NBA's King of Talking

Chapter 551 Leave it all to me

198cm的塔克打中锋，首发阵容身高最高的是201cm的豪斯，其余3人的身高分别是196cm、193cm以及183cm。

Compared to the Clippers, every player in the Rockets' starting lineup is shorter than the Clippers.

Of course, basketball games aren't about height. If it were just about height, then shorter guards shouldn't be on the court, and Chinese basketball would have dominated the world long ago.

The Rockets' small-ball lineup also features a five-outside composition. While Tucker's three-point shooting isn't accurate, he does have a three-point shot, and his corner threes are still a threat. Compared to Kawhi Leonard, who has absolutely no shooting ability, Tucker's presence prevents opponents from leaving him completely open, thus helping to create space.

After the game started, the Rockets switched on defense constantly and chased down Olynyk on offense.

The Clippers' defense was somewhat inconsistent. Olynyk is intelligent, but he's a center after all, and his slow movement makes him easy for opponents to exploit. Now that Kawhi Leonard is no longer available, he's guarding Tucker, but Tucker is always on the perimeter, and once Olynyk goes out there and gets driven, he can't get back down.

The Clippers' once-proud defense began to crumble as their two big men were targeted. Fortunately, the combined efforts of Jia Fei and Paul George on offense turned the game into a back-and-forth affair, allowing them to hold on for a while.

But when it came to the rotation, the Lou Williams and Harrell duo were completely outmatched by the opposing team...

This was already evident in the last match, and the situation was even worse in this match. The opponent was riding high on morale, and this is how it turned out.

Without the starting lineup to provide support, the Clippers' second unit was completely outmatched, instantly putting them in an extremely passive position. By halftime, they were down by as many as 17 points against the Rockets.

In the third quarter, the Clippers narrowed the gap to single digits thanks to Jia Fei's carry performance, but once the pick-and-roll combination came into play, the Clippers collapsed, and the game ended up being garbage time early.

The Clippers ultimately lost by 23 points, marking their first playoff loss by that margin since last season. Last season, they only lost one playoff game, to the Warriors, sweeping the rest of their series. Even that loss to the Warriors wasn't by a large margin.

This was an absolutely devastating defeat. The Clippers led for only 23 seconds throughout the entire game. For this championship-contending team, it was like a bucket of cold water being poured over them from head to toe.

The away team's locker room was eerily quiet after the game; the usual peaceful atmosphere had vanished, and everyone's faces were filled with frustration.

Jia Fei was also in a bad mood, but reason told him that sometimes losing wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Nobody wants to lose; everyone wants to win the championship undefeated, but that's often impossible. The opponents were also strong and had their own advantages. Even the Bulls and Heat, who built dynasties in the past, didn't always have smooth sailing.

When you lose, you should look for reasons. This crushing defeat only shows that the Clippers' roster is not perfect. Their seemingly limitless offensive spacing with their five-outside lineup sometimes fails to perform against small-ball lineups, and they are frequently targeted defensively.

As for the second unit, the Clippers' pick-and-roll duo has been completely outplayed in two consecutive games, which is no coincidence and has clearly been figured out.

Therefore, the Clippers' lineup change has become imperative, and changing just one player may not be enough; they need to make more changes. As for how to make these changes, that requires the coaching staff to exercise their initiative. The Clippers' moves last offseason to increase roster depth were precisely to address this situation.

That night, Art Mayork paced back and forth in his room, appearing even more anxious than Jia Fei. In reality, he hadn't played a single minute in this series.

Jia Fei understands Art Mayork quite well, which shows that he really cares about the team and is concerned about it.

“Jia, I think we should change our formation!” Art Mayork stopped and turned to look at Jia Fei, saying very seriously.

Jia Fei couldn't help but laugh, then stopped laughing and said, "Art, keep going!"

“We also play a small lineup! Last season, when you played center, we even beat the Warriors! I don’t believe the Rockets’ small lineup is better than the Warriors’!” Art Mayork said.

Jia Fei nodded, his finger pointing at the bedside table.

Art Mayor was quite proud to have received Jia Fei's approval, and he felt that his idea was correct.

“But starting with a small lineup isn’t enough!” Jia Fei suddenly said.

"Do you want the substitutes to play a small lineup too?" Art Mayork asked in surprise.

Jia Fei nodded: "Why not? If they can do it, so can we!"

Art Mayor couldn't help but wipe the sweat from his forehead (in fact, there was no sweat on his forehead at all), he never expected that this man was even crazier than he thought!

Coach Buden quickly came knocking... The opponent's adjustments were extremely precise. You think they can't last a series, but what if they could? Who would be willing to gamble on that?

Therefore, adjustments are necessary. After such a crushing defeat, if the head of the coaching staff doesn't make any changes, what's the difference between him and Coach Lee? Coach Lee's team lost to the Warriors, who were considered super teams, and the Clippers only had one superstar, Jia Fei. But now the Clippers are the defending champions, and the Fei-George duo is in such good form. If they are reversed by the Rockets, his coaching career will probably be nailed to the pillar of shame.

"Coach, what are your plans for adjustments?" Jia Fei asked directly after learning that Coach Buden had revealed that adjustments would be made in the next game.

"I'm planning to use our starting lineup from last season, what do you think?" Coach Buden asked.

“Okay!” Jia Fei nodded, agreeing with the suggestion. He meant to use a smaller lineup.

After receiving Jia Fei's consent, Coach Buden was delighted, but still hesitated to speak.

"Coach, you might as well just say what you want to say. There are no outsiders here!" Jia Fei bluntly stated his point.

Coach Buden sighed and said, "Actually, the team that needs the most adjustment is the second unit. The combination of Luiz and Montrez has been targeted too effectively by the opponents."

"Coach, do you have any concerns?" Jia Fei asked.

"I'm worried that if I make changes to them, they'll be unhappy, and I'm afraid it will affect the atmosphere in the locker room," Coach Buden expressed his concerns.

Jia Fei looked at Coach Buden with even greater respect. Although the coach was refined and gentle, he was indeed skilled and had great courage.

"Coach, you don't need to worry about that. I'll handle the locker room issues. You can just go ahead and do it!" Jia Fei smiled, giving Coach Buden his most direct support.

"In that case, I'll leave it to you!" Coach Buden was overjoyed; this was exactly the promise he wanted. He knew that as long as Jia Fei stood by him and supported him, he would dare to do anything.