I still don't know what I prefer. I would love to get Martin some playoff exposure, but realistically I now feel we would need some Angels on the Hardwood. I was not saying that we can have only one goal, but we need to make one of them a priority. I know with Lowry & Ariza still out, it is hard to win with the younger players but it is still possible (honestly, Buddinger deserved more playing time and needs to develop). I was more so calling out the players more than anyone else. They played most of yesterday like they wished they were somewhere else, not showing any heart, passion, or energy. And then in the brief moments where they tried to play with energy, they couldn't bridle it resulting in too much one-on-one or silly mistakes. No, yesterday's game was not only the players fault, but they should play like they want to be there. That's all I'll say about that game. Now lets go Bulls.
<B> Playoff Hunt: Games H2H Div Con Overall Magic Team W/L L10 H2H Left TB Div TB Conf TB TieBreak Number Diff</B> 1 Lakers 46-17 6-4 1-2 1H L 26-11 L No 36 (-1) 2 Mavericks 42-21 10-0 2-2 None T 7-5 T 23-16 W No 32 3 Nuggets 41-21 6-4 0-2 1H L 24-14 L No* 32 4 Jazz 39-22 7-3 1-2 1H L 24-16 L No 31 5 Suns 39-25 7-3 0-3 1A L 25-15 L No* 28 6 OKC 37-24 7-3 3-0 1A W 19-18 W Yes* 28 7 Spurs 35-24 6-4 2-1 1A W 7-5 W 21-17 W Yes 29 8 Blazers 37-27 7-3 2-2 None T 23-14 L No 26 9 Grizzlies 32-30 6-4 2-0 1H,1A W 3-6 W 18-21 W Yes 23 10 Rockets 30-30 3-7 7-5 22-18 11 Hornets 31-32 3-7 1-2 1H L 5-8 W 20-17 L No 21 (-1) 12 Clippers 25-37 4-6 2-0 1H W 12-27 W Yes* 15 (-1) 13 Kings 21-41 3-7 1-2 1A L 13-25 W No 12 (-1) 14 Warriors 17-44 3-7 3-0 None W 9-27 W Yes* 8 (-1) 15 Wolves 14-48 1-9 2-0 1A W 7-30 W Yes* 4 * Indicates the Tie Break is final <B>Clinched the #15 seed</B> <B>Lottery Hunt: L/W >.500 Home/Away #1 #2 #3 Team L/W Win % L10 Games Left Games Left Pick % Pick % Pick %</B> 1 Nets 55-6 .098 8-2 10 10/11 25.0 21.5 17.8 2 Wolves 48-14 .226 9-1 12 11/ 9 19.9 18.8 17.1 3 Warriors 44-17 .279 7-3 13 10/11 15.6 15.7 15.6 4 Pacers 42-20 .323 8-2 9 12/ 8 11.9 12.6 13.3 5 Kings 41-21 .339 7-3 13 12/ 8 7.55 8.4 9.4 5 Pistons 41-21 .339 8-2 10 10/10 7.55 8.4 9.4 7 NY/Jazz 40-21 .344 8-2 12 8/13 4.3 4.9 5.8 8 Wizards 38-21 .356 6-4 13 11/13 2.8 3.3 3.9 9 Sixers 39-22 .361 8-2 11 12/ 9 1.7 2.0 2.4 10 Clippers 37-25 .403 6-4 11 9/11 1.1 1.3 1.6 11 Bobcats 31-29 .483 6-4 8 12/10 0.8 0.9 1.2 12 Hornets 31-32 .492 7-3 11 10/ 9 0.7 0.8 1.0 13 Rockets 30-30 .500 7-3 11 10/12 0.6 0.7 0.9 14 Grizzlies 30-32 .516 6-4 11 10/10 0.5 0.6 0.7 --------------------------Lottery/Playoff Cliff------------------------------------ 15 Heat 31-31 .500 4-6 7 11/ 9 16 Bulls 30-31 .508 4-6 11 11/10 17 Bucks 29-32 .525 2-8 12 13/ 8 18 Raptors 28-32 .533 5-5 10 10/12 19 Blazers 27-37 .578 3-7 9 8/10 20 Spurs 24-35 .593 4-6 14 9/14 Spurs winning hurt us more than the Hornet's losing helping us. Overall, little change in the race for the playoffs or the lottery hunt. As has already been discussed throughout the board, we are still the biggest X-Factor. Hopefully we can come out tonight and take care of business against the Timberwolves. Away from the Twin Cities are many games. The big one is the Spurs @ Grizzles. This game is a bit debatable. On first glance, you would obviously think the Spurs losing is best for us. However, the Grizzles are playing so well right now, one could argue a Griz home loss could stem their momentum. Given both teams schedules (the Spurs still have 14 games on the road and 14 against teams > .500), I would say a Spurs win is actually better result. This is of course assuming the Rockets beat the Spurs on March 31st to lock up the TB. Hoping that Rosettes, Granger Rangers, and the Kamanites can beat Dallas, Phoenix and Utah. I simply want Dallas and Utah to lose. No explanation needed there. I could see Phoenix collapsing to end the season. Not likely, but potentially. Also Indiana getting a roll could help draft position, however unlikely, if that were to happen. Clippers winning would have similar effects. To be honest, I would actually be interested in seeing the Madison Square Garden Brickfest IV. The Nets have already beaten the Knicks once. It could be highly entertaining. Now if only they could somehow get JVG to annouce that game... Charlotte, Miami, and Milwaukee winning are all good for the Rockets in regards to draft seeding. Otherwise they have little effect on much. It all starts with beating the Timberwolves. If we lose again tonight, well, I should probably just keep updating the Lottery hunt instead of both the Playoff Hunt and Lottery Hunt because the players would have chosen the blue pill. Tonight's Games: Golden State at Charlotte, Atlanta at Miami, New Jersey at New York, Dallas at Chicago, Houston at Minnesota, San Antonio at Memphis, Cleveland at Milwaukee, Indiana at Phoenix, LA Clippers at Utah,
Now that we know that the Parker is out for the year, what chances do we have of catching the Spurs? The way I see it, the Spurs could drop all the way from a 50 win season to a 46-47 win season. Especially if we beat the Spurs and get the tie-breaker over them, there is a slim chance it could happen...
