The Legend of Small Steel Cannons in the NBA

Chapter 160 Battle Rocket

The night in Texas is quite long, but for the tired Raptors players, this half-day vacation is very precious, and everyone stays in bed.But Kyle didn’t. He still chose to get up early in this strange city, jogging for a lap first, and then came to the training hall in Houston to train alone, mainly to cultivate the awareness of switchbacks and air cuts. He was ready to make changes.

The Houston Rockets, a team with traditional insiders, from Elvin Hayes who joined the league in the ancient land-splitting era, to Moses Malone in the 70s, to Ralph Sanderson in the 80s, from From Hakeem Olajuwon, who won two championships, to Yao Ming, the "little giant" of the new century.These inside stars run through almost the entire history of the Rockets.

Kyle's later generations were also quite ignorant of basketball, but Yao Ming's joining gave him a deeper understanding of this sport. At that time, the basketball storm in China was caused by this giant. The NBA has thus come into people's attention and has become the most well-known and influential sports event in China.

In 02, the Rockets won the No. 7 pick with only a 03% probability, and Yao Ming they chose became the first foreign No. 04 pick in league history.The arrival of Yao Ming benefited the Rockets a lot. The commercial value contained in him made the impoverished Rockets become the darling of merchants overnight.In the case of swallowing eggs in the first game, Yao Ming accumulated a lot of money, and finally played his own worth and won people's recognition. In [-]-[-], they led the team back to the playoffs. During the offseason, they used the team's backcourt combination Francis and Mobley to trade for the thriving McGrady, forming another highly topical combination.

But this season, their life is not easy. Tracy McGrady has been sidelined repeatedly due to injury, and Yao Ming leads the team alone. Currently, they have suffered six consecutive losses, with a record of [-] wins and [-] losses, ranking third from the bottom in the Western Conference.The championship contenders projected before the season were nothing short of the most disappointing team in the league.Yao Ming was even more criticized, and Tracy McGrady, who was recuperating, was also shot while lying down.

The "Houston Chronicle" even bluntly stated that tonight will be the best time for them to end their losing streak, because their opponent is the Raptors who are short-handed, young and unstable, and the Raptors have just been taught how to behave by the two big brothers next door , Now is the time when confidence and fighting spirit are at a low point.The reason is far-fetched, but it can also be seen that Houston urgently needs victory to stop the bleeding.

Among them, the point guard matchup is wonderful, and Alston will meet his old club for the first time.Facing Kyle who squeezed him away, he responded before the game.

"Kyle Lowry! Tonight I'll let him know how far we've come. I'm going to give the Toronto guys a loss. That's what I'm going to do, and I'm going to do it."

He publicly expressed his dissatisfaction with his old club and was full of malice towards Kyle.After Alston came to the Rockets, he quickly found his position, averaging 13.5 points, 6.8 assists and 4.2 rebounds per game. He performed very well, and he is also qualified to say that.

What can Kyle say?Lost dog?In fact, everything is performed on the field!Who wouldn't talk nonsense.

Not long after nightfall, the Toyota Center Arena was overcrowded. Although the record was poor, the audience was very supportive, especially the Chinese. It is said that the number of season ticket buyers has exceeded 3000, and it is only Chinese and overseas Chinese!Knowing that the capacity of the Toyota Center is only 18000 people, one can imagine Yao Ming's influence.

Banners are flying, 11 jerseys are all over the audience, and the shouts of Yao Ming are endless when he comes out.

On the other side of the Pacific Ocean, Yu Jia and Zhang Weiping warmed up before the game. The game will be broadcast live on CCTV, and they will be the commentators.

"Welcome everyone to watch the Houston Rockets vs. Toronto Raptors in the regular season of the 05-06 NBA season. The players have already warmed up. Taking advantage of this time, let Teacher Zhang analyze the characteristics of the Raptors."

"The Toronto Raptors are showing signs of getting started this season. They have a record of [-] wins and [-] losses, and are currently ranked eighth in the Eastern Conference. But I don't think they can make the playoffs. Look at Lowry, he is very popular. He is the most popular rookie this year. After playing a few good games, he couldn't find the rhythm at all with the Spurs and Mavericks. He is still too immature. And he is very irrational, and he seems to have four technical fouls at the moment."

"Three times!" Yu Jia reminded and corrected.

