The NBA has mandatory time outs. If you use too many in the first half, then you'll automatically have to use 2 in the second half, and only have a 20 second time out for the end of the game.
I think I saw somewhere that the Rockets used their 20 sec time out already so would have to use a full timeout.
You only get 6 timeouts and four of those have to be taken at specific times (6 minute mark and 3 minute mark I think), you also get one 20 second PER HALF. I don't know what our timeout situation was at that point, but it's entirely plausible we had used our elective timeouts. Just because we had available timeouts, doesn't mean we could use them because you HAVE to use some of them at specific times. Either way, it doesn't matter. We called a timeout during the run, and it didn't stop them. No point in calling another. The team has to be able to pace themselves and find good shots, better to learn the lesson in game 1 away than to burn time outs trying to get your guys' heads in the game. It's a game of runs, stop hindsight micro-managing everything that McHale does. Despite what the idiots on this board think, Kevin McHale knows a hell of a lot more about winning championship than any of the tools demanding his resignation and insinuating that he doesn't know what he is doing.
I wonder if during those runs where we can't get a bucket we just throw out our longest, best defensive 5 possible to slow them down. Nick, Brewer, Ariza, Capela and Dwight (if healthy). Why the hell not? Just run PnR on our end. 5 minutes, see what happens. This is for when we have those big leads (14+) that need protection, obviously. GS have fallen behind in 5 of their last 7 games or something? The opportunity will present itself again so hopefully we can take advantage. At this point McHale has obviously gotten more right than wrong. Gotta trust his decisions.
Popovich does this all the time and people are falling over themselves to make out with the guy. This is just another "McFail" thread.
That's fine. The problem is that he said "We didn't have any timeouts" and "Where was I going to get another timeout?" (or something similar). This is completely different, shockingly revealing he didn't know how timeouts are assessed. Inexplicable. This may also explain why the Rockets haven't posted his post-game press conference on Rockets.com when they always do after playoff games (and maybe even regular season games). It would be too embarrassing to have it out there for the entire world to see.
Unbelievable some people have no problem with a coach who has been coaching in the NBA for 4+ years and played many years as a player, and doesn't know how timeouts work. Again, I have no problem with him not calling a timeout in that situation, but to say, "We didn't have any timeouts" is absolutely wrong. Hence, the post-game presser not being on Rockets.com, which is highly unusual. If the attention-to-detail is lacking on something as basic as this, how do you think the attention-to-detail would be on say, leaving guys wide open for layups over-and-over last night, or Dame Lillard hitting a wide-open 3 in last year's playoffs. Oh, right, that's the players' fault, not McHale's. This is a pattern, guys.
I started out asking the question, and we figured it out during this thread. All David Blatt got ridiculed nationally last week for calling a timeout when they didn't have any, and Chris Webber has been ridiculed for years calling a timeout in the NCAA championship game (when he shouldn't have been dribbling the ball up the court anyway, but his PG bailed out on him). But if McHale shows he doesn't know how timeouts are assessed, some people say it's an 'overreaction' and no big deal. Why the double standard? I like McHale and think he has lots of positives, but c'mon, let's call a spade a spade on this one.
Despite this I remember two timeouts IIRC. McHale has been rightly criticized IMHO for not calling time outs, but I think he is doing it more in the playoffs than usual.
The issue with your premise is that there is no proof whatsoever that he "doesn't know how timeouts are assessed." First, you've admitted multiple times that you aren't even positive what he said in the presser. Even assuming he said he had no timeouts remaining -- it seems entirely plausible that he had decided he would not burn a full timeout at that juncture and was referring to :20 second timeouts. I'm sorry, but I'm just not buying into this "He's so embarrassingly inept that the Rockets pulled the post-game presser!" theory. I'm just not. Also, your post history is visible -- and if anything is a pattern, it's your "McFail is a terrible coach" refrain. It's quite literally the only thing you've posted about this entire season, save for a few Shaun-Livingston-would-have-been-our-savior posts earlier today. Excuse me if I can't take this seriously.
If the Rockets would post the video, we would all have the exact words he said, but they won't. Go out and try to find it. But he definitely said "We didn't have any timeouts" or "We ran out of timeouts" and then made a snide remark to the reporter saying, "Where were we going to get them?" Many other people heard it. It was all over talk radio today, too. So don't go saying I'm not positive what he said. That's like trying to discredit the whole argument based on a couple of words that might have been different. It's indisputable. Secondly, I started this thread asking the question giving McHale the benefit of the doubt. Read it again. Then when the facts came out that timeouts existed, the apologists started coming out. I really want McHale to succeed, but c'mon guys, the defensive breakdowns and turnovers are HUGE problems all season long that haven't been addressed and will prevent this team from winning a championship. I challenge all Rocket fans to stop protecting 'sacred cows' and look at the objective facts. I don't bother to post anything about the 'minor' stuff. I only post about the major issues that have been perpetual under this regime that others either didn't notice (like McHale's statement in a video that has gone AWOL), or don't bother to dig into the details on (what McHale said about Livingston 3 years ago). I gave McHale credit for wanting to keep Livingston when Morey cut him. I think he's a good motivator and evaluator of talent, but unfortunately that's not all that it takes to win a championship.
TO's had little to nothing to do with that loss last night and no matter the premise/point to make here we're rolling with McHale. The hand wringing over whether or not he knew this, that or the other about TO's is pointless, besides he has 3-4 bench coaches to point that out if it was an issue.
Obviously not correct, right? They absolutely wiped away that 16 point lead. Should have stopped the bleeding much sooner
If you accept mediocrity, you will get mediocrity. Fans in New York and Chicago would give their coaches hell for not knowing the rules. Fans in Houston? Oh, whatever. It's "pointless." I'd rather be part of a fan base and media market that is tough on their coaches and players, not giving them passes for egregious mistakes when they're getting paid $4 million a year. Sign me up for that kind of salary -- I'd gladly take the scrutiny at that price.
