Harden hasn't scored much in the past two games, but he's got a lot of assists, and his role in the Rockets is still very important.

Tang Tian's idea was simple: he wanted to blow up Harden with the most brutal one-on-one defense.

That Rockets team with only Paul and Cousins were no match for the Pelicans.

Moreover, this was also a warm-up in advance for the next round of the competition.

If they meet the Warriors again, using mismatches to play against Curry will be a necessary tactic. If it's the Thunder, they will still need to use mismatches to play against Adams.

In other words, this was a tactical adjustment and a warm-up for the next round.

Stevens agreed.

The next game was in New Orleans, the best opportunity for the Pelicans to end the series.

If they lost again and went to Houston, the series would be dragged out for a long time, and might even be overturned.

"I will put Jokic on the bench."

Stevens continued.

Tang Tian nodded.

Jokic's defense against Cousins was average, and now that he decided to play one-on-one with Harden, his physical exertion would be faster than before.

If he came off early, Jokic would need to come on early to organize.

Moreover, Jokic was very professional, unlike Whiteside before. As long as Stevens made it clear, he shouldn't be emotional.

On the day of the game, the Rockets arrived in New Orleans, and D'Antoni only arranged one or two hours of adaptive training.

The Rockets looked to be in great spirits.

"I am still full of confidence in the team, they will continue to play like they did in the last game."

D'Antoni said the same thing to the media as before.

As a head coach, he had to show this confidence to the outside world.

That night, fans poured into the arena holding signs and shouting "Pelicans Champions!" slogans.

It was a pity that they couldn't sweep the Rockets, but being able to end the series at home was also a very good thing.

"Today, I think the Pelicans are likely to make adjustments again. Their past two games defending Harden haven't been that effective."

In the broadcast booth inside the arena, Zhang Weiping started the warm-up commentary early.

"What does Director Zhang mean?"

Yang Yi next to him interjected.

"I think they are very likely to use Tang Tian to defend Harden."

After Zhang Weiping finished speaking, without waiting for Yang Yi to follow up, he immediately explained.

"Look, if you use Tang Tian to defend Harden, wouldn't the others be liberated? Then Paul and Cousins definitely won't be able to perform like they did in the previous two games, and wouldn't the game become simpler?"

Zhang Weiping analyzed for a while, and then showed his signature smile.

Yang Yi next to him laughed after listening.

It was obvious that he didn't agree with Zhang Weiping's statement.

The offensive of playoff stars was too important, especially in the small-ball era that pursued offense. Few coaches would use the team's superstar to defend the opponent's superstar, as that would outweigh the benefits.

Zhang Weiping's thinking was still stuck in his era and was outdated.

As the two were talking, the starting players of both sides had already entered the court one after another.

The Pelicans had a starting adjustment, with Biyombo replacing Jokic as the starting center.

Biyombo outjumped Cousins, officially kicking off the game.

Holiday dribbled the ball past halftime, and Tang Tian and Ariza had an off-ball screen.

When Tang Tian's defender switched to Harden, Holiday passed the ball over, and then pulled the defender away.

This was a very obvious one-on-one tactic.

Tang Tian held the ball with triple threat, and then used a crossover after a probing step to break through.

Harden was too heavy and couldn't keep up with Tang Tian's speed at all, only having time to glance back.

Tang Tian easily scored a layup.

Cheers erupted from the crowd.

Harden's perimeter defense was already not good, and in front of Tang Tian, his eye-defense attribute was exposed.

The Rockets' offense advanced to the frontcourt, and when Harden arrived in the frontcourt, he found that the person defending him had changed from Ariza to Tang Tian.

Yang Yi's expression was obviously stunned when he saw this scene.

"See, I said it, the Pelicans' choice is very reasonable."

Zhang Weiping said with a big laugh.

He was so engrossed that he didn't notice the embarrassed look on Yang Yi's face.

Paul's breakthrough was interfered with by Davis' help defense and went wide, and Davis grabbed the rebound.

The Pelicans didn't need to spend a lot of effort to defend Harden, and their defense against Paul and Cousins was obviously better than the previous two games.

Zhang Weiping was not only a Reasonable Emperor, but with decades of commentary experience, he obviously also knew a lot about basketball.

The Pelicans' counterattack failed to turn into a set play, and Tang Tian continued to look for Harden.

The Rockets didn't switch, but not switching was equivalent to giving Tang Tian offensive space. He received a pass from Holiday and pulled up for a jump shot.

"Swish!"

Giving a superstar so much offensive space was like giving away points.

In the Rockets' offense, Cousins' middle breakthrough was blocked by Davis' help defense. After Biyombo secured the defensive rebound, the Rockets' offense once again returned without success.

The Rockets retreated quickly, and in the Pelicans' positional battle, Tang Tian continued to crossover and break through after switching to Harden.

Harden really couldn't defend, and his flash of inspiration backhand steal didn't work either.

Cousins helped defend, and Tang Tian made a close-range pass to Biyombo, who scored with a powerful two-handed dunk with no one defending.

These few rounds became the epitome of the two sides after the opening.

After Harden was marked by Tang Tian, he didn't attack, and Paul and Cousins were heavily marked with low efficiency. The Rockets' offense was obviously not as smooth as the previous two games.

Conversely, on the defensive end, the Pelicans kept using Tang Tian to play against Harden, and Harden simply couldn't defend. His eye defense was so extensive that it could be made into a highlight reel.

The other Rockets players didn't dare to defend either, because defending Tang Tian would result in an assist.

Although Biyombo's finishing ability was not as good as Jokic's, and he occasionally had butterfingers, his defensive limitation on Cousins was obviously better.

The Rockets were suppressed on both offense and defense. In less than half a quarter, the score on the court was 8 to 20.

D'Antoni said several times that the team would continue the performance of the previous two games, but things proved that his words didn't count.

The Pelicans' adjustment once again changed the situation.

And D'Antoni's on-court response was as lagging as in the previous games.

Seeing that the situation was not right, Harden chose to attack himself.

Continuous crossovers and then a step-back, he fully exerted his offensive skills.

But Tang Tian completely kept up, and his defense after pouncing put enormous pressure on him.

Harden was forced to adjust his shooting angle, and as a result, he shot an air ball.

The audience booed constantly.

Holiday missed a three-pointer after receiving a pass from Tang Tian, and Cousins grabbed the rebound.

The Rockets attacked to the frontcourt, and Harden continued to hold the ball and play against Tang Tian.

This time he chose to break through, leaning his body against Tang Tian, trying to draw a foul.

But Tang Tian was prepared, dodged, and waited for his shot before reaching out to block it directly.

"Bang!"

Tang Tian slapped the ball out of bounds with a big block.

After the block, in order to boost the home crowd's momentum, he reached out and made the finger-wagging gesture that he hadn't used for a long time to the audience.

The audience booed constantly.

Harden's face was black. He was basically passed by Tang Tian in one step when defending Tang Tian, but when he played against Tang Tian, either he shot an air ball or he was blocked. He was really blown up!

Before, many people questioned Tang Tian's selection as the best defensive player this season, but things proved that keyboard warriors were just keyboard warriors. Only the players who really played against him on the court knew his terror.