too early but do we they have it in them to become a top 10 defensive team as was the case last year? Roco has been solid tucker is amazing, that is our only hope honestly
I think most would disagree with you that predicting/prognasticating the Rockets probably wont win the chip is somehow wrong or too early. Just curious what likelihood do you think the Rockets winning it all is.
I dont remember caring so little for a Rockets club. Maybe Dwight's last year? I cant even remember. I dont think I even care.
If you want to know why we lost. . . Clarkson skullf*cked House for like a couple of quarters it seems When was the last time a single player gave us 30 off the bench Rocket River
Jazz just won 2 games they had 0 business winning back to back shoulda lost to Portland via gold tend Tough shot to beat Houston 2 game lead on our asses
James isn't our best 3 pt shooter. He just takes the most 3's. Sometimes he needs to just drive in before the coverage surrounds him like Russ does and go easy on the 3's. McLemore is our highest percentage shooter from the arc, but he is only 78th in ranking of the top shooters. We don't have great 3pt shooters. They are just OK. That is why we can beat great teams and lose to bad teams. We are living and dying by the 3 from most of our guys around Russ and James. That, and the fact that Tucker is averaging less than 8 pts a game.
If James just hit one more of his 13 threes, then we win. Simple, Harden needs to hit his shots. Also, this is a game where we needed Gordon's defense and shooting. Without him it was always gonna be tough. Onto the next one.
Well its not how you start, its how you finish bro. Last year, it was the same stuff with us coming into all star break before went on a tear. People might not think it was worth something that we took the Warriors to 6 games(all of them being close) but I do. We get through that series and I think we could have won it. Not ready to put a number on it yet. Maybe im being to optimistic. But still like there are a few things that we can better at. Plus we havent actually lost yet with our full lineup so well see how it goes.
House and Tucker need to put up more points playing 36 minutes. Heck, Rivers didn't make a single pt in 19 minutes. I'd like James taking less 3's, but he did find other ways to score. The others need to be better. They don't help enough offensively half the time.
Actually I think it can . . .. if we look to lead the league in paint points I think Russ and Harden could be 1 and 2 in paint points Rocket River
About the same chance as anyone in the West. The overwhelming favorite should be the Bucks. The Clippers are the best team in the West but they do not play hard consistently and are a lot like the Rockets. The Lakers are very beatable in a series by a good team. With the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers existing; this season is likely the Rockets best shot other than the season they won 65 games and would have won the title but for injury. This Rockets team has a lot of variance because of the trade they made, injuries and adjustments made as everyone gets familiar with their roles. Look at it like this, there isn’t a single team in the West that the Rockets are not capable of beating. The toughest team is the Clippers and they are having problems as well. So even if the Rockets have an 8-12% of winning the title right now, that is a contender and better than everyone other than the Bucks and Clippers. Most will argue the Lakers as having better odds but I do not think the Lakers would get past the Rockets and Clippers (mind you both could lose to another lesser team as well). So yes, the Rockets at this moment are basically contenders. A lot can change in a month.... in a month we will have a more clear picture... the Rockets could be first round fodder or they could be arguably the best team in the West... time will tell. Playoff match ups in the west will matter more than seeding this year. Every single playoff team has weaknesses that can be exploited by another team. So home court means less than who you are playing. The only team that should feel really good is Milwaukee and they even have to worry about officiating in the playoffs and the reality that a single injury could destroy their season.
I'm just going to say it..... we're worse with Westbrook as the main ball handler. I know it sounds stupid, but I think it's hurting us and Harden when he has way more of the ball. Yeah, he gets a lot of points, but I feel we're way less productive as a team with him as the main ball handler. I feel When Harden is the main ball handler, he's way more comfortable and get his flow more easily.... and you know damn well when Harden drives he's going to get a lot of free throws, or he's going to pass it out for a wide open shot. When he gives it to Westbrook, either from the double team or just general, we're not getting as many free throws and 3pt shots as we should. Take tonight for instance; Westbrook had 33 attempts..... but, he only scored 39 points. For a guy who had the ball and drives as much as he does, he should easily be getting us more free throw point attempts. Also, in the last 13 games, when Westbrook as been the main ball handler and been scoring over 30 points game, we've only managed to win 5 games. Would you rather Westbrook had it more and have 33 shots a game and shoot 54% from the FG and 50% from the 3pt from 2 shots.... and barely get any free throw attempts? Or would rather Harden have it more and shoot 45% from the FG and only 40% from the 3pt? Bare in mind, if Harden has 33 shooting attempts, you know he's shooting around 18 3pt shots..... and he's more than likely getting over 14 free throws and making like 85% of them. It's an interesting question. This isn't me b****ing about Westbrook. He's been amazing this season and been by far our best player in the last 6 weeks. I just feel both him and Harden need the ball the majority of the time to be better players. Of course having a more consistent shooting supporting cast would help.... but that's how I see it.
House stays a step ahead. House led rockets in steals with 4 take aways. House had more steals than the entire Utah team combined.
We got crushed on rebounds again, they shot almost as many threes. If we had a legit center and even rebounding we would likely should have won this game. Aside from a lights out shooting game against the lakers that may be an outlier before teams fully adjust, this perimeter player is worth more than a center trade looks worse over time. Again, we'll see but this isn't looking good.
