1) Rockets aren't very good 2) Spurs haven't lost at home all year 3) Spurs have yet to lose 2 in a row 4) Spurs are REALLY GOOD. Everyone knew they would come out strong after getting embarrassed. So yeah I expected it. I didn't want it, but I wasn't shocked to see us down by 30 in the 3rd.
Sometimes we're going to get blown out by very good teams. It happened to the Cavs, it happened to the Spurs, and then the Spurs hammered the Rockets. It isn't the end of the world, the end of the season, or the end of Western Civilization as we know it. It's one game. One freakin' game.
Well we need to have one of them games just one where we play a GS, Spurs or Cavs and blow them the F out.
Really finding it hard to be optimistic about anything in the near-future with this team. Wonder what DM is gonna do...
Completely agree! By the end of the season, assuming luck with the "i" word (wouldn't it be nice to have a healthy Donuts, finally?), I think you will see a game like that against one of those 3 (I'll have to check the schedule), OKC, or Toronto, depending on what would constitute a blowout (more than 15 points? more than 20?), although I'd be happy with "just" a solid win against one or more of them. Heck, I'd be higher than a kite. ;-)-
At least somebody is positive. They could be that team... they just gotta do what it takes to be that great. Let the short cuts go... do what it really takes.
No, but it's really not difficult to see what they do. They play with one overall objective on each side of the floor. Offense is take what they give (even if that means an open 3 pointer at the last second), and defense is give nothing (most players are impatient and someone will try to force up a bad shot). They play with a secondary objective/goal for stints of the game. Ex: Early in the game let's work the ball around for easy looks and make 3s until they play us tight. Oh, they are taking away the 3 pointer I will drive, oh you sagged off to get back in position to stop me from laying it in? Pull up all day son. Now you respect my pull game? Alright, let me dunk it on you or it's gonna be a layup and a foul. They feed the post during the game to reset the clock mid-game and they never let you cheat them on defense. All 5 guys are capable of doing something with the ball when they get found open in the spot they're in or quickly get to the spot they can do something in and take it or make the extra pass if they rotated in time until the defense gets lazy. The Rockets don't have to be the Spurs to play like the Spurs. They might have to be the Warriors to play like the Warriors because Curry is one of a kind. But that doesn't mean they can't do some of the things the Warriors do. We are still talking about NBA players here. If you can't copy the Warriors then copy the Spurs.
there's no duplicating/copying of teams. Of course you can try certain things here and there but it won't be nearly as effective. Yeah you're talking about NBA players but each player is one of a kind. you have to work with what the players you have and to their strengths. Finding the right mix while getting everyone to buy in and be on the same page of a system that works is the most difficult part but you're not just going to lay out a blueprint of the Spurs/GSW team to just copy and think it will work
http://espn.go.com/nba/playbyplay?gameId=400828576 Leonard 3 Green 3 Aldridge - mid range jumper The first layup by the Spurs is not even attempted until 5:26 then 4:50 and 4:18. The Spurs only scored 2 layups the entire game and won by 30. Props to the Rockets for stopping them inside. They also only gave up 1 dunk up until the 4th quarter (off an O REB by Aldridge). In garbage time Boban had 3 dunks and Simmons had 1.
How much closer would the score be if the Rockets didn't miss so many FTs, didn't miss so many bunny layups and didn't turn the ball over in ridiculous ways (unforced turnovers)? Cleaning up that crap, even with no changes, would help a lot.
So you're saying coaching does not matter and that Pop and Kerr are overrated? That if Popp coached this team and taught the Rockets how to play that the Rockets just wouldn't listen? In that case, let's hire McHale. I look at what the Warriors do and they taught Draymond how to play like that. If he was on the Rockets, I doubt he learns how to shoot that well. The Rockets would look at him and say he is destined to be an average NBA shooter at best after shooting 20% from 3 in his rookie season. Of course you can't teach Beverley how to shoot like Curry off screens, but why not have him shoot more often off screens so that teams respect him and chase him over screens? The old Spurs got blocked 11 times last night by the Rockets last night, but did that stop them from going inside and driving? No, they didn't care if they were gonna get blocked because they needed the Rockets to respect their drive so that they can continue to score the way they wanted and take what the Rockets gave them.
Why are you bringing up things that aren't even associated with this current team? Where did I even mention anything that was said here. If you read correctly I said you have to work with what the players you have and to their strengths. All this stuff about if a player was on this or that team they wouldn't be the same is irrelevant to this conversation. Your original post talked about just copying either one of those teams and I'm pointing out it just doesn't work that way. This is reality and not as simple as copy and past.
I never said copy paste. You never read my first post because I am copying philosophies, not players. I never said let's post up Smith and call him LaMarcus. I even paraphrased it and you still skipped over it, so please read: So the Rockets need to have that same mentality. They make you respect every aspect of their game from the 3pt line to the inside and back while always taking what the defense gives them. On D, to make it fit the Rockets instead of saying close out hard on Ariza's 3 pointer (which is going in lately) and recover/chase him to the rim to make him shoot a contested lay up, I would say make Parker go over you at the rim instead of giving him the uncontested mid range pull up. Of course our plan from the start is not to let Parker just waltz in and shoot a close lay up. The plan is to take away everything, and make them use the clock until someone decides to force up a shot. The truth is they're a good team and they will require some pressure to score from the other team scoring on them and getting back. You're not gonna beat shut down the Spurs, but I don't think score that much when you make them play against the clock as much as possible.
oh I read it but why would you think copying a philosophy would work when you don't even have the players to run it.
What I said about Ariza can be applied to Green, Alrdidge, Manu, Kawhi(if the defense helps and recovers because he is not a great passer), West, Mills, etc. But how many times did we see Aldridge wet the wide open jumper with no one closing out? What about west? Green? Leonard? Keep in mind I only watched the first half.
Bev, Harden and Ariza are not bad 3 pt shooters. Harden may need work on catching and shooting, but that's it. Those moving threes that you see Green take are easier than they look because they are shot in rhythm and because he got wide open in a spot (corner) he practices in. Considering they attempt way more threes than the Spurs they are better shooters when you remove the contested looks and only count the open ones for both teams. Better does not mean smarter, and it is a coaches job to teach his players how to play smart from start to finish. The Spurs don't have better passers than the Rockets, but they have much greater passing. Lawson, Harden, Smith and Beverley are all good passers. The Spurs keep the ball moving to create early on, the Rockets keep trying to force to create something then pass which makes the offense easy to pick apart and predict. How is it hard to make teams respect the Rockets outside game? What teams don't respect is the Rockets pull up game which leads to turnovers. I don't think it's hard to teach players how to make open mid-range jumpers off the dribble penetration. Harden can do it. Ariza, Smith, Brewer and Beverley are iffy. Lawson and Thornton are the only other Rockets players who excel at it. The threat of making the mid range jumper is worth so much in today's NBA and the Rockets are not a threat from mid range. Maybe you're right.
