ClutchFans Game Thread: Rockets @ Thunder 4/23/2017 (Playoffs Round 1, Game 4)

Don, usually agree with a lot of your posts, however on this one I disagree.

I think you're getting playing "hard" and being more "focused" mixed up.

To say that Hakeem didn't play "his hardest" during the regular season is wrong in my opinion. The effort was always there, but some players have the ability to take their focus to another gear.

 

Yeah, Don needs to be lined up on that one.

Hakeem wasn't arguably the best defensive player ever, at worst second to Russell while also being the team's top scorer and a great rebounder by not playing hard. I don't think it's possible to get so many steals, blocks and rebounds by coasting. His teams were usually top 5 in defense.

The fact that he played even better in the playoffs doesn't mean he didn't play hard in the regular season, it just means he was clutch and had another gear. This was true of Jordan as well and of LeBron.

 

TAKE THAT FOR MOTHER****ing DATA

 

That play he ran to get a wide open Gordon 3 was beautiful

 

I wouldn't mind muting Reggie miller and following the game by watching it on mute and Vernon Maxwell's twitter

Max should do commentary through his tweets

 

bro no one watches fox sports 1... hes a bum

 

i disagree, even without his shot falling, Harden impacted the game tremendously. the passes he made to find his teammates. we don't win with harden riding the bench. thats another reason he is MVP. he can have an impact on the game even when isn't dropping 30

 

The team wasted so many possessions just trying to find Harden the ball that they wasted 10-20 seconds off of each shot clock. It really ****ed with their offense that Harden is incapable of shaking off a shadow defender off the ball.

 

Westbrook has 45 assists this series
Only 4 assists from 4th quarters

 

Shannon Sharpe just made that observation on Undisputed. Skip had no response. That stat encompasses the entire series. Westbrook's team is building leads early on by playing team ball. But when he goes into heroball mode in the 4th, the Rockets pull away(or come up one 3-pointer short in Game 3). Now Westbrook did hit some unbelievable shots in the 4th yesterday, but he has to find that balance between trying to single-handedly win the game and trusting his teammates to make open shots. Harden's found that balance this season. Yes, James has more help(or pieces that fit better around him), but he trusts his teammates when the game is on the line. Russ doesn't.

 

loving how the depth has come into play this year. even with harden playing as horrible as he is, we're deep enough to have guys pick up the slack

 

Westbrook hasn't played well in the 4th. Media can't spin that.

 

Fixed

 

I've grown to love Calvin Watkins

 

Are you serious though?

 

I don't even know how to feel anymore

 

Rox up 3-1. YET. Anderson is shooting a stellar 14% from the three point line. Ariza 27% . Hell even Brewer shot 28% in 2015's run. Josh Smith 38%. Anderson. Surely you shoot better than Josh..

EG shooting 44%
Lou shooting 44% as well. This one surprises me. Dude has not shot well in other playoff series. Just 19% for Toronto in 14-15
Bev shooting 38%

So 2 of our snipers are shooting terribly yet up 3-1. Could you imagine if the real Ryan Anderson were to show up and Trevor would get back to average?

 

He's had moments of greatness. Game 2 was horrendous, no doubt. But he actually had a mostly good 4th quarter in Game 4. He tried to do too much scoring-wise, but give him credit for making some insanely tough 3-pointers.

I think ultimately though he and his teammates have no energy in the 4th. They play so hard in the first half trying to bury the Rockets that they have nothing left in the tank by the end of the 3rd quarter. Which is ok if you manage to go up by 15+. But if your lead is in single digits, you're in trouble. It's been a competitive series and Games 2 and 4 could've gone the other way. But on the flipside, you could also argue that the Rockets are a Harden 3-pointer from this series already being over in a sweep.

 

LMAO @FTW Rockets FTW Skip Brainless

Playoff Calvin