The China Power of NBA

Before Olajuwon airborne in Houston, the team already had a champion in 1983, Ralph Sampson, who was 221 centimeters tall and was also a center position. Scored 21 points, grabbed 11.1 rebounds, and shot 52.3% from the field!He won the Best Rookie Award in 1983, but the Rockets' record that year was still poor, and only won a poor 29 victories in one season, but the arrival of Olajuwon changed everything.

When Olajuwon first arrived at the Rockets, the head coach was Bill Fitch, the first "coach with a thousand defeats" in the league. He was stunned by happiness and he didn't even know who to put in the starting lineup, because both of them were The same is excellent, but there is only one center position. The coaching staff has discussed this matter for many days without any results. In the end, Fitch adopted an unprecedented "double center tactic". Both Olajuwon and Thompson stayed on the court. The fifth position, or they all play the fifth position on the court. The benefits of this tactic were fully demonstrated in the game!

At that time, the NBA was not as popular as small ball tactics like it is now. Most teams played in a well-behaved manner. The double center forwards protected their own inside penalty area and the opponent's penalty area was very lethal. Almost became the possession of these two people. In his rookie season, Olajuwon averaged 20.6 points, 11.9 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game. This data is in the selection of the best rookie after the end of the season In all ballots, only Jordan and Olajuwon's names appeared, and the third name did not appear.

In the second season of Olajuwon's entry into the NBA, the Rockets led by him went all the way to the Western Conference Finals. The opponent was the Los Angeles Lakers. No one believed that the Rockets would win. The Lakers were extremely strong that year. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar who scored 23 points and Worthy who scored 20 points, Magic Johnson who averaged 18.8 points and 12.6 assists per game, and of course the current Lakers coach Byron who averaged 15.4 points per game -Scott, and a group of very good role players, such as the current Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak, Michael Cooper, Mike McGee, etc., in the previous season, they followed the finals revenge They defeated the Celtics and won the championship. This season, they won 62 victories in the regular season, ranking first in the league. Facing a strong enemy, the Rockets' road to advancement is slim.

In the first game of the Western Conference Finals, the Lakers won the game without any surprises, but from the second game on, the Rockets' twin towers began to exert their strength. The old Kareem Abdul-Jabbar could not withstand the impact of the two tall centers. In the end, the Rockets miraculously won three games in a row. In the crucial fifth game, Olajuwon, who had been playing well all the time, could not control his anger and fell into the trap of the Lakers. ——Koop As cannon fodder, Cheek successfully clashed with Olajuwon, and both were sent off. At the last moment of the game, Olajuwon wrapped his head in a towel and watched helplessly as his teammates fell into a trap. In the predicament, the points were narrowed little by little until they were tied, 112:112, and the last attack was the Rockets' ball.

And this scene of Olajuwon's extreme loss is the most book-worthy moment of Kupchak, who has not been successful in his career!

At the critical moment, Thompson saved the team!He took off directly with his back to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, caught the ball in the air and turned around, and then used an unconventional action to throw the ball out!The basketball bounced several times on the rim and finally fell into the net. Sampson beat the Lakers!The Rockets beat the Lakers to reach the Finals!
This is the second time the Rockets have reached the finals in history!The Los Angeles Lakers became the back of Olajuwon's victory. This game was also the last NBA game of Lakers general manager Kupchak. The great general manager career of the era.

In the finals, the Rockets’ opponent was the Boston Celtics. Houston and Boston fought six games. Throughout the series, Olajuwon was an insurmountable mountain for the Bostonians. Olajuwon averaged 26.9 points and 11.9 points per game. Rebounds, 3.4 blocked shots, shooting 53% from the field, while his opponent, Robert Parish, nicknamed "The Chief", averaged only 15 points, 8.8 rebounds, and shooting 47.1% from the field. Outside, Larry Bird beat John Lucas II, averaging 25.9 points and 9.3 assists per game. As a guard, he shot 51.7% from the field and 41.1% from three-pointers!In the first five games, the Rockets, who were 2-3 behind, could not retreat. The team was united and the score was ahead of the Celtics. But at this moment, the scene of the Western Conference Finals was repeated. Ting's fringe players clashed with Thompson, and both were sent off. This time, the goddess of luck did not favor the Rockets. The Celtics defeated the Rockets 2-4 and won the championship that year.

