During the break, both sides made certain adjustments in tactics.
On the Thunder side, head coach Scott Brooks saw that Durant was uncomfortable being guarded by Tony Allen, so he asked Westbrook to strengthen his personal offense.
"The Rockets' point guard, whether it's Lowry or Jeremy Lin, can't stop you."
"In the second half, just let it go and make a breakthrough if you can."
"Kevin, you increase off-ball offense and reduce the entanglement with Tony Allen. With your height, if you directly pull up, it will be difficult for him to interfere with you."
Brooks said.
Durant nodded.
But he knows that Tony Allen is not the kind of defender who can easily overwhelm defenders with his height.
If you want to get points over him, you must not only fight with wits but also with courage.
Just like the singles before halftime, Durant abandoned the distracting thoughts in his mind and faced Tony Allen's challenge.
Westbrook, on the other hand, nodded very confidently.
During this period, he didn't even need to fake moves when passing people, he could basically speed up and get it done.
As for Lowry and Shu Hao, one is too short and the other is a low-end version of him. Westbrook didn't take them seriously at all.
"And... James, you will start the second half instead of Sefolosha."
"Roy must be given physical strength on the defensive end, and he must not have enough energy to devote to the offense."
Brooks continued.
"I understand, coach."
Harden replied.
Sefolosha on the side nodded in disbelief after hearing this.
Although Harden is the sixth man, after a game, his playing time is much higher than that of Sefolosha.
Arrangements like "starting the second half" are common this season.
Look at the Rockets again.
After some thought, Mark Jackson told Oden clearly: "Greg, you need to stand up and provide more firepower in the second half."
Auden was stunned when he heard this.
This is only his third game after returning from injury, and he has not yet fully found the feeling of the game.
In the first half, Oden focused more on defense and rebounding.
If there is any improvement compared to previous games, it is the control of fouls!
In the entire first half, Oden only committed one foul and protected himself very well.
In addition, he has no playing time limit today.
In other words, as long as his physical fitness allows and the coach trusts him, there is no problem for Oden to play all 24 minutes in the second half!
But... the emperor was really not mentally prepared for becoming the team's main attack point.
Who would have thought that the Rockets, with the most offensive firepower in the league, would let a rookie recovering from a serious injury become the main offensive point.
Mark Jackson saw Oden's confusion and enlightened: "This is a rare opportunity. If I want to get this kind of treatment in the future, I don't know that I have to wait until the end of the year."
"So, just relax and fight as hard as you can."
Mark Jackson spoke beautifully, but his heart was not so peaceful.
[Alas, who asked the boss to rest all the main players in one go...]
[Our team does have a lot of players who can play, but most of the bench are functional players.]
[If Greg continues to be a blue-collar insider, it is simply unrealistic for Brandon, Jeremy, and Louis to consume all the shooting rights.]
Of course, these complaints in his heart must not be expressed directly to the team members.
"Good coach, I will try my best!"
Auden replied seriously.
...........
The inter-section break ends soon and the game starts again.
As soon as the third quarter started, the Thunder took the lead.
Westbrook called for a screen from outside the three-point line, and before the pick-and-roll was formed, he suddenly accelerated and changed direction, passing between the two Rockets players.
The Rockets' defense was torn apart in an instant!
After completing the pass, Westbrook drove straight into the penalty area.
Oden, who was guarding the inside, did not expect that the team's first line of defense would be breached so quickly, so he did not respond immediately.
Wei rarely has no one to stop him. He kicks his feet on the ground, as if stepping on springs, and instantly rises into the air...
"bang!"
A powerful tomahawk dunk made the Thunder's home court boil.
After scoring the goal, Westbrook took a dominant step and celebrated passionately.
The morale of the Thunder team also gradually increased with this dunk.
Not only did the players become more engaged, but the fans also began to make noise.
"Defense!!!"
"Defense!!!"
"Defense!!!"
...
The deafening slogans seemed to be about to knock off the roof of the arena at the next moment.
Amid such noise, the players of both teams were secreting adrenaline like crazy.
Young players like Danny Green lose their cool in this atmosphere.
He forgot about Mark Jackson's tactical arrangement, and actually chose to attack with the ball, which he was not good at, and finally went for a layup over Durant.
When Zhang Weiping saw such an offensive choice, he was so angry that he shouted "unreasonable".
Durant smiled and accepted Green's gift and thanked him with a hot pot meal.
Westbrook has quick eyes and quick hands, controls the ball, and launches a counterattack immediately.
His speed was unmatched, and it only took him about three seconds to reach the Rockets penalty area.
Behind Westbrook, Danny Green struggled to catch up, trying to make up for it.
But the former's speed and explosive power were too abnormal. Green tried his best, but in the end he could only despair.
"bang!"
Westbrook made another dunk.
At this time, he had fire in his eyes and was completely excited!
............
"Don't be anxious, don't panic, just follow the tactics and fight slowly."
Roy walked towards the baseline and made a downward movement with his hands.
He has a big heart and will not be affected by the opponent's momentum at all.
But Roy could clearly feel that the mentality of a man like Danny Green had gone up and down.
As a result, Huang Mamba stepped forward without hesitation.
He advanced with the ball, reached the top of the arc, and then began to direct his teammates to move.
When the left side was clear, Roy lobbed the ball firmly into Oden's hands.
"Hit! He can't guard you!"
Roy shouted.
Ibaka, who was responsible for defending Oden, heard this and immediately became excited.
I saw him getting down on his horse and exerting all his energy to fight against the emperor.
Unexpectedly, Oden suddenly turned around and wiped Ibaka away.
"bang!"
The Great took off with both feet and delivered an O'Neal-style two-handed slam dunk.
As soon as the goal was scored, the Chesapeake Energy Arena fell silent instantly.
The faces of the Rockets generals also regained their composure.
This ball is so crucial!
"We can see from this ball that Oden is not the kind of rough guy who only knows how to dunk. His turn is so clever, it's like making a huge difference!"
Zhang Weiping couldn't help but praise.
However, Auden's performance was not over yet.
In the next round, Roy handed the ball to him again.
This time, Oden hit the ground running twice, and then used a right-hand hook to send the ball into the basket.
A minute later, the same person, in the same position, the emperor switched to his left hand and hit the hook again (he is one of the few centers who can hook with both hands).
In just two minutes, Oden hit three consecutive singles, all of which were hits!
6:0! The Rockets hit a shock wave and regained the lead.
On the sidelines, Thunder coach Brooks saw that the situation was not good and hesitated whether to call a timeout.
But soon, Durant stood up and told him to give up the idea.
KD received Westbrook's breakthrough pass, catch & shoot and hit a three-pointer to stop the Thunder's bleeding.
At this point, the game has officially entered the battle between Oden and Durant - the No. 1 pick in 2007 and the No. 2 pick in the rankings!