ClutchFans Game Thread: Rockets @ Pacers 11/5/2018

This post is amazing. Quoting because i can't like it more than once.

 

Shout out to PJ THICC for running around like a mad man getting rebounds.

There was one rebound in the 4th where he came out of nowhere to totally bull someone out of the way to grab a board. The THICC was just too much for that Pacer player.

And then there was PJ throwing himself on the scorers table.

Is there any video clips of this? Dude is a monster.

 

Yeah, that's 21-series into a Double Drag. We do this alot with Gordon, too. (fwiw: 21-Series is also simply known as Pistol, nowadays. So, MDA invented Pistol.) It's the 1 (PG) and 2 (SG) (hence, 21) initiating the offense from the sideline. Amazing that the play could draw all 5 defenders over the midline, with Harden left alone.

 

Loved the diagram to help me understand the play better. Also liked the added detail mentioning Harden bringing up the ball while CP called the play.

Amazing that they ran the same play and depending on how it was covered by the Pacers, different players were left open. And then even more amazing, Harden was open on BOTH times! LOL.

 

are we just going to pretend rebounding wasn't why rockets were so great last year!

 

21 (aka Pistol) is really supposed to be an option out of transition, so CP shouldn't really be calling the play, or, at least, that's not really how it happens. In transition the 2 naturally goes to corner or the wing as an option out of a standard 7 seconds or less quick hit. Upon nothing materializing in transition, Nash can immediately dribble towards the 2 in the corner for Pistol action. So, it's great because of the quick flow from Transition into a Set.

In our more deliberate plays, especially late in crunch time, looks like CP is calling the Double Drag out of 21, which requires Capela to be on same page and both PJ/Ennis to vacate CP's preferred corner.

 

Again, it's the pacers, they're not even that good. Theyre a second round team at best. Rockets had high expectations coming into this season. If they're struggling against an middle of the road pacers team, then what chance do they have against the warriors.

Scoring under 100 ppg in 3 of the last 4 games isn't going to be enough against elite teams, especially when the rest of the league is averaging 130 ppg. The fact that you think this is a good win is kinda sad and shows how far this team has fallen.

 

he said this is the best win out of the 4 wins we have so far.. why so hard to understand his statement?

 

That was a great win.
I noticed one thing about PJ. I’m not trying to knock him, I think he’s great for our team and was a huge part of our success, but if you take away the corner 3 from his game he may be one of the worst offensive players. He can’t finish around the rim whatsoever.

 

imho he become good 3 pt shooter all around perimeter not only corner 3s

he also have a nice hook shot when he is around the rim, last night was a rare instance where he missed one

 

Westbrook Update for the Rockets game on Thursday.

 

who are these elite teams? because indiana just beat celtics the other day...
warriors lost to nuggets and got last second tip win vs jazz who are the west version of Indiana

pls be more realistic

 

Houston is not an elite team right now either.

DD

 

defense has been elite the past 4 games though, we are getting there.

 

they will be once gordon starts hitting open shots again. morey still has to upgrade the bench depth, but besides GS/TOR no team out there handle the harden/paul/gordon/tucker/capela lineup

 

yes they are

 

Good gravy folks. Let's get a grip.
NO we didn't score 140 points against the Pacers. NO we are NOT currently an 'elite' team.
BUT, we ARE making strides. Can't we just focus on the positives?

Doesn't matter if we score 140 per game. What matters is that we score at least 1 more than our opponent that given night.
Winning counts. Whining doesn't

Bah Humbug... .

 

Thanks for posting.

 

The first part may be true. He does usually take corner threes but could be good overall.

Definitely disagree with second part. He has no jump and no touch. He’s shorter than most; that hook isn’t getting past anybody.

 

As they say, you can't pick the team you play against. Nice to see the Rockets taking care of business.
The best part of these wins is that they're taking place with a key player out. Before it was Harden, yesterday EG.

And as others have pointed out, the team is getting more comfortable with one another, and as a result, they are starting to hustle again.
Last year's team was good at pushing pace after a defensive rebound and putting pressure on the opposing team's defense. (Ariza seemed to take good advantage of this.) While they're not at that level yet, they seem to be getting better.