The Knicks were playing against the Houston Rockets tonight, and when they stepped onto the floor of Madison Arena, they were stunned by what they saw! Strange casual clothes, shirtless, tattooed black men, and all sorts of small French pendants made this former theater of dreams look more like a den of bandits, and they were the lambs waiting to be slaughtered.

"Morris, do we have to play this game?" Bob Sula, the Rockets' backup point guard, asked with a frown, "The atmosphere here makes me feel uncomfortable, what the hell is this? Madison? I think it's more like a street basketball court in those ghettos, and everyone here looks like a drug dealer!"

Francis, the boss of Team Rocket, is very unhappy with Sula's words, and he also came out of the slums. Sulla's sarcastic words struck him as harsh, but he was also uncomfortable with the atmosphere in Madison today.

"Do you think we can refuse to play because of the Knicks' home atmosphere?" Francis, in a cold tone, walked over to the bench.

Before the opening ceremony of the Knicks players was over, Lamar didn't pay attention to the faces of the Rockets players, jumped to the technical table at once, faced the stands of the fans, waved his arms vigorously and shouted: "Fight!

The fans at the scene naturally responded enthusiastically, in their eyes, compared to the previous Lamar, who was always cold, now this arrogant Lamar is more tempered.

"Who does that guy think he is, the king of the world?" said Maurice Taylor, pouting disdainfully, "just a clown." ”

"If you have time to judge others, how about I talk about my tactical arrangement?" said Rockets head coach Rudy Tomjanovic, who knew from his tone that he and Morris did not have a good relationship.

Morris Taylor's face turned red, after all, the other party was his head coach, and he had to eat under the hands of others, so he could only swallow his anger and listen to the tactical arrangements with other Rocket players. But this guy's mouth was not idle, and he was still muttering something quietly.

"That guy is just grandstanding, clown!

Tomjanovic couldn't help frowning, but didn't say anything, and continued to explain his tactical arrangements.

Compared to the tense atmosphere on the Rockets' side, the Knicks' side is much more relaxed. The victory over the formidable Dallas Mavericks in their first game after Christmas has kept their morale very high right now.

Van Gundy didn't say much, just emphasized the issues that should be paid attention to during the game, and let the players move freely.

"Why didn't I see David Wesley today, isn't he out today?" Billups said as he looked at the Rockets with his head sticking out his head.

"And Kevin Cato, he didn't come today, the main players on the inside are not in Houston, do you want to admit defeat?" Darmsport also said, looking at his face and seemed to feel very sorry for Cato not playing.

The last time the two teams met this season, the Rockets defeated the Knicks at their home court, Toyota Center, thanks to Cato and Francis. Although there were factors such as Arenas' suspension and Davis' injury at the time, the Knicks lost that game and had nothing to say.

Dampoter, in particular, was completely blown up in direct dialogue with Cato, and he was completely suppressed both offensively and defensively. He finished a game with seven points and four rebounds, while his opponent, Kevin Cato, did have a double-double of 14 points and 20 rebounds.

That defeat has kept Dampotter haunted until now, and he is holding back to avenge that attack when the two teams meet for the second time. But the opportunity for revenge came, but Cato didn't come! Lamar was also at a loss, he was very much looking forward to this game, and he was still waiting for a sequel to the last time he had a big fight with Steve Francis!

Olajuwon looked at the three guys and said angrily: "Don't you all watch the news of the league? Cato was injured in the last game and missed this game. ”

"Hurt?" Lamar groaned, frowning.

"He may not be able to play this season!" Olajuwon said with a look of regret, Cato was still his substitute back then, and the two still had a good relationship.

"Cato still has an old back injury, but it's a serious problem, and for a big man like him, a back injury is very fatal. ”

No Cato!

Lamar sighed inwardly, but he didn't reveal it. Lamar glanced back at everyone's disappointed looks, and he suddenly felt very relieved.

These people already really have that kind of domineering spirit, and when they play, they will not be happy because of the opponent's strength but will be disappointed, which is the patent of the king.

