After Carroll became the head coach of the Celtics, Leon was no longer just a simple assistant coach on the team. With O'Brien's resignation, Vogel also said goodbye to Boston, and he was in a state of complete confusion on the day the players forced the palace, until O'Brien held a press conference to announce his resignation as head coach, and Vogel did not know that his assistant coach title had also been revoked.

As a result, Leon has a heavier task on his shoulders, not only to undertake the daily training plan, but also to become the offensive tactics coach of the Celtics, who has more say in the team and can directly influence the layout of head coach Carroll.

On the evening of Nov. 24, Leon rushed back to the playing field after visiting Auerbach, and the team's starting lineup was out, with Tony Barty back in the starting lineup, Steve Kerr back off the bench, and Eric Sterkliland as the starting point guard. However, Leon has long suggested that Carroll can try to use Arenas more in this game, and Leon explained that "his shooting and breakthrough ability can make a big difference to the team's offense." ”

Leon's suggestion is not unreasonable, after the loss of Kenny Anderson, the Celtics are much less aggressive at the point guard position, which is very lethal for teams that focus on outside offense, and without a point guard with a triple threat, the offense of an outside team will be difficult to open.

The reason why Leon chose Arenas in the draft is that he can have the same firepower as a shooting guard after he turns point guard. In the first few games of the new season, Arenas showed great desire to attack every time he played, but he was always suppressed by O'Brien, and now he is like a beast about to break free from the cage, waiting to bite his opponent.

"Focus your attention, give them a good look, now we are a brand new team, keep your spirits up, don't be distracted by any outside world, our goal is only to win. A good start is the beginning of victory! "Before the game was about to start, Carroll was making the final mobilization, and he didn't look like a stranger to the set. The current Celtics are in a difficult phase, with a change of manager on the verge of a five-game road streak, and this time it will be back-to-back against the Washington Wizards, who are also desperate for victory.

However, for Carroll's slightly dry encouragement, the players seem a little listless, the changes in the team and back-to-back fatigue make the players a little unintentional, for a team once the overall lack of desire to win, the combat effectiveness will plummet, especially in the away game, more need a strong desire to win and a high degree of attention.

Leon stood on the periphery of the circle, his attention not on his own players, but on Michael Jordan on the other end of the court, the myth of a second comeback, now looking slightly fatter. The Wizards' performance at the beginning of the season was not satisfactory, but that did not stop the fans from coming to the arena to watch Jordan play, which is the charm of the NBA's No. 1 superstar.

"Look over there, who's it? Is there anything more exciting than the brightest superstar of all time, the idol of all, than to fight him and beat him? If you are so listless again, then sit on the bench and sleep. Before the appearance ceremony, Leon pointed to where Jordan was and said to everyone. There's nothing more thrilling for a player than beating a childhood idol, and hearing Leon's words boosts the morale of the Celtic players.

After saying that, Leon beckoned to Michael Reed and asked him to come to his side, then motioned for him to lower his head and say to his ear: "Attack Michael Jordan, attack him as soon as you start, use your shots and breakthroughs, don't hesitate." If you are afraid of him or hold back, I will kill you. With that, Leon patted Reed on the shoulder, motioning for him to relax.

"Come here, Paul, come here." Leon called Paul Pierce again, and now Leon can call anyone on the team, which is not something that the average assistant coach can do. "Give Reid some space and a chance to attack Jordan, and if he doesn't, replace you. Remember, Jordan, I hope this game turns into a mess. After saying that, Leon also patted Pierce on the shoulder, and the player's entrance ceremony was about to begin.

At this time, Leon sat back on the bench, and Arenas leaned over and asked, "What do I need to do?" He saw that Leon was instructing Reed for a while, and for a while ordering Pierce, and his heart was a little uncontrollable, and Leon replied, "Sit down well off the field." ”

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The game started at 7 p.m., the first time Carroll had stood on the sidelines as an NBA head coach and commanded a game, and he never expected himself to become a head coach like this, and he didn't even have a proper suit ready, but had to wear a suit and tie rented from the hotel. He looked a little nervous, not knowing whether to stand on the sidelines or sit on the bench first. When the game actually started, he was even more restless and got up, but the Celtic's good start made him quiet quickly.

The Celtics' offense felt pretty good in the opening stanza, with Michael Reed being very aggressive on the offensive end, constantly running off the ball at the beginning of the game, making a figure-eight around Barty and Walker, and hitting the first mid-range of the game with a pass from Sterkeland after shaking off Jordan, and scoring two points.

Leon couldn't help but clench his fists when he watched Reed's bold offense off the court, Reed's improvement over the past year or so is still quite obvious, his off-ball ability and catch-and-shoot skills have improved greatly compared to last season, but Reed's personality is more shy and introverted, and as a scoring guard he lacks enough aggression, which makes him less aggressive in the game and is always not reused by the head coach at critical moments. Leon would love to use this game as an opportunity to put Reed on the back burner and do his best against the best shooting guard on the planet.

Jordan was furious when Reed threw a second mid-range shot from the same position with the same run and the same shooting position. Jordan was notoriously competitive on the basketball court, and a sophomore rookie hit two jumpers in a row on his head, which Jordan couldn't tolerate. Leon could hear Jordan start trash talk at Reid and call for his teammates to pass him on the next offense.

Sure enough, Jordan started to play low on the right side, Reed was stuck behind Jordan, Chris Whitney took a moment to pass the ball to Jordan, and the crowd began to agitate, apparently Jordan was about to sacrifice his signature step-back jumper. Sure enough, after tentatively leaning on it twice, Jordan made an unexpected turn-back jumper, most people expected him to turn inside, he didn't jump too high, and the angle of the lean was big enough, but the ball still fell steadily into the basket and hit a two-point shot. After the goal, Jordan pursed his lips and nodded to Reid, who dodged Jordan's gaze as much as he could, and ran quickly across the half court with his head covered.

"If it were me, I'd go to the top for a layup." Arenas, who was sitting on the side with his chin on his back, muttered. He is completely different from Reed in personality, Reid was drafted in the first round, but he always thought that he should be a second-round player, Arenas, on the contrary, he was selected in the 21st but felt that he should be the top pick, but the Wizards with the top pick chose Kwame Brown, and now the hapless guy is sitting on the bench in a daze like himself.

Then Reed couldn't score anymore, because Jordan had his eye on him, and he began to look at Reed with the same energy he had when he was voted Defensive Player of the Year, and no matter how much Reed was running, he couldn't find a shot. The Celtics' offensive focus shifted to the duo of Paul Pierce and Antoine Walker.

Midway through the first quarter, the Celtics took a 17-9, 8-point lead, Pierce was unstoppable at the small forward position, and Hamilton, who was misplaced to defend him, was no match at all, and the Wizards had to adjust their defensive strategy and began to let Jordan defend Pierce and let Hamilton face Michael Reed, who was similar to himself. After a timeout, Carroll decided to start the rotation at a similar time as O'Brien, and not to make the players too uncomfortable in the first game.

"Gilbert! Come here, get ready, remember to control the tempo when you get on the pitch, we're ahead now, pay attention to the quality of the pass, don't blindly feed Pierce or Walker, look at the opportunity. Carroll decided to bring on Arenas and asked him to be a point guard.

However, he didn't know that Arenas didn't listen to a word of his words, and all that resounded in his mind was the two words that Leon had just said to him on the bench, "You'll play later, remember that Jordan picked Kwame Brown, so you're going to shoot a three-pointer in Jordan's head...... Jordan hit a three-pointer from the head...... Hit a three-pointer...... Three-point ......"