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Now that the dust has settled/ adjustments for game three

Discussion in 'Houston Rockets: Game Action & Roster Moves' started by fonzie_004, May 7, 2015.

  1. fonzie_004

    fonzie_004 Member

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    I have stayed away from the GARM for two hours since the game ended, the reason being the knee-jerking criticism, celebration etc is just over the top, and I love interacting with the level-headed actual rockets fans who don't carry on and overreact to things.

    So the topic for discussion I am posting relates to adjustments for game three, what do we all propose needs to be done - Mchale has been out coached so far IMO which won't surprise many.

    - adjusting to the possible return of Paul and the dominance of Blake Griffin:

    Could it actually be that Blake handling the ball is a bigger problem than Paul? I don't think so, but my goodness is Griffin scary. He has grown up a lot, and like him or not he is a top 5 player in this league playing at this current level.

    So what adjustments need to be made? I think we have to risk Dwight on Blake a lot more on D, we have to risk the fouls he might take to stop him as we have no other choice. Dwight just has to be smart, we need to double him in the post and rotate hard to try and contain their shooters.

    Pick and Roll with Chris Paul will be a whole different animal, stopping this or containing it will be so important, defense will be the key to taking a game in LA.

    - Making open shots, turnovers and free throws:

    My word do we need to work on these things, in the worst way. Hope coach is taking notes and doing what coaches are meant to do.

    - ball movement:

    yeah we aren't filled with natural ball-handlers, but the last 4 minutes of game two isolation basketball was brutal, we got away with the W, but we gotta move the rock, james dribbling out the clock and throwing up a prayer won't work.

    Ariza and jet need to be viable catch and shoot options, and so far they have been worrying.

    contrary to most here, I am calm about where we are at in the series, I am sure we can take one in LA.

    Are we underdogs? yes for sure, but at this stage at 1-1 I feel we have a chance, we have two elite players playing well as do the clips and they are beatable. We just have to trust our guys.
    Believe!
     
    2 people like this.
  2. emoreland

    emoreland Contributing Member

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    I'm in the minority here but I dont think McHale has been outcoached. He isnt the one missing free throws and 3's. He isnt the one throwing the ball away; leading to easy baskets for the Clips and he isnt the one leaving their guys uncovered for wide open shots.

    I do agree with you that Howard needs to be on Griffin more.

    My whole take on the Rockets is this: Houston is a team that, for whatever reason, comes out flat if they get more than a day off. Its just a fact and I dont know what causes it or who is to blame but it is what it is. I went to the Feb. 20 game in Dallas vs the mavericks (after the All-Star weekend layoff) and the game played out EXACTLY like game 1 of this series. They had a 10 pt lead for a large part of the game and then ended up being down big when all was said and done.

    What Im trying to say is this: This series is ALL about what Houston is doing now and going forward. If Houston has just an average game, we will win game 3. Just look at tonights game. They missed over 20 free throws and over 20 3's plus another 7 turnovers by Harden and we still won. This team is talented enough to overcome such poor execution and bone-headed mistakes and I dont think any team left in these playoffs could pull off what Houston did tonight.

    In conclusion, The Rockets have yet to play anything close to a good game yet; in this series or the previous one vs. Dallas. When you rely on the 3 as much as Houston does, you will have hot shooting nights and you will have cold shooting nights. The law of averages says that Houston is bound to get hot at some time because the Clippers arent closing out on our shooters, we are just missing 3's. Im just hoping that weve gotten some of these bad shooting nights out of our way and that the hot shooting is just around the corner. Bringing effort, getting the 50/50 balls and taking care of the basketball is a good step in the right direction.
     
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  3. fonzie_004

    fonzie_004 Member

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    Agreed in most parts, I'm irrationally confident we can win the series
     
  4. shastarocket

    shastarocket Contributing Member

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    Regarding Blake, I think a lot of what happens in game 3 will be dependent on what happened during the 2nd half tonight.

    Were we successful with our adjustments or was he simply just winded?

    I feel like we are at a point where we should consider starting Smith and having him work Blake and wear him down. Make him earn those points and deter him from getting into a rhythm.

