The No.1 Anti-Fans in Basketball-Chapter 198 - 128 Everything is Ready_2

After watching for a while, Hansen realized that it wasn’t the case at all.

Jamal Crawford, nicknamed "J-Crossover" by fans, has his strongest skill in ball handling, effortlessly changing directions to outmaneuver opponents.

But Jordan Crawford’s ball handling is rather average; he couldn’t even shake off Erik Meno in the last attack of the first quarter.

However, his ability to hit open threes is quite good, definitely stronger than "J-Crossover."

Besides that, his athleticism is more explosive than "J-Crossover’s," even though he is slender, his jumping and hang time are first-rate.

Having seen enough, Hansen seemed to understand why the Hawks chose him but didn’t develop him.

They selected him because of his natural athletic talent, but didn’t develop him because at only 1.93 meters tall, he was essentially the same as Tony Allen—poor ball handling, not enough height, an undistinguished player.

The difference is, Allen has transitioned into a defensive player, while he currently seems to have invested his skill points in offense.

Hmm, this kind of player is quite suitable for East University CBA.

But you know, he’s also quite a fit for the current Grizzlies, who after Guy’s season-ending injury, lacked a bench scorer.

He’d need to be paired with Little Gasol on the court though, because his level of ball handling doesn’t support him as a ball handler.

This became very obvious after Little Gasol sat out at the start of the second quarter. After one over-ambitious attempt to dribble past his opponent and getting stripped, Hollins benched him.

In 6 minutes on court, he scored 7 points, made 2 turnovers and committed 2 fouls—his strengths and weaknesses were clear, but all things considered, his performance was still not bad.

The game remained tightly contested after the starters returned.

By halftime, the Grizzlies trailed the Thunders 52 to 58.

It proved that Battier really understood the game, having Hansen invest heavily on defense was bound to weaken his offensive performance.

The Grizzlies may have won against the Lakers, but it was a victory based on the inside game. With Randolph unable to perform as before, the Grizzlies were put in a passive situation.

Coming back in the second half, Durant’s form showed no signs of waning.

Just as he had shown during the summer training with Hansen in Memphis, Durant was now among the league’s top ten, or even top five superstars.

Young was practically nonexistent in front of him.

Out of necessity, Hollins had to send in Tony Allen to try his luck.

This move became the turning point of the game.

Once Allen took to the floor, he straight-up frustrated Durant.

Despite being nearly a head shorter in height, Allen targeted his lower body, which troubled Durants’ rhythm of ball handling considerably.

A moment of inattention, and the ball could be snatched from his hands.

Furthermore, Allen was like a shadow whenever Durant tried to find opportunities off-ball screens.

In fact, due to his height, Allen’s one-on-one defense isn’t always that effective; Durant, being tall with a high center of gravity when dribbling, could be contained by him, but when facing Kobe, often it’s as if he is "defending."

Defense relies on physical gifts, and this holds true for any player, not to mention Allen had suffered ligament tears, which significantly reduced his physical prowess.

But Allen’s strongest defensive skill, which even Hansen couldn’t match, was his ability to navigate through screens.

He could slide past almost effortlessly, which not only needed extremely quick reflexes but also a profound sense of defensive anticipation.

In this respect, he was almost historically first tier.

With Durant’s performance constrained, the Thunders’ offensive efficiency also started to decline.

And with Allen guarding Durant, it also freed up Hansen.

Even though the Grizzlies were essentially playing four against five on the court, Hansen had now developed a mid-range shot. He could stop just inside the free-throw line, shoot before the double-team closed in, and complete the mid-range shot.

These changes led the Grizzlies to ultimately defeat the Thunders 112 to 106, winning this "trade evaluation battle."

Battier wasn’t on the court during the final moments but was constantly cheering on his teammates from the sidelines.

And the excitement on his face was plainly visible, as he truly felt the truth behind the words Hansen had told him earlier.

