2013-10-13 NBA台北熱身賽-火箭VS溜馬-林書豪HIGHLIGHT
Jason Friedman
Rockets.com
TAIPEI - Instant analysis and observations from Houston’s 107-98 preseason victory over the Pacers played Sunday in Taipei:
- When the Linsanity documentary eventually comes out on Blu-Ray/DVD, they better include the entirety of tonight’s game in the bonus features section because the Jeremy Lin Taipei saw tonight was just as good as anything J-Lin produced during that magical 6-week stretch with the Knicks.
Lin began the first quarter by swishing a top-of-the-key 3 and ended the period with another triple to beat the shot clock. In between those bombs, the 25-year-old also threw a picture perfect alley-oop pass from half-court to Chandler Parsons for a slam and scored on a ridiculously high degree-of-difficulty floater that he somehow managed to bank in over the outstretched arms of Roy Hibbert, who by that early juncture had already blocked four Rockets shots.
The second quarter provided more of the same. Lin kicked-started another Rockets run by picking up his second steal of the game and punctuated that play with a slam that sent the crowd – and the Rockets’ bench – into a frenzy. The proceedings then went from fairy tale to downright pinch-me-because-there’s-no-way-this-is-real-life when Lin summoned his inner Dwight Howard by swatting a shot into the stands. By that point, the only thing left for Lin to do was drop the mic and strut off stage. He was, quite simply, just that good while racking up 12 points (on 5-of-6 shooting), 2 assists, 2 boards and 2 steals during a little more than 21 minutes of first half action.
All of which gave added credence to the line of thinking that Lin does have a knack for rising to the occasion. There was undoubtedly a significant amount of pressure on the Palo Alto native coming into tonight’s contest, though I’d argue he was under far more pressure and scrutiny last December when he made his initial return to Madison Square Garden to face the Knicks (which just so happened to follow a miserable contest in Toronto that marked Lin’s lowest point of the season). All he did that night in New York was go 9-of-15 from the field while scoring 22 points and dishing 9 assists in a Rockets’ romp.
The most important takeaway from all of this, however: Lin has looked terrific through three games this preseason. His passing is spot-on, his jumper is locked-in, he’s pushed the ball superbly in transition, he’s getting to the free throw line and his defense has improved from what we saw from him a year ago. So regardless of whether he’s starting or coming off the bench, these are huge potential developments as they pertain to Houston’s prospects this season.
- Speaking of which, the Rockets again rolled the Pacers in the first half en route to taking a 15-point lead into the break. Houston went 7-of-13 from beyond the arc, limited Indiana to 34.2 percent shooting from the field, and its starters looked absolutely dominant once more against a very good Indiana squad.
But it wasn’t just Houston’s starting five that deserved all the plaudits; the Rockets got good mileage out of the Lin-Beverley backcourt pairing for a few minutes, and then really went into overdrive when they tossed out a quintet of Lin-Harden-Parsons-Casspi-Howard. Rockets fans no doubt recall that a similar fivesome featuring Carlos Delfino in the Casspi role consistently crushed opponents last season, and Casspi’s scorching start to the preseason could portend positively toward Houston achieving comparable results with just such a lineup in 2013-14. Casspi entered tonight’s game averaging a ridiculous 18.5 points (on 15-of-19 shooting) and 6 rebounds per game through Houston’s first two preseason contests, and played very well once more, finishing with 13 points and 9 rebounds.
- For a good chunk of the second half, fans saw a Houston team that looked like its road weary legs had caught to them; the Pacers like a club with bodies that had finally made the adjustment to Asia time. The Rockets got sloppy in the third quarter, Indiana caught fire from deep, and Indy crawled within two points around the eight-minute mark of the fourth quarter. That’s to take nothing away from the Pacers, though. This is a heck of a team that has every reason to believe they can be better this year than they were a year ago when they took the two-time champs from Miami to seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Not road weary, however: Omri Casspi or Francisco Garcia (seeing his first action of the preseason after missing the first two games with a groin strain). Those two turned the fourth quarter into their own personal shooting gallery, combining to score 15 points and knock down four 3s. That Pacers’ surge that trimmed their deficit to 2? Summarily squashed. Thanks to the heroics of Casspi and Garcia, Houston cruised to another impressive win.
Yes, the Rockets have plenty more to work on as they attempt to get themselves in regular season form. But if their starters continue to play the way they have through the first three preseason games, and Garcia and Casspi keep shooting like Larry Bird, Houston will go roughly 82-0 this season. Presumably, things won’t always be this easy.
