I think we can beat any team in the east....so maybe we can....which team is going to show up, the one that can shoot or the one that cant
I think if we can win tomorrow against the Mavs, we will gain some confidence, and could possibly win at home against SA
I was warned there would be games like these this season. The team is in a bit of a shooting slump right now but I have to believe they will right the ship again. I think it's to be expected with such a young team. It's a good thing that JHard was feeling it tonight or we would have lost by 50.
I don't know why any game would be considered an automatic loss for this team after beating the lakers, destroying the knicks, and nearly beating the heat but for a ridiculous lebron run. If they play to their abilities they can play with just about anyone.
shooters go through slumps. i thought lin was coming out of it a couple of games ago when he hit 19.....the good thing is hes continuing to shoot.....if he does he will start hitting them
We got "exposed". Our young players can't surprise anyone anymore, they're all on scouting reports. And our "game plan" is transparent as glass
No you don't. You Lin fans are shameless. It's obvious you are not a Rocket fan, so why don't you get out of here if all you are going to do is piss on this team and make up a pile of bullcrap just to make your favorite player look better?
On their last encounter, Tony Parker scored 20 on Lin at the HALF. Today he only managed 17 at the HALF. That shows Lin's improvement...no? lol Painful game to watch. The only good thing that I got from it was that James' shot is back! It'd be nice if he could give Jeremy some pointers because as of right now, every time Lin shoots, a part of me dies inside because I know it's gonna be a brick. The thing is, his shooting slump is affecting the whole flow of the game, defenders are daring him to shoot and Im sure every time he misses an open look it's another stab at his confidence thus making him force drives to nowhere just to avoid shooting the ball, ugh it's just real bad. He had gained some of his swagger during the Knicks game, we saw glimpses of Linsanity with the attacks and he was even hitting some jumpers, not sure why he regressed again. Im one of those Lin fans preaching for patience but I'd be lying if I didn't say I'm getting angsty myself. He needs to get in that state of mind he had in NY, he used to ooze an "Im Lin b****!!" swag and attitude that allowed him to still have great games even when his first 5 shots wouldn't fall because he knew they would come. Maybe he left his confidence and shot in his NY locker room, i dont know.
I also don't think there is any one team in the league right now that the Rockets can't beat. Tonight's game does not reflect the true talent level of Houston. Yes, it was a blowout but we would be oversimplifying things if we just concede that Spurs are better.
Lin's biggest problem is it seems as if he fears he might be benched at any moment if he messes up........ It will be interesting if this fear subsides when McHale returns. Mind you, this is the same Jeremy Lin who didn't fear shooting (and making) game-winners last season. Harden's biggest problem is his bigs fail to set enough screens. If he had the screens Tony Parker had, he'd be even more unstoppable. I do think Harden is the more dangerous player. If his defender stays at home, Parsons' shooting suffers. But due to the lack of screens set, that's the case more often than not. Parsons is at his best when the team plays good defense, which triggers the fast break. He runs the floor very well. Shooting should not be the primary focus of the starting PF.......... Patterson is not a true PF. He's a big two guard. His lack of setting screens is his major deficiency. If he played the two, he'd be fine, but there are three SGs on the team better than him. Asik's biggest problem is hands of stone in traffic. This is a very difficult problem to fix, and could very well be his downfall. Asik's other problem is if his shot is altered by shot blockers, he's unable to compensate. (This is an issue with all the Rox' players.) Our biggest matchup deficiency is a good opposing front line off the bench. Cole Aldrich and Terrence Jones must get playing time under such circumstances. (Aldrich is our best screener.... Toney Douglas could be more effective with that at the offensive end. The two players should practice the pick and roll.) The team does not shoot well because it doesn't screen well. It has everything to do with the coaching. But you must see the root problem. The poor shooting is the symptom. Lack of good screens is the root problem. When Lin is on the floor, against teams other than the Spurs, the defense is fine. Don't forget, the more points given up is often due to extra possessions because we run the break often, which is triggered by good defense. The screens enable all of that. The best defense is to switch as quickly as possible, then recover if the passing stops. If this game showed anything, it's the huge importance of setting screens. The Spurs are the best team in the league at this, the Rockets are the worst.
The Knicks were playing horrible defense that game, Utah was daring him to go to the basket as their strategy, and the Raptors... well, no explanation necessary. Against good defensive teams, he can't do much because (1) his outside shot is missing and (2) lack of good screening, as has been mentioned a bunch of times. He's also just lost a step, by the looks of it.
Speaking of the Raptors and blowouts, what's up with this Utah game? My goodness, 30+ blowout! That's awful.
I agree about the lack of screens on Harden. You see countless times when he penetrates just dribbling past his defender, but then, the defender is running after him and by the time he goes up for the layup, he has a center in front of him and a guard chasing him from behind. A good screen indeed would prevent that and make Harden even more dangerous. On Patterson's defense, I think he has doing a nice job spreading the floor, when he can hit the mid range. But, yes, he should be rebounding much more, setting the pick'n roll actively and specially: covering the pick'n roll on defense. If none of these happens, even when he has a 20+ point game, I still consider that it is not a good game from him. Agreed. However, on tonight's game, I was mentioning specifically the open shots we've missed. Those are not related to screens. Screens are supposed to open space for penetration or shooting. But, once they have the space, as was the case several times tonight, missing or hitting an open jumper is related to the shooter's effciency, confidence and state of mind at the moment. Unfortunately, for some reason, our players were not hitting those this time. So, yes, I agree with you that, overall, bad shooting efficiency would be a symptom of lack of strategy on offense (screens, off ball movement, making the extra pass...), but specifically tonight, the main issue was really missing open jumpers. I would not say the defense is fine, but you know what? I agree with you that with Lin, overall, I still think the defense is better than with Douglas. Besides the fact that he tries to cover too much and sometimes that leads to open 3-pointers from his man, he has been clever overall. As torocan said before, guarding Parker in a pick'n roll situation is a team duty. No one can keep up with him through a screen. So, the guy that is guarding the screener has to be quick to cut the lines, and the big man left has to be waiting under the basket to cover. And even so, Parker will hit some floaters or make a fake and then a layup. It's just that tonight, our lack of defense positioning (i'm not blaming Lin, but the system) was exposed. I dont know if it is lack of coaching, or lack of time together, but it is what it is. I really wish too that we had better screens from Asik and Patterson.
How the hell does Duncan not regress all that much. Right now he is the best PF/C in the league at age 50. He is a marvel
