It is always better to beat a team at full strength but if we play them and beat them I'm gonna be happy regardless. When TMac and Ming were injured nobody took it easy on us. Basketball is about having some luck too, not having key guys hurt, rockets had their share of being on the bad side of that luck.
It's almost impossible to ever play any team at full strength, fatigue kicks in, especially for older teams. Pops handles the minutes of his players well but if playoffs started after 5 regular season games, nobody would want to go up against the Spurs.
I think you're getting ahead of yourself. The Rockets are first round fodder no matter who they play. Gallo and Fareid are nice players, but their injuries aren't stopping Denver from stomping us in the playoffs. They're still a deep team. Rockets fans act like now that we made the playoffs we have a chance to actually win a series. Our young guns will wear a team out, that's it. Quit asking which team can the Rockets beat. The real question is which team can extend the Rockets season by 1 or 2 games.
This is incorrect the rockets are definitely going to make the conference finals. Stop being so pessimistic!
If we meet the nuggets in the playoffs I'm willing to make a $20 tip jar bet with you. Rox win you put $20 in the tip jar. Denver wins I put $20.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Updated story on @<a href="https://twitter.com/kennethfaried35">kennethfaried35</a>. <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23Nuggets">#Nuggets</a> F says sprained ankle won't keep him out of the playoffs. <a href="http://t.co/qhgOZPVk90" title="http://on.nba.com/1325rCz">on.nba.com/1325rCz</a></p>— Denver Nuggets (@denvernuggets) <a href="https://twitter.com/denvernuggets/status/323648176223571968">April 15, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p>Totally unimportant right now, but Faried's MRI revealed no fractures but a sprain of the Anterior Talofibular ligament. Out final 2 games.</p>— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) <a href="https://twitter.com/HPbasketball/status/323875113323872256">April 15, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
If we meet denver in the 1st round i think we have a shot at winning. We have no chance of beating the Spurs or Thunder.
As far as I remember from the games this year with DEN, Faried was about the most effective player against us. I could be remembering wrong. Will he really be back come next weekend? I haven't seen any other update than out the next 2 days. That would seem to be a pretty amazing comeback.
I like the energy guys on the Nuggets (like Faried and even Iggy), but years of listening to their announcers have really convinced my brain to automatically hate them as a team. I mean it's not Jazz hate, or even Laker hate, but an auto-dislike toward them. I don't really have a preference whether we face them or the Spurs, because we'll be battling as a team to try and win either of them. I would like to stick it to the Spurs, but the Nuggets with a recovering team and missing Gallinari might give us an edge. Fingers crossed whoever we end up with !
