Seeds 3-8 are up for grabs. We have no clue who's even making the playoffs. The Clippers or Jazz could get in for all we know.
If we can't beat the 6/7/8 seed easily in the first round, regardless of who it is, then it doesn't matter who we play.
Home court advantage throughout the playoffs? Hell, yeah we want the #1 seed. Everyone except Ryno, that is. He may not want that possible one extra WCF game in the Toyota Center.
**** match ups . I want the one seed .... Given it doesn't cost us anything more than getting the 2 seed . If we rest guys appropriately and end up with the 1 , I'll take it . If we push guys to win games because ( we want the 1 seed) instead of giving rest and being happy with the 2 , I would take the 2 everyday .
it's too early to know, there's a lot of volatility in seeding right now, we should have a clearer look about which seed is better for us by the end of March
Amazing and unbelievable? Hakeem blocking Starks in '94. Still blows my mind that he was able to do that.
Depends on the cost - obviously, you don't burn your guys out to get it, but if it is in play, you absolutely should try to push to get that 1 seed. The home court does impact the types of calls you do/don't get and our team needs all the help it can get.
Rockets of course want the first seed. And they should pursue that. About 72% of NBA champions have been the #1 seed in the playoffs. 14% #2, 10% #3... and then one #4 seed and one #6 seed (the 95 Rockets. Which I will never forget) So of course we should try to get the #1 seed. Home court advantage can't be overlooked. But, at the same time, as important as that is, resting our players and trying as best as possible to reduce the possibility of injuries is as important, if not more important.
pretty much my stance. The Rockets were amazing on the road this year until the injuries started to hit the team. I would want them to have home court primarily because 3 of the 4 odd numbered games would be in Houston which is a huge advantage if the series is tied at any point. The team does have enough depth with the addition of Green on the wings to give guys like Harden, Paul, Gordon and Ariza reduced minutes. If it comes down to late in the season and the team is healthy and HCA is in reach they should absolutely go for it. Matchups do matter but if this Rockets team does end up to be the best regular season Rockets team in history record wise (which they are on pace for) then really it shouldnt matter because if the Rockets are on their game then they can beat anyone in the league fairly comfortably with the exception of Golden State, whom they can beat just not fairly comfortably.
I don't know if Thunder can hold their 5th seed, Nuggets been rolling recently, and when they get Millsap back, I expect them to be even better. Besides, don't ever overlook the Spurs, Greg Popovich knows all the tricks about how to win playoff series, and he is the master in game planning. In the last 10 year, None of the teams except last year's warriors can pass the next round after they won Spurs. And you can argue if it is not for Zaza's dirty play, even the warriors won't have too easy a time against the Spurs. This year, they are even better, they got Rudy Gay, LA's playing much better, and if Kawhi is back healthy, we're talking about a 65 win caliber team, who excels at playoff time. Thunder is not nearly big a threat, especially when Roberson is gone for the season. The ideal case would be we get 1st seed, and Thunder drops to the 6th seed. But I don't really care about the matchups, in our last championship season, we had the hardest matchup ever in NBA history, it just doesn't matter.
Depends on a few variables, if the Rockets are fully healthy (even if not offensively on fire) I don't see us having a big issue in the first round. If Harden remembers to play through the non-calls in the playoffs and D'antoni remembers he has a team past 7 or 8 of his trusted players we'll be fine. I hope OKC and GSW match up together in the first round so both teams can harm each other while we get matched up with possible the Pelicans or whomever else. Winning home court should not be at the risk of extending the time our starters play though, Ariza and company need to be healthy come playoff time. In a match up against the GSW it could go both ways to be honest, whether or not we have HCA or not. It's up them if they want to be engaged from the get go or risk losing games to the Rockets early. Typically post All-star break is what determines how well teams may fare come play offs. We may have to also worry about the Spurs too, if Kawhi comes back healthy. If 1st seed means we have to take on tougher opponents (OKC then Spurs) then 2nd seed it is!
How is this even a question? SMH. I don't give a damn about no OKC or GS. In the words of our point guard (the little one), "Its about about us, about the people in this locker room". Ideally, you would want the easiest path to the NBA finals and I agree. But to be the best you have to beat the best. Makes the journey that much sweeter.
