Eight Hundred and Thirty-Eight: The Paint on the Free Throw Line Is All Gone.

Latest website: James Harden gave Gasol a foul as soon as the game started, which gave Joger a headache.

Originally, the Grizzlies' current inside reserves are quite weak. If Gasol has to take a rest due to foul trouble, the Grizzlies will be even more passive.

Use Gasol to resist Howard and still be able to hold on for a while. But if Ezeli is allowed to face the angry "Warcraft" alone, the Grizzlies' inside line will probably be penetrated.

Although Howard no longer has the dominance he once had, he still averages close to 20 points per game and shoots as high as 60% from the field.

He can still kill games.

Joger has already begun to prepare for the worst. If something goes wrong inside, he must find other ways to get through the difficulty.

Indeed, there is no need to compete for every game in the regular season. Especially after the Grizzlies won 74 wins last season, they no longer need to continue to prove anything in the regular season.

But if the problem is not solved, all teams will use this method to deal with the Grizzlies in the future.

Losing one game or two may not affect the overall situation. But if it remains unresolved and continues to lose, the Grizzlies' prospects will be really worrying.

While Joger was thinking about countermeasures, the Grizzlies had already attacked.

It is no exaggeration to say that the Rockets' defense last season was in shambles. This was mainly due to Harden's inaction on the defensive end and the weakness of the Rockets' entire defensive lineup.

But this year, the Rockets' defense has improved considerably. Needless to say, Beverley has established himself in the NBA through his tenacious style.

As one of the few outstanding 3D players in the league, Ariza doesn't have much problems on the defensive end.

On the inside, once Howard gets serious, he is still a master of rim protection.

Therefore, the Rockets' defense this year is not bad at all. Apart from Harden's weakness, there are no major shortcomings.

Conley had just passed halftime when he was pressed crazily by Beverley. Beverly is really like a "mad dog". As long as he sees "prey", he will attack at any cost.

If the No. 1 position is pressed, the entire team's offense will be affected to some extent.

at last,

Jimmy Butler had no choice but to take the initiative to catch the ball. He hoped to continue his excellent offensive performance on the undefended Harden.

Butler successfully caught the basketball and was about to break through, but found that Harden was also pressing against him!

Today, James Harden adopted a completely different defensive attitude than before!

After Harden becomes serious, although he is not a defensive gate, at least he is no longer a cash machine.

Butler gritted his teeth and forced his way to the basket against Harden. But Harden refused to give in and continued to interfere. Just as Butler was making a layup, Dwight Howard suddenly jumped into the air and swatted the basketball down with a wave of his hand.

"This won't work. Jimmy Butler, don't think too easily of the Rockets! Dwight Howard's ability to protect the frame is undoubted, and an offense of this level cannot defeat him!" the Houston commentator danced with excitement, While speaking, he did not forget to look at Van Gundy proudly.

The active Beverley finally grabbed the basketball that was sent flying by Howard, and the Rockets instantly switched from defense to offense.

The Rockets counterattacked quickly, and in an instant, Harden and Beverley rushed to the front.

Link had to dive inside, hoping to prevent them from getting an easy layup with a big chase. However, Beverley, who reached the basket and attracted Link's defense, passed the ball to the right corner.

There, Trevor Ariza is unmarked!

"Damn, it's over!" Link tried his best to change his center of gravity and rush towards Ariza, but it was already too late.

Ariza shot 40% from three-point range with the Wizards last season. After returning to the Rockets this year, Ariza's three-pointers are equally accurate. After catching the ball, he took action decisively without being frightened by Link.

The basketball finally hit the net and the Rockets hit a three-pointer!

Link shook his head. He didn't mean to miss Ariza. But if they don't make up for the inside, Harden and Beverley will have easy layups.

If I had to choose, I would definitely choose the inside line. After all, even if there is no one marking you outside the three-point line, there is a chance that you will miss the shot, and if you let it go inside, it is impossible for the opponent to miss a layup.

It's a pity that Ariza seized the opportunity this time.

"Beautiful counterattack, Link is unable to do anything at all! As of now, the Grizzlies are playing in a very awkward manner. In the last game without Durant and Westbrook, the Grizzlies were slow to win. This is enough Explain the problem. Although the Grizzlies won, it was because the Thunder really had no strength. But the Rockets are different. Today, the Grizzlies will lose their last fig leaf!"

The local commentator is getting more and more excited as he watches. The Grizzlies, who are wreaking havoc on the entire league and no team in the league can handle them, are about to be defeated by the Rockets. How can he not be excited?

5-0, the Rockets' start is just like their current 6-game winning streak, which is quite perfect.

The Grizzlies' attack ensued, although Harris hit Motiejunas with a goal and regained the victory. But soon, Howard sat inside and opened the score again.

After Gasol got fouled early, he would inevitably be timid on the defensive end and not dare to make any moves.

And that's exactly what McHale and Howard want to see.

Howard hit Gasol twice in the paint, then turned around and broke through.

If it was Howard during the Magic era, he would probably have thrown Gasol away in one step.

But now Howard is only half a body ahead of Gasol. Gasol is blocking the opponent and preventing Howard from getting close to the basket.

