On December 30th, Beijing time, the NBA 2024-25 season regular season continued, with the Houston Rockets hosting the Miami Heat. Surprisingly, the Rockets have suffered eight consecutive losses against the Heat, failing to defeat them in four consecutive seasons, which is currently the longest losing streak against any team in the league. It's worth noting that before this season, the Rockets had just ended a 15-game losing streak against the Warriors and a 9-game losing streak against the Pacers. Obviously, the current Rockets are quietly rising, despite controversies over the positioning of Jalen Green and Shen Jing. However, the emergence of new stars Ethan and Amen Thompson has brought many surprises to the team and raised their defense to a new level.
However, the Rockets' weaknesses are still obvious, as the team lacks a superstar who can deliver the decisive blow in critical moments. As a result, ESPN reporter Tim Bontemps revealed that many people within the league believe Houston will be the top contender for the next major trade involving star players. Coincidentally, the Heat are currently embroiled in trade rumors about their star player Butler, according to reporter Shams, who reported that Butler has decided to leave the Heat. However, Miami officials still insist they will not trade Butler, which also reflects the locker room conflict issues within the Heat.
Before the game, ESPN also provided the latest win probability prediction for today's match, with the Rockets having a high win probability of 74.6%, while the Heat's win probability was only 25.4%. Obviously, ESPN is very optimistic that the Rockets can end their eight-game losing streak against the Heat today. In terms of starting lineups, the Heat were without Butler and Drew Smith, with Richardson questionable, and their starting five were Love, Adebayo, Herro, Rozier, and Hayes. The Rockets had Dillon and Ethan questionable, with their starting lineup consisting of Fred VanVleet, Jalen Green, Amen Thompson, Jabari Smith Jr., and Alperen Sengun.
In the first quarter, Little Smith hit a strong three-pointer against Love, drawing a foul and successfully completing a 3+1 to give the Rockets the lead. In the next round, Love also drew a foul from VanVleet on a strong drive to the basket, quickly regaining the momentum. VanVleet responded with a three-pointer, and Sengun easily scored a layup after posting up Hayes, giving the Rockets a 9-2 lead over the Heat. Dillon's pass was intercepted, and Herro quickly countered with a three-pointer, while Adebayo and Rozier continuously attacked the basket, leading to a 10-0 run by the Heat to surpass the Rockets by four points. Amen Thompson lobbed a pass in transition, assisting Whitmore in completing a one-handed dunk, and at the end of the first quarter, the Rockets still trailed the Heat by four points with a score of 27-31.
In the second quarter, Amen Thompson made a direct pass to the basket, with Whitmore catching the ball and slamming it with both hands, completing another connection. Sengun turned and scored under the basket, currently 7-for-7 with 14 points, leading the team to tie the score. VanVleet's turnover was intercepted, and Adebayo completed an alley-oop dunk on the fast break. Dillon immediately responded with a three-pointer around a screen, while Jalen Green's flying layup after accelerating still missed, currently 0-for-6 relying only on free throws for 3 points. Hayes scored inside and outside, grabbing five points in a row to help the Heat extend their lead to seven points. VanVleet hit another three-pointer in transition, and at halftime, the Rockets still trailed the Heat by three points with a score of 50-53.
At halftime, the Rockets' Jalen Green played 15 minutes, shooting poorly with only 1-for-8 for 5 points, 1 rebound, and 2 assists; Sengun played 16 minutes, shooting perfectly 7-for-7 for 14 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 steal; VanVleet shot 3-for-10, including 2-for-5 from three-point range, scoring 8 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block with a negative plus/minus of -3. On the Heat side, three players scored in double figures, with Rozier scoring 11 points and Adebayo and Herro each scoring 10 points.
In the third quarter, Jalen Green scored on a fast break layup, currently 2-for-9 with 7 points. After Dillon made a strong three-pointer and roared at Adebayo, a conflict ensued, resulting in a technical foul, his eighth this season, as the Rockets took a nine-point lead over the Heat. Herro made consecutive turnovers, while Jalen Green hit another three-pointer in transition, extending the Rockets' lead to 12 points and forcing a timeout from the Heat. After the timeout, Herro hit two more three-pointers, and Caleb Martin scored repeatedly in the paint, bringing the Heat within one point.
In the fourth quarter, VanVleet hit two more three-pointers, re-establishing a seven-point lead for the Rockets. Herro scored on a reverse layup in transition, and Hayes hit a pull-up three-pointer on the counterattack, leading to a 7-0 run by the Heat to tie the score again. Dillon hit a mid-range jumper to stop the decline, while Herro drove and drew fouls, giving the Heat the lead. Jovic hit a crucial three-pointer, extending the Heat's lead to four points. In the final play, VanVleet committed a five-second violation on the inbound pass, was dissatisfied with the referee and was ejected, followed by a conflict between Herro and Amen Thompson, resulting in the ejection of six players. Ultimately, the Heat staged a comeback against the Rockets to secure the victory.
In the end, the Heat staged a comeback against the Rockets to secure the victory. It must be said that the Rockets have now suffered nine consecutive losses against the Heat. This game exposed the Rockets' weaknesses thoroughly, as the team is truly in urgent need of a superstar who can deliver the decisive blow in critical moments. If they cannot acquire such a player through a trade this season, they will definitely not go far in the playoffs.
In the full game statistics, the Rockets' Green shot 6-for-20, scoring only 19 points with 3 rebounds and 2 assists; Sengun scored 18 points with 18 rebounds and 1 steal; Amen Thompson scored 5 points with 5 rebounds, 5 assists, and 1 steal. On the Heat side, Herro scored 27 points with 6 rebounds, 9 assists, and 3 turnovers; Adebayo scored 10 points with 10 rebounds and 3 steals.
