ClutchFans Game Thread: Rockets @ Mavericks 1/16/2013

The expectation level of some posters is ridiculous. You put together a team of the youngest players in the league and then come down on them for having an off shooting night, on a back to back?

Harden has gone how many games with 20+ points playing 40+ minutes? Give the kid a break. He's bound to have a bad night like this.

Lin (as he has in the past before) plays big in the fourth quarter, and suddenly he's a coward for deferring to others and not taking a three pointer on the last possession with a defender in his face? Get real, even if Lin shot that three, it would've been a terrible shot selection. The kid kept us in the game and gave us a chance to win it, which is more than you can say about the other players last night.

Youngest team in the league, no training camp before the season, least amount of playtime together and no true power forward, and we're still in playoff contention. Sounds pretty good to me.

 

That's fine, just don't expect Lin to put up Linsanity numbers then.

Folks want the ball in Harden's hands more (which I understand) but expect Lin, a ball-dominant guard, to produce Linsanity #s? That's like asking Asik to defend guys on the perimeter while protecting the paint. Can't have it both ways.

And if our 16mil player averages 26p/game, I'd say 12p/game is on par or better for a 5m player, no?

Not trying to make this into a Lin-vs-Harden thing but some folks just have unrealistic expectations when it comes to Lin.

 

LOL, you are the ultimate LOF man. The Rockets aren't going to structure their offense around Lin right now, we aren't a big P&R team. Just deal with it bro.

 

I was there (secret Santa @ work, buddy bought me a ticket to go see it with him and a few others) and I have to say... thats some of the worst basketball I've ever seen a Rockets team play (live). I've only been to about 20 games ever, and they've won ALL but once when I've seen them in Houston (home loss to Utah late in the season in....07?), and lost all but once when I've seen them in Dallas (10-pt win in 08 w/ Artest).

So...I'm no stranger to watching the Rockets lose to the Mavs, since I live in DFW area now.

Last night tho...geez! I've missed this last week or so of games, so maybe this is how things have been recently, but it was sooooooooooo ugly. We missed SO many layups (Harden!), many FTs by guys who I thought were pretty solid from the stripe, and mishandle after mishandle of the ball.

I know the Rockets turn the ball over a lot, but I thought many times that was in transition. Last night it seemed like they were just fumbling EVERYTHING.... out of bounds, right into another players hands, etc. Now don't get me wrong... we outplayed Dallas in every quarter except the first pts-wise, but that first hurt SO bad not scoring anything but one 3ptr with about 5min left. We let Dallas go on a 19-0 run!!!!! The defense was horrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrible.

So of course they tease me and make me think they're going to come back a couple of times. That one play near the end tho... not even getting a SHOT off when down by 3. It just felt like classic Rockets basketball finish over the last decade. Hell, teams can COMPLETELY change all their players/coaches, and we still cant beat the Mavs and still cant get a shot off near the end of the game.

I was really excited about this team after New Years, but now it seems like they're all just not playing smart. Where was Asik? His numbers looked okay, but he never felt involved. Delfino? TD? Morris? Smith?

Harden was mainly just godawful. I don't care that he helped in the end some... his decision-making and shot-selection were killing me. I was cringing in my seat for most of the game. I was pretty down after this one, even after the comeback. yuck.

 

I hope so man, I think with Miami Wade and Lebron were still getting theirs even though they didn't have chemistry yet, but I might be wrong. Also Pierce is ball dominant. Regardless I'm willing to give them time, just not too much.

 

Lin without Harden would post some awesome individual numbers, but Jeremy is sacrificing his game for team success. I think the statisticians lie because I've never seen a James Harden assist.

 

agree. to me only way we can make it work is to have lin dominate the ball otherwise trade him for good values. right now, lin and harden share pg duty plus other players, parson and delfino, also try to take some from lin too. rox should completely ban other ppl to be part time pg. those players should be ready for open shots, cuts, rb, and defense.

last night showed both sides of lin and how we should use lin. when he thought too much about harden, lin became useless and was benched. well, in 4th qt, i saw lin completely ignored harden most time until the last 2 min. i saw harden wanted ball a few times but lin ignored him and held the ball and aggressively attacked the rim. the last 2 min was designed by our coaches. pretty every game harden is one who has the ball at the end of game.

