On May 5, the Rockets held a shooting training on the morning of the game in Los Angeles to prepare for the first game of the second round of the playoffs at Staples Center tonight. The Rockets arrived in Los Angeles on a chartered flight yesterday and rested in Los Angeles for one night. At 11 a.m. this morning, they came to the training base of the Los Angeles Sparks in southwest Los Angeles and borrowed the training base of the wnbas for training.

The Rockets' training lasted for 45 minutes and opened to the media. Marbury and Battier both put ice packs on their knees, while Yao Ming entered the strength room, and Scola sat on the floor to stretch his body. The Rockets coaching staff were all discussing tonight's tactics, and Waffer also discussed with player development director Gan Ning. It seemed that the Rockets were very relaxed, and James White was still funny on the court.

Yao Ming participated in today's shooting training. He said that he had no problems with his ankle and would play in the Clippers tonight.

"They are very experienced, more experienced than the Trail Blazers, and more experienced than us. Moreover, they are at home, they play very well there, and they have two inside players in the best team, MVP and Best Defensive Player, Dunk King and Three-pointer, and several finals MVPs... "Yao Ming joked with the media, "They are so awesome. We know how noisy the stadium will be when the kickoff is launched, and we have to be prepared."

The Rockets lost three games in four regular season games, which may become a psychological barrier for the Rockets, but Yao Ming believes that the playoffs and the regular season are different. "I think this does not mean anything. Now it is a new round of playoffs, and we can start over." A reporter asked Yao Ming about the situation of facing the giant pandas at that time. Yao Ming said that he is ready to fight against Ji Guoqiu or Ji Guohuo. "Yes. We are ready, but we don't know how they will deal with me, so I am ready to deal with the two big men at the same time."

Many media are concerned about whether the Rockets can withstand the impact of the twin brothers and the Clippers in the fourth quarter. Yao Ming's view is that the team must play more energy in the last quarter. "This is the issue of the regular season. We will fall into a state of struggle in the fourth quarter, which will almost be swept. We must play more energy in the fourth quarter, especially at the opponent's home court."

In the Clippers training base, reporters all went to interview the little fox. What this guy said, and many times, he could tell something completely different from other players when facing the media.

After today's training, a reporter asked what to worry about facing the Rockets who they defeated three times in the regular season? The Fox brother said there was nothing to worry about, "Our goal has always been the champion. I have been telling the new players this season what we want to do. Of course, it is to defend the title and defend the title and then defend the title. I will never bother too many champions, it is best to be so much that I can't put down my hands." When talking about the team's tactics, Ji Guo laughed: "We must continue to focus on the inside, double-team Yao Ming, work hard to defend, insist on playing fast counterattacks, and drag down the Rockets. I am not worried about my own offense. I feel good now, and there are no injuries in the team. We have the confidence to defend our two home courts."

At 10 o'clock that night, the first game of the Western Conference semi-finals started at the Stamps Center in Los Angeles. The Rockets challenged the defending champion Clippers away. This game attracted much attention. The Stamps Center was filled with heat waves, with about 20,000 fans watching the game on the spot.

Before the game started, NBA League President David Stern personally presented Ji Guochou with the regular season MVP trophy and the best defensive player trophy at home at the Clippers. Then, he presented the best coach trophy to Old Dunleavy. Under the cheers of the fans of the court, Panda Brother raised the two of his dream highest honors.

The Clippers' starting lineup: Billups, Avraro, Garcia, Ji Guomo and Ji Guoqie.

Rockets' starting lineup: Stephen Marbury, Trevor Ariza, Sean Bathir, Louis Scola, Yao Ming.

This game is broadcast live by espn and tnt, which is a national live game.

Charles Barkley said when the two teams jumped: "The Rockets are able to reach the semi-finals this season, and their deep substitute lineups are of great contribution. They sit on the bench with Brooks, Lowry, Weaver, Old Barry, David Lee and Mutombo. As long as they play, they can contribute to the team immediately. Although the Clippers' substitute lineup has Crawford, Barnes, Dragic and others, they are actually mostly rookies. They may play well when they are down the wind, but once the main players can't open the gap, they will easily get into a dilemma during the substitute."

Kenny Smith smiled: "So, the Los Angeles media think Crawford's performance is crucial to the Clippers, and I agree that if Jamal cannot get enough points on the bench, the Clippers may not be able to beat the Rockets."

Old Dunleavy was prepared for this. He would not let the two brothers rest too much in the playoffs. Playing for more than 40 minutes is nothing for the two little guys. At this time, superstars all played like this. For example, LeBron James of the Cavaliers, after the old captain was injured, the Gorillas averaged 44 minutes of playing in the first round, and only had three or four minutes of rest per game on average.

Van Gundy of espn said: "Four games in the first round, Ji Guoqiu averaged 17 points, 13.3 rebounds, 7 assists, 3.8 blocks and 3 turnovers, with a shooting percentage of 58%, a three-point shooting percentage of 66.6%, and a free throw shooting percentage of 100%. Ji Guomiang averaged 20.3 points, 8.5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2.5 blocks and 2.5 turnovers, 55% of the field goal percentage, 44% of the three-point shooting percentage, and 100% of the free throw shooting percentage. The two of them averaged only 32 minutes in the first round, and basically didn't have much effort."

