The Rockets won 4 consecutive victories! Sheppard had 29 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 steals and 3 blocks. Uduka needs to see three facts clearly.

The NBA preseason continues, with the Houston Rockets going away to challenge the Atlanta Hawks. When the game came up, the two teams fell into a tug-of-war. Okogie scored 10 points in a single quarter to support the team's offense. The Rockets took a 4-point lead in the first quarter. In the second quarter, the two teams started a battle. The No. 1 pick Risa Shepard faced off against the No. 2 pick Shepard. Boshen hit all the shots and the Eagles took the lead in one fell swoop. After changing sides and fighting again, the Hawks fell into a scoring drought. The Rockets sent out consecutive offensive waves and established a double-digit lead in one go. Subsequently, the Hawks regained their touch and launched a counterattack, but Sheppard and Okogie went crazy. The Rockets firmly controlled the situation on the court and played steadily until the end. In the end, the Rockets defeated the Hawks 133-115.

The Rockets attack with the remaining formation, 8-man rotation takes advantage of the small lineup to the extreme, fast and accurate! At the end of the game, the Rockets outscored the Hawks 37-11 on fast break, made 17 steals and made 20 turnovers, and used their turnovers to score 34-25 against the Hawks. At the same time, the Rockets scored 19 three-pointers with a shooting rate of 39.6%. In comparison, the Hawks made only 10 of 36 shots from beyond the three-point line and only made 27.8% of their three-pointers. Even though the Hawks outrebounded the Rockets 53-43 and outscored the Rockets 64-46 in the paint, they still struggled to turn things around.

Durant, Shen Jing, Amen, Jabari Smith Jr., Adams, Ethan and other stars are not playing. This lineup is obviously to train & to inspect Shepard. Shepard fulfilled his mission and delivered a perfect answer! Shepard played 29 minutes, made 12 of 22 shots (5 of 13 three-pointers), scored 29 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 steals, and 3 blocks, with a plus-minus of +11. Facing the all-main Hawks with assist king Trae Young, champion center Porpoise and top pick Risa Shepard, Sheppard played very smart, showed a rich offensive skill package, attacked resolutely, reasonably and efficiently, and was also good at activating his teammates. More importantly, Shepard takes the lead on the defensive end and spares no effort to bite his opponents, becoming more and more like Van Jordan. For Sheppard, this was a statement game: Who says I don't deserve to be the starting point guard?

The Rockets won 4 consecutive victories and ended the preseason tour with an undefeated record. They averaged 131.3 points per game, ranking first in the league! The four-game winning streak will be cleared at the beginning of the regular season, but this preseason trip was enough for Uduka to see three facts clearly. First, Van Jordan fell, but the Rockets don't need to panic, they must remain patient and respond to changes by staying the same! In these four preseason games, Yu Jie, Amen, Shen Jing, and Shepard have all performed amazingly, and they can all solve the Rockets' pressing need at the point guard line. Second, there is no need to rush to decide who will be the starting point guard. Only by creating a level playing field can we find the optimal answer. Uduka made it clear in an interview. He said bluntly: Every starting game at the beginning of the regular season will be different! The implication is that the preseason is just a warm-up, and we will continue to experiment with lineups in the regular season.

Third, the Rockets' championship goal will not change. Defense is the team's fundamentals, and the five major lineups are their trump card. The Rockets have four tall men over 2.11 meters tall, as well as many forwards over 2 meters tall such as Amen and Finney Smith. Uduka has enough cards to ensure a height advantage on the court. The Rockets may go against the trend of small ball play and form a counterattack against the league's trend! There is no turning back. The Rockets will challenge the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder in the regular season opener five days later. This is a great honor. I believe that the championship flag raised by the Thunder will also inspire the Rockets' fighting spirit: It's time, we are going to challenge for the championship in the new season! Fans and friends, what do you think of this? Come and leave me a comment to discuss.