ClutchFans Game Thread: Rockets @ Hornets 3/25/2007

"Gee, that tape recorder smells really funny ..."

 

I hope T-mac will play.

I would hate to see Yao carry too much load at this time. Not only it will increase the chance of injury of his recovering body, it also does no good for the whole team getting ready for the play off.

The closer I follow the Rockets, the further away T-mac is from my expectation.

 

This is gonna be on ESPN or just FSN?

 

"I've got a nasty sore....right here."

 

Which brings me to this,The U.S media has yet to figure out what the rest of the world already knows about Yao.......anyways,t-mac needs a flu shot

( "Better than wilt"-The People of Argentina- )


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Did you read what I wrote? I said New Orleans Hornets is a relatively weaker team. They are relatively weaker than Houston Rockets...... They are currently placed 10th in Western Conference with a 31/38 WL ratio.....a sub 0.5 team, no hope for reaching playoff.........and we are currently placed 5th in the Western Conference, 13 games ahead of them, 44/25 WL ratio, a > .6 team. Did I say anything WRONG ??

 

And what's wrong with their (they are) Chinese? Can you speak your mind?

 

It is true, the hornets are a relatively weaker team compared to us. There is no doubt about that. This game is certainly winnable. The 2-7 is somewhat of a misleading record, b/c I believe we played a few very good teams during that stretch... So w/ or w/o t-mac, we may have still ended up with a similar record.

Also the 2-7 record was when the team just started to learn how to play together. I think after a season's long experience of playing together, they are much more capable of playing as a unit than they were before.

 

If Tmac doesn't play tomorrow, Luther and Juwan are in the starting lineup to give Yao space. I worry about that because the hornets are very athletic and actually pretty decent at contesting shooters. Our guys are not going to be that wide open. And it's not like Yao is 100% anyway. Our offense could be very stagnant. It'll be a hustle battle.

If Tmac plays, we should destroy them.

 

Bonzi sure looks loose in these pictures. If JVG has any plans on activating Bonzi for the playoffs, you would think he would activate him now so he could be in game shape and develop some chemistry with the team by the playoffs. I'd like to see JVG swallow his pride and free Bonzi now rather than wait until an injury to Snyder, Head or heaven forbid TMac happens before he decides to activate him.

 

HERE you go............. from Jonathan Feigen on Houston Chronicles, MORE than 6 ~ 7 hours late than the various Chinese websites.

 

Well sorry Pryuen, I never ment to not beileve you

 

"and then jeff pointed the gun in my mouth and said if i dont get meaner he will demonstrate the hard way on what a killer instinct is"

 

thanks for the pics pryuen. You rock. Glad to see a Bonzi sighting. I thought that guy had fallen off the side of the earth.

Here are some pregame stories from various newspapers covering the Hornets.

The Oklahoman game preview

Rockets throw a 1-2 punch
Yao, T-Mac average 49 points a game for Houston

Rockets at Hornets
•When: 7 tonight
•Where: Ford Center.
•Television: Cox 7.
•Radio: KHBZ-FM 94.7.

Probable starters
Hornets (31-38)
Pos. Name Ht. Wt. Reb. Ast.
C Tyson Chandler 7-1 9.1 12.4 0.9
F David West 6-9 16.9 8.5 2.1
F Desmond Mason 6-5 13.8 4.8 1.6
G Devin Brown 6-5 11.4 4.4 2.8
G Chris Paul 6-0 17.4 4.2 8.7

Rockets (44-25)
C Yao Ming 7-6 24.8 9.4 2.2
F Chuck Hayes 6-6 5.6 6.5 0.6
F Shane Battier 6-8 10.3 4.1 2.2
G Tracy McGrady 6-8 24.2 5.2 6.3
G Rafer Alston 6-2 13.3 3.4 5.4

Darnell Mayberry
Staff Writer

On Friday night, the Hornets had to deal with the best one-man show in the NBA. They didn't fare too well, as Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant scored 50 in the Lakers' 111-105 win at New Orleans Arena.

Tonight, the Hornets face a different challenge, but one just as difficult, as arguably the best one-two punch the league has to offer in Houston Rockets center Yao Ming and guard Tracy McGrady come to the Ford Center at 7.

"It's tough,” point guard Chris Paul said. "With a team like Houston with Yao and T-Mac, you've just got to pick your poison. You just have to guard them as well as possible.”

Talking about it is easier said than done. Yao and McGrady form the league's second-highest scoring duo at 49.0 points per game, trailing only Denver Nuggets stars Allen Iverson and Carmelo Anthony, who combine for a 56.9-point average.

