The Whip of the God of Basketball

The Celtics' big win in New York didn't do Leon and his players credit, which may have something to do with the low preseason attention. In addition to the first game against New York at the Nassau Coliseum, the second game against the Chicago Bulls was scheduled at the Mohegan Sun Stadium - a medium-sized venue with only 10,000 seats, here is Mohegan Home to the Wolfpack Indoor Football Club, the reason for hosting pre-season games here is cheap.

The game between the Celtics and the Nets was not really played in a regular NBA arena until Game 3 went to New Jersey. Unfortunately, the Celtics played quite poorly in this game. The Celtics, who scored 131 points, only scored 91 points in the face of their old enemy, the Nets, and the Nets were torn to pieces with fast breaks.

However, in the next four games, the Celtics continued their offensive style of high shots, high hits, and high tempo. They averaged more than 100 points per game in seven preseason games and achieved a record of 5 wins and 2 losses. But such a result does not allow Leon to get a qualified evaluation. On the contrary, many media columns and experts have criticized Leon's seemingly wanton offensive tactics like herding sheep.

"It's a simple tactic from a basketball layman who thinks the game of basketball is sprinting and shooting. Maybe he can have a certain degree of success in the low-intensity game in the preseason, but in the regular season they will collide. Bleeding." The Boston Tribune's column commented on the Celtics' preseason performance and the team's tactical system under Leon's command.

"Fox Leon's offensive routine is the same as Rick Pitino's full-court press defense thinking, innocent and cute. This is the NBA, not the NCAA!" "Sports Illustrated" scans the new NBA season The article satirizes Leon and his Celtics, thinking that the Celtics' second fast break and fast shooting tactics, just like Pitino's full-court pressing tactics, may be unique in the NCAA. But in the complex and highly professional NBA, it will only prove to be too simple and easily cracked.

The few New York media who voiced opposition, such as Leon’s friend Woj, pointed out in his column preview for ESPN that the Celtics’ offensive tactical system created by Fox-Leon is by no means a simple fast offense. Or simply a high-tempo game. In fact, the Celtics' offensive system has strict rules and principles. It is a combination of the freedom of the triangle offense and the simplicity of the pick-and-roll offense. It has extraordinary creativity, but It hasn't really grown up yet.

As a well-known loyal friend of Fox Leon in the circle, an article like Woj will undoubtedly be considered as a bragging of the friend, and soon such evaluation will be annihilated in a large number of discussions on more dramatic topics, such as Will this be Michael Jordan's last season? For example, can the Lakers led by the OK combination complete the four consecutive championships? For example, can the arrival of Mutombo make the New Jersey Nets strong enough to compete with the Western Conference? Contend, blah blah blah.

How could a desolate old aristocratic Celtics who had only reached the Eastern Conference finals, with rookies on the team and no strong insiders, attract enough attention from the league?

And in this atmosphere of being looked down upon and not being watched, Leon and his Celtics are actively preparing for the first game of the regular season, which will be played by the Chicago Bulls at the North Shore Garden Plaza on October 30. regular season.

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The training camp has lasted for nearly three weeks, and the intensity of the team's training is increasing, but most players have adapted to the 20-minute shooting training warm-up that Leon advocates, as well as all kinds of strange things that he doesn't know where he came up with. Weird training method.

For example, he will ask the trainers to practice the whole team without the ball in the tactical training, that is, there is no basketball in hand, and they are all running empty-handed. The designated player will simulate having the ball in his hands and will call out the receiver's name when passing the ball. Leon requires that such off-ball offense and defense must be completed within 10 seconds. As for whether the player counts when shooting, or not, or blocks, it is all up to Leon on the sidelines.

At the beginning, the whole team was puzzled, how to play without the ball in hand? What goes out is air, what is received is air, what is thrown is air, and what is sealed is still air.

After three days of training, the players discovered that this off-the-ball training method can only be played well when Leon is around. He will continue to make scene judgments on the sidelines. A certain player misses a shot, should grab a rebound, etc. Everyone must concentrate on listening to Leon's judgment. His judgment is based on the situation on the field and the technical actions of the players. If a player does not fully simulate the action when he has the ball, Leon will find out and make a judgment, which is likely to be a mistake.

The players gave Leon a nickname for this, that is "Eagle Eye." This training method opened Dave Cowens's eyes. He called this "Eagle Eye Training System," such training The benefits brought are obvious, that is, the simulation and anticipation abilities in the players' minds have been strengthened, technical movements have been strengthened in consciousness, and the extremely fast offensive and defensive speeds, shouting passes make players have to maintain a high degree of awareness. concentrate.

In the first few days of training, many offenses could not be completed at all. The ball had just passed halftime, and the time was up before a few passes were passed in the players' minds. Although there is no ball in his hand, it seems that he can pass randomly, but everything can't escape Leon's eagle eye. Once he passes the ball randomly, Leon will make a mistake.

When the training progressed to the 29th, one day before the official game, Leon led his team to start the last simulation training without the ball in the training camp.

