One Guard

The Mavericks' resistance was tenacious, somewhat beyond D'Antoni's expectations. In his impression, only Yiyang and Hayward can attack the Mavericks' starting lineup. However, in fact, Yiyang and Hayward's attack led to the remaining three people.

It is true that Dirk and Deron can no longer play tough offense, but their open shots make the Rockets hard to guard against. As for Gobert, that guy's desire to win allows him to knock the ball away from his opponents and dunk the ball into the frame time and time again. Gobert does not have any superb low-post skills, nor does he have any shooting skills. But he just can fight hard and shows no mercy.

Until the eighth minute of the first quarter, the score between the two sides was still tense. At this time, Carlisle began to slowly change into a rotating lineup. And what about D'Antoni? He replaced Chris Paul.

Paul was taken off early and rested four minutes ago, and Carlisle thought it was strange at the time. It turns out that D'Antoni wanted Paul to come up and stop Harden while he was resting.

For the second team, the Mavericks can only field Mudiay, Mitchell, Gay, Kuzma and Majori. And what about the Rockets? They were able to field a strong second team led by Paul.

Let Paul and Harden stagger the court, so that the Rockets can maintain at least one strong offensive organization point on the field for 48 minutes. Carlisle secretly sighed in his heart, D'Antoni's substitution is really wonderful!

Although Mudiay has made great progress this season, he is still too young compared to Paul. And compared to Yiyang and Delong, Mudiay's organization is not that amazing. During the rotation, the Mavericks' offense was a little messy. The Rockets, under Paul's control, still played in a orderly manner.

Tucker received Paul's pass and hit three-pointers again and again, and Eric Gordon's cuts made Mejri unable to guard.

In the end, the Rockets took a 6-point lead at the end of the first quarter. D'Antoni attaches great importance to the depth of the lineup, so this season, even the Rockets' second lineup has maintained a super high level!

"The Houston Rockets have shown they have the capital to compete for the championship! Chris Paul's control of the court is completely unmatched by Mudiay. I know Mudiay's performance is good enough, but in a dynasty team , our standards will also be raised!”

Mike Breen is right when he says that rookies playing in the Mavericks are no less stressed than rookies playing in big cities such as Los Angeles and New York.

Not only do they attract attention, but they must also perform well. Carlisle looked at the bench. During the rotation, the two strikers Gay and Kuzma were actually very active and created many opportunities. But unfortunately, Mudiay is not a master of organization. If the Mavericks' second team is equipped with a guard who really knows how to control the court, they may be able to compete with the Rockets.

Among the Mavericks, apart from Yiyang, Deron knows how to connect the whole team best. Oh, and Nash, of course that guy can't play in a uniform right now.

Deron will play in the second team, but who will start in the second quarter? mark? Barea? Tony Allen? They are all capable, but none achieve the best results.

Finally, Carlisle's eyes fell on Mitchell. Maybe, it's time for him to face the pressure in advance!

"Donovan, keep playing in the second quarter! Give me more attack inside and cause damage!"

Carlisle finally made this decision. Mitchell was surprised at first, but this expression was quickly covered up by excitement. He rubbed his hands and fidgeted. Mitchell knew clearly that the time had come to test himself. Today's game will directly determine whether he has a chance to start in the future!

"Relax and focus on the court." Yiyang patted Mitchell on the shoulder. At this time, it's better not to get too excited.

The break between sections was very short. As soon as the cheerleaders left the field, the players returned one after another.

Paul, who returned to rest off the court, was chatting and laughing with Tucker next to him, but when he saw the Mavericks' lineup, his smile suddenly froze.

Donovan Mitchell, who has worn jersey No. 45 since college, replaced Deron.

Mixed in with the Mavericks' starting lineup. Is this guy going to have to shoulder a heavy responsibility so soon?

Mitchell was still shaking slightly at first, but after remembering what Yiyang said, he quickly regained his composure. Calm down, calm down, you need to calm down now before you can show your strength!

Harden personally defended Yiyang, while Mitchell's opponent was the Rockets' best sixth man Eric Gordon. After Gordon came to the Rockets, he also experienced nirvana and rebirth. Although D'Antoni's coaching experience with the Lakers was very unsuccessful, he has to admit that he is still very good. Last season, his arrival gave both Harden and Gordon a new look.

Yiyang looked for someone outside the three-point line, and Gobert came up to cover him. This resulted in Capela having to step in to make up for Yiyang, leaving the Rockets feeling empty inside for a moment!

Mitchell suddenly accelerated and cut past Gordon! This guy's explosive power was so terrifying that his first step was so fast that Gordon had no time to react.

Yiyang naturally saw Mitchell's running. Mitchell also ran this kind of opportunity many times in the first quarter, but Mudiay couldn't pass it in.

In front of Capela's long arm, Yiyang hit the ground and passed. The basketball passed between Capela's open legs and fell steadily into Mitchell's hands!

After receiving the basketball, Mitchell didn't move. Instead, he took two steps and jumped hard!

