The Rockets' next game will be played at 8:00 a.m. Beijing time on January 10, against the Timberwolves, who are temporarily ranked 8th in the West. The Timberwolves have performed very well in the last five days, having beaten the Clippers and Thunder (twice) to win three straight games and are currently ranked 8th in the West with a record of 19 wins and 20 losses, and it seems that this season's playoffs are promising for the young Timberwolves.
The Rockets are in a bad position, and after losing to the Lone Rangers at home, the Rockets have played 40 games, but the poor defense has made the Rockets still ranked at the bottom of the West, and the playoffs this season have no hope. In the last 10 games, the Rockets have lost all nine of their last 10 games, except for a valuable win on the road to the Wizards. There are even four games in which they have conceded more than 130 points, which is also the Biggest problem for the Rockets — the offense is still good, but the Rockets have recently performed the worst in the league.
The Timberwolves are not the same, this young team is not good offensively, but according to statistics, the Timberwolves' defensive efficiency ranks 6th in the NBA's 30 teams. NBA expert Ben Dubos believes that if the Rockets want to win the game with offense in the next game, it is almost impossible, the battle between attack and defense, obviously the away team Timberwolves are superior.
The Timberwolves are 24th in the league in offensive ability, which means that this game will be a battle of spears and shields. Although the Rockets are not defensively strong, their offensive firepower is still good, and the Timberwolves' offensive ability is in the middle and lower reaches of the league, but the defensive ability is 6th in the league.
Dubos also gave the expected starting point for both sides of the game: the Rockets 5 Tigers were still the same as in the previous game, Porter Jr., Jaylen Green, Gordon, Tate and Wood, while the Timberwolves' starting 5 Tigers were not suspenseful: Russell, Beverley, Edwards, Vanderbilt and Downs were the starting 5 Tigers.
Against the Rockets, even if the Timberwolves have poor offensive firepower, the young Timberwolves players will become super scorers when they encounter the worst defensive Rockets — just like the previous Lone Rangers did. Therefore, if the Rockets want to keep the home win, in addition to continuing to maintain an efficient offensive rhythm, the defensive end must be cheered up.
Improving the quality of defense is the key to the Rockets' victory, otherwise, the Rockets' attempt to extinguish the Wolves by outside fire alone in this game seems to be too simple. At 8:00 a.m. Beijing time on January 10, the Rockets' home game against the Timberwolves should not be missed. After this game, the Rockets will also face the Philadelphia 76ers in the next day, two back-to-back games, which will be another severe test for the young Rockets.