Brewer and to a slightly lesser extent Millsap would run circles around Yao. The Jazz are a tough matchup, but definitely beatable. DWill is their go-to guy and is very difficult to stop/contain. The Rockets can beat anyone they face in the first round, Jazz included. They probably would have won that last game in UTAH if they weren't so fatigued due to the 4th in 5 nights.
To the top point - I agree the team is gelling, maybe even starting to seek a peak. My concern is how well these guys will be able to adjust to adjustments in a Series. Regular season scheduling is almost a vacuum. JVG IMHO did a very poor job of countering opponents' counters and series leads became series bleeds. Everyone will know Scola's spins, VW's go-to moves, Brooks' darts and so forth. If they can respond then Hallelujah, 2nd Round - and maybe 3rd. Or 4th??? To the latter, I wish I agreed. Rondo is elite D at the Point, and KG is elite D at the 4 and/or 5. Rondo + KG > Artest + Shane IMHO. And at two more critical D positions than our 2/3 pair. This doesn't mean I am belittling the Rox D abilities. I am just not sold it is C(eltic) D good.
I certainly agree with the general idea of the story. The Rockets are not an elite team right now. Who the hell knows where this team will be by the time the playoffs come. With that said, I would LOVE to see Portland drop to the #8 spot when the playoffs come. If there is one team out there (besides the Spurs) that could take down the Lakers, I think it is Portland.
Well, what about Chuck Hayes? Hayes has proven he can guard KG pretty effectively and Kyle Lowry, while he's not as great on D as Rondo is no slouch either. My point is the Rockets have an unmatched make-up of players for every position.
I don't know either if this team is in the elite level yet this season or not... The Rockets are far much better team with healthy TMac without any doubt. It is nice to see that everybody is stepping up. They can play anybody fair and square, but the truth is this team has a lot of more things to prove. I'm optimistic that the Rockets will do better than most sports writers predict... Go Rockets!!!!
I dont get the hate. This man speaks the truth. If we beat all those teams in the next week or two, then I consider us elite.
Does anyone else think that when the rockets enter the playoffs, this years extremely tough and physical front court will most definately be elite. I mean who else's front court in the league would you rather have then Ron, Scola, and Yao when the game turns so extremely physical in the half court(and yes I know Ron technically can be called our 2). Not to mention hopefully getting 5-10min a night from Deke (no idea what he has left but I have to believe they brought him here to at least see the court a little bit in the playoffs) along with Landrys contributions, and hayes off the bench for D. I mean I think this team is extremely well suited for the playoffs. If they can run their O efficiently and score at least 90+ ppg I feel real good about the rockets heading into the playoffs.
I was gonna post this article b/c i wanted to see what kind of feedback it would generate....anyways i want to enjoy the game tonight so i will not focus on it, but he made some good points. BEAT L.A.
His general premise is correct that we're not an elite team [hopefully just not yet]. The question is whether or not we will continue to improve. Plenty have made remarks that we seemingly get better each game. Hopefully, that's a trend that will continue. If it does we at least deserve the "darkhorse" label. In any event I don't want to hear this "I hope we play Houston in the playoffs" crap people threw at us last year and are throwing at Denver this year. That almost gets my blood boiling worse than the thought of playing Utah again.
What an idiot. Did he forget we blew the lead at San Antonio (game we should have won), Beat Boston on the road without Artest and TCrap? AND WE BEAT ORLANDO ON THE ROAD!
Not many writers will consider us Elite until we get out the 1st round and even then they probably would still doubt. The good thing is it's just their opinion and it doesn't have an effect on the game. The players just have to prove them wrong and we have the talent to do so.
I believe in the Rox' D. I believe in the Rox. I don't feel Rox are #1 or 2 D-Team in the A-ssociation. I believe no team is a worst match up for Rox than C's; and pray for the opportunity to play them again this season!
this is a pretty heavy statement...basically you're saying we are supposed to have the number 1 defense in the league? Now if that was true then the WCF is a lock in my opinion.
I agree with his conclusion, I do not agree with how he got there. He brings up our road record to prove we're not among the elite. Well geez dude we had a revolving door starting rotation for 3 months of the season. I would like at that on the flip side and say it's absolutely amazing we have the home record we have despite the ridiculous injuries. The only team that can say they've suffered close to the injury problems we have is Utah, but at least they got a dependable back up to fill the minutes instead of Boozer playing half the games killing the teams chance of winning. Then the McGrady point. McGrady would only help this team if he played within the system. Healthy or not if he plays like he's always played (dominate the ball) then he screws up our offense. He says the reason we're playing well is health, and has nothing to do with McGrady. The former is true, the latter is what his "lying eyes" tell him. McGrady was hurting hte team every minute he played. Getting let off the leash he had us on by forcing up bad shots and running the shot clock down is what has allowed us to turn this year around. Anyone who has watched the rockets knows this. So basically he's right, but wrong. The REAL issues is being able to rebound against physical teams (Utah), closing out 4 quarters on a regular basis, being able to solve the fronting problem when its presented. Those are the problems that need addressing. This team has the talent to do anything, but they've only had 15 games to find themselves. That's all that worries me.
I think I know what you mean but just wanted clarification. Are you saying that the Rockets matchup very well against the Celtics? if so, I agree.
I definitely think we have the personnel to do it. The Chemistry hasn't been there for most of the season. But 13 games ago, the team has appeared to "turn the corner" winning games methodically while reacquiring their identity: DEFENSE. IMO, with the personnel that we have (Shane, Artest, Chuck, Lowry, to an extent YAO) we have a defensive edge against anyone in the league. What are your thoughts on this?
Not an elite team? Fine by me, because when the Rockets pull a Netherlands in the playoffs, it'll be that much sweeter.
