After winning the first two games, the Golden State Warriors ushered in the third game. Their opponent in this game is still strong, and they are the Houston Rockets who have the ability to reach the Western Conference Finals.
The Houston Rockets have a pretty good lineup, with All-Star players like James Harden and men like Dwight Howard who could once replace LeBron James alone.
The role players also have pitchers with stable output and defenders with fierce defense.
From the perspective of player configuration, the Houston Rockets are indeed very strong.
Even so, this game was successfully won by the Golden State Warriors.
Stephen Curry scored 27 points, Klay Thompson scored 16 points, and Zhao Feiyang also scored 16 points. The outstanding performance of the three guards alone accounted for more than half of the Warriors' points.
On the Rockets side, James Harden performed best, but only scored 24 points. Trevor Ariza hit four three-pointers, scored three breakthroughs, and scored a total of 18 points.
Dwight Howard, the most anticipated player, is in a very stretched state. Not only does he have little fighting spirit, he is also severely restricted by the Warriors on the defensive end.
The Warriors also learned to use the tactic of killing "Master Huo" and sent him to the free throw line many times. Unfortunately, Dwight Howard failed to seize the opportunity to counterattack and missed many shots, throwing away many good opportunities.
After such a battle, the Golden State Warriors seemed to be cheating and performed extremely well in the next dozen games.
They won the first 16 consecutive games in one fell swoop, which directly shocked the entire league.
Under the tactical guidance of head coach Steve Kerr, Stephen Curry also performed the strongest performance in his career.
He suddenly became the most watched defender in the league.
Other players are also in good condition, and it can even be said that the entire team is developing in a better direction. This also allowed the previously questioned rookie head coach Steve Kerr to dispel fans' doubts.
Even in the eyes of fans, Steve Kerr may not be the one who can save the Warriors, but he will not push the Warriors into a worse situation.
After all, former head coach Mark Jackson couldn't win 16 consecutive games.
More importantly, most of these 16 consecutive victories were obtained by defeating the league's super teams. This also means that most of the super strong teams have already played against the Golden State Warriors, and there is no doubt that they all lost to the Golden State Warriors.
If this state can be maintained until the playoffs, then it is entirely possible for the Golden State Warriors to reach the finals.
For a time, Bay Area fans cheered and thought about the team's bright future.
"Cole is really a great guy, and the whole team is also great. I haven't seen this kind of team-based fighting style for a long time... If nothing else, we have a good chance of reaching the Western Conference Finals." ......."
"Be bold, I think it is entirely possible for us to reach the finals. The Rockets lost to us, the Spurs lost to us, the Clippers also lost to us... Who else is next?"
"Damn, it's been almost 40 years since the Warriors last won a championship. If they can win the championship this time, it will be the city's greatest glory in the past half century..."
There are optimistic and positive fans, and of course there are worried fans.
“We are performing really well, but I think the season has just begun... Guys, there are still more than 60 games in the regular season... Other teams may not have recovered yet... .”
"Yes, being too proud is not a good thing. The Warriors players are of course great, but we have to maintain this momentum until the playoffs. That's when the outcome will really be decided... ..."
"Now we are ranked first in the Western Conference, which is good, but not the first player in the Western Conference can win the championship every season. It can only be said that we have a certain probability of winning the championship, but this is not absolute..."
Regardless of the controversy on the Internet, there is a peaceful and peaceful atmosphere within the team. It is rare for the management to encounter such a good start. Almost everyone from top to bottom is full of confidence and believes that the team must achieve great things this season.
It was at this time that the problem of the team management also came.
The day after the sixteen-game winning streak ended, owner Joe Lacob held a regular meeting with a group of shareholders in the Warriors' high-level conference room.
Originally, there were no major problems in the regular meetings. In the past, the team's general manager Bob Michael would just give an explanation and explain the team's recent situation clearly.
But today is different. Shareholders are very excited about their sixteenth consecutive victory.
After all, the more games a team wins, the higher its attendance will be, the easier it will be to sell peripheral products, and the more business cooperation it will receive, and the team's market value and profits will naturally increase.
Especially once the team can reach the Western Conference Finals, it will definitely make a lot of money at the end of the season.
A shareholder named Bol Brooks stood up after Bob Michael's speech and poured cold water on everyone's enthusiasm.
