Watching the Rockets lose the game and be taunted by Warriors players and fans made Ethan a little embarrassed.
Ethan is the Rockets' Leonard Jr. and Udoka's favorite general, so of course he has to support him. In his pre-match interview, Udoka talked about Ethan wearing a Warriors come out and play T-shirt: "These lads are obviously young, and it's a movie that I've loved since I was a kid, so, I showed them a clip from that movie at the beginning of the season, and Ethan decided to wear that dress now, but anyway, it's fine for me. Udoka said he had a similar shirt and that Ethan bought it from.
The Rockets and Warriors came out with injuries after the game, and Amen suffered an ankle injury and couldn't play in back-to-back games against the Heat. The news Udoka gave was Amen's daily watch, who is expected to return for the game against the Mavericks. Udoka decided to start veteran Jeff Green in place of Amen. Jeff Green is shooting just 33.1 percent from three-point range this season, but he's still a lot better than Amen.
The Heat went too far, and used the Rockets as a soft persimmon to attack hard. In this game, the main force of the Heat was exhausted, and Butler, Dunroe and Herro all played. Before the Heat played against the Warriors, none of these three played.
In the end, the Rockets lost at home and had no hope of making the playoffs, and they sent the Thunder a Lexiu sign. The Rockets sent a 2024 first-round pick to the Thunder in a previous trade for Willis, but thankfully they received the Nets' 2024 first-round pick through a Harden trade.
Smith Jr. hit a three-pointer and Dillon found his shooting touch, giving the Rockets a seven-point lead. The Heat upped the intensity to tie the score. In the second quarter, Whitmore hit a three-pointer and Smith Jr. hit a jumper, and the Rockets' offensive firepower could not continue. Herro broke through for a layup, and Bam Adebayo hit two free throws to put the Rockets up by seven points. The Rockets called a timeout to make adjustments but still couldn't be suppressed by the Heat, and Rozier hit a three-pointer to bring the margin to 10 points. The Rockets struggled to chase the points, and Van Jordan made a jumper at the buzzer, narrowing the gap to 5 points.
In the third quarter, the Heat continued to suppress the Rockets, and Jovic hit a three-pointer to bring the margin to 12 points. The Rockets didn't give up, and Landale received a pass from Whitmore and hit a dunk, and the Rockets trailed by 10 points going into the fourth quarter. In the final quarter, Whitmore scored a layup, Green hit consecutive three-pointers, and the Rockets chased down the difference by four points. The Heat made a strong effort to regain the score, and the Rockets were deflated and finally lost.
Jalen Green had 21 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals and 1 block, shooting 6-of-18 from the field and 2-of-9 from three-point range. Green complained about getting a technical foul in the fourth quarter, and sure enough, it was at home as away, the Rockets suffered losses not once or twice, and Herro got a free throw but didn't score.
Smith Jr. has 15 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and 1 block, and his stats are better against strong teams this season, but the Rockets are difficult to win.
Whitmore had 12 points, 4 assists, 1 steal and 1 turnover, and his lack of passing and defense exposed his shortcomings.
Dillon picked up and finished with 18 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 steal.
Jeff Green did his best with 11 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists.
Van Jordan had 13 points, 6 rebounds and 8 assists, with a plus/minus of -20 and the lowest in the team. Fertitta complained that Paul's contract was terrible, and now Van Jordan's contract is not much better. Van Jordan's annual salary next season is $42.85 million, and the final year is $44.89 million, which is fortunately a team option, otherwise it will be troublesome.