On December 18, the Rockets vs Clippers.

The Rockets started five Tigers: Alstone, Sean Battier, Chuck Hayes, Juwan Howard, Yao Ming.

The Clippers have five crew members: Sean Livingston, Quentin Rose, Tim Thomas, Elton Brand, Carman.

The Bunch Wells and David Lee swap is a foregone conclusion, so Van Gundy can't let him play in this game.

This is a protective measure to avoid injuries to the players who are traded. After this game, Wells will go to the Knicks for a medical exam, and as long as there are no problems with the medical exam, the two will complete the swap, and David Lee will appear in the Rockets' home game against the Clippers.

Bunch-Wells was conflicted when he learned he was going to be traded.

Wells loves the New York Knicks because he loves money. The Knicks are stupid and have a lot of money, and as long as they play the data there, they don't have to worry about making a high salary.

What's more, Marbury, the lone wolf, is getting worse and worse, and Thomas has lost faith in him. Wells felt that he could still be the boss if he went. But he is also a little reluctant to the Rockets, because the Rockets are very strong this year and have the opportunity to impact the championship, who doesn't want to mix up the championship in their careers?

However, he had no choice. NBA players, sometimes like a commodity, the difference is only that this "commodity" is more expensive.

Knowing before the game that the Rockets were missing a strong player, the Clippers seemed to see hope of victory.

Clippers head coach Mike Dunleavy has made some elaborate deployments. Meeting the Rockets, Dunleavy saw it as an opportunity, a chance to turn around the impression of Angel City fans. The Lakers have been out of action for two seasons, and he hopes that the home team can pull some Lakers fans to the Clippers by beating the Rockets in an upset.

Dunleavy had a face and wasted all his efforts to bring the players' positive surnames into play. In order to win, the atmosphere must first be like a big game, not a friendly match, and the players must muster up courage.

Before the start of the match, Dunleavy carefully created a serious atmosphere that was broken by Brand and Hayes.

Brand stood on the sidelines, observing Hayes, and suddenly felt a little funny. At 203cm, he is almost the shortest of any inside star, and now that Hayes is 5cm shorter than him, he didn't expect that he would also have a height advantage. Moreover, Hayes's arms and legs look so short......

Brand was secretly happy, and he didn't notice that Hayes kept peeking at his arm.

After a while, Hayes walked over and suddenly said to Brand, "Man, I'm sorry, I'm so curious, I want to compare arms with you." ”

"What?"

"Compare arms to arms...... It's as simple as that. Hayes said, taking his arm and joining Brand.

Brand's arm span is exaggerated, reaching 223cm (some say 225cm), and Hayes is only a normal 198cm, which is significantly shorter in comparison.

When this result was reached, Hayes did not feel inferior, but laughed: "Your arm is really long, too long." Hey, hahaha...... Excuse me. ”

"yes. How can it be so bad, wahahaha. Brand couldn't help but laugh too.

The two laughed uncontrollably, shook hands and hugged each other amicably. The players next to him, including the assistant referee, were stunned, why hasn't the game started yet, these two people are insane? Are they very acquainted, and they are happy to have friends from afar?

Brand thinks of Shrek, koalas, well-being sheep, (with huge and short limbs).

Hayes thinks of gibbons, horse monkeys, Marion (which also happens?). ）

There is love at first sight between men and women, and there is also love at first sight between macho men.

Hases has always admired Brand, who has entered the league as a consistent 20+10 player. If it weren't for the fact that he was out of form due to injury, Brand would be the most consistent interior outside of Duncan.

Brand also admires Hayes, because Hayes is shorter than him and less talented than him, and it was very difficult to get today's results. Hayes even leads him in rebounds, which makes him feel incredible.

The two laughed, and the tense atmosphere before the game disappeared suddenly.

Hayes stopped laughing and said seriously: "Elton, it's a pleasure to meet you, you are my role model." ”

"The same goes for you. Let's fight with all my might, and I'll show you what I'm capable of. Brand also calmed down and smiled. He straightened his back and calmed down, with a hint of anticipation in his heart. He was confident to defend against Hayes. Although Hayes's stats are beautiful, he plays more team basketball, and when he plays against the league's top interior linemen, he only takes advantage of the Suns, who are not good at defense.

