In the next two games, Lin Yu got the inside help to block the position as he wished, and he was treated as a rebounder himself, but the effect was average because:
Against the Bobcats, Lin Yu needs to face off against dunk king Jason Richardson. Even if there is a rebound opportunity inside, he can only follow Richardson.
The same goes for playing against the Eagles. Joe Johnson poses a great threat. Even if a rebound opportunity arises, Lin Yu can only follow the Eagle King.
Of course he can learn from the later Turtles and shrink in regardless, but this style of play has just begun to be implemented. If Lin Yu directly makes such a move that hurts the team, I am afraid it will be Lionel Hollins's style.
The stubborn old man refused.
In order to implement this tactic smoothly, Lin Yu still adopted gentle methods, not too drastic.
Although the implementation of the new tactics was not smooth, the Knicks still won the two games at the end of February.
In this game with the Bobcats, the two core players of the Bobcats, Jason Richardson and Gerald Wallace, were locked up by Lin Yu and Renaldo Backman respectively. The remaining players of the Bobcats were
It turned into a headless fly. Players like Raymond Felton made various tricks, strikes, and mistakes. The game became one-sided from the beginning.
Therefore, the Knicks' game against the Bobcats went very smoothly, without even any setbacks.
Playing against the Eagles is quite stressful, but similarly, once the game enters a critical moment, Lin Yu increases the intensity on both ends of the offense and defense. His top shooting skills and top-notch single defense will immediately lock down the opponent, and at the same time he scores consecutively, allowing
The game loses suspense in the shortest possible time.
Therefore, in the game against the Hawks, Lin Yu scored 7 points in a row at the last moment, and Joe Johnson defended him with three consecutive irons. He won the game in such a dangerous but very easy way.
After two straight wins, at the end of February, or after the All-Star break, the Knicks won five games in a row, thus raising their record to 21 wins and 37 losses.
The record improvement brought about by the winning streak has been reflected in their Eastern Conference rankings.
They were already ranked second in the Eastern Conference before Lin Yu joined the Heat, who were blatantly failing.
But now, they have surpassed the 19-38 Bobcats and the 20-38 Bucks in a row, jumping to 12th place in the Eastern Conference, which is the fourth from the bottom.
In the entire league, the team that least wants to see the Knicks jump up the rankings is the Bulls, because they have the Knicks' first-round pick this year, which they acquired from the Cavaliers.
The player who least wants to see the Knicks jump in the rankings is LeBron James, because the Knicks' outstanding performance at this time seems to be telling everyone that although the Cavaliers chose him, Lin Yu is no worse than him.
The general manager who least wants to see the Knicks' ranking jump is neither Danny Ainge nor Steve Mills. To be precise, no general manager cares about the Knicks' ranking.
For Steve Mills, he was forced to give up Lin Yu, and even if he was blamed, he could not be blamed.
For Danny Ainge, he hopes that Lin Yu can lead the Knicks all the way to the playoffs, because this year, the Celtics have successfully occupied the first place in the league and won consecutive games.
In addition, the Cavaliers risked their lives to send away Lin Yu, and there seems to be no opponent for the Celtics in the East. In the West, the Suns are also in trouble after acquiring the Sharks. The Mavericks and Spurs have both declined significantly this season.
The Lakers and Hornets are far inferior to the Celtics on paper.
Danny Ainge is convinced that the Celtics' best chance to win the championship has appeared.
If he wins the championship this year, the guilt of missing Lin Yu will no longer be a crime. After all, this league is a winner-takes-all league.
Perhaps because of this, in the second half of the season, Danny Ainge was released from the ban. He began to appear on the sidelines of Celtics games and sometimes gave interviews.
Reporters are the kind of people who want to make trouble even if they have nothing to do. After the Knicks won five consecutive games, they asked some questions about Lin Yu's performance in the Knicks.
Danny Ainge directly changed his perspective. He answered the reporter with an inexplicable victor's attitude: "Of course I have paid attention to the recent performance of the Knicks. Lin has done a great job. He has proven his ability to lead the team. I am worried that he will threaten him."
To us? Haha, the Knicks are still far away from the playoffs. What if they finally make it to the playoffs? Indeed, it is not impossible, but what I want to say is that I hope he can return to the playoffs.
In the postgame, the Celtics this season are not afraid of opponents like the Knicks."
No matter what Danny Ainge says, not many people will mention the mistakes Ainge made. The reason is just like Ainge said, Lin Yu and his Knicks cannot threaten the Celtics.
No matter how many reporters asked Ainge what would happen if the Knicks made it to the playoffs, in fact, these people are the ones least optimistic about the Knicks making it to the playoffs, such as well-known writers.
:Bill Simmons.
After the Knicks won five games in a row, Bill Simmons wrote a column about this.
The article first affirmed the changes that Lin Yu's joining has brought to the Knicks.
The gangsters and scoundrels were eliminated one after another, and a group of young people and blue-collar workers who were willing to do the dirty work were promoted. The Knicks suddenly went from being hopeless in the first half of the season to having a bright future after the trade.
Regarding the analysis of technical and tactical aspects, Bill Simmons gave a more detailed analysis——
"Lin Yu, who is good at shooting and does not occupy the ball but only needs shots, can integrate into most teams in the league. After joining the Knicks and new coach Lionel Hollins taking office, Lin Yu's use
, which is specifically reflected in two aspects.”
"The first is to increase ball holding and pick-and-roll on the offensive end. Different from the Cavaliers period, the Knicks very much need Lin Yu's organizational passing and breakthrough. Although he is not top-notch in these two skills, with the help of top-level shooting threats and pick-and-roll
, Lin Yu’s organized passing and breakthrough played its due role.”
"The most important thing is the defensive end. In regular time, Lin Yu has almost abandoned the single defense of the Celtics and Cavaliers. He will devote more energy to the offensive end, and the task of defending the opponent's arrow players will be handed over to him.
Given to Wilson Chandler and Renaldo Backman, Lin Yu's defensive talent has not been wasted. He will still participate in defense, but will provide more help and supplementary defense."
"At the critical moment, he will also rediscover his individual defense, increase his intensity, and take away the game in one wave."
"In short, Lin Yu, who moved to the Knicks, has skillfully taught the Knicks how to win. This is what he is best at doing with the Celtics and the Cavaliers. This deal with the Knicks is already
There is no doubt that the blood will be earned."
After that, there are predictions for the future after the Knicks win streak.
Bill Simmons believes that the Knicks have no hope of the playoffs this season, but next season, after targeted reinforcements, the Knicks will become one of the strong teams in the Eastern Conference.
