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Chapter 217 The Frenzy Before the Trade Deadline: The Warriors' Number One Rival! (Second Update, Requesting Monthly Tickets!)
The celebrity weekend has ended, and Qin Yue's consecutive "40+" triple-double performances didn't even manage to grab headlines.

Before the trade deadline, the Eastern Conference powerhouses, all vying for a spot in the NBA Finals this year, had become incredibly competitive.

In late February, the Knicks, who were the first to make a move, traded David Lee, a "double-double machine," to the Philadelphia 76ers, who, after the gun incident, had decided to go all the way down the path of tanking and could trade anyone except Wall.

During this period, the 76ers' management, who were still somewhat compassionate, did not want to jeopardize Iguodala's promising future by tanking.

Knicks general manager Walsh seized the opportunity.

They traded a fair and equitable offer to the Knicks for this top-class swingman who excels on both offense and defense.

Iguodala is currently in the prime of his career.

He is not only good at offense and defense, but also at organizing and supporting.

This led Walsh to see him as a lubricant between James and the Knicks' young trio, and as a brake for Westbrook, who always seemed to get carried away during games.

just
Although Iguodala is a player who doesn't take many shots, as a point forward, Iguodala's presence will inevitably lead to a further decrease in James's ball possession on the court.

Last summer, James chose to bring his talents to the Knicks. Little did he know that the price he would have to pay to win would be his personal statistics.
This season, James' average stats have dropped to 23 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists per game.

This data means
If James's status with the Knicks continues to decline, he will have to wait two more years to complete the "411 Project" as Qin Yue remembers.

of course
Compared to Lee, who was a defensive liability, Iguodala's arrival has significantly improved the Knicks' recent defensive performance.

The only drawback is
After the Knicks lost their starting power forward, D'Antoni made the exact same choice as Pat Riley at the same stage of history – moving James to the power forward position.

For James himself, the advantage of playing the power forward position is that he can openly grab more defensive rebounds when Mozgov is boxing out.

But the downside is
Besides continuing to be a gofer for the Knicks' young trio, his defensive responsibilities on the court have clearly increased significantly after this trade.

After all, the power forward position is either mediocre to the end or makes history.
A large part of the reason is that the power forward position is a position that is inherently about doing hard work.

Assisting the center in protecting the rim, helping teammates delay during pick-and-roll defense, and providing help defense for perimeter teammates are all responsibilities that power forwards need to assume in the defensive phase.

Although James is currently in the most defensive phase of his career, before embarking on his path to power, being a lackey for the Knicks' young trio is clearly not what he wanted before joining the Knicks.

What does James want?
What he wants is to mentor the Knicks' young trio, and ideally, Harden and Westbrook would relinquish all the ball possession to him, allowing him to continue playing the role of the Knicks' primary ball-handler.

Once his physical condition declines, the Knicks' young trio will take the lead, and after setting the stage for him, he will personally lead the Knicks to victory as a king.

Unfortunately, James is destined not to achieve all of the above in the short term.

In addition, after that Christmas game, James also needs time to regain the trust of fans.

So what can James do about D'Antoni's recent tactical decision to "toughen himself out a bit more"?
Keep suffering!

In addition, the Knicks made another small trade before the trade deadline.

They signed Zydrunas Ilgauskas, who had been waived by the Cavaliers and was eager to follow LeBron James, in free agency.

Qin Yue never expected that Zydrunas Ilgauskas would be so loyal to James, even to the point of giving up his one-city career that could have ended with the Cavaliers, in order to follow him.

Meanwhile, the Heat, the Knicks' biggest rival in the East this season, haven't been idle either.

Before the trade deadline, they first signed Mike Miller, who had been waived by the Wizards, and then signed Eric Dampier, who had been waived by the Hawks.

After completing these two small trades, the ever-prudent Riley placed his hopes for further strengthening the Heat on Carmelo Anthony, who still has great potential.

Under Riley's supervision, Anthony, who had to run on the treadmill every day, was not only deprived of his right to eat fries before each game, but also, whenever Anthony tried to defend with his eyes on the court, he would inevitably be met with a barrage of scolding from Riley.

