Those options are ridiculous, it's not if you're not a contender you're a pretender so i won't vote. What i will say is that we are a contender, everybody who denies it is pessimistic because we are in 9th place and can make the playoffs if we play the same with T-mac out + T-mac the way he's playing lately. The chemistry is there so that's not a problem and it's a problem at PG + a little bit of a lack of a 3rd scorer that will probably mean a 1st round loss. We definetly need to make one trade for a veteran PG who can carry us for now like Cassell. A third scorer imo can be Scola / Battier if they make some plays for them and they step up even more. Battier is also getting back to his former self with shooting the threes but we need more out of him. A trade for a third scorer is not necessary but a guy like Szczerbiak wouldn't hurt us. However we have to give up some valuable players if we want to get a guy of that caliber. We will see what happens but we're definetly contenders.
anyone not behind contender status has dubious Rocket pedigree. Rocks rule! if yah can't support a very succesful Rockets stand, go support Utah! btw, until playoff berths are secured. please get this ... no team has secured a spot in the playoffs! nary a single team has a playoff berth locked up. despair is for the weak, with a half season to go we're 5.5 games out of 1st! no desperation, just hope. if yah can't believe, why be a fan?
hard to say.... i want to say contender, but i feel like we're the least talented team 1-12 that could make the post season in the west. ive said many times before its the playoffs where the holes in your team (and talent) is really exposed, so we may play well enough to make the playoffs, but we are going to relying heavily on our rookies, and rafer alston. does this sound like a recipe for success to you all ? we probably still need a third guy.
All of sudden the Rockets are a good road team that can win in the playoffs. I hope you haven't forgot that the Rockets had the 5th best road record last year and didn't win on the road in the playoffs. They have a eight game road winning streak benefitted by a soft schedule. The next three road games will show us if they are really good.
Utah in the top tier? what are u talking about? This is the top tier in the west: Spurs, Suns, Mavs, Hornets, Lakers 2nd tier (aka no chance of winning a chip): Blazers, Nuggets, Jazz, Rockets, Warriors
jazz have to be considered a top tier team. they just whupped the hornets. i would say the spurs (though they don't look invincible, they're the champs), suns, mavs, lakers (just lost to the hawks but their POTENTIAL looks promising), and jazz 2nd tier rockets (we're the best of the 2nd tier, we're on the cusp), warriors, nuggets, and the rest.
I posted this Before the last fan left the TC after game 7 of the 2007 playoffs... "If any 2 of 3 of Alston, Battier and Hayes are starters in 2008, the Rockets are another 1st round exit." We still start 2 of the 3...
This year is Boston's to lose. The parity in the West has made every team less confident, kinda like the ACC perennially hurts its own teams with the relentless conference play. Teams like Maryland and NC State that scratch and claw their way into the tournament end up flopping once they get in because they're just mentally exhausted from the process. Same with Syracuse a couple years back when they won the Big East tourney as a 6 seed. If I had to choose a Western conference representative that could make it through this scrum of a playoffs, right now I'd have to say Dallas is the favorite, with Utah second. I don't care what team you are, it's too difficult to make such a significant change and be championship ready by the end of the year (the Rockets with Drexler were an exception because they were STILL the reigning champs, they'd been there before; the Lakers haven't done JACK in the playoffs, and the Suns while they've done better have the biggest change to their system of all to make).
Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown! I agree with you. If anything I would guess Denver gets stronger as the season wears on. Their real issue would lie in their key players' ability to stay healthy. Camby is notorious for missing long stretches of games due to injury. Iverson is pretty stable in that regard, but he is getting up there in age. But a key injury to Anthony, Iverson, Camby could be catastrophic for Denver.
It's possible as strong as the West is, but one thing I know, you can blame McGrady or Yao all day long, but the role players aren't good enough.
pretender for now, but what if Cassell signs, and we are able to somehow get Artest for say Battier and two first rounders. That would be awesome. (The Kings should have a fire sale like the grizz, they are going nowhere)
You guys are dreaming. Sam doesn't care about coming here, he can see the light. He's a champ and he knows where he could potentially win. There is no Jason Kidd here, and as long as Rafer Alston is your starting PG you will have the disadvantage.
Contender - but we could improve. I know it sounds strange. But just because your team wins a championship or has good record doesn't mean that you can't improve. I say contender, because as much as most see us as nothing more than fodder beyond the first round or mostly good for long entertaining series. I believe the key will be in the rookies, role players named Bonzi and Battier, and Yao. If all of the above are in playing great, then this team can go far in West. Why do I say Yao, instead of T-Mac? Simply because of the element of having a good to great to dominate big man. Most shooting guards can't carry team to finals, especially in the West. I am not favoring Yao Ming, because of I am just more of fan of him. It's because it's true that your center can carry team further in playoffs than shooting guard can....just look at who has one of most championships in this decade, Shaq, Duncan, and two Wallaces together. If he is truly the best center in the league, it will show if we are matched up against the Suns or Lakers or even others. His domination in the post as offense player and defense is what will really matter in series and staying out of foul trouble. The rookies will make or break us in playoffs, if all three are playing well.....we finally get out of the first round, maybe two. But, if two are not really effective against the better teams or play inconsistent. We may see another exit, but this time a much quicker one. But Scola, Landry, and Brooks are the best rookies on the team, since the Rockets drafted Yao. That's another big reason we can't ever improve, because this team sucks in draft. Teams, like the Lakers, Celtics, Mavs and Knicks can get away with it because their owners/org. are willing to spend the money. While other teams have to almost have NFL type mind frame where the team has to keep making improvements year in and year out and even willing let go of superstars and high priced FA to build a better all-around roster. Role players, pretty much what did us in last year, if they did their job, we win the Jazz series in 6 and possibly appear in WCF. Bonzi doesn't have to be great, but he can't be useless either. Battier just has to do his job. I'm not commenting on Rafer, I have feeling he won't do us in alot in playoffs, but I have feeling he won't help us very much either. He's probably gonna get lit up by Iverson, Nash, Williams, Parker, Harris, Davis, Fisher, and any other starting PG in west playoff picture. I wish this team would make move for a passing pg, doesn't have to be a great shooter, just play defense and don't turn the ball over.
