Chapter 45 Continuing to widen the score difference
Wang Feng's move can be regarded as a conspiracy to a certain extent.
Even if Harden knew that his long-range shooting percentage was not high today, facing Wang Feng who was defending with his backhand, he could only bite the bullet and keep taking shots!
In the first quarter of the game, Harden was basically a one-man show for the Rockets.
In this quarter of the game, Harden scored 16 points in a single quarter, but the price he paid was nearly 18 shots!
18 shots in a single quarter! Even in the regular season, it is extremely rare, and only 16 points were scored in 18 shots, which has absolutely nothing to do with efficiency!
In fact, except for Harden, the other Rockets players had very few shot opportunities in the first quarter. In most cases, they could only grab offensive rebounds and score in second attacks.
At the end of the first quarter, the score between the two teams was 36:22. The Warriors established a 14-point advantage in the first quarter!
"Unexpectedly, Wang Feng actually used this unprecedented defensive method to successfully limit Harden's performance, thus helping the team establish an advantage in the first quarter."
Yang Yi shook his head, not knowing how to describe it at all. "This really opened my eyes. Wang Feng is really a very courageous player to dare to make such an attempt on such an important stage as the NBA Western Conference Finals."
"However, after suffering a loss in the first quarter, Harden probably should have woken up. He took 18 crazy shots in a single quarter. This is not what a strong team in the league should do and what an MVP-level player should do. If Harden can do it in the second quarter,
If they adjust back to form in time, the Rockets will not have no chance in this game. After all, the Rockets have an absolute advantage in the paint."
On the bench, Harden had a towel on his head, his head lowered and said nothing.
McHale shook his head helplessly and said: "James, you should realize this, right? Your touch is really not good today. If we continue like this, we will only lose. Don't you want to beat Stephen Curry? Don't want to prove to the league that you are
Is he the player more qualified to win the MVP award?"
Harden was silent for a moment and finally spoke.
"Coach, I know, it's my fault. I will calm down in the next game and help the team win!"
After hearing Harden's promise, McHale's expression softened slightly.
"That's good. I believe that with your ability, you will be able to adjust as soon as possible. Next, I will talk about the tactics of the second quarter. Now that we are in the lagging stage, we must strengthen our perimeter defense to ensure the success rate of every attack.
, Reduce the chance of the opponent forming a fast break counterattack due to missed shots..."
…
Soon, the second quarter of the game began, and players from both teams appeared one after another, and some adjustments were made to the lineup.
Bogut was taken off the field and Yingodala came on as a substitute.
Cole put on a death five small lineup at the beginning of the second quarter.
Wang Feng's defense against Harden was very successful, allowing the team to successfully establish an advantage.
In the second quarter of the game, the Rockets will inevitably make adjustments and even find ways to attack the Warriors' weak inside line!
In this case, Cole's choice was to replace Bogut and replace him with a more mobile Death Five lineup.
Although the presence of heavy center Bogut can increase the Warriors' ability to protect the frame, it also slows down the team to a certain extent.
The current lineup maximizes speed while sacrificing interior defensive capabilities.
Obviously, Cole is more skilled than McHale in terms of formation.
The Rockets do have an advantage in the interior, especially after the lineup adjustment. Howard and Smith faced Green and Yingodala respectively. They have an overall advantage in height and weight, but in terms of speed, the situation is different!
Although they are much more mobile than Pau Gasol of the Grizzlies, Randolph's black-and-white double-attack is much more mobile, and he can often be pulled out to the outside to assist in defense.
But if this alone can limit the Warriors' small lineup, how can the Warriors achieve a record of 73 wins in the regular season next season?
Only 3 minutes into the second quarter, McHale had to call a timeout urgently, because if he didn't call a timeout, there would be no need to play the rest of the game!
In just 3 minutes, the point difference between the two teams not only did not narrow due to McHale's adjustment of lineup and tactics, but actually widened further!
44:25! The point difference is about to widen to more than 20 points!
"Is this the offensive ability of the Warriors? It is too strong! The Rockets were completely unable to withstand it. The two inside players Howard and Smith were completely lost in the non-stop retracement. Even before the game, we
There is no chance to take advantage of the expected offensive rebound advantage!"
"As expected of a team that won 68 games in the regular season, the Warriors are obviously better than the Rockets in terms of lineup depth and tactical rationality! Now the Rockets are in trouble. If McHale doesn't have anything
If we take good countermeasures, this game may be dangerous!"
Good response?
What is the best response to this situation?
McHale is just a head coach, how can the gap in the lineup be such an easy problem to solve?
Facing the Warriors' five deadliest players, all McHale could do was to take the slow-moving interior line off the court and use the same high-mobility lineup to solidify the defense.
Howard and Josh Smith were substituted, replaced by Corey Brewer and Terrence Jones.
Although Brewer and Jones are both big men at 2.06 meters, they are both athletic insiders with excellent mobility.
With these two substitutions, the Rockets were finally able to keep up with the Warriors in terms of speed, but this was just to quench their thirst.
Brewer and Jones do not have the same dominance in the paint as Howard, and they cannot attack the paint to establish an advantage like Howard.
With this lineup, the Rockets can only continue to rely on offensive scoring from the outside...that is, continue to play around Harden!
At this time, Harden is no longer limited to one-on-one battles with Wang Feng, so Wang Feng no longer uses the provocative method of backhand defense to defend Harden.
But the situation in the first quarter obviously caused a certain psychological shadow for Harden, and even made him start to wonder whether his touch in this game was really bad.
He began to deliberately reduce his shots and frequently passed the ball in an attempt to let his teammates score.
But the problem is that as the team's first scoring point, if Harden doesn't attack, who can he count on?
The Rockets in the 14-15 season were far from the Rockets that later won the Best Warrior Award. Harden did not have the legendary point guard Chris Paul to share the pressure, and there were no outstanding players such as Eric Gordon and PJ Tucker.
Players escort!
This Rockets team is not strong to begin with. Even Harden can't step forward, so how can there be any hope?