I will post my original message concerning this subject again. For those of you still harboring hopes of making the playoffs this year, you'd better hope Tim Duncan, David Robinson, Shaq, Rasheed Wallace, Kobe, Chris Webber, Kevin Garnett and Gary Payton all end up hurt for most of the season... ---------- From original post --------- Friends, let us brace ourselves for another lottery season for our beloved Rockets. Last year, I predicted this and everyone flamed me off this BBS. This year, let's hope we can honestly discuss this rather than get nasty, OK? I would like to believe otherwise but ever since the preseason I have questioned whether the Rockets would be capable of having a respectable season. Granted, I do think that they will have some improvement over last year, but the West got a lot stronger during the offseason, and those little wins against the Lakers and Blazers we got last year are just not going to happen this year. Take the Mavericks off our list of "sure wins", plus the Kings are still going to give us fits. This is not to say that the season will not be exciting. I will have much fun watching the Rockets grow and learn and hopefully provide a lot of good entertainment. But, as young and inexperienced as they are, I don't hold any illusions that they will make the playoffs this year any more than they could have last year. Let's break it down: Maurice Taylor - great player, playoff appearances = zero - also a weak rebounder who doesn't look like he's going to improve much Cato - inconsistent, young, and foul-prone. Not going to make a huge difference <NOTE: I forgot to mention INJURY prone...> Francis - never been to the playoffs - still has a lot to learn about controlling a game and when to shoot vs. when to pass. Mobley - probably the ONLY guy on this team that is a TRUE stud and to me is the real team leader and star. But, still, not going to make the difference between playoffs and lottery... Maybe on another team but not this one. Olajuwon - still can be somewhat effective rebounding the ball, but teams aren't even double-teaming him anymore. Since the Rockets used to live and die by Hakeem's passes out of the double team for 3's, I don't expect Olajuwon to make much of a night-to-night impact. Shandon Anderson - scrappy, tough, good defender but is still a role player. You don't win championships without good role players. But good role players don't win without legitimate go-to guys. This team has one in Mobley but he's not going to carry us out of the lottery single-handedly. Walt Williams - this guy has been on so many teams - and he's never had a major impact in the playoffs. I don't expect that to change this year. Anyway, I want to hear what others are thinking on this subject as well. ------------------
Yes, after 4 games of injury plagued basketball I can definitely see the lottery in our future. FOR THE LOVE OF ROCKETBALL, GIVE IT A CHANCE. It is entirely too early to make half-cocked predictions like this. As I said in an earlier post, please pass the Prozac, it is getting depressing around here. ------------------ There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."
You suck Axeman...get off the BBS. phew, I feel better now. just kidding of course. Nice post. But you tend to assume playoff contention is a matter of individual abilities. Give us your assessment of our TEAM play! I'll start: Maurice is not comfortable. I have seen him miss several opportunities to get into an interior passing lane, and he failed to see it. Each one of those is an excellent scoring opportunity resulting from ball movement. Dammit. All the ball movement in the world does no good if your low post players do not move into creases when someone gets into the lane. It unravels great team execution. Those are the little things that frustrate me to no end.
My point about having a GO-TO guy is that the Rockets don't have one. Therefore, they are starting without the first step. You cannot make it far in this league with a bunch of role players and no go-to guy. Everyone wants Steve Francis and Cuttino Mobley to be stars TODAY. They aren't yet. They are "budding" stars, still learning the ropes. As far as the comment by Rocketman95 "Show a little diversity in your posts and I'm sure people would take you more seriously." ... Why don't you discuss the legitimate reasons you think the Rockets are going to contend for a playoff spot, instead of just whining and then making a generalized statement. I'm not trying to be down on the Rockets. But, let's call a spade a spade. A young inexperienced, talented team that is not playoff bound is what they are looking like to me. But, if you choose to make statements without backing them up, that's your right. At least I back up my statements with facts. ------------------
Understood Axman, but I am still foggy on how having a go-to guy correlates to individual play being more important than team play. Like I said, team play is definitely the key to winning. If you rewind back up to your post about the superstars that had won championships in recent years, they all had strong role players, good benches, good team defense, and a good offensive scheme to make the most of their go to guy, as well as take advantage of opponents' weaknesses (maximize effectiveness). Individual play has very little to do with a team's succes, it is how the cohesive team performs. Look at Minnesota, with arguably a top 3 player in the league and a very capable PG. Look at the Pistons with Hill (maybe the best all around player in the league) and Stackhouse, and until last year, the Sixers with Iverson. They all have a superstar as a go to guy, but something in the team concept was lacking, and they would be filtered out of the playoffs quickly. ------------------ There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."
Hmmm, interesting theory. Induvidual play is more important than team play, eh? Let me think of a good counterargument to your theory. How about something like . . . Wow, so individual play is more important than team play, but then again it's not necessary to be a playoff caliber team. Again, team ball is soooo important to you. So you're saying that superstar individual players can't carry their team, if their team play sucks. Uhm . . . out of curiosity . . . why did you assert, "First of all, winning championships is about individual play FIRST, team play SECOND", and then spend the rest of your post refuting your own assertion? Heck, even George Dubya has better debating skills than that ------------------ [This message has been edited by Launch Pad (edited November 06, 2000).]
