ClutchFans Game Thread: Wizards @ Rockets 12/29/2014

I blame this on Mc_hair.

too many TOs equals Bad coaching.

this team has no discipline, no one accountabler for anyting.. THIS IS BECAUSE OUR COACH.

 

too many turnovers have been a constant theme of the Rockets ever since McHale took over

 

Corey Brewer talks after the Houston Rockets lost at home to the Washington Wizards on 12/29/2014.

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The key to winning is simple. Give Dmo at least 10 touches a game in the post, and we destroy them. The rockets ignore him to their detriment.

 

just checking in on the meltdown

 

Well, this sucks. Have to get in more practice and a W on the next one

 

Joey Dorsey played freaking awesome tonight & the past few games!

#SilverLining

 

A # of things we think we learned from the last 2 losses...

It doesn't always have to be five things and it's just an opinion.

Corey Brewer has fit better because he was coming off the bench... less pressure. Smith and the starters are too uncomfortable. There is no real chemistry yet. Give it time to slowly develop, BUT remove him from the starting lineup for now.

Josh Smith is somewhat frozen from the pressure of starting, having a different role where he played last, and the starters are a little bit frozen because they haven't played with him and have it in the back of their minds to help get him "into the flow of the game"; i.e. both he and the starters being too aware of his "need" to fit in, just because, on paper (?), he should be the starting 4. (Not to mention, he may, unintentionally, be stifling some offensive flow, just by not knowing the plays, etc.; being a bit out of position, standing when he should be cutting, etc.)

As hard as we thought it might be to tell D-Mo that he was now coming off the bench, after proving himself starting, while Howard was out, all involved (Morey, McHale, Alexander, and any others with say) should realize this needs to be rethought. Tell Smith that in the interest of his fitting in and the team's success, he will be under less pressure to come off the bench. Retrun D-Mo to the starting lineup. It is a fact that, right now, he is the better player with the starters. Leaving Smith in as a starter at this point may only exacerbate a tenuous situation. And it doesn't have to hurt his confidence. It's all in how it is presented. Brewer certainly hasn't had his effort or performance hurt by coming off the bench.

Papanikolaou and Canaan are a couple of good players who just a few weeks ago were getting playing time. Brewer is earning his minutes with his play from the bench. These 2 players shouldn't be relegated to the bench just because Smith hasn't been able to be what he is projected to be. I think he will be. He should relax. He's got a long career/history -- especially defensively. He shouldn't be put on the spot so soon. In retrospect he shouldn't have been inserted in the starting lineup immediately.

It isn't unrealistic to think that Brewer's energy will help Smith coming off the bench with him.

Ball AND player movement has been really bad. On one play when Brewer cut to the basket... I think a pass from Terry, he scored pretty easily. Some of the stagnation we've seen comes from having a new player in the starting lineup that isn't familiar enough with what is going on. It disrupts the timing of the whole offense. Players are less sure as to who should be doing what at any one time.

FINALLY, Calvin Murphy was asked in the post-game about "learning" free-throw shooting. He said it is all about desire and practice. I had been thinking the same thing for a long time. Harden got religion about playing defense and has done something about it. Bad free-throw shooters have to want to do better and then go out and put the work in to become better. A big man should never be given a free ride as far as free-throw shooting percentage, just because he does other things well. Free-throw shooting (and, turnovers, OMG, turnovers) can be the difference in games. It can suck the life out of a run to have 2 possessions in a row where you only get 1 or 0 out of 4 free-throws. What do you think teammates on ANY team are thinking when a 50% teammate goes to the line. Hopeful thoughts? Confidence? Cringing in their brains?

Results speak for themselves. Two successive losses. ~25 turnovers in both games. (That is definitely not on Smith. It is still mostly, careless, sometimes lazy passes that shouldn't be made.) Very poor overall free-throw shooting %. Smith not being as productive as he would be because of no practice and more time getting used to his new teammates. No disrespect whatsoever. Reality. When a player has even a mild to moderate injury, erring on the side of caution, he is held out until he and the physicians and trainers are really confident he can play at the level expected. This is very similar... not so different. Smith has talent. His "injury" at the moment is being thrown in as a starter too soon. The Rockets need a healthy starting 5 on 5 to win. As good as Harden is, even he can't make up for a player that is left on the court playing with an injury.

 

Michael:I don't know what to do.

 

What we need to do is feed the big men. Dmo has a great hook shot. Dwight was open with 4:13 left in the 4th. But instead Terry pass to Brewer which lead to an turnover and caused the game to be 91 to 84. The second unit was great. I hope that Dmo is put back in the starting unit because everything runs better for Harden and Beverly. Josh Smith still needs to find his fit in the team and I can see him running the second unit because he won't be getting in Harden's way.

 

It's a big joke that Howard wants to win a championship with his lazy ass.

 

Josh Smith was a +1 in the game. QUIT PUTTING THE LOSSES ALL ON HIM. How about a weak 13/5 from our usual inefficient max level center?

Also, the East still sucks balls but they at least they are top heavy. Raptors, Bulls, Hawks, Wizards are quality teams that could even compete in the West.

