San Francisco – Houston’s Rockets coach, Ime Udoka, is used to walking in each city he visits, and this routine continued on Saturday before match 3 of the series of series of his team against the Golden State Warriors.
After leaving the team hotel on Saturday, Udoka said he was recognized by some local sports fans.
How did it go, Udoka was asked.
“Very pleasant,” Udoka told journalists at the Chase Center, pulling a little laugh. “Honestly, wherever you go, you may have online hostility and all that. But in person, no one says anything. You are not so courageous in person.”
Hostilities increased in the early stages of the series of Warriors-Rockts qualifiers.
During match 2, the Rockets Guard and the native of East Bay, Amen Thompson, involuntarily withdrew the legs of Jimmy Butler, which made the game the warriors left after a harsh fall. Butler, still on the walk, did not play in match 3 on Saturday.
Some debated if Thompson’s game was dirty. But Thompson’s teammate, Dillon Brooks, paid attention to the Warriors when he asked him questions on Friday.
“No, I think the dirty player is Draymond (green), giving him a little boost as regular basketball players, said Brooks. “And Jimmy fights in the air for a rebound and things happen. Amen is not a dirty player. He has (nothing) to do with being a dirty player.”
When he was asked that he thought that Warriors fans could be hostile to Thompson, originally from San Leandro, Udoka said he was expecting a hoarse atmosphere in the playoffs.
“It doesn’t matter if it is at home or anything, I think that is what you get as an adversary, obviously in the playoffs, whatever,” said Udoka about the environment. “The unfortunate what happened, as I said, was not intentional or anything. But with the bias and the fans, they will take this and run with it.”
Thompson collected 11 points and three assists in the victory of the Warriors 109-94 which leveled the series to a victory each.
“(Thompson) reacted well. As I said, we all know that it is involuntary. And he will simply do his duties as usual.” But understanding what it will be, I think he knows it, and nothing to be shocked by the moment. “”
On Wednesday, in match 2, the players of the two teams received technical faults in the second half and Jalen Green from Houston received a blatant fault when he launched an arm on Green’s face.
California Daily Newspapers
