Chapter Eighty-Nine: The Disparity in Strength
The Rockets defeated the Spurs in seven and re-entered the Finals after 12 years.
Their opponent is the Cleveland Cavaliers led by "Little Emperor" LeBron James.
Since the Cavaliers selected James in 2003, they have brought in reinforcements year by year, from ninth in the East, to fifth in the East, and now second in the East, reaching the Finals.
"Little Emperor" will hopefully win his first championship in the fourth year of his career.
Of course, this is only hopeful.
Just like the difference in strength between the East and West in the regular season, and the attention that the East and West playoffs have received, the world knows how big the gap between this Cavaliers and the Rockets is.
Aside from the managers of both sides, but on paper.
Ilgoskas is known by some fans as a tall center whose strength is comparable to Yao Ming, but those who have watched the regular season know that the two sides are not at the same level at all.
Drew Gooden, a tough forward, but more tough than tough, Millsap is not false at all, as for scoring ability, even first-year Millsap is much better than Gooden.
James, against Battier, this is the only dominant counterpoint for the Cavaliers, but James, who has not yet developed his long-range shooting ability, may only know how far this advantage can be brought into play.
Larry Hughes, the 2005 steal king, has a good defensive stance, good three-point ability, a standard 3-and-D player, somewhat similar in function to Battier, but against Maddy, he is more inferior than Battier against James.
Daniel Gibson, James' "guard with a knife", this year's second-round pick, has a place on the Cavaliers with his stable projection, but it is difficult to take advantage of Blake, who likes to fight.
As for the bench, Alexander Pavlovich, Anderson Vallejo, Don Yell Marshall, Damon Jones, such a lineup is not the slightest advantage compared with the Rockets.
And that's again with the manager in mind.
Then bring out Tang Tian, who has repeatedly created miracles, and compare it with Mike Brown, the "bread" opposite.
"Hey man, this is the finals of the kid beating!"
Barkley's joke on TNT is the truest portrayal of both teams.
After a break of nearly a week, on June 9, US time, the NBA Finals kicked off at the Toyota Center.
Before the game, reporters interviewed James, the core of the Cavaliers.
When asked by reporters about the preview of the game, James was a little emotional.
"Everybody thinks we're going to lose, everybody thinks there's no way the East team can win, but we can win, and see, we're going to win the game."
"Play at a normal pace, and if you lose, count it mine." On the side of the court, in stark contrast to James's excited emotions, Tang Tian's expression was extremely calm and calm.
As a traverser, he knows that the finals with the most disparity in strength in history are really a bit disparity.
The game started quickly, and Ilgoskas gave the Cavaliers the chance to attack first.
James went to the front court to receive the ball at the top of the circle and organized.
As a well-known playmaker in the league, his ability is unquestionable.
It's just that the rest of the Rockets are very close, and the Cavaliers have run for more than half of the offensive time without a chance.
James chose to eat Battier by force.
Battier retreated from the sidelines, and when James got to the basket, the Rockets quickly shrank defensively.
James splits the ball outside Hughes.
"Bang!"
Hughes missed a three-pointer.
The Rockets' possession.
Yao Ming arrived in the frontcourt, and after a burst of infinite air cuts, the Cavaliers' defensive formation had almost collapsed.
"Huh!"
Maddy's outside three-pointer hit a solid three-pointer.
The cheers at the scene shook the sky.
The Cavaliers' offense, James organized again, and this time he gave it to Gibson on the perimeter.
Gibson added another three-pointer.
"Bang!"
Still not entering.
Gibson hit 11 three-pointers in his rookie game, but unfortunately, this is the Finals, and the defensive intensity is at least three levels higher.
The two sides are fighting back and forth, but the difference between the points has widened little by little from the beginning.
By halftime, the Rockets had a 15-point lead at 66-51.
Team Rockets ...... the whole process It couldn't be easier.
After a bloody battle with the Spurs, playing against the Cavaliers again was like a sauna, sweating and feeling quite comfortable.
Tang Tian also sat on the bench the whole time.
Playing this team of knights, in fact, is really simple.
James basically didn't shoot long at this time, as long as the main defense he killed the inside.
As for the rest of the Cavaliers, to be honest, he's tired of James.
Bringing such a group of teammates to the finals is, in the final analysis, an absolute affirmation of James' ability.
In the end, despite James' pre-game vows and hard work in the game, the Rockets still defeated the Cavaliers 101-89 and won the first victory in the Finals.
"The Cavaliers played hard." This is Tang Tian's evaluation of the Cavaliers after the game.
This is a very pertinent assessment, not only James in the game, but also the other players of the Cavaliers played hard.
But in the game, hard work is based on talent, especially in the NBA, the world's top league, hard work alone will definitely not win the game.
103-91, the Rockets still won the second game easily.
98-91, back to the Cavaliers' home court, the Cavaliers players were in good shape, James played a triple-double of 21 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists, and the Cavaliers only lost by a single-digit margin.
3-0, the Rockets easily took a big lead, and the team was only one step away from the championship trophy.
The final game of the Grand Final will continue at the Quickfinance Arena.
Because it has reached the match point game, the championship may be born in this game, and the official staff of the league appeared on the scene with the championship trophy and some necessary props.
It's a signal, but the feeling is diametrically opposite.
The Rockets players are looking forward to it, while the Cavaliers players are apprehensive.
"We don't care about anything else, the only thing we have to do tonight is to win this game, we must not allow our opponents to lift the championship trophy on our home turf, if that happens, it will be a shame for us forever." Before the game, James shouted at his teammates.
The "little emperor" has his dignity.
The same can be said of the Cleveland fans, who are ready to go, wearing red home team T-shirts and holding white handkerchiefs handed out on the spot.
Cleveland is a small town, but the enthusiasm of the fans here is extremely hot, the atmosphere at home is among the best in the league, and this year's playoffs are especially hot because of the team's excellent results.
The Cavaliers have reached the point of fighting on their backs.