The Rockets finished the 2004-2005 regular season with a record of 51 wins and 31 losses, which was a boastful achievement in every way — they won six more games than the previous season.
Although the Rockets are fifth in the West and have no home advantage in the first round of the playoffs, because they have a seven-game winning streak at the end of the regular season and an average of 16.5 points on all seven games, Houston fans seem to smell the same smell as they did 10 years ago — they say, it's the breath of champions.
In the first round of the playoffs, the Rockets' opponent was one of their old rivals in Texas: the Dallas Mavericks.
On April 23, 2005, at the American Airlines Arena in Dallas, the big battle was on the verge of breaking out.
The 24-second timer was ready to beep and the defender had hung his palm in front of him, but he still took a shot, hitting a jumper a few feet away from the three-point line; Immediately after that, it was another thunderous dunk after a breakthrough. "
Maddy Yao Ming played against the Mavericks
McGrady opened the curtain on the sequence in a way that was described in words, conquering Dallas away fans and Associated Press reporters.
Maddy's abilities can turn decay into magic on the pitch again and again, easily cracking seemingly difficult situations. Under his leadership, the Rockets led the Dallas Mavericks by a large margin from the start.
"I felt it, it was my time," Maddy said proudly after the game, "I'm more confident than ever before and I believe my team feels the same way I do." "
After the playoffs' first game, Maddy said so eagerly. The Rockets' easy win of 98;86 gave Maddy hope of saving face — two years ago, when he was still in Orlando, Maddy led the Magic to a 3-1 lead over the Pistons in the playoffs, even as he shouted to the press: "I'm already looking ahead to the next round!" The enraged Pistons pulled three innings, making Maddy's previous statement a small joke.
Maddy broke through the Mavericks defense
So when another opportunity to prove himself came, Maddy's desire was so intense.
Of course, the victory was not just because of Maddy alone, as the big brother of the team, Mutombo, said: "Tracy has been showing such a high level for the past few months, and the only thing we can do is to do everyone's own thing, give him the greatest support, and the team will get better opportunities." 」
Not only did the Rockets' players do their best, but head coach Van Gundy's wisdom also helped the team tremendously, and he suddenly sent Ryan Bowen, who had rarely played all season, to the start.
The white striker, who can blend into the construction site in a coarse cloth shirt, has only one task: to do everything he can to limit Nowitzki. It should be said that Bowen's job is perfect, although Nowitzki still scored 21 points, but only hit 5 goals in 19 shots, which is enough to explain Bowen's defensive effect.
Under the pressure of the Rockets, the Mavericks seemed to be left behind at the beginning. 'It's rare that we play a game like this that is very bad on both ends of the board. Mavericks coach Avery Johnson shook his head wildly.
Two days later, Johnson's head shook even harder, and if Yao Ming and Maddy continued to perform like this, he wouldn't know how to limit these two talented players.
For most of the night, the person who left the Mavericks most helpless was Yao Ming, who owned Eric Dampier, who called himself the "second center in the West", but in front of Yao Ming, Dampier proved that his title was indeed only self-styled.
Yao Ming spent the night in the Mavericks' penalty area, scoring a staggering 33 points on 13-of-14 shooting. But fortunately, the Mavericks' own offensive firepower has also awakened, and Nowitzki, who has adapted, hit his signature turnaround jumper 10.4 seconds before the final, and the two sides are tied at 111.
Yao Ming laughed happily in 14 shots
According to common sense, the Houston Rockets at this moment should call a timeout, and coach Van Gundy will draw a detailed first choice, second choice, and even third choice, so as to perform this extremely important final attack.
The Mavericks players were already planning to run back to their bench, but they were surprised to find that the Rockets didn't call a timeout at all — Van Gundy, Yao Ming and Maddy reached a surprising tacit understanding at that moment, and Maddy dribbled straight forward from the backcourt.
Mavericks' two-armed small forward Josh Howard was finally agile and followed Maddy without being thrown off, but at the moment of Maddy's lateral dribbling, Yao Ming also arrived.
"They started trying to wrap me up and leave me alone in the backfield, but I cracked it off easily. Immediately after, Yao made a very high-quality cover, and I realized that I had gotten rid of the defense. Maddy recalled after the game.
In the first instant yao Ming blocked Josh Howard, Maddy rose like a spring on his feet and threw the last ball in a graceful posture. The ball cut out Maddy's signature low-level arc and landed precisely inside the basket. At 113:111, Maddy completed the kill at the same time, which also meant that the Rockets had a 2:0 lead on the road.
The Rockets returned home with a 2-0 advantage to host the Mavericks in the first round of the playoffs
If they continue like this, it seems likely that they will sweep the Mavericks. The Associated Press's official assessment of this was: "The Rockets have demonstrated with their performances why Houston fans believe they can make a difference in the playoffs."
This time, Maddy, who had learned his lesson, remained calm. 'It's a whole new series for us, and of course we're in control of the big picture now, but we have to stick with it because we haven't done anything yet.
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This article is excerpted from the >> of the rocket legend << by Yin Hai, if there is any offense, please contact me to deal with, thank you!