After the Minnesota Timberwolves won two games in a row, the Houston Rockets finally returned home.
The 0-2 deficit undoubtedly woke up the sleeping Rockets, and also made those fans in Houston who thought the Rockets would definitely win finally woke up.
Of course, before the third game of the series between the two sides, the situation in the Western Conference is also changing due to other teams.
The Golden State Warriors met the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round.
For this team ranked eighth in the Western Conference, there is almost no suspense in their game against the Warriors. The first two games ended in a complete sweep.
The Warriors easily defeated them in their two home games.
In the East, the Cleveland Cavaliers led by LeBron James met the Detroit Pistons in the first round.
The Pistons were already weak, and the team couldn't produce any decent stars. It was completely expected that they would be defeated.
Therefore, the Cavaliers successfully won two games without much effort.
Another much-watched team, the Toronto Raptors, met the Indiana Pacers in the first round.
The two teams played evenly matched performances, with one win and one loss in the first two games. Although the Raptors' "Twin Stars" performed steadily, they also showed a bit of fatigue. Compared with the Cavaliers who have the "Big Three" As a team, their stamina is obviously insufficient.
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Game 3 of the first round of the Western Conference playoffs.
Toyota Center.
This is the home court of the Rockets and the venue for Game 3.
After losing two away games, the Rockets returned to their home court with a little more confidence. Before the game officially started, James Harden said that he must lead the team to win this game.
"We made some mistakes before, but they will be solved soon... Our goal this season is still the Western Conference Finals, and I am very confident to lead the team to the finals..."
Harden personally expressed his position in an interview in front of the media.
What's more interesting is that when the live game was about to start and Harden's girlfriend Khloe Kardashian made a high-profile appearance in the arena, what she received was not cheers from the fans, but boos from countless Rockets fans.
The scene suddenly showed a unified state. Many Rockets fans booed Khloe Kardashian, and some kept shouting something, which was not a good thing.
The on-site cameraman didn't seem to like Khloe very much. He was not even willing to give her a close-up shot, and even made a large-scale close-up of the fans' boos.
Such a situation at the scene also made Kohler look very ugly. As the leader of the team, Harden naturally did not want his girlfriend to be bullied, so he stood up and rushed to the fans on the sidelines to stop booing.
After all, he is still the leading star of the Rockets, and his restraint still has some effect, but of course, it only has a little effect.
Beep.
The sound of the live timer starting sounded and players from both teams walked onto the court.
Before the official jump ball, Harden came to Zhao Feiyang. After fighting each other in the first two games, the two were already in a state of competition on the court.
Whether it is Zhao Feiyang or Harden, neither of them has any intention of giving in, and they treat each other with an attitude of eagerness to try.
"Zhao, this is our home court, I won't let you win this victory again..."
Harden spoke.
Zhao Feiyang stood beside him, staring at the referee who was about to throw the basketball, and responded to Harden, "James, I admit that I really like your ball control, but you will definitely miss the finals this season... ..."
"I'm telling you, a star who's obsessed with tenderness won't achieve anything. If you don't believe me, ask Dwight..."
Although it was a joke, it still offended two people at the same time.
Before Harden could react, Howard, who was preparing to jump the ball, turned around and looked at Zhao Feiyang with a look of helplessness, "Hey, man, can you not take me with you on this matter? I don't have it right now. Addicted to nightclubs..."
"Dwight, get ready for the jump ball. What are you doing?"
When the head coach Norman Thomas saw this, he was so anxious that he shouted loudly to Howard on the court.
As soon as his voice fell, the referee threw the basketball. Fortunately, Howard reacted in time and fanned the ball out before Clint jumped up and touched the basketball.
boom.
The basketball fell into Zach LaVine's hands.
LaVine passed half court with the ball.
Zhao Feiyang was ready to respond at any time in the half court, and Harden followed him without letting up at all. The two of them were also energetic, pushing each other with small movements while pushing each other away.
"Zach, here."
Zhao Feiyang rushed to LaVine for the ball.
Harden, who was behind him, kept blocking. Unfortunately, he was unable to physically suppress Zhao Feiyang and could only watch as LaVine sent the ball to Zhao Feiyang.
Snapped.
After getting the ball, Zhao Feiyang faced Harden in singles. The two faced each other, and Zhao Feiyang suddenly drove towards the basket from the left.
Harden rushed forward without hesitation. When he was near the basket, Zhao Feiyang made a lever action to avoid it. Seeing that it was difficult to block Zhao Feiyang, the angry Harden directly slapped Zhao Feiyang's hand.
Snapped.
The basketball was slapped and flew out, followed by the referee's whistle.
Harden was called for a thug foul.
