Chapter 1548 1547. Adjustment After Consecutive Victories

Lost 75-83 to the Rockets, lost 93-117 to the Clippers...

After 36 consecutive wins, the Hawks lost both games on the 13th and 14th against Western teams.

Playing against the Rockets, only two Hawks scored in double digits, Liu Mang scored 21 points, Scola scored 15 points, and no one else scored in double digits.

Playing against the Clippers, the offense was better, but the defense collapsed again.

Sometimes, even most of the time, the state is so good that there is no need to play tactics.

In fact, during the 36 consecutive wins, the Hawks' tactics were not always very good, and it can be divided into two stages.

In the first 18 consecutive wins, the tactics were very good. When they won the 18th consecutive win against the Suns, they were still very routine and followed the tactics in a rigid manner.

But after the 18 consecutive wins, the next 18 consecutive wins, including the double win against the Lakers, were all rowing by the procuress. The Hawks completely relied on the state to crush the opponent, and the tactics were not played much.

What is the purpose of tactics?

Get an easy chance to score, get a better shot.

What does a better shot and an easy chance to score mean? It means you can make the shot with more confidence.

But during the Hawks' 18-game winning streak, they didn't need those things at all. No matter how well the opponent defended, the Hawks could still make the shot.

That state was simply too good. When the opponent was close, the shot could be made, and sometimes it could be made. But that kind of shot, in addition to luck, requires a keen sense of smell to grasp the momentary opportunity, to grasp the little opportunity in the close defense. Those who can grasp this opportunity are undoubtedly superstars.

In normal times, even Kobe only has an overall hit rate of 45-60% when shooting against defense, and Liu Mang is about the same.

But during the 18 consecutive wins, anyone on the Hawks could guarantee that hit rate. However, when they won the 35th consecutive win against the Heat, the Hawks' offense had already withered. The game against the Magic was probably a flash in the pan, and then they completely collapsed under the defense of the Rockets, which had Iguodala, Gay, Artest, Landry, Bynum, Mutombo, etc., and created the Hawks' lowest score record this season.

After that, they played against the Clippers, and the Clippers took advantage of some of the Hawks' current problems, and the Hawks' defense was completely unplayable.

This is the problem that Coach Kruger is worried about.

At one point, the team was in such good shape that the team's tactical discipline declined, and they wanted to win by relying on a good state, and the offense could not break through the defense and lost enthusiasm...

This problem is very troublesome. Even if the physical fitness is not a problem because of rest, it will still be very troublesome. Maybe the problem will be solved when the touch is restored, but Coach Kruger can't count on this. What did the Hawks rely on during the three consecutive championships? It's defense!

Although the offense is strong, defense in the playoffs is the key!

…

On March 15, 2008, the International Consumer Rights Day, the Hawks held a team meeting.

Having just experienced two consecutive losses, the Hawks' record became 57 wins and 8 losses, saying goodbye to the hope of breaking the 74 wins and 8 losses maintained by his own team. Coach Kruger gathered the players together for a meeting before the team started a three-game road trip.

The meeting process was very brief. Coach Kruger only spoke for ten seconds and left, but the brief content of these ten seconds was very important!

"Starting from the next game, I need to see that our tactics can be played on the offensive end, and the defensive end must return to the level before the 36-game winning streak. If anyone fails to do so, they will not have to play in the future. We have many talented players waiting to get more playing time to show their abilities."

After Coach Kruger said this and left with the coaching staff, the meeting room exploded!

"Oh my God, did the coach eat gunpowder today? Why is he so irritable?" Jason Terry exclaimed.

"The coach is right, we should reflect on it." Finley supported Coach Kruger's idea.

"Yes, our defense was too bad yesterday. The Clippers scored 117 points. It's so shameful." Grant Hill also echoed.

Finley and Grant Hill, two respected veterans, said this, and the others also felt a little ashamed.

Started to sit down and think calmly.

After two consecutive losses, most of the Hawks players were still immersed in the madness of the previous 36 consecutive wins.

Not only the Hawks players, but also the fans and the media, did not care about the Hawks losing two games at all, thinking that the Hawks were already invincible.

Liu Mang thought of the Warriors who started with 24 consecutive wins, but ended up with 73 wins and 9 losses and lost the championship...

Is there any relationship between the winning streak in the regular season and the playoffs? Of course, if you can get more than 20 consecutive wins, the record will definitely not be bad, not to mention 36 consecutive wins.

The Hawks are now 57 wins and 8 losses, and the first place in the league is very stable. The Spurs are now 53 wins and 12 losses, which is three and a half wins behind the Hawks.

The only teams with 50 wins are the Hawks and Spurs, while the Raptors have only 49 wins and 16 losses.

But apart from the home advantage, the regular season record is really of no help for the playoffs.

Even if the Hawks win all the next games, break the historical record by winning 17 games in a row and get 74 wins to enter the playoffs, it will be meaningless if the playoffs are not good.

Liu Mang thinks it is because of some adjustments to reverse the current bad atmosphere of the team.