Bill Walton smiled and said, "In the first round of the Clippers, I only saw the giant pandas passing the ball to their teammates leisurely on the court. Occasionally, I was interested and entered the inside to shoot two shots. It was good if he didn't yawn. However, in this round, Panda's brother would probably not be so easy to face Yao Ming, who had been able to defend in front of him."

At the opening game, Yao Ming was certainly not the opponent of the Fox brother, and Ji Guomo easily won.

On the Rockets' defensive end, they use one position inside and four outside, with only Yao Ming in the penalty area. The little giant will never leave the penalty area. This is an option to prevent Yao Ming from flying a kite by the giant pandas. If Ji Guochou pulls to the outside to shoot, then rely on the teammates to make up for defense. The other four Rockets players need more movement in this game to help Yao Ming share the pressure on defense.

Yao Ming is not easy either. His teammates help him fill the outside line, so he has to help his teammates keep an eye on the inside. However, using his height, Yao Ming can pose a certain threat to the Clippers' breakthrough and entry in the inside. His height is his greatest capital on the defensive end.

Ji Guomeng made his first attack. He used his teammates to position and cover him, and tried to quickly cut in from the back door, and sneaked into Yao Ming.

He felt that at his own speed, it was difficult for Yao Ming to turn around and defend him. But this time Ji Guomeng obviously underestimated Yao Ming's defensive consciousness. The Rockets' inside line is much stronger than the Thunder. The Fox brother has not yet adjusted from his easy advancement in the first round. This ball was a bit taken for granted and cut to the basket and forced a layup. As a result, Yao Ming, who was withdrawn one step ahead of time, blocked the shooting.

Yao Ming reached out and got the rebound. The Rockets quickly launched a counterattack. Ji Guomeng fell to the ground with a big butt and grinned while covering his butt.

The Rockets played a counterattack with the Clippers at the beginning. Marbury fought with Billups physically while he was marching, but this time the latter did not take advantage. Marbury was not like Westbrook. Once he was physically fighting, he would be knocked out by Mr. Key. In terms of basic skills, strength, speed, explosive power, and experience, Marbury was not inferior to Mr. Key, and was far stronger than Westbrook of the Thunder. Marbury was not afraid of Billups' defense and physical confrontation with this goal. He scored a goal against defense and made a foul by Billups, and made a two-plus-one foul.

Emma Roberts was now looking at Ji Guomeng who was covering her butt and laughing, while Taylor Swift scolded the dead fox for being useless. In fact, her anger was because she saw Emma Watson not far away. This season, she always saw this little British bitch at the Clippers' home court, and she didn't know where her ticket came from. It was probably unrelated to the dead fox.

Ji Guomo was a little embarrassed, and he didn't dare to look at Emma Watson. He gave him the outfit he wore today. His wife and wife gathered together. He felt that he was a little oversupported today.

Billups and Marbury, speaking of these two players with similar strength, have the opposite life trajectory.

When Marbury first entered the league, she was generally smooth sailing. Although she was running around, her skills and talent made her own place in the NBA, and the two All-Stars were the best proof. Billups was just like a rough jade, performing tepid, but she complemented the Detroit Pistons. It was not until she killed F4 and won the championship that she became famous all over the world. At this time, people knew that there was a grassroots team called the Pistons in the Motor City, which won the NBA championship, and they also knew that they had a point guard, the captain, and a key gentleman with a big heart named Billups.

Marbury, who came to New York in the later stage, had a drastic change in his life. He was no longer tolerated by each team and became the team's black hole and cancer. He received one of the highest salary in the league, but his performance was very different. It was not until the Rockets exchanged cancer that the Lone Wolf was unexpectedly reborn in the Houston Rockets. After Billups got the MVP in the finals, he naturally became a well-deserved star player in the league. When he came to the Clippers, he was still one of the Big Three and won the championship again.

Marbury and Billups, two outstanding basketball players of the same period, have similar wandering careers, which perfectly interpret the principle of tree moving and human moving. On the NBA stage, even if you have the ability, you must first find your own world and find a stage that can exert your abilities.

In today's game, the first quarter was a showdown between these two star point guards. Marbury played out his stronger breakthrough ability and continued to pick-and-roll with Yao Ming and Scola and then went to the Clippers to kill inside the Clippers; Billups was just the opposite. Although he also used the pick-and-roll of the two brothers, his shots were more concentrated on the outside.

If you score a goal in the inside, I will immediately get a three-pointer. If you use breakthrough to create damage, I will cheat you out of a foul...

Old Dunleavy later felt something was wrong. Their strength was in the inside line. The strategy formulated before the game was to create Yao Ming's foul. Didn't it be said that the referee liked to target the little giants? It happened to be done by Staples for him. But as the game was played, it turned out to be a showdown between point guards, and the players on both sides were willing to create scoring opportunities for their point guards.
Chapter completed!