164: Battle for the Western Rankings
The Grizzlies beat the Hornets by 13 points, and many people think it was because of Paul's poor performance. Paul's performance in this game was indeed unsatisfactory, but Link's quasi-triple-double stats were also a big factor in the Hornets' defeat.
Some reporters were a little skeptical about Link's Player of the Week award at first, but after the game against the Hornets, no reporter would be stupid enough to question him. After all, Link did show what he could do today as Player of the Week.
28 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists, as a No. 3 shooting rate as high as 57.9%, what more bicycle?
The match was considered Link's battle for his name, and he told everyone that he deserved to be the Man of the Week. But in reality, Link doesn't want to prove anything at all, he's just trying to help the Grizzlies move up the rankings.
The race against the Hornets is not the end, just the beginning of "overtaking in corners".
On April 2, the Grizzlies defeated the Timberwolves in back-to-back battles, surpassing the Trail Blazers in the rankings and officially becoming sixth in the West!
The Grizzlies didn't play on April 3, and the NCAA Finals kicked off on April 4, giving way to NBA suspensions. The Grizzlies lost to the Clippers on April 5, but the Trail Blazers also lost to the Warriors, and the Grizzlies continued to hold on to sixth place.
On April 8, the Grizzlies beat the Kings at home, Link had 18 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists, and the Grizzlies won 48.
On April 11, the Grizzlies Revenge Clippers, in a jaw-dropping state, flew from eighth in the West to sixth in the West in half a month!
So far, the Grizzlies have a record of 49 wins and 32 losses. The Denver Nuggets, who are fifth in the West, also have a 49-32 record, and since losing Anthony, the Nuggets have taken off all the way and now occupy the fifth spot.
Coincidentally, the Grizzlies and Nuggets' last opponents in the regular season were each other! In other words, the final standings in the West will not be known until the last minute on the last day of the regular season.
Whether the Grizzlies can jump from eighth in the West to fifth in the West has become the final suspense of the regular season this season.
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"The Grizzlies are flying in the standings, and they will be aiming for fifth place in the West!"
"If the Grizzlies can finally defeat the Nuggets, then they will tie the highest ranking in franchise history!"
"It's definitely going to be a very good fight, George. Coach Carl has publicly stated that he does not want to run into the Dallas Mavericks or the Los Angeles Lakers in advance. So in order to defend the fifth place in the West, they will definitely go all out! ”
"The Memphis Grizzlies will not give up this opportunity to tie the highest ranking in team history, and before the playoffs, Coach Hollins will definitely send a full main lineup!"
With one game left in the regular season, the situation has become fairly clear, with the final standings of most teams already confirmed.
At present, there are four teams in the league that have not yet confirmed their rankings. One group is the Mavericks and Lakers, who continue to fight for second and third place in the West.
While there is still room for change in the standings of these two teams, there is not much difference between third and second place for the Lakers and Mavericks. As a result, they don't like their final ranking.
So, now the eyes of the whole league are on the Nuggets and the Grizzlies. The final standings of these two teams will determine how far they can go in the playoffs.
As soon as Link turns on his phone now, he's greeted with an overwhelming load of reports, all about the Nuggets and the Grizzlies.
As the final suspense of this season's NBA regular season, the Grizzlies and Nuggets suddenly became in the spotlight, as if they were in the Finals.
Hollins has been in a tight state of mind for the past two days, and he thought he could give his main players a break before the playoffs. But now in this situation, he still has to send his whole main force to fight.
Hollins and George. Neither Karl wants to play the Mavericks or the Lakers, and while the final standings of the Mavericks and Lakers have not yet been confirmed, sixth place in the West will certainly meet one of these two teams.
Needless to say, the Lakers are the defending champions and they have Kobe Bryant. Bryant, the most dangerous "viper" in the league. Whoever runs into Kobe Bryant will be unlucky.
As for the Dallas Mavericks, although the Mavericks have not paid much attention this season, they do not consider them the favorites to win the championship. But as professional coaches, Hollins and George. Carl knew that calves weren't as simple as they seemed.
Head coach Carlisle plus Nowitzki, Tyson. A group of players such as Chandler, Terry, Marion and Peja ensured that the Mavericks' floor would not be too low. When you encounter that group of Texans, I'm afraid that it will be more than lucky.
Hollins and George. Kardul would rather play the young Thunder than meet the Lakers and Mavericks. So in the final game of the regular season, neither coach will give up the victory.
Hollins and George. Karl's two head coaches are full of fighting spirit, and Link, as a player, is also high-spirited!
Originally, Link wanted the Grizzlies to be ranked higher, after all, this would maximize his value. And as a traverser, Link knows very well that this year's calves are really untouchable!
Nowitzki has been superbly this season, and several other Mavericks guys are also in excellent form, and whoever bumps into him is unlucky. When the time comes, maybe Randolph and Nowitzki will have to be cleaned up. And Gasol Jr. did not have the slightest advantage when he met the "boxing champion" Tyson.
If the Grizzlies end up in sixth place in the West and meet the Mavericks early, the Grizzlies are likely to be out of the round. Therefore, the next game will have to find a way to move up to fifth in the West no matter what.
At the thought of this, Link jumped to the triumph. The next game will be a passing moment for most teams, after all, the standings have already been confirmed.
But for the Grizzlies, it's a fork in the road. Whether to shine in the playoffs or fade out after a round of tours, the final game of the regular season will determine the final trend of the Grizzlies!
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George. Carl felt extremely tired, and he managed to get rid of Cameron. Anthony, I thought everything was going well this season. Who knows, the Grizzlies will suddenly jump to sixth in the West!
What's worse is that they are still eyeing the Nuggets' fifth place in the West.
For the sudden jump in the Grizzlies rankings, George. Carl really didn't expect it at first. All season, the Grizzlies went round and round in eighth place in the West. Who would have thought that they would suddenly exert their strength in the last half month, surpassing two places in a row, and rushing to sixth in the west.
If they are beaten by the Grizzlies again, then they will be more than three teams in a row.
Old Carl gritted his teeth, all his plans were originally so perfect, but the Grizzly Bear was such a spoiler. The outside world calls the Grizzly Bear the villain, but George. Carl prefers to call them-stirring sticks!
Carl is well aware that in addition to the black and white bears, the Grizzlies' current strength is that the damn draft loss is also a big problem.
When he and Anthony were splitting up, George. Karl knew that the No. 0 would be an obstacle for many teams in the West. It's just that he didn't expect that his Nuggets would become Link's first target to block.
Link has been very strong since April. Carl is sure that Link's form won't suddenly collapse in the final game of the regular season. If Link's trouble isn't solved, the Nuggets' situation is very dangerous.
George. Karl then picked up the Grizzlies' roster and drew a little red cross on Link's name.
After that, the elder Carl got up and went to the training hall. Today, the first words he said to the players set the tone for the game against the Grizzlies.
"I need you to play roughly, you know? And I mean, the kind of real roughness. ”
For the sake of victory, George. Carl has never cared about the means.