"The Big Three of the Hornets" – New Orleans Sports Newspaper.

"Contenders for the League Championship" – New York Daily News Sports Edition.

Three-Point Attack? Another legendary tactic? - The official headline of the NBA.

The result of this showdown between the two powerhouses in the West is surprising.

It was only after the game that most people woke up and began to rejudge the Hornets' capabilities.

Los Angeles, Staples Center Arena No. 2 Training Ground, Head Coach's Office.

"Smack."

Phil Jackson raised his hand to turn off the player, put down the remote control, sat back in his chair, and turned to look at the six players at the table.

Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Ramar Odom, Derek Fisher, Jordan Famar, Luke Wharton.

They are all absolute main players of the Lakers.

"Say it." Phil Jackson clapped his palms and said, "What do you have to say about the Hornets now." ”

Kobe Bryant lowered his head, as if he was stunned.

Gasol and the other four players looked at each other, then raised their hands and said, "Coach." ”

"Say."

Gasol sorted out the words in his mind and said: "Judging from the video of this game between the Hornets and the Mavericks, the strength of the Hornets has definitely improved greatly, and they have the ability to compete with us. It should be certain by now that we will definitely meet the Hornets in the Western Conference Finals of this playoffs, and the Spurs will not be able to stop the current Hornets in the second round. Unless they have an injury. ”

Phil Jackson nodded, then looked at Gasol and said, "Then what do you think is the reason for the sudden increase in the strength of the Hornets?" ”

"Because of Chen Yu. The Chinese. Gasol said without hesitation.

"How do you restrain him?"

"This ......" Gasol was stunned, then frowned and thought for a long time, but still shook his head: "I can't think of it, I don't know how to prevent him." ”

"Can't think of it, normal." Phil Jackson smiled and said, "Because he can't prevent it at all." ”

"Can't prevent it?!" Gasol was surprised: "Coach, can't you think of a way to prevent it?" ”

Kobe Bryant, who had been stunned on the side, came back to his senses and looked at Jackson seriously.

Phil Jackson picked up the water cup on the table, took a sip of coffee, and said lightly, "Can Kobe be prevented?" ”

Gasol turned his head to look at Kobe, shook his head and said, "As long as Kobe Bryant plays well, he can't prevent it." ”

"......" Kobe glanced at Gasol, and wanted to grab Gasol by the collar and ask him what he meant by just playing hard?

"Can LeBron James be guarded?" Phil Jackson continued.

Gasol still shook his head: "I don't think there's a tactic that can completely stop James. ”

"Can Paul be completely prevented?"

"I can't prevent it."

"Hmm." Phil Jackson nodded, and then suddenly said, "Then why do you think I can prevent Chen Yu?" ”

"It's different. Kobe, James, and Paul are all superstars in the league, but Chen is just a ......" Gasol suddenly realized something when he said this, looked at Phil Jackson in disbelief and said: "Coach, it's hard... Are you trying to say that Chen now also has the strength of an alliance superstar? ”

Phil Jackson took a sip of the coffee on the table, smacked his lips, and said, "Isn't that obvious?" Don't even remember the video you just watched? People always compare Chen's past results with his current results, and subconsciously think that this is just his outburst. But in fact, six games have passed, and what I see is always at the level of a superstar in the league. He has a high shooting percentage, excellent ball intelligence, amazing efficiency, and a tacit cooperation with Paul. Hitting 90 percent of the 20+ points per game, isn't that a superstar? ”

Gasol was stunned.

Indeed, judging from the current data, Chen Yu is already at the level of the league's superstar. It's just because of his status as a second-round rookie and his performance in just six games that the vast majority of people don't realize it.

"So, for a star like that, what we think about is not how to prevent him, but how to limit him. As long as you can make him uncomfortable and the hit rate drops, it will be a success. Phil Jackson said, took out a tactical board from under the table, and spent three circles on it: "As for how to restrict Chen Yu, I'll talk about it later, now I'll take a look at the key point I came to you." In today's game against the Hornets, this tactic emerged. In the post-game press conference, Scott named the tactics the Hornets three-point offensive strategy. You've watched the game, and I don't need to mention the effect of this set of tactics, but now, let me explain how to deal with this set of tactics. ”

As soon as Jackson said the point, all the players, including Kobe, listened attentively.

This set of tactics seems to be centered on Chen Yu, but the real core is Paul. Chen Yu is just the gun, and Paul is the one who shoots. So, we need to consider how we can cut off Paul's connection with Chen Yu. I was inspired by Mavericks head coach Johnson's tactics today, and we can ...... like this."

The new edition of the NBA's East and West Power Rankings has been released, and the Hornets have topped the list with a six-game winning record, which is really not easy for a team that has risen from last year.

In the team rankings, the Hornets became the first in the West by one win, adding another fire to the already chaotic playoff pattern.

Right now, all Western Conference teams don't know which opponent they're going to face in the playoffs, so they can only take it one step at a time.

The Hornets are undoubtedly the focus of attention across the league at this time, and on the one hand, all teams want to know more about this Hornets team in the next game. On the other hand, whether the Hornets, who won the first place in the West, can maintain this position, and it will be interesting to see if they can gain home-court advantage in the playoffs in the future.

In the next game, the Hornets' opponent is the Oklahoma City Thunder, which is also a very "young" team, younger than the Hornets.

China, far away on the other side of the ocean, has begun to warm up and hype this game, putting Chen Yu and Durant together, and the banner played by the media is naturally who is the first rookie in 08?

Although judging from the performance of these games, Chen Yu is undoubtedly better.

But Duland's rookie season is also epic.

The collision between the two really attracted a lot of attention.

After careful consideration, CCTV Sports Channel still gave up the Rockets' game on the same day and chose to broadcast the Hornets' game.

Time flies, and in a blink of an eye, it is April 18, 2008.

U.S. local time, 8:30 p.m.

The New Orleans Hornets' away game against the Oklahoma City Thunder is about to begin.