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The Houston Rockets' record is currently 21 wins and 10 losses, and they are ranked seventh in the Western Conference.
Since James Harden was traded to the Rockets, he led the Rockets to the playoffs in his first season, but then nothing happened.
In the summer, the Rockets spent a lot of effort to recruit Dwight Howard from the Lakers to form the "Magic" combination, with the goal of directly targeting the championship.
Zhao Chen remembered that in his previous life, after Howard arrived with the Rockets, due to his age approaching 30 and the impact of injuries, he was no longer as brave as he once was. In the first season when Harden and Howard cooperated, things did not happen as expected. A good chemical reaction, and finally in the first round of the playoffs, the Rockets were defeated by Lillard and were eliminated. The Rockets made Lillard famous!
In the second season, Howard was isolated by all Rockets players. Throughout the season, his role was basically equivalent to that of a senior blue-collar player.
In the third season, the Rockets only scored 41 wins and 41 losses in the regular season, and were eventually eliminated by the Warriors 4-1 in the first round.
After three unsuccessful seasons, the "Moden Group" finally broke up.
Of course, none of this in Zhao Chen's memory has happened yet. In the first season, Howard and Harden were eager to cooperate and achieve a good record.
This game's away game against the Thunder made Deng, who hangs out in Houston nightclubs, full of fighting spirit.
Players who are traded always want to prove themselves in front of their old club.
After Harden was traded to the Rockets, he actually didn't have much desire for a championship. He was often photographed going to nightclubs to spend dollars, and his bloody drama with Khloe Kardashian even made the gossip media revel.
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When he was with the Lakers, Kobe was very persistent in winning and had a more serious personality, while Howard was joking and not serious about the game.
When he was with the Rockets, Howard wanted to win, but he met the laughing Deng.
He has partnered with two historical shooting guards but achieved nothing. This can only be said that Howard is very unlucky.
If Howard could correct his attitude when he was with the Lakers, or if he met someone other than Deng who hangs out in nightclubs when he was with the Rockets, then Howard still has some hope of success.
It’s just that there is no if.
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This focus battle between the Thunder and the Rockets attracted a lot of attention.
It is not only broadcast live in the United States, but also live on Sina in China.
The American media mainly focused on the feud between Harden, Durant and Westbrook, while the domestic media focused on Zhao Chen's performance.
Press conference before the game.
Zhao Chen has received as much attention as Westbrook and Durant.
Most of these reporters focused on Asian-faced reporters who came from various places.
"Zhao, how many points is your goal tonight?"
"My goal is not to score points, but to help the team win."
"When will you appear tonight?"
"This needs to be arranged by the coach. I will be ready at any time."
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Zhao Chen answered reporters' questions very maturely.
"Kakaka!!" Countless flash lights lit up around Zhao Chen. It can be seen that Zhao Chen is very popular. Those who don't know better think that Zhao Chen is a thunder boss.
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Chesapeake Energy Arena!
The seats in the arena were packed.
After many seasons of training by the Thunder, the ball market here has been developed.
Oklahoma City citizens watching Thunder home games have become part of their daily lives.
The playing style of Westbrook and Durant is extremely entertaining, helping the Thunder become one of the few small-market teams that can sell out season tickets.
Although Zhao Chen is not famous now, after the appearance ceremony, Zhao Chen still found a few fans wearing his No. 8 jersey among the fans in the crowd.
The number of fans is very sparse, but Zhao Chen is still very happy. This is a feeling of being noticed. Zhao Chen believes that through hard work in the future, he will have more and more fans.
James Harden was not popular when he came out, met with lengthy boos, and was considered a castaway from the Thunder.
Fans don't care whether Harden is passively traded, they will only think that Harden is the enemy of the Thunder.
Abuse and personal attacks on Harden.
Zhao Chen felt that Brother Deng was quite pitiful when he saw him being booed.
Thunder fans and the media still don’t think trading James Harden is the wrong choice.
Harden's constant visits to nightclubs in Houston actually made fans feel that he saw his personality in the detonator trade.
Brother Deng's reputation is very bad now...
After the pity was over, Zhao Chen laughed at himself again, "Brother Deng's contract is tens of millions and he has a lot of girls, so he is the one who is more pitiable..."
In addition to Harden, the Rockets' Jeremy Lin, Chandler Parsons, Howard and others also need to pay attention. They can all pose threats to the Thunder.
Of course, Zhao Chen feels that the Rockets' lineup is still weak compared to the current Thunder's lineup.
In front of Durant and Westbrook, they are still one level below.
When Zhao Chen analyzed his opponent, he was also analyzed.
Jeremy Lin focused on Zhao Chen.
As a member of the yellow race, Jeremy Lin knows how difficult it is to survive in the NBA.
Before Jeremy Lin became famous with the Knicks, he was also an NBA homeless player and even slept on his teammates' couches.
Jeremy Lin and Zhao Chen looked at each other and simply nodded to say hello.
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The game started soon.
Thunder starting lineup: Westbrook, Lamb, Durant, Ibaka, Perkins
Sefolosha is still out due to injury, so Zhao Chen has a chance to play in the second team.
Rockets starting lineup: Jeremy Lin, Harden, Chandler Parsons, Terrence Jones, Howard.
After the game started, the Thunder had a certain upper hand.
Jeremy Lin couldn't guard Westbrook. When he met the current Westbrook, he was basically a character who was passed over in one step.
Chandler Parsons defended Durant in a similar way. Although it was not a one-step pass, he just couldn't provide confrontation or pressure on Durant. Durant hit mid-range shots one after another.
The connection between Harden and Howard is obviously not tacit enough, and Howard is not willing to block Harden.
Rather than pick-and-roll, Howard prefers to take the ball and play in the low post.
It's just that his efficiency is not high and he also makes a lot of mistakes. Harden is a little annoyed on the court.
Several of Harden's passes to Howard were too big for Howard to catch.
The Rockets' offense is in pieces, while the Thunder's offense is booming.
The Rockets shot only 32% in the first quarter, while the Thunder shot as high as 51%.
The score in the first quarter was 21-33, with the Thunder leading by 12 points at home.
Zhao Chen did not get a chance to play in the first quarter. The Thunder's offense was very smooth. Westbrook and Durant both played the entire first quarter.
When Zhao Chen thought he was going to play in the second quarter, Brooks seemed not to have thought of him and replaced Lamb with Reggie Jackson, who took the initiative to play.
Reggie Jackson performed well when Westbrook was injured, but time was compressed because of Westbrook's return.
Reggie has a very hot temper, and Brooks sometimes deliberately lets him play more games in order to control his emotions.
It’s true that honest people are bullied.
Zhao Chen was also a little depressed. Even though he scored 22 points in a single quarter in the last game, he still could not easily change his status in the team. He was still the ninth or tenth player to play.
