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There is no immutable king in the NBA, as strong as the Spurs, the 5-crown team of the year, after Duncan and Leonard left, San Antonio's giants also collapsed, before Vucevic did not leave the Magic, they reached the playoffs for several years, but after Vucevic left, they are now the bottom of the league, in fact, these can be understood, after all, their core left, but this season there are several strong teams their core is still unable to play the record they deserve.
Today we will take stock of the former giants who have had a bad record this season, what is their problem? Let's take a look.
trailblazer
So far this season, he has won 11 and lost 18, with a winning percentage of 37.9%, ranking 11th in the West
Last season, he won 42 and lost 30, with a winning percentage of 58.3%, and was 6th in the West
The Blazers have been a strong team in the West for the past few years under Lillard, they have also reached the division finals in 19 years, although they finally lost to the defending champion Warriors, but this team has shown everyone the potential to rush the championship, after 20 years of dynasty Warriors collapsed, thought the Blazers would rise, and as a result, they were the first round of the playoffs in the next two years, even so they are also the top eight teams in the West, but why is this season so bad?
I think the main reasons for their poor performance are:
(1) The team lineup structure problem - the team does not have excellent forward players, the starting has always been the three small of Lillard, CJ and Powell, and the weakness of the front defense is infinitely targeted by the opponent
(ii) The change of coach Billups led to - Billups asked the team to play egalitarianism, let everyone hold the ball, reduced Lillard's personal attack, increased his no-ball running, Lillard simply did not adapt
(3) Lillard mentality problem - Lillard asked the team to strengthen in the offseason, but the team did not do so, the Internet rumors that he wanted Simmons, but Olsey did not recruit him simmons, Lillard and Harden last season's mentality has changed.
The current Blazers management and the locker room are in turmoil, their management is also hesitating, whether to choose to rebuild or choose to trade reinforcements to satisfy Lillard, as far as the current situation is concerned, if the Blazers continue like this, they can't play in the playoffs, and this team relies on the current lineup even if it makes the playoffs, Billups' coaching ability, the problem of the team's lineup structure limits their height, perhaps rebuilding is the wise choice.
pedestrian
This season's record is 12-18, with a 40% win rate, and the 13th in the East
Last season's record was 34-38, with a win rate of 47.2%, and it was 9th in the East
The Pacers were still the Eastern Conference play-offs team last season, although they lost to the Wizards, but the roster strength and chemistry they showed last season were obviously better than now, and before last season, the Pacers have always been the Eastern Playoffs team, previously led by Oladipo, after the injury of Bitter Mamba, the Team played well, but this season even the top ten in the East can not go in.
And the main reason for the Blazers' poor record, I think, is:
(1) Coach change - The offseason Pacers took Carlisle, the famous coach who once helped the Lone Ranger win the championship, after the arrival of the small ball era, he was particularly obsessed with the playing style of the big core of the ball, so he let Brogdon serve as the big core of the ball, but Bro is not Doncic, and his organizational ability and personal offensive stability cannot support the role of the big core.
(ii) Lineup structure - The Pacers' lineup has also been problematic, Sosa and Turner played double towers, so that Turner sacrificed a lot of due tactical position, Turner's excellent interior line is now directly reduced to a tool man, and because Brogdon plays the big core of the ball, Sa Jr. also reduces the offensive ball and also affects the team's ability to kill.
Now the Pacers are ready to rebuild, this season back to the top ten in the East is unlikely, they have put Sabonis, Turner and Le Ver on the shelf, the team intends to focus on cultivating rookie Duarte, in the case of the team can not go further to choose to rebuild is not a good thing, after all, their high-quality resources are quite a lot, can be exchanged for a lot of suitable chips, Carlisle is indirectly lost a team that has been fighting for the playoffs.
nix
This season is 12-16, with a win rate of 42.9%, the 12th in the East
Last season, he won 41 and lost 31, with a winning percentage of 57.7%, and was fourth in the East
After years of pendulum, the Knicks finally saw the dawn of victory last season, they reached the playoffs, and they also advanced with the top four in the East, even if the team was eliminated in the first round, but a young team can play such a performance is also commendable, last season they lost the playoffs to the team's lack of offensive firepower, in the offseason they won Walker and Fournier two good offensive firepower players, but the result is a bad record now.
