When teams run into a ball pressure zone, it is super simple to just have a guy (generally a forward) flash to the FT line who is a triple threat. Our problem is that Jabari is not a triple threat player, but we do have one on this team that isn't playing currently a guy that can play the Luis Scola role to stop these zones at the top from working. And yes, he is as old as dirt but Jeff Green would fix all of this mess as he can attack the paint, pass, and dribble........ Unfortunately, our coach doesn't seem to understand how to beat a 2-3 or 3-2 zone - and we wallow in stupidity because of it, and we continue to give away leads in the 4th against bad teams....this is like the 7th or 8th game we have lost with a double digit lead in the 4th. Either you go get a Luis Scola like player or play Green - we need to stop trying to put a round peg into a square hole. That defense is not new, and anyone who has coached basketball at almost any level can beat it or explain how to beat it, I am not sure why Ime can't figure it out. DD PS. Trade, Bari and Tari and picks for Markenen.....
We decided to stop defending Deni in the 4th. I saw Reed on Deni. I saw Bari on Deni. No doubles on Deni. Like…wtf?
You can trade for the 2017 warriors in their prime and steaming shitface udoka would still have the same issues. A helpless coach.
Starts with coaching. Do we have the best offensive players in the league? No. But we have more serviceable ones than most. If our coaching staff can’t draw up creative sets to get people going, or get a guaranteed bucket out of the timeout, then that’s on them.
Poor offense, turnovers, weak defense, mental lapses, and struggles to counter opponent double-teams on star Kevin Durant, leading to a recurring theme of an inability to close games despite building significant advantages. General Issues: Inability to Close: The team struggles with the skills needed to finish games when leads disappear, often reacting rather than dictating play. Doubling Kevin Durant: Opponents double-team Durant late, forcing the ball out of his hands, but the Rockets haven't effectively countered this with turnovers being a major issue. Youth & Execution: While young, the collapses stem from a failure to simplify and execute when the flow of the game changes, according to Yahoo Sports. Alperen Sengun's Absence: Injuries to key players like Sengun have also impacted flexibility and performance in crucial moments. These recurring collapses highlight a significant challenge for the Rockets in translating regular-season leads into wins, emphasizing a need for improved late-game execution and resilience. Solution : Change your gameplan. Restructure lineup. Find the best players who can hit shots early, and keep them in the game. Run plays that work. Dont always rely on bad shot decisions, space the floor. Look for the open man. You see this in team like the celtiics who are winning because they take the best shot, with the open man. If the rockets lack shooters than maybe they need to sacrifice the rebounding to find players who can shoot. PERIOD!
Markannen would make this team's defense worse. Just Derrick White would do. Could get him for just Jabari probably and would instantly raise this team's championship ceiling. Trade Tari for whatever I'm sick of seeing this dude. Defensive Jalen Green.
DD you make a great point of our lack of triple threat players. We have mainly spot shooters or drivers on the roster. With Sengun out, it's very easy to really wall of Amen then close out our shooters. Ya'll hated Jalen so much but at least created a ton of pressure both at the rim and created a lot of spacing from the 3 point line. Ironically enough, he would be a perfect fit next to Durant as KD fills Jalen's biggest hole, the mid-area.
The problem is much more glaring than the lack of offensive creativity …. It’s that we have never acknowledged that offense is even a problem. Every time we have an offensive collapse it’s always “defense could have been better” It’s straight denial
We cant make a 3... period. last 4 games 24%, 24% 22% 23%... when we were averaging 38.8%... if we shot our average, we win all 4 by 20+ points..... and for the most part, we've gotten wide open looks... This is why ive never been a fan of the 3ball and would much rather see guys take it to the rim... but thats not todays NBA and u take what the def gives u.... its like watching 0-27 across multiple games.... so frustrating...
This. People are complaining about the offense because they feel it's all Ime's fault.... but when we are missing open shots from the offense we generate....? Again Ime isn't blameless, but the offense is generating open looks and we are missing. We went 15-24 from FT to compound the shooting woes.
Nah. I like the way you think, but turning to Uncle Jeff would be a tacit admission that Amen, Bari, and Tari are never going to be that guy. Once Fred went down, and assuming that Ime wouldn't trade Fred, this season became another development season despite KD. Have to stay the course at this point.
agree... ill concede that Ime shoulda pulled Bari... but the guy had a decent 1st half and maybe he figured he wanted to give him the space to work through it... but having bari pull the most minutes on the team and letting him take (and miss) the most 3s was obviously a poor decision...
Big log jam for #3-6 seed. I didn't want to look at the standings after last night but its not a disaster. We need to be patient and be healthy for the last 3 weeks + postseason. Durant probably wont oblige but he needs some relief. I see a nice run coming soon. Any small trade should help. FVV would actually be a godsend. Someone mentioned D White and he would be perfect but is he is available?
When you're lacking ball handlers (or not), having a guy with the ball, closer to the basket, especially triple threat, will reduce turnovers. It's basic geometry.
I could be wrong, but I think it was because of the adjustment they made to stick more closely to the shooters after they continued to hit their 3s. This left their center more open to receive the pass after the double, which led to an easy slam dunk. The Rockets were leading through the first three quarters using that strategy, so changing it up in the 4th was risky.... and it backfired.
