The Rockets beat the Clippers twice at home.

The two teams moved to Los Angeles, and in the cheers of the home fans, the Clippers also failed to play with momentum, on April 29, 101-91, the Rockets went down again, and on May 2, 92-77, the Rockets did not leave the home team the slightest mercy and swept the Clippers out.

The Rockets passed easily, and the Clippers playoffs were left with nothing but disappointment.

The Clippers have made the playoffs for the second year in a row, and their record has overwhelmed the Lakers, which has given the team management hope that the "small yacht" will become a "luxury cruise ship". As a result, they turned into the Titanic, and they didn't go far before they hit an iceberg and sank.

In the post-match press conference, Mike Dunleavy admitted that the difference in strength between the two sides was too great. "The Rockets are a super strong team right now, they are impeccable defensively, their players are very strong in individual defense, and they will change their tricks to supplement and help defend. Our offensive was restrained. Plus, the Rockets' offense couldn't be stopped. They have three stars who are very individual and we can't do anything about it. ”

Van Gundy was calm.

The Los Angeles reporter asked: "Coach Van Gundy, the Rockets have advanced to the second round for the second time since '97, how do you feel?" ”

Van Gundy smiled: "We are relatively strong, so we won, and that's it." As for the first round of spells, there's not much to say about that topic. The Rockets now only aim for a championship. We're going to try to win every game. ”

The reporters also interviewed Yao Ming, who was the happiest person on the scene. This match was a major breakthrough in Yao Ming's career. Not only did he put up some good numbers this season, but he also tasted the sweetness of reaching the second round of the playoffs for the first time.

Yao Ming smiled: "It's a good series, it's great. In the regular season, our players already know how to win. It's a big step in my career for me and I hope the team can go further. ”

The reporter interviewed another hero, Hayes. Hayes played 36.4 minutes. He finished with 17.3 points, 12.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists while shooting 57 percent from the field and 40 percent from three-point range. Although his scoring is not as good as Yao Ming and Maddie, he is very efficient.

When asked about the reasons for the victory, Hayes said it was mainly because of the team's strong execution. "We were very resolute in executing the game plan in the pre-match preparations, and we had a way to deal with the changes in the line-up. We were the best team, so we won the game and we were very happy to be able to knock out 4-0 because there is a big difference between a sweep and a non-sweep. ”

The reporter said, "You mean the rest time, right?" ”

"That's right. We can now prepare more fully for the next round. ”

The reporter said: "What do you think are the chances of the second round of the rocket?" ”

"We're going to win. We are not afraid of any opponent! Unlike the modest Yao Ming, Hayes said dryly.

The Eastern Conference was almost entirely one-sided.

Like the history Hayes knew, the Pistons swept the Magic. Dwight Howard scored 21 points, 12 rebounds and 2.4 blocks in the series, but Loops and Hamilton blew up the Magic inside. Howard could only swallow the bitter pill of defeat.

The Cavaliers vs Wizards, who were predicted to have a hard fight before the game, were also one-sided. LeBron James played well, averaging 30.2 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists per game, leading the Cavaliers to a 4-0 sweep of the Wizards.

The biggest surprise is the Bulls vs Heat.

The Heat, who have lost three in a row, has no way back, and they attacked aggressively at the beginning, the first to bear the brunt of the "big shark" O'Neal, O'Neal is 36 years old, and he is not the only one who is aging, as well as 36-year-old Mourning, 38-year-old Payton, 33-year-old Walker, and 34-year-old Eddie Jones...... The Heat players have reached the age where they don't accept gifts during the holidays and only accept brain platinum. No one believed that they could reverse it, they were desperately trying to get their breath.

It's a pity that even if the Heat team has Wade, who won the MVP of the Finals at the age of 24, they can't change the fate of the loss.

86-91, the Heat was swept by the Bulls 0-4, becoming the first defending champion in NBA history to be swept in the first round in nearly 50 years.

And the Nets and Raptors battled 2-2. The next game will be played at the Raptors' home court.

In addition to the early promotion of the Rockets, the situation in the West is much more complicated. The Spurs are, after all, a team with championship credentials, and they won three games in a row after trailing the Jazz 1-0.

The Suns beat the Nuggets on the road in Game 4 and also took a 3-1 lead in the overall score. The Nuggets only rely on "melon" Anthony, who averaged 28.7 points per game in the regular season, and it is difficult to compare with the Suns' offensive group.

The most intense are the timberwolves and the Mavericks. The Mavericks won two games at home, and the tenacious Timberwolves returned home to win two games in a row. The aggregate score was tied at 2-2.

On May 3, the Nets defeated the Raptors 89-87 and led 3-2 in the overall score.

On the 4th, the Jazz defeated the Spurs 106-98 at home in Salt Lake City and pulled themselves back from the brink. In this series, Deron Williams averaged 18.6 points, 10.8 assists and 2 steals per game, which was greater than his average in the regular season and not inferior to Nash. As a result, DeLong has attracted the attention of experts and is considered a future superstar.

On the other hand, Deron's teammate in college, Luther Hyde, entered the playoffs and averaged only five minutes per game for the Rockets, scoring a total of four points. At the University of Illinois, Hyde was the team's number one star, and Delon often served as a substitute. Feng Shui takes turns, and Hyde, known as "Hai Dafu", is now sitting on the bench, and Delong, the "little nobleman" who is not much concerned, has become "Lu Ding Gong".

The Suns and Nuggets won and lost the game. 127-111, the Suns advanced to the second round 4-1.

The Mavericks defeated the Timberwolves 114-97 at home and won the crucial "Battle of Kings Mountain".

