Westbrook was too fast and couldn't avoid it. He bumped into him. The two fell to the ground one after another and missed the layup.
"Beep!"
The referee's whistle sounded, and there was an offensive foul.
Westbrook looked bitter. He didn't expect this stupid big man to commit an offensive foul. He was careless.
During the Rockets' offensive round, Harden held the ball in his hand, used his hands to make tactics and direct his teammates' movements.
Motel came to the wing this time, stood behind Kevin Martin, and set a back screen.
Back screen, as the name suggests, is to stand behind the opponent's defensive player, set a screen for teammates, help teammates run to the baseline, and get opportunities to cut without the ball.
Butler saw Motel standing still, activated instantly, got rid of Martin through the screen, and cut in again.
Harden's direct pass this time gave a lot of power. Thunder Sefolosha, Westbrook, and Ibaka are all defensive heroes. If the power of the pass is small, it will be easily intercepted.
Butler received the ball steadily, saw Ibaka coming to cover, took the initiative to create physical contact, and relied on Ibaka to complete the layup.
Basketball hit the board.
33:34.
The Thunder attacked, and Westbrook had the ball in his hand. This time facing Livingston, Westbrook dribbled with his left hand, kicked to the left and rear, took a big step after blowing the ball, and pretended to break through from the left.
Livingston had just been beaten consecutively, so he did not dare to neglect this time and adjusted his focus to retreat.
Unexpectedly, Westbrook chose to make a jump shot with the ball and used his signature move-zombie jump shot.
"Uh-huh!"
The basketball hit the net.
33:36.
When the Rockets attacked, Harden did not hesitate to give in. He dribbled the ball with his left hand and signaled his teammates to spread out with his right hand.
Harden challenged Sefolosha at the top of the arc. Sefolosha was very afraid of Harden's breakthrough. He opened his hands and kept one step away from Harden.
Harden used a lateral drag step to mobilize Sefolosha's center of gravity, and then used his signature 012 step back to open up a step of space and shoot.
The basketball drew a beautiful arc in the air and penetrated into the net.
36:36.
Then Westbrook's breakthrough caused Livingston's foul and the game entered an official timeout. After the timeout, all the main players from both sides returned, and the two major substitutes, Butler and Livingston, came off the court to rest.
In fact, Butler's current level is enough to be the starting small forward. His shooting has improved a lot this week. McHale also asked Xu Xin whether he should adjust the starting lineup and put Parsons back on the bench.
But considering the Garnett deal, Xu Xin only reached a verbal agreement with Anji. Before it was completed, the other party might change his mind at any time.
If Parsons returns to the bench and his condition plummets, I'm sure Anji will take the opportunity to regret it. The price is too high. After much deliberation, for the sake of safety, I can only force Butler to play as a substitute for a while.
After the timeout, the core figures of both sides began to exert their strength, and Westbrook and Harden began to secretly compete with each other.
Durant asked for the ball several times, but Westbrook turned a blind eye and chose to go it alone. Westbrook's bossy behavior is a double-edged sword.
Today, the damage to our team is obviously greater.
Jeremy Lin's defense was very targeted, giving Westbrook a step of space to test his shooting. Westbrook missed several shots, giving the Rockets a chance to counterattack.
Jeremy Lin, Harden, Ariza, and Parsons, the Rockets are fast breakers. They are very fast, pass the ball smoothly, and finish successfully every time.
It wasn't until Thunder coach Scott Brooks couldn't stand it anymore and called a timeout to replace Westbrook that the Thunder's offense came into its own.
However, Durant and several others had no touch because they had not touched the ball for too long, and they missed several shots. They could only rely on Durant to break through and cause damage, and get to the free throw line to add some points. .
The Rockets' side is different. Jeremy Lin is back on the field, and Harden has switched back to off-ball mode.
Ariza and Parsons flew together on both wings and moved very actively without the ball.
Asik's off-ball and on-ball screens were of high quality, creating many opportunities for his teammates, and the Rockets also seized more than half of them.
The Rockets went on a 13:6 spurt in just over three minutes, and the score gradually widened. At the end of the half, the Rockets led the Thunder by 12 points, 67:55.
Trailing by double digits at halftime is something that has never happened at Chesapeake Energy Arena this season.
In the live broadcast room, two teachers commented on the performance of both sides in the first half of the game.
"Teacher Su Kui, what do you think of the performance of both players in the first half?"
"In the first half, both sides showed their own characteristics. On the Thunder's side, Durant and Westbrook, the two young men of the Thunder carried the team forward, and their performance was considered normal.
But in the second half of the second quarter, Westbrook got a little carried away and made several offensive choices that were irrational.
But I believe that Westbrook will adjust quickly after the halftime break. When he calms down and uses his brain to play, he is still one of the best defenders in the league. "
"What surprised me about the Rockets is that their tactics are much richer than at the beginning of the season.
The players kept moving on the court without the ball, constantly covering with and without the ball, and could always find the best shooting opportunities. They played very well as a whole. "
"Harden is so good. He can switch between with and without the ball at will without affecting the stability of his shooting. This is very difficult to achieve."
Su Qun continued.
"The Thunder are now 12 points behind. What adjustments do you think the Thunder should make in the second half?"
After talking about the players' performance, Yang Jian moved the topic to the next one,
"If the Thunder wants to catch up or even overtake, Durant and Westbrook need to be more efficient and calm on the offensive end. In addition, other players also need to step up.
In the first half, except for Sefolosha's stable performance and two three-pointers, the other offensive contributions were too little.
Ibaka scored 4 points, Perkins scored 2 points, Kevin Martin, who had high hopes on the bench, scored 5 points, Reggie Jackson scored 2 points, and others did not even score, which was not enough for the Thunder. "
As the two sides chatted, the second half of the game began.
In the third quarter, both sides were more committed on the defensive end, and neither shooting percentage was very high.
Sefolosha and Harden were fighting together, not giving Harden a chance to catch the ball. Even if he caught the ball, he would have to consume a lot of energy.
The same is true for Ariza and Durant. Although they can still hit some shots, the consumption is really not small.
You can often see players bending over with their hands on their knees and panting when they take free throws.
The kings of both teams were in a tough fight. In order to help them save energy and perform better in the final quarter, the kings of both teams stepped up.
Westbrook and Jeremy Lin fought against each other. Jeremy Lin consciously increased the number of pick-and-rolls and shots he took, and the effect was pretty good.