Zhao Feiyang stepped to the free throw line.
The scene was in an uproar, and many fans were in disbelief. They did not expect that Harden, as the leader of the team, would commit a foul in the first quarter, and it seemed that he committed the foul actively.
The host and commentators who were responsible for the live broadcast of the TV program were also puzzled by this.
"No, James' foul was inappropriate!"
"It seems like there is a lot of tension between the two! As soon as the game started, Zhao forced James to block him. This is really unbelievable..."
"James should be vigilant! They have already lost two games. If they lose one more time, there is basically no possibility of them turning defeat into victory..."
"Objectively speaking, if I thought the Rockets could win before the series started, then now, I think the chance of the Rockets winning the series is relatively small... This year's Timberwolves are very strong. To be precise, Zhao is very strong..."
On the field.
Zhao Feiyang took the referee's pass and threw the basketball under the deliberate boos of countless fans in the Toyota Center Arena.
Uh-huh.
The first one was a solid hit.
Zhao Feiyang high-fived his teammates, and after the referee passed the basketball, he clapped and looked at Harden under the basket.
"Hey, James, do you believe it? I can score this free throw with my eyes closed... Why don't we take a gamble?"
Such a dismissive attitude made Harden look at him coldly and didn't even respond a word.
Zhao Feiyang didn't care at all and continued to make provocations, trying to use this method to anger Harden.
Harden is the Rockets' offensive point. Once he is sent off or unable to play due to too many fouls, it is basically impossible for the Rockets to win.
After talking to Harden, Zhao Feiyang closed his eyes as expected.
The next second, with the whole audience watching, Zhao Feiyang easily threw the ball into the basket. Even if his eyes are closed, it does not affect his fiery touch at all.
Uh-huh.
The ball went in.
It's the Rockets' turn to attack.
Harden did not rush to respond, but waited at half court. After Patrick Beverley brought the ball over, he pretended to go up to meet him, but in fact he helped his teammates open up space.
Snapped.
Beverley passed the ball to Marcus on the wing in one second, and Marcus took the ball and went straight to the basket.
His breakthrough movement was very sharp, but unfortunately he was blocked by Howard when he was approaching the penalty area.
Howard spared no effort against the Rockets and was almost in his best mental state of the season.
He will never let go if he can defend on the court, he will never flinch if he can block shots, he will dunk the ball that can be dunked, and he will try his best to make up for the ball that cannot be dunked.
Especially every time Harden rushed to the basket, Howard jumped up with all his strength to block the shot.
In an attack at 9 minutes and 01 seconds of the third quarter of the second game of the series, Harden dribbled the ball toward the basket and broke through on a fast break. He had already rushed to the penalty area, and Zhao Feiyang, who was guarding him, was trying to prevent injuries in order to avoid accidents. They all chose to let it go, but Howard didn't have such an idea. He just caught up and made a big shot amidst the exclamations of the audience.
This shot was quite cruel, and the slap almost knocked Harden off while dribbling the ball. Although the referee finally awarded a foul, Howard was quite proud of it.
This time was no exception. When Marcus was approaching the basket, he saw Howard jumping so exaggeratedly that he had no choice but to pass the ball out in order not to make a mistake.
Snapped.
The basketball is given to Harden on the wing.
Harden picked up the basketball and quickly shot. Zhao Feiyang stepped up to defend in time. Unfortunately, Harden only made a fake move. After avoiding Zhao Feiyang, Harden immediately stepped back and pulled away.
When there was enough room to shoot, Harden raised the basketball and threw a three-pointer.
Uh-huh.
Basketball finally scored.
Harden looked very happy, beating his chest constantly and roaring several times to release his passion.
Perhaps it was the home court that really allowed Harden to regain his form. In the next few minutes, Harden made consecutive shots and successfully defeated Zhao Feiyang in a single. After receiving two passive fouls, Zhao Feiyang was indeed Harden's style of play was "scaring".
Head coach Norman Thomas took into account the progress of the game and temporarily replaced Zhao Feiyang with 3 minutes left in the first quarter.
LaVine temporarily shouldered the heavy burden on the court, and he organized the offense to continuously bombard the Rockets' inside line.
Interestingly, the person who was replaced by Zhao Feiyang was none other than the former "foul master" Kevin Martin.
Martin's style of play has changed since he came to the Timberwolves, but as a master who frequently drew fouls with the Rockets, his skills from back then are still there.
Coincidentally, James Harden's interpretation of foul-making techniques is also first-rate. When Martin was replaced on the court, the duel between the two officially began.
"Kevin, I need you to keep an eye on James... Doesn't he like to draw fouls? Remember, you do what he does... I believe in your ability... ..”
"Go! Teach James a good lesson..."
