The Warriors won a resounding victory. This result puzzled many spectators and made them very disappointed.
The Rockets are the second team in the Western Conference. If Beverley is absent like before, that's all. But now that Beverley is fully resurrected, the Rockets still lose by a big score. This is a bit inappropriate!
Didn’t you say that Beverley’s defense is very good?
Isn’t it said that Beverley is the best perimeter defender in the league?
Forget it, I have to add one, but that is also one of the best defenders!
Isn’t it said that the two heroes of 09 are equally matched?
The Rockets also have Howard - who could once replace James alone!
Is this still a huge defeat?
It shouldn’t be!
Neutral fans definitely don't want to see this result. After all, watching the excitement is not too big a deal. When there is an unbeatable king in the league, the spectators hope that a warrior will appear who can stop this king!
But that requires strength!
This Rockets team is indeed very strong on paper. Whether it is defense or offense, they are among the top players in the league - at least on paper!
However, paper strength is only paper strength after all, and this Rockets is destined to be unable to fight a tough battle!
The lower limit and upper limit of a team are determined by the quality of its stars. With Harden and Howard here, the Rockets' regular season record is guaranteed and they will definitely have no problem making the playoffs.
However, how far the team can go in the playoffs and whether the team can fight hard is also determined by the stars, and this is a bit demanding for Harden and Howard!
Howard has indeed led a single-core team to the finals, and his strength is there, there is no doubt about it.
However, times have changed. Today's league places more emphasis on offense and has higher requirements for outside shooting. Centers are becoming less and less popular. Now, Howard's single-core leadership will definitely not be able to go very far!
If nothing else, if Howard can't guard the small guard in the pick-and-roll, his team will not go far!
The offense under the basket can only rely on the body, without skills, without passing support, and the defense can only shrink in the penalty area. Such a center can only act as a blue collar, and cannot be the core of a team.
Of course, it's still the same sentence. If Howard is paired with four shooters and can shoot four stars like the Magic, there will be no problem in making the playoffs.
Harden and Howard are different, but their situations are similar.
Harden has a smart mind and a variety of offensive methods. With him in the team's lower limit, it will definitely be guaranteed that it will be no problem to enter the playoffs.
However, Harden's problem is also that he is too smart, always wants to be lazy, is used to committing fouls, does not have that fierceness, and his desire for victory is not as good as that of Kobe, Curry and others, so once it comes to the playoffs where bayonets are red,
, as soon as the referee's whistle becomes loose and physical confrontation is encouraged, Harden will wilt!
In the regular season, he is a superstar in the league, but in the playoffs, he is an ordinary star. I am talking about players like Harden!
The real super giants all have unique skills and fierceness, such as Curry's shooting, James' incredible physical fitness, and Damn's footsteps at the basket. Harden does have unique skills, but his unique skills are deceiving fouls and free throws.
Score, this is very embarrassing!
Can you cheat a foul and get to the free throw line to score?
Yes, but it is only done occasionally and cannot become a regular method. This can also be seen from the nature of basketball.
No one comes to the basketball court to watch free throws, and the league will not let the game turn into a free throw shootout!
When your unique skill depends on other people's faces and whether the referee blows the whistle, you are destined not to go very far!
The intensity of the playoffs is much greater than that of the regular season, and the further you go, the more physical confrontation is encouraged, and the number of whistles becomes fewer and fewer. Harden's style of play is destined to not go far!
This is not to mention Harden's soft and soft character that wilts when he encounters a tough battle!
Of course, Harden's character may also be caused by his playing style - he has no real special skills and depends on the referee's face. He doesn't have the confidence to be tough!
The world is fair. When you get used to getting benefits by cheating, cheating, and opportunism, you are destined to be unable to fight tough battles and will wilt when you encounter ruthless characters!
Every gift from God has a hidden price!
In addition, in addition to the problem of ability, Harden and Howard also have different personalities, and it is impossible for the two to work well together.
Howard always liked to play around and was a cheerful big boy, but after arriving with the Rockets, he began to have ideas and wanted to compete for the championship.
If not, Howard would not have left the Los Angeles Lakers and come to Houston.
But Harden has only been in Houston for three years, and has just signed a big contract for three years. Like Howard before him, he is addicted to lavish entertainment and partying every night, so he and Howard cannot urinate in the same pot.
It would be fine if Howard was the boss of the team, but in terms of ability, he can't do it, so the conflict between the two is not small.
One person's face was full of dissatisfaction and anger: "I work so hard, but you are free and undisciplined. Why? Give me the ball!" The other person was thinking silently in his heart: "With your little ability, are you worthy?! I am playing while playing.
I'm better at playing ball than you!"
With this kind of mentality, the two people will definitely be at odds and compete for the ball. The result is that the team has no cohesion, insufficient tacit understanding, and more seriously, the people are distracted and fall apart.
In short, Harden and Howard cannot form a successful team regardless of their abilities or personalities!
With the core of the team like this, no matter how good the role players are, the team will not be much better.
It is precisely for this reason that it is impossible for the Rockets to defeat the Warriors.
Even if Harden and Howard play seriously, and even if the Rockets show their strength on paper, at most they only have the strength to compete with the Warriors. It is impossible to win the Warriors in a series, let alone
The Rockets can't even show half of their paper strength!
The second game of the series resumed two days later at Oracle Arena.
There was still no suspense in this game. The Warriors took the initiative from the beginning and maintained their lead until the end.
In the end, the Warriors defeated the Rockets 18:101 and won the second game of the series.
The third game was played at the Toyota Center. The Rockets did not improve much after returning to their home court. They were still fighting on their own.
In fact, it doesn't matter whether the Rockets are playing at home or away, because the Rockets' home court has never been very lively, and the fans at Toyota Center are notoriously undisciplined and lack passion.
In the second half of the game, because they were so far behind, the Toyota Center fans even started shouting "Curry MVP"!
Fortunately, the headband brothers were still full of passion, and Josh Smith had a good touch. After the fourth quarter started, they recovered a little bit of the score and did not let the game completely lose suspense.
However, the Warriors will not give the Rockets a chance like the Clippers. Halfway through the fourth quarter, Curry made three consecutive three-pointers to directly open the point difference to more than 0 points, and the game lost suspense.
In the end, the Warriors defeated the Rockets 11:10, and the series score became: 0. The Warriors are expected to advance. (To be continued)
