Basketball Legends: Strikers Are King

The confident Pacers suffered a tough loss in Atlanta.

The Eagles caught the Pacers off guard in the first quarter, leading their opponents 32-21 by 11 points in the single quarter. They continued to expand the lead in the second quarter, leading the Pacers by 18 points at halftime.

The moment the half-time whistle sounded, all fans knew that the outcome of today's game was determined!

Although the Pacers recovered 10 points in the third quarter, their offense suddenly lost power in the fourth quarter. West and George scored zero points. Granger also made 1 of 4 shots and only scored 5 points. In the end, they could only score 87.

-97 lost to the opponent.

"Actually, the Hawks are not weak at all. After all, they are the fifth team in the Eastern Conference. Compared with the Pacers, they only have one fewer win and two more losses, that's all..."

The fans who came to the away game to support the Pacers still wanted to excuse them.

"In addition, it's back-to-back. The Eagles lost the previous game at home. They must be trying to regain face today."

The more he spoke, the more smoothly he spoke, and the more he spoke, the more he spoke, but he was interrupted by his companion next to him.

"You're right, but the only thing that can't be explained is: Granger made 5 of 17 shots, George made 1 of 8 shots, and his shooting percentage was not even 30% or 20%."

"Not to mention being behind by up to 21 points. How did the Jazz win the last game when they were so far behind? How did we win when we were behind?"

"Let me tell you, the Jazz focus on defense and focus on attacking inside. What about us? We can't defend, all our shots are on the outside, and we have no energy at all!"

"Without the temperament of a strong team, this is the main reason why the Pacers can't make it far in the playoffs!"

Unlike the indignant Pacers fans, the players were relatively calm. After all, it was only the regular season and the game before the All-Star Game.

Soon, the Pacers' coaching staff and players were no longer calm.

It was normal to have two wins and two losses against strong teams such as the Mavericks, Magic, Jazz and Hawks. However, the Pacers then lost to the Grizzlies, Nuggets and Heat one after another, suffering a four-game losing streak. The coaching team attached great importance to this.

In the seventh consecutive trip to the top teams, the Pacers only won two games.

What makes fans even more uncomfortable is that if they lose to the Heat, their opponent is a strong championship contender, and Granger only played 12 minutes due to injury, which can be used as an excuse;

Then after Granger's truce, the Pacers lost to the Cavaliers with 11 wins and 16 losses 87-98. They suffered a five-game losing streak and could only make the fans shout that they were ashamed.

After losing to the Cavaliers in an away game, the Pacers got a rare two-day rest. The next three consecutive home opponents were not strong. Vogel immediately held a meeting with the coaching team after flying back to Indiana.

Prepare to discuss the next development direction of the team.

"Actually... we don't have to worry too much."

Assistant coach Dan Bok's words now are just like those of the fans. He first comforted the head coach and said,

"It's just that the team's condition is not good now. It's just the regular season. When the condition recovers, it will definitely get better and better."

Jim Bonn looked at the head coach's face and said:

"It can't be said that, consecutive encounters with playoff teams are a key opportunity to test the quality of the team."

Now, two wins and five losses have obviously not met the team's expectations.

"Actually,"

Chief assistant coach Brian Shaw also spoke,

"Our expectations for these games were to win 3-4 games and it would be considered a success. Now we just lost one more game."

Vogel finally spoke.

"That's the problem. We don't seem to have changed at all from last season. The weak team has a high probability of winning, while the strong team can only fight 50-50."

He looked at Dan Bock who looked unimpressed, Jim Bone who looked solemn and Brian Shaw who looked at him, and said,

"But this also means that our ranking will not be too high. In the first and second rounds, we are likely to encounter strong teams such as the Heat and Bulls."

"Even running into the Celtics first, this is what we are trying our best to avoid."

This is the tragedy of ordinary playoff teams.

In half the zone, there are usually one or two championship teams, the other teams are about the same strength, and then there are the tank teams.

If you want to avoid being eliminated in the first round, you must first avoid the two championship teams and try your best to improve your ranking. This way, when you encounter a lower-ranked team, your chances of winning will be greatly increased.

The Pacers' stated goal was to try to go further than last year's first-round trip, and the second-round trip would be considered a success.

Once he gets lucky and reaches the Eastern Conference Finals, Vogel believes that the remainder of his contract can be fully fulfilled without worrying about being fired.

In order to achieve this goal, the Pacers strive to be in the top half. With the Bulls and Heat ranking in the top two, third and fourth in the Eastern Conference are both acceptable.

Right now, due to a five-game losing streak, the gap between the Pacers and the first group in the Eastern Conference has been widened, and the gap between the Pacers and the Hawks, Magic and Celtics behind them has also been narrowed.

If you are not careful, it is possible to fall to sixth or seventh in the Eastern Conference.

How can this make Vogel not anxious?

"actually……"

Danbok saw that the time was ripe and expressed his suggestion,

"The main reason is that the team's main attacker is not clear."

"What's the meaning?"

Jim Bone was a little surprised, while Brian Shaw next to him raised his eyebrows.

Danbok continued:

"Due to the arrival of West and Hill this season, the team's lineup has undergone further changes. Other things can be said, but the main thing is..."

He looked at Vogel,

"Danny's willingness to focus on attack is not as clear as last season."

With the new players as helpers, Granger also wanted to get rid of the dilemma of relying entirely on himself last season, so he often wanted to find West under the basket and downplay his offense.

This is undoubtedly a weakening for Granger, who is known for his offensive attributes.

"Although West is very strong, he is already 32 years old. It is a luxury to expect him to lead the team by attacking like a driver."

Danbok looked around and said:

"So, I hope that like last season, the focus of the team's offensive tactics should return to Granger."

Vogel thought for a while and nodded.

Not only Granger, but he also gave too much weight to new players in offensive tactics, which may be the main reason for the team's discomfort.

Even though there were times when Granger was not in good form and shot 5 for 17, he was still the team's best performer in the losses to the Grizzlies and Nuggets.

"Pork was right,"

Vogel made his decision,

"In the second half of the game, we will implement last season's tactics of Danny taking the lead and others assisting."

Dan Bok was overjoyed to hear that his suggestion was adopted, and Jim Bohn nodded in agreement.

"Damn it, if this happens, the roles of Lance, Seven and even Paul will be greatly reduced."

Brian Shaw cursed Pock in his mind, but there was nothing he could do.

It is indeed too difficult for playoff teams to cultivate rookies.