The Pacers' victory over the Rockets at the Toyota Center was a more tortuous game than expected, but the result was expected by most fans and pundits.

The Rockets, who finally finished seventh in the West, are now in the situation of "one foot outside the top eight and the other foot inside the top eight".

The Indiana Pacers, on the other hand, are one step closer to their goal of being first in the East.

However, to Henson's surprise, what people were most concerned about after the game was actually the situation in the locker room of the visiting team in the Toyota Center...... Maybe people really thought Henson had smashed 10 locker cabinets.

So, the day after the game, at his home in Indianapolis, Henson saw a piece of news that left people speechless.

"The Rockets locker closet is in perfect condition! So here's the problem? How did Coach Henson get his players to win games? ”

"We thought Henson had really broken 10 lockers, but for now, Henson may have done something unusual to help the players get back into shape."

"According to 'insiders', Coach Henson did smash the locker, but it was embarrassing not to smash it. Because after Coach Henson smashed the locker at the Toyota Center last season, the Toyota Center deliberately reinforced the locker. ”

Locker, locker...... Almost all journalists put their attention and topics on the locker at the Toyota Center.

Paul's perfect performance on the field? George's cold-blooded cap at a critical moment? West and Horford's consistent output in the three-second zone? Henson doesn't see the news that is really related to the game. Even if there is a description, it is only a passing mention.

A basketball game, but it set the locker at the Toyota Center on fire. I don't know, I thought Henson was a schizophrenic saboteur. Henson couldn't help but shake his head, it didn't seem unusual for anything bizarre to happen in this age of entertainment to death.

"Maybe in the future, the security guards at the Toyota Center won't let me in."

Closing the browser on his phone, Henson left the hilarious news behind for the time being. Naturally, the victory over the Rockets is very enjoyable, but it can't be happy for too long.

After all, the victory over the Rockets only represents the official start of the Pacers' final month of sprint, not the end.

When the Pacers reach the playoffs as the No. 1 team in the East, it's never too late to rejoice.

However, looking at the Pacers' final month schedule, Henson is still very comfortable. With the exception of the Pacers facing the Thunder and Celtics on April 5 and 6, and the Bulls in the final game of the regular season, the Pacers' other opponents in April are not too strong.

Raptors, 76ers, Bucks, Pistons, etc...... These teams, Henson believes that as long as the Pacers don't make mistakes themselves, it won't be a problem to win them. And these teams, having already lost their qualification to the playoffs, must be very "happy" to lose for a better draft pick.

Therefore, Henson had a very bold idea in his mind - to chase the Chicago Bulls and have a big rest in the last month!

On the surface, the Pacers' players are all very fit. After all, Henson is not the kind of coach who "dies or dies" like Thibodeau, and Henson himself has badge bonuses that other coaches don't have.

But bonuses are always just bonuses, and they don't completely eliminate injuries. Every athlete has a potential injury and is most likely to explode when fatigue builds up to a certain level.

Even if the Pacers players stay healthy during the regular season, what about the playoffs? You know, the Pacers aren't just aiming for the regular season. Henson has to consider the possibility that the Pacers will play until June.

If the players were exhausted in the regular season chasing the Bulls, and then unfortunately injured in the playoffs and left out of the tournament, then there would be no point in taking the first place in the East.

And, even if not thinking about this season, Henson has to think about the future. Many major injuries to players do not erupt in a day, but accumulate over time.

The reason why Yao Ming fell was not the collision with Kobe, but the previous scars. Wade's frequent knee problems are due to the fact that he had had his meniscus removed when he was in college.

The Pacers are a team with a lot of potential, and injuries can even destroy the potential together!

So, even if the goal is to be first in the East. But with the Bulls not far behind, Henson was more than willing to try the crazy plan of winning while resting.

wants both grades and strength, if others know what Henson thinks at this time, they will definitely feel that this old brother is floating.

But Henson proved that the Pacers really have the capital to grab both hands now.

On April 3 and April 4, the Pacers played back-to-back games against the Knicks and Wizards. In these two games, the Pacers players played very evenly on the court, even Paul, the star of the house, only played about 20 minutes, and Stephenson and Hinrich shared a lot of the remaining time.

Henson's approach left everyone scratching their heads, but what is even more incredible is that the Pacers ended this back-to-back with two straight wins......