"I can't stand it anymore, he's just like a farmer!"

On the phone, Anthony complained to Qin Yue, "As long as he picks up the whip, I have to work according to his instructions."

That day, based on Anthony's description, Qin Yuexuan immediately conjured up an image in his mind of Riley holding a whip in one hand and shouting "Go-Wrok" at Anthony in a vast cotton field.

Qin Yue didn't know how to comfort Anthony.

But on the bright side...
Riley's decision to "toughen up Anthony a little more" did indeed unleash Anthony's potential.

This season, Anthony is averaging 28 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists per game.

He was a better fit for Wade and Bosh, and with Riley's encouragement, he set new career highs in many statistics.

Therefore, rather than comforting Anthony, what Qin Yue really wanted to say was, "So what if you suffer a little longer?"

These days, which star athlete who wants to make a name for themselves doesn't have a tough life?
You should know that some star players don't even have the chance to suffer if they want to.

For example, Vince Carter, who was ruthlessly sent to Minnesota by Celtics general manager Danny Ainge before the trade deadline.

In order to cut costs and free up salary cap space to re-sign Horford, Ainge only asked the Timberwolves for Yi Jianlian and two future draft picks in the Carter trade.

This deal does not require wage balancing.

Because Wolves have enough salary cap space to accommodate Carter's contract.

“Vince was training with me yesterday.” After Carter was traded, Duncan also called Qin Yue, “but today, he boarded a plane to Minnesota alone.”

Qin Yue knew that Duncan's words were clearly a veiled expression of his dissatisfaction with Angie.

Why was Duncan dissatisfied?
Carter, who had contributed significantly to the Celtics despite not having achieved much, was traded without any apparent reason.

Duncan saw Ainge's cold-blooded and ruthless side through this trade.

At the same time, it also made him feel a little anxious about his future.

After all, based on Ainge's team-building logic...
As an older player, Duncan is also a potential target for Ainge to clear out.

The reason Ainge hasn't considered getting rid of Duncan yet is simply because Duncan is still in the twilight of his prime. Seeing this, Qin Yue seized the opportunity to seduce Duncan, saying, "Why don't you come to Oakland and join me when your contract expires? Anyway, you're no match for me now, so what's the point of continuing to compete with me?"

“You make a lot of sense,” Duncan said, “but I still want to try to beat you as an opponent once.”

“We have a game in two weeks, and if you want to win, I don’t mind letting you win once.”

"You know, I'm not referring to the regular season."

"Then you'd better work hard," Qin Yue said with a smile. "My dear senior, you should know how fierce the competition is in the East right now."

fierce?
To be honest, the Eastern Conference this season can no longer be simply described as intense.

This season, besides the Knicks, Heat, and Celtics who are vying for the top spot...
The East also has disruptors such as the Hawks, Bobcats, Magic, Bulls, and Pacers.

Last summer, although it was a pity to lose Tyson Chandler.
But as Joe's one-on-one skills have become increasingly sophisticated, who in the East would dare to underestimate this Hawks team?
And what about the lynx?

Even though Artest often clashes with owner Jordan and his players, the Bobcats, with Roy and Randolph at their core, have gained unprecedented confidence and unity after their upset victory in the first round of the playoffs last season.

Last season, Dwight Howard, who was criticized by Orlando fans and media as a "giant baby," is now more eager to prove himself than ever, with the help of Jackson and Arenas.

As for the two rising forces that officially joined the fierce competition in the Eastern Conference this season...
The Bulls and Pacers have become the two most surprising teams so far in the regular season.

The former includes not only Rose and Stoudemire, but also other talented players such as Joakim Noah, Taj Gibson, Kyle Korver, and Luol Deng.

Their only current concern is that the team's head coach is Tom Thibodeau, who was poached from Houston by the Bulls' front office.
Therefore, given Rose and Stoudemire's durability, how long they can last under Thibodeau's leadership is a huge question mark.

As another potential dark horse in the East this year
This Pacers team, led by Frank Vogel, is, in Qin Yue's view, an underrated team.

