The Godfather of Basketball

James came with determination and confidence, which can be felt from what he said in the interview before the game.

But he probably didn't expect Artest to bring such a big change to the Rockets.

Scola and Morrow, two players who were originally defensive loopholes, were on the court as if they had been doped. They fought hard in defense. On the offensive end, the Rockets were all soldiers. They were not afraid of confrontation. The Cavaliers played very well. uncomfortable.

After halftime, the Cavaliers fell behind the Rockets by 10 points 46 to 56.

The home fans were excited.

Basketball has always been a passionate sport, and the boiling blood that Artest injected into the Rockets made them love this team even more.

Back in the second half, the Cavaliers' outside touch dropped sharply, and the Rockets' advantage became more obvious.

The Cavaliers only scored 12 points in the third quarter. At the end of the third quarter, the Rockets had a 20-point lead.

The Cavaliers gave up after playing for three minutes in the last quarter, and the Rockets' bench team continued to work hard to further widen the gap.

In the end, the Rockets beat their opponents 101 to 74 and ushered in a big victory after the All-Star break.

Yao Ming scored 27 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists, McGrady scored 21 points and 7 rebounds, Billups and Yi Jianlian both scored 12 points.

Artest contributed 14 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and 1 risk in his debut for the Rockets.

Although he didn't score many points due to unfamiliarity with the team system, the toughness he brought to the team is far more important than scoring a few more points.

And the 27-point bloody Cavaliers who beat the league's No. 1 Cavaliers also made other teams realize that the deal the Rockets made on this past trade deadline was a "robbery" comparable to the Lakers' acquisition of Gasol.

Of course, this kind of voice is not loud, after all, this is just a game.

On February 22, after a two-day break, the Rockets once again faced their rival Jazz.

The Jazz's performance this season is far worse than the previous two seasons, and they are currently competing with the Suns, Hornets and Mavericks for a playoff spot.

There are only less than the last 30 games before the end of the regular season, and any game is very critical for them.

Despite the poor record, iron blood is still the style of this team, and it is also where they have an advantage over the Rockets in the past two years or so.

But the third match between the two sides this season was a surprise.

After the start of this game, the Rockets fought the Jazz head-on. If you mess with me, I will fuck you if I have the opportunity. If I catch the opportunity, I will give you a hard time.

In the middle of the game, the Rockets firmly held a lead of more than 10 points, but the Jazz were finally annoyed. Boozer and Okur made several dangerous moves to bring Artest and Scola down. They were all ejected by the referee.

In the end, the Rockets were bloodless, beating the Jazz 98-71 at home, ushering in a three-game winning streak.

Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady still both scored 20+ points, and Yi Jianlian and Scola scored in double figures.

Artest also continued to play steadily, playing 6 of 10 shots in 30 minutes, contributing 16 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks.

The momentum displayed by the entire Rockets team, not only the Jazz who had just lost, but also other teams in the league felt a palpitation.

After all, the Rockets are the public enemy of the league!

And now they discover that the public enemy is not only strong, but seemingly invincible.

On February 23, the Rockets faced the Warriors back to back.

The Warriors disintegrated at the beginning of the season. They have only won 20 games so far this season, and they have long been unwilling to fight.

Facing such an opponent, the Rockets also defeated the opponent 112 to 91, extending the winning streak to 4 games.

Artest also ushered in his first explosion after joining the Rockets. He made 9 of 15 shots and contributed 25 points, 11 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks.

On February 25, the Rockets went to Philadelphia to challenge the 76ers.

The 76ers are also fighting for a place in the playoffs, and they also spare no effort to play against the Rockets.

But after the game started, they found that their efforts were completely useless.

How can Iguodala, Andre Miller, and Thaddeus Young compete with Yao Ming, Tracy McGrady, and Billups in terms of star power?

Playing role players is even more irrelevant.

Of course, the most important thing is that Artest came off the bench. After a wave of shocks, the Rockets' lead is amazing.

After three quarters, the 76ers were almost 30 points behind.

In the end, the Rockets also defeated their opponents 109 to 81, extending the winning streak to 5 games.

Yao Ming easily scored a triple-double of 24 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.

"It's not fair." After the game, 76ers forward Thaddeus Young said helplessly to reporters.

After the rise of Yi Jianlian, the Rockets' starting lineup is already the strongest in the league. It's really unfair that Artest is now on the bench.

But the facts are the same, and unfairness must continue to be fought.

The Rockets won the 76ers, and also defeated the Bulls and Eagles in the remaining games in February, extending the winning streak to 7 games.

In these 7 games, the Rockets averaged a margin of 25.7 points per game, invincible.

The time came to February 28, the day the league fell into turmoil again.

The previous trade deadline marked the finalization of the team's trade, but it did not mean that the team's lineup could not be changed.

March 1 is also a critical date for NBA teams, especially the playoffs, or teams that are hitting the playoffs, because this day is the buyout deadline.

Only players who are bought out before this day can sign with a playoff team and qualify for the playoffs.

At this time, the teams that are in the playoffs or hitting the playoffs, and the teams with spots, are the places they most want to go.

For example, the Rockets.

The Rockets basically had a stable lineup before the trade deadline in the past two years, so they didn’t pay too much attention to this, but this year is different. In the previous trade for Artest, the team paid 3 players, and finally Got 2 players. After Ewing was cut, there are only 13 people on the team list.

This also means that the Rockets still have 2 signing spots.

This even includes the mid-level exception that the Rockets haven't used before.

(Note: Teams below the luxury tax line have a middle class exception with a starting salary of 5 million; teams above the luxury tax line have a mini middle class exception with a starting salary of 3 million; teams below the salary cap have a space middle class exception with a starting salary of 2.5 million)

A team that has won 7 consecutive victories in the past half month and has an average win of 20+ points per game. There are still 2 spots, and they can offer a contract with an annual salary of 5 million!

For those players looking for a buyout, this is like a firefly in the dark night, the bright star is bright, the bright is dazzling.