Chapter 373： 1 round trip? nonexistent

"The genius of the basketball fanatic is on the left (

"Is this a bond?" Zuo Li smiled at the familiar team and roster. He didn't expect that his opponent in the first round of the playoffs would be Ross' Bulls again.

"Now, the outside world should be very much looking forward to our showdown again."

As Zuo Li thought, when the regular season finally came to an end and the media and fans turned their attention to the playoffs, the Knicks-Bull matchup caught people's attention, and the popularity even surpassed The classic western showdown of bulls and horses.

ESPN ranked all eight matchups based on online discussions and expert predictions, with the Knicks-Bulls matchup at the top.

Tickets for the first two games at Madison Gardens have all been sold out, and even adding a total of 4,000 seats for two days in the stadium is hard to get a single ticket. There is even ten times the price of a ticket from the scalpers. It is said that the highest price It has been fired to $20,000 a piece, which is 10 times the normal price during the regular season.

Zuo Li was stunned when he read these news, lamenting that the fighting power of the fans is really unfathomable. At the same time, he also felt a slight difference in the popularity of this group of duels.

After all, in Zuo Li's heart, a matchup with similar strength is more attractive. Before the time of crossing, Zuo Li most often watched the confrontation between the fourth and fifth. First, a duel with a huge gap in strength is generally not very exciting. Apart from watching the stars, it is difficult for you to find fun in the game itself. After all, black eight and black seven are more exciting, but it does not happen often.

Judging from the ranking, the Knicks are second, the Bulls are seventh, and the regular season record is 4-0. It really doesn't seem like they will answer a wonderful round.

But in fact, this is understandable. New York returns to the playoffs after a lapse of five years, and fans are looking forward to its outstanding performance this season. In addition, New York is a huge market. No one dares to underestimate the fighting power of Manhattan fans. Coupled with the entanglement between Zuo Li and Rose, as well as Zuo Li's own influence, and the blessing of the New York media's combat effectiveness, it is not surprising that it became the most popular matchup in the first round of the playoffs.

The media are also warming up to the end one after another, and everyone is looking forward to what kind of sparks the strongest two of the 2008 session will collide in the playoffs!

Chicago fans even shouted counterattack slogans. Former Bulls star Scott Pippen even said when he was a guest on a local show on the 17th: "Don't look at our regular season record is not superior, but in the playoffs, we may not necessarily I'm afraid of the Knicks, we were able to beat them back then, and now, you can too!"

There are even more radical fans clamoring for Black Seven on the Internet, threatening to let the Knicks take a round, and even Longley, who was slapped by Zuo Li and disappeared for several months, posted on social media and analyzed the Bulls from 10 aspects. The odds against the Knicks…

It can only be said that hatred distorts people.

However, Zuo Li can only say that he will disappoint all the fans who are waiting, because this round of series will not last long after all.

Although the Bulls forced the Celtics to the tiebreaker in the last generation, from the perspective of hard power, the Bulls are actually a lot worse. To be able to play like this, on the one hand, it depends on Ben Gordon's anti-sky performance, and on the other hand, it is the Green Army. Its own strength declined.

The lack of Garnett makes their interior barriers disappear. Whether it is offense or defense, the Green Army has dropped a grade, which gives the Bulls a chance. Otherwise, only by the current Bulls' interior configuration, Garnett can be injured even if he is injured. It is also very difficult to fight against Ray Allen and Rondo in the backcourt by relying on Ross, who has not grown up, by educating the forehand and backhand casually.

As it happens, the Knicks also have a super-class inside line. The combination of Zuo Li and Randolph is good enough. Although the outside line is immature, in the Knicks system, they do not need to take too much responsibility.

So Zuo Li is ready to use this round of the series as his touchstone. He has to score points with all his might, gain enough prestige, and at the same time accumulate experience, and set his sights on the Eastern Conference semifinals!

Celtic, this is Zuoli's real goal!

In Zuo Li's view, because of the lack of Garnett, the Knicks really have the opportunity to challenge them. If all goes well, they will meet in the Eastern Conference semifinals, and defeating them is Zuo Li's ultimate goal this season!

After analyzing everything, Zuo Li and Aomei said good night to each other, and then Meimei slept. The next day, she got up and went to the hospital for the last medical examination before the playoffs.

At the same time, the Knicks also submitted a 12+1 playoff roster to the league.

They are:

Center: Zuo Li, Ewing Jr., Jerome James.

Power forwards: Randolph, David Lee, Harrington.

Small forwards: Chandler, Novak.

Shooting guard: Larry Hughes, G. VI.

Point guard: Dragic, Duhon.

Activation List: Jeffries.

After some deliberation, D'Antoni still chose to bring 6 insiders. It can be seen that even a master of bombardment like D'Antoni cannot avoid the idea that the insider is king in this era.

Of course not, this is also related to the weakness of the Knicks' perimeter players. Only these six players can play in the three positions on the perimeter. This is also the key target for the Knicks to strengthen next season.

Once the Knicks roster was announced, it immediately aroused external discussions, because it was really insignificant compared to the luxurious lineups of other teams. Some people even felt that the Knicks lineup last season was more famous than this year.

To be able to bring such a lineup to the second place in the East and get 62 wins, Zuo Li's strength has been further recognized.

In this regard, Zuo Li can only say that in the East, this lineup is really enough.

The Knicks can't, they just kill themselves.

On the 18th, the entire Knicks team conducted joint training. In response to the Bulls' play style, the Knicks coaching staff asked the players to strengthen the protection of the inside line, and at the same time asked Duhon and Dragic to increase special training for Rose.

The Knicks' tactics are also very simple, give the left-handed ball at all costs, whether inside or outside, rotate according to the left-handed style of play.

This set of Knicks is very familiar, just waiting for the playoffs to come.

On the 18th, the playoffs this season started in an all-round way, and the Knicks also ushered in the media interview day.

In the evening, the Knicks watched the game between the Cavaliers and the 76ers in the locker room. There was no suspense. The majestic Cavaliers easily won 102-88 and got a good start.

The Nuggets, the second in the West, also defeated the Hornets 113-90. The only upset broke out on the Magic. They were defeated by the fifth-place Heat 108-110 in the first game, with a 2-point advantage. Wade scored 35 points and hit a quasi-jump. Kill, while the Magic's Howard scored only 12 points and 8 rebounds.

This makes the Heat fans very excited. The counterattack seems to be in sight, but Zuo Li knows that the magic is just not in the state, and the magic that loses this game has to unfold its claws, and the most difficult team in the east has to gradually reveal its own fangs.

On the 19th, Zuo Li's playoff career finally began!