<B> Playoff Hunt: Games H2H Div Con Overall Magic Team W/L L10 H2H Left TB Div TB Conf TB TieBreak Number Diff</B> 1 Lakers 46-17 6-4 1-2 1H L 26-11 L No 35 (-1) 2 Mavericks 43-21 11-0 2-2 None T 7-5 T 23-16 L No 31 (-1) 3 Nuggets 41-21 6-4 0-2 1H L 24-14 L No* 31 (-1) 4 Jazz 40-22 7-3 1-2 1H L 25-16 L No 30 (-1) 5 Suns 40-25 8-2 0-3 1A L 25-15 L No* 27 (-1) 6 OKC 37-24 7-3 3-0 1A W 19-18 W Yes* 27 (-1) 7 Spurs 36-24 7-3 2-1 1A W 8-5 L 22-17 T Yes 28 (-1) 8 Blazers 37-27 7-3 2-2 None T 23-14 L No 25 (-1) 9 Rockets 31-30 4-6 7-5 23-18 10 Grizzlies 32-31 5-5 2-0 1H,1A W 3-7 W 18-22 W Yes 21 (-2) 11 Hornets 31-32 3-7 1-2 1H L 5-8 W 20-17 W No 20 (-1) 12 Clippers 25-38 4-6 2-0 1H W 12-28 W Yes* 13 (-2) 13 Kings 21-41 3-7 1-2 1A L 13-25 W No 11 (-1) 14 Warriors 17-45 3-7 3-0 None W 9-27 W Yes* 6 (-2) 15 Wolves 14-49 1-9 3-0 W 7-31 W Yes* 2 (-2) * Indicates the Tie Break is final <B>Clinched the #15 seed</B> <B>Lottery Hunt: L/W >.500 Home/Away #1 #2 #3 Team L/W Win % L10 Games Left Games Left Pick % Pick % Pick %</B> 1 Nets 55-7 .113 7-3 11 10/10 25.0 21.5 17.8 2 Wolves 49-14 .222 9-1 13 10/ 9 19.9 18.8 17.1 3 Warriors 45-17 .274 7-3 13 10/10 15.6 15.7 15.6 4 Pacers 43-20 .317 8-2 10 12/ 7 11.9 12.6 13.3 5 Kings 41-21 .339 7-3 14 12/ 8 6.47 7.23 8.2 5 Pistons 41-21 .339 8-2 12 10/10 6.47 7.23 8.2 5 NY/Jazz 41-21 .339 8-2 14 7/13 6.47 7.23 8.2 8 Wizards 38-21 .356 6-4 14 11/13 2.8 3.3 3.9 9 Sixers 39-23 .371 7-3 12 12/ 8 1.7 2.0 2.4 10 Clippers 38-25 .397 6-4 12 9/10 1.1 1.3 1.6 11 Bobcats 31-30 .492 6-4 9 11/10 0.75 0.85 1.1 11 Hornets 32-31 .492 7-3 12 10/ 9 0.75 0.85 1.1 13 Rockets 30-31 .508 6-4 10 10/11 0.55 0.65 0.8 13 Grizzlies 31-32 .508 5-5 11 9/10 0.55 0.65 0.8 --------------------------Lottery/Playoff Cliff------------------------------------ 15 Bulls 31-31 .500 5-5 13 10/10 16 Heat 31-32 .508 4-6 4 10/ 9 17 Raptors 29-32 .525 4-6 10 9/12 18 Bucks 29-33 .532 1-9 11 12/ 8 19 Blazers 27-37 .578 3-7 9 8/10 20 Spurs 24-36 .600 3-7 15 9/13 Well yesterday was okay. The Rockets blew out the T-wolves and have almost clinched the #14 spot in the West (tongue-in-cheek). The rest of the middling teams that won only help the Rockets in terms of draft seeding. While the Grizzlies lost, nearly all the upper echelon WC teams won. The Sun, Jazz, and Dallas winning though don't really affect Houston, as the two teams the Rockets are trying to catch are the Spurs & Blazers. For today, Philadelphia has already beaten Toronto (Yes, I know this is a late post.) Their schedule plays out for them to get on a winning streak late this year, but this only affects Rockets if they start to plummet. OKC losing to Sacramento would help, though the big one is Portland @ Denver. Today's Games: LA Lakers at Orlando, Houston at Detroit, Washington at Boston, Oklahoma City at Sacramento, Portland at Denver
<B>Rockets schedule</B> Record Last 2 Months: 6-8 Games left: 21 Away Record Total: 14-16 Last 2 Months: 3-3 Away Games left: 11 Record vs. Teams >0.500 Total: 15-22 Last 2 Months: 4-4 > 0.500 Games left: 10 <U>Expected Wins: 7</U> Mar. 7 at Detroit Pistons Mar. 25 vs. LA Clippers Mar. 9 at Washington Wizards Mar. 30 vs. Washington Wizards Mar. 13 vs. New Jersey Nets Apr. 4 at Indiana Pacers Mar. 21 at New York Knicks <U>Toss-ups: 8</U> Mar. 17 vs Grizzlies Apr. 6 at Grizzlies Mar. 22 at Bulls Apr. 9 vs Bobcats Mar. 24 at OKC Thunder Apr. 12 at Kings Mar. 31 at SA Spurs Apr. 14 vs NO Hornets <U>Probable Losses: 6</U> Mar. 15 vs. Denver Nuggets Apr. 2 at Boston Celtics Mar. 19 vs. Boston Celtics Apr. 7 vs. Utah Jazz Mar. 27 vs. LA Lakers Apr. 11 at Phoenix Suns <B>Spurs Schedule</B> Record Last 2 Months: 8-5 Away Record Total: 14-14 Last 2 Months: 6-5 Away Games left: 13 Record vs. Teams >0.500 Total: 17-16 Last 2 Months: 4-3 > 0.500 Games left: 15 <U>Expected Wins: 7</U> Mar. 10 vs. NY Knicks Mar. 29 at NJ Nets Mar. 12 at Timberwolves Apr. 6 at Sacramento Kings Mar. 13 vs. LA Clippers Apr. 12 vs. Timberwolves Mar. 19 vs. GS Warriors <U>Toss-ups: 6</U> Mar. 16 at Miami Heat Apr. 9 vs. Memphis Grizzlies Mar. 31 vs. Houston Rockets Apr. 10 at Denver Nuggets Apr. 7 at Phoenix Suns Apr. 14 at Dallas Mavericks <U>Probable Losses: 9</U> Mar. 8 at Cavaliers Mar. 26 vs Cavaliers Mar. 17 at Orlando Magic Mar. 28 at Boston Celtics Mar. 21 at Atlanta Hawks Apr. 2 vs Orlando Magic Mar. 22 at OKC Thunder Apr. 4 at LA Lakers Mar. 24 vs LA Lakers <B>Blazers Schedule</B> Record Last 2 Months: 9-6 Away Record Total: 17-14 Last 2 Months: 5-2 Away Games left: 10 Record vs. Teams >0.500 Total: 18-20 Last 2 Months: 5-6 > 0.500 Games left: 9 <U>Expected Wins: 9</U> Mar. 9 vs Kings Mar. 31 vs NY Knicks Mar. 11 at GS Warriors Apr. 3 at Kings Mar. 12 at Kings Apr. 7 at LA Clippers Mar. 19 vs Wizards Apr. 14 vs GS Warriors Mar. 27 at NO Hornets <U>Toss-ups: 6</U> Mar. 14 vs. Toronto Raptors Apr. 1 at Denver Nuggets Mar. 21 at Phoenix Suns Apr. 9 vs. Mavericks Mar. 28 at OKC Thunder Apr. 12 vs. OKC Thunder <U>Probable Losses: 3</U> Mar. 7 at Denver Nuggets Apr. 11 at LA Lakers Mar. 25 vs. Dallas Mavericks By no means do I predict each team will win their Expected wins or lose their probable losses. I have tried to include some variables in these such as “injuries, resting players at the end the season, rivalries, and match ups along with the general play of the teams over the past 2 months. In general, Portland has a fairly easily