The Rockets are one of the strongest teams in the league in recent years, but after losing star players such as Harden and Westbrook last season, the Rockets entered rebuilding mode, otherwise the Rockets have been the most stable team in the league. Since Harden came to the Rockets 9 years ago, the Rockets' final playoff results in 8 seasons have fluctuated, but the Rockets have entered the playoffs for 8 consecutive years, a feat that few teams can achieve.
The 2017-2018 season is the peak of the Rockets, although Harden and Chris Paul joined forces for the first time, but this team not only won the first record in the regular season league, but also broke through the first two rounds in the playoffs, only to lose 3-4 to the Warriors at the peak in the Western Conference Finals, and this was achieved in the case of Paul missing 2 games, if Paul was not injured, the championship of that year was almost the Rockets.
D'Antoni often used the "3 guard" lineup to start in the late stages of the Rockets' coaching, and in addition to Paul (Westbrook) and Harden, D'Antoni often let Gordon, who played the main guard, play a small forward position. The coordination of the three defenders is very tacit, although Gordon's height is not suitable for small forwards, but his athleticism and strength are definitely suitable for the No. 3 position. This is also an important reason why the Rockets were able to get good results in those years.
At that time, the Rockets focused on outside three-pointers and star singles, so it was very reasonable to use a 3-guard lineup. But no matter how dare D'Antoni take risks, he probably doesn't dare to use the 4-guard mode, right? And now, there's a coach who wants to try the "4-guard mode" in the new season! He's the current Sacramento Kings coach Luke Wharton!
Wharton said in an interview that he wants Harrison Barnes to start in the No. 3 or No. 4 position, and in today's NBA, it is not impossible for guard shooter Buddy Hield to play as a small forward! Wharton said he wanted to see more of the 3-guard lineup model, and he also wanted to see some different lineup configurations in the Kings, perhaps even using a 4-guard lineup.
The Kings' first preseason game will be played against last season's Western Conference champion Suns, when all players can play. Will Walton use a 4-back line-up to tackle the challenges of the mighty Suns? Not impossible. At that time, D'Antoni did not dare to use the lineup, but Walton dared to try boldly, and it has to be said that the times have changed, and Walton, the young manager, is even more "fierce" than the offensive master D'Antoni at that time.
At its peak, the Rockets, which have 4 major defensive players such as Ariza, Capela, Bamot and Tucker, dare not use the 4-guard lineup, while the Western Weak Brigade Kings want to try it, can only say that now the small-ball tactics have been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, and Walton's idea is also very unique, after all, the Kings' record next season is not much better, try some more lineup combinations, maybe it will reap miracles.