In the new season, the biggest improvement for the Knicks is their defense, which has been directly upgraded from the quasi-first-class level last season to the top of the league this season.
Lin Yu's improvement in assist defense is crucial, but what's even more critical is that the Knicks' defensive system has officially taken shape this season.
Normally, a successful defensive system can greatly improve a team's combat effectiveness regardless of the players' personal abilities.
It can be said that the benefits are high, but while the benefits are high, the effort required is naturally also high.
A mature defensive system requires years of accumulation and contact, accompanied by continuous and various fine-tuning.
The Knicks' defensive system has gone through such a process. From the beginning, Hollins insisted on the past concept, that is, the two inside lines were brought near the free throw line to maintain high-intensity pressure on the mid-range and long range.
Later, the center was forced to guard the penalty area, and Zach Randolph and Lin Yu were fixed in the mid-range on both sides. It was considered that the mid-range to the inside became a dead zone.
Finally, there is the defensive strategy for this season.
The center guarded the penalty area, Lin Yu swept the area, and the others performed their duties.
This defense is already considered the most common one in the league. Its advantage is stability, but its disadvantage is that it places high demands on players who can sweep in the mid-range.
However, Lin Yu has the ability to meet such requirements, which is the main reason why the Knicks' defense can be promoted to the top.
The top-notch defense immediately came into play against the Celtics in this game.
The Knicks' defensive matchup against the Celtics has changed. Lin Yu did not defend Ray Allen, who is a huge threat from outside shooting, but switched to Rondo.
As the saying goes, enemies are extremely jealous when they see each other.
At this moment, Rondo's expression when facing Lin Yu was very jealous. It was like a surge of blood rushed to Tianling Gai, and he impulsively made a singles move.
In singles and breakthroughs, Lin Yu firmly maintained his position and directly forced Rondo to stop.
As mentioned earlier, Tom Thibodeau doesn't pay much attention to offense. Therefore, the Celtics' offensive style this season is still a sudden scoring style with Rondo as the core.
Once Rondo's sudden score fails to open the gap, the Celtics have only one way to go - give the ball to Pierce!
Last season they had another option, giving the ball to Garnett, but this season Garnett is no longer a qualified option.
In the opening round, Rondo, who was forced to stop, chose to make a strong shot.
An extremely irrational choice, the result was unsatisfactory. The basketball slammed out of the frame with a bang.
When the Knicks grabbed the rebound, the Celtics had to retreat quickly to prevent the Knicks from counterattacking.
The Knicks' counterattack fell back into a positional battle, and Tom Thibodeau, who had been jumping around on the sidelines, became the focus of the audience.
In a somewhat quiet Madison, Tom Thibodeau's voice was clearly audible: "Raga, what are you doing? Pass the ball! Can't you pass the ball?"
Rondo's face turned pale and he didn't respond.
In the Knicks' offense, Lin Yu caught the ball and pushed for a counterattack but failed. After landing, he stopped the ball for a while, waiting for his teammates to get into position.
Then, he asked for a pick-and-roll from Randolph, increased his speed to the top, and rushed in directly.
Ray Allen had no time to get around the screen, and Garnett's defense was also very stretched. Lin Yu could clearly sense that Garnett was getting old.
In the Eastern Conference finals, Garnett's defense could barely keep up with Lin Yu, but this season, Garnett is no longer good.
Lin Yu, who had passed the pick-and-roll, only needed a fake move similar to changing hands behind his back to easily create a little space.
After getting out of the space, Lin Yu accelerated again, completely passed Garnett, broke into the basket, and dunked!
With a bang, Madison was ignited and started the first wave of excitement after the game started.
Tom Thibodeau started to jump in again. This time, he was targeting the Celtics' defense. He thought that Garnett was too unresolute in defense and Pierce's defense was also slow.
"Tom Thibodeau has demonstrated his coaching style very well, which is strict and iron-blooded. He is like an iron coach who wants to completely control the Celtics."
Rondo couldn't get enough of the Celtics' offense.
But he still couldn't open the offense from Lin Yu's side. He could only pass the ball out, and the target of the pass could only be Pierce.
Wilson Chandler is guarding Pierce, and he should be under the greatest pressure on the Knicks.
But Pierce is not a top-level superstar. At most, he is an offensive kaleidoscope. He poses a relatively large offensive threat. As he grows older, Pierce's offensive threat has begun to decline.
He can be regarded as a technical player similar to Kobe Bryant and Lin Yu, and his offense is more rhythmic.
This was the case in this singles match. Facing Wilson Chandler, his tricks from the outside failed to open up enough space for him to break through.
Therefore, Pierce's offense became an offense in which he shot directly after taking two steps.
Then with a bang, Pierce's shot hit the frame.
The Knicks once again grabbed a backcourt rebound, then counterattacked, and then the Celtics quickly retreated to prevent the counterattack.
The difference is that this time, Tom Thibodeau didn't jump around anymore, because the Celtics' offensive style was in line with the flow.
The defense was also very focused and successful. He was very satisfied with stopping the Knicks' counterattack.
As for the defense in the position, Thibodeau is very confident.
Tom Thibodeau was very confident, and Lin Yu was also very confident in breaking through the gap. He asked for another pick-and-roll. This time, the Celtics' defense came quickly.
Lin Yu's passing was equally fast. After passing the pick-and-roll, he faced Pierce and Garnett and immediately sent the ball in with a high ball.
The one who caught the ball was Wilson Chandler. He was no longer being guarded. He took two steps forward, then jumped up and launched a two-handed violent dunk.
The camera once again showed Tom Thibodeau on the sidelines. This time, he still didn't jump, but sat back with an ugly expression.
The Celtics' offense was once again stretched.
The Knicks grabbed the rebound and played another attack that was very similar to the previous round. This time it was Kwame Brown under the basket who made a backhand layup.
Just like that, in the opening game, the Knicks beat the Celtics 6:0.
The Celtics' offense has reached a stage where they must score.
But Rondo still couldn't break through Lin Yu's single defense. Even with the help of the pick-and-roll, he only got a further space, and in the end he still had to pass the ball out.
Then, this time Pierce received the ball in the low post, played a post-up, and turned around for a layup that still missed the basket.
After consecutive misses, Pierce almost had the word "bad" written all over his face.
In contrast, the Knicks were in excellent condition. After grabbing the rebound, Lin Yu immediately launched a counterattack.
This time he succeeded, he went to the frontcourt and hit another dunk!
At 8:0 in the opening period, Tom Thibodeau called a timeout in silence.