schedule. Even if they were to lose all their toss-ups and probably losses, they would still finish 9-9 which would require the Rockets to finish 12-9 or better. The Spurs schedule is brutal. They have a lot of road games left, and they face the elite teams 7 times plus games against the Hawks, Mavs, Nuggets, Rockets, & OKC. They may retain some stability knowing for sure that Parker is out, but even with Duncan carrying them I'm not sure if they can get through that stretch of games. I honestly do not see them playing 0.500 ball the rest of the year. The Rockets by no means have a horrible schedule. We have a number of easy games, and even our "probable losses" are winnable games if we are healthy and start playing more cohesive. Those toss up games though are huge, not just because of the # of them, but also because of tie breakers that will be decided against the Nornets, Grizz, and Spurs. So, there is a light at the end of the tunnel, however dim. We just need to right the train right now.
Typo in the last post. If the Blazers were to finish 9-9, the Rockets would have to finish 15-6 or better.
<B> Playoff Hunt: Games H2H Div Con Overall Magic Team W/L L10 H2H Left TB Div TB Conf TB TieBreak Number Diff</B> 1 Lakers 46-18 5-5 1-2 1H L 26-11 L No 34 (-1) 2 Mavericks 43-21 11-0 2-2 None T 7-5 T 23-16 L No 31 3 Nuggets 42-21 7-3 0-2 1H L 25-14 L No* 31 4 Jazz 40-22 7-3 1-2 1H L 25-16 L No 30 5 Suns 40-25 8-2 0-3 1A L 25-15 L No* 27 6 OKC 38-24 7-3 3-0 1A W 20-18 W Yes* 27 7 Spurs 36-24 7-3 2-1 1A W 8-5 L 22-17 T Yes 28 8 Blazers 37-28 6-4 2-2 None T 23-15 L No 24 (-1) 9 Grizzlies 32-31 5-5 2-0 1H,1A W 3-7 W 18-22 W Yes 21 10 Rockets 31-31 4-6 7-5 23-18 11 Hornets 31-32 3-7 1-2 1H L 5-8 W 20-17 W No 20 12 Clippers 25-38 4-6 2-0 1H W 12-28 W Yes* 13 13 Kings 21-42 3-7 1-2 1A L 13-26 W No 10 (-1) 14 Warriors 17-45 3-7 3-0 None W 9-27 W Yes* 6 15 Wolves 14-49 1-9 3-0 W 7-31 W Yes* 2 * Indicates the Tie Break is final <B>Clinched the #15 seed</B> <B>Lottery Hunt: L/W >.500 Home/Away #1 #2 #3 Team L/W Win % L10 Games Left Games Left Pick % Pick % Pick %</B> 1 Nets 55-7 .113 7-3 10 10/10 25.0 21.5 17.8 2 Wolves 49-14 .222 9-1 13 10/ 9 19.9 18.8 17.1 3 Warriors 45-17 .274 7-3 13 10/10 15.6 15.7 15.6 4 Pacers 43-20 .317 8-2 9 12/ 7 11.9 12.6 13.3 5 Kings 41-22 .333 7-3 12 11/ 8 8.8 9.7 10.7 6 NY/Jazz 41-21 .339 8-2 13 7/13 6.3 7.1 8.1 7 Pistons 41-22 .349 7-3 11 9/10 4.3 4.9 5.8 8 Wizards 39-21 .350 6-4 11 11/12 2.8 3.3 3.9 9 Sixers 39-23 .371 7-3 12 12/ 8 1.7 2.0 2.4 10 Clippers 38-25 .397 6-4 11 9/10 1.1 1.3 1.6 11 Bobcats 31-30 .492 6-4 8 11/10 0.75 0.85 1.1 11 Hornets 32-31 .492 7-3 11 10/ 9 0.75 0.85 1.1 13 Rockets 31-31 .500 6-4 10 10/10 0.6 0.7 0.9 14 Grizzlies 31-32 .508 5-5 9 9/10 0.5 0.6 0.7 --------------------------Lottery/Playoff Cliff------------------------------------ 15 Bulls 31-31 .500 5-5 12 10/10 16 Heat 31-32 .508 4-6 4 10/ 9 17 Raptors 29-32 .525 4-6 10 9/12 18 Bucks 29-33 .532 1-9 11 12/ 8 19 Blazers 28-37 .569 4-6 8 8/ 9 20 Spurs 24-36 .600 3-7 14 9/13 Detroit loss hurts a great deal. More so because of how the Rockets lost, by not having any one stepping up to close out the game on offense and not playing any semblance of defense. Right now JVG would deny having coached any of the Rocket holdouts from his teams based on the performance in the 4th quarter. Having said that, our future schedule is still not that bad <I>IF we get Ariza and Lowry back next game and IF they can play at near the level they were playing before their injuries.</I> Given the type of players they are--full effort and energy every second on the court, I have little doubt that can do that if they are fully healthy. Hill played well in his extended minutes, hopefully he can be worked into a rotation. Yes, I used the word rotation, as multiple people get minutes at the same position each game, maybe with different 5-man sets, not sticking with 1 player at a position or a particular 5-man set for every game or 2 games and then completely changing it. Portland loss helps us some, but as I mentioned in a previous post, their future schedule is very favorable. Sacramento (and Landry) did not help us by beating OKC sadly. Wizards also blew their lead against Boston, which would have been nice in the lottery hunt. However, the 76ers won again. Don't be surprised to hear that a good number of times this season based on their ending stretch. For Monday's games: We'll see if what the Spurs have to offer against the elite. Hopefully my predictions will ring true. Stephen Curry vs. D. Collison will be a nice match up. Who your rooting for depends on whether you still think we can make the playoffs. New Jersey will hopefully test Memphis. They have been playing better of late, and Memphis has that nasty 8 game home losing streak. Again, who you want to win depends on whether you still think we can make the playoffs. Lastly, Dallas looks for to get to 12 consecutive wins @ Twin Cities, and T-Mac will play no defense against Joe Johnson. Today's games (03/08): San Antonio at Cleveland, Atlanta at New York, Golden State at New Orleans, Dallas at Minnesota, New Jersey at Memphis
Thanks rpr. You are doing a tremendous job in filling Scribo's huge shoes. I have to say though, this is the point where I am more interested in our potential lottery position than playoff chances (too slim and unrealistic for me).
