12dz Chapter 54 Paul: The Big Swing? Are the referees showing too much favoritism towards this rookie?
Chapter 54 Paul: The Big Swing? Are the referees showing too much favoritism towards this rookie?
Do you have any emotional attachment to the Rockets?
Paul himself didn't know the answer to that question.
His memories with the Rockets were not pleasant.
I won't go into the details about Harden.
For example, the Rockets traded two first-round picks to the Thunder in exchange for Westbrook.
To him, this was like being discarded trash.
But seeing that the Rockets' young players were already able to take charge, Paul felt a sliver of relief.
It's just a tiny bit!
"Chris, let me guard him," Booker patted Paul on the shoulder.
Paul wanted to say something, but seeing Booker's determination, he ultimately remained silent.
The game begins, and the Rockets attack.
As soon as Wang Xiucheng received the ball, Booker closed in.
Wang Xiucheng raised an eyebrow slightly; nowadays, very few people dare to defend him at close range.
Booker seemed to have been prepared, using his lower body to block Wang Xiucheng, preventing him from moving, and then placing his hands on both sides, ready to steal the ball at any moment.
Booker imprisoned Wang Xiucheng like a cage.
Shen Jing, who had already run away, was about to return to cover Wang Xiucheng, but Wang Xiucheng had already moved, and with it came the sound of a whistle.
beep!
Booker committed a defensive foul.
Wang Xiucheng still seemed dissatisfied and went to the referee, saying, "This is a shooting foul, a shooting foul, I have to take the free throws."
"Shut up, what are you doing shooting from 800 meters away?" The referee shook his head, picked up the basketball, and went to the sideline.
Paul stood at the center line, watching what had just happened.
Just now, Booker was closely guarding Wang Xiucheng, and even Paul thought that Wang Xiucheng would use his speed to get past Booker as usual, or wait for Shen Jing to come and screen for him.
But Wang Xiucheng suddenly did a full backflip, hitting Booker's arm with both arms, and then tried to throw the basketball out like a fish leaping out of water.
He was actually using his long swing to draw a foul!
Paul knew this tactic was most effective against close defense, but there was a prerequisite.
That means you need to get the whistle.
You can do it yourself, Harden can do it, Durant and James can all do it.
But how could a rookie manage to draw a foul?
Was the referee showing too much favoritism towards this rookie?
Just because he is Chinese?
Could it be that Xiao Hua would so openly take care of Wang Xiucheng in order to mend relations with China?
Although he had long noticed the ubiquitous Chinese advertisements on the sidelines, he still didn't believe that Xiao Hua would do it so blatantly.
The Rockets inbounded the ball from the sideline. Shen Jing set a screen for Wang Xiucheng, and then Green quickly passed the ball to Wang Xiucheng from the sideline while running forward.
Booker wasn't as excessive this time. Although he still covered Wang Xiucheng's face with both hands, he was prepared to withdraw them at any time.
Wang Xiucheng accelerated with a powerful shot, instantly rushing to the right, where Booker immediately slid to block him.
Wang Xiucheng pulled back between his legs and headed to the left.
Booker gritted his teeth, his sneakers seemingly smoking from the friction, and stomped his foot firmly on the floor before blocking to the left.
Wang Xiucheng made another feint and moved to the right, but Booker was able to change direction and block Wang Xiucheng's path.
Booker felt he had found Wang Xiucheng's weakness in dribbling.
Wang Xiucheng couldn't always break through with feints; every time he changed direction to break through, he had to expend a great deal of physical energy.
The evidence is that after changing direction four times in a row, Wang Xiucheng no longer had the speed he had at the beginning.
Wang Xiucheng has slowed down!
That's how I was able to keep up with his feints.
Wang Xiucheng is still making feints, seemingly still wanting to break through!
Booker was about to continue following Wang Xiucheng's feint, and just as he was about to reach out and try to cut the ball while Wang Xiucheng's speed had greatly decreased...
Booker heard a "whoosh" sound behind him.
Booker was stunned for a moment, and only after half a second did he belatedly turn around to look. At that moment, the basketball was bouncing under the rim.
Meanwhile, Jalen Green, positioned in the bottom corner, was pulling his hands back as he ran.
What happened?
Booker looked bewildered and questioning Paul.
Paul shook his head helplessly.
Monti stepped onto the pitch and called a timeout.
Monty frowned deeply, staring at Booker in disbelief.
What's wrong with Booker?
Is this Booker?
Booker, still looking bewildered, listened to the enthusiastic cheers of the fans in the stadium. After returning to his seat on the bench, Booker looked up at the big screen.
Upon seeing this, Booker's face grew increasingly gloomy, and finally he threw the towel on the ground.
The big screen is replaying the duel between Wang Xiucheng and Booker.
In the video, when Wang Xiucheng made his second fake move, the basketball was at his waist, accelerating as he turned and faked, and was thrown to Green in the corner.
Therefore, Wang Xiucheng's subsequent feints were indeed just "feints".
Booker seemed to be focused on Wang Xiucheng's upper body and didn't notice that the basketball in Wang Xiucheng's hand had disappeared.
He acted like a fool, constantly trying to stop Wang Xiucheng, who didn't even have the ball.
Wang Xiucheng, on the other hand, acted as if he had the ball himself, making all his breakthrough moves very realistic.
Booker shook his head in anger, wishing he could strangle the Chinese man right now.
I feel like a fool, completely played by Wang Xiucheng!
“You care about him too much, so you can’t see anything else except him, including basketball,” Paul said to Booker at that moment.
Paul didn't know what had happened to Booker, but something was definitely wrong with Booker today.
Monty looked at Payne, "You go on the field, remember what I said before the game."
Payne nodded, got up, took off his jacket, and waited for the timeout to end before going on the court with Paul and the others.
When the game resumed, fans noticed that Booker had already substituted off the court to rest early.
The Suns were on offense. Paul dribbled the ball up the court and then lobbed it over Wang Xiucheng's head into the paint, passing it to McGee.
McGee, who is top-notch from the neck down, didn't use many footwork or feints. He just drove right in, and in a few moves, he knocked Shen Jing into the restricted area and then dunked the basketball.
Shen Jing rubbed his chest, his face ashen.
Green walked past Shen Jing with amusement and said, "I was in a worse situation than you just now," which made Shen Jing laugh twice.
Monty crossed his arms and looked at the Rockets players in the distance.
The Rockets' rookies created a great atmosphere on the court. Even when the opponent scored, they weren't worried and even joked around.
It wasn't like this when the Rockets' starters were on the court.
The five people acted as if it were a routine task, like five robots, without any communication.
Compared to these rookies, they seemed somewhat lifeless.
Monty then looked at Wang Xiucheng, who was pulling Martin aside and saying something to him.
He knew the reason for this situation was this player.
It's only been a few days since we last met, has Wang Xiucheng already become the leader of these teenagers?
The teenagers were all circling around Wang Xiucheng, as if they wouldn't be anxious if he was there.
It seems that with Wang Xiucheng present, no problem is a problem.
This couldn't have been taught by a coach; it was developed little by little through many matches and training sessions.
As a coach, Monty understands that players' physiques and shooting skills can be trained, but innate temperament cannot be developed through training.
"I must have him," Monty decided in his heart.
No matter who becomes the owner of the Suns in the future, as long as I can get Wang Xiucheng, I can firmly sit in the head coach position.