 

One of the absolute worst calls in the history of the NBA…


05:47 Ariza Turnover : Player Out of Bounds Violation Turnover (2 TO) [HOU 82-84]

When was the last time a player was called for this violation???

What a momentum killer...

Also the Ariza 'all ball' foul on Wall...

D-Mo was getting screwed all game on the calls...



Ok, I was ultra mad at the cruise control pace & lack of effort when the starting unit was in, along with the missed free throws, turnovers and sticky balls…

Spoiler

…but that doesn't excuse the officials from giving us the shaft

Spoiler

from the officials.

Case in point…D-Mo:

D-Mo gets smacked in the head…no flagrant.
D-Mo gets shoved out of bounds…No call / Turnover.
D-Mo locks up the ball handler…No jump ball / Foul on D-Mo.
D-Mo has his arm grabbed as he is going for the ball…No foul / turnover.

I could keep going…but D-Mo copped the worst of it today.

Yes we played like crap for most of the game, (if we played like we did during the run & in the final 2:30 we would've won imo) but the last two games the officiating has been horrendous.

Reminds me of what the league did to stop Yao...

I'm going to go punch a kangaroo or kick a koala now.

 

The Rockets' offense is hard to watch.

This team has been playing like a pretender.

 

Umm...

OKC vs GSW - December 18, 2014
2nd Qtr - Westbrook Turnover : Player Out of Bounds Violation Turnover (2 TO) 06:47

TOR vs IND - December 12, 2014
4th Qtr - S Hill Turnover : Player Out of Bounds Violation Turnover (1 TO) 08:20

This is the 'Offensive Player Out-of-Bounds' description:

 

These past couple of weeks the starting unit has shown some pretty terrible effort defensively, and our offense is ****.

Smith hasn't helped, either, but I'll wait a few more games before I formulate an opinion on him.

Dwight needs to play with more effort defensively. He was dogging it tonight, not a good look. He needs to get his head on straight.

Another good game from Harden, but the last few games we seem to be going away from him down the stretch, or he isn't shooting enough IMO. The guy is money in the 4th quarter.

It's a shame because Jones fits the best with the starters by a long shot. He's the only PF we have who can get you 14 points and 8 rebounds a game without a single play being ran for him. That's a guy we need next to Dwight. DMo is only effective on the block, he needs plays run for him constantly to get a rhythm and get confident, and that won't happen with Harden and Howard out there. As far as Smith goes, I was hoping he could do a lot of the things Jones does, but he seems extremely lost out there and we need to stop running plays for him, he needs to get buckets off duck ins, put backs and fastbreaks.

Very frustrating, there are a TON of problems with the Rockets right now, but I believe they will resolve themselves in a matter of weeks. Until then, simply playing harder, especially the 1st unit, will yield much better results.

 

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Posted in another thread but will also post here…
We need to sign Kenny Smith to just show our guards how to feed the post…Kenny made a living out of doing it.

Everyone keeps hammering Dwight's play, but how discouraging do you think it is to run down the court, seal off your man, get good post position then watch as your guards stand out on the perimeter looking clueless?

Harden is a beast…he would be even more unstoppable if he had some off the ball plays run for him to get open, instead of having to do it all himself.

Ariza is what he is…& has his moments.

Bev plays great D, gives good heart & Hustle…can hit the open 3, but his play making is atrocious.

Josh Smith will mesh pretty well once the team figures out how to best use him…hint, hint: Pick'n'roll, pick'n'roll, back door cut, pick'n'roll…

But that being said, we still haven't figured out how to use Dwight properly yet…so don't hold your breath.

D-Mo was beasting in the post, playing awesome D, hitting his corner 3's…so now we don't post him up anymore, only let him shoot corner 3's with 2 seconds on the clock & have him wandering around the perimeter on the wings. Great coaching…should give the coach an extension for that stroke of genius.

oh, we already did…

Brewer has been awesome…'nuff said.

Dorsey is trash…yes he's played ok the last few games, but he is a 12th man at best.

Papa, Canaan & Nicky J were all contributing…but are now nowhere to be seen. Papa & D-Mo actually work well together, & he is probably the best at feeding the post, but what can you do? I know injuries had a part to play with Canaan & Papa's minutes…but at least play the guys.

Shved will do alright once he adjusts to playing on this team. I think he will have a solid career…but I don't expect much this year.

Capela I really like…he has all the physical tools to be something special...but I don't expect much this year.

Do we have what it takes to win the Championship this year? Yes all the pieces are there, it's just a matter of putting the puzzle together and making sure all of the pieces fit.

unfortunately, while McHale is a good motivator and a Hall of Fame player, this puzzle is in the advanced range, and it seems that he can only put together the ones marked 'for ages 3 and up.'

Go Rockets, I love this team, read my sig…end rant.

 

yeah and his price skyrockets so he leaves in free agency or ask for MAX money....
Also in that case Dwight would be on his way out next postseason...

theres no chance mchale or morey dont know DMO postups are amongst the most efficient rockets plays...its all politics...

 

We're not even an uptempo team anymore.