ClutchFans Game Thread: Blazers @ Rockets 4/23/2014 (Playoffs Round 1, Game 2)

Mchale likely will stick to start Beverley, Lilliard takes a nap on defense end all game. should let Lin comes in early attacks Lilliard, make him work on defense, commit fouls.

 

i quit. no longer a fan of this choke city. yeah, i've been a fan for 2 decades plus but i'm giving it up after that one lousy performance. Star players? pssh, pete chilcutt played better than our stars.


(crossing fingers and hoping to win 4 in a row)

 

the last thing i wanted to see when i went to espn today was "howard: i have to demand the ball" really, that was the problem last game?!

 

haha i know, i read the same thing and im like, oh boy i dont know if that's a good thing...i was hoping for something more along the lines of "i have to make shots" - Harden

 

He needs to go get the ball off the boards especially from Aldridge. Once he takes over inside that way then he will easily get the ball from his teammates to take over offensively.

 

This is what Shaq has basically harping about Dwight during the whole season. It's what I've been waiting to see from him as well. Howard may say all the right things but now he has the opportunity to prove that he can back them up. There is a price that has to be paid in order to win a championship. Lebron had to learn this and now it's Harden & Howard's time to learn.

 

Well put.

 

Didnt you guys learn anything last time????

STOP JINXING THE GAMES!

I have faith but keep your definitive statements to yourselves!

 

Game 2 we will win this

 

Not so much demanding the ball. Howard was demanding and getting it all game long. The problem was he did a terrible job at finishing around the rim in the first 3 quarters. There's no excuse to not destroy the Blazers' interior D if he's being single covered. That was the difference in the game. Aldridge and Lillard were making shots. Howard and Harden weren't.

 

21 shots...i think he got it enough

 

Dwight doesn't pump fake. He would get easier shots if he did.

 

he would foul out Lopez in the 1st quarter if he had a decent pump fake

 

I think we need to put howard and asik on Aldridge and let t-jones cover lopez who is not a scoring threat at all.. offensively we need to take better shots, I don't mind 3 point shots if it flows through our offense and is a quality 3 pointer, all these quick jack ups are terrible.

I also think we need to get d-mo some minutes, like 10-15 and limit Lin to 15 min and let Harden just play the point during those stretches. Lin is a turnover machine, can't play defense and isn't very good offensively except like 0nce every 5 games..

 

Ok, quick question about the IRC game chat..

I thought I would log onto the chat while the game was on TV, thought it might be fun.

And it was, for the most part.

Except, good Lord, there was some idiot LOH8r who, every time Lin made some kind of good play, layup, or shot, this guy would start spouting off his stupid Lin hate, calling every shot 'lucky' and going to great lengths to point out and harp on anything he saw as a mistake or bad play by Lin.

Well, in a tense close game, that was not the sort of thing I enjoyed seeing, and so I mentioned how much I disliked the Lin hate.

And then, boom, *I* was kicked form the chat channel. No cursing, no personal attacks of anyone, nothing. This happened twice.

So the question I have is - what's the deal? Is there some list of chat channel rules somewhere, something which prohibits stating how much you dislike Lin-haters? The Lin hate itself certainly didn't cause anyone to be kicked. I don't get it.

 

If he demands the ball, attracts defense, and then manages to pass out to open teammates, I am all for it.

The problem is, Blazers are not doubling him, and he still can't capitalize on it. Well, it's hard to, if he can't back down Lopez deep, but goes for that running away hook brick/prayer, 70% of the time.

He simply needs to move more, and our driving guards/Parsons will find him. He will find everything can be a lot more easier.

 

Maybe he should get Chandler to teach him

 

If we want to win, it's very simple.

Harden/Lin and Howard Pick and Roll them to death.

They wont be able to stop our Guards going under the pick because they are good shooters. If they hedge or go over the pick, we have a rolling Howard for an Alley Oop.

Keep it simple. P&R. Get it done.

 

no doubt about that that's how it should be. And the opposing teams, on the other end, they know every guard on the roster and big doesn't commit to help d. guess what they will be running? PnR to death. the smart thing says fight their fire with water but knowing us, we'll just watch harden do his thing, which isn't a bad thing if harden in on target.

 

I had a nightmare tonight:

We all know McHale is not tough enough to run the team sometimes.
He's not the real BOSS on the team when the going gets rough...

That's what get's me really worried listening to our superstarts' attitude today, with all the "I will demand the ball and go to work" stuff...
(And Harden doesn't even need to say that...)

If our 2 stars feel like they need to "save the day" single-handedly, we'll end up playing stupid hero-ball, iso-ball, post-up-ball etc...

If that's what happens tomorrow night, even just as a tendency, even just in the beginning of the game - THIS SEASON IS LOST.

PLEASE stop pumping them with their PERSONAL responsibility!
We will rise and fall only on TEAM-ball. Both on O and on D.

That's what I feel, anyway.