The allusion to "Mt. Tenno" comes from the Sengoku period, when Akechi Mitsuhide fought a decisive battle with Hashiba Hideyoshi after the change of Honnoji Temple. Mt. Tennoyama is a very important vantage point, and it is said that whoever can climb it first will win, which sounds like a monkey's war. As a result, Hideyoshi's monkey army preemptively climbed Mt. Tenno, and Akechi Mitsuhide committed suicide in defeat.

The NBA playoffs are a best-of-seven knockout tournament, and if the two teams are tied 2-2 in the first four games, then the fifth game is called the "Battle of Kings Mountain", and history shows that 80% of the teams that win the fifth game win the entire series.

On May 5, the Nets defeated the Raptors 104-99 at home and advanced to the second round. The next day, the Spurs beat the Jazz at home.

Just when people thought the Mavericks would advance with the same score, the suspense returned. The Timberwolves trailed the game and scored 11 points in the fourth quarter and went into overtime. In overtime, the "Wolf King" Garnett scored 8 points in a row to lead the Timberwolves to a successful reversal, and the total score became 3-3.

In terms of overall strength, the Mavericks, who have good players such as Nowitzki, Terry, Josh Howard, Devin Harris, and Dampier, are absolutely superior, but they are extremely uncomfortable against the Timberwolves.

"German Chariot" Nowitzki's height and style of play determine that he is the most difficult player to mark among players in the same position, those with height can't keep up with the speed, and those who can keep up with the speed suffer a loss, and the foul is basically equal to giving away points. There are few people in the league who can defend against Nowitzki, but Garnett, the "Wolf King", happens to be one of them.

Garnett has excellent reach, guard-like speed, strong bounce, and is more agile than Nowitzki. Nowitzki, who averaged 26 points per game in the regular season, met Garnett and dropped his scoring statistics to 18.4 points, shooting just 4 percent from the field.

The Timberwolves' offense was simpler, Garnett blocked, Iverson broke through with unlimited fire, and met the bag to return the ball to Garnett single. Whether the Timberwolves can win or not basically depends on Iverson's feel, and Garnett can contribute 20+ points. Apart from the two of them, the man who can help the two superstars is Serbian Marco Jaric. He averaged 8.7 points and 3.2 assists per game in this series.

Game 7 was played on the Mavericks' home court.

People aren't bullish on the Timberwolves. But as soon as the game started, Iverson showed super attacking power. He scored eight straight points in five minutes to prove that he was still at his peak and still the leading scorer. He broke through three times in a row, causing fouls on Harris, George and Dampier of the Mavericks, and made six free throws without missing a single miss!

With 5 minutes and 15 seconds left in the quarter, Iverson controlled the ball, and Terry was broken through in these games with a shadow and did not dare to defend too close. Taking advantage of the opponent's unpreparedness, Iverson pretended to break through the middle, pulled a step back, jumped to the highest point, and hit the jumper!

Two minutes later, the Mavericks sent the ball to the backcourt, and the astute Iverson saw Dampier's passing intentions, made a steal, and assisted Tranton Hassel to score a layup.

1 minute and 18 seconds before the end of the first quarter, Iverson used his speed to eat Terry for a layup successfully, and caused a foul, plus a free throw! Successfully hit 2+1! He led the Timberwolves to a 9-0 offensive run to lead by seven points in the first quarter.

The "answer" is crazy. He showed his pass again in the second quarter, and with 7:16 left in the quarter, the Mavericks missed the attack, Iverson launched a fast break, and just past the halfway line, he hit the ball with a precise big angle to find the fringe man Eddie Griffin, who made a layup and caused a foul! At halftime, Iverson finished with 23 points and five assists on 7-of-13 shooting and 8-of-9 free throws.

Every time Iverson gets the ball, the home fans will boo.

But Iverson was unmoved, and the second half was still his performance time, and Iverson looked very confident in the face of Terry, who was close to his height. scored a layup, hit a jumper, broke through and made a foul, and completely blew up Terry.

One minute before the end of the quarter, Iverson broke through from the left wing, faced three defenders, and hit the ball to Garnett, who dunked and was fouled by Nowitzki to hit a three-point shot.

The Mavericks took the lead, and the Timberwolves kept clutching the score.

In the final quarter, Iverson, who had not rested, still maintained his offensive rhythm, and made a stop-and-go jump shot after breaking through on the left wing. 9:04 before the end of the game, Iverson once again showed a wonderful ground-hitting pass and assisted Mark Blunt to dunk it! Then, the answer steals the Mavericks pass again and gets the 7th steal of the game! Half a minute later, Iverson shook off Terry for a layup, causing a foul on Stackhouse, who made 1 of 2 free throws.

In the final minute, Iverson and Garnett scored back-to-back points to beat the Mavericks 104-100 and become the last team to advance to the second round.

Iverson played the game, scoring a game-high 45 points and nine assists on 16-of-28 shooting, 3-of-7 three-pointers and 10-of-14 free throws. Garnett also had 18 points, 14 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 blocks.

After the game, some home fans gave the Timberwolves a round of applause. The Timberwolves laughed with a stubborn will in the end, they conquered the opponent and the audience.

With the never-say-die Iverson, the Timberwolves have changed!

After seeing the failure of the Golden Twin Guns, Hayes originally thought that Iverson could only bring the Timberwolves into the playoffs at most, but now, he has changed his opinion, and the Timberwolves have become a powerhouse! If they continue to strengthen the roster next year, the Timberwolves will definitely be an obstacle for the Rockets to create a dynasty.

(To be continued)