Yang Rui returned to Manhattan and changed the target to the Knicks.

The Knicks are a strong team in the playoffs. The reason for the selection is because he knows that Jeff Van Gundy's position is very solid, and he worked until the 2001-02 season, and this is a stubborn guy who may not be willing to listen to his assistants.

The advantages of the Knicks are equally obvious, that is, the depth of the lineup. From 1995 to 1999, the Knicks have been able to compete for the championship.There are many defensive talents inside and two strong scoring points on the outside. In addition to the strength of the point guard, they have everything.

Yang Rui is confident to make the Knicks better. As long as Van Gundyken listens to some suggestions, don't always pursue defensive wins.

On June 20th, Yang Rui came to "the face of New York"-Madison Square Garden.

He did not immediately send his resume to the Knicks management, but worked in a nearby "return snack bar".This is a shop opened by a Chinese owner. Seeing that he has a good image and good work, he is allowed to stay and calculate his wages on time.

Yang Rui has no money to eat. If he doesn't call Thomas for help, he will starve to death if he doesn't find a job.This is killing two birds with one stone. He must always pay attention to the Knicks situation and find a good time to go to the interview.

After the trip to New Jersey, he wanted to understand that if he held the certificate like this, he would definitely not have the opportunity to perform. His age and seniority would all be factors in the death penalty.

He has to wait, wait for other coaches to compete, and then make a comparison together.Everyone has a certificate, so you can't even give him the opportunity to participate in the discussion, right?

Yang Rui has a good memory in his previous life. He has been working on NBA data for many years, and he basically remembers major events.He knows the situation facing the Knicks this summer, Van Gundy's life is not easy.

Last season, the Knicks led the Heat 3-1 in the second round.In the 5th game, Charlie Ward of 188CM was picked up by PJ Brown of 211CM and fell off the field. The two teams immediately started group fights. The melee was very fierce. After the game, the Knicks included Ewing, Starks, Larry Johnson and more. The main players were suspended, but only Brown was suspended for the Heat.

The absence of Ewing and Alan Houston in the sixth game, and the absence of Starks and Larry Johnson in the seventh game, led to a significant decline in the team's strength.The fire made the Knicks paid a terrible price for their championship anger, and the Heat came back 4-3.

This way out made the Knicks boss and fans very angry.

The old Knicks assistant Rex Hughes chose to retire. Another assistant, Andy Greer, whose contract expired, responded to Pat Riley's call and switched to the Heat.With the addition of Bob Salmi, who left in 1996, the Knicks coaching staff is left with the polished commander Van Gundy.

According to the original history, Thibodeau, who was laid off by the 76ers, joined and became the Knicks' first assistant coach. Yang Rui didn't know the others.He just wanted to wait for Thibodeau to compete with him.

The vision of the 76ers management is speechless. Not only did they lay off Thibodeau, but also the layoff assistant Ron Adams was also very famous, and later became a good helper for Popovich to the Spurs.

In addition to working as a waiter in a snack bar, Yang Rui also took time to chat with security and doormen in the arena to obtain first-hand information.He bought a fat doorman named Kenning with a special snack mung bean cake, and begged him to call the snack bar when someone came to interview the teaching assistant.

The effort paid off. On the 27th, Yang Rui finally brought Sibodu to Pan, and there was another person who was openly recruited.

"Xiao Xiao, I'll go out and help me tell the boss about something urgent." Yang Rui took off his work clothes and shouted in Chinese to the Chinese girl who worked together.

"When are you coming back?"

"in the afternoon."

Yang Rui took the certificate and rode the bike that delivered the food at the door straight to the arena.The snack bar is two blocks away from the arena, and he unceremoniously uses the bus for private use.

This opportunity must be seized, otherwise the consequences will be disastrous.For this reason, Yang Rui also investigated the location of the arena office. He was familiar with the road, and all the staff members thought about it.

"Sorry, sir, you can't move around in the work area. Do you have an appointment?" the female assistant asked.

"Applying for the Knicks assistant coach, I was with two people." Yang Rui smiled and handed over the certificate.

He didn't say that there was an appointment, only that the applicants came to play word games, even if Van Gundy asked, it was not a lie.

The female assistant has just seen two similar certificates, and she also knows that the management has called to ask someone for an interview today. There is no doubt that there is fraud, and she smiled and said, "Sir, please come here."

"Thank you, I'll go in by myself." Yang Rui deliberately distracted the assistant to avoid embarrassment.

He knocked on the door first, and after hearing the sound of "please come in", he opened the door and walked in. There were four men in the room, two of which he recognized at a glance.