NBA star Jeremy Lin charms Taiwan fans in preseason game
AFP - Asian-American NBA star Jeremy Lin and teammate James Harden joined hands on Sunday to help the Houston Rockets beat the Indiana Pacers 107-98 in an NBA preseason game held in Taipei, Lin's ancestral home.
As a point guard, Lin scored 17 points in his 34-minute play while centre Harden contributed 21 points in a game that drew a sell-out crowd of more than 13,000 fans at the Taipei Arena statidum.
When Lin had to quit just a few minutes before the close of the game, local fans gave him a thundering applause.
"I'm happy with the result. After all, we won. Playing (basketball) here is crazy. Fans are noisy and passionate," Lin said in Mandarin Chinese at a press conference.
Houston coach Kevin McHale added: "The atmosphere was unbelievable. Yes, it was definitely Jeremy Lin's home court. He played very well."
"The last week to 10 days he?s been very, very good in our games and our practices. I think he?s really comfortable with who he is. He?s in a good state of mind", McHale said.
The 25-year-old, whose parents are Taiwanese, has become a sporting hero on the island since he shot to stardom in the NBA with the New York Knicks early last year, sparking a global following known as "Linsanity".
Lin, who was later traded to Houston, had a mixed performance in his first full NBA season that saw the Rockets eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.
McHale said he could understand the tremendous pressure on Lin after he swiftly rose to his fame and emerged as the basketball icon in Asia and elsewhere in the world.
"He is a great young man, he worked out very hard this summer," McHale said, in his reference to Lin's step-up training, including in shooting where he has sometimes struggled, after his first full-year with NBA.
NBA commissioner David Stern on Saturday hailed Lin's success as a "true milestone", saying Lin had been "adopted by all countries in Asia as their very own" after the two NBA team's successful exhibition game in Manila last week.
At Sunday's game, Paul George led the Pacers with 19 points followed by 17 points of George Hill.
Among those watching Sunday's game in Taipei were Terry Gou, founder of Taiwan's tech giant Hon Hai Precision and Chinese basketball icon Yao Ming, a former Rockets centre.
TAIPEI GETS A FULL DOSE OF LINSANITY
TAIPEI, Taiwan – It was an afternoon that began with a greeting from Paul George.
Yet the 12,905 squealing, appreciative fans who came early and stayed on their feet often left the impression that John and Ringo were also inside Taipei Arena.
It might not have quite reached the level of The Beatles at Shea Stadium, but Jeremy Lin’s return to his ancestral roots hit all the notes of cultural phenomenon, NBA star and real life dream come true.
They love you, yeah, yeah, yeah.
It was the return of Linsanity, all of the attendant pregame hype and palpable buzz in the air meeting up with a performance that delivered by the main attraction.
From the moment he scored the Rockets’ first basket of the game on a 3-pointer from the top of the key to his exit midway through the fourth quarter of Houston’s 107-98 win over the Pacers, Lin was the focus of virtually all attention and idolatry.
When Lin left the game with 5:52 left to play with 17 points on 6-for-8 shooting, four assists, two rebounds and one monster block, teammate Francisco Garcia encouraged the throng to come to its feet and then he clamped Lin like a little brother in a headlock and patted his approval.
Lin stood in a back hallway smiling and shaking his head at the experience.
“It wasn’t like anything I’m normally accustomed to, going out there before the game for warmups and having everyone yelling,” he said. “Yeah, I was nervous. I haven’t felt that way before a game since probably the first time back to MSG last season.
“Really, it was everything I could have hoped for. (Asssistant coach) Chris Finch said, ‘It was like all your birthdays rolled into one. You got the 3s, the dunk, the block.’ I think he was right. I didn’t know how this was gonna go, but I definitely didn’t think it would go this good.”
Rockets coach Kevin McHale said Lin’s play was simply a continuation of the progress he’s made since the opening of training camp.
“He played very well,” McHale said. “The last week to 10 days he’s been very, very good in our games and our practices. I think he’s really comfortable with who he is. He’s in a good state of mind … Jeremy’s in really a good place. This is the way he’s been playing in practice.”
Nearly half the crowd wore some kind of NBA jersey or T-shirt and the lion’s share of those bore Lin’s name and number from various career incarnations. There were red Lin Rockets jerseys and white Lin Rockets jerseys. There were even a few with Lin’s name on the back of the throwback navy blue pajama-striped jerseys that Lin never wore. There were Lin jerseys from Harvard and his time with Golden State. And, of course, there were Lin’s jerseys from that magical five-week stretch of 2012 when Linsanity was born in York.
