In the second quarter of the game, Harden found his rhythm, constantly showing off his porcelain skills, and frequently getting to the free throw line.
Reggie Jackson obviously couldn't handle it when he met Harden, Brooks frowned...
At the end of the first half, the score reached 58 to 57. The Rockets took the lead by 1 point due to Deng's explosion.
After watching the first half, Zhao Chen felt that he still underestimated the Rockets.
Although the Rockets are not as good as the Thunder in terms of record, the gap between the two teams is not that big. Harden's explosive ability may still help the Rockets beat the Thunder in the regular season. Even if the Rockets win, it will not be considered an upset.
Home dressing room.
When Brooks was arranging tactics, he finally thought of Zhao Chen: "Zhao, in the second half, you guard James Harden. You start with Russell as a starting partner. When there is space, make decisive shots."
Zhao Chen nodded seriously.
It was finally his playing time.
............
Brooks has not forgotten Zhao Chen, but the Thunder's lineup is too deep and there are too many players who need to arrange playing time.
Zhao Chen was trained after many players.
Starting against Harden in the second half, Zhao Chen also felt a little bit miserable.
The last game was against Wade and Ray Allen, and this game is against Harden.
The head coach put too much pressure on him.
"Rookie, don't worry, I believe you can guard against him." Westbrook encouraged Zhao Chen.
"Of course, I will knock him down, haha." Zhao Chen smiled confidently.
"Well, that's it, keep your confidence and try your best to defend!" Westbrook said.
Westbrook has a strong personality and is good at encouraging his teammates to play hard off the court. When playing next to him, it is difficult to slack off. He always leads by example.
No one would hate having a guy like that as a teammate.
Zhao Chen also feels that Westbrook is more suitable as a leader than Durant to a certain extent.
Of course, the premise is that Westbrook is not given the ball. If he is given the ball, he will go crazy and no one will recognize him.
"Dang, if you defeat the Rockets, you have a chance to get James Harden's exclusive skills."
The system prompts after Zhao Chen stepped onto the court made Zhao Chen more focused on the game.
"System, use the [hot feeling] state!"
"Used successfully!"
Originally, Zhao Chen felt that his general feel was slightly improved.
In the second half, the two teams changed sides and fought again.
Thunder: Westbrook, Zhao Chen, Robertson, Ibaka, Adams.
Rockets: Jeremy Lin, Harden, Parsons, Jones, Howard.
The Thunder are a lineup of starters and substitutes, while the Rockets are a lineup of all main players.
Rockets possession.
Jeremy Lin brought the ball across half court, and Zhao Chen kept chasing Harden.
The Rockets' tactics are very simple, and they are also superstar singles. Harden is on the side asking for the ball, and Howard is also stuck inside on the right side asking for the ball.
Jeremy Lin gave the ball to Harden first and let Harden initiate the tactics.
Looking at Harden, whose beard was beginning to take shape in front of him, Zhao Chen didn't dare to be careless in the slightest.
Harden has no desire to talk trash to Zhao Chen. In his eyes, only Westbrook and Durant can be his opponents.
Everyone else in the Thunder is scum!
Harden lowered the ball and took tentative steps before and after getting the ball.
Zhao Chen opened his hand and moved away slightly. Zhao Chen was wary of Harden's foul.
In the second quarter of the game, Harden got to the free throw line 10 times through various collisions.
Zhao Chen's defense had no obvious loopholes, and Harden didn't find any opportunity to commit a foul.
"boom!"
"boom!"
Facing Zhao Chen, Harden began dribbling frequently.
Zhao Chen frowned, not daring to get too close to avoid being missed by Harden.
Although he has Thompson's level of defensive ability, the pressure to defend Harden is still very high.
After Harden changed directions continuously, he chose to go from Zhao Chen's right side.
Zhao Chen's defensive awareness worked, and he immediately moved over.
"boom!"
The two had a direct physical confrontation, but Harden did not knock Zhao Chen away.
Harden didn't expect that Zhao Chen could judge his offensive routine and that Zhao Chen's core strength would be so strong. Harden immediately changed his hand to the left! !
This time, Harden passed Zhao Chen.
But after Harden passed Zhao Chen, the Thunder's defense came up, and Robertson entangled Harden.
Harden also frowned against Robertson, and Robertson's defense was also difficult.
Harden feels that the Thunder's second team seems to be more difficult to deal with than their first team.
Harden tried his best to lean on Robertson for a layup.
Robertson didn't interfere too much with Harden. If there were no accidents, Harden could score this ball.
only! !
"Snapped!!"
Zhao Chen chased behind and pinned Harden's layup on the backboard.
Adams caught Howard and Westbrook got a defensive rebound.
In this round, Zhao Chen and Robertson teamed up to defend Harden.
Seeing that Harden was finally defended, the fans at the Thunder's home court kept cheering.
"Well done." Robertson high-fived Zhao Chen.
"Hey, you did a good job." Zhao Chen smiled.
Zhao Chen felt that Harden would never have imagined that Robertson's defense might be the strongest in the Thunder.
Robertson is in the NBA, and the key to winning a multi-million-level contract in the future is defense. Let alone Harden, Robertson can cause trouble for anyone.
It's just that Robertson, like Zhao Chen, is not that famous now.
"Excellent defense, Zhao Chen blocked James Harden." TNT commentator Barkley shouted
"This rookie showed us beautiful defensive skills after his three-point performance in the last game." Kenny Smith shouted.
The two commentators also had an impression of Zhao Chen.
On the court, Westbrook, who got the rebound, fought back furiously.
Zhao Chen also turned around and sprinted forward.
The only player who retreated from the Rockets was Jeremy Lin. Howard did not return at all in the frontcourt. Harden also gave up returning to defense and went for a walk. Last night, he was a little weak by the big girl from Oklahoma City.
Westbrook suppressed Jeremy Lin at high speed. When he got inside, Westbrook found Zhao Chen who was running towards the right corner.
The reason why Westbrook chose to pass the ball was also because during the last three-point competition, he told Zhao Chen that if there was a point guard, he should feed Zhao Chen the ball.
Zhao Chen received Westbrook's pass in the right corner!
Absolutely vacant.
Zhao Chen didn't hesitate at all after catching the ball.
Use both feet to jump up, standard shooter posture!
Shake your wrist to push the ball out gently.
Wonderful arc! !
"Uh-huh!"
58 to 60.
After scoring the goal, Zhao Chen ran out and high-fived Westbrook to celebrate! !
“I told you, come in if there’s space!!”
"Hahaha, of course, you did a great job."
Westbrook responded excitedly to Zhao Chen's high five, and Zhao Chen's three-pointer did not disappoint him.
"Another conversion three-pointer."
"It's so accurate. It looks like it can go in."
"What's his name? It's a very standard shooting posture!"
Thunder fans at home didn't remember Zhao Chen's name, but they started discussing Zhao Chen because of this three-pointer.
The Thunder lack a qualified shooter, and Zhao Chen's posture looks like that.
On the court, in addition to high-fiving Westbrook, Zhao Chen also nodded to Robertson. His goals cannot be achieved without the help of his teammates.
Brooks on the sidelines waved his fist heavily. He now feels that Zhao Chen is more suitable for the Thunder's system than Reggie Jackson.
