Why is it said that Harden was born in trouble and died in trouble?

On January 27, Beijing time, the Houston Rockets played away against the New Orleans Pelicans. James Harden had poor touch and mishandled the situation at critical moments. He made 5 of 16 shots, including 1 of 9 three-pointers, 12 of 14 free throws, and scored 23 points, 11 assists and 5 rebounds. The Rockets also lost 113-115.

This is the second time the two teams have met this season. In the first round, the Rockets won at home. Harden scored 26 points, 17 assists and 6 steals. Recently, the Rockets have won 4 consecutive victories, and Harden has also received praise. Chris Webber said that the Rockets can challenge the Warriors "because of the man named James Harden." Chauncey Billups also said: "There is nothing more to say, Harden is the MVP leader."

However, against the Pelicans, who teamed up with the Twin Towers to attack, the Rockets suffered a blow at the start. In the past, Harden had three things to do in the beginning: feeding, three-pointers and breakthroughs, but all of them fell short in this game. Clint Capela's restriction caused Harden's "feeding cake" disadvantage. He broke through and was repeatedly blocked by Anthony Davis. He was also delayed in making three-pointers, which laid the foundation for Harden and even the Rockets' passivity in this game. Foreshadowing.

On the defensive end, the Rockets were unable to defeat the Twin Towers. Davis scored 16 points in the first quarter, and DeMarcus Cousins ??followed one after another. The Rockets tried all the defensive players, including Harden, who also went deep into the basket, but the effect was not good. After scoring inside at halftime, the Rockets fell behind 22-42. In addition, the team's three-pointer was not strong, and they fell behind 53-66 at halftime. Harden scored 14 points and 5 assists at halftime.

Harden also contributed excellent works during this period. At 5 minutes and 59 seconds of the first quarter, Harden took advantage of the outside screen, walked inward, knocked down Jrue Holiday who was following closely, and succeeded in the mid-range shot. At 6 minutes and 11 seconds of the second quarter, Nene stole the ball and passed it to Harden. Harden then passed the ball back without looking at anyone and Nene succeeded in a fast break. Facing Cousins ??at 3 minutes and 8 seconds, Harden pretended to nod to signal his teammates to cover, but suddenly stepped back and succeeded in a three-pointer. Before the halftime buzzer sounded, Harden made another sudden buzzer-beating shot.

At the beginning of the third quarter, the situation between Harden and the Rockets further deteriorated. Harden committed a technical foul at 7 minutes and 29 seconds, and then he was blocked for a layup. He turned around and fell into the trap of Darius Miller. He watched the latter score a 3-pointer and the Pelicans took the largest lead of 21 points. At 5 minutes and 10 seconds, Davis intentionally let Harden go, but Harden failed to make a three-pointer. It wasn't until 3 minutes and 36 seconds when Harden successfully "hit the big one" with a dodge in the face of Davis that he saved some face.

But with Paul setting off a surge at the end of this quarter, the Rockets once closed the point difference to within 10 points. The past of reversing a 12-point deficit at the end of the third quarter of the first round came to mind for all the team's generals. In the fourth quarter, the Rockets fought back hard. Harden became the organizer and made three consecutive passes from 3 minutes and 45 seconds to 2 minutes and 34 seconds, leading the team to an 8-0 tie. Among them, the first back pass to Trevor Ariza scored 3 points, and the third high pass to Luke Mbah a Moute for a layup were the most impressive.

But then Harden failed to make a three-pointer and made a joke. One second before the end, Harden wanted to cause a three-point foul on his opponent, but failed and only got 2 free throws. And when everyone on earth understood what Harden would choose, he made the first free throw, but the second free throw missed the frame because it was too straight, and the Rockets' last hope of a comeback was ruined. The opportunity is close at hand, but far away. Harden is the most depressed person in this game.

The Rockets were really depressed after losing by two points.