Chapter 193 Wolverine, have you ever practiced Qigong?
In the Knicks' frontcourt, He Zhongqiu went deep but failed to receive the ball. Alien Cassell locked Charlie Ward's downward passing angle.

After coming out, he carried Garnett and squeezed in again.

This time, Charlie Ward's ball was diverted into the hands of left wing Bonzi Wells, who lobbed the ball in.

It was an obvious pass, without any surprise or concealment, and the lob was too slow. Before He Zhongqiu received the ball, Earvin Johnson in the low post on the right wing had already double-teamed him.

At the same time, Garnett, who was stuck behind him, used his quick and flexible movements to go around his flank, deliberately wrapped one arm around his left arm, and when he caught the ball with one hand, he slapped the ball.

"Snapped!"

After the ball was knocked away, it was grabbed by Johnson.

"Garnett has so much defensive experience," Bill Walton said.

"After all, he was on the defensive first team for four consecutive years," said Steve Jones.

Bill Walton suddenly said thoughtfully: "Duncan has been on the defensive first team for five consecutive years. Including last season, he has played three games against the Wolverines. I feel that Duncan has not given his all."

Steve Jones said: "Tim Duncan is eyeing the playoffs, how can he give his all in the regular season?

Garnett is different. He is actually weak on offense but strong on defense. No matter how he plays on the offensive end, he can only score around 50 points. He has never scored 40+ points in his career, and only scored points twice.

Apart from a few dunks, he didn't have much to offer on offense, and his highlights were mostly on defense."

Bill Walton nodded and said, "Last season, the Knicks played against the Spurs. The Spurs had an incomplete lineup and Bowen was fouled out. Duncan might have been a little annoyed and tried hard, but they still lost.

I think that Duncan and Wolverine can both limit each other to a certain extent on the defensive end and be limited by each other on the offensive end. "

Steve Jones nodded and said, “Wolverine can keep Duncan out of the restricted area easily, which is his weapon against Duncan on the defensive end.

As for Duncan, his defensive experience and awareness are not comparable to the current Wolverine. When he defends with all his strength, the Wolverine will also suffer. "

Bill Walton nodded and said, "After all, Wolverine has only been involved in professional basketball for more than a year, and he is far inferior to Duncan in these two aspects.

In addition, due to the lack of technical and tactical ability, we are unable to accurately read the opponent's offensive tactics and grasp the opponent's offensive intentions, so we are unable to provide timely assistance and backup defense."

By the sixth minute of the first quarter, the Knicks were down by five points, and Cassell was defending Charlie Ward very effectively, so the offense couldn’t get going.

The level of the mid-range shooting king who returned from injury has declined, his athletic ability has decreased a lot, and there is no firepower support from the outside. After a burst of shots, all the defensive pressure was concentrated on He Zhongqiu.

He Zhongqiu felt like he had returned to the way he was last season. Many times he was in position, but the ball couldn't go in. Sometimes he cut to the basket, but the ball still didn't go in. Compared to when Nash was there, he played too hard and wasted a lot of energy.

In addition, Garnett's defense is really strong. He moves quickly and agilely, leaving him almost no space and always sticking to him.

After playing for half a quarter, he only took two shots, succeeded once and got two points, but he made two turnovers and performed very poorly.

Of course, under his defense, Garnett's offense couldn't be launched. He was slapped once and scored 2 points with 0 of 0 shots.

Rick Carlisle called the first timeout and said to He Zhongqiu, "Wolverine, it looks like Garnett is focusing on you defensively today. He doesn't need the ball offensively."

"should be."

He Zhongqiu thought about it and nodded.

Carlisle added: "The outcome of this game is not important, the Timberwolves' chances of reaching the finals are not high, we are not competitive with them.

However, we have to try our best in this game, because in the playoffs, we may also encounter a situation where the lineup is not complete. "

Everyone nodded.

"Charlie, Cassell is younger than you and has better defense, so you have to be careful." Carlisle said to Charlie Ward.

Charlie Ward turned the ball over once in the half, but the main problem was that the pass was limited.

Carlisle continued: "Don't just stand outside and pass the ball. Move, break through, attract the defense and then pass the ball. I suggest you learn how Nash plays."

Charlie Ward nodded and said, “I’ll try my best.”

Next, the Knicks' offense played better.

Charlie Ward tried his best to break through, focusing on the tactics of breaking through and scoring.

In order to win the game, He Zhongqiu began to move more often to the basket and resumed his offensive style from last season.

But after all, the lineup was incomplete, the outside defense and offensive firepower were lacking, and the organizational ability was insufficient. The Knicks lost the away game and suffered two consecutive away losses. With 12 wins and 3 losses, they are still first in the league.

He Zhongqiu tried his best to attack the basket, but was strongly defended by Garnett and double-teamed by other Timberwolves players. He made 14 of 7 shots and 12 of 10 free throws, scoring 24 points, 11 rebounds, 1 steal, 3 blocks and 4 turnovers.

His offensive efforts at the basket accounted for 50%, but his shooting percentage was only %, which shows the impact of the Timberwolves' defense on him.