"The Pacers are really close to each other on the bench and starters, and I don't even think they have a difference between starters and benches at all, but a distinction between the No. 1 and No. 2 teams." Wizards coach Randy. Whitman had this to say after his loss to the Pacers.

Later, against the Thunder and Celtics, Henson used a similar rotation method. Of course, this time it was impossible to win two in a row, and the Pacers had a 1-1 record.

Now, it's Henson's turn to be surprised. It's not that I was surprised by the loss, but because the Pacers won against the Thunder and lost to the Celtics!

86-72, the Pacers suffered their worst loss of the season. The Celtics' current 30-24 record isn't great, but the gritty veterans have persevered. Henson even vaguely feels that the current Celtics are much better than they were at the beginning of the season......

Sure enough, never underestimate the heart of a champion.

Losing one of those two games is still within Henson's acceptable range. After playing the Thunder and Celtics, the Pacers will face a number of teams outside the playoff sequence or teetering on the fringes of the playoffs.

As a result, Henson "intensified" and directly began to take turns off!

Playing the Raptors on April 9, Horford wore a training uniform and chatted with Henson on the bench for 48 minutes. The Pacers 103-98 still won the team that had long since lost its qualification for the playoffs.

April 11th played the Cavaliers in Kelly. With Irving out due to injury, Paul sat firmly on the Diaoyutai and didn't play a minute.

The next day back-to-back against the Cavaliers, Paul had two days off in a row, and the Pacers also won two straight games against the Cavaliers, who were bent on signing for the top pick.

On the 14th, the Pacers played the Bucks away and it was discovered that Paul. George didn't even go to Milwaukee with the team!

Faced with the curious press, Henson's explanation was: "Basketball reasons. ”

There is nothing in the league that cannot be answered by a "basketball reason". Speaking of which, I still learned this from Mr. Stern.

Henson is so blatant in giving players who can play a break, and imitating Stern's speech, but he is still alive every day, as if he has not attracted the slightest dissatisfaction and attention from the league.

There is no doubt that Henson's rotation of the main players will definitely have an impact on the team's box office and the league's revenue. Isn't the Spurs' "old thief" the "old thief" often interviewed by the league because of the problem of rotation? So seeing Henson still alive every day, fans and reporters felt incredible!

"God of Basketball" Michael. Jordan once said, "I have to play as best I can every game because I don't know what fan might get to see me once in a lifetime." If the players can play, then they have to stand on the pitch and play. ”

Stern must have liked Jordan's quote very much, because the star is the box office guarantee. And when the manager doesn't let the stars play, the fans will hesitate to pay a lot of money for a ticket.

But Henson's rotation is very chicken-thief, first of all, he doesn't have an athlete of Jordan's caliber on his roster. Even Paul, the biggest name, can't be compared to Jordan in terms of influence. If Henson was resting Jordan in the '90s, you would see if Stern was looking for trouble with him.

Secondly, the number of games that Henson rotated was less important. Popovich was interviewed by the league because the old man always likes to rest in the second round of important games where tickets are expensive. For example, the last time the Spurs played the Heat this season, Popovich took a rotational break.

Just imagine, in an originally fierce game, where all the main forces on one side or even both sides are suspended, how many people will pay attention? In the long run, the impact on the interests of the alliance is very bad. So, the league will definitely talk to Popovich.

And what about Henson? Against a team like the Cavaliers, who are at the bottom of the league, you can rest as much as you like, because the game itself has no attention, and the league won't care about you.

And against this kind of belly team, even if the Pacers don't have to go all out, they can win the game.

As a result, Henson is very chicken thief and wins while taking a rest, and it will not cause dissatisfaction in the league. Even Bird said to Henson, "You're fucking beautiful." ”

And just like that, on April 23, when the Pacers defeated the Detroit Pistons 103-97 at Conseco Arena, their record changed to 49-16! 50 wins, just one step away!

You know, last season with 82 regular season games, the Pacers only won 55 wins. With only 66 regular season games this season, Henson still has a chance to make the team a 50-win run for the second year in a row!

At this point, the Pacers have one final game left in their regular season schedule. That's April 25th, the final showdown against the Chicago Bulls!

At this time, the Bulls have a 50-15 record. In other words, the Pacers must win the next game to match the Bulls' terrible record. Then, through the way of how many wins between the two sides, it will become the first in the East!

At the end of the day, you have to play the Bulls in person to determine the final ranking of the regular season. Henson couldn't help but shake his head, fate is sometimes, it is indeed quite wonderful.