The reasons for the Knicks' poor record are:
(1) The problem of the Thibodeau system - for Thibodeau presumably everyone is no stranger, he is a defensive manager, for the team defense requirements are extremely harsh, last season the Knicks is with excellent defense to enter the playoffs, but throughout Thibodeau's career, his team offense is not good, Walker and Fournier after the arrival of the ball is too little, can not play at all, in addition, because the two have limited defensive ability, Thibodeau is not too heavy to use them.
(2) The team chose the wrong core - Thibodeau has always liked to die on the main core, can let a person play absolutely will not let the second person intervene, he let Randall play the organizational front, to be honest, Randall does not have this strength, and the personal offense is not stable enough, too far from the alphabet brother and Jokic, last season they did rely on Randle to play the playoffs, but also in the playoffs when the performance was targeted very crotch.
The Knicks want to solve the current dilemma or give Thibodeau a good offensive assistant coach, such as D'Antoni, or trade Walker and Fournier, two top scorers who have averaged 19 points per game this season, and now they are barely averaging 10 points per game, Walker is even more abandoned, they are completely wasted in the Knicks, it is better to exchange for a few defensive players that Thibodeau wants, but the height of the team is only there.
eagle
This season's record is 14-14, with a 50% win rate, and ninth in the East
Last season's record was 41 wins and 31 losses, with a winning percentage of 57.7%, fifth in the East
Last season's big dark horse Hawks, with Trae Young's excellent personal ability and the team's terrifying lineup thickness, the team reached the playoffs for the first time in many years, and the result was directly to the division finals, and this season's performance was very bad, they do have hope to return to the playoffs this season, but it is unlikely that they will reach the division finals in the state that the team shows now.
The eagle's problems now are:
(1) The team mainly plays three small - McMillan and Billups like to use three small to make people confused, Borgdan, Trae Young and Hurth do have excellent ability to solve problems with the ball, but this also leads to their flank defense is very crotch, now the Hawks' defensive efficiency is the sixth to last in the league, such a poor defense can play in the results are already good, if it is not the thickness of the lineup, it is estimated that they will be at the bottom of the league (averaging 7 people per game in double figures).
(ii) Reducing the use of veterans, this season Gallinari and Lou Wei such a good veteran playing time is very rare, they want to focus on cultivating young people, but last season the Eagles can achieve excellent results thanks to the experience of veterans, their ability to handle the ball at key moments is more rational and smart than young people.
The Hawks have to solve the problem now, I think they should reuse 3D players like Reddish, in the case of Hunter's injury, let Reddish into the flanking offensive core of the starting defensive opponent, while reusing the veterans, their lineup strength is still there and the impact and talent are not to say, the Hawks compared to the other three teams, their lineup thickness and players can play more, there is no need to trade just adjust it.
pelican
This season is 9 wins and 21 losses, with a winning percentage of 29.6%, 15th in the West
Last season, he lost 31-41, with a winning percentage of 43%, and was 11th in the West
Although the Pelicans are not strong, but on the talent they feel that it is one of the best teams in the league, although the team did not reach the playoffs or play-offs last season, but it is also infinitely close, it is a good rising star, and this season the direct league is at the bottom, which is a bit surprising, after the thick eyebrow brother left, just saw the reconstruction has improved, this is into the reconstruction period?
The pelicans have problems with:
(1) Injuries - Williamson Zion has not returned since the start of the new season, and his average of 27 points per game last season was the team's first scoring point
(2) The defensive problem is too big - don't look at the Pelicans' defense last season is not very good, but with the ball brother and Adams their defense is still good, and now the team has no defensive top soldiers, Ingram like brush, Varan like brush brush are not defended, how can they win?
When Zion returns, I also feel that the pelicans are unlikely to rise, they need to find a suitable old man to teach them how to win, just like Paul's role in the Sun, Zion should also be more disciplined, with historical talent but has been squandering, so that it is not to say that chasing James, it will eventually become a big parallel.
Speaking of which, do you have anything you want to say after reading the article? Welcome to leave a message to discuss.