Stan Van Gundy walked around the sidelines on the training ground at Auburn Hills Palace Arena, having served as the president and head coach of the Pistons for nearly two seasons, and still did not lead the Motor City out of the quagmire. Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info

Before the season began, Van Gundy was determined to bring the Pistons back into the playoffs, and in fact, he did a great job, holding the top eight in the East for most of the season.

Therefore, Van Gundy once thought that the ticket to the playoffs was within reach, but he did not expect that since Fisher stepped down and a Chinese rookie coach with no coaching experience became the head coach of the Knicks, the Pistons' road to the playoffs has become no longer stable.

"Have times really changed?"

Van Gundy has been coaching for more than ten years and is definitely a senior coach, but he has recently felt more and more terrible about rookie coaching, Steve Kerr won the championship when he first took the helm, Brad Stephenson adjusted the rebuilt Celtics into an Eastern powerhouse, and now there is another Wang Zhuo, who has led the Knicks back to life with a devastating offense, which has become the biggest stumbling block on the way to the playoffs for the Pistons.

In recent games, the Pistons have tried their best every game, just to catch up with the Knicks, after the Knicks lost to the Cavaliers, the record was the same as the Pistons, which once made Van Gundy's heart burn hope, but then the Knicks defeated the Pelicans and Mavericks away one after another, returned to the home court and then retired from the Nets, and completed a wave of three consecutive wins.

When the Pistons faced the desperate Mavericks, they did not show their determination to win, and finally lost to the Mavericks, thus falling into passivity again in the competition with the Knicks.

With the last five games left in the regular season, those strong teams that have entered the playoffs and are in a stable ranking have begun to prepare for the playoffs, choosing to let the main players of the team rest, only the teams that are still fighting for home court advantage and playoff tickets must fight every game, and dare not relax in the slightest.

Therefore, it is foolish to expect other teams to beat the Knicks and clear the way for the Pistons, and Van Gundy's only hope is to beat them against the Knicks and regain the lost playoff spot.

Wang Zhuo and Van Gundy share the same sentiment, and the last game of the season between the two teams is on April 8, New York time, with six days to go, and it will be a battle that both teams must not lose.

During this period, the Knicks and the Pistons each have two games to play, the Knicks first hosted the Philadelphia 76ers on April 4, Wang Zhuo chose to let Afraro and Lopez take turns to rest, even so, the 76ers were still powerless, the Knicks pressed the 76ers and beat them hard, and finally, the main players clocked out in the third quarter.

On the other side, the Pistons also beat the Bulls strongly, because the Bulls have been completely blocked out of the door of the playoffs, and the team management has focused on protecting Rose to prevent unnecessary accidents, but some media speculated that Rose's overture to the Knicks caused the anger of the team management, so it was hidden, but everything has nothing to do with the overall situation.

On April 6, the Knicks hosted the Pacers, and against the Pacers, who had already entered the playoffs, the Knicks played a stubborn defense and limited the Pacers' scoring to 80 points.

After the game, Vogel was furious, and 80 points was a shame for the Pacers who played small-ball tactics, especially as the playoffs approached.

The Pistons also showed no weakness, united as one, and defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers who were rested by the Big Three on the road, and continued to catch up with the Knicks.

On April 8, at Auburn Hills Palace Court, the Knicks and Pistons met in a narrow way, and whoever loses will go home, this gimmick alone can predict the intensity of this game.

"To live or to die?"

Before the game, Wang Zhuo didn't say a word, just wrote three English words on the tactical board.

Anthony also had no sweet smile on his face, only a solemn look, because he was fed up with falling out of the playoffs again and again, and fed up with playing the role of a lone hero.

The game hasn't officially begun, the fan cheers have already flooded the Auburn Hills Palace, and Detroit fans haven't seen a playoff performance here for six years since the "Pistons Five" disbanded, and how they are eager for their home team to restore the glory of the Motor City.

Before the game, the commentators announced the starting lineups for both sides, with Anthony, Porzingis, Grant, Afflalo and O'Quinn for the Knicks and Drummond, Reggie Jackson, Marcus Morris, Pope and Tobias Harris for the Pistons.

The referee threw the ball in the center circle, Drummond carried O'Quinn to get the ball, and Jackson dribbled across the half court, waiting for the players to settle down and play the half-court attack.

Van Gundy abandoned the Magic's one-center, four-shooter tactics and turned the Pistons into a traditional team dominated by interior offense, which is contrary to the popular small-ball tactics of the day, although they also beat the unbeatable Golden State Warriors by virtue of their big man's advantage.

Drummond received the ball, singled O'Quinn, and with his height and technical advantages, easily put the ball into the basket, and the Pistons took the lead.

The ball was converted, the Knicks served from the baseline, and Grant quickly passed the half court with the ball, trying to beat the Pistons, but Van Gundy obviously studied Wang Zhuo's tactical routines and made targeted defenses to force the Knicks to slow down the speed.

In fact, before the game, Wang Zhuo only arranged one set of tactics, that is, O'Quinn had to keep running, and at the same time, the transmission of the ball must pass through his hands, and he did everything possible to transfer Drummond out of the inside, and if he had an offensive opportunity, he threw resolutely, and if he had no offensive opportunity, he handed the ball to Anthony.

O'Quinn has a passing ability that traditional center forwards don't have, which is why Wang Zhuoming knows that O'Quinn can't prevent Drummond and still insists on letting him start.

The Knicks fell into a positional offense, Grant held the ball at the top of the circle, O'Quinn walked to the 45-degree three-point line on the right, Drummond hesitated whether to follow, and in the moment of hesitation, the ball had passed to O'Quinn's hands, Drummond realized the danger and struggled to catch up, O'Quinn did not shoot three points directly, but dribbled forward and continued to attract defenders.

When Drummond followed in front of him, O'Quinn stood on tiptoe and shook it, Drummond misjudged and jumped directly, O'Quinn swept the whole court, Afflaro had cut to the inside from the bottom corner, O'Quinn waved his big hand, Afflaro received the ball 10-foot pull-up jump shot, and the ball fell steadily into the basket.