The Lakers, who have the Four Kings, were so vulnerable when facing the Warriors. They lost so miserably that various experts and media were shocked.
At the same time, other games in the first round of the showdown also started one after another.
The Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Rockets 120:91 at home and won their first victory in the series.
This game is full of highlights.
Harden is an old player from the Thunder, and the Thunder personally gave him to the Rockets. Now it is very exciting to see how Harden will perform against his old team in the playoffs.
Watching people get slapped in the face is a drama that everyone loves to watch!
Harden was sent to the Houston Rockets on the eve of the start of the season. Not surprisingly, the Rockets regarded Harden as the core of the team and gave him a lot of shooting rights.
Facts have proved that the Rockets made the right bet, and the Thunder made a bad move!
Harden averaged 25.9 points, 5.8 assists, and 4.9 rebounds per game this season, successfully becoming a first-tier star.
Most importantly, under the leadership of Harden, the Rockets successfully entered the playoffs!
You know, the Rockets have been outside the playoff gates for three consecutive years.
Without a superstar to lead the team, relying on a bunch of role players, the Rockets have never failed in the past three years. The so-called invincible little strong has won the respect of many teams.
But strength is the most important factor in the competitive arena. A team without stars cannot go far.
The edge of the playoffs is already the limit for this Rockets team!
So once the opportunity arose, the Rockets general manager pressed the trade button without hesitation.
The result was also very good. Harden's arrival immediately helped the Rockets enter the playoffs.
This is the power of stars.
The two teams are similar in many ways, with the Rockets being like a weaker version of the Thunder.
The Thunder will be led by Dewey, while the Rockets will be led by James Harden and Chandler Parsons.
At first, the Rockets regarded Jeremy Lin as the team leader, but after Harden came, Jeremy Lin was directly pushed to the back.
There is no way, strength is king. No matter from every aspect, Harden is much better than Jeremy Lin.
Of course, Jeremy Lin's playing time and starting position are still guaranteed for most of the season.
As the season progressed, Jeremy Lin's importance in the team became less and less, and Chandler Parsons stood out.
Parsons is 2.08 meters tall and weighs 104 kilograms. He was selected by the Rockets with the 8th overall pick in the second round of 2011.
Parsons has height and weight. After coming to the Rockets, he developed three-pointers. He also has a certain degree of support ability. He can occasionally attack with the ball. He also works hard on defense, so he quickly gained the recognition of the head coach.
Favored, entrusted with important responsibilities, and data are also rising.
It can be said that Chandler Parsons is a weakened version of Kevin Durant.
At least it's okay to say that at this time.
In addition, the Thunder have Perkins as a human shield, and the Rockets have the same role as Asik.
The Thunder's substitutes include Kevin Martin, Fisher, Reggie Jackson and Collison, and the Rockets' Beverley, Delfino, Garcia and Motiejunas are also very capable.
If there is one thing the Rockets don't have, it's Ibaka.
However, there is a high imitation and a genuine one, and the genuine one also has a powerful player. It is very difficult for the high imitation to win.
The result was no surprise, the Thunder won the game effortlessly.
The 29-point gap is enough to show the difference in strength between the two teams.
Jeremy Lin's performance in this game was very average. He played 32 minutes, made 0 of 4 three-pointers, and only scored 4 points. Although he sent 4 assists, he also made 4 turnovers.
On the contrary, backup point guard Beverley performed well, both offensively and defensively, and scored the team's second-highest 11 points.
…
In another matchup, the third-ranked Spurs easily defeated the Grizzlies at home and got off to a good start.
The Spurs' style of play has changed drastically this season, and they have begun to pay attention to outside shooting. The team's offensive pace has accelerated and the offensive end is extremely efficient.
I have to say that Popovich is really a good coach. He never sticks to the rules and can always follow the trend and find a suitable style of play.
The GDP team has been working together for many years, and they have a tacit understanding between them. Coupled with the defensive champion Leonard and the high-quality 3D Danny Green, the Spurs played very well on both offense and defense.
Originally, the Grizzlies were not afraid of teams like the Spurs, because the Grizzlies are also known for their tactical literacy, reasonable play, strong defense, and good at positional warfare.
Even in terms of lineup configuration, the Grizzlies are quite reasonable. They have the Black and White Bears on the inside, Conley and Tony Allen on the outside, and Rudy Gay on the forward line. They are not much worse than the Spurs.
But the Grizzlies actually sent Gay away during the mid-term trade!
You know, although Rudy Gay averages less than 20 points per game, he is the Grizzlies' scoring leader after all!
For the Grizzlies, a striker with height and long arms like Gay is more reliable in delivering the fatal blow at critical moments.
Of course, the Grizzlies couldn't help it. They were a small team and Gay's salary was too high, so they had no choice but to reluctantly send him away in order to avoid taxes.
In fact, the Grizzlies had long been prepared to send Gay away. They used two first-round picks and 3 million in cash to trade Prince from the Warriors in the offseason just to prepare for sending Gay away.
Prince and Rudy Gay are both small forwards and can also play power forward. Both are tall and have long arms, but Prince's contract is much smaller than Gay's, and he also has championship experience!
But the grizzly bear was still wrong.
Prince is much better than Gay on the defensive end, his support ability is also good, and his outside shooting is also very good, but in terms of singles ability and ability to attack with the ball, he is not as good as Gay.
More importantly, the main reason why Prince can play a role in the Warriors is that the Splash Brothers are there. He only needs to deal cards online at the top of the key.
Is it possible that the ball will be in Prince's hands when the Grizzlies arrive?
Who will Grizzly Prince deal the cards to?
Prince's play is very reasonable, but if it is more reasonable, the Spurs are not afraid of any team!
Before the game, everyone thought that the game between the Spurs and the Grizzlies would be a physical battle. The result was very surprising. The game showed a one-sided situation from the beginning.
The Spurs defended well, attacked reasonably, combined inside and outside, and shot accurately. However, the Grizzlies blindly attacked the inside and made many mistakes due to the Spurs' flanking attacks. The Spurs' fast break counterattacks came one after another!
The Spurs' strategy is the same as that of the Warriors last year, which is to short Tony Allen!
If you dare to put a player on the court without a three-pointer, then I will let you go!
Anyway, our three-point shooting is very accurate, even if we give you an open space, we are not afraid!
With the Spurs' tactical quality, once they take a big lead, there will be no suspense in the game.
Unable to attack inside and unable to score from the outside, the Grizzlies will miss Gay at this time.
If Gay is here and Tony Allen is replaced, then the Grizzlies lineup will have no weaknesses!
The Grizzlies general manager must be regretting it now:
I thought it was too expensive for Guy to use on a daily basis, so I decided to have it cut off!
As a result, when it came time for singles and outside firepower in the playoffs, there was none...
