The No.1 Anti-Fans in Basketball
Chapter 277 - 159: An Arrow to the Knee_2

Chapter 277: Chapter 159: An Arrow to the Knee_2

After playing against the Thunders, it was time for a back-to-back home game against the Bulls.

It was this match where the accident happened.

JJ Hickson, during a rebound battle, bumped knees with Randolph, causing Randolph to leave the game due to injury.

Randolph managed to walk off the court by himself; initially, the Grizzlies didn’t consider it a serious matter.

The team’s initial medical diagnosis was also a medial collateral ligament bruise, which they thought would heal with some rest.

However, bad news soon arrived—the MRI showed that Randolph’s injury was much more severe than expected, as he had torn ligaments in his right knee.

Though the tear wasn’t severe enough to require surgery, Randolph wouldn’t be missing the season, but he was estimated to need 6–8 weeks to recover.

Randolph had missed most of the 2004–2005 season due to a knee injury, a season when he, too, was overweight, repeating the same mistakes.

The Grizzlies would have to face the next two months without Randolph.

This was undoubtedly bad news for the Grizzlies.

Because a large part of the Grizzlies’ strategy was centered around Randolph’s post-offense.

When Joerger received the news, his usually cheerful face was immediately filled with worry.

In the NBA, there are many assistant coaches, but only thirty head coaches.

It was good for him to become an NBA head coach, but the timing was unfortunate.

He had taken over at the start of the season and had no time to adjust the team’s strategic system before losing their tactical core after just five games.

No coach had worse luck than him.

Moreover, the Grizzlies were about to start a road trip in the East, with their first opponent being the Heat.

The Grizzlies were able to dominate the Heat last season largely due to their advantage in the paint.

Just look at last season’s playoffs—without Randolph, it was tough for the Grizzlies to play against the Spurs, and playing the Heat would only be harder.

He could only consult with Tois for a strategy.

The Grizzlies currently had enough internal rotations, but the problem was that neither Johnson nor Przybilla had Randolph’s low-post one-on-one capabilities.

It was unrealistic to expect Little Gasol to replace Randolph, as Little Gasol’s strengths were in rim protection and defense, as well as his playmaking abilities on offense.

As for low-post one-on-ones, that wasn’t his forte.

"We will just have to adjust the tactics," Tois gave an expected response.

Previously there wasn’t time, but now it was unavoidable.

Because if it were just a week, they could tough it out, but this was eight weeks.

The two men exchanged looks and then simultaneously mentioned Hansen’s name.

This season, Hansen had improved his passing, which serendipitously provided the Grizzlies with another option.

After the Grizzlies arrived in Miami, Hansen didn’t go back to Barry University, as most of the guys he once played with had graduated.

He had Rondo go there instead to distribute the game tickets to the varsity team players who wanted to watch the game live.

As for himself, he went to the American Airlines Center for some extra shooting practice.

Before the season started, he had worried that Randolph might get injured due to weight issues, so he had discussed it with Joerger.

Joerger also controlled Randolph’s playing time, keeping it to just about 30 minutes even while he was finding his rhythm.

Normally, Randolph would have had time to gradually lose weight, but, sadly, he still got injured.

And it was a complete accident, literally an "arrow to the knee."

This was also a shortened season; two months later, at the end of March, only one month would remain before the playoffs started.

At that point, it was uncertain to what extent Randolph could recover.

However, looking on the bright side, unlike Guy the previous season, Randolph could at least come back.

He practiced in two sessions before Tois came to find him.

After sitting down, Tois also shared the coaching team’s thoughts with him.

Basically, they wanted to increase his ball-handling in offense.

After hearing this, Hansen nodded calmly.

This was the reality—the plan couldn’t keep up with changes. Initially, when he chose his talents, he didn’t want to be the main ball-handler, but now the team’s changes forced him into that role.

But he knew he had no other choice.

Not to mention the Grizzlies’ current frontcourt, there were very few in the League who could play like that in the post.

"You’re calmer than I expected; you’ve matured," Tois remarked as he looked at Hansen.

Hansen smiled. His experiences over the past two years were far more exciting than his entire previous life combined; such experiences indeed rapidly matured a person.

Also, these two seasons, especially the previous one, had given him a good understanding of the road to a championship.

Truthfully, there are hardly any championships won easily; most are achieved by overcoming numerous challenges.

Because if you say you crave a championship, doesn’t everyone else too?

You say you have reasons that you must win, but who can afford to lose?

Last season’s Mavericks also reached the top by overcoming injuries, age, and external doubts.

Even the Lakers over the past two seasons—after Kobe lost in 2008, the pressure he faced, together with his teammates’ severe performance declines during the defense season, showed that no year was easy.

In essence, pursuing a championship is like a quest; only through numerous hardships can you finally attain the ultimate prize (the championship).

Currently, Hansen viewed Randolph’s injury as just another of these hardships.

"Coach, help me practice passing."

Hansen stood up as he spoke.