NBA's King of Talking

Chapter 635: Nearly a Quadruple Double in One Game

The point difference quickly grew to over 20 points, and the suspense of the game was gradually fading...

Of course, Westbrook is still passionate, while Harden still lacks energy.

It must be said that Harden's skills and passing awareness are superior to Westbrook's, but their attitudes towards the game are completely different. Westbrook never gives up; he gets frustrated and gets emotional, but he truly doesn't give up easily. In terms of game spirit and dedication to victory, he really resembles Kobe.

As for Harden, he's even more likely to give up than a member of Running Man. With that kind of energy and spirit, he's not good enough to compete for the championship.

After three quarters, the score difference was 22 points.

The Rockets don't seem to have any good solutions. Their core strengths are Westbrook and Harden, and if they are contained, it will be difficult for them to beat the opponent.

The Clippers' strategy was designed to limit both of them, but they double-teamed Harden and left Westbrook open...

Westbrook got enraged when he missed an open shot and lost his temper, falling right into the Clippers' trap. As for Harden, when his offense falters, he doesn't try to help the team in other ways. He doesn't handle the ball, doesn't set screens for his teammates, and doesn't do the dirty work on defense. That's just who he is—only responsible for offense.

In the Rockets, Harden has absolute privileges; he can do whatever he wants, and the entire team caters to him. If he doesn't come, the team's tactical meeting won't start, even if everyone is waiting; if he wants to travel to the city where the away game is held, then the team has to stay overnight in that city; if he doesn't want to play with Harden anymore and wants his old buddy Westbrook, Morey has to go and trade for Westbrook...

The final quarter didn't offer much of a surprise. The Rockets have very limited offensive repertoire, relying heavily on their backcourt ball-handlers to drive the offense; they're not a team with multiple ball-handlers. D'Antoni's offense is simple, direct, and highly efficient. However, its weaknesses are also apparent: the ball is heavily concentrated in the hands of the backcourt ball-handlers, while other players are largely functional. If the ball-handler isn't performing well or is out of form, the team is prone to losing.

If it were Westbrook and Harden at their peak, the ball-handlers would still be capable enough. However, Westbrook is past his prime now, and the team's other positions are far less well-equipped than before, resulting in a continuously decreasing margin for error for the team.

Ultimately, the game was a foregone conclusion, with the Clippers defeating the Rockets 97-118, securing their victory in the first game of the semifinals.

The Rockets' loss is not unacceptable, but scoring 97 points to beat the defending champion Clippers in this era is almost impossible.

Harden was still the Rockets' best performer. Despite being double-teamed throughout the game, he still managed a near triple-double with 25 points, 10 rebounds, and 8 assists.

Westbrook was left wide open in this game and his mentality seemed to explode. His outside shooting was inaccurate, making only 1 of 7 three-point attempts. He finished with 10 points, 11 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks. The numbers don't seem bad, but they don't show how much damage he did to the team's spacing.

The Clippers' best performer was undoubtedly Jia Fei, who contributed 30 points, 24 rebounds, 12 assists, 5 steals, and 8 blocks, achieving a triple-double and nearly a quadruple-double, showcasing his all-around skills beyond just being a scoring champion and his terrifying individual strength.

Jia Fei broke two personal records in this competition!

His 24 rebounds were a career high in a single NBA game (including regular season and playoffs), and his 8 blocks were also a career high in a single NBA game (including regular season and playoffs)!

It's hard to imagine that a wing player like Jia Fei could grab a staggering 24 rebounds in just 32 minutes of playing time in a single game! Many centers can't do that, but he did.

Of course, he played center in this game, so there's nothing wrong with that!

From another perspective, the Rockets' interior defense really lacks height, allowing Jia Fei to grab so many rebounds, including 10 offensive rebounds, which is unacceptable.

But the Rockets had no choice! To create space, they made a trade-off, giving up their center card. Without that card, they were stuck with small lineups and had no way out.

Many teams are already eager to make a move, especially those that didn't make the playoffs. If the Rockets lose, Westbrook might be traded, and Harden might also request a trade, which would make many teams very interested.

In today's NBA, the value of a superstar is still incomparable to that of an average player. The assets required to acquire a player of Harden's caliber are immeasurable. If the Rockets are indeed planning to trade Harden, it means they are preparing for a rebuild, and this team-building cycle has ended in failure.

On September 7, the Clippers and Rockets played Game 2 of their series.

Neither side made any changes to their starting lineups for this match.

The situation remains one of small-scale battles on both sides.

The outside world is eager to see what strategy the Rockets will employ to defeat their opponents if they don't change their starting lineup. In the last game, the Clippers' defensive strategy was to double-team Harden, leave Westbrook open, and guard the other players one-on-one.

After the game started, the Rockets showed their adjustments. Facing the Clippers' strategy of leaving the court open, the Rockets arranged for Westbrook to go to the low post more often to overpower his opponents.

Although Westbrook is less than 2 meters tall, he is very strong and a true muscle man. Not to mention small guards, even most forwards might not be able to stop him.

This adjustment was absolutely effective. Beverley fouled out before half a quarter, and Bridges, who came in as a substitute, also quickly fouled out.

Westbrook's impact was evident; he earned six free throw opportunities in the first quarter alone.

After Bridges went to the bench, the Clippers substituted Hart to guard Westbrook.

Although Hart is short, he's also quite fast, and Westbrook's ability to guard him wasn't as effective as when he guarded Bridges and Beverley. With Bridges and Beverley in foul trouble, the Clippers also used combo guard Bruce Brown in this game.

The Clippers sent a lineup of role players to take turns battling Westbrook, as if to tell him that if he wanted to fight, he was welcome to do so, and that there was a whole line of players waiting in the wings!

Moreover, the Clippers' foul trouble doesn't affect their offense and defense. Their roster depth is terrifying, with many players who can play, especially on the perimeter, where many players don't even get playing time.

In the first half, the Rockets took the lead thanks to Westbrook's strong post-up play and other role players' decisive three-point shooting. However, in the second half, Westbrook's energy level dropped, and he could no longer perform well in the post-up. His turnaround jump shot was unreliable, and he even hesitated to shoot three-pointers at one point.

The Rockets were forced to send Harden to take on tough shots, but his one-on-one against Paul George was not very effective. George's height and wingspan covered him, which greatly affected his shooting.

Harden continued to be double-teamed. Tucker had an exceptional performance in this game, going 3-for-4 from 3-point range, but he still couldn't earn the Clippers' respect. They continued to leave him open.

Tucker's three-pointers are ineffective, which is why the Clippers dare to do it.