There is another problem. Without Nash's pass, he only took 14 shots in total.

Although he only took 14 shots, the energy he consumed in this game was even more than when Nash was there, when he took 25 shots.

This means that this style of play is indeed not advisable. He has fallen into the trap of high hit rate again. Even if Charlie Ward can pass the ball in, he cannot digest more shots.

加内特拿到18分12篮板3助攻2抢断4盖帽，投篮命中率只有刚刚三成出头。

He Zhongqiu can get to the basket with his strong confrontation ability, but he can only make some iron-blooded jump shots from the outside.

But on the defensive end, he performed better than He Zhongqiu.

Mid-range shooting king Alan Houston started the game and played for 32 minutes, making 18 of 6 shots with a hit rate of only 33.3%. He made 3 of 0 three-pointers and 2 of 1 free throws, scoring 13 points.

Redden saw a huge hidden danger for the team in Alan Houston. If Houston's injury could not be recovered, who could take his place?
Given Houston's age, there is almost no possibility of him recovering from his injury. The thought of this makes his scalp tingle.

Alan Houston's billion-dollar contract was from 01 to 07, six years and $1 million, but only two years were executed, including this season. He still has four years left with a contract worth more than $ million.

This contract has already affected the team's reinforcement and trades. If Houston is seriously injured in the future, the impact will be too great.

After playing the Timberwolves, the Knicks rushed to Indiana overnight.

On the evening of the 27th, the Knicks will challenge the Pacers back-to-back on the road.

Nash knew the importance of this game.

The Pacers have successfully rebuilt and are still second in the Eastern Conference, and are a serious competitor to the Knicks.

In addition, the two teams are sworn enemies, and the team has lost two games in a row and cannot afford to lose again, so even though his cold has not healed, he still played in this game while sick.

However, his condition was average. He made a mistake at the beginning of the game, was intercepted by Reggie Miller, and then missed two shots.

Fortunately, he reduced his personal offense and focused on organization and passing, and his condition improved.

But even so, Nash, whose offensive ability has been greatly reduced, is more helpful to the team than Charlie Ward.

With Nash's organization and passing, He Zhongqiu easily defeated O'Neal and Dazhi, scoring 36 points, 16 rebounds and 6 blocks in a single game, breaking his personal regular season block record, leading the team to defeat the Pacers and ending the losing streak.

In addition, in this game, Alan Houston's condition has recovered, but it is still not as good as his overall performance last season. His hit rate and scoring have declined a lot.

On November 11, the Knicks ended their road trip and returned to New York.

That afternoon, because his physical fitness was about to be upgraded, He Zhongqiu did more physical training after returning home.

Sure enough, an hour later, his physical fitness increased from 92 to 93. One month into the season, his basketball skills and tactics had improved, and all aspects had been upgraded.

In the evening, Ross Lewis contacted him and said that he had contacted Yuan Heping, the owner of Yuan Family Class. Yuan Heping had agreed to be the action director of Iron Eagle King, but because Yuan Family Class had a lot of business, he needed to cooperate with Lin Dian.

"By the way, Boss, there's also the matter of the film festival."

In addition, Ross Lewis also told him that the Blade 3 crew invited him to attend the Golden Globe Awards in mid-January next year and the Oscars in February.

"That requires time. If the schedule doesn't cooperate, I can't go. I can't ask for leave."

Although he wanted to go, the regular season was more important and the competition could not be affected by the film festival.

On the 29th, the last game of the month, the Knicks defeated the Hornets at home.

14 wins and 3 losses, first in the Eastern Conference, first in the league.

贺中秋这个月的数据是，场均28.1分11.8篮板1.5助攻1.4抢断2.8盖帽3.1失误3.6犯规。

He averaged 36.5 minutes per game, 20 of 11 shots, a hit rate of 55%, and 7.5 of 6.1 free throws, a hit rate of 81.3%.

其中篮下进攻占比与命中率分别是53%与70.1%，近投分别是37%与39.6%，中投是10%与27%
Last season, his average shots and time per game were only 13 times and 30.2 minutes, this season it is 20 times and 36.5 minutes, but his physical energy consumption is no more than last season.

This is not only due to the improvement in his physical fitness level, but also the change in playing style.

But even though he increased his close and mid-range shots, his overall shooting percentage still increased a little, because the shooting percentage of close and mid-range shots was higher than last season.

However, compared to the beginning of this season, the scoring and efficiency have declined significantly due to the reduction in offense under the basket.

But in terms of average points per game, he still ranks first in the league, and the second is McGrady with an average of 27.9 points per game.

In terms of team record, the Knicks are still first in the league, but the Lakers are catching up. Their current record is 13 wins and 4 losses, only 1 win behind.

Because the team's record and personal statistics are good, he hopes to continue to maintain his first place in MVP and win the Eastern Conference Player of the Month.

On the 30th, the Knicks began a six-game road trip, with the first stop being Detroit.

At 2003 a.m. on December 12, 1, the league announced the MVP rankings for the month, as well as the Player of the Week and Player of the Month lists.

