[ClutchFans] Podcast: Are the 2016-17 Houston Rockets a 50-win team?

I think they are more likely to be a 50 loss team, as currently constructed, than a 50 win team.

 

It's looking like the Rockets will have a top 5 offense

But instead of the average defense to get to 50 wins, so far they have the worst defense in the league

 

Face it guys. We are in for a season full of stat padding. That's all a D'antoni system run by Harden will be good for. Sadly none of it will equate to winning.

 

Optimistically MDA could have his best season since his Phoenix days maybe next two years.

He still is not the coach for this team, for Harden perhaps, he lets him do whatever he wants as PG, but not for all the role players.

And Morey can only bring in so many players, limited star player potential.

 

No way to 50 wins. Losing to Lakers and Atlanta shows that they have no desire to play defense.This is maybe a 7 or 8 seed that will quickly flame out in the first round of the playoffs.

 

Tough call. I think somewhere in that ballpark...but I also think Rockets are going to be a very inconsistent team. good when they play well, bad when they don't. So, could lose to anyone on any given night, making hitting 50 problematic. Getting stops in tight games, particularly against better teams, is also going to be a problem. I'm going to say 47 wins.

 

There's no way in hell the Rockets, as constructed, are a 50 win team. It's not easy winning 50 games and this team struggles to win even against crappy teams.

 

Which crappy team did we struggle to beat?

 

The Mavericks, twice. The Wizards.

I'm not sure it means a ton though. I think their roster, coach, style of play and Harden will make many games, regardless of opponent, close.

Don't see how this team can win 50 games when they don't look like a 50 win team even with Harden playing in god-mode.

 

Wizards by 8
Mavs by 8
Mavs by 1

8 is a fairly healthy margin, not to mention we have played the hardest schedule so far (six road games, 1 home game) and still have a winning record.

 

Right now they are 17th in Net Rating, which has generally been a .500 team in the past

 

Not that it's entirely fair to cherry pick, but the Wizards game was closer than the 8 point margin suggests. In fact the Wizards were winning the game almost halfway through the 4th. It's definitely nice to see them finish a game strong... but it wasn't, imo, a healthy margin win, regardless of final margin.

The home-road disparity is fair, though I don't think that comes close to making our schedule the hardest thus far. They've played 3 teams with a winning record, and one of those teams is the Lakers (who wouldn't have a winning record if the Rockets beat them!). The wins come against teams that are a combined 5-19 (counting Mavs twice, but that's fair)... YIKES! Their 3 losses come against teams that are a combined 14-5.

Could I see them being 7-0 if they played all their games at home? Maybe, though they weren't really close against the Hawks after mid way through the third. Some the home-road thing makes sense... but on the whole they appear to be what they seem to be, a middle of the road team that is winning against bad teams and losing against good teams.

thus far.

 

It's looking like Harden has to play a ton of minutes again for the Rockets to get even close to 50 win, he was #1 last year in mpg and Rockets huffed and weezed to 41 wins. Right now he's at #7.

 

Net Rating jumps to 10th after yesterday's win.

2nd in ORtg, 25th in DRtg

 

Great hear guys , this is awesome for us

 

Great hear guys , this is awesome for us

 

No offense. But this is utterly stupid. Look at Scott Brooks in Washington and other 1st time coaches around the league, MDA is outcoaching them all. Teams hire coaches that compliment their stars, you admit MDA is good for Harden but not the team? The team is will go far under MDA

 

I have no doubt that we can win under Mike D'Antoni. I have serious doubts that we can win If Eric Gordon and Ryan Anderson are our 2nd and 3rd best players. It's on Daryl to complete another impossible task.

 

Agree with this.

 

regardless of whether or not Tony Parker plays next game, I consider it a playoff intensity type game. You know the Spurs are going to be scouting the Rockets and they do not want to lose 2 straight to a Texas rival and what four games in a row? I expect them to bring playoff level intensity, defense and scouting.