Rebirth of Hayes Cyclone

Chapter 119 [Double Heroes Meeting]

Because of the "slamming the door" incident, the duel between the Texas duo was regarded as a battle of revenge, which attracted special attention.

Experts generally believe that the overall strength of the Rockets this season has surpassed the Spurs, but the outcome is still [-]-[-].Because the Spurs are an experienced team in the playoffs.

Responding to all changes with the same, this is the team building concept that Popovich and the Spurs have always adhered to. The GDP combination of Ginobili, Duncan, Parker, and others has been baptized by the championship.

This season, compared to the big move that the Rockets almost changed players, the Spurs did not strengthen the lineup in the summer, but showed signs of regressing.The Spurs' main center last season, Mohamed, left the team. He was replaced by Elson, who was transferred from the Nuggets, and Argentine Oberto.

Small fixes on the lineup are certainly not as dazzling as the big deal looks, and the Spurs did not play smoothly in the regular season, but they are such a team, and people will only be surprised when they eliminate their opponents.Unknowingly, some star-studded teams have fallen at their feet.

So in terms of championship background, the Spurs are undoubtedly the strongest of the four teams.

On May 5, the Spurs arrived in Houston, where the Rockets will play Game 21 of the Western Conference Finals at the Toyota Center.

Judging from the style of play, the two teams are both internal and external, with tough defense and balanced offense and defense.

The two offensive teams are evenly matched. In terms of defense, the Spurs are at a disadvantage. In the regular season, the Rockets averaged the least points per game, and the Spurs ranked fifth.In the playoffs, the Rockets' points loss dropped to 84.4 points, the least among the 16 teams, while the Spurs' points loss increased to 95.2 points.The reason why the Spurs' defense has weakened is that Hayes in the regular season caused Bowen to be reimbursed for the season.

Head coach competition, Jeff Van Gundy VS Popovich.

"A raging soldier, a raging nest", the NBA arena is a big stage for the coaches of both sides to fight wits and courage.Their formation at critical moments can often determine the final direction of a game.

Spurs coach Popovich has a much more brilliant record. In 1999, 2003, and 2005, Popovich led the Spurs to the top three times, and Popovich established himself as a famous coach.Van Gundy won the title of best coach this season, but outside of defense, he didn't perform too well. He still needs to beat Popovich to justify himself.

In terms of lineup, the Rockets are slightly better.

Point guard Fisher VS Tony Parker.Fisher limited Nash to some extent last series, but Parker was the speed guard he feared.Parker played 32.5 minutes in the regular season, with star data of 18.6 points and 5.5 assists. He shot 52% from the field and 40% from three-pointers. This is not a small test for the Rockets.

Shooting guard Manu Ginobili VS McGrady.McGrady is the MVP of this season. Needless to say his strength, McGrady with hot hands is almost impossible to guard against.Ginobili is known as the "Demon Knife". He is one of the most powerful players in the league. After Bowen was injured, Ginobili entered the starting lineup from the position of the sixth man, and his playing time increased from 27 minutes to 31.4 minutes. He averaged 19.4 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game. If you look at the offensive efficiency in 48 minutes, he is not inferior to Maddison.

Small forward Michael Finley VS Battier.Also because of Bowen's injury, veteran Finley scored 26 points and 11 rebounds in 3.4 minutes.Battier played 36.4 minutes and averaged 9.2 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. The statistics are inferior, but he is an irreplaceable player for the Rockets' perimeter defense.The Rockets have the upper hand.

Power forward Tim Duncan VS Hayes. The battle between "Stone Buddha" and "Shrek" is a highlight of this round of competition.

The two-time MVP Duncan is one of the best players in the league. He doesn't have so many dazzling lights on his body, and he is rarely seen making beautiful moves in the game, but he always scares opponents on both offense and defense.All because he is stable enough and efficient enough.The performance of averaging 22.8 points, 11.6 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 3 blocks in the playoffs proved his strength.He was named to the regular season first team this season.

The power forward of the second team is Hayes. His average data in the playoffs is 16.4 points, 11.2 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 1.4 steals. He is not much inferior to Duncan, and his skills are more comprehensive than Duncan, and he can be pulled outside to attack.Experts predict that the duel between the two will determine who can enter the finals.

中锋奥博托VS姚明。4.7分5.1篮板的奥博托当然无法和季后赛23.4分8.6篮板1.7盖帽的姚明相比。姚明是火箭这个系列赛的第一强点。

In terms of substitutes, the Rockets have a group of bench bandits such as David Lee, Millsap, Spanoulis, Azubuike, Novak, Weaver, and Kirk Snyder.Although the Spurs have key players such as Robert Hawley and Brent Barry on the bench, they are not as good overall.