But Howard didn't care so much. He took two big steps and leaned on Gasol for a layup!

If Gasol jumps to interfere, there is a high probability that Howard can still prevent Howard from scoring. But now, he is really afraid that he will be called for a foul if he jumps together.

As a result, Gasol could only stand there and raise his arms to interfere with Howard. But this level of interference will not cause Howard to lose.

In the end, Howard's forced layup went into the frame. 7 to 2, the point difference continued to be stabilized at 5 points!

Link wanted to help defend, but he just saw the result of letting Ariza shoot a three-pointer. What about letting Butler help defend? That’s even worse! Harden's three-pointer is more threatening than Ariza's.

Even Harris was nailed outside the three-second zone. After six games of this year's regular season, Motiejunas's three-point shooting percentage is over 35%, and his mid-range shooting percentage is even more gratifying.

Facing the 76ers a week ago, Motyjunas was able to score 21 points because the 76ers double-teamed Howard, allowing the Lithuanian to get many three-pointers and mid-range shots.

Just like that, he was shot to death by Motie Yunus.

For now, Gasol can only contain Howard on his own.

Link knew that today's game could not be played by conventional means. So he took over the offensive power early and prepared to fight violence with violence.

But Link's first attack today didn't go well either.

Link broke through Ariza and went straight to the inside. Unexpectedly, Howard rushed back to the basket in time and knocked Link down roughly in the air. Under this fierce confrontation, basketball naturally failed to improve.

And after Link fell to the ground, he found that the referee was completely indifferent! The referee believed that Howard's collision was reasonable, and Link missed the first attack today.

The Rockets counterattacked and hit Harden's hand. Harden saw that Jimmy Butler was sticking closely to him, so he repeated his old trick and leaned into Butler's arms "enthusiastically".

Butler has a very steely character. Instead of dodging, he withstood Harden's impact. He didn't believe that Harden could still get free throws as long as he felt his movements.

As everyone knows, the moment Harden and Butler came into contact, they seemed to hit rubber and were exaggeratedly bounced away.

Butler himself was stunned. Did he use that much force just now?

Of course he didn't, but Harden's acting skills were so superb that even Butler couldn't find any flaws.

The referee blew the whistle again, and James Harden went to the free throw line for the second time today! After Gasol, Butler also received his first foul of the day early!

"Well done, James made the Grizzlies defense at a loss. He once again stood on the free throw line. This is a good opportunity to open up the score!"

Van Gundy looked at his dancing partner and shook his head. Although Harden's move is indeed very effective, it is really... too shameless.

Harden continued to make two free throws, and the Rockets widened the point difference to 7 points!

Howard happily high-fived Harden. No matter how well they got along before, at least they are close now.

In subsequent games, Harden continued to show off his superb porcelain skills. He caused second fouls by Butler and Gasol, forcing Tony Allen and Ezeli to come out early.

With 8 free throws in a single quarter, Link was really impressed. Watching Harden stand on the free throw line again and again, Link felt that the paint on the free throw line was being worn away very quickly.

After Butler and Gasol were forced to leave the game, the Grizzlies offense became thinner. After all, Tony Allen and Ezeli do not have the ability to attack independently.

The Rockets completely dominated the first quarter. Harden scored 12 points in a single quarter, 8 of which came from free throws! Howard scored 8 points in a single quarter. Ezeli, who does not have the advantages of height and wingspan, was completely unable to limit the "Warcraft".

Tobias Harris was forced to play a full 12-minute quarter. Joger was worried about Harris being injured and there was no substitute available.

In the end, the Rockets ended the first quarter with an 8-point advantage. If it weren't for Link's brave performance and linking up the Grizzlies' offense, the point difference would have definitely gone to double digits.

After the first quarter, the atmosphere at Toyota Center became extremely heated.

If we say that before the game started, the Houston fans were still somewhat lacking in confidence. So now, when the Rockets lead the Grizzlies by 8 points in a single quarter, they put aside all their worries and started to party.

"Hahaha, have you seen Jeff? I said, the Memphis Grizzlies are no longer the best team in the league!"

On the commentary table, Jeff Van Gundy could only accept the cynicism from his partner.

Link sat back on the bench, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and then threw the towel to the ground, "How fucking shameless!"

Seeing Link losing his temper, the entire Grizzly Bear team remained silent. After all, it is not the first time that Harden's porcelain technique has caused a team's star to lose his temper at the Toyota Center.

Now, the Grizzlies' vaunted defense has been completely dismantled. There is only one way before Link and Grizzly - attack.

Superb, efficient, fierce, and able to overwhelm the Rockets' offense.

However, with a shortage of major generals and foul trouble, it is difficult for the Grizzlies to field a powerful offensive lineup. And today, Link obviously didn't get any care from the referee on the court. It is very difficult to launch a fierce attack.

Link took a deep breath to calm himself down. He believes that the game is not over yet and the Grizzlies still have a way.

After a few seconds, Link looked up at Jogel.

"In the second quarter, I'm going to try to get the offense going. But I need space, I need speed. Dave, what do you think?"

Joger immediately picked up the tactical board and squatted in front of Link. The team was in trouble and it was time to fight for the star.