But there is no doubt that the prospect of the Rockets with the twin towers is very, very bright, and Olajuwon is also on the road to becoming a superstar. This is only Olajuwon's second season!It is worth mentioning that in the fifth game of the finals, Olajuwon gave eight big blocks to his opponent alone, breaking the NBA finals block record! (This record was broken by Howard in 2009).

In the 1987-1988 season, unfortunately, Thompson was injured and only played 19 games. Olajuwon brought the team into the playoffs by himself, but was eliminated by the Supersonics in the first round. The following year, the Rockets Quickly traded Thompson, completely announcing the end of the era of the twin towers, and also showed that the Rockets have officially become Olajuwon's team. Ball and 24.8 blocks, beat Barkley to be called the rebounding king, Olajuwon turned into a Super Saiyan in the playoffs, averaging 14.5 points and 3.5 rebounds per game, the Rockets in the first round of the playoffs The opponent is the Dallas Mavericks, who have just established the team for only eight years. This season, the Mavericks are strong and even. The team has 37.5 players scoring 16.8+, 11 players scoring 5+, and six players scoring 8+. Olajuwon is like a team. A lonely Lion King faced a group of hungry wolves of the Mavericks, and the Rockets finally lost 9:15.

In the 1989-1990 season, Olajuwon's data once again ushered in a blowout growth. He once again won the rebounding title with an average of 14.5 rebounds per game, and he was also called the blocked shot king with an average of 4.5 blocks per game. He was the first inside behemoth with 14+ blocks and 4.5+ blocks in the last season. At the same time, he also became the third player after Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Walton to combine the rebounding and blocking shots in one season. On March 1990, 3 On the 4st, Olajuwon contributed an incredible 29 points, 18 rebounds, 10 assists and 11 blocks in the game against the Warriors, winning flowers and applause with the "quadruple double".But after the league reviewed the video of the game, it canceled Olajuwon's 1 assist in that game.But Olajuwon did not make the fans wait too long. Only 25 days later, when the Rockets played against the Bucks, Olajuwon scored 40 points on 14 of 6 shots in 18 minutes, plus 16 rebounds, 10 assists and an amazing 11 points. blocks (the Bucks only have 5).With the only standard "quadruple double" in his career, he dedicated a wonderful performance to the NBA.

In this season, Olajuwon's performance can only be described as a miracle, but the Rockets' record is only 41 wins and 41 losses. At that time, the second person of the Rockets was Otis Thorpe, who averaged 17.5 Points and 10.5 rebounds, the data looks pretty good, but in fact, he played the position of a power forward. In that era, there were many talents in the fourth position, Barkley, Rodman, Karl Malone, McHale , Lucas, and so on, in a word, now inside players who scored 20+10 are called top insiders. In that era, 20+10 insiders were only considered high-quality insiders. History gave Thorpe an excellent position. A role player and a blue-collar insider, many of his 17.5 points per game were scored after Olajuwon double-teamed the ball. It is obviously a bit counterproductive to let him be the second-in-command.

The team's third head is named Mitchell Wiggins, who averaged 15 points per game that year. He is a very good shooter, but he also needs Olajuwon to lead him out. Now almost no one Recognize him, but his son shined in the 2014 draft. His son is named Andrew Wiggins.

The Rockets struggled to secure a place in the playoffs. They faced the powerful Los Angeles Lakers led by Johnson again in the first round. The hard support throughout the season made Olajuwon exhausted after entering the playoffs. He averaged 18.5 points per game in the playoffs The shooting percentage of 44.3% is Olajuwon's worst season in the playoffs except for the last two seasons. Olajuwon's poor performance is of course difficult for other players to help. In the end, the Rockets were defeated 1:3. knocked out.

In the 1990-1991 season, in order to share the pressure on Olajuwon, the Rockets introduced a heavyweight player. He is Kenny Smith. Yes, this person is sitting in the TNT studio in the United States, laughing and annoyed with Barkley The ace partner who scolded, everyone knows that Barkley kissed the ass of the donkey because of Yao Ming. In fact, Barkley’s bet was not the ass of the donkey, but Kenny Smith’s ass, but because the latter did not want to be in the public eye Undressing, this task will be done by the donkey, because in English "Ass" can be said to be a buttocks, and it can also be said to be a donkey.

Closer to home, Kenny Smith is a very good shooter and passer. In his first season with the Rockets, he averaged 17.7 points and 7.1 assists per game, and his shooting percentage reached 52%!He is the originator of Richard Hamilton's style of play-as long as he is on the court, he will run tirelessly and make the opponent tired. As long as he is on the court, the opponent will not dare to double-team Olajuwon wantonly, because Smith The three-pointer is even more destructive than Olajuwon's inside storm!

