Firstly, the Rockets are officially back where they belong. Even though not over yet, this regular season was great! So many nice moments, big wins and insane plays. It was truly a joy to watch. Now, with the playoffs around the corner, the main thing I think about is who of the core youngsters will rise to the occasion, and who will fall? IMO the guys that will elevate their play are Amen, Jabari and Tari. I don't know about Jalen and Alpi. I fear that Alpi will get schemed off the floor, and that Jalen will be slow to adjust to the defense. I hope I'm wrong about them, but I'm not getting my hopes up. Who do you have as a playoff riser, and who do you think will dissapoint?
Of our players, I believe that all will rise—for what are Rockets but cylinders filled with dreams, shooting towards the stars? …also shooting at people sometimes but we don’t talk about those kinds of rockets here
More seriously, I have faith in Jalen and Alpi to play well because they are our most experienced young guys and I do believe that they have proven their mettle over the season. Amen’s physicality and Tari’s relentless energy should be a good fit for the playoffs. Jabari has hit big shots over his career and I think he’s someone who likes being under bright lights. Reed may have a late season renaissance too. Cam..well I hope he gets playing time and does well but that’s about all I can hope for
I don’t have a strong opinion on who might fall, but I’m confident that the ones on the rise will be Jalen, Amen, Sengun, and Bari.
I believe the first game will be a rough start. The nerves, adrenaline, etc will take over for a while until they settle in, so my hope is that DB and FVV right the ship early for the kids. I also predict that half this place, Rockets reddit, twitter, etc will all panic, demand trades, call Jalen or Jabari a bust, etc when we go down by like 6 points early and make themselves look stupid again.
If we hold onto the double big lineup into the playoffs, the best rebounders will perform best and the worst rebounders will perform worst. Really boring but simple. My guess is Alpi, Tari, Jabari and Amen. Adams will get hacked which will negate his rebounding. FVV and Brooks have really bad career playoffs numbers so I'm not expecting a lot from them. Jalen will not get many drives, so I expect his average efficiency to dip a little bit. He'll do everything coach says and play the best defense of his life though. Like 1 game per series probably he'll be hot from 3.
IT will be a Match up thing I think AlP will be his same consistant self I think Jalen will have at least 2 monster games I have expectations of being better than the regular season from Amen/Bari and Tari Rocket River
I don’t think the moment is too big for any of our core players. Ime is the biggest what if to me. Will he be able to match wits with the other coaches? Can he make the necessary adjustments in the flow of the game?
Man we need to get back to our man defense with switching concepts from the first half of the season when we were actually an elite defense
That's exactly what i am wondering, Will he be able to make adjustments from game to game as well? How will he treat his players? He preferred to sit players for extended periods rather than trust and treat them as best players. I don't think the playoffs will tolerate that. With all the pains, it will be a growing experience for the whole team. All of them deserved the experience and it will be a lot of fun to watch them grow.
I think Jabari is going to show he’s got big shot Bob ability. I expect him to shine when the lights are bright.
Tari worries me… it’s like the harder he plays the more his IQ lowers on both ends of court (Good thing we have Bari and Amen) I hope tonight showed Dillion all we need him to do is spot up and shoot 3s….he doesn’t have to try and be MORE
yeah Tari seems like a better looking Tate out there. Jack of all trades but not great at anything in particular. Too selfish driving to the basket when he can’t finish at a great level.
He is much better in finishing compared to last year imo. You get that tari every now and then but generally he is much better. His shooting is also more consistent. I am very satisfied with his improvement. Am I the only one who is down on Jabari? Maybe not down but I am just seeing a limited role. Every time he dribbles in open court or drives to the basket, it is painful to watch. It is like he is the real Tari. I just want him to shoot but do not make any decisions or put the ball on the floor.
Ime is the LAST person we’ll need to worry about in the postseason. He’ll be ready and have the team ready.
