The invincible kryptonite of basketball

The bad news is that they have been resting all the time, and the state maintenance of the players is a problem.

So the team is playing full-court confrontation almost every day, and psychological education after the game is also being done.

Sometimes being too strong is not necessarily a good thing.

Two days later, Game [-] of the Rockets and Mavericks kicked off in Dallas.

Before the game, foreign media predicted that it would be a fierce battle, but the result was not the same as they expected.

Butler felt cold, Harris and Embiid also continued the poor state of the series, the Mavericks did not cause too much trouble for the Rockets.

In the end, the Mavericks lost to the Rockets 87-105 at home and were eliminated 2-4.

After the game, Butler, who scored 19 points, 10 rebounds and 4 steals, stood on the court for a long time before leaving, and he could feel that he was very unwilling to lose.

Cuban, the owner of the Mavericks on the sidelines, also frowned.

The conflict between Butler and Carlisle, the team's unsatisfactory performance in the playoffs, Nowitzki is one year older, and there are too many problems left for him in the summer.

With the end of this game, the opponent of the Pelicans in the second round has finally been determined.

The second season of the Pelicans War Playoffs is about to begin.

The Pelicans aim to defend the title, while the Rockets' strength has increased significantly compared to last season.

This round of the divisional semifinals is definitely the most interesting part of the second round.

At the same time, all other matchups between the East and West ended.

The Cavaliers swept the Heat 4-0.

James and Whiteside are merciless in the face of their old clubs.

And with the Heat being swept this time, Miami's Wade era is also likely to usher in its end.

The Knicks eliminated the Pacers 4-1.

The Raptors defeated the Hornets 4-1.

Walker has player options this summer. After playing the peak season of his career, he needs to think carefully about where his next stop is.

The Eagles eliminated the Bucks 4-2.

Antetokounmpo's performance in the last two games was a bit eye-catching. If his shooting doesn't improve this summer, his progress towards superstardom will also stop.

The Warriors swept the Clippers 4-0.

In the playoffs, the Warriors' four-star performance was significantly better than the regular season, including Iguodala, who only lifted the coffin in the playoffs, and showed his competitive state. The Warriors in the playoffs are not so easy to mess with.

The Spurs swept the Trail Blazers 4-0.

Popovich didn't give Lillard and the Blazers a chance.

This year's first round has never been smoother, with all teams from the top half eventually winning.

The matchups in the divisional semifinals are all released.

Cavaliers VS Eagles.

It's a reunion of friends, and Budenholzer's chance to avenge the past that got swept away.

Of course, that chance still looks pretty slim.

Knicks VS Raptors.

This time the suspense in the semifinals is much greater. The Knicks' Big Three haven't had a long run-in time, and Howard's playoff status this year is also a problem.

Lowry and DeRozan have a chance to take off their garbage brothers' hats through this round of the series.

Warriors VS Spurs.

On paper, the Warriors are obviously stronger, but no one dares to underestimate the Spurs led by Popovich in the playoffs.

Especially this season, Leonard's performance has reached the peak of his career. No one knows what kind of strength he can display with this kind of super performance that combines offense and defense.

Pelicans VS Rockets.

After the press conference after the sixth game with the Mavericks, a reporter asked Rockets coach D'Antoni about the second round match.

"That was an opportunity God gave us."

D'Antoni used a very vivid metaphor.

"We failed last season. We were full of confidence but only won one game. That was a blow to us. We worked hard for this season. Now we are stronger, so we are lucky that our opponent Pelicans Pelicans instead of Warriors, that's the chance God gave us."

D'Antoni's next words further demonstrated his confidence.

What he said was the position of the Rockets, what he didn't say was his own.

At the beginning, because he chose the Pelicans and changed his mind temporarily, he has been compared with Stevens all the time in the past two years, and he has never stopped.

And because the Pelicans have been so good, he's been the one to be demeaned most of the time.

It was like a dark cloud hanging over his head, a lingering invisible pressure, which made him unable to breathe.

Now he has the opportunity to remove this dark cloud himself, and the opportunity is very good.

The Rockets said this was their chance, and the Pelicans didn't take it lightly.

Although there was no game for nearly a week, the players were very serious.

The strength of this Rockets team is much stronger than that of the Thunder, and the 4-2 elimination of the Mavericks in the first round also proved their strength.

The new penalty scale, plus the playoffs, superstars get together and strong substitutes, this is the standard championship configuration.

Stevens also discussed the game tactical plan with Tang Tian.

He will increase Tang Tian's possession rate.

This does not mean that the training in the first round is meaningless, on the contrary, the training effect has already been achieved.

Jokic, Davis, even Bojan and Williams are all out, and this is the harvest.

