In the NBA West in the '80s, if you really had to find a team that could threaten the dominance of the Lakers.
That team is only the Houston Rockets.
In this era of strong and weak league structure, the Lakers and Rockets have almost swept the Western Conference championship in recent years.
This season, the Lakers have shown an invincible posture, winning 72-10 in the regular season.
So far, the playoffs have a 7-0 record in the first two rounds, almost crushing and advancing to the Western Conference Finals.
After being eliminated by the Lakers' "Black Eight" last season, this season's Rockets languished in the regular season, but in the playoffs showed rich experience and strong strength, completing two consecutive rounds of "the next gram", becoming the Lakers' biggest obstacle in the Western Conference finale.
Before the start of the game, the Rockets were also unanimously recognized as having a chance to break the Lakers' playoff unbeaten run.
In the evening, before the game started, the Great Western Forum Arena was already overcrowded.
The fans are spontaneously carrying out human waves, which look like a purple-gold ocean from a distance.
The Rockets' starting lineup has also changed from last season.
In addition to retaining the twin tower interior combination of Olajuwon and Sampson, the two players on the front line are also more than 2 meters tall.
They are Rodney McRae and Robert Reid.
The point guard position is Dirk Minifield, who is also 193 tall.
The biggest advantage of the Rockets' roster is height, with four players over 2 meters tall, and two inside players over 7 feet tall.
It can be said that the reason why they were able to go to the West final for two consecutive rounds was completely to kill the opponent's shooting in the cradle by relying on the defense of height and arm length.
But when the Rockets' coaching staff saw the Lakers' starting lineup today, they were completely frightened.
The Lakers' starting lineup today is: Zhou Chen, James Worthy, AC Green, Abdul-Jabbar and Manute Poll.
The starting five players are all over 2 meters tall, and Abdul-Jabbar on the inside and Boll on the inside are even more explosive in height and height Olajuwon and Sampson.
This match is the ultimate "Death Five" showdown!
The game started, and Boll jumped to the ball for the Lakers!
After Zhou Chen received the ball, he broke through with the ball and entered the inside!
Facing the defense of Olajuwon and Sampson, Zhou Chen made a fake move!
Turn around and hit the board and throw the hit! A first for the Lakers!
With his flexible footsteps and soft feel, Zhou Chen showed a strong attack flame after opening.
Not to be outdone, the Rockets rarely opened the game from the inside!
Olajuwon faced the Lakers' bag and decisively split the ball beyond the three-point line!
After McRae received the ball, he took the knife and scored three points for the Rockets, overtaking the score!
The Rockets are known for their style of interior offense, and today their offensive start is from the outside.
From this point, you can see the changes they made when facing the Lakers.
Zhou Chen continued to attack with the ball, and today on the field he will not only play the role of the leading scorer, but also play the role of team organizer.
Facing the opposing defender Dirk Minifield defense, Zhou Chen changed the direction of a cross of his left and right hands and passed it easily!
Then drive straight in, straight to the basket!
Facing the opponent's heavy encirclement and bag, Zhou Chen turned the shot into a pass in the air!
A dribble from behind his back and send the ball to Shunxia Boll!
After the latter catches the ball, he dunks both hands to score!
After the opening, the two teams started a battle against each other!
The Rockets felt very hot on the outside today, rained three points, and maintained a slight score advantage.
Because of Zhou Chen's existence, in today's league, few teams dare to fight the Lakers for three points.
But this time, the Rockets, I don't know what to cram, shells one after another outside the three-point line, bombarding the Lakers' outside defense.
In the first quarter, the Lakers trailed by 8 points 28-36!
The Rockets' explosive hand from the outside, hitting eight three-pointers in a single quarter, was a key factor in their ability to take the lead.
After the start of the second quarter, in the face of the Rockets' unabated three-point frenzy, the Lakers made timely lineup adjustments.
Michael Cooper and Dennis Rodman were replaced with two slower long centers on the inside.
A small lineup is more flexible to change defenses indefinitely.
In the middle of the second quarter, Zhou Chen missed consecutive shots outside the three-point line, and Rodman snatched 8 offensive rebounds for him in one turn!
Fortunately, in the last offensive opportunity, Zhou Chen did not live up to Rodman's performance, and set off the curtain of the Lakers' counterattack with a 3+1!
Subsequently, the Lakers used the three-pointers and layups of the fast attack counterattack to constantly chase points!
At halftime, the Lakers have chased the score to 69-70!
Only one point behind!
After the start of the second half, the Rockets began to work on the inside!
Olajuwon faced Rodman's defense and hit hard shots in a row!
Da Meng scored 9 points in a row to help the Rockets regain their advantage on the court!
At the critical moment, the Lakers picked up last season's elevator door tactics again!
Double cover blocks open three-pointers for Zhou Chen in a row!
Zhou Chen finally found his own feeling, and did not live up to the cover and blocking of his teammates!
After three three-pointers fell into the pocket, the Lakers have once again chased the score!
The two teams fell into a state of glued scores, and the point difference alternately increased, and it was never opened.
In this kind of top NBA arena, teams fight each other to the end, competing against the individual abilities of superstars.
The Lakers began to use "isolated singles", and Zhou Chen came to his most comfortable position, playing low-post singles on the weak side, and hitting continuously!
The Lakers finally turned around and built up their on-court advantage!
At the critical moment, the Rockets' two-tower combination also began to flourish!
This season, Big Dream Olajuwon has more abundant means on the offensive end, not only can skillfully use the dream feet of the inside, but also practice a very stable small shot.
At the end of the game, it became a mid-shot duel between Zhou Chen and Da Meng!
Time came to the last minute of the game, and the Lakers still led by one point 105-104!
The Rockets attacked and gave Olajuwon his hands!
When he dangled past Rodman and Abdul-Jabbar's defense, he was about to complete a dunk inside!
Zhou Chen presented a nail board hat! Dashed Olajuwon's hopes of overtaking him!
The Lakers hold the ball steadily!
In the ensuing time, both sides attacked fruitlessly! The Rockets can only use foul tactics to send Lakers players to the free throw line!
It's just that the object of their foul is Zhou Chen!
When Zhou Chen stood on the free throw line, the audience began to collectively chant "MVP"!
And Rodman's operation next to him stunned everyone!
He didn't even intend to compete for the rebound, and turned his body directly sideways!
This is a mockery of Team Rocket!
This is a great trust in Zhou Chen!
He knew that Zhou Chen's free throws didn't need to worry about at all, let alone grab rebounds!
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