04/24/24
May 05, 2007
Time to blow up the Rockets: 1997, 0-6, two 2-0 series leads... Yes Houston fans, Houston's postseason series drought continues to 11 years, they have blown TWO series in the past THREE years when holding a 2-0 advantage AND our beloved savior, the one where we sent our starting backcourt away for is now 0 for 6 in the postseason. Serious things are going on in Houston this offseason, and folks, this could be a different team next year.
posted by chemwizBsquared to basketball at 11:37 PM - 12 comments
Where does this short AP wire story talk about blowing up the rockets? Anyway, what they need is a point guard that can pass the ball to their dominant 7'6 center. What a waste! They should try to trade for Jose Calderón or Andre Miller.
posted by sic at 10:39 AM on May 06, 2007
I watched the game yesterday, Yao Ming was terrible. He got BLOCKED by Okur about 3 different times and by Boozer 3 other times. How in the hell do you get blocked when you're 7 inches taller than EVERYONE on the court? I could understand if they were coming from behind and tipping the ball away, but for the most part, he was getting STUFFED straight up. The Rockets will never win a championship with Yao. He is way too weak to bang in the post. Now add that to McGrady's weak back and you have the recipe for a team that will be hard pressed to ever make it past the 1st round.
posted by yay-yo at 11:44 AM on May 06, 2007
Yahoo! reports that Van Gundy may be on his way out.
posted by PublicUrinal at 01:58 PM on May 06, 2007
They are missing a couple of players. Battier was a huge addition for them, he has a certain defensive toughness. What they lack is another playmaker with enough confidence to take the last shot, not that he would HAVE to, but someone who would. Rafer Alston is the BEST streetball playmaker ever... but in the NBA, his game is completely different, maybe just because he is so small. My suggestion: Trade away Rafer and/or Bonzi Wells for a tough veteran with leadership capabilities. Derek Fisher would be perfect, but no way he is leaving Utah. Lamar Odom, Sam Cassell, even someone like JR Smith or Michael Finley would REALLY help this team. If Bonzi was in shape and got along with the coach, that could've worked. The saddest thing I've seen in the NBA this year was T-Mac walking away from the Press Conference after game seven. He deserves to contend for a championship, I just hope that he doesn't feel like any more of his seasons are a waste.
posted by Snikastyle at 02:00 PM on May 06, 2007
Yao Ming scored 29 points on 49% shooting, which is not terrible (although he has to cut down on his turnovers). In fact, he is probably the best true center in the NBA now that Shaq looks like he doesn't have much left in the tank. He needs a point guard that gets him the ball in his spots. I do agree that McGrady's back makes him a very dicey player to base your championship hopes on, but Yao Ming is a franchise player who works diligently on his game and has progressively grown stronger in the post each year in the league (and shoots 86% from the line). The evidence leads me to believe that he will continue to get better and if Houston gets the right players around him, he will contend for a championship someday.
posted by sic at 04:01 PM on May 06, 2007
Remember, Houston only had 1 "true" point guard in their actual rotation (and I'm really iffy on calling Rafer Alston a "true point guard" in the first place)...yet the truth be told, how many legit PG's are out there who can penetrate, hit 3's and defend on a regular basis? Maybe 5 or 6 in the entire league. Thus you look for people who can compliment stars. Yao, T-Mac and Shane Battier are Houston's three players who will be off limits (as far as a trade is concerned) if this team wants to maintain the same core. Steve Blake, you just became the hottest commodity this offseason for about 4-5 teams because you're probably the best option amongst all the PGs on the market...
posted by chemwizBsquared at 08:58 PM on May 06, 2007
Yao Ming scored 29 points on 49% shooting, which is not terrible You're right, that is not terrible. But the 6 rebounds, 4 turnovers, 1 block, 0 assists, were. Yao doesn't play with the same fire that most players have. I don't know if it is because of the cultural difference, but he just doesn't have it in him to be dominant. In America its all about "me, me, me, I, I, I", while in asian cultures it's "we" (not wii). People who brag and boast about themselves are looked down upon. We eat that shit up.
posted by yay-yo at 09:48 PM on May 06, 2007
How in the hell do you get blocked when you're 7 inches taller than EVERYONE on the court? When you have a vertical leap of 2 and 5/8 inches and everyone you play can, well, jump.
posted by Texan_lost_in_NY at 10:24 PM on May 06, 2007
I agree that Yao doesn't play with the same fire as most other players, but not in the way that you meant it. Yao isn't outwardly expressive, he's not a braggart, he won't be shouting and wagging fingers which on the surface makes him appear to have no fire. This is a mistake. Yao's fire is turned inward, he is highly critical of himself and driven to work on his game. There was an article on this on the SI site a few weeks ago which talked about how when he got to the Rockets he was watching another player lift huge dumb bells and asked the trainer if he thought that someday he would be able to lift the same weight, in the interview the trainer said that this season they bought special dumb bells just for Yao that were far heavier than the ones he was talking about three years ago. There are countless anecdotes like this which shows that Yao is working to get stronger both physically and mentally. He's adjusting to the NBA and the USA. I predict that in a season or two he will be demanding the ball from his guards and demanding calls from the refs.
posted by sic at 05:54 AM on May 07, 2007
They're talking about blowing up the Mavericks in Dallas. Let it all set in and see how the playoffs go. Getting great talent is not an easy thing to do by trade, free-agency or draft. That greener grass on the other side of the mountain may actually just be painted dirt.
posted by jaygolf at 09:59 AM on May 07, 2007
how about the Rockets and Mavericks trading with one another to fix each others problems...yeah...right, like division rivals would do that (hey, Dallas and the Philly did trade football picks)...
posted by chemwizBsquared at 01:08 AM on May 08, 2007
In a division that includes Dallas,Phoenix, and San Antonio,nobody expected the Rockets to go deep in the playoffs.I must admit that I expected them to get by Utah.Of course I also was certain Dallas would defeat the Warriors.Thats how the playoffs work...nothing is a sure thing.