    The second question is regarding Ariza on CP3. I feel like it should be situational as the clips will try to force the switch anyway. Perhaps put Harden on him (at least initially) to body him up and play the passing lanes.

    He is going to clobber us with his midrange game, but that is simply something we cannot afford to use our paint defenders on. Force him to make tge shot and pray that we get through some of the screens to disrupt the play before it starts.

    I agree with you guys regarding the offense. Make your shots!

    We have a chance, but splitting LA will do massive things for our psyche.
     
  5. Old Man Rock

    Old Man Rock Contributing Member

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    You can't guard anyone for 48 minutes and you can't play hard nosed defense for 48 minutes. All this we need more energy is the wrong approach. We need more ball movement we need to play smarter and we need to put up more intensity on d at the right times. That's my take that no one will read but I type anyway because if I don't I go crazy
     
  6. Mirri3000

    Mirri3000 Member

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    We come out with a 10 point lead in the first every, single, game. Then we go flat and lose it, nearly every single game. That kind of lull is on the players. If we cut down the insane amount of turnovers, we will stomp the clips. The coach has done a great job, and only a fool would believe otherwise. Adjustments will only be minor, it's not coaching issues when you avg 20 TO's a game and blow 20 lay ups or brick 10 wide open three's.....
     
  7. smoothie

    smoothie Jabari Jungle

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    the players have to bring the energy they had at the end of the 3rd and into the 4th quarter last night. that energy has to be there ALL game.

    continue to attack the basket instead of settling for jumpers. that's how to get to the line and keep the clippers in foul trouble. specifically jordan and hopefully blake too.

    i liked ariza fronting blake last night. it worked well in the second half. more time for ariza at PF! the lineup of dwight-ariza-brewer-harden-prigs worked really well whenyou switch brewer to guard the PG (especially if paul is back).
     
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  8. Koperboy

    Koperboy Member

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    Putting Howard on Blake - please no. Blake from the high post feeding his cutting teammates without any rim protection?

    Smith on Blake from the start - yes please.

    Jones doesn't bring anything against Blake as he's overmatched offensively and defensively. Smith at least makes Blake work for every basket, plus Smith-Howard chemistry is unreal. It's enough DeAndre blinks and the ball is already heading to Dwight's way.

    Plus Jones' cutting and slashing would be more efficient against Big Baby.
     
  9. ParaSolid

    ParaSolid Member

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    Howard on Blake worked pretty well I think. Maybe try that out!
     
  10. RayRay10

    RayRay10 Houstonian

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    Game 1, yes. Game 2, I thought Mchale made a brilliant adjustment going small and ensuring that Doc couldn't employ the "Hack-A-" strategy. For some reason, Doc benched Jordan most of the 4th in response which allowed Harden to drive at will.
    1) I'm not sure Paul comes back yet; I mean, I wouldn't be surprised if he did, but I could also see him out the next 2 games if not the series. Hamstring injuries are finicky and usually can only be fixed by extended rest. I think Doc has been honest in that he doesn't want to risk further injury to Paul and bringing him back early would do just that. Game 3 is still only 6 days since he was injured and hamstring injuries usually take 1-2 weeks of rest to heal.

    2) I think you have to play it by ear with Blake. T. Jones was much better all around on Him, especially in the second half and the Rockets did a much better jic of switching which limited him to jump shots. I think you have to make the Clippers beat you from the outside and pack the paint.
    Yes, at some point, the shots will fall. Just got to keep shooting.
    It seemed to work just fine. This is kind of a strange argument because James was the only guy you could trust at that point. It also puts the defense in a tough position and didn't lead to too many transition opportunities which is what the Clips were thriving on.

    Ariza hasn't been horrible, but he seems to be falling in love with that midrange 2. He's got to stop that as he's just not consistent enough with it. He was hitting his 3's early in Game 1 and he'll get hot again. Terry, I give him credit, hustled in the second half, but otherwise has been terrible. Needs to hit the open 3's, otherwise, McHale needs to go to Prigs earlier as at least he's dioing well on offense.
    Series just started. Clips will probably get an emotional boost on their home court, but that team can be beat. At some point, the Rockets shots will fall, and the offense will start to gel.

