It doesn't Matter who the Rockets get by Trade Deadline

This season is over and the biggest problem is team chemistry - the pieces just don't fit.

Daryl Morey has never gotten the importance of team chemistry - this is why he thinks he can put together his best roster late in the season, and still put together a cohesive unit - it rarely works out that way in the NBA.

The biggest thing that is noticeable about the Lakers is their team chemistry - the pieces just fit together this year. (Ironically, the same guys may not fit together next year, or two years from now - this is how fragile team chemistry is).

But Guys like Caldwell-Pope , Green and even Howard and Caruso all are playing and meshing real well as a team. This has a lot to do with their coach Frank Vogel and guys like James rededicating himself during the summer, instead of making movies during the off season. The Lakers lucked out TL wanted more years - what an idiot - how much money are you making as an assistant coach?

Sure the Rockets can make a move before the deadline that makes them better as a team - but MDA is the biggest problem with this team - he is borderline senile as a coach right now - even if the Rockets chemistry was better - MDA still hasn't figured out an offensive set to take advantage or counter a double team on Harden - you saw this again on Sunday. Their best set (if you call this a set) - is to swing it one spot over to the right, have that guy drive, and kick to the corner for Tucker or House to try a three - it has always had very limited success at best.

The rockets need to forget about saving legs during the regular season, and start practicing their asses off reworking their offense - because that is the only hope of putting together a more consistent team which oh, by the way would also play more as a cohesive unit with better team chemistry via a motion style offense.

James Harden needs to drop his ego at the door, the stat chasing was good for a year, now the most innovative thing he do, or add to his game is not the one legged three point shot, but to actually play a role in a motion offense - the same motion offense that had one shooter on the floor last year in the playoffs for GSW in Klay Thompson, and surprise the ball still found him in the offensive sets with the motion offense - and the Warriors survived Steph being in Foul trouble in the first half of game 6 strictly because of a beautifully run motion offense.

Good ball movement and player movement, and new offensive sets is the only innovative value added move the rockets can make with this group right now to improve the overall product. (I cringe, as probably the rest of Harden's teammates when he goes down in that dribble stance to get his rhythm for his step back three.

It really is ego at this point for Harden because it is so much more difficult, than to get off your lazy ass, and run and pass in a motion offense, and shoot a wide open shot, and involve your teammates in a manner where everyone develops a much better rhythm in the offense - they are just too predictable and too easy to defend right now with this offense - if you call it an offense.

In the end it comes down to team chemistry - and there seems no light at the end of this dark tunnel right now, regardless of players added at the trade deadline.

 

And I know the response will be, but our offense isn't the problem. Yes it is because the entire league's offensive stats are up this year, one of the reasons the rockets cannot get separation in a game and maintain it, is they are too reliant on a streaky offense of mediocre shooters hitting three point shots.

The Rockets have more offensive talent than many teams in the NBA, shooting threes is not their advantage, they should be maximizing Harden and Westbrook's talents much more via a motion offense which makes roles players like Capela, House, Tucker, Harty, Gordon, etc better by being actively engaged in the offense.

The Rockets lack defensive personnel, so they need to have the best offense in the NBA by a large margin if they are going to start building a good point differential against opponents which all the good teams have in the NBA, because they sure aren't going to do this on the defensive end.

This team is poorly constructed, as ideally you would want a combination of offensive and defensive players on the roster. The biggest weakness is the lack of three and defensive wings that would compliment Harden and Westbrook - and the fact that Harden and Westbrook salaries being spent on basically the same position (playmaking guard) makes it difficult to have good three and defensive wings on the team because of salary cap issues and team payroll.

But given this is the team the coach has to work with, two high end offensive play-makers, and limited defensive talent, then the coach better have an offense like the phoenix suns that can get separation in the game from the offensive side of the ball by being the runaway best offensive team in the NBA - this is not the Rockets this year.

The Rockets as a team are very inefficient on the offensive side of the ball, a very streaky team that under-performs its offensive talent. This in combination with their lack of defense means they cannot put teams away, and every game just come down to how hot James Harden is to close out the game. And in the playoffs, just double James Harden because the Rockets still have no answer for this defensive strategy.