The Basketball Court Swordsman

March 27, 2013, Houston, Texas.

James Harden was sweating profusely, he looked up at the big screen at the scene, then looked straight ahead. He knew very well that he could no longer waste opportunities. He was wasting opportunities for the entire game today. But not now, he must take over the game like a real star!

It's not an exaggeration to say that this year's Houston Rockets are going high and low. At the beginning of the season, Harden's brilliance made the Rockets look soaring. But as the game progressed, Harden and the Rockets exposed more and more problems.

One of the most obvious questions is - how much attention can Harden put on the game?

Nightclubs, big money, **** girls...Since joining the Rockets, the off-court news about James Harden has never stopped. Accompanying these news is Harden's increasingly unstable shooting percentage.

In the last game, the Rockets played a crucial game against the San Antonio Spurs. Harden made 16 shots and only hit 6 of them, which was less than 40%. Still relying on as many as 17 free throws, barely pulled the score to 29 points.

On March 20, the Rockets faced their old rival Utah Jazz, James Harden was 5 of 14 and his shooting percentage still failed to exceed 40%. However, 17 of his 18 free throws still allowed him to score 29 points.

From this point, it is not difficult to see the instability of James Harden in the latter part of the season, and the Rockets' record also fluctuates with the state of James Harden. Now, the Rockets are still hovering between eighth and seventh in the West. With one carelessness, the Houstonians may say goodbye to the playoffs again.

And very unfortunately, today, James Harden's state still does not meet the expectations of Houston fans.

"The game has the last two minutes to end. James Harden has played 41 minutes before this! That is to say, if James Harden plays the whole game, his playing time will become 43 minutes. But so far, James Harden has only 6 goals in sports games! To be honest, this is extremely inconsistent with his playing time and number of shots." On the commentary stage of the Toyota Center, Jeff Van Gundy once again brought the topic to Harden.

At this time, Harden attacked with the ball. Although there are still two minutes before the end of the game, it is a crucial offense. If you score, the point difference will be reduced to 6 or 5 points. And if the Pacers counterattack successfully without scoring, the points difference will be widened to double digits.

Therefore, this attack will directly determine the success or failure of this game!

After Harden passed the midfield line, he beckoned to Asik, and the Turks rushed to set up a cover for Harden. This is the privilege of being a star. Even if you have missed countless goals before, you can still get the trust of the coach at the critical moment.

The same is true for Harden, McHale relies heavily on the personal abilities of this bearded scorer.

Seeing Harden rushed into the penalty area, Horford didn't make up the defense violently, but only made a slight block to delay the action. The purpose was to force Harden to slow down and buy time for Paul George to return to Harden.

Seeing George sticking to himself again, Harden was going to make a layup in three moves. There is no doubt that Harden wants to fight a foul! But George raised his arms very cleverly and stood straight, without any extra movements! This not only ensures that he can interfere with Harden's shooting, but not infringe Harden's cylinder!

In this way, once again, James Harden failed the foul and shot the ball!

Yes, it was again. And this is also the reason for Harden's poor performance today.

Before the game started, Henson explained to everyone: "Pay attention to your actions, don't give James Harden an easy free throw opportunity. As long as he is not allowed to easily win the referee's whistle, he will lose the offensive rhythm!"

Henson has studied Harden's statistics and videos. In the last few games, he has to free up nearly 20 times. The statistics are hard to look good. But what if those free throws are eliminated? Is James Harden's field goal percentage and goals still enough?

So today, Harden repeatedly tried to make fouls, and ended up in an embarrassing situation where he didn't hit the whistle and failed to score a goal. Harden has only taken 9 free throws today, almost half of his usual. And counting the offense just now, James Harden has already made 6 of 24 shots, shooting 25%, not even 30%! Although Harden still has 22 points in the account, this efficiency makes 22 points meaningless.

Such James Harden, naturally, can't let the Rockets take the lead. Not to mention that before today’s game, Harden was captured again in a nightclub craze...

The Rockets and Harden fell halfway, not without reason.

