start with scouting

Chapter 456 The world of the strong
NO.19, the Kings vs. Rockets at home.

The Rockets acquired Howard in the off-season. The start of the new season is strong. The record of 16 wins and 9 losses temporarily ranks fifth in the Western Conference. .

Anyway, the Rockets are visibly getting better. They are no longer the Texas strongman for three consecutive years, but have two All-Stars, Harden and Howard, as well as a new-age forward who competes with Hayward and Leonard. Chandler Parsons who can play again.

When it came to the joint practice before the game, assistant coach Snyder asked Su Yang: "Is there anything that needs special attention in this game?"

Su Yang thought for a while, then shook his head and responded: "The Rockets don't have a specific goal, they just hit wherever they go, we just need to arrange offense and defense normally, they will definitely attack the inside line at the beginning, if it's hard to make a profit, they will quickly change to running around Nana..."

As someone who has been there, Su Yang knows the Rockets’ style too well. Harden is a boss without a goal. McHale is a head coach without a system. money.

Anyway, the main personnel of the Rockets have never thought about competing for the championship, let alone what they will do this year and what they will do next year, just take one step at a time.

At seven o'clock, the game officially started.

The Rockets won the jump ball, passed back and forth with their hands, and tried to hang it to Howard, but Beverly's passing skills were too poor, and the Rockets' screen was too simple. It wasted 18 seconds. A pass to Howard.

Howard took the ball and sat with his back, knocked Cousins ​​away to get half a step, and immediately stepped up and took a hook shot.

The basketball smashed into the net and caused Cousins' thug to foul. Howard got an extra penalty and made an easy hit.

That's really unstoppable. Howard, who has recovered from his back injury, has no opponent by Bynum, and his low-post attack is really the best in the league.

The Kings were easy to attack, and the Rockets arranged for Howard to guard the paint area, the three-point line and the flank area, one-on-one and one-on-one defense, squeezed and chased every screen, resolutely refused to give three-pointers, and forced the Kings to make a more difficult game. Make a quick stop for a mid-range shot.

The king's Thornton hit the iron, Howard grabbed the rebound, Harden immediately raised his hand and made a long pass. Step by step flying letters, backhand layup.

Turning around, the Kings attacked again. Facing the Rockets' routine of sticking to the inside and forcing the CIC, Vazquez made a sudden stop and shot.

The basketball hit the iron, Parsons grabbed the rebound, accelerated and rushed directly, brought it to the right elbow in the frontcourt in three seconds, and made an emergency stop.

The basketball hit the net, and the Rockets led 7-0 at the start. The momentum was quite fierce. Jeremy Lin, who has always been calm, also stood up and shouted. Unfortunately, Chris Finch, the assistant coach of the Rockets and future Timberwolves head coach, glared at him and hurriedly sat down.

Su Yang didn't panic at all, he asked for a glass of Gatorade casually, and leisurely crossed his legs to observe the game, as if he had a chance of winning.

Maybe it's because the aura of domineering is too strong.

Immediately afterwards, Rocket Jones singled out a jumper and hit the iron. Harden made an emergency stop and retreated and made a mid-range shot. Parsons made an air cut to attack the basket and scored a sneak attack. Foley made a three-point shot in 23 seconds...

Howard did not get the ball for a long time except for the opening.

On the King's side, Cousins, Antetokounmpo and others stumbled and made mistakes and fouls, gradually tying the score.

With 4 minutes left in the first quarter of the game, Rockets coach Mike Hale suddenly realized that Howard hadn't got the ball for a long time, and reminded the Rockets to pass the ball to Howard. Offensive foul.

Between you and me, after the first quarter of the game, the Rockets Parsons and Harden played well. The two combined for 12 of 8 and scored 21 points and 2 assists. In comparison, Howard scored 1 of 1 and added 1 3 free throw, 2 points, 5 blocks and [-] rebounds.

That kind of data makes Howard look like a blue-collar center.

The game entered the stage of substitute confrontation at the beginning of the second quarter. Thomas Jr. and Gay led the Kings against the Rockets led by Parsons and Garcia. They directly beat the Rockets ruthlessly, helping the Kings establish an 8-point lead and maintain it until halftime Finish.

