This. I don’t mind the Rockets incorporating in new wrinkles and minor changes. However there seems to be this idea that the Rockets are a better offensive team and that simply isn’t the case. They will likely improve some with practice but the opposing defenses will as well. Trading Covington and bringing in Wood was robbing Peter to pay Paul. Defensively I don’t know what they are doing, I can see some value in trying to increase the defensive possible responses. Still trading Covington for Wood was a big blow to the defense. The role players brought in defend well so that is a positive. The switch from Westbrook to Wall also helps defensively.
Im hoping that divesifying the offense will have us take a hit in the regular season while as you've said maybe that randomness as he talks about will allow us top offense in the playoffs like the heat.
I think there are still just some stylistic growing pains. We’re 5 games in, and Wall and Harden have only played 2 of them together (and basically didn’t play at all in the preseason). Defensively, the team clearly looks more comfortable in switching, but I can appreciate Silas and co. trying to increase their comfort doing other things. I see a challenge in judging too much with the rotations so fluid - they’ve had moments with Nwaba, Tate, and Gordon altogether looking really good with on ball defense. I’d like to see them keep Woods’ minutes a bit lower - I think at least some of his struggles are focus, and he’s averaging over 35 mpg and expending so much energy on offense. He’ll always struggle against the Jurkics and Jokics of the world, but the Mavs issues were more mental than physical.
I hope the Rockets win a playoff series, I view this team as an all or nothing proposition. Aaron Gordon is close to perfect but my concern is his mediocre three point shooting. We already have Wall, Wood and Gordon being rather mediocre from beyond the arc.
Its way too early to make an educated/informative evaluation of the Rockets or any team really IMO. There's just too little a sample to evaluate... I mean currently the Knicks have a better record than the Nets lol. That's not to say the problems/concerns listed by the OP aren't real. The issue of defense (or lack of it) is clearly an issue, as are the shooting of Wall/Wood etc. How the new offense will work and how Harden fits within it (as well as with wall) are all going to be huge issues. Perhaps after a couple of weeks of practice/games/familiarity these issues will be improved. Perhaps Harden buys in and the specter of his unhappiness /trade demand will evaporate. Of course the converse is possible also - that Harden's unhappiness/demands sinks the teams culture/focus. That the Wall/Harden fit is just as bad as it seems in the couple of games we've seen. I don't have high hopes for the defense or the Wall/Harden fit (a topic i've posted about several times) but it'll take at least 20 games or more before we'll know how good or bad this team will be.
We’re really just 2 games in with no preseason. I think it’s going to be an up and down couple months which will leave us in the 5 or 6 seed. But there’s going to be a run at some point and if Harden sticks around a really good team is going to emerge.
I'll take 50-22; .694 winning percentage ought to be good for a top 4 seeding. But... 2nd round and Cancun... sounds pretty characteristic of the Harden years. Ah well.
If Hardaway Jr. misses a few of those 3s and Nwaba hits his free throws, we'd probably have a different narrative. Our defense is a concern obviously, but I think we'll get better as soon as the players get accustomed to all the new intricacies. I agree that we do need a big that can defend and be versatile and also a point that can run the offense and hit perimeter shots.
Rockets have 2 games next where they play 2 teams that had easy schedules in the east. They most certainly need to get these wins. The back 2 back games with Lakers are going to be hard. If they can atleast split this they will be fine. Going for the 2 wins againt the spurs, w/ Bulls Suns and Pistons.... Which would put them at 11-4 10-5 if they lose both lakers games. They need to go 8-1 before they show up again for the Mavs game in Dallas. Lets see if they have what it takes or they just going swing out. This will test this team early to see if there on the verge of a top 6 seed.
We obviously need some more practice. Defense needs a lot of work. If Boogie can play longer, he can help our rebounding, I'm just not sure mentality or physically he can hold up. I'm afraid Harden and Wall will have more problems coexisting. Just a feeling, unless they decide they can work it out Stone will need to keep the phone warm. I'm encouraged by what I've seen from Wall, Wood, Tate and Brown. Harden was great until he tweaked his ankle and like Riko said more weight equal more pressure on his joints/ligaments/tendons. Gordon is not bad, but believe if DRock's AG dream can come to fruition we should do it. Boston's assets seem to be the best bet if Harden situation doesn't work out. The good news there are still 67+ games to go.
3rd most wins in NBA under Morey and Harden. Pick the scab until it bleeds????? This fanbase is crazy.
3rd most wins with nothing to show for it. And I’m not part of “rings culture”. In most situations, you can have successful seasons without winning the whole thing. But when you have the greatest offensive player in history for 8 years and come out of it with no championship, it leaves a sour taste in people’s mouth.
Silas offense is nowhere near as complex as Adelman. And Silas offense is 5 Out/PnR/Iso (like Rockets last season) with more off ball motion. Cutting and setting off ball picks is not that complicated. Especially for players at this level. There is a reason that Silas has said the offense is similar to Rockets offense last season. And why learning the new defense was always the priority. I'm so glad you were not around for Dream's 1st 8 years with the Rockets. Rockets never win their only 2 championships if they had this mentality.
I think there is a huge difference between how your offense performs during the regular season where teams typically have 0-2 days to prepare for you versus a playoff series. It seems that the Rockets suffer during the playoffs due to predictability. Even if the offense is worse during the regular season, it could be better in the playoffs. This actually goes for offense and defense. In addition to that, the Rockets also suffer due to the referees changing the definition of a foul during the playoffs. The refs swallowing their whistles in the playoffs is absolutely going to happen. It's always been that way, and it will be in the future. If we don't prepare for that during the regular season, then we're not smart. Christian Wood is going to get more put backs and have his shot blocked less than PJ Tucker.
