After Howard retired from injury, the Magic sent in their backup center, the Polish hammer Gortat!
Although this European center did not leave any brilliant achievements in the NBA, he did have a very classic interview.
During the interview, Gortat said seriously:
"To be honest, I just want to play every day. It doesn't matter if it's back-to-back."
"Because in training games, I have to face off against Howard, and my whole body is sore after every game."
"In comparison, playing in official games is much easier. I only have to deal with the opponent's substitute center."
This interview content was often used by the media to describe Howard's strength.
There are also many fans and even players who use it to tease Gortat.
The outspoken Polish Hammer, after seeing such remarks, immediately said: "Whether I am strong or brave, you can play against me to feel it!"
The result is...no answer.
After all, Gortat has very good static talent and is definitely an above-average blue-collar insider!
............
The game continues, and the Rockets serve from the sideline.
Lowry, who had just replaced Curry, dribbled to the top of the arc and organized the attack.
Oden comes up and sets a cover for him.
Perhaps due to the long absence from the formation, the pick-and-roll set by the burly Oden was very unreliable and failed to block Lowry's opposing defender.
This directly resulted in the little steel cannon being double-teamed by the opponent's point guard and center.
Fortunately, Roy on the side made a timely move, allowing Lowry to pass the ball safely.
Not only that, because Gortat went to double-team Lowry, Oden became the one who was left empty.
Roy's quick eyesight and quick hands spotted the emperor who was following him immediately.
With a flick of his wrist, the basketball found Oden accurately.
"bang!"
The emperor went on an expedition, but not a blade of grass grew!
Oden completed another visually impactful dunk with both hands on the basket!
After scoring the goal, he grabbed the frame with his left hand and hung it excitedly above the basket. At the same time, he pointed his right hand at Roy who provided him with the assist.
Two former Blazers completed a gorgeous connection in Houston!
At the same time, the atmosphere at the scene reached its peak at this moment.
However, before the fans' joy had passed, some incidents occurred on the field.
It turned out that in the next defensive round, Oden committed two unnecessary fouls.
One time, he used too much force when squeezing through a pick-and-roll and pushed Gortat directly.
One time he cut the ball recklessly on the defensive end, and it hit Alston's hand directly.
After two consecutive fouls, Oden was also replaced by Mark Jackson.
Shen Fei in the stands watched all this calmly.
In the original time and space, Oden's pioneer career had two key words.
One is the frequent injuries, which needless to say.
The second is that it is easy to get into foul trouble.
For example, the 2008-09 season was Oden's debut season.
He was still healthy at that time and played a total of 61 games throughout the season.
However, if you look at the data table, you will find that Oden's average playing time is only about 20 minutes per game!
Why is there only such a small amount of screen time?
Is it because the Blazers have other good centers?
No!
At that time, Oden could be said to be the "hope of the whole village" for the Trail Blazers.
The whole team is eager to give him more playing time to practice!
However, Oden often picked up three or four fouls shortly after he came on the court and had to take a rest.
Shen Fei attaches great importance to this issue and has taken the time to study his game videos in the past few days.
After observation, the Asian youth came to a preliminary conclusion - Oden is prone to fouls, largely because he is too aggressive on the defensive end!
This problem has been with Oden since his debut season.
Times have changed now.
Shen Fei originally thought that frequent injuries would smooth out many of the Emperor's edges.
Unexpectedly, Oden is still passionate and the foul problem is still the same!
"He must be urged to change this habit, otherwise he will definitely be targeted in the playoffs."
Shen Fei said thoughtfully.
At present, Oden is a qualified backup center for the Rockets.
His strength, speed, jumping and all other talents are greatly needed by the team.
If, like just now, he commits consecutive fouls in just one minute, Oden's playing time will be shortened.
And in the playoffs, sooner or later he will encounter an insider with excellent golf intelligence like Nowitzki.
These people will definitely seize on this weakness of Oden and frequently try to cause him fouls.
If nothing changes, Shen Fei won't be surprised if Oden sets a record for the fastest six fouls in the playoffs one day.
"The rough jade has yet to be carved, and there is still a long way to go..."
The Asian young man murmured to himself.
............
His eyes returned to the playing field.
Although they lost Oden, a strong player, the Rockets still have many good players on the bench!
Mark Jackson made a big move, replaced Griffin, and pushed Tucker to the fifth position.
The Rockets took advantage of the trend and played a smaller lineup.
Then, Lowry and Roy chose "military training" Gortat.
The poor Polish Hammers had no strength, but their steps were too slow and they were thrown around by the Rockets' two defenders.
Magic coach Stan Van Gundy saw that things were not going well, so he had to replace Gortat and put up a smaller lineup.
Unexpectedly, two minutes later, Mark Jackson changed his formation again and replaced the three main players, Yao Mai and Curry, back on the court.
Then, Yao Ming hit the Magic inside.
McGrady also frequently uses his super-fast first step to attack the opponent's penalty area.
The Magic were in chaos, and the point difference was further widened.
At the end of the second quarter, the Rockets already led by more than 20 points!
As the saying goes, if you make great efforts at one time, you will be exhausted again and again.
The Magic are now in a "dry" state.
The main player was injured and retired, and the team fell behind by a big score... The Magic generals were demoralized and never organized a decent counterattack.
In the end, the score was fixed at 125:106, and the Rockets beat the Magic at home by 19 points!
After the game, Mark Jackson attended the press conference with Oden, who had returned from injury, and Tracy McGrady, who had performed well.