Back in the locker room during the halftime break, Su Yang briefly summarized and analyzed: "The only thing that needs attention in the second half is Harden's foul..."

Coming back from the halftime break, the Rockets used the old routine - Howard guarded the inside and resolutely refused to give three points from the outside. The state of the first quarter.

After three quarters, the Kings led by 10 points.

Entering the fourth quarter of the game, Su Yang let Thomas Jr. and Gay lead the team as usual. The two screened each other, and the offensive efficiency was still high. On the Rockets side, McHale temporarily changed to Howard and Brooks Jr. to lead the team. Line efficiency is very low.

The King quickly established a 15-point lead. McHale hurriedly dispatched Harden and Parsons and other main players in advance. Unfortunately, Su Yang had already reminded him that Harden failed to make consecutive fouls. Si was also locked by Antetokounmpo.

In the end, the Kings scored in double figures and defeated the Rockets 106 to 91, making a good start against the strong teams in the Southwest Division.

Howard only took 7 shots in the game. At the end of the game, Su Yang hacked the shark to make him mentally. He only scored 13 points by relying on free throws.

Defeating the Rockets, the Kings have a record of 19 wins and 6 losses, which is the same as the Clippers' wins. They have a dominant record and rank third in the West.

For being only behind the Spurs and Thunder, the Kings and the fans are quite satisfied. The media and other fans are very surprised. Who would have thought that the Kings would have the third record in the Western Conference? field.

There was another wave of praise.

On the 21st, the Kings flew to Phoenix to challenge the Suns in an away game. Vazquez and Antetokounmpo were targeted by shorts, and the rest of the Kings were double-teamed. Unfortunately, both of them had poor three-point shooting and failed to provide space. They lost to the Suns 9 points.

On the 23rd, the Kings returned to Sacramento to face the Pelicans after a day off. The first three quarters were inextricably fought. In the fourth quarter, Cousins ​​and Millsap were double-teamed. Gordon made it difficult to provide support, Thomas Jr. was locked by Zhu Huo Ledi, and Gay was also made very uncomfortable by Aminu, losing 13 points.

Su Yang suffered a two-game losing streak for the first time in the season, and Su Yang knew that it was mainly because after the king's record was outstanding, other teams began to target.

In order to prevent the mentality of the players from changing drastically, he went back to the locker room after the game and took a vaccination in advance: "As you can see, after we become stronger, the opponent pays more attention to it, so the next game will be more challenging. be prepared…"

The Christmas holiday is approaching and the game schedule is dense. The Kings continue to face the Heat back-to-back on the 24th. Chalmers clashed with Cousins ​​at the beginning and each received a technical foul.

Su Yang racked his brains and directed the whole process on the spot. Unfortunately, at the end of the fourth quarter, Thomas Jr. failed to arrange a lore.

The game dragged into overtime, LeBron decisively took over the onslaught, and Antetokounmpo and others fouled too much, making it difficult to form an effective defense.

In the end, the Kings regretted losing to the Heat 103 to 108.

The Kings suffered a three-game losing streak for the first time. Compared with the previous wins with five or six players in double figures, this time Cousins ​​scored 32 points, Thomas Jr. scored 27 points, Millsap and Gay scored 26 points, and none of the others scored. People who score more than 5 points are clearly targeted.

Su Yang didn't say much, just let Christmas be a good one, and distributed Christmas gifts to the whole team - customized Rolex with names written on it.

On the 27th, the Kings returned for Christmas and played against the Spurs at home. They fought hard for four quarters and lost 104 to 112.

The game was very intense, but the Kings were not as good at details as the Spurs, and Ginobili did not have an advantage when they came off the bench. Although they had a home court advantage, they were still not as good as the Spurs in all aspects. The room fell silent.

The four-game losing streak is too lethal, and it is too easy for players to have self-doubt. Fortunately, it has been expected and warned in advance.

To briefly summarize, after the press conference, Su Yang returned to the office to resume the match, and was also in trouble.

"I originally planned to make it to the playoffs, but later I found that the team was stronger than expected, and I planned to make it to the second round, but looking at it now, there is a big gap between the team and the Spurs and other strong teams. So far, or try to charge again?"

(End of this chapter)