The Rockets primarily lost because they shot 30% on 50+ three point shots. If they Rockets shot 35% the game is possibly played different down the stretch. The Bucks maximized easy baskets, blowing the Rockets out in fast break points (+26) and also limited the things that the Rockets do to win games when the Rockets shoot poorly (only 7 free throw attempts) and limited the Rockets in points off of turnovers. It is one game, and the Bucks are clearly the best regular season team in the East so I will not read too much into it. Most of the issues can be addressed or were random (poor three point % and free throws). The Rockets can beat anyone when they bring effort defensively and hit their 3's........... what makes the Rockets dangerous is that they typically win the free throw battle, points off of turnovers and protect the ball and defend solid......... doing that allows them to win games even when their shot isn't falling. Last night the Rockets lost the rebounding battle, the free throw battle, the three point shooting battle, the fouls battle, the steals/blocks, points in the paint and fast break battle........... if you told me that before the game, I would have thought they lost by 40.
Actually not mad or concerned over this game. This is a preview of what the playoffs could be like and this gives the Rockets ample time to adjust. If they seriously avoided about 4 or 5 layups from lazy inbound passes that were turnovers, the game would have been a lot closer than it looked, 3 point shooting woes aside. I liked what they were doing in the 1st, by getting Capela involved early and Harden going to his floater. House came up huge. I really didn't start to notice the wheels coming off until Shump was subbed in while Harden and Capela were subbed out. Rockets went small, Giannis got subbed back in and CP3 was more turnover prone than he typically is and was getting worked by Bledsoe. For the most part early on though, the crowd was silent up until the lazy inbound passes that resulted in layups. I also think the Rockets aren't showing their full poker hand yet. I expect a lot more Faried entering the playoffs and Tucker moved to 3.
Bledsoe was doing a good job of recovering when Harden blew past him. I'd have brought in a screener to freeze him at the perimeter. They wouldn't be able to switch in time to stop Harden from having a clear shot at a 10' floater. That's money in the bank for Harden.
In a set there is always gonna be regression and something else to put in. That’s what’s been working for the rockets. You have to expect factors like the league and other teams adjusting.. there will always be something to create or put in that isn’t missing. The point is, morey and team track and they can see everything’s through the stats what’s working and what’s not working. James and CP3 are the ones in the court surveying the mindsets of their opponents, they have the permission of the coach to lead. An ever-evolving system and players allows the team to flow and adjust with what the other teams give them. Each team has its tendencies. One demoralizing shot can swing momentum drastically. The opposing team hits a hard-earned 2 (long 2) you come back with an easy 3 conserves mental energy for your team. Giannis’s style of play will not last long in a 7 game series. Too much energy for a big man to sustain that level. Hence he’s only at 26+ ppl. He’s not dropping back to back 50 point games.
I legit don't think the Bucks make it out of the East They will need alot of Ref Help like when Utah beat the Rockets Rocket River
i want us to lose a couple more games. this will definitely humble our team a little heading into playoffs
The MVP award for Harden is much more winnable and higher chance than NBA championship. A lot of people expected Harden to show up (and he kind of did), but it wasn't enough to swing the votes toward Harden. If the blame goes on the coach or the role players for not allowing Harden to showcase the superstar he is, I think they should accept the blame especially since he carried this team for the whole season. And if you're only concerned about the playoffs and us winning a championship, what we saw vs Bucks should be concerning to you. We can cruise through a lot of games when we're on a roll, but I fully expect a lot of cold nights from ALL of our role players on several nights during the playoffs. Not only that, hard, bruising defense isn't limited to just the Milwaukee Bucks. Lots of teams in Western Conf have very good defensive ratings. Also, the refs will be even worse in the playoffs... And you pointing out bad refereeing while being unconcerned about it makes no sense.
I'm never concerned if the shots just dont fall... it happens... What concerns me is the stuff that has for the last few years now... A) Consistent focus - too much lazy lackadaisicalness with the ball... can we stay focused for all of 48 mins? Quit trying the high risk passes and wait for a clear lane? Same inconsistent focus carries over to the spotty defense... We are too accustomed to doing enough to win and not staying consistent. I attribute this to MDA not pulling guys when they arent giving the focus (even when reserves are available) and keeping starters in when games are a forgone conclusion... it has lead to poor tendencies regarding consistency... imo... B) Rim protection - teams constantly get a cake walk to the rim... When we're dropping our 3's... 3>2 but when games are tight we give up way too many easy buckets... Clint is fine overall... but PJ is constantly asked to cover larger guys and we really have no further paint enforcers to bring in on a situational basis... Everything is built for spacing and we have no real options for a stronger defensive front court... Nene and Faried are decent for most games - but not against teams with a real center and power forward... C) No fallback plan - if the 3s aint falling - we may as well go home... We need an inside option that doesnt necessitate a dropoff or a lob pass in traffic... The drives can draw charging fouls by smart defenses... and the down low passes in traffic are open to getting swatted... just one guy who can post up in the paint and get us a high % bucket - and it aint Clint... D) make some damn in game adjustments! So sick of 'we're just gonna play our game...' If our shooting is on fire we can (and have) overcome these shortcomings... but still... I'd love to see some attention to these points so we're not in the 'hit your 3s or go home' situation...
I'm concerned guys are playing too many minutes and they won't be effective in the playoffs. We pissed away so many games this season, some for reasons beyond on-court. Last night was a disgrace, but season isn't over.
Over the last 2 seasons we are well over .500 when we shoot under our season 3 point average. We are far, far, far from a we may as well go home if the 3s aren’t falling team.
Thats a disingenuous stat... our average is derived from all our games... and as we have a high winning %, obviously there are a good number of games that we are under our average and still win... for any statistic... If our season average is .351... and we shoot .350 and win that counts as an 'under our average win'... whats our record when we shoot below .300 or .250 or worse? Being a couple points below our average isnt detrimental... shooting 7-44 .159 in game 7 is the kiss of death...
You know it. We will bounce back. I have faith in this team. With Faried and Gordon healthy we will be even stronger.
Part of me wants to believe that MDA is leaving stuff hidden. After all that’s smart and makes sense. And they were without Green and Faried anyway. Easy example.... just because Harden was super shaded right the whole time doesn’t mean they should have gone away from picks. I honestly don’t recall a single Harden-Capela PnR last night. You should still run this. Get Lopez on Harden and let Lopez play that kind of defense. All kinda of different rotations then forced. Like I want to believe MDA almost purposefully didn’t do that. Or other counters. Not that he didn’t want to win the game. But to see how the players handled it. And not show counters. But then I remember ... no... that’s not what’s happening lol
I almost never disagree with Rocket River. But I'm worried. I kept telling myself during the game that the Rockets weren't playing well and we'd play better if we meet them in the championship. But the little voice in my head told me the Bucks were making their own "luck" and we should take the Bucks more seriously. Honestly, if the goal is to get to the Finals then great. I'm confident this is our year in the West. But the Bucks look for real to me. And their ranking on offense and defense means something. That said, Harden is still MVP.
Our three point shooting last night reminded me of game 7 of last year. We live and die by it. Teams will copy this defensive approach in the playoffs - I’m not feeling too confident about cruising to the WCF again.
I ain't even mad about the loss. What concerns me is the overall health of this team. It seems like we're playing hurt/banged up and it's affecting our athleticism and effort.
