Gray, the head coach of the San Antonio Spurs, is the top coach in the NBA, the most top-notch tactician, and the most famous old fox. During his time coaching the Spurs, he led the Spurs to NBA championships many times and can be said to have the most glorious record among the current head coaches.
Although the Spurs' record has declined in recent seasons, they are still a regular in the playoffs. This year's Spurs are temporarily ranked fifth in the Western Conference, only one game away from fourth place.
In last night's game, the Spurs defeated the Eastern Conference powerhouse Philadelphia 76ers at home, and tomorrow, they will go to Los Angeles to challenge the Clippers away. According to the schedule, the players will board a plane to Los Angeles in the afternoon and stay one night in Los Angeles to prepare for tomorrow night's game.
Coach Gray came to the players with a list of names. When the Spurs players saw Coach Gray approaching, they all fell silent.
"I will announce the list of players for tomorrow's game against the Clippers. The starting players are... "
Coach Gray read out five names in a row, but none of the players were in the Spurs' usual starting lineup. They were all substitutes.
Players, you look at me and I look at you, looking at a loss. Some people even secretly complained in their hearts whether Coach Gray was suffering from Alzheimer's disease.
Afterwards, Coach Gray read out the list of substitute players. Surprisingly, two core players who usually started the game did not appear on the list.
An NBA team has 15 official player quotas, in addition to two negligible two-way contracts. Only 12 players can appear in a game. Those who are excluded from these 12 players cannot appear in the game, that is, they are placed on the so-called inactive player list. According to NBA rules, players on the inactive list must wear suits even if they are watching the game from the sidelines.
One person on the current Spurs team is injured and will definitely not be able to play. Coach Gray gave the other two inactive roster spots to two core players, which means that even if these two people follow the team to Los Angeles , and can only sit on the sidelines wearing a suit and cheer for his teammates.
The two core players who were placed on the inactive list looked at each other. They thought carefully for a long time and realized that they had not made any mistakes recently. The coach's decision not to let them play was certainly not to punish them. Then there is only one purpose for doing this, which is to give them a break.
Finally, a player couldn't help but asked: "Coach, is this a rest day?"
Coach Gray nodded: "You can think of this as a rest."
"Coach, it's only the end of March. Isn't it too early to take a break? According to previous years, we don't start taking a break until late April. Besides, the competition in the Western Conference this year is very fierce. Our current record is still It’s not enough to ensure entry into the playoffs, the teams behind are chasing closely, and we are only 1 game away from fourth place." Another person asked.
"Then you can think of this as me giving you a day off." Coach Gray looked at the disciples he had trained, and finally explained: "You know, in my opinion, in the league now, The most difficult team is not the defending champion Warriors, nor the Rockets with the best record, nor the Cavaliers with the best player in the league, but the Los Angeles Clippers. Do you know why this is?"
"Is it because of overtime?" A player immediately came to see and asked.
Gray nodded: "Yes, it's because of the damn overtime! I don't know what methods the Clippers' new head coach used to make the Clippers play so many overtimes, but I don't want to Let you play as many overtimes as the Clippers did. You also know that the competition in the Western Conference is very fierce now, and I don't want you to waste your energy and physical strength on the Clippers."
Gray looked at everyone and then explained: "If you are playing against other weak teams, you may only play three quarters and then sit on the sidelines to rest in the fourth quarter, but if you are playing against the Clippers, you may have to go up and play. Two or three overtimes. Playing one game against the Clippers consumes as much energy as playing two other weak teams! What’s more, playing overtime will also increase your risk of injury. I don’t want to be in the playoffs. Lose any player before the game starts."
"Coach, a lot of media said a few days ago that the Clippers always play overtime. Their physical fitness can't last long, and they will collapse sooner or later. Maybe we can take advantage of this and compete with the Clippers. If they stop spending time, when their physical fitness cannot support them, they will be dragged down by us." Some players suggested.
Gray shook his head: "Don't listen to the nonsense of those media. If those sports commentators are accurate enough, then it is those sports commentators who are standing here talking to you now, not me! I can tell you clearly that if If the Clippers would collapse due to physical problems, they would have collapsed long ago. Don't forget who their head coach is! That Dai Li may be the best physical training expert in the world!"
Several players showed unconvinced expressions, and they obviously felt that Gray was a bit boastful.