"Oh! Well! It's three times, but he has only played a few games? He is too grumpy, that's one. The second point is that the distribution of the ball is very unreasonable. He is not a qualified point guard. He has nothing but breakthroughs. No, it will be useless if he is double-teamed. And you see who he gave the ball to? Some role players, Bosh is the core, and it should be reasonable to play Bosh. Looking at his body, he is short and fat, You say it's impossible to rely on him to save the Raptors."

"Actually, I personally think that the Raptors are pretty good. Although Kyle is a rookie, his average of 20+8+5+2+ per game is outstanding, and his defense is still very good. Bosh averaged accurate points per game. 20+ rebounds and 10+ rebounds, this pair is still very young, and there are giants like Jamal, Peterson, and Jaylen Rose, as long as they can maintain stability, there is still hope for the playoffs.” Yu Jia is different view.

"These data look good, but in fact the Raptors have a lot of problems in their style of play. Their losses to the Spurs and the Mavericks are proof. The zone defense hurt them a lot, especially Lowry. Bosh met a powerful power forward When he was playing, he played very softly and always wandered outside the three-point line. This is not what an inside player should do. He should be active in the penalty area, which helps to defend and protect the frame."

"And what about the Rockets?"

"McGrady's injury is the biggest problem for the Rockets. Yao Ming is now leading this group of people. Except for Alston, no one else can help at all. Hyde is a rookie, and his three-pointers are not effective. Howard is old. As for There is no one available on the front and back. Such a configuration is extremely unreasonable."

"Thank you, Mr. Zhang, for your wonderful comments. Now let's turn our attention to the competition."

The Raptors' starting lineup remains unchanged, with the Rockets' point guard Alston, rookie Luther Hyde at shooting guard, Ryan Bowen at small forward, Juwan Howard at power forward, and Yao Ming at center.

The Rockets got the first attack in the opening game. Yao Ming was too tall and had an obvious jump ball advantage.

Alston controlled the ball to the top of the arc, staring at the fat man he had despised, feeling extremely unhappy in his heart.Kyle has been the core since he came. He has worked so hard for the Raptors for so long, but he kicked as soon as he said it. God is so unfair.Now is an opportunity, he wants to let people all over the world know, especially Canadians, that Ralph Alston is still the "jumping soul", isn't you Kyle the star of hope?Today he was going to beat this star with great potential until he couldn't take care of himself, crying for his father and mother.

Just when Alston was getting excited, Kyle moved. This guy stood still and dribbled the ball back and forth. Is he stupid?So Kyle rushed forward, aimed at everything on the dribble line, picked up the ball and ran away. At this time, who can catch up with the Rockets players?Alstom?He was dumbfounded!Stealed?Shame!

"What is Alston doing here? Has he lost his mind?" Zhang Weiping was also surprised.

"Lowry's speed is so fast, and his stride is so big, it's hard to imagine that his body has so much energy."

Alstom was in a heavy heart, and he lost face on the first ball, which was too embarrassing.So this time he didn't stop holding the ball, and directly bypassed Uncle Huo and rushed to the basket.After throwing Kyle away, Alstom was in a turbulent mood, aiming at the basket and going hard.

But Jamal and Peterson in front watched and helped each other, and Alstom flinched a bit.He knows Peterson's defense. He is an absolute ruthless character. With the addition of a seven-footer Jamal, he seems to be taken aback. As for the pass to Yao Ming who is stuck behind Jamal, he has automatically filtered it. Yes, he was determined to return the ball.With this in mind, Alstom no longer hesitated, and just pulled up and cast.

The ball was picked from the fingertips, and Alstom felt good and should be able to score.Feeling good about yourself is fine, but self-indulgence can be fatal.Kyle shot out from his left side, and slapped the ball that had just left his hand, and Alston's face turned colorful when it landed.Blocked?Was hated by this fat rookie?Alstom is not well.

After picking up the ball, Jaylen quickly pushed two steps. It felt too slow, so he hit the ground and passed the ball to Kyle while walking.The two, one left and one right, rushed to the front field.

Hyde and Ryan Bowen followed closely behind, but the distance was widened instead, and the speed could not keep up at all, or they had already formed inertia and were just acting.This kind of two-on-two fast break, they have no chance at all, and it makes no difference whether they can catch up or not. Maybe this is what they think.Kyle was not greedy for credit, and after reaching the basket, he threw it to the side of the basket. Jay flew to press the ball and dunked, a perfect alley-oop.

The audience on the sidelines was numb to lose, but Alston was cut off by Kyle at the beginning of the game, which was unacceptable. It should be given to the core Yao Ming!
Sam, who was walking on the sidelines, smiled happily, and Kyle finally regained the long-lost aggressiveness.At the same time, I am glad to get Alston away and let Kyle take over. Now it seems that this is an extremely correct decision.

