ClutchFans Game Thread: Thunder @ Rockets 12/25/2018

NBA app just put out a notification about Kyrie 'erupting' for 40. On 33 shots mind you.

There was no such notification after the Rockets-Thunder game.

 

van gundy and jackson just gave the props to harden on the air putting him on MVP list

 

Jeff Van Gundy:

"And Houston winning at home against Oklahoma City. I heard a list of 7 guys who should be in the hunt for MVP. James Harden wasn't mentioned. He's at the top of my list. He has absolutely carried a team that has been injured, has had a lot of guys leave via free agency. I think he's been absolutely spectacular."

Mark Jackson:

"I couldn't agree with you more. He's certainly on the list. You can take for granted what this guy does every single night. He's an incredible all-time great offensive weapon."

JVG:

"Oh, he had 41 tonight. Oh OK."

Mike Breen:

Jeff, how many coaches do you have on your Coach of the Year list so far?

Mark:

30.

JVG:

29. I don't know who I'm eliminating but...

 

LMAO at that smile on Harden's face and the exchange after River's second 3.

At what point do we start understanding Codman just blows so much smoke with his posts?

 

Haha. What did he say? Can you show me the post?

 

Dude, we're not in a hurry! Have happy holidays.

 

What you say would make sense, if Anthony Davis wasn't mentioned as an MVP candidate year after year after year.

 

I bet he has AD as one of the 3 players who deserve the MVP more than Harden

 

Shout out to Clint Capela as well. Back to back 20+ rebounds.

 

Best Austin Rivers line for the game, 5 Fouls. It means he is playing defense, you know how many times Hakeem has fouled out?!?!?!?

 

Sadly true. Let's not forget Westbrook got his MVP in a season his team was crap just because he had 2 more rebounds per game than James.

 

Omg yes....im sick of ad being so great year after year when win dont show that

 

I understood that tho. I always predixt games n awards like mvp on narrative. A 3 dub is just a better story fact. The one i disagree was the second curry mvp..should of been beards

 

Yeah and it doesn’t fit MDA’s philosophy.

 

Also required an OT to get there

 

JVG knows the truth!

 

Harden's midrange game from a few season's ago is back. Glad to see MDA greenlight this after the team has been struggling with three's thusfar. Rivers with some pesky D out there, Westbrook 6-20. Nice to have some size and grit come in at the backup PG position. Brandon Knight, it's been nice knowin ya. I'd still like to see Hartenstein in there over Nene, but his time will come down the road this season.

 

Well, uh, after watching the game, I think I dislike Austin Rivers a lot less now. He has the ego and confidence to hit big shots, at the very least.

Capela is a star. With how he's playing now, he's giving the Rockets an advantage over pretty much anyone else at the C spot. I can't believe some people on the board keep putting him down and underselling his contributions.

James Harden is the MVP...and Ego looks better. I know he's not hitting anything right now, but his drives to the basket are excellent and so is his individual and team defense.

During the toughest stretch of the season (so far) the Rockets have responded well to adversity and seem to be coming together. Dare I say, they seem to be having fun again? If the Rockets can do well over this stretch, it'll be great for building cohesiveness and camaraderie, or so I would assume

 

Also I think that I've pinpointed one of the reasons I dislike Tony Brothers as a referee so much. He's very poor at managing the flow of a game.

He's super inconsistent with the calls, especially in relation to the other 2 referees he's on a team with. For example, there was a stretch in the game where both teams were driving hard at the rim. The refs were letting contact go on both sides, and the players understood that and the game flowed wonderfully. All of a sudden, here comes Brothers with some ticky-tack calls that leaves everyone bewildered and unhappy. And then at other times he doesn't call obvious fouls, leaving players frustrated and more likely to do something stupid. And he's always ready to T you up, too.

He's like a tone-deaf singer that snuck into a Christmas choir. I wish they kept in-depth referee stats that could result in them getting shamed when they have repeated bad and/or stupid games.