    Yeah, we're underdogs, but Vegas still likes us. A 1 point dog on the road means that Vegas believes we are the better team, but the Clips get the nod for Home Court advantage. Main goal is to get 1 of the next 2; do that and we are in the drivers seat again.
     
  11. rocks123

    rocks123 Member

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    Rockets can be so inconsistent you don't know what team is coming out of the locker room even at half time. I dont think Mchale is being out coached though. It's really just consistency and focus and that's on the players. Griffin is scary good but without Chris Paul and Deandre Jordan in foul trouble or focus on Dwight the load can be too much for him. I think lack of adequate rest is taking its toll on Blake. So let's just make him work more so that in the 4th his tank will be near empty. No closer for the clips on the 4th is going to be a huge advantage for us especially if its a close game.
     
  12. count_dough-ku

    count_dough-ku Contributing Member

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    Put Howard on Blake if T-Jones and Smith aren't getting it done. If Paul is either not playing or resting on the bench, then you can have Ariza on him at times. But we cannot let Blake go off on us again like in the first 6 quarters of this series.

    Take care of the ball and make your free throws. It sounds simplistic kinda like McHale's "we need to play harder" method of coaching, but it's true. A lot of these turnovers are of the careless variety. And it's inexcusable for Dwight to go 8-21, Smith 2-6, and Brewer 3-6. at the foul line That's 39% shooting for those 3 guys combined. If they had shot just 60%, that would've been an extra 7 points and this thing would've been over much sooner.

    Play defense for 48 minutes. The Rockets have struggled at times offensively when Harden goes to the bench to start the 2nd quarter. But the real reason they keep blowing big leads and watching the other team build a huge lead of their own is that the defense completely vanishes in the 2nd quarter. There's no excuse for that to happen when their lineup usually consists of Dwight, Smith, Brewer, and occasionally Ariza during those stretches. That just comes down to effort.
     
  13. spankz141

    spankz141 Member

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    Hack a Jordan all game long...force Doc to get him out of the game.

    Play a lot of small ball...front Blake.
     
  14. watashi315

    watashi315 Member

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    - McHale needs to make adjustments on how to guard Blake Griffin. Putting Ariza on him and fronting him during the 4th was clutch. Coz nobody could stop Griffin up to that point. He was playing like he's a character in NBA Jam

    - The defensive intensity stepped up BIG TIME in the second half. Keep that intensity up in game 3

    - Harden needs to wake the hell up. He finally showed up in the 4th quarter. He needs to show up every game from this point onward

    - We need to contain CP3 and Griffin and their PnR offense. I know it's harder said than done but we have to figure out a way. We need to throw fresh bodies at them just like Grizzlies did with Warriors. Keep them out of rhythm.
     
  15. SamFisher

    SamFisher Contributing Member

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    Dorsey needs to use his 6 fouls.

    I hate hate hate the hack-a but Doc started it, Rockets should finish it.
     
  16. sugrlndkid

    sugrlndkid Member

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    We need to continue to mirror lineups as opposed to scheduled rest time:
    a. If Blake is on the floor - Dwight better be guarding him
    b. Once Paul returns - Ariza better be there
    c. the "Grandpa's" should rotate on JJ
    d. Match DeAndre with Josh
    e. If the Clippers toss this lineup around: CP3, JJ, Crawford, DeAndre, and Blake - the Rockets should counter with Ariza, Brewer, Harden, Smith and Dwight.
     
  17. newAge_Rockets

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    Regarding Ariza, he seemed to break his last cold shooting slump while in LA. He lives in Los Angeles, and the oppurtinity to sleep in his own bed and be with family could help him turn it around offensively.
     
  18. fv court

    fv court Member

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    Josh Smith's highest and best calling is defending Blake.
    Retaliatory hacks on Jordan (maybe even preemptive hacks)
    More Corey Brewer...he makes mistakes, but he brings incredible energy.
     
  19. FTW Rockets FTW

    FTW Rockets FTW Contributing Member

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    If CP3 is back, he ain't going to be 100%

    But even a not 100% CP3 is good enough to throw lobs to Jordan and Griffin

    We must stop that.
     
  20. fonzie_004

    fonzie_004 Member

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    Let's hope so, we need him on both ends so badly
     

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