Hayes smiled and walked back to his team's box.

Brand moved his long arm and said to his teammates, "Are you ready?" ”

"Alright." The other Clippers players said.

"Defeat the rocket!" Brand yelled.

"Defeat the rocket!" The rest of the Clippers roared in unison.

Clippers coach Mike Dunleavy nodded in satisfaction. Brand is the backbone of this team and he is responsible for driving the morale of the whole team.

"They have a lot of momentum, but they can't beat us. Don't lose to them in momentum, let's have a slogan. Jeff Van Gundy clapped his hands and said.

"Come on." The crowd said.

Hayes threw his head back and roared with all his might: "16 consecutive wins!" ”

"16 wins in a row!" The Rockets roared in unison.

It was a very seductive slogan that not only lifted the spirits of the team, but also discouraged the opponents.

The Rockets all believed they would win, but the Clippers' undecided ones were a little discouraged. The opponent has won 15 consecutive victories, can they really cause an upset?

It is not only the players of both sides who will be affected, but also the fans on the field.

Is it interesting to watch the weak team Clippers upset? Or is it interesting to watch the Rockets continue their winning streak and challenge for the league's best regular season record?

That's a problem.

Most fans will choose the latter.

Hayes's roar won a lot of applause for the Rockets, and it was a bit difficult to tell whose home court was here.

Mike Dunleavy was stunned when he heard Hayes's roar on the sidelines, and then looked at the substitutes around him, who didn't seem to be as energetic as he had just now. He looked a little uneasy, and said to himself, "Hayes...... Why did he weaken our momentum just by shouting? ”

The player takes his position, and when the whistle blows, the referee raises the ball in his hand.

Yao Ming grasped the timing of the jump very well, defeated Kaman, and accurately dialed the ball into Alston's hand, Alston slowly dribbled the ball across the half court, and transferred the ball to Yao Ming, who was in the key position on the three-second line. Yao Ming turned around and passed Kaman, slipping the bottom line and clasping his hands violently.

Yao Ming has also been in good form recently, and his stats have reached the peak of his career this season.

The momentum of the Clippers players was slightly affected by this dunk, but this did not include Brand.

Livingston dribbled the ball to the Rockets' half, and under Alston's pressing, passed the ball to Brand on the left side, Brand tentatively arched twice, did not squeeze Hayes, the two tonnage were close, Hayes was a few centimeters shorter, and the lower plate was more stable. Brand dribbled to the center and hit the Clippers' first shot with his long-arm hook.

The Rockets attacked, falling into positional battles.

The Clippers executed their pre-game tactical arrangements, with Carman defending Yao Ming and Brand eyeing Hayes.

"Come on, let me see you get past me like this." Brand stood up to Hayes.

How will Hayes fight? The two have similar speed and strength, but Brand has a height advantage and an arm span advantage.

Almost all experts analyzed the pairing of the two before the game and believed that Brand had the advantage.

Hayes runs back to the outside. Alston accurately passed the basketball into his hands.

Break through, or do you want to turn around for three points? Brand watched footage of multiple Rockets games before the game and studied Hayes' offense well.

There is no acceleration, and the amplitude of the action is not large, and it seems that it is preparing to break through. Brand judged carefully and pulled away from Hayes.

Hayes didn't shoot, he turned around after receiving the ball, and Brand's hand reached in front of him.

Hayes protected the ball, Howard ran over and leaned towards Brand, and in an instant, Hayes moved, using Howard's body to break through from the right side, blocking and changing defenses, and it became Tim Thomas who defended him.

Tim Thomas is 208cm tall, his strength is not bad, Hayes can't break through, he doesn't stick to the ball, and he gives Yao Ming, who wants the ball at a 45-degree angle, Yao Ming single-handedly hits a turnaround jumper, which is quite easy.

The Clippers came back right away, and after a couple of passes, they hit Brand again, who turned around and made a jumper, and Hayes was a little slower to block.