His forehead is bright, his hair is slightly longer on both sides, and he looks like he has gone through vicissitudes of life. He is a little man like Heihachi Mishima, born on January 19, 1962. Jeff Van Gundy was born on January 19, 1962. Well, he is actually 35 years old.

Another guy in a suit is Thibodoo, much younger than Yang Rui remembers, with a flat head.Thibodeau is also easy to recognize, and he looks like Batman's old rival "Penguin".

The other two older whites he didn't know were the team general manager Ernie Grunfeld and Ken Boyd who came to bid for an assistant coach.

Boyd has a good background. He has been an NCAA coach for 10 years. He once played briefly in the NBA in the 70s. He is a poorly-fitted white guard.

"Hello everyone, my friend introduced me to interview. This is my ID." Yang Rui first smiled at Thibodeau and Van Gundy, and then handed the ID to Ernie because Ernie was sitting in the manager's position.

Van Gundy is the most decisive person present and must be pleased.

Yang Ruichao Xibodu's smile was confused, giving everyone an illusion that Yang Rui was introduced by Xibodu. After this interview, if asked, it doesn't matter if Yang Rui was introduced by another friend.

Thibodeau also smiled at Yang Rui out of politeness. He and Boyd were both surprised because Yang Rui was too young.

This Asian is here to compete for the coach?Are you kidding me?

Ernie asked everyone's doubts."Your name is Jerry Yang, only 23 years old this year? Chinese?"

"Well, I grew up in the United States, and today I only want an opportunity to show myself and participate in this assessment. I know that I have very little hope left, and I am satisfied if I can learn something. Please also the manager, Coach Van Gundy, to give me this opportunity After speaking, Yang Rui bowed to the two politely.

In the few minutes from the arena to the door, Yang Rui managed to do the trick.

As the saying goes, he doesn't hit the smiley person with his hand, let alone put his posture so low?

Ernie nodded, as if he had been introduced by a friend.Van Gundy also ignored the details of how Yang Rui came here.

The Knicks urgently need to appoint an assistant coach, otherwise no one will lead the summer league in July, and they will have to find a fringe team to investigate new players.

"Okay, let's start the assessment now. Everyone listens to my questions and everyone must answer." Van Gundy said sternly.

The three who came to bid for teaching assistants nodded solemnly.

Yang Rui breathed a sigh of relief. For him, the most important first level was successfully passed.Van Gundy was eager to decide on a candidate and went straight to the topic.

"If the Knicks face the Bulls in the playoffs, how should they deploy their offensive and defensive tactics? You must have seen the finals and have five minutes to think and answer.

Van Gundy believes that in addition to the Bulls, the Eastern Conference has a way to deal with it, and the assistants needed mainly have to come up with ideas on offense.

This question is directly related to the Knicks' goal for next season, and it also tests the coach's response, which is only five minutes.

To become an NBA-level coach, you must not only arrange basic training, but also have a tactical concept suitable for the team and sufficient on-the-spot adaptability.

Van Gundy's on-the-spot response is terrible. If he is surrounded by a mouth-watering assistant, doing mental victories or slacking off the stars, the Knicks are hopeless.

Excellent coaches have a certain accumulation. Thibodeau and Boyd have already considered this issue when they watched the finals.

Even so, they did not speak first. Thibodeau is 39 years old this year and Boyd is 45 years old. They are knowledgeable and restrained.

Speak first, if the idea is not good enough, or Van Gundy is not in his heart, you will be at a disadvantage.After speaking, it can integrate the ideas of competitors and deepen the tactics.

Those who speak later also have disadvantages. In case the opponent's tactics are too perfect, or the ideas are similar, and he can't raise objections, he can only agree with him, and he may lose the opportunity to perform.

Thibodeau and Boyd's goals are both chief assistants, treating each other as opponents and don't want to make any mistakes.

When they were fighting ideologically, Yang Rui raised his hand, pointed to a white tactical board by the wall and said, "I have considered this question, can I talk about it first?"

Yang Rui observed Van Gundy's expression, frowning slightly, and seemed to be dissatisfied with him before he thought about it for a minute.

Strangely speaking, this industry obviously needs coaches to have the ability to respond quickly, but thinking too fast and speaking too directly can be unpleasant.

Van Gundy only felt that Yang Rui wanted to express himself too much and was unstable.Since it is said that learning is the main thing, shouldn't you listen to the seniors first?Even if it was a question, the two agreed with what he said first, and it was not too late to speak.

Both of them had no objections, smiled, and didn't take Yang Rui seriously.

Van Gundy was also 23 years old and qualified as a coach. He was 27 years old as an assistant coach for the Knicks. It took four years of training to impress the management. This is the current NBA record.If Yang Rui wants to succeed in this job, he must be more talented than Van Gundy.