"Okay guys! I know you're not happy with today's opponents, but there's no way the game is about to start, and with so many people in the stands supporting us, I don't think it's okay to report a good game. ”

"No matter what the strength of the opponent is, we play our basketball, and if you don't have passion for such an opponent, you can treat them as arrogant guys who look down on us and deliberately preserve their strength. ”

As soon as Lamar's words fell, Dampot, as a loyal little brother, was the first to shout: "That's right! They just looked down on us, so they deliberately didn't bring that guy Cato." These arrogant guys, we have to teach them hard. ”

Looking at Dampott's contrived appearance, Lamar couldn't help but laugh: "Samuel! All right, bandits! Let's welcome the guests from Houston. Show them how good our New York gangs are!"

Anyone who knows the New York Knicks knows that the Rockets are going to have a cup now.

Cato's season reimbursement made the entire Rockets team, which was not very strong, full of sadness. Although they have a good record and can still finish in the top eight in the competitive Western Conference, no one is looking forward to them anymore after the last game.

Without Cato, the only defensive pillar on the inside, no one believes they can do anything earth-shattering. Maybe it's their best bet to start messing around now and then going to the summer draft to get a first-round pick.

Rudy is very distressed now, really distressed! so distressed that his already stiff face has now become a zombie face, and no player in the Rockets dares to look him in the eye now.

Originally, this season Rudy was ambitious and wanted to do something big. Francis is maturing day by day, and although he can't be said to have swept the entire league, he is definitely at the top of the list of many guard stars.

Since the start of the season, a decent record has made Rudy full of ambition. I wanted to take advantage of the regular season schedule after Christmas to take advantage of the opportunity to snatch a playoff spot in the West.

Unexpectedly, in just one game, all his illusions were shattered, and Cato, whom he regarded as the core of the Rockets' defense, and David Wesley, the team's bench bandit, were injured one after another. If he had been given a gun, he would have pushed all the Milwaukee Bucks players to the ground and shot them for ten minutes before reasoning.

But it's a little too late to say anything now. Although he doesn't have any expectations for this season, as a head coach, he can't say such things, even the expression on his face must remain confident.

After arranging the tactics and saying the last word, Rudy waved his hand to his disciples impatiently and caught them up.

Maybe the Knicks gangsters will be disappointed by the lack of an opposition, but New York fans will never think so. They would only be happy if every opponent had all the main players injured or suspended before they played them. It's not that they're unhealthy and like to gloat, it's just that then the Knicks' victory is guaranteed.

With the Rockets' starting five, the stands at Madison Square Garden immediately burst into cheers, and those who didn't know thought that New York fans were very hospitable.

Knicks fans watched with delight at the Rockets' starting lineup, can such a team make a difference at the McErson Square Garden Arena?

Probably even their head coach doesn't think these guys can do anything to keep their heads low. The slightly twitching stiff face is facing the camera, as if to say, "What does it matter to me whether I win or lose?

The main players are out due to injury, and the head coach has to do nothing, if the morale of such a team can be high, it will be a hell of a life!

But there is an exception to everything, just like the fantasy Maurice Taylor, who is now dreaming of defeating Lamar and making a name for himself.

"Boom!"

It was like a roaring basketball hoop vibrating, and with this loud bang Morris Taylor's dream was shattered.

At the beginning of the game, he rushed up to challenge Lamar, and the result was predictable, and he was directly blown out by Lamar.

At the last moment, he tried his best to block the basketball in Lamar's hand. As a result, he was knocked far away, and fell into the group of reporters behind the basketball hoop without any image, and then he could only watch Lamar hang on the basket like a god, looking at him with contempt.

"Man, you'd better be honest on my turf!" Lamar said coldly, throwing the ball into Maurice Taylor's arms, and then threw the stunned Taylor and turned to beckon his gang of bandits to go back to the defense.

"Lamar seems to be serious, he doesn't have to use all his strength to take out such opponents. Dampot muttered to Shanton Anderson as he ran back. (To be continued.) )