"Okay guys, this is the last off-the-ball simulation exercise in the training camp. This time we are going to be more realistic, and the attack time is increased to 20 seconds. First relax, everyone starts to meditate, and recall the technical movements you trained today , the problems found in the video of the game a few days ago, and some thoughts on the next game. Think about it, and the game will start in five minutes.” Off-ball simulation training is always the last group project in the training day, Leon Players are asked to meditate for five minutes.

Next, he will divide the team into two groups. Instead of grouping the Celtics into groups of starters and substitutes like in normal training, he will divide the Celtics into a group of experienced veterans and a group of young people with vitality.

People like Pierce, Walker, Cole, Batty and others were all assigned to the veteran group, while Arenas, Johnson, Wang Zhizhi, Anderson and others were assigned to the young group. In the past ten days of training, the veteran group has maintained a complete victory over the young group, not only because the players in the veteran group are better, but also because the players in the veteran group have richer experience and technical memory brought by years of training. Even without the ball in their hands, they can simulate technical movements with the ball.

The young group is different. In the first few days of training, they will be destroyed by a large number of "mistakes" almost every day, and they can't even complete a decent virtual attack. It was not until the last few days that the young group began to conduct virtual practice in a decent manner, and the extension of the attack time to 20 seconds is obviously beneficial to the young group.

"The attack starts with the old man, then the ball Steve." Because the jump ball is the most difficult to judge, there is no jump ball in the off-ball simulation training, and there is no rebound in the game. Whether the ball is scored or not depends on Leon from The player's shot state is judged, as long as the shot is taken, the offensive round is over.

Speaking of Leon throwing the virtual ball to Steve Kerr, who, as the oldest player on the team, plays best without the ball simulation training, and on the fourth day he was able to adapt well Rules, and lead the veteran group to use the rules to win consecutively.

But today his good luck seems to have come to an end. The young team headed by Arenas seems to be bound to win. In the beginning, Arenas used active defense to win the judgment of Leon's "steal the ball", and he immediately took the "ball" He went straight to the frontcourt, and he carefully adjusted the rhythm of his steps and gestures to prevent being blown away by Leon, and finally completed a beautiful "layup" and scored two points for the young team.

The ensuing game was extremely intense. One of the benefits of the off-ball simulation is that because there is no ball on the court, there will never be a situation of "people staring at the ball". Everyone follows the man on the defensive end, and the physical confrontation is very strong. This undoubtedly gave the young group an advantage.

"Hess's physical training has worked. These little beasts can all go to the track and field team..." Dave Cowens, who was standing on the sidelines, watched the young people on the field for a ball that didn't exist. I can't help but sigh with emotion at the scene of fighting desperately and engaging in fierce physical confrontation. The high-intensity and high-efficiency physical training brought by Hess, a physical fitness coach from Denver, is immediate. It even made Walker lose 10 pounds without systematic training in the summer. He looks more energetic.

"Young people always want to prove themselves. Regardless of whether the ball exists or not, as long as they have the ball in their hearts, they have the desire to win... Foul! Chris, you fouled!" Leon talked to Cowens, while not forgetting The referee calls a blocking foul on Chris Anderson.

"Wang, come on, replace Chris." Then, Leon replaced Wang Zhizhi and asked him to replace Anderson who had fouled twice.

Such strange training will continue in the Celtics until Fox Leon leaves.

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On the evening of the 30th, the Bostonians finally ushered in the new regular season. Although the team has not received much attention or even been underestimated in the league, Celtics fans are full of expectations for the brand-new Celtics. Tickets for the first game were sold out early, and the subway station near the North Shore Garden Arena was crowded with people at six o'clock. They were all fans who came to watch the season opener between the Celtics and the Chicago Bulls tonight.

Leon and the players came to the locker room of the arena early and began to prepare for the tactical deployment before the game. Of course, they must first accept some media interviews. Blakely, a reporter from CSNNE TV station, obtained exclusive interview rights before the game, and he was allowed to enter the Celtics locker room to interview players or coaches.

As a veteran Celtics reporter, Blakely is known for breaking news on TV, and the Celtics are one of the teams with the most reports in the history of the league. More than half of these reports come from the Celtics' dressing room. However, in the interview, he first asked Antoine Walker a few questions, then interviewed Pierce and Arenas, and finally he left the opportunity to interview the coach to Celtics star Dave Cowens, Bypassing the head coach Fox Leon alone, he seemed to dismiss the rookie head coach.

There is no way, the Celtics' profound historical heritage is destined to make a small white paper like Leon a transparent person in the eyes of the media, and the fact that he is closer to the New York media also makes the Boston media circle criticize him. The Celtics played a whirlwind attack in this preseason, but they didn't get much publicity. The local media, as well as some old Celtics, were waiting to see Leon's jokes.

The Chicago Bulls will be Leon's first touchstone.

"Okay, guys, let's close the door and discuss the plan to slaughter the cow tonight." After sending Blakely away, Leon knocked on the tactical board and said to everyone.