They have "insider" previews for all 30 teams, which you can click to read. Below is what was said about the Houston Rockets. http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/insider/news/story?id=5714621 [rquoter] HOUSTON ROCKETS Often perceived as a mixed bag talent-wise, the Rockets still lack the crunch-time performer to make an impact in the West. Scoutspeak "I have mixed feelings about Houston. I like the way they do things; then sometimes I feel like they're just spinning their wheels. They're caught in the middle of the road. They're a team with a lot of nice, solid NBA players, but they don't have that one go-to guy that puts in them in the conversation with the second-tier teams like Dallas, Utah, Portland and others. "Aaron Brooks, Shane Battier, Kevin Martin and Luis Scola are all in the good-not-great category. Brooks' numbers jump out at you, and if everything works out, he could be like a Tony Parker. But I wonder if his body will continue to hold up because he's so small. "Martin can obviously shoot and score with anyone in our league, but I wonder what ultimate impact he has on games. He's not a real go-to guy; he's more like the third-best player on a really good team. "Yao Ming is just a freaking wild card. My expectations for him are small. If he plays 60 games, even if it's just 20 minutes a night, they should be happy. You just can't count on him anymore. Anything you get from him is a bonus." Best-case scenario: "Seventh seed, first-round exit." Worst-case scenario: "Yao makes no impact and essentially is done. They start Brad Miller, Scola, Battier, Martin and Brooks. Their style of play makes them fun to watch and guys put up good individual numbers, but they can't compete with the elite in the West and finish 10th or 11th in the conference standings." Thorpe's breakout player: Luis Scola, F How can a 30-year-old veteran of the Euroleague and the NBA break out? It's easy when a player goes from role-player to dominating-scorer the last two months of last season, then destroys the world in Turkey over the summer. Once the Rockets traded away Carl Landry, Scola exploded on offense, averaging 20 points per game over March and April. With Yao playing under half the game and missing numerous games, it's clear the Rockets will be featuring Scola in their half-court sets. And he has the game to deliver all season long. He may not look the part, but he's a nightmare to guard in the post. Haberstroh's salary spotlight: Kyle Lowry, G Age: 24 | 2010-11 salary: $5.8 million | Projected PER: 15.9 Lowry is a prime example of why box score stats sometimes can't do a player justice. You wouldn't know it by looking up traditional stats, but thanks to Hoopdata.com we know that Lowry led all guards in drawn charges (51) last season, despite playing 24.3 minutes a night. What's more, the 6-foot-nothing point guard rebounded 8.6 percent of available boards, a rate superior to peers like Donte Greene, Rashard Lewis and Danilo Gallinari, who are about a foot taller. If Lowry can find his perimeter shot (27.5 percent on 3-pointers last season), this underrated point guard could send Brooks to the bench or the trade block. [/rquoter]
WTF? I guess individually none of the rockets players look like franchise stars...but what about when you put them together? Luis Scola, Martin, Brooks, Battier and of course Yao Ming. LOL you still need a go-to guy with that lineup?
haters gonna hate! Did yall see the NBA preview show on NBAtv tonight? It was pretty good.. mostly about Yao, but then our team is mostly about Yao.
10th or 11th if Yao fails to make an impact? The Rockets finished 9th last year with Yao's only impact being his butt landing in a courtside seat.
Scoutspeak "I have mixed feelings about Houston. I like the way they do things; then sometimes I feel like they're just spinning their wheels. They're caught in the middle of the road. They're a team with a lot of nice, solid NBA players, but they don't have that one go-to guy that puts in them in the conversation with the second-tier teams like Dallas, Utah, Portland and others. I stopped reading AFTER the above paragraph. Right now, we are better than any of the teams listed above. As they say, we will see in the fulness of time, but I would bet money that we will finish ahead of the teams above.
We are definitely better than the Mavs and Jazz. Maybe not the Blazers if Oden is healthy, but he's more injury prone than Yao! ESPN overrates the Thunder.
Dude...what? Brooks has never gotten hurt, if I recall right. What does this guy mean "can his body hold up"? If anything, Lowry is the one to worry about. What ultimate impact Kevin Martin has? Herp derp, he scores efficiently, can stroke the 3, and gets into the penalty. He has speed and quick hands and can steal the ball from time-to-time. Scola may not be great, but he's good enough. He is 100% hustle and can score in a myriad of ways. He's very underrated. Kyle Lowry may be up for a 6th man of the year if he keeps up his spectacular play. Glad Thorpe and Haberstroh gave them props. Battier is iffish. Seems on the decline. Yao Ming is looking pretty good for a guy coming off major surgery. If he can continue to improve, while avoiding the injury bug (Which seems to be hitting Portland hard), he may surprise a lot of people. Guy didn't even mention our bench. Really? Really? I can agree with 7th, simply because we'll probably have it tough in the early-goings. But I doubt a first-round exit. Not with the heart and talent this team has. Yao deserves a break. Give him that gold that he, a gentle and hardworking giant who has been through so much, deserves.
when the pistons won it all they didnt have a go to guy. they had players who knew thier role, hustled and played good D. since the jordan era the perverbial "go to player" has been blown way out of preportion. team basketball will always trump ball pounding, heat checking, ball hogs. a close stat to look this season will be the number of assists the rockets avg. moving the ball and making the defense work, along with a defenive presence will be our forte. LETS GO ROCKETS!!
Actually I think the Jazz (holes) are better this year than they have been in the last two years. Getting rid of Boozer improved that team immensely (which sounds odd since he was a 20-10 guy - but sometimes less is more)
Yeah so I suspect this person based their judgment off playing NBA live and watching the horribly underrated rockets team play.
I hate these "experts". They know nothing of our team, yet they act like they do. "Best case scenario: Finish 7th with a first round exit"... Give. Me. A. Break.
