Chapter 542: Trail Blazers Collapsing Through Injuries
On March 11, they played against the 76ers at home. Although there was no Stoudemire, the Knicks still easily won 109:98.
However, on March 12, when they played back-to-back away games against the Chicago Bulls, they lost away to the Chicago Bulls.
They have played against the Chicago Bulls twice this season, and the current record is 1:1.
The Knicks have lost the last few back-to-back games.
There are two main reasons.
First of all, these back-to-back games are all back-to-back away games. Not to mention the hard work and rest, the key away games are not dominant.
Furthermore, the opponents in these back-to-back away games are not soft persimmons.
The Knicks also have the strength to win, but they need to fight hard, which can easily cause player injuries.
For the Knicks, who are determined to defend their title, it is really unnecessary.
The most important thing for them now is to ensure that the lineup is healthy and complete.
The most important thing is that even after losing these two games, the Knicks' record is still the same as that of the Heat and leads other teams in the league.
"Don't pay too much attention to the previous back-to-back games. If you lose, you lose. Our goal is not the regular season, but defending the title!
"
Lian Dao also enlightened his teammates in the team's internal meeting.
However, they still don't have time to stay in the defeat of the previous game, the game is still going on, and they still can't stop.
In the first half of the game in March, everyone in the Knicks was a little out of breath.
However, it is not without good news.
Their most difficult first half of March has passed, and most of their opponents in the second half of the month are mid-lower teams.
This is a good time for them to overtake the Heat and consolidate their rankings.
However, before the Knicks start the second half of the month's schedule, the league's trade deadline is approaching first.
As the trade deadline approached, the rumors of the teams' trades, fueled by the media, were rumored to be raging.
For example, there were rumors of Howard's trade as early as before.
However, due to the recent momentum of the Magic, especially their recent six-game winning streak.
This made the deal that the Magic's management had originally decided to give up again.
They want to fight for another season, and they seem to be in agreement with Howard.
This is their official information.
In fact, Howard has performed well recently, and the Magic are not satisfied with the previous offer.
They want a markup!
And this also disrupted the previous plan. You must know that Howard's contract salary involves a lot.
This cannot be done with a transaction between two teams. They need to bring in a third or even a fourth team.
The temporary price increase on the Magic's side also caused this deal to take longer to negotiate.
Therefore, it can only be shelved in the end.
Warcraft's westward journey is coming to an end for the time being, but the transactions of other teams in the league are still in full swing.
Especially some teams that are expected to go further in the playoffs are still making continuous reinforcements.
Before March 13, the league was quiet.
What is involved is only the team's own recall and transfer of players.
Some teams suffered injuries and recalled players who had been transferred to the Development League.
Or, some players did not perform well enough and were transferred to the Development League and so on.
But on March 13, the first blockbuster deal happened!
The Golden State Warriors traded Kwame Brown, Ekpe Udo and their star Monta Ellis to the Milwaukee Bucks in a package deal.
In exchange for Bucks star Andrew Bogut and Stephen Jackson.
In fact, this deal has been brewing, but the main body of the team's previous deal was not Monta Ellis, but Stephen Curry.
However, the Bucks did not want Stephen Curry, who had a great potential for injury, but chose the Warriors' head star Monta Ellis.
The two sides also carried out a long negotiation on this point.
It is said that the big boss who bought the Warriors before made the decision to decide this deal.
Although the transaction has been concluded, there is still a lot of controversy in the outside world about this transaction.
There are mainly two aspects.
The first is that Ellis is at his peak, averaging 24 points, 3.5 rebounds and 5.6 assists per game.
Taking the leading star and changing to a "glass man" center, no matter how you look at it, it will be a loss.
The second is to send away the leading star and leave Stephen Curry with ankle injuries. This operation is very puzzling.
So now many people are saying that the Warriors are going to be completely rebuilt.
This deal was also scolded and spurned by Golden State fans.
However, some transactions are destined not to see results in a short period of time. In many cases, he needs time to prove it.
For example, when Jerry West traded away the All-Star star Divac.
Just in exchange for the No. 13 pick of the Hornets, so as to get Kobe.
At that time, everyone thought that the Lakers were crazy. They even used a star who had achieved results to bet on a high school rookie with an uncertain future.
But history proves that this high school student brought five championships to the Lakers.
The same goes for trading Monta Ellis and keeping Curry.
Whether this transaction is right or wrong, except for Lian Dao, it is estimated that no one has ever known.
It's just that, according to the current trend, no one understands the Warriors' operations.
And Lian Dao knew that the real take-off of the Warriors was after this deal.
Monta Ellis suppressed the growth of Clay Thompson, and his departure was the first step in the true integration of the "Splash Brothers"!
However, Lian Dao was the only one who was familiar with historical development.
From the current point of view, there is nothing wrong with the Warriors' operation being sprayed.
…
On March 13, the deal between the Warriors and the Bucks was just an appetizer, and the most concentrated deal was on March 15.
Because this day is the league's final trade deadline.
All transactions this season will come to a successful conclusion today.
Although the trade deadline of this season is still lively and there are many teams involved, there are not many real big-name star trades.
Most of them are some reinforcements for the playoff teams.
Example: The Memphis Grizzlies traded Sam Young to the Philadelphia 76ers for Rich Sanchez.
The Indiana Pacers traded cash and a 2012 second-round pick to the Toronto Raptors for Andro Barbosa.
The Houston Rockets traded Jordan Hill to the Los Angeles Lakers for Derek Fisher and a 2014 first-round pick.
…
However, among these transactions, two transactions still caught Lian Dao's attention.
One is that the Golden State Warriors traded Stephen Jackson to the San Antonio Spurs.
In exchange for T.J. Ford, Richard Jefferson and a 2012 first-round pick.
It is still very wise for the Spurs to choose to send Richard Jefferson away.
The main reason is that Richard Jefferson not only occupies a large salary space, but also his state decline is very serious.
Jefferson was criticized by everyone in the Spurs. His quick singles and three-pointers have degraded by 60 to 70%.
Although Jackson is almost 34 years old, he is still a good player.
It is still a rare swingman at the 2nd and 3rd positions who has a full set of independent offensive capabilities and does not ask for the ball too much.
The defense is not inferior, and he can organize a bit. At the beginning, Luo Yin thought that his difficulty was similar to that of Kobe.
And he is the old team of the Spurs, the hero who won the championship... This is a typical Popovich-style transaction.
The most important thing is that Jackson is also a timely help for the Spurs.
The Spurs added a single player + single defender, in other words added a single player.
In the past, the 2nd and 3rd positions were called out to everyone, and they were always besieged with tactics and no one responded.
Manu is a magician, but he is not good at fighting in the body, and the others are not enough.
Before Leonard grew up, Jackson was arguably the Spurs' best complement at the three on both ends of the floor.
The most important thing is that he fits well with the Spurs' system.
The second deal is from the New Jersey Nets.
They traded Mohamed Okur, Shawn Williams and a 2012 first-round pick to the Portland Trail Blazers.
In exchange for Gerald Wallace.
Huang Mamba Brandon Royin retired, and the Blazers sent away Marcus Camby, Gerald Wallace, and Oden.
This also means that the team has officially transitioned from the Brandon Royne era to the Aldridge era.
The Portland Trail Blazers are also rebuilding the team around Aldridge!
If it weren't for injuries, the careers of Brandon Royon and Greg Oden would not have been like this.
They should show bright stars in the league.
Unfortunately, the injury...
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