The Rockets' internal and external double repairs have achieved good results, and they have made great strides all the way, but Olajuwon was injured by Bill Cartwright's elbow and injured his eye, missing 26 games throughout the season!Obviously, the Rockets without Olajuwon would have difficulty even entering the playoffs, let alone the championship, but at this moment, Mike Maxwell broke out without warning!
Mike Maxwell was kicked to the Rockets by the Spurs last season. He averaged only 9 points per game and shot only 27% of the three-pointers as a shooting guard. He suddenly exploded this season!He averaged 17 points per game and his three-point shooting percentage increased to 34%!In addition, his fierce defense and fearless physical confrontation earned him the nickname "Mad Max".He and Smith's three-pointers are one left and one right, like two uppercuts, hitting the opponent's eyes with gold stars and old eyesight, and finally adding Olajuwon's stick to directly KO the opponent. This kind of game rhythm is for the Rockets. Tried and tested.

This season the Rockets achieved a record-high 52 victories. Coach Che Downey won the trophy for the best coach. Olajuwon averaged 13.8 rebounds and 3.9 blocks per game, which is still the highest in the league, but in In the first round of the playoffs, the Rockets still couldn't get over the hurdle of the Lakers.

In the 1991-1992 season, the Rockets only achieved a record of 42 wins and 40 losses. Although Olajuwon's personal data is still shining, the team failed to enter the playoffs. The inaction of the top level led to this situation. I didn’t pay attention to bringing in other excellent helpers. I knew how to make money, make money, make money all day long, and I didn’t share the money I made. As the league’s top insider, I only got 317 million In dollars, look at Larry Bird of the Celtics, with a salary of 700 million US dollars!How can I be worse than him!be happy!
The next season, the Rockets hired Rudy Tomjanovich as the head coach. At the meeting, the Rockets used the No. 11 in the first round to select one of the players with the greatest heart in NBA history and the most NB role player in history, Robert Horry.In his rookie season, Horry averaged 10 points and 5 rebounds per game. In the second year, the Rockets wanted to trade him for the Pistons' Sean Aiolet. Horry had already entered the Pistons' starting list and wore a Pistons uniform. Ready to play, but was informed that Aiolet failed the physical examination and the deal was voided. At this time, who would have known that the Rockets inadvertently saved a super lore king who had repeatedly performed brilliantly at critical moments of the game!
1992 was an extremely turbulent year for the NBA and even the world basketball. At the Barcelona Olympics in this year, the Dream Team was born. Jordan, Barkley, Bird, Drexler, Johnson, Stockton, Ma Long, these people turned the Olympic basketball game into their exhibition game. They won all eight games and won the medal with an average margin of 43.8 points per game. This allowed fans all over the world to see the charm of the NBA. NBA has really gone to the world. This year, the Celtics veteran Larry Bird retired, and a tall and fat man named Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal became the draft pick of that year. The No. 76 pick and was selected by the Magic, a short and fat man named Charles Barkley came to the Phoenix Suns from the 54ers, and the Rockets achieved a historic [-] wins. Under the leadership, they reached the second round of the playoffs. Their opponent was the Seattle SuperSonics with Ricky Pierce, Gary Payton and Sean Kemp.The two teams battled for seven games, and finally, in the final round of the seventh game, the Sonics had the last laugh.

At the end of the 1993 season, Michael Jordan announced his retirement. Before that, he won three consecutive NBA championships. The shadow of Jordan and the Bulls "suppressed" the entire NBA. Martial arts heroes rise together, competing in the Central Plains, Barkley of Phoenix, Utah Shuangsha of Salt Lake City, rising star O'Neal of the Magic, Ewing of the New York Knicks, Glenn Rice of the Miami Heat, Reggie Rice of the Pacers Le, Joe Dumars of the Pistons, Richmond of the Kings, David Robinson of the Spurs, Wilkins of the Los Angeles Clippers, everyone wants to rely on this opportunity to win a championship ring, but I never thought that the Rockets' Olajuwon was the first to win the championship after Jordan abdicated.

And it's two of them!You say you are angry or not!

Next, there will be Olajuwon's two championships, as well as the peak duel with Ewing in the finals, and finally living in a foreign country in desperation. Comrades, the excitement is coming!Don't miss out tomorrow night!