Tom. Thibodeau appeared on the training ground with big dark circles under his eyes, and the "old rookie" who won the best coach award for the first time as a manager last season was not in a beautiful mood at all.

In the past two years, two magical coaches have been born in the basketball circle. One is Thibodeau, and the other is undoubtedly Henson, whom Bird found out of nowhere. Joe.

If last season's 55-win record for the Pacers wasn't impressive enough. So this season, when Henson led the Pacers to a 50-win run in just 66 games, people couldn't ignore the Asian coach's achievements.

Therefore, in the best coach vote so far this year, Tom Murphy, who has been criticized as the main force. Thibodeau was only third, with the respected Popovich second. Henson, on the other hand, is temporarily ranked first by a slight margin!

Since Thibodeau and Henson are both rookie head coaches, and both have the opportunity to win the best coach award, they happen to be in the East, and they are still mortal enemies! Therefore, Henson and Thibodeau are undoubtedly the two hottest managers to be hyped by the media right now!

As for the last game of the regular season between the two teams, it was crowned with the titles of "Best Coach Battle", "Eastern First Battle" and so on.

Before the playoffs begin, this is undoubtedly an "appetizer" that fans are looking forward to, and the perfect summary of this shrinking regular season.

But for Thibodeau, the match was undoubtedly disgusting to him.

Finally got 50 wins and was already firmly in the first place in the East, but the last game was against the Pacers. Now, Thibodeau just wants to save the players' physical energy. Because he knows very well that Henson, who has been resting in rotation for the past month, is still eyeing the position of No. 1 in the East.

If the Bulls win the last game, they will have 51 wins and enter the playoffs as the first in the East.

But if the Bulls lose, both teams will have a 50-16 record. According to the rules of the league, when both teams are the first in the division, the team with the better record against each other will be the first in the East.

At present, the head-to-head record between the Pacers and the Bulls this season is 1-1. Therefore, the win or loss of the next game will directly determine the ownership of the first place in the East!

In the last game of the regular season between the two teams, on the penultimate game day of the league, there is a possibility of a change in the top spot in the East, which is indeed rare and really exciting.

In other words, in order to be able to go further in the playoffs, in order not to run into the Miami Heat in advance. The first round of the playoffs between the Pacers and the Bulls, has actually begun!

"Wow, are you alright?" Thibodeau's confidant and assistant coach of the Bulls. Adams couldn't help but be startled when he saw Thibodeau's two big dark circles on the sidelines of the training ground.

Ron. Adams started the industry earlier than Thibodeau and has coaching experience with a number of teams. Of course, Adams usually plays a behind-the-scenes role, such as an assistant coach or defensive analyst or something like that.

Adams was older than Thibodeau, with thinning hair, a thin face, and a large black-rimmed glasses, like an old professor coming out of a high-class institution.

But for now, the fat Thibodeau seems to be better than the emaciated and wrinkled Ron. Adams was even more emaciated.

"I can't sleep, my mind is full of tomorrow's game." Thibodeau waved his hand, reluctant to mention more.

It's not that Thibodeau stayed up late at night watching the Pacers' game footage, he already knows the Pacers too well, even if he doesn't have to watch the game video, he knows the opponent enough.

Thibodeau simply couldn't sleep due to too much pressure, and as soon as he closed his eyes, the Chinese coach who seemed to be smiling but not smiling would appear in front of him.

Henson didn't want to work hard for a year and end up in big trouble in the Eastern Conference semifinals, and Thibodeau didn't want to either! Last season's defeat in the Eastern Conference Finals with the Heat left the Bulls one step away from the Finals and even the championship.

So there's no doubt that the Bulls' goal this season is to win a championship! After winning the first place in the regular season for two seasons in a row, it is time to go home with a substantial honor.

So unless you get the first place in the East, you will definitely meet the Heat in advance. And neither Thibodeau nor Henson can pat their chests and promise that "I'm definitely going to knock the Miami Heat out of the tournament."

Therefore, in order to maximize your safety, the best thing to do is to avoid the heat. Until the Eastern Conference Finals, everyone fought to the death.

If the Bulls, who are aiming for the championship this season, are finally eliminated in the Eastern Conference semifinals because they met the Heat early, how should Thibodeau explain? Even if they win against the Heat, they still don't have much chance of winning if they kill 1,000 enemies and lose 800 themselves, and as a result, they meet the Pacers who passed the Eastern Conference Finals easily.

Therefore, the position of No. 1 in the East directly determines whether the Bulls' plan for this year's playoffs can be implemented. If you lose tomorrow...... The Bulls' playoffs will undoubtedly be much more difficult.

When there are suddenly more things that can be decided in an ordinary game, no matter who comes in, even Henson is no exception.

It's just that Henson didn't fall asleep because of stress, because he would exercise frantically every night before going to bed until he was too tired to fall asleep.

Don't get me wrong, Anjiali is still in the Bay Area at this time, and she can't come over to accompany Henson. Kristen ...... What's the matter with Christine? ...... Henson's exercise is just a simple exercise. Like push-ups, things like that.

So, Thibodeau's side looked sluggish. And Henson goes to bed early and wakes up early every day, but he is getting more and more energetic.

"After nearly a month of rest, the fateful moment has finally arrived!" Watching the players run around the training pitch one by one, Henson is already looking forward to tomorrow night's game coming early.

"It's unbelievable that you can still win while taking a break...... Now, we really have a chance to become the first in the East. Vogel looked at the pile of players on the field and the Chinese coach next to him, the performance of this group of guys this season can only be described as magical.

Even with Paul, Vogel never imagined that the Pacers would become No. 1 in the East this season. However, by accident, he also became one of the creators of this miracle.

"We were lucky enough to play against a team that wasn't strong in the last month. What did I say before? Even God favors us, Frank. ”

"Are we going to get too nervous? Do you think it's possible for the Bulls to just give up tomorrow's game? Vogel also asked that this season is a shortened season, so there is only one day of respite between the regular season and the playoffs. The Bulls and Pacers were lucky enough to get two days because they were able to finish the regular season battle a day earlier.

However, with such a packed regular season schedule, two days off is undoubtedly not enough. The Bulls are not like the Pacers, they have not been given a chance to rest all season, and the players are still facing Thibodeau, the main maniac, so they are even more tired. Therefore, for the sake of the playoffs, it is not ruled out that the Bulls will directly give up this possibility.

"No, it won't. Look at the Eastern rankings, Frank. Except for us and the bulls, the order of the other places is basically fixed. If they take first place in the East, they will face the 76ers and the Hawks or Celtics in the playoffs. But if it's second in the East, the opponents become the Knicks and the Heat or the Magic...... It's a matter of which group of opponents is safer. And it only takes one game to decide it all! So, it's impossible for the Bulls to give up, and we have to be ready. ”

Just one place apart, the playoffs are in a completely different place, which is why Thibodeau and Henson are battling it out for a regular season game.

"So, tomorrow is destined to be a bitter battle to the death?" Vogel shook his head, the playoffs haven't started yet, but the fight for the playoffs has begun.

"Build confidence in the team and fight for the Eastern Conference standings...... I'm afraid yes, Frank. Tomorrow is a battle for us and the Bulls for the season! ”

Henson gritted his teeth and went from drafting Leonard to trading Paul...... After a year's hard work, it's time to verify the results.