ClutchFans Game Thread: Rockets @ Thunder 3/3/2025

Any young players getting 25+ pts against the best team means they have great talent.

Cam and Reed are deserved to get playing time. They can play good basketball.

You can't waste young talents on the bench, Ime, especially your starters are tired AF.

 

he’s great at midrange. Needs to go to it more

 

Ime needs to take a holiday from playing Holiday.

 

Lol, how could I forget about Sengun. He's an elite ball-hog.

 

Nate needs minutes as well. I'm really proud of the young guys. Reed played great. Let's hope Ime starts giving minutes to him and N'Faly from now onwards. Cam is good, but he doesn't move the ball. He did play good defense.

 

You have no ability to discern defense. What Reed is doing is called shading + he does this on purpose to funnel into rim protector and/or set up the player for block/steal.

https://www.thedreamshake.com/tdspl...ckets-2024-2025-player-previews-reed-sheppard

The reason Ime played Reed early in the season was because he trusted his defense + has favorably compared Reed's defense to Fred's.

 

The guy who leads Rockets in assists?

 

Nah. I'm glad Nate got his guaranteed money, but he's really just a practice dummy who should rarely see the floor.

 

I thought Reed and Cam did well, they got starters minutes and finished the game strong. Considering they haven't been playing, it is not easy to go hard for 35 minutes when you haven't been doing so.

Nate needs to pass it more. A lot of ugly layups.

Dante impressed with nearly a double double in his first NBA game.

The problem with Holiday, Tate and Nate is that they don't know their limitations and it leads to bad decisions or bad plays. They have had their time in the NBA to learn what they need to do, where as Reed and Whitmore are still learning and need their time to learn. So I think you gotta give Reed and Whitmore their minutes especially after todays game. Use Holiday, Tate and Nate as backup for these kinds of games where the Rockets need bodies.

Also I hope team injured saw this, they need to understand there are some guys behind them that really want to play. Just cause you beat the top teams doesn't mean you can be complacent in other games. You might get replaced.

 

Sengun doesn't play like Dante' though.....Dante' helped Reed tongiht.

DD

 

I’m confused. Just got home and saw why didn’t any of our starters play?

 

I love the shot blocking presence and lob option that Dante provided. Want to see more of him playing. Put Sengun at the 4 and Adams and Dante can hold the 5 down.

 

Yeah... WTF DID I MISS??? LMAO

I looked at the box score and was literally like WTF happened to Amen, DB, FVV, & Sengun

I thought they were in a car accident or something...

Anyway, good to see Cam, R33d, & McV get some minutes.

You think Ime was trying to send a message that we were close in your house with mostly backups? Or was he really just resting peeps?

This whole thing is BIZARRE

 

Insanity to think Dante is better than Alperen. Rockets fans and their fascination for the backup center supplanting the obviously more talented starting center giving me Stephen Silas PTSD.

 

Imagine trading Reed and Cam like a lot of people wanted just so they can blow up on another team. Just throwing away talent.

 

And here I was thinking "let it be to me".

 

They more or less punted on this likely very hard to win game to best optimize results tomorrow.

Honestly I wish we employed this thinking more often instead of trying desperately to win every single game. Aside from keeping guys fresher it gives guys a chance to develop.

 

Cam is uber-talented but I just wish he could calm down a little, make better decisions, and learn how to share.

 

Wonder which Rocket assistant can do this

https://www.si.com/nba/thunder/news...nd-helped-lu-dort-improve-from-beyond-the-arc

 

Good training game nothing more.