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The No.1 Anti-Fans in Basketball-Chapter 144 - 107 Chaos is a Ladder_2
Chapter 144: Chapter 107 Chaos is a Ladder_2
Tony Allen’s offensive threat was virtually nonexistent, and Hansen found himself unable to make a move.
In the end, West hit a mid-range jumper after a pick and roll with Johnson.
Setting aside personality issues, West’s overall strength actually wasn’t bad.
Take that last shot, for instance; he keenly spotted Randolph’s weakness on defense.
Although Randolph looked hefty, his mobility was on par with O’Neal’s, which made him quite vulnerable to pick and roll offenses.
Conley advanced with the ball to the frontcourt, and after waiting for Randolph to get into a good position in the low post, he passed the ball to Hansen. Hansen then fed it inside to Randolph, who, after receiving the ball, went one-on-one against Johnson, scoring with a beautiful step-back jumper.
Randolph’s low post game was clear for all to see, but what struck Hansen even more was how utterly retro the style was.
It wasn’t the era of small-ball yet, but the league’s use of cutting and passing was on the rise. Take the Cavaliers, for example; their offense was essentially based on strong-side pick and rolls combined with cuts.
Yet, the Grizzlies played with twin towers and focused on the low post, reminiscent of the twin-tower Rockets led by Olajuwon from the last century.
However, this methodical approach was indeed very effective against teams with mediocre offensive capabilities.
For instance, at that moment, as Hansen played help defense on Randolph, the reserve team could only watch as the starting team slowly pulled away in score.
Only half a quarter had passed, and the score on the court was already 10 to 2.
But it was around this time that a minor disturbance occurred on the court.
As the starting team advanced to the frontcourt, Guy directly asked Conley for the ball and began going one-on-one.
A real isolation play, with no regard for his teammates.
His style, Hansen recalled from his encounters during the All-Star game, was very similar to Anthony’s; it seemed like a triple-threat position, but in reality, it was only a dual-threat.
Sam Young, who had entered the NBA the same year as Hansen and was the Grizzlies’ second-round pick from the previous year, had a solid physique.
However, his talent seemed insufficient in comparison to Guy, who easily got past him and scored with a floater over his head.
Then, for several possessions in a row, Guy continued to go it alone.
The biggest downside of this approach was that it kept other teammates from getting involved, to the point where even Randolph displayed clear dissatisfaction with his body language on defense.
At that moment, Hansen observed coach Hollins’ reaction on the sideline; Hollins looked displeased as well.
Was Guy being mindless?
That didn’t seem right. freewёbnoνel.com
Guy wasn’t that kind of person in Hansen’s memory, unlike Cousins, whom he could understand behaving that way.
After some thought, Hansen seemed to grasp the reason.
Guy was expressing his feelings in his own way!
There was an easily overlooked detail here: that summer, Guy had signed a maximum contract with the Grizzlies for five years.
Before signing the contract, Guy didn’t dare to act out, as Hollins had a high standing within the team and could reduce his tactical role, which might affect his ability to secure a maximum salary.
But now that he had signed the contract, and since it was from a small-ball market team, making his trade value quite low, the Grizzlies would struggle to send him away.
So Guy felt emboldened to use this tactic to request a better strategic position.
From a logical standpoint, this was understandable; after all, a player earning a maximum salary but not producing matching stats would face significant scrutiny.
However, for Hansen, this was a positive sign.
Guy’s attitude meant friction with the coaching staff was inevitable. If Hansen could capitalize on that friction, it presented an opportunity for him.
After training that day, Randolph was cursing and swearing in the locker room.
While he didn’t name names, everyone knew who he was targeting.
But no one echoed his complaints, instead, it was Conley who tried to calm him down.
In the end, among the young players on the Grizzlies, Guy was the first to join the team and served as their leader.
Randolph, on the other hand, was a later addition and a well-known troublemaker in the league.
Under these circumstances, most players would side with Guy, even though what Guy did that day was indeed wrong.
For several days, Guy continued to express his dissatisfaction in this way.
Hollins found himself in a difficult position.
He had already tried sending Joerger to communicate with Guy, but it seemed that Guy was hell-bent on wanting more of a role in the tactics.
And Guy’s ability to play one-on-one was indeed strong.
Hollins even tried having Allen switch to defend Guy, but it wasn’t effective.
Guy had not only technique but also a strong physique, which put Allen at a disadvantage when defending against this type of build.
Moreover, Guy had spent the past summer diligently practicing his skills, significantly improving his strength from before.
So it appeared that Guy was demanding a greater role in the tactics, and he was proving that giving him the ball was the better choice.
This was what truly troubled Hollins.
With less than ten days to go before the start of the season, if he couldn’t deflate Guy’s bravado, the Grizzlies might face internal strife even before the season began.
The next day’s training saw Hansen unusually late.
Hollins seemed very angry, looking for a place to vent his frustration, and Hansen had walked right into it.
However, Hansen’s words immediately defused Hollins’ anger.
He did not explain why he was late, he simply said he was, and suggested that he should be assigned to the second team during practice.
Of course, Hollins was not foolish. As a former All-Star player with over twenty years in the league, he saw what was happening.
"This time only, don’t let it happen again!"
After reiterating his coaching principles, he signaled Hansen to rejoin the team.