The Mavericks beat the Rockets 147-136, and after today, the Warriors locked up a playoff spot, and the Rockets completely lost hope. In fact, there was no hope for the Rockets before, they needed to win all of them next, and then they had to look at the face of the Warriors, and the Warriors had to defeat the Rockets to overtake. So the miracle of the Rockets' loss today is gone, and the Rockets suffered a 5-game losing streak immediately after 11 consecutive wins. There was no doubt that it all came from the game where the 11-game winning streak was ended, and the Rockets suffered a crushing defeat to the Mavericks.
The rockets after that were a series of defeats, the so-called one boom, then decline, and three exhaustions. In fact, that's what it means, the Rockets haven't played strong teams in a row before, and both the Cavaliers and the Thunder Bulls are. But the rocket is too young, and the winning streak is all supported by one blow, and once the gas is gone, it can't be lifted. This is also the reason why the Rockets also played a wave of consecutive wins in the opening stage, once ranked fourth in the West and then went down, this is the essential difference between strong teams and weak teams, and the first thing the Rockets have to do is stability.
This can be seen in the core of the Rockets, Jalen Green, who was simply Jordan possessed during the 11-game winning streak. But during the five-game losing streak, Jalen Green averaged 35.4 minutes per game, scoring only 18.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 1.2 steals, and 3.8 turnovers, shooting 37.8% from the field and a pitiful 22.5% from three-point range. He is the reason why the Rockets have lost recently, the so-called success is Green, and defeat is Green. Because during the 11-game winning streak, Jalen Green averaged nearly 30 points per game, shooting a terrifying 49 percent from the field and 45 percent from three-point range.
If Jalen Green can't stabilize, it's hard for the Rockets to break through. Today it was actually obvious that Jalen Green had a big kill in the first quarter. He shot 6-of-7 from the field and 2-of-3 from three-point range to finish with 15 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists and 2 steals, and the Rockets led the Mavericks by 15 points. But since the second quarter, Jalen Green has not felt like he has no presence, and he still doesn't know how to break the bag. The Mavericks had chased only 5 points in the half, and in the second half, the Rockets relied entirely on veterans to continue their lives, Dillon scored 6 points in a row to show bravery, and Van Jordan strategized the third quarter of the Rockets to regain the advantage and lead by 8 points.
In the final quarter, the Mavericks relied on Irving and Doncic to chase points frantically, Smith Jr. made another fatal mistake, and the victory in the hands of the Rockets flew. The two sides went into overtime, and the Mavericks defeated the Rockets 10-0. Dillon on the Rockets' side of the whole court had 29 impeccable points, he was standing to death, Van Jordan had 24 points, 12 assists and 1 turnover, which was actually okay, Jalen Green scored 21 points, 6 rebounds and 8 assists in 6 of 15 shots, many people hoped that Green would continue to shoot, but he lost his self-confidence, and Smith Jr. had 12 points for war crimes.
For the Mavericks, Irving scored 48 points and 7 rebounds, and Doncic scored 37 points, 9 rebounds and 12 assists. If Jalen Green can maintain his previous 11-game winning streak and continue to surpass God and lead the Rockets to the playoffs or even the playoffs, he will have no problem getting a salary of 200 million this offseason. Even Green was able to snatch the core position from Shen Jing, but now there is no play. Jalen Green is still in inconsistent form, and it's impossible for you to cap a salary for an unstable player. Basketball commentator Shen Zhiyu also believes that after these five consecutive defeats, Jalen Green's value to the Rockets may not be higher than that of Shen Jing, and the Rockets have a difficult task in the offseason.
The Mavericks basically locked the Clippers after winning, and the first-round battle was inevitable. For Harden personally, if he wanted to return to the Rockets last offseason, he could indeed get a contract with Van Jordan. But fortunately, I didn't go back, I can still compete for the championship in the Clippers, and my teammates are really not interesting in the Rockets. In addition, Harden and Jalen Green are not used to each other, and Green does not welcome Harden back, so Harden will forget it. It's up to the Rockets to make a comeback next season after how they operate in the offseason. The Clippers mainly depend on how Leonard recovers, if the two sides are full of lineups, the Clippers and the Mavericks will open 64, each with its own strengths. The Clippers are strong in Harden, Leonard and Doncic in the playoffs are kings, George is against Irving, and Harden is the key point, after all, giants are good.