"Quite the opposite."
Xu Xin shook his head and continued:
"I'm worried that he will work harder to train and compete, and push too hard, which is not enough."
McHale nodded when he heard this:
"This is indeed something he can do. Don't worry, I will tell him. But..."
Having said this, McHale paused and looked at Xu Xin with a sly look:
"Jimmy not being selected, to a certain extent, is a good thing for the Rockets."
Xu Xin pretended to be confused and asked:
"how do I say this?"
"Just pretend."
McHale laughed:
"If Jimmy is selected for the All-Stars, there is a high probability that he will be selected for the All-Stars next season. If he is selected for the All-Stars twice during his rookie contract, the Rose clause will be triggered. Then the pressure on you to renew the contract will be great."
"It's big, I can handle it. No matter what, I hope Jimmy can be selected."
Xu Xin smiled and said, he couldn't admit this kind of thing.
"You."
McHale laughed.
Butler's loss quickly became a rage in news media circles and fan forums, with many complaining about him.
"Butler is the Rockets' second-in-command this season, averaging 18.8 points, 6.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 2.5 steals and 1.2 blocks per game. Even compared to Pippen back then, it's not bad at all. In addition, the Rockets are first in the Western Conference and second in the league. With a good record, how could he be defeated?”
Veteran basketball commentator and former Rockets head coach Van Gundy Jr. complained about Butler on social media.
It quickly gained support from many people.
"The selection of people really depends only on reputation and not on performance."
"Jiba is really proud of himself this year. I cried to death."
"Upstairs, I can't tell whether you are a die-hard fan or a black guy. I mean, can you give me a more elegant nickname?"
"Hahaha, I was really sad, but I laughed to death when I saw this."
"Butler: Are you polite?"
"Hahaha."
Xu Xin looked through everyone's opinions about Butler's defeat. Before that, he instructed the Rockets' official media to post highlights of Butler's highlights in the Rockets this season, which was also a voice for Butler.
He was not selected this year, but it still left a seed in the hearts of the fans, news media, head coaches of each team and league officials. The probability of being selected next year will increase a lot.
Furthermore, it also allows Butler to see that the team has always supported him.
But McHale was right about one thing.
Butler was not selected, and Xu Xin's possibility of renewing his contract early this summer has greatly increased. Butler has no hope of triggering Rose's clause, and there is no need to wait until next summer to become a restricted free agent.
Not only will it ruin your goodwill, but it will also increase a lot of risks.
If he is seriously injured next year, or if he disagrees with the team about contract renewal and is hidden by the team, then the gain will outweigh the loss.
On February 3, the Rockets faced their first opponent in February at home, the Bobcats, the deputy squad leader of the Eastern Conference.
The team has a relatively easy schedule in the first week of February. After playing the Bobcats tonight, they have two days of rest and will continue to face the Warriors at home on the 6th.
Then immediately fly to Miami, where the highlight will be.
In the last week before the All-Star break, the Rockets' schedule becomes tight.
On the 9th, he returned to home to challenge the Trail Blazers, and took a day off to go to Sacramento to challenge the Kings.
The game against the Kings is the first of three consecutive games. After the Rockets beat the Kings, they will take another day off and play against the Warriors on the 13th. This will be the second meeting between the two teams within a week. Then he will fly to Los Angeles to challenge the Clippers in back-to-back games.
It can be said that in the 7 games before the All-Star Weekend in February, except for the Bobcats who are absolute underdogs, the Trail Blazers, Kings and Warriors are all capable of fighting. The Heat and Clippers are the top teams in the league.
Although there are not many competitions, they are really difficult.
Before the game, McHale also mentioned this in the locker room. He told the players that except for the Heat game, there was no room for failure in the remaining six games.
This is the plan he and Xu Xin set. The team's current record is three games behind the Heat. Considering the Heat's overall strength and health, it is too difficult to catch up with the Heat and overtake them to become the league's first. Big, the possibility is slim.
In this case, then giving up the home court advantage in the final and choosing Zangzhuo is the best choice.
In the evening, the Rockets faced their first opponent in February, the Bobcats.
Except for Yao Mai and the injured Livingston, everyone else in the Rockets can play in this campaign.
The starting lineup also includes Jeremy Lin, Harden, Butler, Garnett and Asik.
The Bobcats are no different from their last match, with Kemba Walker, Gerald Henderson, Michael Gilchrist, Byron Mullens and Bismack Biyombo.
The Bobcats did not surrender as soon as they came up. After all, they were basically young people. Even if they lost, they still had to gain some experience.
The Bobcats, who had no pressure to win, were the team that performed better after the start.
Kemba Walker focused on scoring as soon as he came up. He shot very decisively and scored 5 points in a row with sudden inside and outside shots.
Help the Bobcats take the lead.
The Rockets were in average shape after the opening, and failed to hit several shots, including some open opportunities.
It made Xu Xin frown. Fortunately, it was a weak team. If it was against a strong team, it would be even more important to get the start.
"Maybe the team took a few days off and is still looking for form."
Yao Ming said.
"Um."
Xu Xin nodded, still feeling a little worried.
On the court, Mikey swiped the defense and stole the ball from Harden's hand. Then he counterattacked and added two more points with a tomahawk dunk.
At 7:13, five minutes into the game, the Rockets fell behind by 6 points.
McHale immediately called a timeout to adjust without any hesitation.
He first roared at the five main players. In the past five minutes, he played as if he had not woken up on both offense and defense.
Then with a big wave of his hand, five up and five down, he replaced all the main players and replaced them with five substitutes: Iverson, Gerald Green, Ariza, Tucker and O'Neal Jr.
This is a common method used by Popovich. If the main force doesn't play well, then they all sit down.
Coming off the bench, the effect was immediate.
Iverson first relied on his personal ability and made a steady hit in the mid-range shot. Then on the defensive end, he defended one-on-one, stole Kemba Walker head-on, and pushed back to counterattack.
During the counterattack, I saw both Henderson and McGee retreat in position and did not choose to force forward. A subtle back pass found Gerald Green who was following up, and the latter followed up with a gliding chop that shocked everyone.
"In the past, Iverson would have definitely chosen to hit the ball hard."
Maddie smiled.
"Yeah, I'm still getting old."
Yao Ming sighed, suddenly feeling sad. Before he retired and was idle at home, some things were out of sight but out of mind. But this time he returned to the team and he could often recall past events as if they happened yesterday. In fact, these things have already happened. It's been so long that even die-hard fans can't even remember it.
