Jim Bass Ambition

Chapter 214 Van Gundy Shampoo Conjecture
Karl Malone gradually recovered his form. In the game against the New Orleans Hornets at home, he only played 23 minutes and scored 5 points, 4 rebounds and 10 assists on 8 of 9 shots. If it weren't for the fact that the Hornets were too disappointing for the long triple-double record, they were beaten 58 to 34 at halftime, and there was basically no suspense to break the record in Malone's state.

The disgrace of the All-Stars, Jamal Magloire, still maintained his conscientious quality in this kind of game. He played 38 minutes and scored 20 points and 14 rebounds. There is nothing to say.

For the first game in April, the Lakers host the Houston Rockets.

The Rockets are at the most critical moment of competing for the playoffs. In March, the Memphis Grizzlies broke out suddenly, with a record of 13 wins and 2 losses in a single month, surpassing the Trail Blazers, Rockets, Nuggets and Supersonics in one fell swoop. Waiting for the team, approaching the fifth-ranked Dallas Mavericks, makes the Rockets' stable seventh place in the Western Conference full of variables.

Jeff Van Gundy came to Los Angeles with the belief that he must win, and the small slips were filled with his winning keys and good strategies to defeat the enemy.

"Jeff Van Gundy can be a great commentator, when he's sitting in the commentary booth with headphones and a microphone, he can say 3 play changes on the court in 5 seconds, even I can't do it At this point, when he quit his job as a commentator and chose to be a coach again, I feel very sorry. Not only can the fans not hear his insightful and sharp commentary, but they have to watch a few ugly games like this every year Oh, what a season for Rockets fans. He plays the last 5 minutes less than his hair, I'm glad I retired early, otherwise I might go crazy playing under him Now we enter the guessing part of the game, how much shampoo does Jeff Van Gundy use when washing his hair?" As one of the TNT team, Barkley was not polite to Van Gundy, who used to be a commentator for ESPN .

It is indeed difficult for people to appreciate the Rockets' game style. Only a few occasional shots of Francis showing his physical fitness and flashes of inspiration from Yao Ming can lift people's spirits up a little.

In this game, the Rockets' starting power forward is Maurice Taylor, one of Dawson's famous failures in Jim's mouth.

With Taylor's defensive ability, he doesn't even have the ability to provide unit collision volume.

Malone ate Taylor alone in a row. Taylor received two fouls within 2 minutes and had to rest.

Van Gundy took out the note one, and then put on the old Knicks he brought, the big spoon Clarence Witherspoon.

The Lakers changed their high and low post tactics, and Garnett's attack on the line is an effective means to target Yao Ming's giant insider.

Using the pick-and-roll, Garnett and Kobe took turns to easily score points when Yao Ming couldn't defend, and the Rockets' offensive system didn't have a good way for Garnett to go forward and Malone's defensive approach. The ball made consecutive turnovers.

Van Gundy pulled out note two, and then replaced the old Knicks he brought with him, the old oak Charles Oakley.

The Rockets made up their minds, I don't score, and you don't want to score easily.

Old Oak and Big Spoon are ruthless, and it is not so easy to break into the guarded inside line.Phil Jackson was instructed early on that no matter what the circumstances, the regular season should prioritize player health.

The Lakers' consecutive offenses ended with mid-range shots that floated outside, but the shooting percentage was relatively average and the scoring speed was not fast.

As for the Rockets, Cuttino Mobley broke out suddenly and scored 8 points on 7 of 15 shots in a single quarter when Yao Ming left the game early to rest.

Under Mobley's wonderful performance, the Rockets entered the second quarter with a 21-18 lead, which shows how cheating Van Gundy's team is on offense.

"I'm almost falling asleep, who can tell me what's so good about this game? Each round has to be played for 24 seconds?" Barkley in the TNT studio was going crazy, and Kenny Smith on the side also Very helpless, but as a Rockets star, he still wholeheartedly hopes that the home team will win. Although the scene is extremely ugly, the score is leading after all, isn't it?
In the second quarter, the Lakers sent Kobe and Wade backcourt combination, with Battier, Haslem and Nene, this lineup rarely appeared in previous games.

Oakley and Witherspoon were old, they played too early in the first quarter, and had to rest in the second quarter. Van Gundy sent Yao Ming, Mark Jackson, Eric Piakowski, Maurice Lineup of Taylor and Scott Padgett.

Apart from Yao Ming, there isn't a single above-average defender in this roster, and even Yao Ming has major defensive flaws.

The 39-year-old Mark Jackson dragged his out-of-shape body and commanded the movement on the court. His proud post-up singles have long been rusted. Now his only function is to control the ball across the half court and stand in the bottom corner after handing over the ball. .

On the court, as soon as Yao Ming received the ball and was about to play back, Taylor ran past him, brought the defender over, and blocked Yao Ming's attacking route.

Under the double-teaming of Haslem and Nene, Yao Ming fell to the ground and the ball was broken.Morris Taylor didn't pull up his teammates, nor did he get back to the defense quickly.

Kobe and Wade played 2 to 0 in the frontcourt. Wade showed a throw behind the back, which helped Kobe to complete an alley-oop dunk.

"Look at these people signed by Carol Dawson. Alas, I feel aggrieved for Yao." Seeing this scene, Jim on the sidelines remembered the years when he blindly believed in the Rockets.

Van Gundy's deadly lineup couldn't attack and defend. In the first 3 minutes, only Yao Ming scored two points, and the Lakers frequently counterattacked. A wave of 13-2 offensive climax, the situation was directly reversed, and the tempo that was painstakingly slowed down was also lost by the Lakers. Bring it up.

As a last resort, the Rockets switched back to the lineup in the first quarter, but the previous lead purely by touch was all a cloud in the game.

In the second quarter, Mobley only made 5 of 1 shots, and the hit rate returned to the earth. Even the rocket's hope of victory fell into the Mariana Trench.

Van Gundy kept flipping through the little notes, but it was of no use. Yao Ming felt cold because of the fragmented playing time. He only made 15 of 3 shots and didn't make a free throw. He only scored 6 points and 8 rebounds.

On the other hand, the Lakers, Garnett and Malone performed well, contributing 40 points and 27 rebounds together. He made 26 shots and scored only 15 points.

Two of the three main scoring points were misfired, and it was difficult for the Rockets to win. 79 to 103, the Lakers won at home, stabilizing their No. [-] position in the Western Conference. At the same time, it cast a shadow over the Rockets' playoff prospects.

(End of this chapter)