"Alright, Melo, there may be a lot of strong teams in the West this new season, but as long as you work hard, I believe the Nuggets have every chance to secure a playoff spot under your leadership. You know that, in my mind, you have always been the strongest offensive small forward in the NBA today."

Are there just a few strong teams in the West?

If we count the Spurs, Suns, Mavericks, and the newly crowned Warriors, Qin Yue simply calculated and found... there are eight teams in the West this new season with championship-contending strength.

That's right... This new season, even the eighth in the West is stronger in Qin Yue's eyes than the Cavaliers team that reached the Finals in his memory.

The West has evidently entered a wild era ahead of time.

No... It's even wilder than the wild West Qin Yue remembers.

If Eastern strong teams don't make changes, the Western champions of the coming years would essentially be the overall champions.

Western Conference Finals equals Finals.

In July, the NBA free-agent market officially begins.

The Lakers quickly signed Bonzi Wells using part of their mid-level exception.

Supersonic sequentially supplemented their roster by using several minimum contracts and mid-level exceptions to bring in Gary Payton, James Posey, Jumaine Jones, Morris Evans, and Michael Olowokandi.

Initially, when choosing teams, Payton also considered the Warriors.

But once he thought about Qin Yue's blast in the Finals, Payton felt shame (righteousness) anger (resentment) hard (unbearably).

Hence, Payton decided to embark on his "root-seeking" journey, bringing his precious ringless experience back to Seattle.

On the afternoon of the 4th, the Warriors officially signed Matt Barnes.

Mulin offered him a two-year minimum contract with the final year being a team option.

Barnes' joining meant that the Warriors had another rotation option on the wing for the new season.

On the 5th, Qin Yue and Mulin together attended the Warriors' new season head coach recruitment event.

Among several candidates who came for the interview, Qin Yue and Mulin jointly made the decision to hire Mike Malone.

As the son of former Cavaliers head coach Brandon Malone, young Malone was not well-known in the NBA at this time. Since Old Ma Long was fired by the Cavaliers, he had been serving as an assistant coach to Mike Brown.

However, opportunities are always left for those who are prepared.

On the day of the interview, Malone's thoughts were clear. He straightforwardly said: "The Warriors' current offense is quite mature, but I believe there's still great potential in using Messiah. For example, if the Warriors' high-post hand-off collaboration can incorporate more advanced tactics, I believe the Warriors' new season offense will undoubtedly be more eye-catching."

"Barang and Ron's inefficient ball handling is too much. They indeed both can cause certain damage to the opponent's interior, but if we can let Messiah handle the ball more, it would greatly enhance the team's offensive efficiency. Besides, Barang and Ron's playing style has considerable injury risks, which will be a huge hidden threat on the team's championship path."

"As for defense, I plan to focus on zone defense during the regular season. Jason and Barang both have model advantages, and Messiah and Kwame Brown are both inside players with sweeping abilities. Using zone defense can help Messiah conserve more stamina on the defensive end.

Additionally, when necessary, we can adopt the 'pocket tactic,' allowing the opponent's breakthrough experts into the interior. Messiah is currently the league's top shot-blocker, and I think he will certainly produce more spectacular block statistics under this tactic."

Heart moved.

Both Mulin and Qin Yue were moved by the scenario described by Mike Malone on interview day.

Mulin's heart moved because Malone would establish a complete system for the new season Warriors.

Qin Yue's heart moved because, under this new system, his technical statistical panel would definitely see an explosive improvement.

"I believe the Warriors took a very wise approach last season on their championship path, which is the team adopting a preservation tactic in the latter regular season part. This allowed the Warriors to maintain strong competitiveness in the playoffs.

However, if I were coaching, I wouldn't do that, because we must guarantee a certain record to ensure that the regular season MVP belongs to Messiah."

"How do you plan to ensure the Warriors' record and Messiah's stamina?"

"I will selectively forgo some games. These games do not aim for tanking, nor do they aim for Messiah's rest. But I'll tell the players before these marked games start, they don't need to be 100% committed on both offense and defense. Win if we can, if not, then face-to-face swing with the opponents, trying to make everyone's stats look prettier."

No wonder, in Qin Yue's memory, Nikola Jokic would openly "slack off" on certain nights.

Indeed, Mike Malone is the future head coach of the Denver Nuggets in Qin Yue's memory, and it was under his guidance that "Joker" Jokic gradually became the NBA's number one player in later years.

In this era where Superstars want more personal accolades, the 22-year-old Qin Yue can't frequently rest like the future NBA players.

So, to ensure his stats are appealing and preserve his stamina to lead the Warriors in playoff combat, Malone's game strategy is undoubtedly the optimal solution.

The NBA season has 82 games; the Warriors can't commit 100% in every game.

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