 

Disagree. In the one game Harden day out, Lin put up 38p against Spurs, one of the best teams in the league. And Harden is a great playmaker and has made several highlight-worthy passes, not to mention "regular" assists.

I wouldn't say Lin's "sacrificing" per se. Learning new skills would only open up his game more, and what better time to do that when your team is young and growing together?

 

Well, I can't say I fully understand or agree with the coaches' decision but there's no doubt Harden is the better player of our starting backcourt, so I can see why he gets the possession when the game is on the line.

I'm not opposed to Lin learning catch and shoot, actually. It widens his offensive weapon. I mean, Lin takes a beating almost every other trip he makes to the paint. The wear-and-tear on the body can't be good to the longevity of his career.

Preaching here (apology) but fans need to give our starting backcourt some time. Imagine how powerful they can be when you have 2 guys who can run PnR and also catch and shoot? Who do you guard? Who do you double-team? It'd be a pick-your-poison nightmare for the opposing team.

In due time....

 

TD played well as backup to Chauncey Billups when he joined the team, yes; but at the time Jeremy took over, Toney had not recovered from his shoulder injury and surgery.

(Toney now considers himself back to normal.)

 

Pierce is a decent catch-n-shoot guy, which unfortunately Lin isn't at this point.

I think the coaches are determined to see the Harden/Lin duo work together (and I can totally envision the 2-prong attack strategy in the future). I think that's why they'd often sub both Lin/Harden out together and let Delfino run the point.

Let's hope Lin spends his entire off-season beyond the arc.

 

harden can definitely play pg position for sure. no arguement at all here. he can score and he can assist.

the question is not if he can or not. the question is what you want lin to be when harden plays pg duty. lin can't slice into one of 4 other positions. like i said before, if we keep lin, harden has to stop turning himself to a pg. the more pg role harden takes, the worse lin performs. harden can only have pg role when lin either not on court or being trapped by defenders. our coaches have to give lin freedom and encourage him to treat harden just one of other 4 players and he is #1 option.

 

We desperately need a post player who can hit the midrange shot as well as finish around the rim in pnr situations.

 

i really doubt he will ever be effective as a spot up shooter. let's hope but don't put too much expection on his spot up shooting improvment.

 

I enjoyed that part about Hubie Brown... Yah, I agree he probably has touched a basketball (or two) before, in his stellar careers as player and coach.

 

That's because Wade and Lebron were deciding who was going to run the team and taking turns scoring. Although now the offense is a little more spread out between Wade, LBJ, CB, Allan and Chalmers. The rockets seem to spread their offense more, with heavy focus on Harden, who is unquestionable about who's team it is. Lin doens't care about getting his, he wants the team involved. But I think he should care a little more and take up more possessions to get himsefl going and then the rest of the team. Sorry my typing is horrible lol.

 

I wasn't watching the game, but if this is true then Mchale needs to eff off with experimenting too much...just do textbook **** lol

 

Look, I like Lin and consider myself a huge fan but Lin is NOT the #1 option on offense; Harden is. Harden ranks #1 in the league in PnR ppp (whereas Lin is 38th if I remember correctly). If Harden should give up PG reign to Lin, should Lin give up PG reign to Douglas when they share the backcourt?

And what makes you think Lin would never become a good catch and shoot guy? The kid's got great work ethics and many say shooting is the easiest thing to teach/learn when it comes to bball.

Right now Lin is getting to the rim with his quick first step. What happens when he ages and that explosiveness is gone? You want him to learn to shoot then?

 

i don't know why you brought up if you like lin or not. i am a rox fan.

my point is lin's mentality. now he plays like his hands are tied behind him. a lot times he brought up the ball but kept looking for harden. that is not his game. when he performed well, he constantly looked for opportunities with ball in his hands and attacked the rim. by doing this, he forces defense to react so opens up for teammates. if he doesn't do that, he is the worst role player i've seen. letting him be himself is the way to maximize his value.

my point is if we keep him, give him freedom and encourage him not to think about harden all the time. otherwise, trade him for some good values. i believe he can bring something for us.

 

Agreed.

His 41% 3-point shooting (best on the team) shows he is back to normal, but he isn't getting the minutes and isn't getting the ball when he's hot. Last night, made his only shot a 3-pointer, and didn't see the court again, while Harden missed 18 shots.

TD was capable of 20-30 point games with a high fg% before he got injured. He's healthy now, but his skills aren't being utilized.