Sorry. I completely agree that you can voice your opinion. It is just that 90% of the posts here have exactly the same opinion. And they are just stating and restating the same basic emotional response. I try to never parrot other comments. There are many different analytical takes on what is happening with the Rockets. And I think that you are lucid, intelligent, perceptive, and you possess a very readable prose style. I believe that you could present a more perceptive view of the Rockets. Best to you!
At the beginning of the preseason, Rockets were running. They ulilized on their exuberant energy and quickness. Then came a major problem; they gave up way too many transitional buckets. McHale saw the flaw and seemingly fixed it where everyone knew their assignments on who to go for rebounds and who suppose to run back. For all of the preseason games and first nine regular season games, Rockets kept the games close and their transitional defense was decent. Then everything came tumbling down the last two games. Not only they were blown off two games in a roll, their transitional defense was horrendous. What little they had accomplished so far had all went down the drain. Folks, we are right back to the same stage as game 3 or 4 of preseason. Players reverted back to their old habits of not knowing their assignments after a shot attemp. Hell Lakers supposed to be older and slower but I couldve swore, the way Lakers were getting easy fastbreak buckets, they looked younger than us. Then came the Jazz game. Rockets looked old and tired. Asik was so tired, he didn't even hit the rim on one FTA. You can't even use back to back game as an excuse! - What the hell Sampson did to prepare for Jazz and Lakers? - Why did we look so tired? - Did Sampson put extra workouts and inadvertently tired the team out? - Why did we play terrible transitional defense the last two games? - Did the players forget their assignments after a shot attempt? - Why did the last two games look so much like the preseason? So many questions and utterly dissappointed at Sampson!
Why is Tony Douglas not an option? We were hanging against the Jazz, then Douglas went in and wham, immediately down by 15 and never recovered. That seems to happen a heck of a lot.
Tired, demoralized, not motivated by Sampson, don't buy into what he's doing, coach-killing -- who knows?
Why do you characterize this as a poor start? Everyone expected HOU to be a middling-below average team this year, and they're showing that to be the case.
They are like an delusional bunch who refuse to believe lin is a average or above average role player and it his liottle linsanity run was a fluke. Raymond Sessions and Flip Murray fluke run. Infact Session is having a good year this season and lin is well, having a reality year.
Actually I think it is the other way around. They see lin average or above average and that is pretty much how he has been playing. I am surprised the majority of blame is on Harden, I guess fans expect him to be a superstar since he has the max contract, Kobe, Durant and Melo type of numbers.
I'm not at all surprised that Harden is getting so much blame. It has looked very much like the "Harden-centric" offense the coaches have been trying to make the Rockets run is losing them games and losing them the team (in terms of player trust in the coaches). I think it's unfair though that this be blamed on Harden, since this "Harden-centric" fail offense is actually the coaches' fault.
This I agree. But honestly it really shouldn't be blamed on the coaches. They had to run a harden centric offense because they needed to get him acclimated with his teammates quickly. Now they have started to reduce the amount of PNR plays Harden runs & increased the amount of PNR plays Lin runs so slowly there has been more balance. I think as Lin gets his scoring touch back they will continue to run more PNR plays for him.
