Chronicle columnist states, "This team is going to be retooled no matter what".

Sorry if this has already been posted. I found it interesting to hear somebody publicaly say that there will be changes before next year. Not that it wasn't widely speculated and at the very least the idea has to be considered. But this is the first time I have seen it in the press.


HoustonChronicle.com -- http://www.HoustonChronicle.com | Section: NBA Basketball

April 22, 2004, 1:22AM



Players' anger more show than telling
By RICHARD JUSTICE
Copyright 2004 Houston Chronicle

As if such things mattered, the Rockets talked tough Wednesday. Acted tough, too. Almost dared you to say the wrong thing.

Had you stumbled into Toyota Center from out of town, you'd have been impressed.

You'd have thought these guys were ready to draw a line in the sand and dare Shaq and Kobe to cross it.

Never mind that Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant were 1,500 miles and two time zones away.

Never mind that these Rockets have yet to get tough when it matters.

Never mind that they lead the NBA in empty words.

This was the day they decided to send the world a message that they're ticked off and determined, that they've suddenly acquired Shaq-sized chips on their shoulders.

First, there was Kelvin Cato blowing off reporters during a post-practice media session.

Then there was Cuttino Mobley serving up a few short answers before leaving in a huff.

Isn't that perfect?

The two guys who did so little in the two losses in Los Angeles become the two who decide to send some kind of message before Friday's Game 3.

Instead of sending a message, how about grabbing a rebound?

How about a defensive stop?

OK, never mind.

Maybe these are the new Rockets. Maybe these Rockets really are angry, and maybe they'll convert that anger into something tangible Friday.

Maybe they've heard coach Jeff Van Gundy point out their defensive breakdowns and missed opportunities so many times that they really will make a stand.

Maybe Wednesday was the day this series turned around.

Maybe Cato is now so mad he'll actually take a rebound away from Karl Malone.

You're kidding, right?

Kelvin Cato wants no part of Karl Malone.

You guys spend so much time worrying about Steve Francis playing the point that you can't see the Rockets' first offseason priority has to be acquiring a legitimate power forward to play alongside Yao Ming.

Good point.

Maybe the turnaround will begin with Mobley being more than a speed bump for Bryant.

At this point, it's not even about winning.

If the Lakers bring their "A" game Friday, it won't matter what the Rockets do.

Yet the contest is fascinating because it will be a test this group of Rockets hasn't faced before.

It's a test that has nothing to do with next season, because that blueprint is pretty much set. This team is going to be retooled no matter what, with a power forward and a guard at the top of its summer shopping list.

Maybe it's something else.

These players have said the right thing more often than they've done the right thing. Maybe this is their chance to prove something to themselves and about themselves.

Maybe Mobley meant it when he said he didn't care what the public thought of him or his teammates. Maybe, though, he could prove something to his peers around the league and to his coaches and teammates.

This season has been about Van Gundy trying to get his players to buy into his vision of a basketball team. Because the defense has been so much better and the offense so much more structured, he has succeeded to a large extent.

There's still much work to be done. The Rockets have to get bigger and tougher inside, they have to demand more of Yao, and they have to get smarter with the ball at crunch time.

Some of that improvement will come with new personnel, but some of it will come because these players want to win as much as Shaq and Kobe want to win, as much as Tim Duncan and Jason Kidd want to win.

So were they really mad Wednesday?

I'm guessing not.

I'm guessing they acted angry because they think they're supposed to be angry.

I'm guessing they were devastated after the Game 1 loss. But just like always, they lost, not because of their lack of talent but because of their lack of discipline and desire.

The Lakers won Game 1 because O'Neal got a rebound at the right time.

They won Game 2 because Bryant torched Mobley for 20 points in the third quarter.

Those explanations are simplistic, because there are a dozen other factors. The Rockets have missed 17 of their 22 3-pointers. The Lakers have 15 more assists and 10 fewer turnovers.

The Lakers are going to win the series because of O'Neal and Bryant, because they've been down this road before, because they're simply better.

The Rockets will win a game or even two if Mobley and Cato convert their anger into something more tangible.