Just like the previous choices of Kerr and Antetokounmpo, Tang Tian also chose to hold the Defensive Player of the Year award ceremony before the start of the second-round game.

However, this award ceremony will probably have to wait a few more days, because their next round opponent has not been finalized yet.

Trailing 1-3, the Mavericks are already in a precarious situation heading to Houston for an away game.

But Butler stepped up again.

In this game, he not only successfully defended Harden, but also scored a game-high 29 points, plus 7 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals.

Led by him, the Mavericks narrowly defeated the Rockets 106-101, successfully tying the score to 2-3.

Returning to Dallas for the next home game, the Mavericks have a good chance of dragging the game into a Game 7, and the suspense of the series has risen again.

Before this series started, the outside world generally said that the Rockets were a superstar team, and the Mavericks were an All-Star team.

But so far in this series, Butler has averaged 25.5 points, 6.1 rebounds, 4.6 assists, and 1.9 steals, with a 49% shooting percentage and a 41% three-point shooting percentage.

This kind of performance is already at the level of a superstar, and this is still the case when he is in conflict with Carlisle.

Having participated in the Hard Training Brothers training camp for many years, coupled with his training attributes like Mike Pratt, he has really transformed into a superstar in recent years.

The saying that the playoffs are a stage to test superstars has been verified countless times.

The Rockets and Mavericks series has not yet ended, and the Pelicans' rest time has become longer again.

This has its pros and cons.

The good news is that the players can get plenty of rest and have plenty of energy in the second round.

The bad news is that if they keep resting, maintaining the players' condition will be a problem.

So the team plays full-court scrimmages almost every day, and post-match psychological education is also being done.

Sometimes being too strong is not necessarily a good thing.

Two days later, the sixth game between the Rockets and Mavericks started in Dallas.

Before the game, foreign media predicted that it would be a fierce battle, but the result was not what they expected.

Butler's touch cooled down, and Harris and Embiid continued their poor performance in the series. The Mavericks did not cause too much trouble for the Rockets.

In the end, the Mavericks lost to the Rockets 87-105 at home, and were eliminated 2-4.

After the game, Butler stood on the court for a long time before leaving after scoring 19 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 steals. You could feel that he was very unwilling to lose.

Mavericks owner Cuban also frowned on the sidelines.

The conflict between Butler and Carlisle, the team's unsatisfactory performance in the playoffs, and Nowitzki being a year older, there are too many problems left for him in the summer.

With the end of this game, the Pelicans' second-round opponent was finally determined.

The second season of the Pelicans-Rockets playoff battle is about to be staged.

The Pelicans are determined to defend their title, and the Rockets' strength has obviously increased compared to last season.

This round of division semifinals is definitely the most watched in the second round.

At the same time, all other matchups in the East and West have also ended.

The Cavaliers swept the Heat 4-0.

James and Whiteside showed no mercy to their old club.

And with this sweep, the Wade era in Miami will most likely come to an end.

The Knicks eliminated the Pacers 4-1.

The Raptors eliminated the Hornets 4-1.

Walker has a player option this summer. After playing the peak season of his career, he needs to carefully consider where his next stop will be.

The Hawks eliminated the Bucks 4-2.

Antetokounmpo's performance in the last two games was a bit eye-popping. If his shooting doesn't improve this summer, his steps towards becoming a superstar will also stop.

The Warriors swept the Clippers 4-0.

In the playoffs, the Warriors' four stars performed significantly better than in the regular season. Even Iguodala, who only shows his coffin board in the playoffs, showed his competitive state. The Warriors in the playoffs are not that easy to mess with.

The Spurs swept the Trail Blazers 4-0.

Popovich did not give Lillard and the Trail Blazers any chance.

This year's first round was unprecedentedly stable, and all the upper-bracket teams eventually won.

The division semifinal matchups have also all been released.

Cavaliers vs. Hawks.

This is a reunion of bitter rivals, and Budenholzer has a chance to avenge his previous sweep.

Of course, this opportunity still seems quite slim.

Knicks vs. Raptors.

This time, the suspense of the semifinals is much greater. The Knicks' Big Three have not been together for long, and Howard's performance in this year's playoffs is also a problem.

Lowry and DeRozan have a chance to remove their "garbage brothers" hats through this series.

Warriors vs. Spurs.

On paper, the Warriors are obviously stronger, but no one dares to underestimate the Popovich-led Spurs in the playoffs.

Especially this season, Leonard's performance has reached the peak of his career. With this kind of all-around offensive and defensive superstar performance, no one knows what kind of strength he can display.

Pelicans vs. Rockets.

At the post-match press conference after the sixth game against the Mavericks, a reporter asked Rockets coach D'Antoni about the second-round matchup.

"That's an opportunity God gave us."

D'Antoni used a very graphic analogy.

"We failed last season. We were full of confidence but only won one game. That was a blow to us. We worked hard for a season for it. Now we have become stronger. So we are glad that our opponent is the Pelicans instead of the Warriors. This is the opportunity God has given us."

D'Antoni's next words further demonstrated his confidence.

What he said was the Rockets' position, and what he didn't say was his own.

Because of choosing the Pelicans and then temporarily changing his mind, he has been constantly compared with Stevens in the past two years.

Moreover, because the Pelicans have always had excellent results, he has mostly been the one who was devalued.

It was like a cloud covering his head, an invisible pressure that lingered and made it difficult for him to breathe.

Now he has the opportunity to personally remove this cloud, and the opportunity is very good.

The Rockets said this was their opportunity, and the Pelicans did not take it lightly.

Although they haven't played for nearly a week, the players are very serious.

This Rockets team is much stronger than the Thunder, and their 4-2 elimination of the Mavericks in the first round also proves their strength.

The new penalty scale, coupled with the playoffs, a bunch of superstars plus strong substitutes, this is the standard championship configuration.

Stevens also discussed the game tactics plan with Tang Tian.

He will increase Tang Tian's ball-handling rate.

This does not mean that the training in the first round was meaningless. On the contrary, the training effect has been achieved.

Jokic, Davis, and even Bogdan and Williams are all in good shape. This is the gain.

Facing the Rockets, an opponent of the same level, training again would be courting death.

So this round of series is a series of real swords and guns.