After the game, Larry Bird still criticized the Grizzlies' defense as an illegal joint defense.

Qiao Hai fought back.

At the Grizzlies' post-game press conference, Qiao Hai expressed his views on a series of remarks by Larry Bird: "Larry Bird is always criticizing others, he never thinks about himself, strictly speaking, the Pacers' defense is also an illegal joint defense, to summarize simply, Dale Davis guards the basket, and the other players work in pairs and complement each other's defense." ”

"The Pacers' defense looks like a 1-2-2 defense, or more accurately, a reversed 1-2-2 defense, and Larry Bird seems to ignore that, he seems to be blind to everyone, and I would say that before criticizing others, Larry Bird should be himself first, and if he can't even do himself well, he is not qualified to criticize others."

Qiao Hai did not deny that the Grizzlies' defense was an illegal joint defense, Larry Bird held on to the Grizzlies' defense, and Qiao Hai could only use his own way to govern others.

The Pacers' defense is also an illegal joint defense, and Larry Bird would do well to look at his own defense before talking about others.

It's a very simple counterattack, the matter of illegal joint defense, Qiao Hai didn't respond anymore, he didn't want to be involved, and he was involved in this endless war of words, and Qiao Hai also believed that if he fought back like this, Larry Bird would no longer hold on to the problem of illegal joint defense.

But what Qiao Hai didn't expect was that the topic of illegal joint defense still fermented......

The reason for the fermentation is that after Larry Bird successfully provoked this topic, the 29 teams in the league, apparently there are no teams that use joint defense, plus the media that likes to provoke trouble, the Grizzlies and Pacers suddenly became the focus.

Incidentally, the defensive teams in the league today have become the focus of the media at this stage.

ABC TV also made a special program, taking out the video of the Grizzlies' two games against the Pacers, playing them frame by frame, inviting tactical experts to analyze, and finally came to the conclusion:

Whether it's the Grizzlies' defense or the Pacers' defense, there is a suspicion of joint defense.

In particular, the defense of some of these rounds, which was directly undisguised, was joint defense.

ABC TV's special program undoubtedly added fuel to the fire of the illegal joint defense, Qiao Hai sneered, at this time, Larry Bird should regret the big words before and after the game, but regret is useless, the topic fermented, and soon more media joined the discussion.

After ABC's special program, NBC and ESPN were not far behind and began to analyze the defense of the league's major defensive powerhouses.

As a result, the storm of illegal joint defense has intensified, and reporters from major media in North America have also attacked, asking questions everywhere, asking the views of coaches, players, league staff and even referees in the league on illegal joint defense.

Qiao Hai is naturally the coach who is harassed the most.

One day, Qiao Hai organized the team's daily training, and at the gate of the training hall, Qiao Hai, who was riding a bicycle, was stopped by reporters.

Two or three reporters, Qiao Hai didn't need to ask, and he knew that he was here for illegal joint defense.

Several times before, Qiao Hai directly refused to be interviewed, but this time it was different, Qiao Hai saw an acquaintance.

"Su Qun? Why are you here? ”

"Hello Coach Qiao Hai, I am now working in a well-known sports newspaper in China, and this time I am coming to the United States, on the one hand, I am here for an interview, and on the other hand, I am going to find some media relations to establish a source."

As soon as Su Qun explained this, Qiao Hai understood.

Su Qun has jumped ship, as for where he jumped, Qiao Hai also remembered, he still knows a lot about these basketball media practitioners in China, Su Qun should have joined the "Sports Weekly", this time he came to the United States, it should be the source of news to expand the NBA for the Sports Weekly.

After chatting for a few words, Su Qun asked two questions, Qiao Hai gave face, and answered them all.

On the issue of illegal joint defense, Qiao Hai still said: "I don't think it's illegal defense, because the referee didn't blow the penalty, I believe the referee." ”

For the future, Qiao Hai also made a bold prediction: "The league will definitely lift the restrictions on joint defense, which is good for the NBA and American basketball." ”

Qiao Hai's prediction is not bold, but he is also well-founded.

There are no joint defense restrictions in international competitions, so NBA stars often do not adapt to the international arena, and the NBA will also cancel joint defense for the sake of the results of the US national team, which is in line with international standards.

This is the basis of Qiao Hai.

On December 2, the turmoil of illegal joint defense did not seem to affect the league's top management, and they still released several awards and rankings for November in a timely manner.

The Player of the Month in November is Shaquille O'Neal, the 1999-2000 Player of the Month has not been divided into East and West, so O'Neal has the Player of the Month alone, in November, he averaged 28.7 points, 13.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 3.4 blocks per game, ranking first in the league in rebounding and blocking statistics, and the top three in the league in scoring statistics.

The Eastern Conference Coach of the Month for November was Heat head coach Pat Riley with an 11-3 record, and the Western Conference Coach of the Month was Spurs head coach Greg Popovich with a 13-3 record.

In addition, in the MVP rankings, Shaquille O'Neal ranks first, and the Grizzlies' Maddie also squeezes into the top 15.

In the team rankings, the Grizzlies have improved the fastest, jumping from the bottom of the West to sixth in the West and 10th in the league.

On December 3, the Grizzlies hosted the Hornets in the midst of chaos, and the last game in which the Pacers wanted to take revenge on the Grizzlies became the Grizzlies' revenge on the Hornets.

In the last game between the two teams, the Hornets took advantage of the Grizzlies to fight back-to-back to steal a victory.

This time, the Grizzlies are firmly at home, so naturally they can't lose the victory.

In the home game, the Grizzlies continued to speed up, and in the acceleration, mistakes and low offensive efficiency were inevitable, and the Grizzlies were still behind at halftime.

In the second half, the Grizzlies returned to a slow pace and overtook in a wave.

In the final quarter, Maddy scored nine points in a row to open the game, and the Grizzlies took a 10-point lead.

The final timer beeped and the Grizzlies scored again at 103:90, counting the last three consecutive home wins in November, the Grizzlies have won five in a row!

Maddie also broke out in a row, following 37 points, 6 boards, 6 assists and 2 steals in the last game, he scored 14 points alone in the final quarter of this game, and scored another 32 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal and 1 block in the whole game, causing a cheer at the General Motors arena.

……

Los Angeles, at the same time, the Lakers defeated the Trail Blazers 93-80, two consecutive wins in December, plus November, the Lakers also won five in a row, with an overall record of 13 wins and 4 losses, still ranked behind the Grizzlies.

After the game, Phil Jackson was interviewed and confronted by reporters about illegal joint defenses.

"There's no doubt that joint defense is illegal, but too many teams are benefiting from it, and the league should regulate it and not let it run rampant," Phil Jackson said. ”

Finally, he also made a point: "Especially for some of the teams that have sparked this topic, the league should make an example." ”

As for the Lakers, the official website of the Lakers has already come forward and done a special program, studying the Lakers' games frame by frame, and concluding that the Lakers are one of the few teams in the league that do not have a joint defense......