So Gray explained: "You know Dai Li, he probably led the US track and field team to achieve unprecedented good results in the Olympics. And I heard his name much earlier than the Olympics. I have an old friend, He is a boxing coach. His name is Iris. Maybe some of you have heard of the name "White Devil" Iris. Iris's wife has been paralyzed in bed because of an accident. The doctor thinks that she may have to be in bed for the rest of her life. Got through it. I also went to the hospital to visit his wife at the time."
"But after a while, I went to visit this old friend again and found that his wife was able to stand up and walk with a walker. This surprised me because I was there when his wife was injured. Having been to the hospital and talking to the doctor myself, I know that her wife’s condition is very serious and that unless a miracle happens, it will be impossible for her to stand up again. But the miracle happened right in front of my eyes.”
"Later I found out that it was a Chinese rehabilitation coach who helped Iris' wife recover. That Chinese coach was the current head coach of the Clippers, Dai Li. At the same time, I also knew that Dai Li was training Kevin Taylor at the time. , to help Kevin Taylor come back."
"You should have heard the following story. Kevin Taylor, who is in his thirties, is in better shape than he was in his twenties, and he also showed better physical fitness than he was in his twenties," Gray said. Here, he looked at the players in their thirties in the team and then said: "There are also some of you who are over thirty years old, and some are even over thirty-five years old. I think you should be able to understand that. What is the difference between the physical condition of a thirty-year-old and that of a twenty-year-old? I think you can also understand that it is completely impossible to regain the physical condition of a twenty-year-old."
After hearing this, the players over thirty years old nodded in agreement. They are all experienced people, so they naturally know what it's like.
"But that Dai Li made the impossible possible. To be honest, after I watched Kevin Taylor's game at that time, I even wanted to recruit that Dai Dai to the team as a physical coach. In this case, you These old guys might be able to make the starting lineup when they are forty years old." Gray pointed at the bald player who had been with him for more than ten years, and while teasing, he shook his head helplessly: "It's a pity. He owns a physical training center and the revenue is very good. Maybe if I let him sit in my position, he will be willing to come to the Spurs."
…
Los Angeles, Staples Center, Clippers vs. Spurs.
Before the game, Dai Li got the Spurs' starting lineup.
"All five starters have been replaced. What are the Spurs going to do? Are they taking a rest? If they are taking a rest, isn't it too early? They usually don't start taking a rest until mid-to-late April." Dai Li said to himself He said it to himself, as if asking the opinions of those around him.
"I guess that old fox Gray doesn't want to play overtime with us. The Spurs players are a bit older, so playing overtime will consume more physical energy and make it easier to get injured." Cassel explained from the side road.
"You mean, the Spurs are scared? Are they deliberately avoiding overtime?" Dai Li asked.
"Uh... you can put it that way." Cassel said awkwardly.
"So that's it!" Dai Li frowned and thought for a moment, then continued to ask: "If we just deal with the Spurs' bench, we should have some chance of winning, right?"
"The strength of our starting players should be better than that of the Spurs' bench. What's more, this time, Gray has put those players who can't play at all on the player activation list. Using the starters to replace them should not be a problem. Question." Cassel nodded.
"Then I understand. It seems that the Spurs are giving us a big gift." Dai Li showed a strange smile on his face.
…
Seeing that the Spurs played with all substitutes, Dai Li simply did not use "evenly matched" in this game, but allowed the players to play freely.
Although the Clippers are a weak team, the starter is the starter after all. Players who can be included in the starting lineup in the NBA, even if they are inferior in strength, must be much better than the vast majority of substitute players.
In the same way, players who can enter the normal rotation lineup are definitely much better than those "water dispenser managers" who usually cannot play.
This game is like Tian Ji's horse racing. The Spurs are a strong team, but they field mid-level horses and low-level horses; the Clippers are a weak team, but they field high-level horses and mid-level horses. When starting versus starting, it's the Clippers' top horse versus Spurs' middling horse, and when bench versus bench, it's the Clippers' middling horse versus Spurs' low-level horse. The result is of course one can imagine.
…
"Beep..." The electric bell rang at the end of the game.
Gray had a depressed expression on his face. He deliberately hid the main force to avoid overtime, but overtime did not come and the Spurs lost the game.
As the head coach of the team with the most seniority, richest experience, and the most honors among active coaches in the NBA, Gray suddenly felt so shameless. Originally, he wanted to play a trick and show his style as a master tactician. But now looking at the result, it is obvious that he dug a hole for himself and jumped into it.
"What about overtime? What about the promised overtime match between the Clippers and a strong team? Where did the two or three overtimes that often happened before go? If I had known that there would be no overtime, I would have won as a starter. This game is over…”