Houston's duo accounts for 14.6 rebounds per game and 8.5 assists. What makes them so dangerous, though, is how the 7-foot-6 Yao can destroy you inside, while the 6-8 McGrady can bury you from the perimeter.

Together, they compliment one another so that it's difficult to focus on either player.

"Obviously, they're a very good basketball team, and we have our work cut out for us,” Hornets coach Byron Scott said. "But we know what we have to do. We know how we have to play this team. We have to be aggressive, and really, really push the ball.”

That's been the key to the Hornets' success against Houston the past two seasons. The Hornets won three of last year's four meetings and took the first two of this season's four. But last year, Yao and McGrady were never in the lineup together during Houston's injury-plagued season. Yao also did not play in the teams' last meeting this season on Feb. 3.

When the two were in the lineup together against the Hornets on Nov. 5, Yao scored 17 points with 10 rebounds, and McGrady scored 14 points with seven rebounds and seven assists, but the Hornets won 96-90.

Both are healthy tonight, and they are playing some of their best ball of the season. The Rockets enter the game on a five-game winning streak and have won nine of their past 12.

The Hornets, however, have made Houston struggle with a faster pace, a style of play that Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy doesn't subscribe to with Yao on the court.

When the fast break isn't there, the Hornets have had success exploiting Yao in pick-and-rolls.

But in order for those philosophies to work, the Hornets must rely heavily on Paul, who has given the Rockets fits in his first six career games against them, averaging 13.3 points, 9.6 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 2.5 steals.

With Paul running the pick-and-roll with forward David West or center Tyson Chandler, Yao often has to step away from the basket and defend the 6-foot Paul.

"Me being so low to the ground and Yao being so close to the rim, coming off ball screens and stuff I'm sure makes it a little more difficult (for Yao),” Paul said. "But at the same time, Yao's a great player who can catch up to me and block my shot.”

Oklahoman - Hornets notebook

Basically just says that Stojakovic won't play.

Oklahoman - Key match-up

Key matchup
Tyson Chandler vs. Yao Ming
Why it's key: Some would argue that these are the best centers in the West.

What Chandler must do: Limit Yao's effectiveness around the rim. Chandler needs to force Yao into tough shots and keep him off the offensive glass abd rebounding to keep Houston's second-chance points to a minimum.What Yao must do: If Yao can limit Chris Paul's effectiveness in the pick-and-roll while avoiding foul trouble, the Rockets have a better chance at victory.

Three storylines
First of three — Tonight's game is the first of three straight the Hornets will play against Southwest Division opponents. The Hornets have won five of the past six against Houston, so can they continue their winning ways?

Chandler's production — Hornets center Tyson Chandler's 22-point, 22-rebound performance was overshadowed by Kobe Bryant's 50-point outburst Friday in New Orleans. But if Chandler can put together a similar performance tonight, the Hornets will be in good shape.

Third quarter — How will the Hornets come out in the third quarter? The frame has been costly all season, most recently Friday night when the Lakers outscored them 31-18

------------------------------------------------------------------
I also checked the New Orleans newspaper website, NOLA.com. Not only does Oklahoma City bring more fans to the games than New Orleans fans, but the OKC newspaper does a better job covering the Hornets. No good NOLA.com stories about the game.

 

Tracy "just" feels sick. So there is a chance he will play. Maybe he should miss this game but i hope he feels better and will play against Hornets.

 

again did u read my post? i said they're healthy NOW and NOT healthy BEFORE. => their record is bad. before paul's injury, they were relatively good around the 6th seed and in fact had a great start to the season.

i know that they're a weaker team ON PAPER, but what is our record against them (HEALTHY hornets) the past few yrs?

ur not saying anything wrong "statistically." but usually stats don't tell the whole story => injuries.

like would u agree houston SUCKED last yr record-wise? yes. but do they really suck?

 

it's not that they're late. the chron updates at night. i'm sure feign was there when JVG had his interviews. but the chron updates every night at 12am.

chinese media just follows yao religiously b/c he's their representative in the NBA, the ONLY one.

i'm sure the rockets ain't houston's #1 priority or the US. yao is to china's.

 

Its funny. The said thing is that its true. I am pretty certain he will play though. I am sure he was devastated that he missed practice.

 

but seriously, tmac is wack that he is vulnerable to these pathetic illnesses. get yo ass up and play son.

 

This really sucks for me. I've yet to see T-mac play in person and I've got my tickets and #1 jersey ready for the game. God I hope he plays.