This is not a tanking post. This is simply an analysis of the schedules of the teams that would affect our draft position. This analysis will be similar to that used above in the playoff analysis with the Spurs & Blazers with the proviso that assumes these teams will not tank or purposely throw games. <B>Rockets schedule</B> Games left: 20 <U>Expected Wins: 4</U> Mar. 13 vs. New Jersey Nets Mar. 25 vs. LA Clippers Mar. 21 at New York Knicks Apr. 4 at Indiana Pacers <U>Toss-ups: 10</U> Mar. 9 at Washington Wizards Mar. 31 at SA Spurs Mar. 17 vs. Grizzlies Apr. 6 at Grizzlies Mar. 22 at Bulls Apr. 9 vs. Bobcats Mar. 24 at OKC Thunder Apr. 12 at Kings Mar. 30 vs. Washington Wizards Apr. 14 vs. NO Hornets <U>Probable Losses: 6</U> Mar. 15 vs. Denver Nuggets Apr. 2 at Boston Celtics Mar. 19 vs. Boston Celtics Apr. 7 vs. Utah Jazz Mar. 27 vs. LA Lakers Apr. 11 at Phoenix Suns Rockets showed that they still cannot close out games. They still have trouble with teams from the East which I mentioned before is likely due to playing the guard-oriented style of basketball which EC teams are more comfortable with as opposed to before when the Rockets played inside-out post-defined basketball. As a result of this and Washington’s improved play, I have changed both Wash games to toss ups. We’ll see if the Rockets develop any consistency. <B>Charlotte Schedule</B> Games left: 21 <U>Expected Wins: 5</U> Mar. 12 vs. LA Clippers Apr. 10 vs. Detroit Pistons Mar. 16 at Indiana Pacers Apr. 12 at New Jersey Nets Mar. 24 vs. Timberwolves <U>Toss-ups: 13</U> Mar. 9 vs. Miami Heat Mar. 31 vs. 76ers Mar. 10 at 76ers Apr. 2 vs. Milwaukee Bucks Mar. 17 vs. OKC Thunder Apr. 3 at Chicago Bulls Mar. 20 at Miami Heat Apr. 7 at NO Hornets Mar. 23 at Wizards Apr. 9 at Houston Rockets Mar. 26 vs. Wizards Apr. 14 vs. Chicago Bulls Mar. 29 vs. Toronto Raptors <U>Probable Losses: 3</U> Mar. 14 at Orlando Magic Mar. 19 at Atlanta Hawks Apr. 6 vs. Atlanta Hawks Bobcats are a tough out at home. On the road they are much more unpredictable which is a reason for so many toss ups, along with many of those games against squads on this list. They are still in the playoff mix, and they could be fighting a few teams on the last few days for an in again this year. <B>Memphis Schedule</B> Games left: 19 <U>Expected Wins: 5</U> Mar. 8 vs. New Jersey Nets Mar. 22 at Sacramento Kings Mar. 12 vs. New York Knicks Mar. 24 at GS Warriors Mar. 20 vs. GS Warriors <U>Toss-ups: 8</U> Mar. 10 at Boston Celtics Apr. 2 vs. New Orleans Hornets Mar. 16 vs. Chicago Bulls Apr. 6 vs. Houston Rockets Mar. 17 at Houston Rockets Apr. 9 at San Antonio Spurs Mar. 28 at Milwaukee Bucks Apr. 10 vs. Philadelphia 76ers <U>Probable Losses: 6</U> Mar. 13 vs. Denver Nuggets Apr. 7 at Dallas Mavericks Mar. 31 vs. Dallas Mavericks Apr. 12 at Denver Nuggets Apr. 4 at Orlando Magic Apr. 14 at Oklahoma City Thunder Memphis has played well of late. They have lost a good number of home games recently, but have beaten some good teams on the road too. Nets & Knicks should stem the home woes, while Boston has not played well lately. A lot of easy games left for them in March to stay in the playoff hunt. They could win some of those late April probable losses as well if teams start to rest players. <B>New Orleans Schedule</B> Games left: 19 <U>Expected Wins: 4</U> Mar. 8 vs. GS Warriors Apr. 3 at New Jersey Nets Mar. 17 at GS Warriors Apr. 11 vs. Timberwolves <U>Toss-ups: 8</U> Mar. 15 at LA Clippers Apr. 2 at Memphis Grizzlies Mar. 22 vs. Dallas Mavericks Apr. 7 vs. Charlotte Bobcats Mar. 27 vs. Portland Blazers Apr. 9 vs. Utah Jazz Mar. 31 vs. Wizards Apr. 14 at Houston Rockets <U>Probable Losses: 7</U> Mar. 10 at OKC Thunder Mar. 20 at Utah Jazz Mar. 12 vs. Denver Nuggets Mar. 24 vs. Cleveland Cavaliers Mar. 14 at Phoenix Suns Mar. 29 vs. Los Angeles Lakers Mar. 18 at Denver Nuggets The Hornets are much harder to predict as they have been wildly inconsistent. They are a much better home team than road team, so I see them knocking off some good teams at home. I do not see Paul returning this year. There is no need as Collison is playing adequate, and that March schedule is a minefield that will nail the coffin shut on their slim playoff hopes. <B>Chicago Schedule</B> Games left: 20 <U>Expected Wins: 3</U> Mar. 27 vs. New Jersey Nets Apr. 9 at New Jersey Nets Mar. 28 at Detroit Pistons <U>Toss-ups: 12</U> Mar. 12 at Miami Heat Apr. 2 at Washington Wizards Mar. 16 at Memphis Grizzlies Apr. 3 vs. Charlotte Bobcats Mar. 20 at Philadelphia 76ers Apr. 6 vs. Milwaukee Bucks Mar. 22 vs. Houston Rockets Apr. 11 at Toronto Raptors Mar. 25 vs. Miami Heat Apr. 13 vs. Boston Celtic Mar. 30 vs. Phoenix Suns Apr. 14 at Charlotte Bobcats <U>Probable Losses: 5</U> Mar. 9 vs. Utah Jazz Mar. 19 vs. Cleveland Cavaliers Mar. 11 at Orlando Magic Apr. 8 vs. Cleveland Cavaliers Mar. 17 at Dallas Mavericks Chicago has their fates in their hands. With Noah being hurt, they have not been as good a defensive squad, resulting in their play slipping since the ASB. Like Charlotte, they still play most of the teams they are battling for the playoffs. Noah should be back soon though, so I see them making the playoffs with their schedule. They will be fighting off Charlotte though, which could make that April 14th game an intriguing play-in game. <B>Miami