Toyota Center.
Game 4 of the series between the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Houston Rockets.
This game determines the life and death of the Rockets. Therefore, many fans entered the arena before the game to support the home team.
Even though the Rockets' performance disappointed many people, they still did not choose to give up at such a critical moment.
Before the official start of the game, the Rockets players also gathered in the locker room. As the team leader, James Harden changed his previous decadent attitude and became very positive.
He took the initiative to call his teammates together and expressed his apology to them seriously.
"Guys, I'm sorry... I haven't been able to focus on the game since the series, and I haven't been able to do my job as a team leader..."
"But I promise you, it won't happen again. I will lead the team to continue playing and defeat the Timberwolves. We will go to the Western Conference finals like last season..."
"Victory must belong to us!"
The match points have already been won by the opponent, so it's a little too late to try again at this time! However, teammates still had some reactions. For example, teammates such as Trevor Ariza and Clint Capela all stood up to support Harden.
"James, welcome back!"
"It's not too late! We still have a chance to defeat the Timberwolves. This is our home court and we will never let them sweep..."
When others saw this, they could only show cooperation.
Under the leadership of Harden, everyone stretched out their hands together, and then cheered a few times, and then walked into the player tunnel and headed to the infield.
At the same time, it was a completely different scene in the Timberwolves' locker room.
The team defeated its opponent by a big score of 3-0, which undoubtedly proved that the strength gap between the two sides was obvious.
Because of this, the players were very relaxed and even played mahjong in the locker room.
It is not uncommon for NBA players to play mahjong. There were rumors that Lakers players once played mahjong in the locker room, including Dwight Howard, who also likes this entertainment passed down from China.
"Hey guys, I heard the cards! Just be careful..."
"Dwight, did you steal the cards? Why do you listen to the cards so quickly every time?"
"You guys are more expert at playing mahjong than me, a Chinese... If I had known better, I wouldn't have played this kind of game with you..."
Everyone started playing with each other's words.
When head coach Norman Thomas entered the locker room, he didn't say anything when he saw this scene. He even walked up behind Zhao Feiyang with great interest and asked him how he played!
When the game time approached, the players put down their mahjong and gathered around head coach Norman.
Coach Norman simply laid out the tactics, and everyone followed him towards the infield.
Beep.
The on-site timer sounded, the game was about to begin, and the starting players from both sides took to the court. Howard, who has won three games in a row, is extremely happy now. He looks completely dragging when he walks in the Rockets arena.
After walking onto the court and seeing Capela, he deliberately teased his former teammate, "Hey, Clint, why do you look so haggard?"
"Oh! I understand! You must be too sad to lose the game... No, man, look away, isn't it just a game? It's nothing special! You can wait until this game is over rest......"
"I'm so envious of you! You can go back and rest early. Unlike me, I can only continue to play with the team...it's too tiring to play so many games, and there's no money for the playoffs. , it’s better to go back and rest early!”
Howard's weird words made Capela's face change again and again. However, after all, the Rockets had lost three games in a row and were indeed not as confident as the opponent. Therefore, Capela did not refute loudly, but chose to remain silent. response.
On the other hand, Patrick Beverley was very unconvinced. He looked at Howard and responded unhappily, "Dwight, don't worry! You can go back and rest in just a few games!"
Snapped.
The referee threw the basketball high.
Howard and Capela jumped up at the same time, but this time it was Howard who beat the basketball away first.
The basketball flew out and fell into the hands of teammate Zach LaVine.
The game officially begins.
LaVine advanced with the ball, and Beverley went up to guard. Harden and Zhao Feiyang are still the same as before. The two of them are constantly staying close to each other. Even if they don't make any moves on the surface, they also make many small moves in private, and they are constantly competing with each other.
The ball passed half-court, and Zhao Feiyang tried to respond. He had just thrown Harden away and was about to get the ball. Harden suddenly rushed up to defend and almost intercepted LaVine's pass to him.
boom.
After getting the basketball, Zhao Feiyang faced Harden in singles with the ball.
He did not rush to attack, but observed the situation on the court. After noticing that Howard was stuck in the paint, Zhao Feiyang suddenly launched an attack. He used a cross-step change to shake Harden away, and then rushed into the two zones from the left.
Harden made up the defense in time, but as soon as he reached Zhao Feiyang, Howard suddenly came up to help Zhao Feiyang pick and roll.
Zhao Feiyang took advantage of the situation and entered the basket. Capela reacted quickly and stepped forward to cover Zhao Feiyang, but as soon as he retreated, Zhao Feiyang immediately threw the ball into the air with a high throw.