Even without Guy, the Grizzlies still had a chance to break through The West.

Because in the West, all those contending teams had already won.

Right after the Grizzlies and Thunders game ended, the league approached the final critical timepoint of the season: the buyout deadline.

Unlike the previous trade deadline, the buyout deadline didn’t mean players could no longer be bought out after this day. Instead, it meant that only players who were bought out before this deadline would be eligible to play in the postseason of the current season.

The day was rather lively.

For example, Mike Bibby reached a buyout agreement with the Wizards and was expected to join the Heat.

Another example was Corey Brook, who reached a buyout with the New York Knicks and joined the Dallas Mavericks on a 3-year deal worth $7 million.

West had already been bought out and went to Dallas before this day, so he didn’t appear in the news today.

Most of the players who were bought out were either veterans or players with certain strength who didn’t get a chance; they often chose to join a team with championship potential.

The Grizzlies made a move on this day too, signing the veteran "White Chocolate" Jason Williams, who had been bought out by the Magic Team.

This buyout was different from the others because the Magic Team itself was also a contender for the championship.

If anything, Williams and Battier had similar starting points.

As a former Grizzly, he had helped the team reach the playoffs from ’03 to ’05 before getting swept.

Previously in a trade, the Grizzlies had sent out three players in exchange for two, creating roster vacancies. Indeed, after sending West away, they lacked an organizer for the offense.

After the buyout deadline, until mid-March, the Grizzlies posted a decent record, without further decline, securing the 5th spot in the West.

However, during this period, there were some discordant voices within the team, coming from Crawford.

Crawford performed well in his debut against the Thunders, but after the team traded for Jason Williams, he was abandoned.

In fact, if one observed carefully enough, it was apparent why - Hollins wanted obedience, but during the game against the Thunders, Crawford had taken matters into his own hands.

Naturally, Crawford was not pleased, and having a bit of a troublemaker in him, he got into an argument with Williams during a training session.

Conley stepped forward to mediate, but it didn’t do much good. Essentially, Crawford was venting his frustrations in this way.

Hollins erupted upon seeing this, and had the buyout deadline not already passed, Crawford might have been let go by the Grizzlies right then and there.

In the end, it was Battier who stepped in, first separating the two, then having a conversation with Hollins.

Then, miraculously, in the next game against the Hornets, Crawford was back in the rotation and played outstandingly, scoring a team-high 14 points off the bench, helping the team to defeat their opponent.

This stunned Hansen.

Afterward, he couldn’t resist chatting with Battier, whose words left a deep impression on him.

"Everyone who makes it into the NBA has their own set of skills, and as long as they find the right role, they can be of help to the team."

The saying made a lot of sense. Both Crawford and Williams were what the Grizzlies needed at the moment.

However, what truly surprised Hansen was Battier himself, who not only could resolve issues that Conley couldn’t but even communicated with the coaching staff effectively.

Hollins, with his personality, actually took advice from a player.

This made Hansen think of a term: locker room leader.

This role generally requires one to maintain good relationships with both teammates and the coaching staff, as well as to have a certain status in the league, so when you step in to resolve issues, others will give you face.

Conley had that potential but was still too young.

Battier just filled in that void.

Now the Grizzlies truly had everything in readiness.

By this time, it was late March, and there was only a little over half a month left until the end of the NBA season.

During this time, the Grizzlies made some adjustments internally. Tony Allen, who had played well against the Thunders, replaced Young in the starting lineup, while Hansen shifted from the familiar shooting guard position to small forward.

With Battier present, this change in the starting lineup didn’t cause any issues within the team.

It was also because of Battier’s presence that Hansen enjoyed nearly a month of joint training with Allen & Battier. The results were dramatically better; his mid-range game improved rapidly, allowing him to advance the "Classical Master" to its limit ahead of schedule.

Then, on March 23, the Grizzlies would face the Heat Team for the second time this season.