Wow...this is the first post that I've witnessed of the "Caveman" since I've been here. Somehow, I expected something more..oh well. Back to your question...I'll echo what BGM said...yes the Rockets are cursed with injuries, probably always have been, but it has really gotten noticeable since the '95 season.
It seems that way, but just coincidence...the fact is injuries occur throughout the ages of time and sometimes it seems to run together. I debunk the theory of a curse.
Originally posted by Manny Ramirez: Cursed? I don't know. After a while it's hard to blame it on bad luck alone. Here are a few other items that could explain things:<ol> <li>Keith Jones is overrated as a trainer. Our guys don't train as hard or as well as some other teams, or don't do certain things like stretching/yoga that might make them less susceptible to injury. I have no idea if this is true. <li>Something is wrong with the facilities at the arena or Westside. I have no idea what. (Visitors play on our floor, too, but at most four times a year. We play on it 41 times during the season.) <li>Rudy T is too much in love with older players, and, like Pat Riley, is unwilling to give minutes to younger players. Maybe if Steve and Cat didn't play 40 minutes a game, they wouldn't be injured right now. Maybe not, but at least guys like Torres and EG would be better prepared for the increased minutes if they had already gotten more PT in earlier games. <li>Rudy and CD are overrated as judges of talent. (I don't buy this one, but in a way it relates to the above: we sometimes give up younger players to acquire older players on the downside or their careers.) <li>Our game plan involves too much reliance on individual athleticism as opposed to just smart basketball. Maybe this shows a weakness in Rudy T as an Xs and Os coach. He's great at coming up with game plans, designing systems to maximize talent, motivating, recruiting, etc., but not so great at plays and timeout adjustments. Or maybe he has good plays but the guys don't run them. Then he's a bad teacher, which I don't buy, or a bad disciplinarian. </ol> I'm not saying any or all of these things is true; I don't have enough information to judge. But I don't believe in "steaks" or "curses." If something goes wrong once or twice, OK, bad luck. When it turns into a trend, there's a reason why.
ricealum: You make some excellent points. My first post was really to Caveman and was not one to be taken seriously...more like tongue-in-cheek. However, I can see why someone would say that and I just pointed out that it has been a major problem, it seems to me, since '95. Injuries are a part of it, unfortunately. However, sometimes I wonder why we get them and teams like the Jazz don't. But then some of your theories could possibly explain that. Even though Stockton and Malone are old, they stay in great shape (unlike Barkley). And I agree that Keith Jones is probably overrated as a trainer. To me a trainer should be like a referee or an umpire. If they are doing a good job, then you shouldn't know their name.
I wasn't seriously saying we're cursed. As for the points brought up by the alum... I tend to think it's more 3 than the others. This entire preseason, we got the chance to see how deep we are, with Tmo, Oscar, and Brown showing some nice moments on both sides of the ball. Then the regular season starts, and we're stuck with the Wiz and Rice running up and down the court. This 82 game season is a marathon, we have no excuse for playing our 2 most important players as many minutes as we do when we have so much young talent on the bench. Who knows, maybe this Francis injury could help Rudy gain confidence in his bench and learn to give some more PT when Steve comes back...
