clutch might have a good halfcourt shot, but turbo played above the rim and was a real spark off the bench
Maybe back in the 70's playing with Heart was cool, but who wants to open up for the DreamBoat Annie anniversary these days? Turbo was cool, but Clutch can stretch his career further without having to remain in tip top shape. Longevity. I would say we have chemistry issues right now that make it look like we're playing with less heart, and maybe Dwight's media / enemyfabricated reputation isn't helping combined with how he handles tough pressure. I don't think it has to do with actually lacking any intensity though, and I think we will start to gel better when we quit adding players that actually see a lot of floor time every other week.
the team needs more of this HTML: <iframe width="1280" height="720" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/mLAx-VKGfSs?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
I think for the most part, we are playing with heart/effort. It is just not being channeled efficiently.... ie we are playing dumb. I saw us try really hard defensively against GS but sometimes you just cant stop a jumpshot. My problem is that we are just making stupid plays and that probably comes from trying to overdo things and lack of mental focus. It is obvious to see that the team is emotional about their recent play, but they show it in unwise ways like Smith picking up a double tech or Ariza bumping into Curry. The rockets need to sack up and play the right way, eventually they will come out of their funk. For right now, if they continue to play they way they have it will be hard for them to win many games.
Early in the year we fought because we were committed, still had the JB fever and were forced to play guys who were willing to give their all (Garcia, Canaan, Black, Papa). Now, we are back to last year with running more, more Harden Iso, more Dwight involvement on offense, guys' minutes and rotation messed up, Josh Smith who is never known to be a hard worker nor smart defender, Papa even more jittery than before, JB fever gone and Harden back to his old ways. The only bright spot: D-Mo. To watch this team play lately has been one of the most frustrating teams and ugliest basketball I've seen in years. Give me the Lowry-Hayes 2011 combo anyday over Harden-Howard now..
I don't know what's going on with this team over the last 5 or 6 weeks. Maybe Dwight is pouting behind the scenes and it's killing team chemistry. Maybe Smith's addition has rubbed some guys the wrong way. Maybe McHale is slacking off now that he's gotten a 3-year extension. Maybe the players bought into their own hype from the 19-5 start and thought they were good enough to just show up to the arena and win. Maybe it's a combination of things. But it's clear the effort isn't there every night. They're mentally unprepared most of the time as well. We don't see a lot of adjustments made between games. The same stupid mistakes they make one night resurface a few nights later. And their lazy, unforced turnovers are the sign of a team that's simply not executing on offense. About the only area they have improved recently is foul shooting. It arguably cost them those back-to-back Spurs and Wizards losses a few weeks ago. Since then however, they have done a lot better in that area. Even Dwight for all his faults has upped his free throw percentage.
The heart of a champion left this team August 2 , 2001. For those that don't remember - That's the date Hakeem was traded to Toronto.
The 2007-08 team that won 22 games straight and the 2008-09 team that took the Lakers to 7 games even after Yao went down both had heart. Injuries sabotaged their title hopes. I can only imagine how good this team would be if they played with half the heart of those.
Yes Dwight has upped his free throw percentage and I believe that over the last 3 months of the season, that can win us a few games and will definitely come in handy in the playoffs. Kudos to Dwight. Remember hack-a-howard? When is the last time you saw that deployed? I watch every game and it seems like I am seeing Dwight do the same stupid things over and over. For all the years he has played this game (and 3 DPOY awards) he STILL has no idea how to play fundamentally solid defense without fouling!?? 1. Can't set a screen without shoving or fouling. 2. Can't play vertical hands up without coming down on the shooter and fouling. 3. Rebounds, then gets the ball stolen. 4. Seems slow and lost on defense when rotating off screens to cover the rolling big. I just keep yelling at the TV "This guy refuses to play the right way!" He also seems to refuse to set screens! Why is D-Mo setting 90% of the screens? I truly hope Dwight is just nursing his knees until April and will explode like he did against the Blazers in the playoffs last year. If not, were in trouble.
It starts from the top. You have a gutless, cowardly guy called McHale who is more of a cheerleader than a coach. All he does is sit there and "play harder" "clap clap" I am yet to see him get up and show some fire despite several patches in a game where the Rockets are just going through the norm. When such a nonchalant "i don't care" attitude comes from the coach, it rubs off on the players. The guy holds no one accountable for any of their blemishes
