Basketball trainer, I created a super giant

Chapter 231 Triangle Offense, Princeton

"Tang, we're on the same page."

In the office, Carlisle looked excited.

He quickly got up, went to the whiteboard opposite, grabbed a pen, and quickly drew several tactics.

"Is this... a triangle attack?"

Looking at those triangles and the positioning of the center, Tang Sen immediately recognized that this was the triangle offense.

Carlisle nodded vigorously, picked up a pen, and began writing down his reasons for playing the triangle offense line by line on the whiteboard.

"In the paint, Yao has a strong ability to score in the low post, and no one can stop him one-on-one."

"He can be the pivot in the low post, he can facilitate, he can screen, he can pass, there is no more complete player than him, he is the most suitable low post core in the triangle offense."

Tang Sen nodded slightly, agreeing with this point.

Yao Ming is indeed exceptionally well-rounded.

Most importantly, he possesses an extremely strong ability to break through defenses in the paint.

Right now, how many big men in the league can defend Yao Ming one-on-one?
It's just that we didn't encounter the Lakers, otherwise I would have definitely let O'Neal experience the power of the moving Great Wall from the Far East.

So it's not surprising that Carlisle came up with the idea of ​​playing the triangle offense.

After all, the core concept of the triangle offense is to create one-on-one opportunities for strong individual players.

Carlisle continued, "As for the perimeter, although we don't have strong one-on-one players like Jordan or Kobe."

“But Alan is also good. His triple threat is very intimidating, and in the summer, you enhanced his quick-strike ability.”

"He can shoot quickly after receiving the ball and avoid being double-teamed. With an average of nearly 20 points per game, that's actually enough."

"And who says we can't develop the next Jordan?"

He pointed at Tang Sen and finally asked a question.

After all, in Layden's plan, DeShawn Stevenson was the next Michael Jordan.

This kid went toe-to-toe with Jordan last time and even won. He's been playing better and better lately, and his average points per game has reached 6.8.

For a player who only played for about ten minutes, this score is acceptable.

"So Tang, should we go for a triangle offense?"

Carlisle countered with a question.

Tang Sen nodded, agreeing that having a top-tier center like Yao Ming and not using the triangle offense would indeed be a waste.

After thinking for a moment with his arms crossed, Tang Sen said, "If we're going to play the triangle offense, we should enhance Yao Ming's quick shooting ability."

The triangle offense has been tried by many teams in the league, but none of them have succeeded.

On one hand, there are extremely rare one-on-one specialists like O'Neal and Jordan.

Secondly, everyone knows who your offensive core is, and when the playoffs come with upgraded defense, they will definitely double-team your core player relentlessly.

In this situation, even if the movement of the strong and weak sides creates a one-on-one opportunity for the core player, that opportunity may only last for a short time of 1 or 2 seconds.

If you're even a fraction of a second slower, your opponents will have already rushed over to help defend and double-team you.

There used to be illegal defense as well.

With the current zone defense, there's absolutely no chance for you to have a one-on-one duel there.

In the playoffs, for a core player like Yao Ming, the strategy will definitely be to double-team him without hesitation.

In this situation, acting quickly is crucial.

Shaquille O'Neal had the ability to catch the ball without dribbling, or to dribble only once and then immediately turn around and use a half-toss, half-hook shot.

Therefore, if Yao Ming wants to make a name for himself in the triangle offense, he must also improve his ability to release shots quickly.

Tang Sen thought of Yao Ming's low-post turnaround fadeaway.

This move is very quick: get into position, receive the ball, turn around, and shoot backwards. If the opponent is slow to help defend, they won't have time to double-team.

There's also the skyhook, which allows for a quick shot after receiving the ball.

If Carlisle is going to implement the triangle offense, then Yao Ming will undoubtedly need to improve his ability in that area.

Carlisle nodded repeatedly, excitedly saying, "That's right, exactly what you said."

"And the reason I asked you to help them practice three-pointers was also for this purpose."

The triangle offense requires a lot of outside shooters; they only get a chance to shoot after the core player draws the defense.

A top-tier triangle offense allows core players to play comfortably while also creating opportunities for role players, resulting in mutual success.

"Then what do you mean by saying we thought the same thing?" Tang Sen pressed.

He approached Carlisle to talk to him so that he could give those hardworking role players a chance.

Carlisle flipped the whiteboard over, quickly drew a tactical positioning diagram, and then said, "Don, your idea is very imaginative. Given our situation, we can definitely prepare several sets of tactics."

Those teams in the league use the same tactics to win every game.

Many more lacked even basic tactics.

And those that can be called a system are extremely rare.