With Harden's shot and iron, Chris Paul quickly hit the ball, assisted George to score a layup, and made a quick counterattack! When George had already completed the layup, Harden, who was facing George, was still standing outside the three-point line. Bearded's "eye defense" is still the same. After this layup, George has scored 24 points. Of course, the hit rate is a full 20 percentage points higher than Harden. And you know, George has only played 29 minutes today.

"A beautiful counterattack. The combination of Chris' speed on the ball and Paul George's counterattack makes the Rockets' defense useless. 10 points difference, only 1 minute left in the game. Coach McHale called a timeout. , But Coach Henson has raised his arms to celebrate the victory. Unless a miracle happens, it will be difficult for the Rockets to bring the situation back!"

Van Gundy shook his head. In modern basketball, chasing 10 points in more than 1 minute is not a fantasy. But considering the Rockets' status today and the Pacers' defense... at least at this time in Toyota Center, the Rockets want to win the game, it is indeed a fantasy.

"Good job, guys, I'm proud of you!" After the players were off, Henson high-five with his fighters one by one. Their excellent state made Henson's grand strategy a big success!

Houston Rockets, this is undoubtedly the most difficult game for the Pacers to play before April!

If this game loses, then the Pacers will lose 9 games. In this way, it is undoubtedly very difficult to achieve 72 wins while being able to take turns. But if the Pacers with an uneven lineup can successfully win the Rockets, then wait for Ray Allen and David West to return after entering April. Henson's plan can be said to be completely successful!

Therefore, today's victory in this game is of great significance to Henson! This is not only an ordinary victory, but also a victory for Henson's entire strategy!

He was proud of George’s 29 minutes and 24 points, of Horford and Yi Jianlian’s clever defense that didn’t allow Harden to take advantage of him, of Paul’s continued efficient defense and solid organization, and of Danny Green and Leonor. De is proud of his dedication...Almost every player sitting in front of Henson at this time, he is proud of them. It was their hard work that resulted in Henson's strategic victory!

"At the last minute, I will not say anything to pay attention to their counterattack. Because that is a contempt for your previous efforts! I can guarantee that as long as you continue to maintain, the group of dog **** will not be able to turn back the game! Finally! More than a minute, let us leave Houston with victory!"

This time out, Henson didn't even arrange anything on the tactical level. Not because Henson forgot, but because he didn't need it at all. As long as you keep going, the Rockets will lose!

The result of the final game also fulfilled Henson's expectations. 100 to 91, relying on Jeremy Lin's beautiful but meaningless long-range three-pointers at the last moment, the Rockets were able to reduce the point difference to single digits, leaving the last fig leaf.

Harden, who made only 22 points in 24 shots, undoubtedly became the "culprit" of today's Rockets' loss.

"Before the game began, people were discussing which of the two shooting guards, George and Harden, who shined this year, was better. At that time, I said, I didn't want to answer this question. As a result, you said I was guilty and I had no confidence. Then, I said. Now, you should understand why I don’t want to answer, right?"

Henson was in a good mood after the game, so the media was naturally ridiculed by Henson. When did Henson bother to talk to them, it was not normal.

"I must admit, Henson, your crazy plan seems to be so feasible." After the game, Stevens studied the rest of the Pacers schedule, 72 wins, as if already within reach. !

With the victory over the Rockets, the defending champion beat the Mavericks 103-78 back-to-back in Dallas the next day, turning Texas upside down. Two days later, in Phoenix, facing the bad sun, the Pacers scored 112 to 104 and took down their opponents cleanly.

At this point, the Pacers' March schedule is all over. After defeating the Suns, Henson led the team from Phoenix to Indianapolis, and immediately got good news from the team doctor.

"The recovery of Ray Allen and David West is very smooth. If you want, you can send them out in the next game."

Looking at the team doctor's report, Henson smiled slightly. There is a badge bonus, can the recovery not go smoothly?

The terrible March has passed, and the Pacers have survived the most difficult 31 days of the season. This indicates that Henson is getting closer and closer to the legendary 72-win record...