Before the start of the game, the atmosphere in the Rockets locker room was very relaxed.They achieved good results against the Spurs in the regular season, but it is not a good sign to relax in such an important game. Confidence can be had, but now the Rockets seem to have become overconfident and proud.

Hayes is not as relaxed as others, he is a little nervous, and his opponent is Duncan, known as the number one power forward in history.He was thinking about how to play the game for a while, and the laughter of his teammates became particularly harsh.He hoped that the boss of the team would stand up and tell his teammates not to relax their vigilance, but it was useless, because McGrady was the one who took the lead in joking.

Not just the players, even Van Gundy is smiling, he seems to have seen the championship trophy.

"Chuck, don't be serious. It's not the first time you've played against the Spurs. Are you still nervous about facing Duncan?" Van Gundy laughed.

"It's not that I'm nervous. This is the Western Conference Finals. The opponent is the Spurs. We beat them by a big margin in the regular season, but it doesn't mean we can win easily now. Looking at the statistics, I know that Duncan will go crazy as soon as he enters the playoffs. I have to concentrate I can't be blown away by him." Hayes said seriously: "Jeff, I think you should say a few words at this time, don't relax too much, it's not good for the game."

"You're right, we were too relaxed. You're like an assistant coach again." Van Gundy laughed, and then said a few words of encouragement, and the players responded one after another.

Hayes knew from the expressions of his teammates that the response was only superficial. The consecutive sweeps of the opponents had completely aroused their confidence. They didn't think they would lose today, and even thought they could sweep the Spurs.

"Today we start with Yao Ming, Chuck, Sean (Battier), Tracy (McGrady), Derek (Fisher). The Spurs' offense doesn't have many tricks, we defend the zone defense. The offense is dominated by Tracy , Chuck picks and rolls, if it attracts double-teams, hit Yao Ming, Chuck controls the rebound." Van Gundy arranged tactics.

Without Bowen, the Spurs lacked the best perimeter defender, McGrady's pressure was much less, and he was more confident.

At this time, the atmosphere in the locker room of the visiting team was as cold as a gangster negotiation.Popovich didn't arrange tactics. Their tactics have been played for many years, and the players know them by heart.

"In this series, we have to work hard every game!" Popovich said loudly: "The outside world is not optimistic about us, and many experts also say that the Rockets' lineup is better than ours. A joke, a group of people who have never played in the finals How strong can this guy be? The Suns played very well in the 2005 regular season, but they were easily eliminated by us in the playoffs? The Rockets are just a strong team in the regular season. In the playoffs, you are the strongest! "

The players listened carefully, and Popovich said again: "Don't be intimidated by their previous two sweeps. We can sweep a bad team like the Clippers. The Suns didn't defend at all. This season is better than before. It’s even worse, nothing to fear. Let’s look at our opponents again. The Jazz’s home court in Salt Lake City is called the devil’s home court, and we are tied; the Timberwolves, which has two superstars Garnett and Iverson, also lost to us. As long as You fight with all your strength, we will definitely win! We are missing Bruce (Bowen), but his spirit is with us, I hope each of you can play as hard as he does! Just as focused! Prevent death Rocket!"

If it was another team, the players might shout a slogan, but Duncan just said with a cold face: "We will definitely do it."

Only this sentence, Popovich is satisfied.The Spurs are a team that explodes in silence.

In the arena, the fans shouted frantically. The game has not started yet, and they have entered a state of frenzy. "Sweep the Spurs" slogans can be seen everywhere.After many years, the Rockets finally entered the Western Conference Finals again.Fans firmly believe that the home team can beat the Spurs and enter the finals.

Generally, when stars meet, they like to say a few provocative words before the start of the game.But the Rockets vs. Spurs, except for the captains of both sides shaking hands, everyone was very quiet.Both Duncan and Hayes were expressionless. At this time, they had the same idea, that is to blow up their opponents.

Duncan knows he is the Spurs' strength, and his play will determine the outcome of this series.Hayes thought further. He knew that the Cavaliers would eliminate the Pistons, which had begun to decline.Whoever wins this series will win the championship, and this series is the final!
The game begins.Yao Ming jumped the ball and won the ball. Fisher dribbled the ball to Tracy McGrady at halftime, and Hayes stepped forward to pick and roll.The Spurs did not send Duncan to follow up the defense, and they also defended the zone defense at the start of the game.After switching defenses, the person defending Hayes became Ginobili. At this time, as long as McGrady returns the ball to Hayes, Ginobili can only "fake death" after being hit and fight hard. "There are two ways.

Hayes raised his hand and waited for the pass, but McGrady didn't return the pass. He chose to stop and shoot a jumper under Finley's close defense, and the ball missed.Duncan easily grabbed the rebound.McGrady returned to the defense with a relaxed expression, and Hayes had an ominous premonition.After winning the MVP, McGrady's desire to score has become stronger and stronger. This guy, don't play like this the whole game.

(End of this chapter)