Van Gundy came from a basketball family. What does Yang Rui do?

Their views are similar to those of the Nets coach Calipari. The level of Chinese basketball is not good. Even if a young Chinese has watched football since childhood, how deeply can he understand tactics?This person won't be very strong, so it's just right to stand up and offer a good idea.

Yang Rui asked for a tactical pen, quickly drew a few times on the tactical board, and said with a smile: "Let me talk about defense first. I think the Bulls' attack strength lies only in the personal abilities of Jordan and Pippen, not the whole. The focus of the triangle offense , Is to help the stars create singles opportunities. Therefore, my defensive strategy is to shrink the players to the penalty area, to ensure the defense and double-teaming two people, forcing the opponent's long shot.

He drew a simple court line on the tactical board. The players were marked with No. 12345, and the positions were very clear. Except for the point guard, the other four were all shrunk near the penalty area.

In 1997, the computer was not a general-purpose product for the home, and ordinary people rarely understood how basketball referees work, let alone draw these tactical diagrams.

Yang Rui’s future work is related to NBA tactics. In the website columns such as Wonderful Cooperation and Five Best Balls, he has to match his goals with flash tactical running maps. He has become an expert with knowledge and knowledge, and he is in the five-star training camp. The drawing method of learning is more advanced.

Van Gundy immediately had a strange look in his eyes, which coincided with his thoughts.

At present, the NBA does not allow joint defenses, but Van Gundy’s trick for survival is “false joint defenses”. In a positional battle, he follows the opponent’s movement to shrink the formation, blocking the penalty area with 3 or 4 people, and forcing the opponent to make mid- and long-range shots instead of breaking in. Lay up or dunk under the basket.

This defensive effect is obvious. The Knicks averaged 92.2 points per game last season, second only to the Heat's 89.3 points, ranking second in the league.Losing points, the Bulls can only be ranked third, 92.3 points.

All the experts present here immediately understood Yang Rui's tactical intentions.

Thibodeau and Boyd both frowned, and felt as sick as they had eaten a fly. They couldn't refute them.They felt that Yang Rui had taken a trick. The Knicks had won by defense, and he just said Van Gundy's favorite tactics.

Van Gundy also doubted, so he asked, "Why? Can you explain it in detail?"

"The reason is very simple. The Bulls lack three-point shooting points. Jordan and Pippen are not strong points. Jordan can break through the frame or play with the ball in the low post. At this time, shrinking the double-team can interfere with the shot and force him to pass the ball. We emptied Rodman and Langley from the perimeter and let them shoot. How many points can we score in a game? Both of them are very poor in long-range shooting and generally do not make shots."

Van Gundy was expressionless and asked, "So how do the Knicks break through the Bulls' defense? They are also good at guarding the penalty area. Do you need time to consider offensive tactics?"

"No need, very simple." Yang Rui smiled.

All four of them were surprised, and talking about soldiers on paper is not so easy.If the Knicks are good at offense, they won't be reversed by the Heat in the second round. He said it was simple?

Because of the Knicks' bad offense, the media didn't give Van Gundy a good look. He has been suffering since May and has not been relieved.

Yang Rui is not stage fright at all, and drew another offensive line map on the whiteboard.

"Ward or Childs organizes from outside the three-point line, Houston and Ewing run off the defender without the ball on one side, Johnson and Oakley both have mid-range shooting ability, attracting defense on one side, and people are watching It’s usually Langley who changes defense against Houston, who moves slowly. If he doesn’t guard the three-point line, Houston will have a nearly empty chance to catch the ball."

The tactics were clear at a glance, general manager Ernie also thought it was a good strategy, and asked: "What if Langley comes out on defense?"

Yang Rui added a few more strokes to the picture and smiled and said: "Houston is not a pure pitcher. He can attack with the ball in a dislocation position. After Langley makes a jump shot, he can also choose to pass the ball. Langley is pulled out of the penalty area. Cut to the basket and catch the ball is a good opportunity. Rodman is only 201cm tall, and even if he defends to the basket, Ewing won’t help. If the Bulls shrink, we will transfer the ball and shoot mid-to-long range, which is more accurate than them."

Is it really that simple?Van Gundy was a little excited."How to attack the bench, have you considered it?"

"Similarly, relying on screens to create dislocation opportunities, players open up and maintain at least two stable three-point shooting points on the court. Fortunately, the Knicks are such a team. Starks is the first NBA to make a single season. With two hundred three-pointers, he will definitely be able to play well."

Van Gundy smiled and clapped several times."well said!"

Both Thibodeau and Boyd's faces were dark, and they found sadly that they couldn't object to Yang Rui's offensive tactics.

This is not just throwing bricks into their faces.