Bulldozer of the NBA’s Restricted Area

Amid the hustle and bustle of the Lakers' home court, the Lakers started the first round of the playoffs. The previous two championships were the bottom line. This established the most important season of the Zijin Dynasty and undoubtedly aroused the highest enthusiasm among fans. The seats were packed.

As for the Rockets visiting team...

The team's performance in the regular season was not good. The Big Three consisting of Olajuwon, Barkley, and Drexler were considered the peak in recent seasons, but this peak did not last long and fell all the way to Currently eighth in the Western Conference.

Think carefully about the operations of the Rockets management in recent seasons.

Whether it is Drexler or Barkley, the contracts they offered are not high, and the entire team's lineup is getting older.

Although they caught up with Pippen after the Bulls disintegrated, the problem was that Pippen was not young anymore and could not produce suppressive statistics. As a result, the team's salary space was reduced, making the situation in this playoffs even more embarrassing.

…

Olajuwon and Pippen will definitely be the starters. The former has an annual salary of 1,300 and the latter has an annual salary of 1,100.

The starting power forward is the team's former head coach Matt Bullard; shooting guard Michael Dixon and point guard Cuttino Mobley. Both are first-year rookies, one is 14 in the first round and the other is in the second round. Round 12.

The combined annual salary of Bullard, Dixon, and Mobley is only 1.6 million.

This number is pitifully small compared to the 2,400 of Olajuwon + Pippen, and this starting set is also seriously deformed. The old is old, the young is small, and the annual salary is polarized.

The Rockets spend 30 million in salary a year, and the eldest and second eldest child account for 80%?

This ratio is very unhealthy.

If Barkley could be fooled into staying, the Houston nursing home might still be able to fight, but now... they are on the verge of collapse due to their lack of success. They perfectly demonstrated the collection of this team in recent seasons in the first round of G1. weakness.

…

Throughout the first half of the game.

Olajuwon is in good health this season and has enough experience. On the offensive end, he always wants to pull Li Shengli out of the penalty area and create opportunities for Pippen to hit the penalty area.

The opportunity did arise.

But the problem was that Rodman, who was guarding Pippen, didn't give any face to his former teammate.

You must know that Rodman's style of play has always been rough and aggressive, but the most important thing on the defensive end is enthusiasm, and Pippen is really about to vomit... He doesn't have many chances to shoot, and his breakthrough is threatened by Barkley's defense. Even if they do reach the penalty area, Li Shengli, who is in charge of the last line of defense, will have the most difficulty.

This is completely different from how he plays in the triangle system.

Jordan went crazy and could pull two defenders, or even three defenders. His offensive pressure was very small, but now no one can count on him. He was really confused. His data after playing two quarters was 7 points and 4 points. 2 assists on boards, far lower than the regular season average of 24 minutes per game, 3 turnovers, well, this is higher than usual.

…

It won't work if the Rockets' shots are moved to the outside.

The two young guards Dickson and Mobley have very little experience accumulated in this shortened regular season, let alone playoff experience. Not to mention that the Lakers still have the backcourt combination of Kobe + Crotty. The two rookies were also confused.

Therefore, throughout the first half, Olajuwon was under the greatest pressure.

The feeling of having a heavy burden on my shoulders is...all the teammates are eagerly watching him beat Li Shengli. Fortunately, he is in good condition today, leading Brad to fight to save the last bit of the Rockets' dignity.

Two periods.

Olajuwon scored 18 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists. He is still the totem and soul of the Rockets, but the performance of others was too embarrassing. They played 30:50 at halftime and lost by 20 points.

On the other hand, the Lakers...

Li Shengli didn't play much offense, only scoring 13 points in two quarters, but the problem is that for a long time... Li Shengli's significance to the team is definitely not limited to offense, but as the team's offensive and defensive glue, sorting out every offense and defense. Task.

So in addition to 13 points, there are... 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 blocks, 2 steals from Olajuwon, and the half-time data of 13+9+5+4+2 is accompanied by The team's offensive and defensive enthusiasm was high, and they took a 20-point lead in two quarters.

…

These 20 points...

On the one hand, the Lakers' lineup is stronger and their tactics are more targeted. On the other hand, the Rockets' lineup is severely degraded. Even if they are not playing against the Lakers and the other six teams in the Western Conference are randomly selected, the Rockets will still have a high probability of being at a disadvantage. , the only difference is how many points you lose.

Only played two quarters.

Harris never took the initiative to call a timeout, and in the third quarter... even though there was supposed to be a large-scale rotation, he still didn't make any substitutions. He just arranged for Li Shengli to get more data and get off work early.

Do you need data?

Then hit it a little!

Li Shengli thought about the data of 13+9+5+4+2. He was all-around, but he couldn't find a point of improvement. When other teammates saw it, they were willing to send Li Shengli away quickly, so the third quarter became everything. People want to send Li Shengli away.

"Lee, please do some more."

"Yeah, you go down early, I think you won't have anything to do today!"

"That's right, you finally have a chance to refresh your data, so don't snatch it from us."

"What the hell?!" Li Shengli looked at a bunch of beast teammates, and the beasts were beasts, but the remaining time didn't have much meaning, so he cursed a few times and said: "Then... a double-double, 4X5 data is almost the same Sorry, missing 1 rebound and 1 block."

"Okay, great."

"Quick, quick, everyone, come on, knock Li down!"

…

Everyone came on the court with this idea in mind, and after shouting a few words, everyone in Olajuwon was stunned.

Are the Lakers going to knock out Li Shengli?

Are you sure this horse rider doesn't have something wrong with his ears?

Olajuwon's expression was strange at this time, but because the first offense of the third quarter came from the Rockets, he still chose to hit Li Shengli in the low post and missed the jumper, creating a Lakers backcourt.

…

A rebound?

I won’t take it when I’m riding a horse!

I won’t take it even if I ride on a horse!

At this moment, Barkley and Rodman were still on the court. The two rebound monsters were playing tricks in an instant. They rushed towards the landing point, but it was just a show. After getting into position, they surrounded Li Shengli. No one jumped. Li Shengli didn't even use the tip of his toes, he just lifted the rebound with his hand.

Damn, you two bastards! !

Li Shengli's face darkened. Because Barkley and Rodman had a quarrel, he had an extra rebound, and when he threw it to Crotty and pushed forward...

Crotty, who was on the vertical line in the front and backcourt, was hit by Mobley, and the ball fell to the left. Pippen quickly picked up the ball and counterattacked wildly, but the problem was that Li Shengli hadn't run far yet.

then……

Pippen brushed against Li Shengli and rushed forward. Li Shengli instinctively withdrew his defense and blocked Pippen with a snap. The ball was touched by Mobley who followed up, but he missed it and went out of bounds.

…

Will 4X5 be able to live together?

Damn, it’s only been less than half a minute!

Li Shengli's face darkened, while Barkley, Rodman and Kobe were slapping their thighs and laughing wildly. The same was true of Ben off the court, yelling for Harris to make a substitution quickly.