This bad situation is not a conflict within the team or a lack of desire to win, but a complex set of factors. The reason for this is the 36-game winning streak that Liu Mang is proud of, but this 36-game winning streak is also a very big constraint for the Eagles!

Liu Mang stood up and patted the table to quiet the noisy conference room. When everyone's eyes were on him, Liu Mang said, "I support the coach's arrangement. If I don't play well, don't play according to the tactics, and don't do well on the defensive end, I will also accept the arrangement of being hidden. I will play again when anyone of you performs worse than me."

When these words came out, the teammates were shocked.

Liu Mang has been in his seventh year of professional career. He has never missed a game due to injury or rest. In more than six years, Liu Mang missed 12 games, all of which were suspended for fighting. In addition, he did not miss any games, and was given the title of "data maniac".

After being suspended for 6 games in the 2003-04 season, Liu Mang has played in 329 consecutive regular season games in the second half of the 2003-04 season, occupying the first place in the Hawks' team history in consecutive appearances. Although he is not ranked in the NBA history and cannot even enter the top ten, he is the best in the Hawks and has a chance to surpass the 344 consecutive appearances held by Derek Fisher, who is the first in active service.

The competition between Liu Mang and Fisher for the first in active consecutive appearances is now one of the things that Hawks and Lakers fans are competing for.

From their understanding of Liu Mang, his teammates think that Liu Mang wants to compete for the first place in any competitive aspect, and the rule that Coach Kruger said that he does not have to play if he does not play well, based on the Hawks players' understanding of the coaching staff, Liu Mang is definitely outside the rules.

But now Liu Mang has taken the initiative to be in the same competitive mechanism with his teammates...

Wade was the first to agree: "I agree with Ace's statement. If I don't pass and break through well, I will go to rest and practice."

"The same thing for me. If I don't defend and lead the offense well, I will give the starting position to Jason." McGrady also supported Liu Mang's insistence.

"Go, go, go, play your starting position, don't compete with me for the sixth man. Dwyane is enough of a headache for me. I will join in!" Jason Terry also agreed.

What else can others say?

Originally, for substitutes such as Grant Hill, Scola, Gortat, O'Neal, Brad Miller, etc., this arrangement is a good thing for them. Although they don't compete, they are of course happy to have more playing time.

Now even Liu Mang supports Coach Kruger's arrangement, and they have no reason to refuse.

Marion and Kwame Brown also felt the sense of crisis, but after losing the finals last year, Marion is now eager to win the championship. He has already felt the decline of his explosiveness and jumping ability. He wants to win the championship at the end of his peak while making first-class contributions, rather than clinging to others when he is old.

Although Kwame Brown felt the crisis, he supported Liu Mang in everything he wanted to do. It was only when he joined the Hawks and followed Liu Mang that he got rid of the nickname of a fake No. 1 pick.

Rondo is still cool...

Since the decision has been made, we should discuss what to do!

Liu Mang turned on the computer, called up the schedule, and played it on the projector.

"We will go to New York tomorrow and play the Knicks the day after tomorrow. There are 17 games left. We have quite a bit of time left, but not much either..." Liu Mang said, and suddenly he had a sense of déjà vu of the Chinese national football team...

"That's right," Finley took over the conversation. He didn't care about playing time, but he wanted to play his role as a leader in the locker room: "In the next game, we will start with the defense. We did a good job of defense against the Rockets, and the coach was not angry when we lost, but our defense against the Clippers was too bad. Let's not care about our touch or offense, we have to play at our best defensive level..."

Just like the finals against the Lakers last year, the Hawks players began to speak enthusiastically after determining the next team rotation plan and competition mechanism.

The short-term goal is the next three consecutive away games, the Knicks, Wizards, and Nets, on the 17th, 19th, and 21st respectively. The opponents are not strong, but the schedule is quite tight. The Hawks played 8 games in the first 14 days of March, which means there are 8 games in the 15 days from the 17th to the 31st, and there are two back-to-back games at the end of the month. There are 9 games in the first 17 days of next month. The schedule at the end of the season is very tight.

However, at this stage, we should take it step by step. This is a good habit that the Hawks have developed as a strong team for seven consecutive years. It’s just that the impact of the 36-game winning streak was too great, which once shook the Hawks as a whole.

But this kind of deep-rooted good habit can quickly get back on track as long as we determine what to do.

To get back on track, we have to take it step by step and slowly get out of the situation in the last 20 games where the whole team played blindly!

As Liu Mang said, 17 games is not too many, but it is not too few.

Coach Kruger is looking at the monitor in the office, which is connected to the camera in the conference room.

Seeing that under Liu Mang's leadership, the players began to actively prepare for the next three consecutive away games, I was relieved.

With Liu Mang, Coach Kruger often wanted to beat him, but most of the time this kid was still worthy of his trust.

Fortunately, there were still more than a dozen games before the playoffs. Coach Kruger had the experience of adjustment before, and he made adjustments very experiencedly...