The root cause is still the lack of suitable players, but the Knicks are different. They have more than a dozen rookies who are like blank slates, waiting for Townsend to develop their potential.

You can develop the players you need based on the tactical system you want to use.

“I read the newspaper reports about Leiden’s grand plan carefully, and that’s when I saw the potential of his plan.”

"So we not only need to play the triangle offense, but also Princeton offense."

He tapped the whiteboard, and the four outer and one inner positions on the whiteboard were the most classic starting position in Princeton.

Tang Sen didn't say anything. Princeton plays grassroots basketball, an extreme team sport.

I have to say, he's actually quite suitable for the bench lineup.

Carlisle became more and more excited as he spoke: "Not just Princeton, but the Bucks' fast-paced offense, the Jazz's pick-and-roll, the Rockets' inside-out offense, we can run so many tactics."

"Once we succeed, I can't even imagine how powerful we will be."

"No matter what kind of opponent we face, we have ways to deal with them."

"We will be invincible!"

Carlisle tilted his head slightly, completely absorbed in the fantasy.

After so many years of researching and developing so many tactics, I finally have a stage to put them to use.

He truly believes that coming to the Knicks was the right decision.

"Tang, you have to help me." Carlisle looked at Tang Sen.

Just as Leiden's plan was inseparable from Tang Sen, he himself needed Tang Sen's help to achieve all of this.

Tang Sen nodded.

Seeing how excited Carlisle was, I decided not to dampen his spirits.

His idea, like Leiden's plan, seemed like a castle in the air, beautiful but impractical.

A team that plays so many different tactical systems and has to switch between them all the time—you're going to drive the players crazy!

The Lakers.

Those players who left the Lakers have complained a lot about how complicated and difficult the triangle offense is, and how they can't learn it.

To be honest, sometimes Tang Sen felt that even Jackson himself didn't understand what the triangle offense was.

When it came to the crucial moments of the playoffs, he still only had one move: passing that damn ball to Jordan.

So this is a difficult matter.

But then again, Leiden's plan was slowly coming to fruition.

Carlisle?
Who knows?

But at least by doing this, he can give those fringe players hope and a chance to prove themselves.

This is enough.

After the morning training session ended, Tang Sen sent the players away early.

Tang Sen himself returned to his home in Manhattan.

Today is New Year's Eve.

Once midnight strikes, it's a brand new year.

The fireworks in Times Square are a memory for countless old New Yorkers.

Tang Sen didn't join the crowd; instead, he rented a yacht and cruised on the Hudson River, where he could still see the fireworks.

Tang Sen was not alone in making the same choice; after midnight, cheers erupted from the nearby yachts.

Happy New Year, my friend!

"Happy New Year!"

"Red envelope, red envelope." The mother prepared red envelopes with a smile.

Taking advantage of the New Year's celebration, Tang Sen drew the badge.

This year's good luck lasted all year, but in the end, Tang Sen suffered a setback.

I didn't get anything in the December draw.

But this is the first draw of the new year.

Tang Sen watched the fireworks rising into the night sky in the distance and then chose to draw one.

No disappointment, I won.

Tang Sen's eyes lit up when he saw that touch of gold.

Good start!
Congratulations on obtaining the Gold-level Badge: Preaching

Don't find me annoying; I just want you to improve.

Detailed explanations can boost students' comprehension by 30%.

Upon reading the description of the badge, Tang Sen's eyes lit up.

It also tests comprehension skills.

As title levels gradually increase, the bonuses from titles become more and more important, while the bonuses from comprehension skills become increasingly crucial.

Right now, the focus of training is on technique.

And then there's Carlisle, who wants to be a tactical mastermind, so running tactics also requires understanding.

Although it's the first day of the new year, training can't stop.

Yesterday, Carlisle also discussed with Townsend that in the future, the training session on the morning of the match should be arranged as a tactical drill as much as possible.

Because it was New Year's Eve, Tang Sen went back to Manhattan to stay, and he arrived at the morning training session a little late.

When he arrived, Carlisle personally went down onto the field and instructed several starting players on their positioning.

Tactical drills may not be tiring, but for some players, they can be more tiring than lifting weights in the gym.

For example, Gerald Wallace now.

Carlisle blew his whistle again, strode over to Wallace, and clapped his hands with a helpless expression, saying, "Gerald, you need to run! See Chauncey? You need to switch places with him."

"And triangles too."

Carlisle spread his arms and gestured a triangle: "See that? It's a triangle, a triangle!"

Wallace nodded awkwardly.

“Did you understand?” Carlisle asked back.

