Legend of Tomorrow

? On April 17, the first game of Suns VS Rockets will be held in Phoenix.

The Suns have finalized the final 13-man roster for the playoffs. Veteran Tom Gugliotta has been excluded. There are too many inside players and he is not needed. The coaching staff brought in James Jones, who has been a marginal player all season, and planned to let him play for a while in garbage time to gain experience.

Gugliotta has decided to retire after this season. He has no objections to the coaching staff's arrangements. He has long been unable to play, and there is no need to go out of his way to show up in the playoffs.

In the past few years, as the team's highest-paid player, he has suffered miserably from the Suns. Local fans often say that if his contract was given to any second-rate star, the Suns would be invincible this season.

Before the game started, basketball experts from major media predicted the outcome, and they were all optimistic that the Suns would advance.

The few who are optimistic that the Rockets can win one or two games say that the key to the Rockets' victory is coach Jeff Van Gundy. He is more experienced than Mike D'Antoni and has won widespread praise when he was with the Knicks. The gap in ability will definitely become the key to victory or defeat.

Van Gundy, who has experience in the Finals, has maximized the potential of the Rockets. He said in an interview that he had thought of a way to deal with the Suns' run-and-gun tactics. Houston media touted Van Gundy. He lets everyone find their job and the players' job is just to do their job well.

In the NBA, whether players or coaches are judged, the most intuitive criterion is the performance. Van Gundy has made it to the finals, D'Antoni has only made it to the Western Conference Finals, it's that simple.

As a result, after the game started, the Rockets failed to guard against the run and gun, nor Guo Xu, and were miserably beaten.

The Suns started with the Twin Towers, with Stoudemire and Nene partnering inside, Marion small forward, and Bell shooting guard to strengthen their defense.

The Suns focus on position battles and do not attack the basket. Stoudemire and Nene cover their teammates in the middle and on both sides respectively. Guo Xu holds the ball to look for misplaced singles opportunities, breaks through or distributes the ball to the running Bell, who receives the ball. Take action.

The Suns' main tactic is to use their mobility to pull Yao Ming and Cato out of the penalty area. They don't guard against the perimeter and take shots when they have the opportunity, and guard against two super-quality inside cuts to hit the basket.

After joining the Suns, Nene has maintained a very good condition and has not suffered any serious injuries. His average playing time does not exceed 25 minutes per game, which greatly reduces the chance of becoming a glass man in the future. Needless to say, Stoudemire is recognized as one of the fastest insiders in the league.

The Suns took the lead in the first quarter. In the second quarter, Joe Johnson took the bench and was responsible for the organization with Blake. The offense was also in order. On the defensive end, Howard, Nene, and Haslem also performed well.

In the last ten games of the regular season,

D'Antoni has always used Joe Johnson as the sixth man, so that he can better utilize his offensive power and be responsible for holding the ball in isolation. Blake just dribbles the ball across half-court, passes the ball, waits to catch the ball, shoot and defend, so the pressure is greatly reduced.

The Suns led by 28 points in the third quarter and entered garbage time, and the starters all got off work early.

Young substitutes Diop, Jones, Howard, and Blake went on the court to practice. The only veteran who played was Kukoc. His task was to open up and create opportunities for his teammates. He could also play inside support tactics and help Blake share the organizational pressure.

Swingman Kirisek was discarded after entering the playoffs. He is good at everything but not good at anything. He will definitely leave after the season. The coaching staff needs time to train new players, and it is impossible to help a substitute with no potential to improve statistics. As for what contract he can sign in the future, it depends on the ability of the agent.

The Suns strengthened their defense of the penalty area after sending in human shields, and the Rockets' offense was in a mess.

Originally, the Rockets' backup point guard Mookie Norris had a good breakthrough and could attack the pick-and-roll with the ball, but in the mid-term, the Rockets traded him to the Knicks in exchange for retired veteran Mark Jackson.

