Chapter 229: What will it feel like in the Eastern Conference Finals?
Chapter 229: What will it feel like in the Eastern Conference Finals?
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"Facing last season's Eastern Conference champion Magic, can the Knicks achieve the next victory? My answer is yes!"
"With the current strength of the Knicks, it is not impossible to make it to the Eastern Conference finals. Although their record against the Magic in the regular season is 1:3. But after the first round of the playoffs, I think everyone has also discovered that some of the Knicks' cards are not there. It showed up in the regular season, and they're one of the toughest teams in the East both defensively and offensively in the playoffs."
"Although Howard of the Magic is a top center in the league, he often falls into the vicious circle of low-post singles, and his passing ability is weak; A mid-range jumper, not a slide to the paint.”
"There is nothing wrong with this, but the premise is that the pick-and-roll man has a mid-range range, but mid-range shooting has never been Howard's strong point. The shooting percentage at the basket is really too bad, but most of the time he is unwilling to go down to the basket!"
"However, the Knicks' perimeter defense is one of the top teams in the league this season. Although the interior defense is not as good as the perimeter, Millsap's defensive ability is still not to be underestimated. If Millsap enters the final Players with the best defensive lineup, especially David Lee, can also help defend."
"Moreover, the Bucks have proved to other teams that it is impossible to defend Sickle alone, especially when Sickle's shooting range can reach half the court. This is a severe test for the Magic's perimeter defense."
Of course, some people support the Knicks, and naturally some people support the Magic.
After all, the Magic were the champions of the Eastern Conference last season. They retained the main lineup from last season and strengthened it this season. They have Howard and Vince Carter. Point guard Jameer Nelson was also an All-Star last year.
In terms of the number of superstars, the Knicks are absolutely inferior. The Knicks' main players are only Lian Dao and David Lee, who are this year's All-Star players, and David Lee came in later.
"There is no doubt that with Howard, the top center, the Knicks currently have no inside player who can shake Howard. With Howard holding back the Knicks' defense, the Magic's perimeter will get more opportunities and shoot from one star. Last season, the Magic has already verified the feasibility of tactics."
"And the Magic with playoff experience will be more experienced in dealing with emergencies in the playoffs. The Knicks can win the Bucks. The reason why the Bucks have no playoff experience is that Inside. But with the Magic, the Knicks can't take advantage of that."
Before the second round of the playoffs started, supporters of the two teams started a "keyboard war" online.
This also made the game between the Knicks and the Magic have attracted countless eyeballs before it even started.
It can be said that the closer the game is to the start day, the higher the heat will be, and it has surpassed the game between the Cavaliers and the Celtics recently.
"Oh, our second round of competition is very hotly discussed on the Internet, sickle." Sitting on the bus to the hotel, David Lee browsed some netizens' comments and messages on his mobile phone.
This is after entering 2000, the Knicks are one of the few favored and supported by many people.
"We have completely shaken off the hat of the Eastern Conference, and we are now one of the four strongest teams in the Eastern Conference!" Lian Dao looked at the scenery on both sides of the street in Orlando.
In the end, they encountered the team with the lowest winning percentage of the Knicks in the regular season.
Staggered the Celtics in the first round, and met the Magic in the second round.
"Four finalists in the Eastern Conference, yes, what would it be like if we made it to the finals of the Eastern Conference?" David Lee put down his phone and looked at Lian Dao.
"When we eliminated the Magic, we'll know what it's like. Don't worry, it's only a few games away!"
In Lian Dao's steady tone, he said the craziest and most domineering words.
Originally, there were still some dignified Knicks players, but at this time, Lian Dao's words ignited their passion.
Many players are much more confident!
Sometimes this is the case. An excellent head player can drive the overall momentum of the team and thus exert greater strength!
D'Antoni also heard Lian Dao's words, and he smiled in front of him.
"Don't worry, I will do my best to defend Howard!" Millsap was also full of enthusiasm at this time. When he came to the playoffs, no one hoped to be eliminated.
Lian Dao patted Millsap on the shoulder. This season, Millsap was the one who stepped forward and did the dirty work for the Knicks inside.
His statistics may not be as dazzling as David Lee, but his importance in the Knicks inside is definitely not comparable to others.
Millsap played 81 games this season, averaging 13.4 points per game, 6.7 rebounds per game, 3.2 assists per game, and low blocks and steals. The center forward is miserable.
Millsap's defense is a bit like the Rockets' short center Chuck Hayes. Although he is not tall, he has strong lower body strength, a stable position under the basket, and a very strong defense. Even a big center player faces Millsap. The defense is very uncomfortable.
To be honest, this is also thanks to the training of coach Jerry Sloan, the Knicks can only say that they have picked up a big deal.
Although it is not realistic for Millsap to completely defend Howard, it is impossible for Howard to score easily against Millsap's defense.
"I am optimistic about you, Paul, and I believe that you will grow into a top defensive player in the league in the future!" Lian Dao looked at Millsap with trust in his eyes.
This moved Millsap very much. He has gained a firm foothold in the league step by step from a second-round pick. He has encountered too many distrustful eyes.
In the past, Millsap could only keep his teammates' distrust in his heart, and then turn it into motivation for training on the training ground.
But when he came to the Knicks, he never felt distrust in Lian Dao, which also made Millsap play more and more confident this season, and his defensive skills have improved by leaps and bounds this season.
Millsap didn't expect Lian Dao to be so optimistic about him, which moved his heart and nodded firmly at the same time.
In the afternoon, the Knicks participated in training in the training hall of the Amway Arena.
In the afternoon, the Magic and the Knicks had to conduct adaptive training on the playing field separately.
After the Knicks players entered the official playing field, there were still some Magic players who had participated in adaptive training before leaving ~www.mtlnovel.com~ and were being interviewed by reporters.
And among those people was Dwight Howard.
Lian Dao looked at Howard, at the empty Amway Arena. Not surprisingly, with his current strength and the Knicks' current lineup, there is a high probability that they can beat the Magic.
Because at the end of the first round of the playoffs, Lian Dao's mid-range fadeaway jumper learning progress reached 100%, which means that he won the "God's Backward" badge.
In this way, I won't be so worried about the double-teaming of the Magic, and I also have a strong hole card.
However, the system has not been upgraded, which makes Lian Dao very puzzled. The previous upgrade was very fast, but during the playoffs, Lian Dao did not delve into it too much.
Lian Dao is most worried about accidents. His reborn little wings have changed many things. The development trajectory of some teams has changed because of Lian Dao.
The Knicks were studying the Magic, but Lian Dao didn't believe it. Van Gundy didn't study the Knicks, he studied himself, especially the game between the Knicks and the Bucks. Van Gundy would definitely watch it repeatedly and find a way to deal with himself.
It's just that the time is too short, and Lian Dao doesn't know how much Van Gundy can study.
However, Lian Dao knew that the difficulty of the second round was definitely much more difficult than the first round.
The Knicks didn't come forward to bother the Magic players, and the Knicks were on the other side of the court for adaptive training.
Although the Knicks' record against the Magic in the regular season is not very good, the atmosphere of the two teams is not bad.
Compared with the Bucks and Heat, the Knicks and Magic seldom appear on the court.