Wallace's eye twitched, and he nodded blankly.

But when you start running, you're still completely lost.

Carlisle slapped his forehead in frustration, but there was nothing he could do.

Just position yourself and form a triangle with your two teammates; even a fool could do that.

However, the most important factor in deciding when to move and allow the strong and weak sides to switch roles is the defender's position.

This is the most crucial point.

Many players, after practicing the triangle offense with Phil Jackson, then complained that it was too difficult and that Phil Jackson didn't know anything about the triangle offense.

This is precisely a reflection of one's football intelligence.

Carlisle silently covered his face, unable to bear to look, when he turned his head and saw Tang Sen.

"Tang, oh my god, you've finally arrived."

Carlisle hurried over and then pulled Tangsen to the sidelines.

"Tang, just stand here."

Carlisle took two steps back and compared the positions.

Yes, this is it.

The day before yesterday, Tang Sen stood in this very spot, watching himself run the tactics, and the players ran them exceptionally smoothly.

So Carlisle had a somewhat idealistic feeling that either Tang Sen had some special magic, or that there was something special about this position.

"Rick, what exactly are you trying to do?" Tang Sen was both amused and exasperated.

Carlyle offered no explanation.

He went onto the field and patiently explained to each player how to position themselves.

He was practicing a tactic of switching between the strong and weak sides, using the point guard's cut to draw the defender away.

As the number 3, Wallace also needs to move at the right time to form a new triangle through changes.

His problem now is that he can't pinpoint the right time.

This is a common problem when playing the triangle offense: all the players run around haphazardly, and if one player is too slow, they don't get a chance to get out.

Then you have to run again. This back and forth keeps running until the attack time is used up.

To Carlisle's surprise, although Wallace was still slow this time, he at least knew when to start running.

"See? I knew it."

Carlisle clapped his hands excitedly.

Sure enough, when Tang Sen stood there, these guys suddenly seemed to have a flash of inspiration and started running.

"Tang, do you see? You're very useful."

Tang Sen remained silent, thinking to himself that he should thank his badge.

Carlisle didn't have time to think further and dragged everyone to continue the practice.

He sensed that everyone's positioning had improved and become more accurate, but it still wasn't enough.

He stopped everyone, pondered for a moment, and then gestured for Wallace and Prince to switch places.

During the drills, he noticed that Prince seemed to have a better grasp of positioning, at least better than Wallace.

Surprisingly, this adjustment actually worked.

During the transitions between the strong and weak sides, Prince not only drew away the defenders by making runs, giving Yao Ming opportunities in the low post, but also consciously made runs to the high post, ready to receive the ball and shoot at any time.

In the triangle offense system, the role players' function is to help the core player draw away the defender and prevent the core player from being double-teamed.

Then you know where you should be positioned to wait for the key player to pass the ball.

It sounds simple, but doing it well is not an easy task.

After running the drills a few times, Carlisle immediately determined that Prince was a better fit for the triangle offense than Wallace.

Wallace has good physical attributes and strong athleticism, especially his explosiveness, which might actually make him more suitable for the Princeton offense, which requires a lot of cuts.

Tang Sen thought of the badge he had just drawn.

"Rick, how about I do it?"

The badge requires a detailed explanation from the user; if the user doesn't explain it, how can it be valid?

Carlisle hesitated for a moment before nodding.

He felt that Tang Sen must possess some special magic, otherwise why would the media jokingly call him the Genie?

Tang Sen walked onto the stage.

Carlisle is quite patient; he can explain things to all the players again and again, and even if the players fail time and time again, he won't get angry and just walk away.

Tang Sen, on the other hand, was more patient and meticulous.

Just like the defensive videos we made before, we really broke them down and explained them step by step, teaching them how to do it and why.

Tang Sen would have everyone run in slow motion to their positions.

When they reach the point where they should move, Tang Sen will stop them immediately, tell them where to run next, and guide them to think about why they should run in this direction.

Can't figure it out?
It's okay, let's try again. Stop and think until you figure it out.

In Tang Sen's view, both the triangle offense and the Princeton offense are more of a tactical concept.

The triangle offense refers to the formation of triangles anytime, anywhere.

However, if the three players are not in a straight line, then a triangle has already been formed.

As the saying goes, there are no fixed rules or fixed forms.

If you rigidly focus on how to run, you might not actually be able to train effectively.

We need to teach them to think and understand why they are running this way.

In Tang Sen's view, the core concept of the triangle offense is to avoid clustering together, draw the defenders away, and create one-on-one opportunities for the core players in a dynamic manner.

If they don't understand this, they'll never understand.

(End of this chapter)