"Elton Brand!" The Clippers DJ shouted loudly, and the audience erupted in applause and cheers.

This arm is really hard to cover. However, I don't believe you can make it every time. Hayes put Brand outside the three-second zone, aiming to prevent breakaways and interfere with shots. He defended well both times, but the opponent felt too good.

Brand also felt that the attack was not easy, and even more difficult than him was Carman.

Carman is in charge of the single defense of Yao Ming.

Kaman is not Kaspersky, let alone He-Man, no one has given him strength, so he can't prevent Yao Ming's bug-level jumper. Yao Ming made 4 of 4 shots, and the Rockets opened the score.

"You're not going to attack it once? Don't be so afraid of me, right? Brand asked, confronting Hayes.

"Hehe, Elton, there are many ways to win, it doesn't have to be a single." Hayes said, receiving the ball without pausing and dialing it to Battier, who cut in the middle. Battier scores on basketball.

NBA stars often go head-to-head against superstars in the same position in order to prove that they are better. And this unwritten rule does not apply to Hayes. When he played the Cavaliers against James, he consciously reduced his shots, and this time against Brand, it was the same.

Knowing that the other party has an advantage and is likely to defend his own people, why should he hit the muzzle of the gun in one go?

Hayes's thinking has always been practical, and winning is the key. What's more, he was trying to practice passing today.

In the entire first half, Hayes only scored 5 points, once when Brand was defending Yao Ming, he caught the ball, and the other was when he grabbed a rebound in the frontcourt, hit a jumper, and caused Brand to foul and hit a three-point shot.

Hayes only made 3 shots, 5 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists, and Brand had 16 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists. What about the score? The Rockets are 61-45 with a 16-point lead. If you continue to play like this, the fourth quarter will become garbage time again.

"Bastard!" Mike Dunleavy, who has always been a gentleman, burst into a foul mouth.

The Clippers don't know who the head coach is talking about?

Is it Yao Ming, who scored 20 points in the half, or Juwan Howard, who scored 14 points? Or one of them who is not defensively good.

Mike Dunleavy didn't expect the Rockets to play this way.

If it continues like this, the Clippers will lose.

Hayes has not taken the initiative to attack, and keeps taking Brandra out of the line, Brand can only helplessly choose to follow, and the awareness of helping to defend and blocking ability are all wasted. Brand can't wrap Yao Ming, Yao Ming singles, and the Clippers can't prevent it. Howard and Hayes' pick-and-rolls are also not easy to guard. Hayes made a couple of passes and assisted Howard on a mid-range shot.

What put the Clippers in such a situation, except for Yao Ming, was Hayes, who didn't score much.

In Mike Dunleavy's opinion, Hayes is indeed a headache.

If Hayes chooses to play hard against Brand, Mike Dunleavy will be happy. Even if Hayes scores more points, at most he and Brand explode, and they have a chance to win.

But now, Hayes has done nothing on the offensive end except for occasional catches and passes, and even stood outside the three-point line most of the time without moving, dragging the Clippers to death.

Mike Dunleavy doesn't know the last time he saw a player like Hayes, who is obviously capable of offense, but is willing to be a green leaf, the ball passes through his hand and is assigned to a reasonable position, he seems to have the mind of a point guard.

Rookie players generally like to compete with each other's stars to prove themselves. Hayes didn't look like a rookie at all, he was too consistent, like a veteran who had played more than 10 seasons.

At half-time, the head coach often explained tactics in the dressing room, and the players gathered around the coach. Mike Dunleavy looked at Brand and asked, "Elton, how does it feel?" ”

"It's uncomfortable, Hayes is very strong, I think even if he meets O'Neill, he will resist. He's not slow to move either, this guy is very defensive, and it's hard for me to get to the basket. Brand smiled wryly.

"You're right, they're really strong on the inside."

Mike Dunleavy pondered for a moment and said, "Tim (Thomas), Corey (Margety), you guys need to step up the breakthrough. We switched to the outside in the second half. In the attack, with Sean (Livingston) as the core! ”

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