Capela can't get back, and the basket can only be protected by Ryan Anderson. The tall, long-armed white forward covered him up, and Mitchell didn't lift the basketball at all, but passed it from behind. The basketball passed by Anderson's waist and was sent to Dirk!

Since Mitchell had already shaken Anderson, Dirk on the side of the basket was unmarked at all. The German used all his strength to take off and succeeded without dunking under the basket. The American Airlines Center Arena exploded instantly.

"Donovan Mitchell, how is this kind of passing action possible!? This guy's physical coordination may be no worse than that of Yi! And Dirk, God, I can actually see He dunked."

As soon as the game started in the second quarter, the Mavericks' offense overwhelmed the Rockets. The camera showed Yiyang and found that this guy smiled for a rare moment.

He just thought that Mitchell would attack the frame directly, but unexpectedly, he made a smart pass in the air. Chris, Chris, you gave me a treasure!

Although the Mavericks scored a good goal, the Rockets' morale was not greatly affected. Harden dribbled the ball through halftime in a hurry, and Eric Gordon had already begun to look for opportunities to shoot three-pointers.

However, what surprised Gordon was that the rookie behind him was so active on the defensive end! Generally speaking, rookie players, especially guards, are more obsessed with offense. As for defense, I don't pay much attention to it.

But this year's rookies are a bit abnormal. Lonzo Ball of the Lakers is a young man who is active in defense. But Mitchell, who was biting him right now, was another different person.

Gordon ran for a long time and still didn't get a good chance. Harden signaled that he was going to solve the problem with singles.

James Harden's three-pointers are accurate, and he is not afraid of confrontation when he breaks through. But the premise is that he must first be able to get inside.

Under Yiyang's defense, Harden tried to break through several times but was blocked by Yiyang from outside the three-point line. Finally, when he tried to break through for the third time, Yiyang, who found the pattern, started everything and made a clean steal!

Although the ball was knocked away, Yiyang did not control the ball. He and Harden turned around at the same time and pounced toward the unowned basketball. In the end, Yiyang made a diving leap, slammed himself onto the wooden floor, and pressed the basketball with his body.

At the same time, Yiyang caught a glimpse of a dark shadow from the corner of his eye. Without thinking, he threw himself on the floor and swung the ball forward!

The live camera lens immediately followed the basketball and pushed it to the front court. Only then did people realize that Donovan Mitchell had rushed to the front. His sense of defensive counterattack was more sensitive than anyone else!

After receiving the basketball steadily, Mitchell performed a gyro dunk that turned 360 degrees in the air for the Dallas fans. This guy's athletic ability is amazing, and Yiyang's wonderful pass eventually turned into an even more exquisite goal!

"The emergence of Mitchell changed the situation of the game. A rookie, after starting the second quarter, the Rockets became at a loss. We saw that Chris Paul was already preparing on the technical table. It seems that D'Antoni can no longer tolerate it. And Mitchell wreaking havoc on their defense.”

After Mitchell dunked, he happily high-fived Yiyang. At that moment, Paul suddenly felt like his love had been stolen from him.

The next time the Rockets attacked, Harden's step-back three-pointer missed by a hair. Although Gobert was pushed hard by Capela, he still grabbed the defensive rebound strongly. With Gobert inside, Yiyang is not worried about the opponent getting a second chance to attack.

The Rockets retreated very quickly. By the time Yiyang received the basketball and wanted to sprint, the Rockets' defense had basically taken shape.

There was no other way, so Yiyang had to control the ball slowly. Although you can't score quickly in positional battles, as long as you can score, it's okay if you don't do it quickly. The Mavericks are not a run-and-gun team.

Seeing Mitchell's eagerness to try, Yiyang immediately decided to let the guy attack again. Now that Mitchell's morale is good, there is no need to waste it.

Hayward's off-ball movement took away the Rockets' defensive attention, while Yiyang passed the ball to Mitchell and then set a screen for him next to him. Mitchell knows the good intentions of his two big brothers, he understands it, catches the ball and uses the screen to rush in!

However, Harden made up the defense in time. The current Harden is no longer the defensive-looking Harden he was back then. Not to mention that he is a defensive powerhouse on the perimeter, but his defense is not easily broken down.

Mitchell was not afraid of the bearded man who had transformed into a superstar. He just relied on his body to kill the inside, and then threw the ball directly under Harden's interference!

The shot was too forced, and the basketball hit the edge of the basket and failed to hit the target.

Yiyang shook his head. A rookie is indeed a rookie, and he can still be impatient. But he doesn't blame Mitchell. Yiyang already appreciates the momentum of daring to fight and fight.

Just when the Mavericks players were about to retreat, Mitchell, who was throwing the ball, stood up from the ground, raised his long arm, and dunked the bounced basketball back over Harden's head!

Self-throwing, grabbing, and dunking, Mitchell's performance made everyone's eyes widen, including Yiyang, who was calm at all times.

"Is this kid Spider-Man!?" Looking at Mitchell hanging on the basket like Spider-Man, Yiyang was frightened.