Warriors vs Rockets G2 Preview: Houston Offensive Recovery Pulls Back? Curry is trying to take home 2-0

At 9:30 a.m. Beijing time on April 24, the Rockets will play the Warriors again at home. In the G1 game, the Rockets lost to the Warriors 85-95, can Shin Kyung and Green help the team pull one back at home? The Rockets desperately need to improve their offensive performance and avoid heading to the Bay Area with a 0-2 overall score.

Rockets head coach Udoka said: "We had the rebounding advantage and we were good in some areas, but the overall offense was terrible. We had a lot of open three-pointers but couldn't hit them; When he got a second chance to attack through the frontcourt rebound, he couldn't put the ball in the basket either. ”

In the opening game, the second-seeded Rockets grabbed 22 frontcourt rebounds, compared to the Warriors' six. However, the Rockets had a 10-point advantage in second-offense scoring (22-12). The Rockets' failure to translate their rebounding advantage into a larger scoring gap was also reflected in their poor shooting performance on 34-of-87 shooting (39.1 percent) from the field.

On the other hand, the seventh-seeded Warriors shot 36-of-76 (47.4%) from the field and 12-of-32 from three-point range, while the Rockets only made 6-of-29 from three-point range.

Curry scored a game-high 31 points, and he came from five of the Warriors' 12 three-pointers. That included a key long-range shot from 34 feet from the basket with 5:11 of regulation time remaining. At that time, the Rockets were only four points behind, and this three-pointer undoubtedly poured cold water on the home team's momentum of chasing points.

The Rockets trailed by as many as 23 points at one point, but they fought back stubbornly and still had victory hopes in the late stages of the game. Jabari Smith Jr., who came off the bench, scored 11 points and grabbed six rebounds on 3-of-3 shooting. He said the team's comeback at the end of the game was "encouraging" for the Rockets, who are heading into Game 2.

"We fought until the end of the game and created chances to win...... Now it's just a matter of improving a few details on the offensive end. Smith said.

After losing home-court advantage in their opening game, the Rockets must try to win the G2 game or head to San Francisco with a 0-2 aggregate scoreline.

Such a situation is not new to the Rockets. In four of their last six playoff encounters, they have been eliminated by the Warriors. The Warriors eliminated the Rockets in the Western Conference Finals in 2015 and 2018, the first round of the playoffs in 2016 and the Western Conference semifinals in 2019.

Since the last playoff meeting with the Warriors, the Rockets have now completely changed their core lineup: Jalen Green, who averages 21 points per game, and Shin Kyung, an interior big man who averages 19.1 points and 10.3 rebounds per game, will play a crucial role in whether the Rockets can beat the Warriors.

In every playoff game in which the Warriors have eliminated the Rockets in the past, Curry has been a key figure. And now, in pursuit of his fifth NBA championship since 2015, Curry has welcomed a new partner - Jimmy Butler.

Butler was traded from the Heat to the Warriors in February and has been on a hot streak lately. At the end of the regular season, he scored 28, 24 and 30 points in three consecutive games. In the Warriors' 121-116 win over the Grizzlies in the play-off game on April 15, he contributed 38 points, seven rebounds, six assists and three steals.

Butler's stellar performance against the Grizzlies helped the Warriors lock up the seventh place in the West and get a chance to play the Rockets. The Warriors won three of the four matchups in the regular season. In the first game, he scored 25 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists and 5 steals, contributing to the team's victory.

"They're a very strong team, very confrontational," Butler said, "but I'm sure we're never afraid of any challenge. ”

List of injuries and illnesses

Warriors: All players are available

Rockets: Tate and Landale are out

ESPN predicts the win rate: Warriors 44.1%, Rockets 55.9%