Schedule</B> Games left: 19 <U>Expected Wins: 8</U> Mar. 10 vs. LA Clippers Apr. 3 at Timberwolves Mar. 22 at New Jersey Nets Apr. 9 vs. Detroit Pistons Mar. 31 at Detroit Pistons Apr. 11 at New York Knicks Apr. 2 at Indiana Pacers Apr. 14 vs. New Jersey Nets <U>Toss-ups: 10</U> Mar. 9 at Charlotte Bobcats Mar. 25 at Chicago Bulls Mar. 12 vs. Chicago Bulls Mar. 26 at Milwaukee Bucks Mar. 14 vs. Philadelphia 76ers Mar. 28 vs. Toronto Raptors Mar. 16 vs. San Antonio Spurs Apr. 7 vs. Philadelphia 76ers Mar. 20 vs. Charlotte Bobcats Apr. 12 at Philadelphia 76ers <U>Probable Losses: 1</U> Mar. 18 vs. Orlando Magic Talk about a easy schedule to go into the playoffs. If only Miami did not just play to the level of their competition they would an easy road to the #5 seed. Because of that though, they have a lot toss up games. They are just as good on the road and at home too which makes it hard, but given this schedule I see them getting at least the #6 seed out East. <B>Clippers Schedule</B> Games left: 19 <U>Expected Wins: 1</U> Apr. 4 vs. New York Knicks <U>Toss-ups: 10</U> Mar. 15 vs. NO Hornets Mar. 30 at Milwaukee Bucks Mar. 17 vs. Milwaukee Bucks Apr. 8 at Sacramento Kings Mar. 21 vs. Sacramento Kings Apr. 10 vs. GS Warriors Mar. 25 at Houston Rockets Apr. 12 vs. Dallas Mavericks Mar. 28 vs. GS Warriors Apr. 14 vs. Los Angeles Lakers <U>Probable Losses: 8</U> Mar. 9 at Orlando Magic Mar. 23 at Dallas Mavericks Mar. 10 at Miami Heat Mar. 31 at Toronto Raptors Mar. 12 at Charlotte Bobcats Apr. 3 at Denver Nuggets Mar. 13 at San Antonio Spurs Apr. 7 vs. Portland Blazers See aren’t you glad we aren’t Clippers fans? They gave up Camby for bleh. They still have old pieces dragging down their Salary Cap who do not seem to care to win (talking about you B. Davis and C. Magette). Lastly, their bright shining hope cannot get on the court due to injuries. Lastly that schedule is the worst I’ve posted. I’ve only included this to make the point that we will not be catching the Clippers in the Lottery Race. The team would have to start making a pure effort to tank in order to so. It is actually more likely for the Clippers to sneak into a top 5 draft spot. <B>Philadelphia Schedule</B> Games left: 20 <U>Expected Wins: 5</U> Mar. 9 at Indiana Pacers Mar. 19 at New York Knicks Mar. 15 vs. New York Knicks Apr. 6 vs. Detroit Pistons Mar. 17 vs. New Jersey Nets <U>Toss-ups: 11</U> Mar. 10 vs. Charlotte Bobcats Apr. 3 vs. Toronto Raptors Mar. 14 at Miami Heat Apr. 7 at Miami Heat Mar. 20 vs. Chicago Bulls Apr. 9 vs. Milwaukee Bucks Mar. 24 at Milwaukee Bucks Apr. 10 at Memphis Grizzlies Mar. 31 at Charlotte Bobcats Apr. 12 vs. Miami Heat Apr. 14 at Orlando Magic <U>Probable Losses: 4</U> Mar. 12 vs. Cleveland Cavaliers Mar. 26 vs. Atlanta Hawks Mar. 22 vs. Orlando Magic Mar. 30 vs. OKC Thunder I’ve been high on 76ers for 2 weeks or so now. See what happens when you finally banish Allen Iverson? They are playing more loose and cohesive. Having said that they are still a young team, but they are playing a lot of teams just as inconsistent as they are. With the number of home games they have left, and if they build some confidence I could easily see them putting together a streak just like the Bucks have. Yes, they already have 40 losses, but if the Rockets really fall off a cliff here soon, we could catch them. Not likely or probably, but possible. <B>Washington Schedule</B> Games left: 22 <U>Expected Wins: 5</U> Mar. 12 at Detroit Pistons Apr. 12 at NY Knicks Apr. 4 vs. New Jersey Nets Apr. 14 vs. Indiana Pacers Apr. 6 vs. GS Warriors <U>Toss-ups: 9</U> Mar. 9 vs. Houston Rockets Mar. 30 at Houston Rockets Mar. 11 vs. Atlanta Hawks Mar. 31 at NO Hornets Mar. 23 vs. Charlotte Bobcats Apr. 2 vs. Chicago Bulls Mar. 24 at Indiana Pacers Apr. 10 vs. Atlanta Hawks Mar. 26 at Charlotte Bobcats <U>Probable Losses: 8</U> Mar. 13 vs. Orlando Magic Mar. 21 at LA Lakers Mar. 15 at Utah Jazz Mar. 27 vs. Utah Jazz Mar. 16 at Denver Nuggets Apr. 7 at Orlando Magic Mar. 19 at Portland Blazers Apr. 9 at Boston Celtics I honestly thought their winning streak was a fluke, until I saw the Boston game. I don’t care how badly Boston is playing right now. Thornton and Blantche destroyed them on the road until 6 min left in the game. That is when Foye decided to nearly singlehandedly give the game back to Boston. I’ll be the first to admit it would be a pipe dream to catch this team, but this team could surprise some of those good teams down the stretch and beat a lot of the teams they are supposed to beat. They have trouble closing games because they are young, but unlike the Rockets. Their big name players (Thornton & Blatche) do not seem to be afraid to take those big shots or try to make those big plays at the end of games (I’m talking about you K-Mart.) So how does this all likely play out? Lottery Picks: 1. Nets 2. Wolves 3. Warriors 4. NY/Jazz 5. Pacers 6. Kings 7. Pistons 7. Clippers 9. Wizards 10. Sixer 11. Hornets 12. Rockets(unless something changes) 13. Bobcats 14. Grizzlies 15. Bulls 16. Raptors 17. Heat 18. Bucks 19. Spurs 20. OKC 21. Blazers
Thanks rpr52121. I really appreciate you taking the reins this year. I'm just getting my ass kicked with work and home life. Next year the kids will be a year older and I'll have acclimated more to our crazy schedule.