Although compared to teams that have landed several big names, the Pacers only signed Carlos Boozer and Kyle Lowry from free agency last summer.
But given the current Pacers roster, Qin Yue wouldn't be surprised if they made it to the Finals.

Especially in early March, after the Pacers suffered two losses, one at home and one away, and were swept by their opponents in the regular season.

For a team that could field Roy Hibbert, Boozer, Danny Granger, Paul George, and Lowry in its starting lineup, Qin Yue could only express his utmost respect for Bird's team-building prowess.

Oh, right, besides this star-studded starting lineup.
The Pacers also have Jermaine O'Neal, who has returned to his roots, sharpshooter Brandon Rush, and rookie Lance Stephenson, who once blew on James' ear in Qin Yue's memory.

This season, Qin Yue, who had been focused on the Western Conference, only realized after the trade deadline that the Eastern Conference was currently a fiercely competitive battleground.

In order to compete for a higher ranking, almost all the Eastern Conference teams have started playoff mode early after the regular season officially entered its final stage.

In contrast, consider the west.
When the Jazz, without Boozer, could still climb to sixth in the West under Paul's leadership; when the Spurs, without Parker, were forced to compete for a playoff spot because other teams could put up better numbers; when the young Memphis Grizzlies overtook the SuperSonics to move into fourth place in the Western Conference standings.
Qin Yue could only say that this was definitely the year with the lowest overall competition in the Western Conference since he entered the league.

However, even so.
Qin Yue did not say, like the later "Gun King" Morant, "We have no rivals in the West."

Because no matter how low-key the Dallas Mavericks, who have collectively acquired a championship mentality this season, try to appear, they are not doing so.
They couldn't escape Qin Yue's sharp eyes.

3 month 24 day.

When Mike Woodson, determined to put the Warriors to the test before the playoffs, arrived in Oakland with a fully-staffed Dallas Mavericks team, a decisive game, a game that would determine the winner and the loser, was about to begin at Oracle Arena.

After warming up, the two teams took their starting positions.

For the Warriors, who rested Nash and Bell that night, their starting five were Brown, Qin Yue, Wallace, Curry, and Jack.

The Mavericks' starting five are Chandler, Nowitzki, Marion, Stevenson, and Parker.

Before the game started, looking at Mahinmi, Terry, Kidd, Barea, Peja, and Brewer waiting on the Mavericks' bench...
Qin Yue knew very well that this Mavericks team had become the Warriors' number one rival in the West on their road to defending their title this year.

In the opening tip-off, Chandler, the second overall pick in the 2001 NBA draft, easily defeated Brown, the first overall pick that year.

Parker dribbled the ball across half-court and, after a pick-and-roll with Chandler, assisted the opponent to complete an alley-oop.

In the Warriors' paint, he dunked the ball, and Chandler, who knew Brown inside and out, immediately teased him, "You don't actually think that just because you made the All-Star team once with your Messiah title, you're a star center, do you?"

Upon hearing this, Brown, his face instantly turning red, said, "Shut up! You have no idea how much progress I've made over the years!"

"Progress? If your progress refers to offensive plays you execute by committing traveling violations, then all I can say is..."

Looking directly at Brown, Chandler said, "Kwame, your shamelessness truly exceeds my imagination!"

Back to the point, the Warriors have possession of the ball.

Noticing Brown's eagerness to receive the ball, Qin Yue passed it to him without much thought.

then
Qin Yue personally witnessed Brown being brutally beaten by Chandler in the Mavericks' paint area.

"Your offensive skills are as laughable as the packaging of Lay's potato chips." Chandler scoffed as he slapped Brown's basketball dream away. "It's all air inside, not a single bit of substance."

"."

At that moment, feeling extremely aggrieved, Brown chose not to continue arguing with Chandler.

Instead, he turned his gaze to Qin Yue without hesitation.

His expression and demeanor were exactly like that of a primary school student who had been bullied outside and could only run home to tell his parents.

"Help me teach him a lesson!" Brown said to Qin Yue with a straight face the next second.

"no problem."

Looking at Brown, Qin Yue answered calmly.

……

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(End of this chapter)