The Godfather of Basketball

Just when Tang Tian returned to the Rockets and started preparing for the new season, there was some unhappiness between Yao Ming and the national team. The national team disagreed with his request to only participate in world-class competitions, and the two sides broke up unhappy. Yao Ming's original plan to play in the World Championships also fell through.

Without Yao Ming, the Chinese men's basketball team played in the World Championships in Japan. As a result, they lost all five games in the group stage, with an average loss of 30+ per game, ranking first among all teams, creating the worst record in the World Championships, and a complete disastrous defeat .

After the World Championships, the director of the basketball management center in charge of basketball was transferred, and the director of the Basketball Association was also forced to resign.

The newly appointed Director of the Basketball Association approached Yao Ming immediately, and the two parties finally reached an agreement, which can be summed up in one sentence, as long as Yao Ming is willing to play in world-class competitions, everything is easy to talk about.

Just like Tang Tian said, the current Chinese men's basketball team can do without anyone, but Yao Ming is irreplaceable.

It was a pity for Yao Ming not to make it to the World Championships, but it was a great thing for the Rockets.

This is Yao Ming's first offseason since he joined the Rockets.

Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady came back from injury and both went to the arena for training one month in advance.

As the players arrived at the Toyota Center one after another, the Rockets' preseason roster gradually surfaced.

Centers: Yao Ming, Dikembe Mutombo, Chuck Hayes.

Power Forward: Juwan Howard, Bunch Wells, Paul Millsap, Ryan Bowen.

Small forwards: Shane Battier, Kirk Snyder, Scott Padgett, Steve Novak, Casey Jacobson.

Shooting guards: Tracy McGrady, Luther Head, Vasilis Spanoulis.

Point guards: Ralph Alston, John Lucas III, Jose Barea, Bob Sura.

There are a total of 20-man roster, because Sura has been in a state of injury, in fact, 18 people are fighting for a 14-man roster.

Among them, Ryan Bowen, Scott Padgett, Casey Jacobson, and Jose Barea all have non-guaranteed contracts and are the four most likely to be laid off.

The Rockets' first preseason game is against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

In the preseason, although Tang Tian was the first assistant coach, just like Thibodeau's position in the summer league, he was only offering suggestions, and Van Gundy was the one who took the lead.

The main attack point of this Timberwolves team is inside. Garnett and Mark Blount both like to play in the low post. In view of this characteristic, Tang Tian proposed a strategy of playing fast, but it was not adopted by Van Gundy.

In the game, he still gave the offensive freedom to Yao Ming and McGrady as he did last season, letting them take turns playing singles inside and outside.

The strength of the Timberwolves itself is weaker than that of the Rockets, and the Rockets had the advantage in the first half.

But in the second half, Garnett tried his best to defend Yao Ming. Yao Ming failed to play several times in a row.

In the end, the Rockets unexpectedly lost the preseason opener 81 to 90, and Millsap and Novak, who performed well in the summer league, did not get playing time.

This situation is still going on. The Rockets played against the Pistons in the second round. Facing an opponent like an iron barrel, Van Gundy still insisted on his strategy. As a result, the team scored no more than 70 points and lost 66 to 82 to the opponent. A two-game losing streak in the preseason.

In the third game, against the Portland Trail Blazers who had played against each other in the summer league, the combination of Yao Ming and Uncle Huo had no way to deal with Randolph, and McGrady, who played two consecutive games with high playing time, showed his strength in this game. Tired, only 6 of 23 shots, the Rockets also narrowly lost their opponents 81 to 83.

Facing the powerful opponents Spurs and Cavaliers, the Rockets also lost one after another. Only against the Eagles, the fringe man Barea suddenly broke out and scored 20 points, helping the team win a victory.

In the last game, McGrady and Yao Ming were tired, and Millsap and Novak had a chance to perform, scoring 16 points and 9 points respectively, but the team lost 77 to 108 to the Nuggets led by Anthony.

In the end, the Rockets ended their preseason journey with 1 win and 6 losses. Although there are many opponents, the Rockets' performance is really unsatisfactory.

Especially the offense that has been criticized by people in the early years, but it has a tendency to intensify.

After the preseason ended, the NBA officially announced the new season's strength rankings. The Rockets ranked 12th in the Western Conference and 23rd in the league.

Although Yao Mai is back to health, the poor performance in the preseason has made the officials very unfavorable to them.

With the Rockets losing streak, the American media, who have been holding back for several months, can finally feel proud.

"The Rockets made the worst decision in the offseason. It turns out that the fired former first assistant Nick Ward is the key point of their offense. Without him, the Rockets' offense is generally constipated. It's useless."

"The Rockets' victory in the Summer League proves their draft vision. It was Millsap and Novak who helped that team win the championship, and it has little to do with that team's head coach, Tang Tian."

"Luck can be achieved for a while, but it can't stand the test of time. Maybe a certain executive of the Rockets should worry."

...

For a while, the American media criticized Tang Tian, ​​and a storm of public opinion swept over the city of Houston.

Not only the media, but also inside the Rockets are panicked and there are many complaints.

Throughout the preseason, out of the 19-man roster, only 12 got the chance to play, and that included the one-time truce between Yao and Mai. Such an arrangement made those role players feel extraordinarily unfair.

The new season has not yet officially started, and the Rockets are already in a situation of internal and external troubles.

Rockets general manager Dawson also put pressure on the Rockets management, sitting on the double giants but playing such a bad performance, he doesn't want to leave the biggest stain on his career before he retires.

Under a lot of pressure, Van Gundy was forced to organize an internal meeting.

The objects of this meeting included the coaching staff Van Gundy, Tang Tian and Thibodeau, the general manager Dawson, and the player representatives McGrady, Yao Ming and Battier.