Strive for 3 consecutive victories! Rockets vs. Green Army. Two players will be absent. Uduka wants to prove himself. 4 highlights worth paying attention to

There will be a very popular game in the NBA regular season, the Houston Rockets play against the Boston Celtics. Although the season has just begun, there are already many things worth paying attention to in this competition between the Eastern and Western teams. Moreover, ESPN's pre-match predictions have also come out. The Rockets have a winning rate of 58.0%, which is slightly higher than the Celtics' 42.0%. This prediction result actually has a lot to do with the current status and lineup changes of the two teams.

Let’s first talk about the injuries of the two teams. This is a big problem that affects the game. The Celtics are in bigger trouble. Their absolute core Jayson Tatum has undergone surgery due to a torn Achilles tendon and is still recovering. He will definitely not be able to play this game. Tatum averaged 26.9 points and 8.1 rebounds per game last season. He is the key to the team in both offense and defense. Once he is absent, the Celtics offense will lose an important fulcrum, and it will not be so easy to connect the inside and outside. What is even more worrying is that second-in-command Jaylen Brown is not sure whether he can play because he has to deal with back-to-back games. If Brown can't play, the Celtics really have no core to use, and the offense will most likely get stuck. In addition, they also let go of inside players such as Porzingis and Horford during the offseason. Now the inside rotation is very weak and their ability to protect the frame cannot keep up.

The Rockets are not much better here. Backcourt core Fred VanVleet tore the cruciate ligament in his anterior knee and is determined to miss this game. VanVleet averaged 18.5 points and 7.5 assists per game in the playoffs last season. Without him, the Rockets' ability to organize offense and score at critical moments will decline. Finney Smith, who is responsible for the defense on the front line, is also recovering from a sprained ankle and cannot play. This has directly reduced the defensive intensity of the Rockets' front line. There is also a hidden problem. Two or three main players in the team have caught the flu. Although there is a high probability that they will play hard, their physical condition will definitely be affected. The "Five Death" lineups they tried before are no longer usable. Whether the substitutes can step in is another matter.

Let’s look at the recent status and division rankings of the two teams. The Rockets have now played 4 games, with 2 wins and 2 losses, ranking 9th in the Western Conference. They have just won two consecutive victories recently, and their status is improving. In the previous game against the Raptors, they scored 139 points, a season high, and their unlimited offensive rebounding tactics made it impossible for the Raptors to handle it inside. After these two consecutive victories, the team averaged 138 points per game, which was the highest in the same period in the team's 52-year history. The main reason why he is so strong is that the dual-core system of "Durant + Shen Jing" is getting better and better. Durant averaged 27.5 points per game and scored 31 points against the Raptors. Shen Jing is more comprehensive, averaging 23.8 points, 8 rebounds, 7.3 assists per game, and also practiced three-pointers. He made 8 in the first 4 games and ranked first in the team in field goal percentage of 57.1%. However, the Rockets' defense is not good, losing an average of 117.5 points per game, and their perimeter defense is unstable. Fortunately, this time it is at home, so the pressure can be less.

The Celtics now have 3 wins and 3 losses in 6 games, ranking sixth in the Eastern Conference. They just defeated the 76ers and won three consecutive games. The game against the 76ers was particularly stalemate, trailing by 1 point in the last 12 seconds. Jaylen Brown received the ball, broke through against two defenders, dodged the block in the air and put the ball in, causing a foul. Although he missed the extra penalty, he still won 109-108. After Tatum was absent, they slowly found the rhythm of "Brown holding the ball + White in tandem". In the last three games, they averaged 27.3 assists per game, and their offense was much smoother than before. Brown is very effective as the temporary core, averaging 27.7 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game. His shooting and three-point shooting percentages are 55% and 48.7% respectively. He also scored 30 points against the Cavaliers. In addition, Derrick White is now the starter, averaging 16.7 points and 4.3 assists per game, and is key to connecting the team. However, the Celtics also have problems. Their shooting and three-point shooting percentages are lower than the league average. They average only 22 assists per game, ranking 29th in the league. They rely too much on fixed tactics and are not flexible enough.

There are 4 highlights of this game. The first highlight is the forward battle between Durant and Brown. If these two people can meet, it will definitely be the most eye-catching scene in the game. Needless to say, Durant is a historical scorer. He has fully integrated into the Rockets system this year, shooting 52.2% from the field. Whether it is a pull-up jump shot or a breakthrough, his efficiency is extremely high. The Celtics' forward defense has just been adjusted, but facing a player like Durant who can play in mismatches, there is a high probability that he will have a headache. Whether he can break up the defense is directly related to whether the Rockets' offense will go smoothly. As for Brown, after Tatum is gone, he has become the core of the team's offense. In the last three games, he has averaged more than 30 points per game. In this game, he not only has to score by himself, but also has to guard against Durant's impact, which is equivalent to one person doing two jobs. If he is in good form, the Celtics can still play; if he is suppressed by Durant, the home court advantage may be gone.

The second point of interest is whether Shen Jing can "get everything he wants" inside the Celtics. The Celtics let go of all their main inside players during the offseason, and now their ability to protect the rim ranks low in the league, just in time for the Rockets' strong inside line, Shen Jing. Shen Jing has made great progress this year. Not only has he not lost his old skills of playing inside and hooking, but he has also developed three-pointers. More importantly, he can also pass the ball, averaging 7.3 assists per game, which is equivalent to the team's "inside commander." Against a team like the Celtics with a weak inside line, Shen Jing will most likely be used intensively - either to beat the opponent hard in the low post, or to attract the defense after the pick-and-roll and feed the ball to outside shooters. It depends on how the Celtics respond. If they haven't found a way to limit Shen Jing, the inside line may be penetrated and the point difference can easily be widened.

The third point of interest is the battle of wits and courage between the two coaches, especially whether Rockets coach Uduka will have any special arrangements when he returns to his old club. Uduka has been with the Celtics before and is familiar with the Celtics' tactics, player habits and even the locker room situation. This is the Rockets' hidden advantage.. At the beginning of this year's season, Uduka also tried the "five major lineups", but later found that they were not working and made timely adjustments. Finally, he decided on the current starting lineup with two consecutive wins. It can be seen that he has a strong ability to change lineups on the spot. The Celtics coach Mazzula now has a "Brown with the ball" tactic in his hands, and there haven't been many changes. In this game, Uduka will most likely engage in targeted defense in response to the Celtics' low assists and single tactics, such as double-teaming Brown and cutting off his contact with his teammates. Whether Mazzula can react and adjust in time will become the key to the Celtics' stability. If Majora is slow to respond, the team is likely to fall into a passive position.

The fourth point of interest is the scoring ability of the bench lineup. Now that the core players of both teams are absent, it is very important whether the bench can step up. For the Celtics, White has become the starter, and the bench lacks a scoring point. Now they can only rely on young players brought up from the Development League, and a few veterans to support them. They have to shoulder the scoring burden, otherwise the offense will be interrupted sooner or later if they rely on Brown alone. The Rockets' bench mainly depends on Adams and Sheppard, as well as Yin Sen. Adams averaged 6 offensive rebounds per game in the first four games, which can create many second offensive opportunities for the team, which is equivalent to several more scoring opportunities; Shepard is responsible for organizing the offense of the bench lineup to keep the bench offense from chaos. Whoever's substitute can score more than 10 points in this game will be more likely to take the initiative. After all, the main scoring ability is limited, and the contribution of the substitute has become a key variable.