<B> Playoff Hunt: Games H2H Div Con Overall Magic Team W/L L10 H2H Left TB Div TB Conf TB TieBreak Number Diff</B> 1 Lakers 47-18 5-5 1-2 1H L 26-11 L No 33 (-1) 2 Mavericks 44-21 13-0 2-2 None T 7-5 T 24-16 L No 30 (-1) 3 Nuggets 42-21 7-3 0-2 1H L 25-14 L No* 30 (-1) 4 Jazz 41-22 7-3 1-2 1H L 25-16 L No 29 (-1) 5 Suns 40-25 8-2 0-3 1A L 25-15 L No* 26 (-1) 6 OKC 38-24 7-3 3-0 1A W 20-18 W Yes* 26 (-1) 7 Spurs 36-25 6-4 2-1 1A W 8-5 L 22-17 T Yes 26 (-1) 8 Blazers 38-28 6-4 2-2 None T 24-15 L No 23 (-1) 9 Grizzlies 33-31 6-4 2-0 1H,1A W 3-7 W 18-22 W Yes 20 (-1) 10 Rockets 32-31 4-6 7-5 23-18 11 Hornets 32-32 4-6 1-2 1H L 5-8 W 21-17 W No 19 (-1) 12 Clippers 25-39 4-6 2-0 1H W 12-28 W Yes* 11 (-2) 13 Kings 21-43 3-7 1-2 1A L 13-27 W No 8 (-2) 14 Warriors 17-46 2-8 3-0 None W 9-28 W Yes* 4 (-2) 15 Wolves 14-50 1-9 3-0 W 7-32 W Yes* 0 (-2) * Indicates the Tie Break is final <B>Clinched the #14 seed. The Wolves have been exterminated.</B> <B>Lottery Hunt: L/W >.500 Home/Away #1 #2 #3 Team L/W Win % L10 Games Left Games Left Pick % Pick % Pick %</B> 1 Nets 56-7 .111 8-2 8 10/ 9 25.0 21.5 17.8 2 Wolves 50-14 .219 9-1 11 9/ 9 19.9 18.8 17.1 3 Warriors 46-17 .270 8-2 13 10/ 9 15.6 15.7 15.6 4 Pacers 43-21 .328 7-3 9 11/ 7 10.35 11.15 12.0 4 Kings 43-21 .328 7-3 12 11/ 7 10.35 11.15 12.0 6 Wizards 40-21 .344 7-3 12 9/12 6.3 7.1 8.1 7 NY/Jazz 41-22 .349 7-3 12 6/13 3.55 4.1 4.85 7 Pistons 41-22 .349 7-3 9 9/10 3.55 4.1 4.85 9 Sixers 40-23 .365 7-3 9 12/ 7 1.7 2.0 2.4 10 Clippers 39-25 .391 6-4 10 9/ 9 0.8 0.9 1.2 11 Bulls 32-31 .492 6-4 10 9/10 12 Hornets 31-31 .500 6-4 12 9/ 9 0.7 0.8 1.0 13 Rockets 31-32 .508 6-4 10 10/ 9 0.6 0.7 0.9 14 Grizzlies 31-33 .516 4-6 11 8/10 0.5 0.6 0.7 -------------------------------Lottery/Playoff Cliff------------------------------------ 15 Heat 32-32 .500 5-5 4 10/ 8 16 Bobcats 31-31 .500 5-5 7 10/10 17 Raptors 30-32 .516 4-6 8 9/11 18 Bucks 29-34 .540 1-9 9 11/ 8 19 Blazers 28-38 .576 4-6 8 7/ 9 20 Spurs 25-36 .590 4-6 13 9/12 Got a bit busy. A call night will do that. Anywho, not much has changed across the board so far. The Rockets have finally clinched the #14 seed in the West. Sarcastic Yay! Glad the Rockets took care of business against the Wizards. It was also good to see Ariza and Lowry on the court. They now have a good half-a-week to get even more rested and practice their sets with Martin and Knick castaway Jordan Hill. One more tune up against the Nets before we have to be clicking on all cylinders in order to make any kind of push for the playoffs. As per Lottery position, there has been some rearranging, but that will likely continue for the next two weeks as teams play each other in all those toss up games I mentioned in the previous post. For tonight: Right now I would not even claim a Grizzlies win @ Boston as a upset. The Celts either do not care or running out of gas. We'll see if the Knicks can continue the good karma and beat the Spurs. Hornets will give OKC a good game, but do not seem them containing Durant. Mav's will get 13 in a row. I've already marked it above. Rest of games are interesting only for draft seeding. Tonight's Games: Charlotte at Philadelphia, Memphis at Boston, Utah at Detroit, LA Clippers at Miami, Denver at Minnesota, New Orleans at Oklahoma City, New Jersey at Dallas, New York at San Antonio, Toronto at Sacramento
<B> Playoff Hunt: Games H2H Div Con Overall Magic Team W/L L10 H2H Left TB Div TB Conf TB TieBreak Number Diff</B> 1 Lakers 47-18 5-5 1-2 1H L 26-11 L No 33 2 Mavericks 45-21 13-0 2-2 None T 7-5 T 24-16 L No 30 3 Nuggets 43-21 7-3 0-2 1H L 26-14 L No* 30 4 Jazz 42-22 7-3 1-2 1H L 25-16 L No 29 5 OKC 39-24 7-3 3-0 1A W 21-18 W Yes* 26 6 Suns 40-25 8-2 0-3 1A L 25-15 L No* 26 7 Spurs 37-25 6-4 2-1 1A W 8-5 L 22-17 T Yes 26 8 Blazers 38-28 6-4 2-2 None T 24-15 L No 23 9 Grizzlies 34-31 6-4 2-0 1H,1A W 3-7 W 18-22 W Yes 20 10 Rockets 32-31 4-6 7-5 23-18 11 Hornets 32-33 3-7 1-2 1H L 5-8 W 21-18 W No 18 (-1) 12 Clippers 25-40 3-7 2-0 1H W 12-28 W Yes* 11 13 Kings 22-43 4-6 1-2 1A L 13-27 W No 8 14 Warriors 17-46 2-8 3-0 None W 9-28 W Yes* 4 15 Wolves Exterminated * Indicates the Tie Break is final <B>Clinched the #14 seed.