the denvers would have had non-consensual secks with the rox, and we would be in the non-consensual side.
I didn't predict 50 wins, but knew it was a decent possibility. I had OKC, Denver, and Min better starting the season. With the fast early start, it took some serious pessimism to think they weren't a playoff team any time in 2025.
Its a good time to be a fan. Besides the 17-18 season, I hadn't felt "joy" in watching the Rockets play since the Yao/Tmac days. The first Harden/Howard season wasn't bad, but we only ever really had a defensive identity during Harden's timeframe for a couple of years, and his style and dominance on how the team played wasn't always that fun. Now our guys defend, rebound, hustle, and win close games. There's an intensity and accountability that feels good to witness. Udoka has accomplished a huge feat in a short timeframe, and while I wsnt us to win everything obviously, honestly anything past 50 wins is icing. Now its all just about getting that playoff experience, no matter what happens.
So 32% of this board as of now is either bold-faced liars, or blindly optimistic fanboys. ... I half kid, an eight-win improvement from last year isn't really THAT crazy, but to get 50 wins with six [difficult] games remaining on the schedule is still quite a bit better than I think anyone reasonable could have expected.
Yeah, I never thought it would happen. I still think the team needs a person who can take over a game in the playoffs, but kudos to the kids.
I voted 47-50 on the poll and thought it was possible to go over. At that point, I thought Amen would be starting at SF to start the season. In retrospect, Dillon has been consistently good all year except for the bonehead technicals.
According to this thread there is a third option. https://bbs.clutchfans.net/threads/houston-rockets-2024-25-win-prediction-thread.323734/
I had us at 49 wins before the season. Since I don't think we will another regular season game.....just one off the mark.
I thought we were a 45/46 win team - tops. Obviously we overachieved on wins. I do think to some extent having a team as deep as we do has proven to be a formula for regular season wins - it makes us more resilient to back to backs, more resilient to injuries, and more resilient pushing through in tough late games/OT. All that said - I DONT think we are necessarily the 2nd best team in the West - we are probably as good as a normal 4-8th seed in the conference(which is going to be a 45ish win team ironically). We have real struggles offensively that I don't see solutions for immediately but with consistent defensive effort, I think we are still going to be a tough out in any matchup. I still think as in every playoffs - this comes down to a game of matchups. The teams that go the farthest are the ones that can be the most versatile and resilient in those series matchups. Being able to play double big, being able to run an effective zone, being able to beat other team's zone are all things that I think makes us a more dangerous team than the average fresh young team with their first time in the playoffs so I'm hopeful....but I think this is where the "can Jalen/Alpi/Amen be a leader on a playoff team" drum that I have been beating for years really gets put to the test because all those players(and even guys like Tari and Jabari) have very clear limitations to their game that can be schemed and exploited ruthlessly in the playoffs with the right personnel. We need to find out - when the game gets tight in the 4th quarter, do Jalen or Alpi's defensive limitations make them unplayable to finish out a game? Do their offensive limitations make them unplayable when a team says "you can have any shot but that one you want". Same with Tari - great player on both ends, but also a guy who's chaos is not yet controlled so sometimes it bites you late in games with costly misses and TOs - can you trust him to close out games when every detail matters? The one thing we can't do is fall in love with our vets to close out games - we need to get at least some data on how playable these young players are late in tough games because ultimately the team that wins the title is the one with the best 6 man rotation...and your depth can't necessarily help you there.
Ime is the key to the playoffs. If he coaches the same in the playoffs as the regular season, we have no chance. He has to be able to adjust.
People had been over predicting the win totals since Tilly bought the team. I always took the under. Happy to see the trend broken.
Silas is a frickin joke!! People are going to say that he was looking at stats..... he was reading a damn script!! The hitting the table looked so fake it looked like I was watching a SNL skit!! Digressing... Kudos to Rockets for not breaking the team up at the deadline!! I was on the fence on whether to trade 1-2 pieces to get some much needed offense, but in retrospect, they did the right thing by sticking with the kidz to see how it would work out at the end of the regular season! I already said in another thread that I have no real expectations from any of our young core in the playoffs and that I'm happy just to see them get their feet this year! Spoiler Charles Barkley: "Them young boys are coming!!" ... Go Rockets!!! ....... ....... .......
lol, two six game losing streaks in the same season for a 50-win team would be nuts... I wonder if that's ever happened before. I think the odds are not in your favor, especially if the Rockets stay healthy.
