biggest waste of talent in the history of the NBA if you ask me... it's to the point where i can't even get angry when we lose so pathetically to a team such as the Cavs. yes, i've lost all interest in this team, and it's sucked up all the emotion outta me. i'd gladly throw my dumbell at our dormroom door, but why bother? at this point, i DON't CARE. and keep in mind i'm a HUGE rox fan. now before you haters (in this case, rox lovers) tell me how i should be calm and patient as this team learns, i ask you...when WILL they learn? better yet, when will they START learning? how long have steve and cuttino been playing on this team? in the little time yao's been in america and on the courts of the NBA, IMO i think HE'S learned a heck of lot more about the game than some of the players on this team who've been here for years. sure, we'd all love to keep our hopes up and have faith in this team, but can you honestly hope and pray for a team that is unwilling to learn? what are the mistakes? who's to blame? i don't care...because even if i knew the answers to these questions and drilled them into the minds of some of the players on this "team", i don't think it'd have an impact at all you look at our schedule ahead and wonder how the rox could possibly beat utah, LA, phoenix, and dallas. but in all honesty, i don't think i could bear to come to the BBS threads after each of the games and listen to other people explaining over and over what 's wrong, who to get rid of, and how much we suck. all i can do is sigh and go on with my life...it's going to take A LOT for me to be interested in this rox team again. who knows? with the way this unpredictable team works, maybe i'll be pleasantly surprised but...no more b****ing and moaning for me...instead, i'll just leave with this from the latest houston chronicle rox story: "The question now is not how the Rockets could lose to the Cavaliers. And Grizzlies. And Bulls. And Clippers. The question is what that says about them."
i feel your pain my brotha as i said before, the players on this team are not smart enough to learn from other teams mistakes. Unfortunately, it seems that they have to experience the misery themselves to progress. it sure is a pity...
I guess 'what it says about them' is that they are still learning to close out games. Still learing how to win on the road. Learng how to beat teams they are supposed (not by playing to their level) and that at the moment thay are not a top tier team. Honestley, I never expected them to be a 'top tier team' at this point. But I do see improvement even when they lose. Guess I choose to see my fav team in a favorable light. Sorry for the rose tinted glasses
The Rockets aren't learning to win, they are learning to lose. They have regressed since the start of the season.
Yes, I think that's called..."Playing not to lose." One of Hakeem's (and Jordan's) philosophy for winning games was never having the fear of failure. He wasn't afraid to fail. The Rockets (Francis and team) are deathly afraid of losing.
Yup I remember reading a article about that. Hakeem said because he isnt afraid to lose, it allows him to perform better. I think that was one of the main reasons why Hakeem dominated David Robinson in playoffs. Hakeem played with heart and had a fiery look in his eyes, while you could look fear into Robinson. When the going gets tough, this Rockets team seems to crumble. They do not have that stabilizing guy on the team right now who can take the pressure on himself and calm the team down and carry them. Yao has shown that he could become that guy but he isnt one right now.
I expect Francis to be that guy. He's supposed to be that guy, the leader of this team. But apparently he's failed in this role so far.
let's not get all hyperbolic now. If you think the Rockets have <i>that</i> much talent, then you're just setting yourself up for disappointment. I get frustrated with them too, but I guess the difference is that I expected there to have up and downs with this new, young team, where others expected them to hit the ground running and be a sure-fire playoff team. Before the season started I thought they'd be a playoff fringe team, and that's exactly what they are right now. But if you want to be a fairweather fan and give up on one of the youngest teams in the league, who is 2 measly games out of being the fifth seed, then go ahead. But personally, I've never heard of such fair-weather fandom to abandom a team who is 26-22. Unbelievable.
Sometimes I get so frustrated with them that I yell out "STOP THE ROCKETS, I WANT TO GET OFF!!!". But then I calm down, take some deep breaths, and get drunk.... But seriously folks, when are we going to learn to win? How long before the "we're young and learning" excuse times out? How long should it be before we start pointing fingers (at anyone) and take some action? If we play like this, then playoffs or no playoffs we just don't deserve to be there. An afterthought though- during the lockout, Rodman (oh God, I've actually got something good to say about him!) suggested that the players should get paid depending on their performance. Perhaps what this team needs right now??