Facing an opponent of the same level as the Rockets, retraining will be death.

Therefore, this round of the series is a series of real swords and guns between the two sides.

Chapter 967 The Playoffs at the Beginning of the Century (Repair)

The day before the start of the Western Conference semifinals, the Rockets arrived in New Orleans.

I don't know when it will start. The Pelicans are like a giant, waiting for their opponents to challenge each round of the series.

Compared with the last time, the Rockets are obviously much lower-key this time.

Training is not open to the public, and players do not accept interviews with reporters in private.

Not everyone is Whiteside. After experiencing last year's loss, the Rockets have obviously gained a lot of wisdom and learned smarter.

This performance made the Pelicans more cautious.

The Rockets have become stronger and have become so low-key, this game is not easy to play.

On the day of the game, the New Orleans Arena was packed.

Not only many fans came to the scene, but also many local rich people and celebrities came.

Playing the Thunder in the first round was just a warm-up, but now against the Rockets, it is a big scene, and there are 5 superstars alone.

They will not miss such an exposure opportunity.

Emilia Clarke, who played Dragon Mother in "Game of Thrones", also came to the scene.

The sixth season of "Game of Thrones" is now a global hit, and Clark's popularity is also quite high.

Facing the camera, he showed his iconic embarrassing smile, which drew cheers from the scene.

Actually...she looks better without smiling.

But another ex-actor who was there had more popularity here.

Elizabeth Olsen.

Olsen also came to the scene, and she and the maid each held a child in their arms.

Both Yongqi and Downs are over two years old, and they are really good-looking.

When the on-site photographer took the shot, there were overwhelming cheers on the scene.

Tang Tian is the hero of this city, and his two sons are like the sons of this city.

Of course, the most important thing is that he has completely inherited the genes of Tang Tian and Olsen, so he looks so good-looking.

Olsen was sitting in the front row, and Tang Tian went to greet her while warming up, and even kissed his two sons.

Careful movements and intimate manners reveal the kindness and love of a father.

Whistles kept ringing at the scene, and this was the first time they saw Tang Tian showing such emotion. You must know that what they usually saw was the basketball god who was killing everyone on the court.

Sure enough, even gods are still humans.

The pre-match warm-up was over, and the award ceremony for the best defensive player was held ahead of schedule.

Tang Tian received his fourth Best Defensive Player trophy from Tatum.

The scene cheered loudly.

This trophy boosted their morale, but their expectations for Tang Tian and the Pelicans were far more than that.

Just like what was written on the KT board they held high, won the MVP again and defended the title!

After the opening ceremony, the starting players of both teams came on stage one after another.

Both teams are regular lineups.

The encounter in the playoffs last year, coupled with the tit-for-tat regular season, the two teams already know each other quite well.

There is nothing to adjust in the lineup, what depends on the tactical arrangement and on-the-spot performance on both sides.

Cousins ​​and Davis jump ball in the center circle.

To the cheers of the fans, Davis dialed the ball back to the Pelicans' half court for the home team to take the lead.

Holiday held the ball across half court and handed it to Tang Tian.

Bzdelik and D'Antoni looked at each other on the sidelines. They judged right before the game. The Pelicans will not play like they played against the Thunder in the first round.

After the space was opened, Tang Tian greeted Jokic's high pick-and-roll, and then broke through with the ball.

The Rockets contracted very quickly, and Tang Tian was double-teamed by three people as soon as he reached the free throw line.

He passed the ball to Holiday who was open, but Paul's defense was quick.

The Pelicans' first wave of tactics failed.

After two seasons, Bzdelik built the Rockets' defense quite well.

Holiday ended up handing the ball to Davis, who played Markieff Morris in the low post.

Morris has various upper bodies. Although his height and wingspan are absolutely below, his confrontation is really tough.

It's not just Morris, the confrontation off the ball is also the sound of various muscle collisions.

Compared with the already high-intensity regular season, the players of the two teams on the field are completely biting each other's muscles.

Davis finally turned around to the basket without success, and chose to turn around and lean back.

"Dangdang!"

Frequent physical confrontations consumed a lot of energy, and he failed to score on his first shot.

Cousins ​​and Jokic protected the defensive rebound after the confrontation.

Paul took the ball to the organization in the frontcourt, signaled to pull away and then fed the ball to the inside Cousins.

During the regular season, the Rockets relied on Cousins' inside advantage to stalemate with the Pelicans and almost won the game.

But Jokic's confrontation is also very sufficient, and more importantly, Davis's help defense comes fast enough.

Cousins ​​threw the ball to Morris on the far end, and Morris was assisted by Ariza as soon as he caught the ball.

The Pelicans' defensive system is more complete than the Rockets, and they have a good understanding.