And in the far east, our dear director Zhang finally couldn't stand it anymore, "What is this Alston doing? The ball should be given to Yao Ming! He is good, he came by himself, isn't this a fool!"

"Alston was really impatient in these two rounds. Maybe he wanted to prove it to his old club."

"Such a rush to perform doesn't fit Yao Ming at all. It's no different from Mike James last year. The hidden danger of the Rockets point guard has not been eliminated at all."

Jeff Van Gundy frowned, Alston's loss of focus on the first ball made him unhappy, and the second ball's random hits finally made him go crazy, roaring deafeningly, "Ruff! Are you tired? Want to rest You can come down."

Alston had a close heart and had to be honest.Van Gundy usually has a set, and if there is a slight mistake, he will spit, and if there is a slight mistake, he will growl.This time he honestly gave the ball to Yao Ming, and then ran while watching the show.

Yao Ming stuck in a good position at a 45-degree angle on the left, caught the ball well, didn't have much skill and footwork, hit a turnaround jumper, and hit it!Crisp and neat.

The audience finally became a little noisy, and finally the goal was scored!This is justified, this is what they want to see, the Chinese fans are happy!
But after a while, Jamal served the ball, Kyle crossed the center line in three or five steps after taking the ball, and reached the top of the arc in the next second, and then did not stop. The advantage of strength caused Alston to lose his position. Kyle went to the free throw line and changed direction to wipe out Hyde who kept retreating, and picked the basket and hit it again!

Yao Ming barely passed the top of the arc, his eyes were dazed, his face was stunned, it was too fast!An attack takes less than four seconds, and the Rockets' formation hasn't been set up yet!

As one of the representatives of positional offensive and defensive warfare, the Rockets did not have the slightest defense.Uncle Huo didn't react as fast as Yao Ming, he just reached the top of the arc.

Coming back this time, Jamal went around to defend Yao Ming, but Yao Ming was tall enough, and Alston's passing skills were still good, and the lob was just right for Yao Ming who had the advantage.

Kyle saw Alston's cautious lob shot and ran back to the penalty area without hesitation.Yao Ming held the ball high, aimed at the basket, and bowed.Kyle didn't wait for him to make a move, he stepped forward and took out the ball. Yao Ming's reaction was half a beat slow, and he just watched Kyle complete the steal and gallop, feeling helpless all over his body.

Kyle finally came into contact with Yao Ming at close range. His first sense was height. He only reached Yao Ming's half-waist position. He needed to take off to grab the ball, so he could know Yao Ming's size.The second sense is that he is big enough. Kyle feels that he not only feels short in front of Yao Ming, but also feels like a kid.The third sense is really too slow, the reaction is slow!Slow down!When Kyle came in front of Yao Ming, Yao Ming should have noticed it, but his action was just to continue to hold the ball high, and Kyle rushed up and flew to stab the ball. If he handles it a little better, or passes it to Alston, it may be a chance .

Kyle once again completed a defensive counterattack, and Van Gundy finally couldn't bear it anymore.

"Lowry seems to be very fast. Alstom should respond nearby. Why is he standing there stupidly!" Director Zhang said slowly.

"This is a mistake by Yao Ming. The Raptors have obvious advantages in youth and speed. At this time, Van Gundy will be tested. How to break this unfavorable situation and how to deal with the speed of the Raptors, especially Lowry, is too fast, Alstom Can't catch up at all."

"The Rockets didn't give full play to their own advantages. They should control their rhythm, reduce mistakes, and increase their success rate. Handing the ball to Yao Ming is the right choice." Director Zhang finally said something reliable.

"That's right! Only reducing turnovers, controlling rebounds, and achieving success rates are the exclusive characteristics of the Rockets. As long as they fall into positional warfare, Lowry's speed advantage will be reduced to the minimum. The Raptors' defense is not good. , so that the opportunity for the Rockets will come."

"If Tracy McGrady is here, there is no need to worry too much. He can perfectly connect Yao Ming and outside players."

The two of you made suggestions for the Rockets, and they spoke clearly and logically.

(PS: I will post a 4000-word chapter today. I will make up a chapter tomorrow after I finish. Thanks to my brother for the 588 reward, and also thanks to the brothers and sisters who subscribed, as well as the readers who voted for monthly tickets and recommended. I am interested !grateful!)
(End of this chapter)