They screamed with delight when Lin came out of the tunnel and ran onto the court for pregame warmups nearly an hour before the opening tip and they roared in appreciation when he stepped into the spotlight and shined in front of an audience that included his parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and thousands of other Taiwanese who claim him as their own.
“I have been an NBA fan for about 10 years,” said Taiwan native Tony Kuo, 25, who studied business at Michigan State. “The truth is the Pistons were always my favorite back, back from the days of their (2004) championship.
“But when Jeremy first came into the league with the Warriors and then he went to New York and did what he did, well, now he is my favorite and the Rockets are my team.
“I followed Jeremy when he was in Harvard and hoped that he would get a chance. But I wasn’t really sure if an Asian player could ever have the experience he did in New York.
“When Yao Ming played, he was famous here. But nothing like Lin. There is no question that Jeremy Lin is the No. 1 sports celebrity in Taiwan today. I can’t even think of anyone close enough to him to be No. 2.”
Kuo’s girlfriend, Ashley Wu, 29, said she never really took to the NBA when she was at Michigan State.
“I guess now I like the Rockets, but I went out and bought this Knicks shirt because the blue is a better color,” she said. “This is a really exciting and fun event and it’s fun to be here to support Lin and him,” she said, pointing at Kuo.
For the most part, it was fast-paced and seemed to be more intensely played for a preseason game with plenty of banging and with regulars getting a lot of minutes.
James Harden led the Rockets with 21 points. George had 19 to top the Pacers and George Hill had 17.
Nevertheless, according to how a script might have been written, Lin practically took the game into his hands in the first quarter and shaped it to fit the hype and his image. By the time the opening period was done, Lin had drilled a pair of 3-pointers, closed out a fast break with a crowd-pleasing dunk and then got a real rise from everyone when he chased down Indiana’s Danny Granger on a breakaway and used a sweeping swat of his arm to send the ball into the first row of seats.
“When I got that shot, just about all I could do was smile,” Lin said. “Not at him, but just the fact that it happened, because I’ve never done anything like that before in a real NBA game. Maybe in practice. So when I got that shot, I all could think was everything was going my way.”
