The Rockets beat the Bucks 112-108 at home today, ending a two-game losing streak. With an 18-16 record, the Suns are only 0.5 wins away from the eighth-place Suns in the West. And the Rockets are ranked higher than the Warriors and Lakers, and we can only say that the era of the former giants is over. The Warriors and Lakers were once two powerhouses in the West, but they still lost to time after all. This season is a world for newcomers, with the Western Thunder and Timberwolves on the rise, and the Eastern Magic and Pacers quietly rising.
New powerhouses: Defending champion Nuggets, as well as the Kings, Mavericks, Celtics and Knicks are also battling. Most of these teams are young at their core, and they are in their prime.
The Sunset Red team may only be left with the Suns, Clippers, Lakers and Warriors, and the Heat Bucks in the East.
Among them, Leonard, George and Harden, who are still at the peak of the Clippers' strength, are trying to challenge the young kings together to prove that the veterans are not all wiped out.
Of course, weakness is inevitable, and the current Bucks are in such a situation. Compared to the Rockets, who are young and strong, the Bucks are old. Although he is still at his peak, he doesn't look so unstoppable now compared to the horror he won in '21. Da Luo in the team is semi-retired, Middleton is difficult to return to the top, and Lillard's state is also up and down, and the data has hit a new low since joining, from an average of 32+4+7 per game, with a shooting rate of 46%+37%. Slipped to 25+4+6 with a shooting percentage of 42%.
In this game, the Bucks lost, and Lillard had nothing wrong with the first pot, his shooting percentage was too low, and he made many turnovers. In addition, the referees also helped the Bucks, basically wearing the jersey. A couple of penalties in the crucial final quarter almost changed the game. You need to praise the Rockets, they played well. After the fiasco to the Timberwolves, the Rockets improved their defense to the extreme, and always implemented a tactic, that is, to let the letter score, choke other scoring points, and on the offensive end, the defects that Da Luo could not get out of the pit could not come out, the Rockets shot fiercely, plus the substitute bravery, the Rockets led by 20 points at halftime.
In the second half, the Bucks were close to about 10 points, but the Rockets bench was too powerful, Whitmore, Amen Thompson, and veteran Jeff Green were invincible. The Rockets have always held an 18-point advantage, blowing a foul once in the final quarter, and the referees tried their best to help but failed to win the game, among which Jalen Green's key three-pointer when the Rockets scored was very fatal to the Bucks, and he almost killed the suspense. In the game, he scored 48 points, 17 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 block, and he hit 15 of 21 free throws alone. Lillard finished with just 18 points, nine assists and two rebounds on 5-of-16 shooting, Middleton had 10 points, Connaughton had nine points, and Da Lo had seven points and five rebounds.
On the Rockets' side, Shen Jing was choked by Da Luo's defense, shooting 7-of-21 and scoring 21 points, 11 rebounds and 4 assists inefficiently, and was restricted for the first time this season. Jalen Green had 16 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists on 5-of-12 shooting, Jeff Green 16 points, Smith 14 points, 12 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals, VanVleet 14 points, 7 assists, 2 rebounds and 2 steals, and Tate 4 points and 8 rebounds. Holiday had 11 points and Thompson had four points, five assists and three rebounds. However, after today's game, all the media are praising one person, that is, Whitmore of the Rockets, who came off the bench for 12 minutes, shooting 4-of-6, 1-of-1 three-pointer, and 3-of-3 free throws to get 12 points, 3 rebounds and 1 steal, including a plus/minus of +4.
In his last six games, Whitmore has been able to score 11.5 points on a whopping 68% true shooting percentage (a terrifying 29.6 in 36 minutes). It is worth mentioning that Whitmore also exhibits top-notch 3D attributes, shooting 11-of-26 from three-point range and 42.3% from three-point range so far this season. A rookie with the 20th pick in the first round, 2,01 meters tall and weighing 105 kilograms, Whitmore is living up to what scouts expect of him, as he is the Timberwolves' Edwards. Whitmore's strength is indeed very strong, and even the letters are pushed open under the strong impact. That's why Lakers fans have been slamming out at management lately, as Whitmore was a player the Lakers considered before the draft, but the team ultimately drafted Hifilo. In terms of talent, Whitmore is in the top five, and he is only 19 years old, but there are rumors that he may have injury risks after the age of 30, but in fact, there is no.