NOpe. We started like this last year and turned it around. If anything, we are better at the beginning of this year then last year. ------------------ "I know how hard it is to put food on your family." George W. Bush
OK - let me clarify my point. I don't think it's been understood properly. You can have all the best role players in the world playing team ball together, and they won't beat the '94 Houston Rockets. Why? Because when the Rockets needed points, they could ride Dream like a horse and he would deliver for them. Granted, the Rockets also had team concept, and I'm not downplaying that, but WITHOUT THE GO-TO GUY (Hakeem), they wouldn't have made the playoffs. Can you honestly say that Vernon Maxwell, Kenny Smith, Otis Thorpe, Robert Horry, Sam Cassell, and Matt Bullard were going to make the playoffs without Dream? So, my point is not that team ball is not important. It is... In fact, it is what has to happen in order to maximize the potential of your STAR PLAYERS that are GO-TO players. But, you have to have the GO-TO option FIRST in order to come up with your solid game plan. For the Rockets, it was center oriented, dump the ball in, rotate it around the weak side out of the double team for a three, or let Hakeem kill you himself. For the Bulls, it was run the triangle, get MJ open and let him kill everybody or find a cutter to the basket. For the Showtime Lakers it was dump it into Kareem and let him sky-hook all over your ass and then Magic would fast break past everyone in the league. For last year's Lakers, it was give the ball to the big fella because noone can guard him. Think of all the playoff teams last year in the west - top to bottom. Name one that did not have a go-to player: LA - Shaq / Kobe Portland - Steve Smith / Rasheed Wallace San Antonio - Tim Duncan / David Robinson Phoenix - Googs and Hardaway Seattle - Payton Utah - Stockton and Malone (as usual) Sacramento - Chris Webber Minnesota - Kevin Garnett and Terrell Brandon All those teams have the same go to guys with good role players around them, and in some cases, even better (see San Antonio and Portland and arguably LA after adding JR Rider and Horace Grant). How the heck are the Rockets, with Kid Francis, Cat and Mo Taylor going to crack that lineup, without some major injuries to key players??? Anyone got any REAL rebuttal to that, other than a juvenile insult or remark that doesn't even answer the point??? ------------------
Launch Pad said - "So you're saying that superstar individual players can't carry their team, if their team play sucks. Uhm . . . out of curiosity . . . why did you assert, "First of all, winning championships is about individual play FIRST, team play SECOND", and then spend the rest of your post refuting your own assertion? Heck, even George Dubya has better debating skills than that" What I'm saying is not only do the Rockets not have a superstar even CLOSE to the level of Iverson or Marbury, they don't have the role players EITHER. They are all too young to have an impact without a real VETERAN go-to guy on the team. I'm done here. See y'all at the lottery draft party 2001!!! Maybe we'll get a top ten pick this year!!! ------------------
You must be talking about another team's draft party, cause the Rockets won't be having a lottery party. Try playoffs. And for the record, I would greatly prefer Francis over Iverson and Marbury. ------------------ President of the Jason Collier police! Looking for next year's Dan Langhi? Draftsource.net ClutchTown.com
Hmmm, I thought I answered your posts with good rebuttal and tact Axman. Oh well......I am done here too. ------------------ There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."
i see a lottery in the future. not nessecarily this season or the next or anytime soon. How can you guys act this premature? wait
First of all, winning championships is about individual play FIRST, team play SECOND. What I mean by that is that there is always one if not two legitimate GO TO GUYS on every championship team. For us it was Hakeem ('94) and we added Clyde in '95. For Bulls it was MJ, for Lakers it is Shaq and Kobe, for the Pistons it was Isaiah. For Showtime Lakers it was Magic and Kareem... I think you get my point. That being said, it doesn't necessarily take a go-to guy to get into the playoffs. But, I just DO NOT see this team making the playoffs this year. Collectively, they have so much to learn about team ball. You see a game like the Bucks game --- they get all high on themselves because they have a good half (but we must remember the Bucks defense is TERRIBLE), then almost cough up the lead in the 3rd quarter. Things like this are going to happen consistently. They are a YOUNG team that has a lot to learn, as you point out. I wish I wasn't making predictions like this. I just have to look at the situation realistically and say that with the players we have, none of whom have any playoff experience to speak of (I know some have been there but they haven't done anything significant - i.e. Mobley and Cato). Nothing indicates to me that this year they will be able to raise their level to get there. I'm hoping that I'm wrong... Maybe Mobley will find a way to score 30+ per night, and Francis will get 10+ assists a night. If we can get that type of consistency from those two, and throw in 17 pts 10 rebs a game from Mo Taylor, and I think we have an outside chance. But geez, do you remember all those years Iverson averaged like 30+ points and 8+ assists and they still didn't make the playoffs, or look at Stephon Marbury... Same thing -- he can light it up and dish it off, too. But the Nets haven't made noise in a LONG time.... We're going to have to be patient with this team and enjoy the good moments when they come. I think it will be fun to watch them grow and hopefully things will start settling down for Francis. He's pressing like hell. ------------------
I'd give my left nut for the Rockets to make the playoffs, just to get people like Axeman and Caveman off this board. Do you have nothing better to say than Rockets suck, ha ha, I was right? Show a little diversity in your posts and I'm sure people would take you more seriously. ------------------ "He was under more balls than a midget hooker."-Bobby Hill visit www.swirve.com