Half a world away from where it was born, Linsanity was back. And, fittingly, at home.
林书豪首发17+4哈登21分 台北之行火箭再克步行者
新浪体育讯 北京时间10月13日，NBA[微博]全球系列赛来到中国台北站，火箭凭借“主场”之利，以107-98击败了步行者。
在父老乡亲面前，林书豪[微博]表现神勇，他打了全场最长的34分钟，8投6中，拿下了17分、4次助攻和3个抢断。詹姆斯-哈登21分全部是上半场所得，钱德勒-帕森斯11分6个篮板，德怀特-霍华德10分6个篮板。替补出场的弗朗西斯科-加西亚得了15分，欧米-卡斯比13分，多塔塔斯-莫铁尤纳斯10分。
步行者连续两次败给火箭。保罗-乔治拿下了19分，乔治-希尔[微博]17分，罗伊-希伯特11分。丹尼-格兰杰替补出场，得了15分9个篮板，CJ-沃特森14分。
两队继续亚洲之行。10日在马尼拉相遇，火箭以116-96大胜。今天到了中国台北，可以说是林书豪的主场。比赛开始之前，介绍步行者球员时，不断听到嘘声，而火箭出场时，则是欢声雷动。
火箭的第一攻自然是给林书豪，霍华德有机会出手，但仍把球交给外线的林书豪，他扬手就命中三分，球迷起立喝彩。林书豪也给队友制造机会，本节打了近4分钟后，火箭发动快攻，林书豪刚过半场就将球高高抛起，早已快下的帕森斯飞身将球扣进，现场气氛再度被引爆。
林书豪注定是这场比赛的主角，他让人想起了尼克斯时代的“林疯狂”。首节还有7分15秒时，林书豪抢断得手，自已带球发起快攻。面对高大的希伯特，林书豪丝毫不畏惧，迎着他上篮，希伯特一把抓下篮球，但裁判认为这是干扰球，阿豪再添2分。本节最后1分钟，林书豪还投中两球，他的一记三分使火箭以29-21领先。本节林书豪已经有10分进账。
三分、中投、快攻上篮，林书豪在第一节已经让球迷过足了瘾。第二节开始后不久，林书豪又让现场观众见证了他的扣篮。尽管火箭此后有3分钟内未能得分，他们仍保持领先。火箭重拾感觉后，哈登和帕森斯相继命中三分。本节还有3分39秒时，林书豪快速推进，但突然将球分给外线的哈登，后者轻松命中三分，火箭以47-34扩大优势。步行者在本节最后4分27秒只投中一球，而火箭不断远投得手，上半场以55-40领先。
林书豪是上半场出场时间最长的，打了21分29秒，6投5中，拿下了12分，他还助攻2次。队友哈登拿下了13分，霍华德8分，但身背3次犯规。步行者在篮板上以17-26处于劣势，乔治得了11分。
这只是一场季前赛，但火箭在场上的表现却跟常规赛一样，抢篮板时非常拼命，全场的进攻节奏也非常快。火箭的态度也激起了步行者的斗志，下半场他们的反击非常猛烈。
第三节还有9分20秒时，林书豪又一次三分命中，火箭还以65-51领先。希尔很快还以一记三分，而乔治和希伯特相继扣篮得手。本节中段，步行者发动11-0的攻击波，一举将比分追成67-69。哈登和加西亚各命中一记三分，火箭才稳住阵脚。三节过后，火箭以81-74领先。
第四节林书豪带一帮替补球员在场上。步行者几度将差距缩小，比赛还有8分39秒时只以82-84落后。两队此后相继投篮不中，布鲁尔抢下一个进攻篮板后，传球给外线的卡斯比，后者命中一记三分，而加西亚此后也三分命中，火箭连得8分，在本节过半时以92-82领先。
步行者有些失去斗志，主帅叫了暂停后，沃特森造成犯规，两罚两中，但贝弗利紧接着中投命中，火箭保持两位数的优势。
比赛还有6分09秒时，林书豪被换下场，球迷纷纷起立鼓掌。
在场上的球员以行动捍卫林书豪的“主场”，加西亚和又命中两记三分，在比赛还有3分23秒时，火箭以103-85领先。虽然步行者还留了格兰杰在场上，但无力扭转乾坤。(吴哥)
林书豪自豪能封盖格兰杰:我从未扇过那么狠的帽!
林书豪表示，今天的比赛他很紧张，不过整场比赛他还是充分享受到了乐趣。谈到今天一些火爆的个人表现，他自己也很惊讶。麦帅表示，下一场比赛贝弗利将先发。
火箭今天在中国台北市和步行者又进行了一场季前赛交锋。身为“地主”，林书豪坦言自己赛前非常紧张，甚至做热身都会引来阵阵高呼，所以他的紧张程度远超上一场在菲律宾打比赛。最终火箭还是轻松取胜，比分是107-98，林书豪在比赛中的表现颇有亮点。
“火箭助教芬奇说这场比赛好像过生日送大礼一样，”林书豪表示，“你表演了一个2+1，有一个扣篮，还有一个火锅。观众、气氛……什么都包含一点。我的反应就是‘噢，我的天，一切都站在我这边。’”
林书豪贡献了17分、4助攻、3抢断。
“林书豪打得很出色，”火箭主教练麦克海尔表示，“过去一周、10几天，他一直打得很好，无论是比赛还是训练。我想他现在很适应自己原本的状态。他减了体重，他更敏捷了。今天他再度奉献了出色的表现，而且训练里也表现得很好。”
在比赛中，林书豪甚至还在快攻防守里送给步行者的全明星球员格兰杰一个大火锅，此球也引起了现场一片沸腾。
“我所能做的一切就是微笑，”林书豪说道，“我自己也说‘我都不相信它就这么发生了。’在我职业生涯里，我从来没在一场真正的NBA比赛里这么干过。我在训练中倒是有做过，但今天这可是比赛。我从来没有这么狠地扇过别人的帽，我开始乐了起来，不是针对格兰杰，只是对发生的这一切开怀大笑。”
“太赞了，太棒了，”一位球迷说道，“林书豪太出色了，对于所有的亚洲球迷来说，他就是一个偶像。”
“我在球场上打得相当开心，我想这才是最重要的，”林书豪表示。
麦克海尔表示，火箭现在仍在轮流使用先发，下一场比赛他会让贝弗利先发出战。另外，麦帅还特别挑出了一个球员进行表扬，他就是卡斯比。此役卡斯比贡献13分、9篮板。
“卡斯比为我们贡献了一个相当优秀的表现，”麦克海尔说道，“他打出了一个极高的水平。”
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