Van Gundy singled out Jackson, believing that the walking veteran could help the team better than Norris and use his rich experience to organize the offense. However, this is impossible. How can a defender who cannot break through and pass the ball after half-court lead his teammates? What's more, he hasn't scored three points yet?

As early as the 1990s, when Van Gundy was an assistant coach with the Knicks, he formed a deep friendship with Jackson, laying a good foundation for the two to become commentary partners at ESPN in the future. The price of friendship is that the Rockets don't even have a qualified backup point guard.

The final score was 108 to 71, and the Suns won by 37 points.

Guo Xu played 30 minutes and scored 33 points, 2 rebounds, 11 assists and 2 steals. Six members of the Suns team scored in double figures.

Francis, Mobley, and Jim Jackson were playing crazy, and the two of them shot less than 40%. Yao Mingkong had an advantage but couldn't catch the ball. He only took 9 shots in 37 minutes and made 4 of them. Plus two free throws, he scored 10 points, 11 rebounds and 3 assists.

After the game, reporters asked Guo Xu to evaluate the Rockets, and Guo Xu spoke his mind this time. I feel that the Rockets' tactics are very strange. Yes, I think of such an adjective. Every time I play against the Rockets, I see Cato and Yao Ming playing together. On the defensive end, their positions overlap, and on the offensive end... I won't mention it. It’s so offensive. In short, the Rockets don’t have one person to attack, so everyone can guess who it is.”

He said this because he couldn't stand the American media always boasting about Cato's tough defense and protecting Yao Ming. Just because Cato is an American center, he is praised as a representative of toughness, but he is clearly a liability on the offensive end.

Guo Xu dared to defend Cato even if he was out of position. This guy has no skills and can hit his own feet when dribbling while facing the frame. Guo Xu can wait for the opportunity to steal the ball without worrying about his breakthrough. He doesn't have any shooting range, so he leaves the perimeter at will. The only way to score is to hit the basket after the pick-and-roll, or to catch the ball in the low post and lean on the opponent with his back to the opponent, turn around and wipe it into the basket.

Cato is Diop who has a stronger desire to attack. He can only play some role when guarding O'Neal and Duncan. He has the strength to withstand people and is not afraid of low-post attacks. The problem is that Yao Ming also defends like this. Because Cato is there, Yao Ming often has to defend pick-and-rolls.

After the game, Guo Xu's words won the approval and support of many Chinese fans. They certainly hope that Yao Ming will get more ball rights. If Cato leaves, he may have more rebounds.

The second game continued in Phoenix. Guo Xu's words did not change Van Gundy's mind. He firmly believed that sending the Twin Towers was the best way to deal with the Suns. The difference was that Cato was asked to defend the pick-and-roll instead.

The Rockets lost the game in exactly the same way as they played in the game. The Suns kept playing pick-and-rolls and off-ball screens on the wings. Guo Xu was able to make jump shots and break through with the ball with ease. His teammates caught the ball and shot or singled out during counterattacks, and their shooting percentages were guaranteed. .

This time Cato only played 16 minutes and left the game with 6 fouls, scoring 2 points and 2 rebounds. Being tough, he could not guard against Guo Xu's breakthrough or Stoudemire's mid-range shot. The Suns had no one to attack from behind. The penalty area allows him to develop his strengths.

In terms of three-pointers alone, the Suns completely overwhelmed the Rockets. They made 15 of 33 shots from the field and the Rockets made 3 of 10 three-pointers.

At the end of the game, 116-84, the Suns won by 32 points, leading the total score 2-0.

Guo Xu deliberately violated Cato's point, and even the fake fans saw that there was something wrong with the Rockets' formation. As a result, in the third game when the Rockets returned to their home court, Van Gundy still started the Twin Towers without adjusting the lineup.

He is such a rigid coach, and no one can change his mind.

He spent most of his time on the sideline with a frown on his face, standing and watching the game with the expression of a gambler who lost his money.

I don’t believe that you can’t win even if you try to push Big! Big! big! big!

At the end of the game, Van Gundy was lost and his eyes were confused.

Damn it, I really can’t win.

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