"Listen, everyone, I know everyone here wants the team to achieve good results...but we must consider one thing, can the team reach the finals now?"
"What should we do if we fail to reach the finals, or if we are weak in the later stages and are eliminated in the playoffs and cannot even make it to the Western Conference Finals?"
"For businessmen, profit is always the most important thing. Even if the team started the season well, the team's best record in the past four or five seasons was only in the Western Conference semifinals. None of you are gamblers. We It’s impossible to pin your hopes on the next good luck, right?”
Bol Brooks' words made everyone calm down instantly.
No one spoke, and even the boss, Joe Lacob, stared at him silently, expecting what he would say next.
"The luxury tax threshold stipulated by the league this season is US$76.8 million, and our salary expenditure has reached US$92.8 million. Do you understand how many US dollars in luxury tax we have to pay?"
As soon as Bol Brooks spoke, the shareholders in the entire conference room were completely dumbfounded. Everyone looked at each other with serious expressions.
According to the league's relevant regulations on luxury tax payments, the standard luxury tax penalty starts at $1.50 per dollar for the first $5 million and increases over time.
$1.75 per dollar for the next $5 million, then $2.50 per dollar, $3, $25 per dollar, with a $0.50 salary increase for every $5 million in fines.
"Except for the past two seasons when the team made the playoffs, we failed to make the playoffs in the previous three seasons. The team's profitability in these three seasons was not ideal... I As a team shareholder, I hope the team will be more stable..."
"Profit is the prerequisite. If you cannot get more income, then reducing expenditure is also an option..."
After Bol Brooks finished speaking, whispers began in the conference room.
Team owner Joe Lacob looked indifferent, not knowing what he was thinking. General Manager Bob Michael hesitated for a long time and suddenly stood up.
"Mr. Bol, there is one thing I don't agree with. Competitive sports need to burn money... The team's record in the past few seasons was indeed not good, but judging from the last two seasons, we have already entered the playoffs. The ranks of the racing team..."
"It seems that there is still a certain distance from the championship, but for the Warriors, it is no longer impossible..."
"As long as we maintain our current investment, maybe the team will achieve surprising results this season. By then, I think the team's profitability will definitely not be bad..."
Faced with Bob Michael's remarks, Bol Brooks did not refute, but asked the other party, "Bob, I know you love basketball very much, and I also love this sport... Of course professional sports You need to invest more money, but if you can definitely win if you invest more money, then why haven’t the Knicks won the championship?”
As soon as these words came out, Bob Michael was immediately speechless.
Bol Brooks continued, "Of course, I am not saying that the team should be stingy... In fact, I have thought of a feasible way..."
Everyone's eyes once again focused on Bol Brooks.
"The team has two players who can seek trades. Veteran Brandon Larry has an annual salary of US$2.6 million this season. He still has one year of contract, but he is already 34 years old and was devastated by injuries at the end of last season. After that, his scoring average this season has dropped to 2.1 per game..."
"I think we can definitely trade him or cut him..."
"Also, Chinese player Zhao Feiyang has an annual salary of US$12 million this season. His performance is certainly not bad, averaging 17.9 points per game so far... But his role in the team is not that strong. In my opinion Come on, even without him, Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry can lead the team to victory..."
"The team needs a reliable substitute, but is it necessary to spend 12 million to sign a substitute?"
"At first we thought the team was not strong enough, so we did this... However, judging from the recent record, not having him will not affect the team's victory! If we are willing to save money, it would be a good idea to trade him. A good way..."
"The team doesn't have to have a winning streak. As long as we can successfully maintain the top three records in the Western Conference and successfully enter the Western Conference Finals in the playoffs... we might as well trade him for a player." A reliable forward player, I think he may be more helpful to the team..."
As soon as these words came out, the entire conference room became agitated.
Bob Michael was the first to speak, "Mr. Bol, Zhao may have some overlap with Stephen and Klay as a substitute... but he is very strong and leading the second team is definitely a great one." A great choice, even if you can’t see it now, it will definitely be effective in the playoffs..."
"Also...after he came to the Bay Area, our attendance increased a lot, and many Chinese fans came to watch the game...His contribution is not small... .So I don’t think he should be traded...”
