The yellow storm in the NBA

Before the start of the season, according to the team strength rankings released by ESPN, the Spurs, as the defending champions, ranked second in the league and first in the Western Conference. The Rockets were placed in the twelfth position, with six teams in the Western Conference.

in front of it.

Of course, the strength ranking does not determine the final ranking. It is just the opinions given based on the situation of each team before the game, which has certain reference value. However, since it can be ranked second, then the Spurs are naturally not strong enough.

In other words, they are also the favorite team to win the championship, otherwise the media would not rank them so high no matter how messed up they are.

Although there is a big gap between the two teams in the media rankings, it seems that the strength of the Rockets has been underestimated. At least their current record and performance cannot match the twelfth position in the strength rankings.

This game is a good litmus test for the Rockets. If they can defeat the Spurs again, then perhaps the outside world will have to re-evaluate the strength of the Rockets, and the Rockets themselves may also have to reconsider their positioning and season goals.

On November 17, 2007, the San Antonio Spurs were at home, and the fans were singing and dancing very happily. There were still 4 minutes left in the first half of the game, and the score was 48:33. The home team was leading, so the fans were so happy.

Yao Ming encountered some trouble in this game. He committed a lot of fouls. He was called for two fouls in the first quarter. Three minutes into the second quarter, he was called for another foul. It was an offensive foul. As a last resort, Adelman used

Uncle Mu replaced him.

The main reason why the Rockets have such a good record during this period is that Yao Ming is in hot form. If it were not for foul problems in this game, his performance would continue. Because even if there were foul problems, he still scored 14

points, and only took 9 shots, which is quite efficient.

However, except for Yao Ming and Alston, everyone else's performance was not good. Quan Xiao's touch was also not good today. He only made 2 of 6 shots and 1 of 4 three-pointers, which was far below the normal level.

If Alston hadn't made 3 of 5 three-pointers from outside, the score gap would have been even bigger. If the Spurs had widened the gap to more than 20 points at halftime, the game would have lost suspense in advance.

"No, there is no crosshair for the three-point shot today. We can no longer stick to it. We should hit the penalty area. After all, the closer to the basket, the higher the success rate. No matter what happens, we must cause the opponent to foul and try to get a free throw opportunity." Quan Xiao Zai

After Yao Ming was replaced, he began to think about countermeasures.

Yao Ming has a great influence on the Rockets' offense and defense. He is the cornerstone of the current Rockets team. Although Quan Xiao's scoring average so far exceeds that of Yao Ming, no one would think that his role is greater than that of Yao Ming, at least.

Yao Ming, the current Rockets team, determines its lower limit.

Quan Xiao can determine the upper limit of this team, provided that he can fully transform his potential into strength and use it. If his strength is improved to the level of an All-Star starter, it may help the team in the playoffs.

Break through the first round. If they can reach the level of a superstar, then the Rockets may also have a chance to compete for the championship.

When Uncle Mu was young, he couldn't keep up with Yao Ming in terms of offensive ability, and now he's even worse as he gets older. The Rockets only used his defensive ability and experience to replace him, and never expected him to make any contribution on the offensive end.

Yao Ming's dismissal means that the Rockets' offensive center has moved outward. Scola has a certain offensive strength, but how much can he perform under Duncan's care? In addition, Alston feels good today and can also play on the outside.

To compete with the Spurs, if Quan Xiao regains his touch later on, he will have a certain advantage.

The Spurs did a good job defending Quan Xiao's three-pointers today, which is one of the reasons why Quan Xiao made 1 of 4 three-pointers. If Quan Xiao still doesn't understand the Spurs' defensive strategy, then he doesn't deserve to be in this league.

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Quan Xiao used his speed to get rid of the defense and entered the Spurs' penalty area. He avoided Duncan's block and scored the ball. He also caused Duncan's foul and got an extra penalty opportunity.

I rubbed my arm that was red from being beaten by Duncan to relieve the pain. I stood on the free throw line and made a solid free throw. Fortunately, the free throw was not affected.

"If I remember correctly, this is Duncan's second foul. If he continues to attack the inside, it's best to cause him two more fouls. Even if he can't get him down, he still has to be careful." Quan Xiao started thinking as his mind turned.

The Spurs are being plotted.

Next, Quan Xiao no longer used long-range shots to score, but continued to break through and attack the Spurs' penalty area. Ginobili tried very hard to defend, but Quan Xiao was thrown away again and again. There was no way, it was just because of his physical fitness.

Not even close.

Not only was he taller than him, but he was also faster than him, and it was about to become even more incomparable. Ren Quanxiao squeezed him away with just a little effort.

Finally, with only the last minute left in the first half, Duncan fouled Quan Xiao again, his third foul of the game.

In order to cause Duncan's foul, Quan Xiao repeatedly attacked the Spurs' penalty area, constantly colliding with the Spurs guarding the basket inside, which was a small loss. Not to mention the pain in the chest, Duncan's foul just now was

Quan Xiao was slapped on the head so violently that his eyes were filled with stars.

But it was worth it for Quan Xiao. Duncan didn't rush towards anyone on purpose, and he seemed to have restrained himself a little in the end, otherwise he might have been knocked unconscious. After all, it was directly on his head.

Quan Xiao took a few deep breaths to calm his heartbeat, and then made two steady free throws, chasing the score to 52:41. The Spurs had already replaced Duncan, and anyway, there was only the last minute of the first half.

Come to think of it, the Rockets can't make a big splash.

Uncle Mu is not good at the offensive end, but he still has defensive strength. When Ginobili missed a shot, he always used his strength to overpower the Spurs' backup center and grab the rebound.

Seeing Duncan go down, Quan Xiao stopped attacking the inside and tried to work outside the three-point line again. This time, he did not miss the shot again, helping the Rockets reduce the score to 8 points.

Parker didn't know what was going on, but he suddenly made a low-level mistake. He hit his foot while dribbling, and the ball escaped his control. The ball bounced out and was caught by Alston. He immediately switched from defense to offense, and played with

At the same time, Quan Xiao immediately turned around and descended.

On the Spurs side, only Parker, who had just made a mistake, was able to catch up with his speed, and the other players could only look at it in despair.

Parker stayed close to Alston, preventing him from rushing in for a layup. Seeing that there was no opportunity to take advantage of, Alston simply stopped attacking. When he took a step towards the free throw line, he put the ball on the Spurs backboard.

Throwing it, he dodged aside.

Parker thought Alston was sick and rushed to seek medical treatment, hoping to try his luck. However, he heard the panicked shouts of the fans at the scene and before he could react, he felt something coming from his head before he could react.

It flew over, and then there was a loud bang.

In Parker's eyes, a figure wearing the Rockets' No. 27 jersey came into view. He was hanging on his own basket. The basketball stand was shaken and the basketball bounced on the ground a few times before rolling out of bounds.

He, Tony Parker, the newly minted Finals MVP, was dunked by someone, and the person who dunked on him was still a first-year rookie. At this moment, Parker felt the full malice of this rookie.