IDIOT https://www.theringer.com/nba/2018/11/2/18054012/nba-whats-real-surprises-disappointments Real or Not Real: The Rockets are bad. Tjarks: Real. It’s funny how much expectations play a role in how we view teams. Bad for the Rockets is still a lot better than good for the Kings, but it doesn’t matter for a team with championship expectations. There are a lot of guys in the Houston rotation who don’t play any defense, and that’s not going to change without a trade. Verrier: Not real. The Rockets are reliant on their three top-50 players far more than last season, and have been without one of them for all but the first two games (and Paul was ejected before the finish of one of them). The defense has been putrid even at full strength, and Harden’s return will hardly help matters. But it’s all connected. Not having Harden means Paul, at age 33, needs to make an impact on both ends, Carmelo Anthony becomes a go-to target (for Houston’s offense and the opposing offense), Michael Carter-Williams plays starter’s minutes, etc. I’m worried, but I want to see this team healthy for more than one full game before I panic. Uggetti: Not real, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t worry about them. I wroteabout how the Rockets could try to fix things (tl;dr: what the Cavs did in the middle of last season), but even if they make roster changes, it’s hard for me to believe they can pry open their championship window again. Last season, Houston looked like it was playing the same game as Golden State. This season, there’s only one team playing chess and it’s certainly not the Rockets. Devine: Not real. Not incontrovertibly real, anyway. I refuse to believe that a team that went 54-7 with James Harden, Chris Paul, and Clint Capela all in the lineup last season can’t find a way to get its head above water once those three are back on the floor. I’ve seen enough to be deeply unsure they’ll get anywhere near last season’s heights, but I haven’t seen enough to convince me they’re irredeemably bad. (Yet.) O’Shaughnessy: Neither. It can’t be discounted that Houston is worse than it was last season, and is having trouble adjusting to a couple role player tweaks. But it’s hard to envision and team with Harden, Paul, and Capela being this bad for a full season. It’s TBD right now. Gonzalez: Not real. The Rockets have had a winning record in 11 of the past 12 seasons. The season they didn’t, they broke even. I refuse to believe this team — run by Daryl Morey, with two of the best guards of their generation, one of whom is the defending league MVP — is bad. The Rockets are not bad, they’re just having a bad run. [Fingers in ears I can’t hear you talking about the defense lalalalala.] Chau: Real, and I don’t think that will change until they take that swing at Jimmy Butler. The Rockets aren’t just 1-5. They’re getting beat down, with a margin of victory of minus-10.5. The team that produced the best record in the league last season was built on the individual genius of players on both ends of the floor. A switch-heavy defense that loses its two most versatile defensive players in Trevor Ariza and Luc Mbah a Moute is a chair that’s missing a peg, and it’s become increasingly clear that the Rockets don’t have the personnel to change that without doing something drastic.
If rockets look good in regular season then its only regular season, if rockets look bad in regular season then they are bad. I get it. Rockets are never good.
The Rockets are 1-5. And have looked bad. And there are MANY reasons for it. Not just one thing. BUT, as it relates to the NATIONAL MEDIA, I am NOT defending the Rockets to them. Can't do it when they are 1-5. Media can talk it's noise. And many points are valid, tbh. It is up to the Rockets to dig themselves out and prove the doubters wrong. But they have to do it.
fwiw: The question posed to the panel was "Real or Not Real". Thread title "Real or not" reads like a declarative statement. The Panel is 4-2 "Not Real"
Wait 25 games to find out if they are mediocre or just plain bad with Harden and Chris in the lineup.
This team is not fundamentally bad, just trending that way. There's still time to trend back to good.
Define fundamental. I think the bench is pretty thin, Carmelo and Gordon are too streaky to be counted on IMHO. While I think Harden and Paul is still the best backcourt, the frontcourt just is not that good. And small. The team plays uninspiring bball on both sides.
They're obviously trash right now but it could change. The horrible bench doesn't give me much confidence though.
Yes, the bench is thin, but the core of the team is still good enough to win 50+ games this year, hence that's why I don't buy in to this being a bad team. Hopefully, I'm not proven wrong. We'll know better by mid-season.
