Charley doesn't have JVG to hate on, but he calls the Rockets the team that none of the SERIOUS contenders want to face. He says the usual predictable stuff about Yao's stamina. It is as if he knows that he can't dismiss the Rockets outright and not look stupid, but he sure finds creative ways to keep them out of the serious title contenders discussion. Typical. Also, go to the link and vote for the Rockets to win the division. They are trailing terribly. http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/7349078 Houston Rockets The Rockets will be a ball club that none of the other serious championship contenders will want to face come the playoffs. Count on Rick Adelman's new-look offense to get rid of all the residual stale air that characterized Jeff Van Gundy's too-close-to-the-vest approach. With a trio of experienced point guards — Rafer Alston, Mike James and Stevie Francis — the Rockets will have plenty of firepower up-top. Too much maybe. And how can Adelman divvy up the available playing time to keep all of his points copasetic? By occasionally employing one of them at the 2-guard slot? Not a bad idea — except for the fact that none of these guys can play a lick of defense no matter where they're positioned. In any event, look for Tracy McGrady to be relieved of the over-bearing responsibility to generate most of the team's offense. T-Mac will subsequently play with more freedom and more energy. Shane Battier remains a stalwart at both ends of the court. A gritty defender as well as a dead-eye 3-point shooter. Luis Scola has been penciled in to start at power forward. After a scintillating career in international competition, Scola will have some difficulties adjusting to the wonderful world of the NBA. Can he defend? Can he hit the mid-range shots that will be available? What about his quickness? And how will he adjust to the NBA's much denser schedule? Adelman has promised to keep Yao Ming in the low-post as much as possible. The positives to this decision are the inevitability of Yao's putting maximum stress on opponents' defenses with his ability to score and his (somewhat overrated) ability to pass. The negatives have to do with the constant physical pounding that Yao will give and receive in the paint. Considering that his stamina has been a weakness in seasons past, these perpetual confrontations might necessitate a curtailing of Yao's playing time. Last season his leg injury required a cautious rehabilitation period that limited Yao to 33.8 minutes per game, a number that shouldn't be exceeded in the coming season. Aside from the point guard position, the only significant bench player is Bonzi Wells. If he can stay healthy, accept being a sixth man, and stop acting like a jerk, Wells could be a dynamic scorer in spot situations. Otherwise, Chuck Hayes is an earnest defender who can't score with a pencil. Dikembe Mutombo is older than he says he is and should have retired years ago. And Luther Head is a streaky shooter who is incapable of completing two passes in succession. Look for the Rockets to be this year's sleeper team.
don't see what the problem is. yao's stamina is an issue. this preview is just like every other preview.
We seem to have locked the role as a dark horse. Last year we also were the team that nobody wanted to face...
I've read Rosen for some time. He is not very objective about the Rockets. To say that there the team that the serious contenders don't want to face is insulting to Rockets. Yao did have stamina problems. That is generally not true now.
What is more typical is outcry from the clutchfans GARM that a team yet to advance to the second round in over a decade isn't spoken in the same breath with PHX, DAL, and SA.
You say that, but he is actually right. We have yet to prove anything so the big 3 are still ahead of us. IMO it would be ridiculous to say we are ahead of the big 3 atm because we havnt even played 1 proper game together. So yes atm we are the team that none of the serious contenders want to face because we have the POTENTIAL to beat them, but atm we are not better than ANY of them. Ask me again in Feb/March and i might have a different answer but for now we are just "the team no one wants to face in the playoffs"
It is clear that some on this board do not know the history of the Rockets/Rosen. As to your point, this is a different team than the Rockets have had before. You don't hear people saying Boston has to win something before they will predict them to do something. That is the point of predictions...you predict BEFORE they do it. That's not really my point, however, Rosen's preview sucks and reeks of anti-Rockets bias.
Agreed. It's amazing that people would throw the Rockets in as NBA Finalists when we're pretty much in the same boat as last year. Phoenix, SA and Dallas are STILL better than us, and Utah is at least just as good as us. Scola was a solid, smart addition, but the acquisitions of James and Francis won't ultimately provide much, maybe 10 points more per game, but our defense will be worse. We'll surrender 96-98 ppg instead of the 90-92 under JVG.
Ditto on Head and Wells. But I think he's dead wrong on Scola, our guards can't play defense, and Hayes can't score with a pencil. Just like every season, we won't make ol' Chuck happy until we actually advance to the second round. So everybody just shut up, suck it up, and take it for what (little) it's worth. And what's with copasetic??? This guy's a word nazi. I notice every once in a while, he just loves to throw out an obscure big word out there.
if you people keep making mountains out of mole hills, then we wont have any mole hills left, then what will we do??
And if we're averaging 10 more points a game, and we're giving up only 6 more points a game, that means we've increased our point differential by +4. That would make us one of the very top teams in the league (considering we were 4th or 5th in point differential last season).
You could always tell he has a personal vendetta with JVG, but now that he is gone, he is actually giving the Rox a chance.
I have never seen so little bashing in a Rosen Rockets article as this one. Maybe he really did have something against JVG, so now that JVG's gone, the Rockets are actually a semi-decent team.
You're right rookie. In my eight years on this board, I have yet to come across a Rosen article. Please enlighten me of his ways. Actually you're point is fairly evident. Just more whining that the team isn't getting the "respect" it deserves. I'm not sure what exactly your point is regarding making a prediction "BEFORE" it happens. None of that changes the fact that we have yet to accomplish anything in over a decade while the Big 3 have. What exactly did you expect?
desertfire, you are an idiot. if you read the article correctly, he says the the rockets are a team that none of the OTHER serious contenders want to face - meaning that he includes the rockets as one of the serious contenders. i know rosen is an ass and hates on the rockets all the time, but read the damn article before you get your panties in a bunch.
History of Rockets/Rosen: Every year he "undervalues" the Rockets and doesn't grant them contender status, despite whatever off-season moves that were made to "put us over the top." Every year, a bunch of posters here b**** and moan about it and say he's biased. Yet every year he turns out to be right. And where the hell did all you pansy-ass whiners come from, anyway? The Rockets aren't going to get (and don't deserve) national respect until they EARN it.
