[ClutchFans] Rockets vs. Thunder: Five Matchups To Watch

1sr

 

Nice work!

Finally a 5 star thread.

An under the radar match up is Mike Antonio vs Billy D

 

Really worried about Capella ability to box out and rebound and consistently defend the rim. By far our biggest weakness in this series... I believ it won't cost us now but deeper in the playoffs. We need help in that area bad

 

Clint Capela and Nene vs. OKC’s bigs

that's the match up that worries me.

 

My body is ready for Playoff Clint.

I have a feeling he is going to be a defensive nightmare for opponents

 

Woohoo! Excited!

 

I'm more worried about Ryan Anderson.

Clint can't do this thing by himself, and he will get his 10-12 boards.

 

We have a secret weapon now....... Troy Williams!!!

 

It's not going to be easy and definitely reminiscent of the 2014 play-offs..

 

Hope Harden comes out like Dream did against the Spurs when Robinson got the MVP. Chance for the beard to show the league who the real MVP is.

 

Yes, I also am concerned with this match-up. The one that I will be watching closest is "Our Lil Psychopath aka PatBev" vs RW & the OKC crowd. I have Okie relatives. They have much hate for Mr. Beverly

 

I had forgotten about Pat Bev's days with the mask... I think he needs to bring that back...

 

Westbrook vs. his defensive assignment:

While Westbrook is clogging the paint for easy rebounds and padding his stats, the guy he leaves open is going to be the x-factor in this series, Be it Gordon, Beverley, or Lou, they all have to take turns and punish Westbrook for leaving them on the perimeter. They have to shoot at a high percentage because the looks will be there. Then, if the Thunder defense rotates, our wings have to do the same. Also, running the 1-2 pick screen off Harden and force Westbrook to switch or make things easier for Harden. This is how you neuter a force like Westbrook, expose him on defense and force him to play your game.

 

Good job pointing out the hypocrisy by the media.

However, I do think Harden has better players around him in the sense that they better fit the system that the Rockets are using. I guess it is a combination of system and better fitting players. We shoot a bunch of 3 pointers, and unlike previous seasons, we actually have good 3 point shooters on this team this year. OKC is mostly WB ISOball with occasional Kanter post ups.

One thing I am worried about when it comes to Westbrook and Harden comparison is intensity.

Westbrook is a more intense player and because of his personality he is a more assertive player. He will always push the issue. Sometimes it works against him but most of the time, that alpha mentality works for him. He has the playoff resume to back that up.

In contrast, what worries me about Harden, is that sometimes he just goes in a lull and makes costly decisions, like turning it over on a lazy pass. Also, when it comes to physicality, I think Westbrook handles it better than Harden. Harden can be intimated with physical defense and shot blocking. Harden HAS TO match Westbrook's intensity for the entire series.

As i have said earlier, I am glad Ibaka is not in OKC anymore. His shot blocking and interior defense affected harden's game, IMO. Kanter is a terrible defender and neither Adams on Gibson provide the same level of paint defense as Ibaka did when he was in OKC.

Bottom line though: Ultimately, our 3 point shooting will trump all and decide the series. If Rockets make their 3 pointers, we win. If we dont, OKC wins.

 

Kanter's D is horrible for every 2 he scores he gives up more. We have to double him from the baseline because he's not great at passing out of double teams. Push the basketball against their bigs and give Clint an advantage running the floor.

 

Our backcourt is SIGNIFICANTLY better than it was the last time we saw these dudes in the playoffs.

 

Any info about time and date of the game?

 

Roberson's effectiveness on Harden is a real worry.
The Rockets will need a strong team performance to get past these guys, particularly from Gordo, Ryno and Trevor.

 

Harden can't make this a MVP battle, I don't trust him to do what's best for the team when he's in that mindset frankly. Roberson has shown he can consistently make Harden underperform. Harden will need to be a great distributor and defer to Gordon and Lou to take over some of the playmaking.