How about one full season with this new team? This is a completely different team than last season, the season before that, and even the season before that! Hell, I'm even willing to wait two, but I know most fans don't have that patience. I think the mistake some people are making is they feel this team has been together four years and should start getting better. Well, I hate to tell you, but this <b>team</b> has been together one-half of a season, and their makeup has almost completely changed going from a guard-oriented team to a team with an inside presence. At the least, give them the rest of the season!
it's called apathy, not abandonment. haven't you been so frustrated with a team, all you can say to yourself is "sheesh, i can't watch any longer." well that's exactly it. that's how fans are. when teams do good, we cheer. when teams lose games, we grieve. but when teams can't seem to pull it together and learn from their mistakes, how exactly are we as fans supposed to react? are we that patient that we'll happily wait for another season or two to roll by for the team to get better? of course we want the rox to win. and the sooner, the better. but what separates a good team that loses occasionally to a team that will make a step of progress but in the next moment take a few steps back is b-ball IQ and knowledge of how the game is played. with more than half of their games already played, can you tell me what you think the rox have learned so far? ...besides losing, that is
DCKid, Check my thread "Resetting Expectations." We've got a bunch of pieces, each with flaws, that seem to align during smooth seas and crumble and scatter during rough times (aka the road). What we are is what you see after 48 games...a .500 team. Lots of show and too little substance. I EXPECT A NEW TONE TO BE SET BY FRANCIS AND RUDY after the break. Despite your talent level, there's no excuse for playing without 1000% effort, and no excuse for not learning from mistakes (how many times do our guards have to dribble into a collapsing defense and get stripped to understand "this is really dumb, maybe it's not such a good idea to keep doing this?). This pseudoarrogance is, welll................ Except for Yao and maybe MoT, team has terrible basketball IQ and needs a coach to instill the intangibles so obviously lacking. Hate to say this, but think what Jerry Sloan could do with this bunch. RT is on probation in my book and needs to dig a lot deeper! D R
I understand the frustration perfectly, but I must have misunderstood your post. I took it as you weren't even going to follow this team until they start winning. To me, that's the very definition of a fair weather fan. But, if I misinterpreted what you were saying, then I apologize. To be honest, I think the Rockets want to do the right thing. They have their minds in the right place, but they have not been able to execute on a consistent basis. I'm almost positive that Rudy is preaching the right things now, and I'm pretty sure his message is getting accross to some of the players, though maybe not as much as he'd like. However, I didn't expect the Rockets to completely alter their offense from one that tried to utilize the one-on-one skills of their guards to a big-man centric offense in one night, and be perfect at it. I thought it might take a season of getting used to each other. And the fact that the main cog in all of this misses almost all of training camp didn't help. They pretty much have had to learn on the fly. So yes, I think the Rockets are learning, and I have no problem letting them struggle through this season to find it. If there's a good trade out there that would immediately help the team, then make it. However, I think restarting the whole rebuilding process after one-half season would be a big mistake.
I love it when the Lemers all walk off the cliff . . .er. . bandwagon Rocket River Maybe they will even leave the BBS so the REAL FANS can chat it up
<blockquote><hr>Originally posted by Eric Riley but in all honesty, i don't think i could bear to come to the BBS . . . all i can do is sigh and go on with my life...<hr></blockquote>Well, what are you waiting on. Go. Stop reading the BBS like you said. Go on with your life. What's up with you feeling like we'd care enough for you to start a thread about it? If you want to quit watching and quit reading the BBS, just go! leave! but no, you have to drop yet another "I'm done" thread at our laps.
thanks for taking me out of context...but lemme be fair. i'm sorry if you took it the wrong way but i meant that it would be difficult to come to the BBS AFTER games where we play lakers, phoenix and so forth (assuming that we lose) when we know what some of the problems are that this team is facing. believe me, i'd LOVE for the rox to shut me the hell up and put up some wins against these upcoming teams. once again, i'm sorry if you see me as a traitor but i am anything but
as long as your leader is a) immature b) stupid c) unqualified d) all of the above e) any of the above your team will be, too. so we're left with 2 choices... a) wait for our leader to mature b) assign a new leader it seems very clear to me what the bbs wants to do...
losing is a learning experience and builds characters. you guyz remember the 1-15 cowboys. the expectation for the rockets this year is just too high; they are playoff contender not championship contender. the rockets have hope of winning championships with yao and francis while other teams like the golden states warriors, phoenix suns, chicago bulls, cleveland cavaliers, and others have ZERO chance of winning a championship in the next 10 year.
<blockquote><hr>Originally posted by Eric Riley i meant that it would be difficult to come to the BBS AFTER games . . . (assuming that we lose) <hr></blockquote> OK fine. Don't come to the BBS after loses. Come say "Hey" only after wins, then, like a good bandwagonner. <i>yes, i've lost all interest in this team.</i> I don't care how you want to couch that statement, but it *is* the definition of bandwagonner. You are just in denial that you are a bandwagonner. Time for you to face more than the fact the Rockets are inconsistent.
Eric, I think what most are trying to tell you is: Stop the bandwagoning! Or, Just say "NO" to fair-weather!" Houston is known for being a city of fair-weather fans. I think it started when the AFL Oilers won two championships in the 60's. We got spoiled too soon. Basically it was the berth of a bunch of banwagoners. Please don't be one of them.