</B> <B>Lottery Hunt: L/W >.500 Home/Away #1 #2 #3 Team L/W Win % L10 Games Left Games Left Pick % Pick % Pick %</B> 1 Nets 57-7 .109 8-2 10 10/ 8 25.0 21.5 17.8 2 Wolves 51-14 .215 9-1 12 8/ 9 19.9 18.8 17.1 3 Warriors 46-17 .270 8-2 13 10/ 9 15.6 15.7 15.6 4 Pacers 43-21 .328 7-3 11 11/ 7 11.9 12.6 13.3 5 Kings 43-22 .338 6-4 11 10/ 7 8.8 9.7 10.7 6 Wizards 40-21 .344 7-3 14 9/12 4.47 5.1 5.93 6 NY/Jazz 42-22 .344 7-3 12 6/12 4.47 5.1 5.93 6 Pistons 42-22 .344 7-3 11 8/10 4.47 5.1 5.93 9 Sixers 41-23 .359 8-2 13 11/ 7 1.7 2.0 2.4 10 Clippers 40-25 .385 7-3 11 9/ 8 0.8 0.9 1.2 11 Bulls 32-31 .492 6-4 14 9/10 11 Hornets 32-31 .492 7-3 12 9/ 8 0.7 0.8 1.0 13 Rockets 31-32 .508 6-4 11 10/ 9 0.6 0.7 0.9 14 Grizzlies 31-34 .523 4-6 10 8/ 9 0.5 0.6 0.7 -------------------------------Lottery/Playoff Cliff------------------------------------ 15 Heat 32-33 .508 5-5 5 9/ 8 16 Bobcats 31-32 .508 5-5 8 10/ 9 17 Raptors 31-32 .508 7-3 10 9/10 18 Bucks 29-34 .540 1-9 11 11/ 8 19 Blazers 28-38 .576 4-6 8 7/ 9 20 Spurs 25-37 .597 4-6 14 8/12 Everything played out pretty much as expected. The only potential surprise was Toronto losing to Sacramento because the only-me Ty Evans got a triple double?? Bosh is back, so either he is not completely healthy yet or this team has began a large collapse. All the teams in middle of the EC are so inconsistent that his can change by next week, but the Raptors are in danger of falling out of the playoffs. Do not think it will happen, but who knows. Basically no one helped us out in either the lottery race or the playoff hunt, so we move on tomorrow's games of Atlanta at Washington, Chicago at Orlando, Portland at Golden State?? How did the Rockets not get a TNT game this year? I'm confused. Anyways, I doubt the Warriors will give us any help tomorrow. That is probably about it.
Any chance we could get an update to this thread, rpr? Last night kept what little playoff hope we have left alive. From my perspective, here's how our remaining schedule plays out (currently with 34 wins): Winnable Games Memphis*, @NY, @Chicago, LAC, Washington, @SA*, @Ind, @Memphis*, @Sac, New Orleans * We really must win all of these games, but these are even more vital. The rest Boston, @OKC, LAL, @Boston, Utah, @Phoenix If we can take all 10 of the winnable games, that puts us at 44. Looking at the Spurs schedule (39 wins currently), I'm giving them 9 more wins at a minimum for the sake of argument, but that includes wins @ATL, ORL, and @DAL to finish the season (assuming for now that Dallas will be clinched in a spot by then, which they might not). With them at 48 wins, we have to take 4 of the 6 of our tougher matchups. Not an easy or likely task, but I really think we might gel over these last games now that everybody is healthy and Scola playing to his full potential.
I know that making the playoffs is the primary goal for this team, but I for one think that if the Rockets don't do so this season, it's not the end of the road. Infact, it is my opinion that for this team, the best case scenario moving forward would be to play great basketball in the remaining games but to narrowly missout on the last playoff spot. Our veterans have been in the playoffs before so most of them do not need the "playoff experience." Even the most optimstic fan will admit that the Rockets are not going to be able to win-it-all this year. Therefore, instead of being first round fodder, why not let the most recent memory of the Rockets playoff experience be the 1st round victory over a good Portland squad and a thrilling 7 game nail-biter against the eventual champs? The extra time off will allow people like Scola, Brooks, and Ariza to rest their bodies because they just went through a grueling season where they've played much more minutes than they were use to. It will also allow our young talent like Hill, Budinger, and Taylor to get a head start to work on honing and refining their skills. Another obvious benefit of not making the playoffs is that the Rockets would be in the lottery. Even if the Rockets only move up a couple spots on next year's draft, the difference could be a huge one. Remember a few years back when we would've taken Roy, but missed out by 2 spots? Also, with Scola and Lowry's contract situation, I think it will be better to keep the rest of the league in the dark about how good these two are. Houston management and fans know how important they are to the success of this organization. By missing the playoffs, we don't have to showcase them to the rest of the league. This will make life easier for Morey to retain both at a reasonable price. Needless to say, making the playoffs is not a bad alternative. It would be ideal to make the pitch, "look. we made the playoffs and made noise in an ultra competetive western conference with yao out and a major mid season trade. imagine if we had you..." to a Bosh or whoever else Morey was targeting. But like I said, with THIS current team, it would be to everyone's best interest to play well the rest of the season so we can carry the winning mentality but ultimately miss the playoffs. Ofcourse, all this could be just me consoling myself and coming to terms that the Rockets probably won't make the playoffs this year. So maybe i'm just tyring to look at the glass half full.
