Warriors and Curry has risen to a higher level again, and they have become the focus of attention. Everyone wants to see what kind of record the Warriors can achieve this year, and whether Curry will win. The MVP, of course, pays special attention to the next performance of the Warriors.

So, adhering to the spirit of striking while the iron is hot, Zhang Yu raised the butcher knife in his hand and looked at the Warriors' next opponents-the Raptors, Wizards and Cavaliers.

……

On March 3, after a day off, the Warriors came to Toronto to play against the Raptors.

Facing this underdog in the Eastern Conference, the Warriors did not hesitate and won a big victory 124:100. Curry's performance was also very dazzling, scoring 35 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 turnovers. Twelve points came in the second half of the third quarter.

At that time, Curry only scored 23 points, and the Raptors were 17 points behind. Without his contribution, the Warriors could easily win and the first three quarters could be clocked in. After scoring 12 points, Mingjin retreated with satisfaction.

In the post-match interview, Zhang Yu once again praised Curry:
"We were able to win tonight. Stephen is the biggest contributor. He may be the most explosive scoring player in the league. He scored 18 points in a single quarter in the third quarter, 12 of which were scored in 6 minutes. That helped us set up a winning streak in one fell swoop.”

On March 3, the Warriors flew to Washington to challenge the Wizards in back-to-back away games.

Although the No. [-] pick was selected, Wall is still in the process of leveling up. The Wizards' record is worse than that of the Raptors, ranking second to last in the Eastern Conference.

However, due to back-to-back, the state of the Warriors fluctuated a bit. In the first half, they played back and forth with the Wizards, but this just gave Curry a chance to show his skills. He showed his power and scored 41 points and 6 assists. With 3 rebounds and 2 steals, he led the team to beat the opponent 126:115.

Although there was no three-quarter check-in in this game, the Wizards' defense was poor and there was no confrontation. The Warriors also released water on the defensive end.

After the game, Zhang Yu praised Curry:

"That's why we are number one in the league. Stephen can always stand up when the team needs it. His performance is a good example of what an MVP is!"

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(End of this chapter)