Howard, who followed up from the side, leaped high and slammed the ball into the basket with a two-handed dunk as Harden and Capela watched.
boom.
The ball went in.
Zhao Feiyang high-fived Howard in celebration.
The Rockets fans on the sidelines were silent, obviously a little disappointed with this kind of defense. On the contrary, the Timberwolves players kept shouting and applauding to cheer for their teammates on the court.
It was the Rockets' turn to fight back.
Beverley held the ball past halftime, and Harden took the initiative to move around to look for opportunities. He did not go over to catch the ball for a single like before, but deliberately stretched to the outside to attract the Timberwolves' defensive attention.
After Harden made a receiving posture on the left side, sure enough, there was a loophole in the defense on the right side, and Ariza, who was standing in the bottom corner, found an opportunity.
Snapped.
Beverley gave the ball to Ariza, who quickly took the ball and rushed to the basket.
When he was approaching Howard, Capela squeezed in to help Ariza block it. Ariza took advantage of the situation and put the ball into the basket with a layup.
The ball went in.
The Rockets' performance surprised the Timberwolves, including the team's head coach Norman, who had a bad feeling.
"Has James changed? He was unwilling to share the ball before when he played. Why did he take the initiative to create opportunities for his teammates this time?"
Zhao Feiyang was also a little surprised by Harden's performance.
At first, he really thought that Harden was going to catch the ball for a singles. After Ariza sneaked in and scored, Zhao Feiyang realized that Harden didn't seem to be going for a singles, but was using himself to deliberately attract others. Assist in defense.
The Timberwolves continued to attack.
This time after halftime, LaVine gave the ball to Andrew Wiggins on the wing.
Wiggins' performance in these games has been quite satisfactory. Although there is nothing particularly eye-catching, the data can be considered stable, and it is still passable for the Timberwolves' third position.
After getting the ball, he entered the basket and was about to find an opportunity to take a shot. Capela suddenly rushed towards him. Wiggins forced a shot due to interference, and the basketball hit the rim and bounced out.
Adrian picked up the rebound.
After getting the ball, Adrian jumped up again and planned to use a dunk to resolve the battle, but the opponent's big man Terrence used his body to hold Adrian firmly.
Adrian failed to dunk and the basketball bounced out.
At the critical moment, it was Howard who jumped up and picked off the basketball again. His dunk was different from Adrian's. This time Terrence defended again. The two met in mid-air, and Howard was blocked by the opponent. Remember to dunk with both hands and smash the ball in.
Terrence was almost knocked out by him.
boom.
The ball went in.
There were bursts of applause outside the court. Although it was not enthusiastic, such applause was extremely rare when the entire court was filled with Rockets fans.
"No! It's all the damn management's fault. If Dwight doesn't leave, this dunk will be our score..."
"Man, don't think too much. How was Dwight's performance last season? Have you all forgotten? He also had great conflicts with the team. If he didn't leave, he might not be reused at all.. ....”
"Everyone wake up, it's just a dunk! Don't forget, this guy's damage to the Rockets is higher than his value. Otherwise, how could the team trade him... I can only say that the Timberwolves It's amazing, it can make this guy wake up in time..."
The fans on the sidelines were sighing.
On the court, the game continues.
After the Timberwolves successfully counterattacked, the Rockets were not depressed.
Harden wasn't always covering for his teammates. At 3 minutes and 24 seconds into the game, the Timberwolves had just scored a goal. Harden found that the opponent hadn't reacted yet, so he immediately stood under the basket and served.
He threw a long pass across the half court, and Beverley, standing near the midline, dribbled the ball toward the Timberwolves' basket.
boom.
Beverley's sneak attack went smoothly, and he ended the battle with a dunk.
Not long after this ball was played, Harden found another loophole in the offense.
He deliberately cooperated with Beverley to fend off Zhao Feiyang, and then took the pass to the wing and hit a three-pointer at a 45-degree angle.
Uh-huh.
The crisp three-pointer fell steadily into the basket.
Harden's fiery touch surprised the Timberwolves. His continuous scoring also allowed the Rockets to score more and more points, especially his active performance on the defensive end, which successfully made up for the Rockets' defensive loopholes at the second position.
As a result, the Rockets took the lead because of his efficiency. When the first quarter officially ended, the Rockets and Timberwolves were tied 31 to 26.
The 5-point difference was not much, but it made the fans at Toyota Center cheer.
They saw in Harden the hope they had been looking forward to.
