Preview of Rockets vs. Warriors: Durant takes a truce. What new tricks will Udoka use against the Warriors?

On November 27, the Rockets will challenge the Warriors away from home. This is the first meeting between the two teams this season. This is also an NBA Cup game.

Currently, the Rockets are ranked 4th in the Western Conference with 11 wins and 4 losses. They have achieved a record of 8 wins and 2 losses in the last 10 games. However, in the NBA Cup, they currently have a record of 1 win and 2 losses in Group C of the Western Conference, ranking fourth in the group, and there is no hope of qualifying.

Currently, the Warriors are ranked 8th in the Western Conference with 10 wins and 9 losses. They have achieved a record of 5 wins and 5 losses in the last 10 games. However, in the NBA Cup, they currently have a record of 1 win and 2 losses in Group C of the Western Conference, ranking fifth in the group, with no hope of qualifying.

Although this is an NBA Cup game, the two teams have basically been eliminated from the group, so it can be viewed more as a regular season game.

This game is of great significance to the two teams. For the Rockets, it can be described as a revenge battle. In the playoffs last season, the Rockets lost to the Warriors 3:4 in most of the series and were eventually eliminated in the first round.

The biggest problem exposed by the Rockets in the playoffs last season was the lack of an absolute main attacker and the insufficient quality of their number one star. However, this summer, the Rockets sent away Jaylen Green and Dillon and acquired Durant through a trade. Durant missed this game due to family matters. Compared with last season's playoff matchup, the Rockets were missing three starting players, VanVleet, Jaylen Green, and Dillon. It can be said that the Rockets' lineup configuration has still declined compared to the Warriors last season.

However, when the Rockets defeated the Suns in the game, in the absence of Durant, the Rockets suppressed the Suns throughout the game, and finally defeated the Suns by a large score, demonstrating a mature offensive and defensive system, as well as the growth and progress of young players, supporting the current team to become a strong team.

This season, the Warriors have a record of 6 wins and 1 loss at home, while the Rockets have a record of 6 wins and 2 losses on the road. This will be a fierce game where Mars hits the earth.

The focus of this game is still how the Rockets defend Curry and Jimmy Butler.

There is a high probability that Udoka will use Okogie VS Curry.

In the playoffs last season, Udoka used Amen against Curry, but Amen was a defensive team last season, and the effect of defending Curry was not very good, allowing Curry to go berserk in many games.

In this game, Uduka will most likely not use Amen to defend Curry, but will let Okogie defend Curry. Okogie's size and leading defense ability make him more suitable for defending Curry than Amen.

This season, Curry averaged 28.8 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 2.9 turnovers and 1.4 steals in 31 minutes per game, shooting 47% from the field and 39% from three-point range.

As a first-line star in the league, Curry is best at playing pick-and-rolls. , and shooting with the ball after the pick-and-roll, are the type of players Shenjing fears most. Of course, Okogie may have difficulty guarding Curry in single defense. Coupled with the Warriors' large number of pick-and-rolls and running without the ball, Udoka will most likely double-team Curry at stages, allowing other Warriors players to handle the ball and finish the offense.

How to defend Curry and how to restrict Curry will determine the direction of this game. Udoka may follow the defense of Booker and focus on defending Curry.

Amen VS Butler

Amen's body shape is more suitable for facing Butler. Butler is a master of foul making, a master of mid-range shooting, and a player with excellent comprehensive abilities.

As a dual-core player of the Warriors, Amen can match Butler in terms of strength confrontation and offensive and defensive awareness. However, Butler does not take digestion of the ball as his main responsibility. His influence and diversity on the court are also worthy of Uduka's vigilance.

In this game, when Curry is not on the court, Uduka will most likely put up a twin-tower lineup. When the five major lineups cannot be used, Udoka put up a twin-tower lineup in the playoffs last season, which made the Warriors extremely uncomfortable offensively. However, this season the Warriors' Horford is not playing, and other players have very limited offensive capabilities. The stability and accuracy of three-pointers are not so good, which may prompt Udoka to put up a twin-tower or high lineup for a long time.

However, the Rockets' twin towers or high lineup are not very effective this season. When Durant does not play, and Ethan, Fan, and Tate do not play, the Rockets are forced to use Shepard or Aaron Holiday in the rotation. One is a defensive softball. On the ribs, one player is not tall enough and cannot support the five-high lineup, which will prompt Uduka to train a new offensive and defensive lineup of twin towers + double shorts, or twin towers + three ball-holding points. From the current point of view, the five-high lineup is not very effective, and the twin towers + three ball-holding points or the twin towers + space configuration are more effective.

This season, the Warriors averaged 44.1 three-point attempts per game, ranking second in the league, while the Rockets averaged 30.3 three-point attempts per game, ranking 30th in the league. This is a head-to-head contest between the team with the most and the fewest three-pointers in the league.

The Rockets take fewer three-pointers, but their three-point shooting rate is 42%, ranking first in the league, while the Warriors average three-point shooting percentage of 36.9%, ranking 12th in the league.

This season, the Rockets' offensive efficiency is 123, ranking first in the league. First in the league, the Warriors' offensive efficiency is 112, ranking 23rd in the league; this season, the Rockets' defensive efficiency is 111.6, ranking 7th in the league, while the Warriors' defensive efficiency is 111.5, ranking 6th in the league. This will be a fierce offensive and defensive battle.

This season, the Rockets averaged 49.1 rebounds per game, including 16.2 offensive rebounds, both ranking first in the league, while the Warriors ranked outside the 20th in the league in rebounds.

Both teams have a lot of steals and turnovers, and both teams take advantage of the opponent's mistakes to score a lot. However, the Rockets average 53.2 points per game in the paint, ranking 6th in the league, while the Warriors average 41.1 points per game, ranking 29th in the league. The Rockets' second offense scores are even more impressive than the Warriors. The two teams have different advantages and strengths..

The Warriors have 1 win and 3 losses in their last 4 games, and are not in good shape. Regardless of rankings or data, the Rockets are the better team. However, because Durant does not play, it still has a certain impact on the Rockets' overall play style. This is the first meeting between the two teams this season, and both sides will definitely take it very seriously.