"Yao, what is this?"
On the bus ride back, McGrady saw Yao Ming staring intently at the small green bottle in his hand and sat down beside him curiously.
"I don't know either."
He truly didn't know. When leaving the stadium, Tang Long had caught up to him and handed him this medicine, saying it would be very helpful for his injury and that he would have unexpected results after taking it.
Yao Ming couldn't refuse, so he accepted it.
To be honest, although he believed Tang Long wouldn't harm him, looking at a small bottle filled with green liquid, not knowing what it was, and with no text instructions, Yao Ming felt a sense of unease.
"Yao, your playing time will be reduced tomorrow."
At this moment, Van Gundy also boarded the bus, looking at Yao Ming with a serious expression.
Van Gundy had seen Yao Ming's condition on the court clearly today. By the fourth quarter, Yao Ming's stamina and physical capacity had reached their limit!
Since gaining weight, Yao Ming had become more stable in the paint, but his body's endurance was starting to be overloaded.
After the game, the team doctor found Van Gundy and stated that he must reduce Yao Ming's playing time to allow him to recover, especially in back-to-back games like tomorrow's.
"Coach, I can do it."
Yao Ming knew Van Gundy meant well, but the team's bench depth was currently insufficient. If he couldn't support the paint, the perimeter players wouldn't have suitable shooting opportunities, and it would just be a series of missed shots.
Van Gundy glanced at Yao Ming, hesitated, and said, "I'll discuss it with the team doctor again."
Yao Ming nodded and said nothing more.
Upon returning to Houston, Yao Ming casually put the Sheng Gu Shui into his bag.
After much thought, he decided to proceed with caution.
At 9 AM in Longguo and 9 PM in Huaqi Country, the Houston Rockets hosted the Miami Heat.
The Rockets were currently ranked fifth in the Western Conference. If their ranking didn't change, they would face their old nemesis, the Jazz, in the playoffs. Deron's defensive pressure had always given Van Gundy a headache.
The Rockets had to win this game against the struggling Heat.
Van Gundy had made thorough preparations.
Unexpectedly, at the start of the game, the Heat made consecutive three-pointers, while their perimeter players were missing shots, and McGrady's pull-up jumpers were also off the mark. They could only rely on Yao Ming to grab rebounds in the frontcourt.
The Heat seemed determined to exploit the Rockets' fatigue advantage from playing back-to-back games, specifically employing a fast-paced, whirlwind offense.
As a result, Yao Ming had to constantly run back and forth.
By the end of the first two quarters, the Rockets were trailing the Heat by ten points.
This wasn't the most critical issue. The most important thing was that after two quarters of extensive back-and-forth running, Yao Ming's stamina was not only problematic but his ankle was also starting to ache.
By the time he returned to the locker room, Yao Ming was covered in cold sweat.
It was unclear if it was from exhaustion or pain.
"Scola, you'll substitute for Yao in the third quarter."
"Okay, Coach."
When Yao Ming was on the court, Scola played small forward. If neither Yao Ming nor Mutombo played center, then Scola would have to play center.
Yao Ming looked at Van Gundy. Just as he stood up to speak, a piercing pain shot up from his ankle into his heart.
Yao Ming dejectedly sat back down.
"Yao, have some water and rest."
Battier handed Yao Ming a bottle of water.
He had a good relationship with Yao Ming. Besides being teammates, he had also received a lucrative endorsement deal from Longguo thanks to Yao Ming, earning more than his salary. Therefore, he was very grateful to Yao Ming.
"Thank you."
Unlike Yi Jianlian, Yao Ming's English was excellent, and his personality was cheerful. Combined with his status as an absolute starter, somewhere between the number one and number two star, he had never been ostracized. The locker room atmosphere was always lively.
McGrady also sat down next to Yao Ming. "Yao, you rest first. I'll show Dwyane how to play later."
On the court, McGrady respected no one.
What about Dwyane Wade?
One word: fight!
"It's up to you."
Yao Ming high-fived McGrady, but his eyes drifted towards the locker in the dressing room.
When he left, he had, by some strange impulse, brought the small green bottle Tang Long had given him.
Now, remembering Tang Long's words about the bottle's effects, Yao Ming gritted his teeth and walked directly towards the cabinet.
...
Compared to the somber mood in the Rockets' locker room, the Heat were incredibly relaxed.
Despite their focus on tanking, the Heat, with Dwyane Wade, often surprised their opponents.
For instance, today, Wade was in a good mood and didn't plan on losing.
"Mark, they'll definitely substitute Yao out in the third quarter. We'll feed you the ball, and you absolutely torch the Rockets. If Yao comes back on, we'll stick to the strategy from the first two quarters and make that Chinese big guy run back and forth."
"As long as it's not Yao, the Rockets' paint is like a woman's, only fit to play with the cheerleaders."
"Hahaha..."
Blount's humor successfully ignited the Heat's locker room, and the players burst into laughter.
The weather today was great, just like their mood.
At the start of the third quarter, Scola replaced Yao Ming.
Wade exchanged a glance with his teammates and immediately changed their strategy, attacking the Rockets' paint aggressively.
Scola was agile, but he couldn't withstand the pressure.
Soon, the deficit widened to fifteen points.
After scoring a 2+1 play, Blount became overly confident, swaggering towards the Rockets' bench and provocatively taunting Van Gundy.
"Coach, let me go on the court."
"Wait a moment longer."
It had only just begun. If Yao Ming were substituted in now, he might need five minutes after the fourth quarter for his stamina to recover.
Van Gundy didn't want to take that risk.
Besides being his player, Van Gundy also saw Yao Ming as family and a friend.
"Coach, I'm fine. Let me on the court, and I'll teach this guy a lesson."
As if to prove his stamina was sufficient, Yao Ming performed a few jumps and runs on the spot.
Van Gundy's pupils involuntarily widened as he looked at Yao Ming in disbelief.
In the locker room, Yao Ming's exhaustion and pain had made him appear listless. He never expected that after only a short while, he seemed to see the young man who had just joined the Rockets again.
Back then, Yao Ming was full of vigor. Although his physique was a bit slender, he exuded strength. Now, the post-weight-gain Yao Ming in this moment was like a small mountain, casting a dark shadow over the smaller coach.
"Alright."
Van Gundy nodded slightly.
"Go teach that troublemaker Blount a good lesson."
"Coach, leave it to me."
As soon as Yao Ming stepped onto the court, Wade immediately changed tactics and started playing fast breaks again. However, this time it seemed different from before.
Yao Ming's stamina appeared unchanged from the first two quarters, and he was even more agile. His performance on both ends of the court directly ignited the home crowd!!