He Zhongqiu got what he wanted, continued to sit at the top of the MVP rankings, and won the title of Eastern Conference Player of the Month.

Although the Player of the Month award is not as prestigious as before, it is better to have it than not, and it is still an honor.

That night, the second regular season game between the Knicks and the Pistons started at the Palace of Auburn Hills.

In the last game, the Knicks lost to the Pistons at home, and Nash was locked down by the Pistons' three outside players. In this game, the media generally recognized that Nash's performance would be the key to whether the Knicks could win.

Unfortunately, the Knicks still lost the game.

The Pistons adopted the Knicks' tactics against the Lakers, which was not to double-team He Zhongqiu, but to double-team Nash.

It was a three-two zone defense, with Billups defending Nash, and Prince and Hamilton on the wings. The three outside defensive stalwarts teamed up to prevent Nash from making only 13 of 3 shots. His passing was also greatly affected, and he only got 6 assists.

贺中秋得不到球，全场12投11中，8罚6中，轰下28分14篮板2抢断2盖帽的数据，也无力帮助球队获胜。

In this game, Alan Houston's performance was average, scoring only 14 points with a shooting percentage of just over %.

He was unable to share the defensive pressure with Nash on the outside, and his declining athletic ability led to a further decline in his ability to attack with the ball, and he began to transition to an off-ball style of play.

14 wins and 4 losses, and two consecutive losses to the Pistons, caused the media's evaluation of the Knicks to decline.

At the same time, the Lakers won the game and tied their record with the Knicks, but because the Knicks beat the Lakers last time, they are still ranked second in the league. The Knicks are temporarily ranked first in the league.

On the 2nd, the Knicks flew to Seattle, and the remaining five away games are all against Western Conference teams.

The Sonics' perimeter defense was average, and Ray Allen alone couldn't lock down Nash, so the Knicks won the game.

Michael Breen, who broadcast the game live, commented after the game: "In fact, having two defensive stalwarts on the perimeter can limit Nash to a certain extent.

Of course, his dribbling breakthrough is still very sharp. When he can still break through, he can form inside and outside cooperation with the Wolverine and play a better offensive quality.

Therefore, if you want to really lock down Nash, you have to have three excellent defensive players on the outside like the Pistons, then you can really limit him.

There are still very few teams that can limit him, including the Pistons, the fully restructured Spurs, and the Nets.

Although the Nets lost to the Knicks last time, I think their perimeter defense is very strong.

So, I think the Knicks are not good at dealing with teams with strong perimeter defense and strong perimeter offense. This is caused by the Knicks' weak perimeter defense and Nash's lack of confrontation ability. "

On the 5th, the Knicks defeated the Trail Blazers away, and then lost to the Warriors away in a back-to-back game on the 6th.

With a record of 16 wins and 5 losses, the Lakers have never lost a game. With a record of 16 wins and 4 losses, the Knicks were overtaken and the Lakers successfully topped the league.

On the 7th, the Knicks flew from San Francisco to Los Angeles and will play the last regular season game of the season against the Lakers on the 9th.

The Knicks defeated the Lakers at home in the last game, and the Lakers definitely hope to win this game.

The Knicks naturally hope to beat the Lakers twice, as the Lakers are the team most likely to make it to the finals, and the Knicks don't want to lose in a row.

At a quarter to 11 a.m., the plane arrived in Los Angeles. He Zhongqiu asked for leave from the team. Ross Lewis met him at the airport and went to his Zhongqiu Film Company in Hollywood.

His film company also rented a large office in Beverly Hills, not far from his villa, a twenty-minute drive away.

Ross Lewis has made an appointment with Yuan Heping to have lunch together at 1:00 p.m.

It was Yuan Heping who took the initiative to arrange this lunch, just because he wanted to meet He Zhongqiu and talk about Kung Fu.

After arriving at the company, He Zhongqiu pretended to inspect the company.

Like the Mid-Autumn Cultural and Sports Company in Tali Town, there were not many people, only seven in total, including the black aunt who cleaned the place.

The newly established Mid-Autumn Film Company does not have the ability to produce films independently and can only engage in co-productions and borrow the resources of other film companies.

The only trump card in hand is He Zhongqiu. If He Zhongqiu's movie fails, this company will definitely go bankrupt.

At a quarter to one, He Zhongqiu and Lewis arrived at a high-end French restaurant on Sunset Boulevard.

Five minutes later, Yuan Heping came.

"Hello, Master Ba."

"Wolverine, I've heard of your great name for a long time!"

During the greetings, Yuan Heping looked at He Zhongqiu and felt that He Zhongqiu was different at first sight.

He was a very sensitive person. In his feeling, it was as if there was a small sun hidden in He Zhongqiu's body. The irrepressible spirit and energy revealed in those knife-like eyes, giving him a great sense of oppression.

"Such a strong spirit?!" He was extremely shocked.

He believes in Qigong and has studied it for many years. Could it be that this He Zhongqiu practiced Qigong?

"Wolverine, have you ever practiced Qigong?" He asked as soon as he thought of it. That was what he came here for.

(End of this chapter)