ClutchFans Game Thread: Rockets @ Blazers 11/16/2012

FYI the eye test says Tony's defense is better than Lins , However it also says that Iso ball with Harden never ends up with points. Smh.

 

Who's eye test? The kind that's given to pirates that have taken one too many sharp rapier pokes to the eyes?

 

It ain't going to happen.

 

Toney Douglas does a better job at staying in front of his man I think. However, the marginal improvement in defense is negated by Toney's woeful offense.

 

Damn you kill it dude.

 

Eye test can be wrong, stats can be manipulated, conclusion, believe what you want to believe.

 

Does Sampson has a pair of ****-eye? Lol !!

 

I just got home from the game here in Portland completely disgusted at what I saw. There is no reason whatsoever for this loss. You could of heard a pin drop in the Rose Garden for the fans knew the Rockets had this one in the bag.

I have tried to keep my personal expectations low for this season but throwing games due to bad coaching gets me all fired up.

As a lifelong Rocket fan, let me break down what I see in this team.

#1 The future is bright. We finally have a true center that is a rebound machine, converts around the basket, has a good motor, decent free throw stroke, and looks to be durable for the long term. If Asik is not manning the middle, this current Rockets team would lose 80% of its games. His prowess is allowing the guards to streak for fast break 'cause they know he'll get the board. The fast break attack is one of the strong suits of this team regardless of the conversion rate. This fact alone had this game won if not for ISO ball being run at the end of the game.

#2 Jeremy Lin is a solid point guard. He may not be Goran or Kyle, but he's a step up over Rafer, Aaron, and the others. He doesn't need extreme athleticism for his ball IQ is pretty high. He attacks, makes good decisions, plays the right way. I watched him at the shootaround and his shot is good. He appears to be lacking in confidence. He was also the last guy on the court tonight waiting for all his other teammates when most guys would have been in the lockeroom steamed that they didn't get to play in the overtime. He's going to be a solid guard for years to come. We should be happy to have him.

#3 Marcus Morris. Look out Chandler. This dude is gunning for your job. Tonight Chandler got burned on some crucial plays. Particularly, screen and rolls off of Batum and Lillard with Lin. His defense seems inconsistent and Morris might be a better lock to start with Chandler as the 6th man.
Either way the SF is a lock with these two.

#4 Patrick Patterson has got to go. He is Maurice Taylor v.2.0. BHE = Black Hole Extraordinaire. Looks like Hercules, got a sometime sweet J, and is soft as the Charmin Bunny. I truly think he's getting burn for a possible trade. Once TJ steps on the court it's gonna be over. I used to go see TJ's high school games and have watched his growth and it's off the charts. He will be the long term solution at PF. No doubt about it. TJ is naturally gifted with a knack of being in the right place at the right time. He will put up huge numbers and you won't even realize it. D Mo can back him up.

#5 Toney Douglas. This guy is a junkyard dog and I mean junk. He is a master bricklayer. He makes Lin airballs a thing of beauty. Mr. TD can play D, hustle, and that's it. He's got shaky handles and is a complete minus on the offensive end. He runs around like a chicken with his head cut off.
At this point you could run Royce White as the 2nd/3rd string point with better results. I'm not joking..

#6 ISO HERO BALL has got to stop in crunch time. Just cause we have James Harden doesn't mean you abandon the team game. If you are getting leads in games playing team ball why would you stop when the game gets tight in the last 3 minutes. Every team in the league now knows that Harden is going to go ISO. There is absolutely no reason for Harden to bring up the ball if Lin is on the court. With Lin controlling the ball the spacing is much better and usually great things happen when James has his feet set and doesn't have to force the issue. I hope this coaching staff fixes this or we're going to lose a lot of winnable games in the mold of the Steve Francis - Moochie Norris years.

 

Laker fan?

No way is that a good trade for the Rockets. Unless you think Pau makes them a contender right now, you absolutely hang onto T-Jones and D-Mo. They aren't playing now but lets just wait.

 

I've never thought TD defends better than Lin. As I posted about a few days ago, I think it's common to equate TD's defensive intensity and reaching-in for 'good defense.'

Many also seem to equate being scored on with 'getting torched,' which just goes to show how clueless some ppl are about what good defense is supposed to be.

 

So coaches think Toney is better on defense, Harden better ball handler. That's clear right?

Just trade him. Even to Detroit or Bobcats. Maybe those teams would be happy to actually use him as a PG and in OT.

 

Given how often Lin's been poked in the eye this season, this only makes me grin.

 

:grin:

 

Well, at least we know that we have a crown. I've never seen so many drama queens in any other forum.

 

One of those people is our coach.

 

Great post... Good to know that what we were watching on the tube matches the feelings from the live game.

 

Lillard's points against Lin were coming in the paint and short jumpers, his points against Douglas were coming from the bleachers.

Good defence is really never going to stop 3 point shorts 4 feet behind the line.

 

No I hate the Lakers and their fans, they are spoiled and think they can get whatever they want. But we're not gonna use Lin the right way, and we can use a solid PF. Our coaching staff(mostly Mchale and some of Sampson) has clearly shown they rather not develop or play Lin, T-jones, or Dmo.

They made Lin into a spot up 3 point shooter who brings up the ball just to pass the ball to Harden. They are trying to make him into a Kevin Martin while they are attempting to make Harden into the PG of this team...doesn't make sense to me at all.

While they sent D-mo to d-league instead of trying him out or using him(we can use the size), and they rather let Morris(he's been playing good though I admit), an inexperienced Parsons who make huge mistakes every game, and a crap PF who can't rebound aka Patterson instead of letting a potential star like T-jones some chance and time to develop. Under McHale and Sampson, clearly "old school" wannabe NBA coaches, they aren't gonna get a chance to shine so we might as well trade for a proven PF, one of the most glaring spots we are weak in. Hell, throw in Parsons too if the Lakers want him.

 

To be fair to the the coaching staff...they actuall let Lin play PG tonight and we saw what he did. Now why did they take him out when they needed him the most? That's the question.

As to the other thing about playing Parsons and Morris play over Jones, White, and D-mo...come on now.

Parsons and Morris has been BALLING. Why can't we focus on developing them instead? Morris can also be a star in this league, he can create his own shot and has proven to already be clutched, has worked his tail off and he wants this...can't say the same about White.

 

I missed the first half but from what I saw Lin doing in the 2nd half, I was glad to see him back to driving in again and getting to the free throw line. Why we completely ditched that game plan at the end of the game, I have no idea.