Spurs lost to Orlando mightily tonight, so hopefully that's a sign that Orlando has their number and will win their next matchup (didn't see the game). Now that it's a little more relevant after tonight, here's the Spurs breakdown (currently 40 wins): Winnable Games: GSW, @NJ, @Sac, Memphis, Minnesota, @Dallas* *Forecasting on the assumption that Dallas will have clinched and won't have anything to play for on the last game of the year The rest: @Atl, @OKC, LAL, Cleveland, @Boston, Houston, Orlando, @LAL, @Phoenix, @Denver Assuming 6 easy wins, we really have to hope for them to go 2-8 (48 wins) in the rest of those tougher games. It'll be tight, but I think it's possible. Portland is obviously still in the picture too, so maybe we can look at them over the next few days depending on what happens.
<B> Playoff Hunt: Games H2H Div Con Overall Magic Team W/L L10 H2H Left TB Div TB Conf TB TieBreak Number Diff</B> 1 Lakers 50-18 7-3 1-2 1H L 29-11 L No 30 (-3) 2 Mavericks 46-22 9-1 2-2 None T 7-5 T 24-16 L No 26 (-4) 3 Nuggets 46-22 7-3 1-2 None L 28-15 L No* 26 (-4) 4 Jazz 44-24 7-3 1-2 1H L 26-17 L No 24 (-5) 5 OKC 41-25 8-2 3-0 1A W 22-18 W Yes* 22 (-4) 6 Suns 42-26 7-3 0-3 1A L 27-16 L No* 22 (-4) 7 Spurs 40-26 8-2 2-1 1A W 8-5 L 24-17 T Yes 22 (-4) 8 Blazers 41-28 8-2 2-2 None T 26-15 L No 20 (-3) 9 Rockets 35-31 7-3 8-5 25-18 9 Grizzlies 36-33 6-4 3-0 1A W 3-8 W 18-24 W Yes* 14 (-6) 11 Hornets 33-36 2-8 1-2 1H L 5-8 W 22-21 W No 12 (-6) 12 Clippers 26-43 2-8 2-0 1H W 12-30 W Yes* 5 (-6) 13 Kings 23-45 4-6 1-2 1A L 14-29 W No 3 (-5) 14 Warriors Cannon Fodder 15 Wolves Extinct * Indicates the Tie Break is final <B>Clinched the #13 seed.</B> <B>Lottery Hunt: L/W >.500 Home/Away #1 #2 #3 Team L/W Win % L10 Games Left Games Left Pick % Pick % Pick %</B> <I>72-73 Bucks 60-8 .118 6-4</I> 1 Nets 61-7 .103 9-1 6 9/ 5 25.0 21.5 17.8 2 Wolves 55-14 .203 11-0 8 7/ 6 19.9 18.8 17.1 3 Warriors 48-19 .284 7-3 9 6/ 9 15.6 15.7 15.6 4 Wizards 45-21 .318 9-1 10 8/ 9 11.9 12.6 13.3 5 Pacers 46-22 .324 7-3 7 10/ 4 8.8 9.7 10.7 6 Pistons 45-23 .338 8-2 7 6/ 8 5.3 6.0 6.95 6 Kings 45-23 .338 6-4 9 7/ 7 5.3 6.0 6.95 8 NY/Jazz 44-24 .353 6-4 8 6/ 8 2.25 2.65 3.15 8 Sixers 44-24 .353 8-2 10 8/ 6 2.25 2.65 3.15 10 Clippers 43-26 .377 8-2 7 7/ 6 1.1 1.3 1.6 11 Bulls 36-31 .463 9-1 9 9/ 6 0.8 0.9 1.2 12 Hornets 36-33 .478 8-2 10 8/ 5 0.7 0.8 1.0 13 Grizzlies 33-36 .522 4-6 8 5/ 8 0.6 0.7 0.9 14 Rockets 31-35 .530 3-7 9 7/ 9 0.5 0.6 0.7 -------------------------------Lottery/Playoff Cliff------------------------------------ 15 Raptors 33-33 .500 8-2 8 8/ 8 15 Heat 33-35 .515 4-6 3 6/ 8 16 Bobcats 32-35 .522 3-7 5 8/ 7 18 Bucks 30-36 .545 2-8 10 9/ 7 19 Blazers 28-41 .594 2-8 7 6/ 7 20 Spurs 26-40 .606 2-8 12 7/ 9 Sorry, got busy with trying to figure out what i going to do with my life, and because once I stopped updating this they started to play much better and get on a winning streak. Superstition? Who knows? In general, since the last update every team has won the games they are supposed to and lost the games they are supposed to. While it does not help the Rockets, it is pretty much how I expected those games to play out in the long run. Boston has played like a shell of its former self. Especially playing at home with how the Rockets have been shooting, I expect the Rockets to win this game. Games over the next 2 days will see a few games between teams jockeying for draft positioning and the seeding in the East 5-8 seeds. I have little hope that Golden State or Washington will give us any help against the Spurs or Blazers, but you never know. Next week will really be a huge week in regards to the Rockets small chances at making the playoffs. Rockets play more games than the Spurs or Blazers, but a few are games we should win (NY, CHI, LAC). The Spurs and Blazers play a number of playoff teams. If both teams continue to stay hot and win these games, the Rockets may be out of luck in regards to making the playoffs. Otherwise, have fun watching the NCAA Tournaments. Gig'em Aggies...BTHO the Aggies. Today's/Thursday's Games: Orlando at Miami, New Orleans at Denver Friday's Games: Detroit at Indiana, Oklahoma City at Toronto, Charlotte at Atlanta, Philadelphia at New York, Cleveland at Chicago, Golden State at San Antonio, Utah at Phoenix, Washington at Portland, Milwaukee at Sacramento, Minnesota at LA Lakers