All announcers are remote. But all teams have their own announcers. https://rocketswire.usatoday.com/20...an-remote-broadcasts-upon-restart-in-florida/
Interesting perspective from L.A. fan/media. Houston has that same upside [as 76ers]. Its talent stacks up favorably with either of the California juggernauts, and the Rockets acquitted themselves well in their dress rehearsal against the Lakers. The variance inherent in their "3s and layups only" style makes them classic giant slayers. Buuuut.... https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/...ers-win-it-all/amp/?__twitter_impression=true
There were safe distancing spectators so why wouldn't there be safe distancing announcers? Also the score and record keepers need to be there for more accurate stats.
I think the Clippers are more dangerous than the Lakers. The Clippers seemed like they kind of sleep walked their way to the 4th best record in the league. In that way that Kawhi and PG13 kind of seem like they are sleep walking even when playing, lol. But the amount of above average role players they have is insane. Lou, PBev, Trez, Shamet, Marcus Morris, JaMychal Green, Zubac, they just added Noah and Reggie Jackson. That's 2 superstars and 9 legit role players. When you factor in how good Lou and Trez can be as offensive forces, and some of the defensive versatility they have in lineup size, length, switching, etc... it's just a very balanced solid roster. But Lebron+AD is the higher upside duo. Coaching, chemistry, healthy. But definitely the Clippers should be able to match the Rockets small ball better than the Lakers.
John Schuhmann: It's impossible to know how four months off will affect any of these teams, but it's not hard to look on the bright side for the Rockets. With their switch-happy scheme, they really need to be cohesive on defense, so it might take some time for them to be at their best (which isn't that bad, really) on that end of the floor. But that second-ranked offense relies heavily on individual talent and, if James Harden is healthy and rested, the Rockets will be a problem for opposing defenses. But that second-ranked offense relies heavily on individual talent and, if James Harden is healthy and rested, the Rockets will be a problem for opposing defenses. The layoff has seemingly allowed Mike D'Antoni, architect of some great after-timeout plays and maybe the best offensive coach in NBA history, time to tinker with a style of play (no centers, fewer ball screens) that they adopted mid-season. Westbrook will continue to attack relentlessly and other guys are always going to get open looks, but a little more ball movement (their first two scrimmages have produced two of their 11 highest assist-percentage marks of the season) could produce better shots for Harden. https://www.nba.com/article/2020/07/28/blogtable-state-harden-westbrook-rockets
Watch closely when the Rockets come out of a timeout (or at the start of a period), and you'll see some creative stuff from coach Mike D'Antoni. According to Synergy tracking, the Rockets lead the league in after-timeout efficiency, having scored 1.06 points per possession out of timeouts. They rank second offensively overall (114.0 points scored per 100 possessions), and there's obviously a strong correlation between overall efficiency and after-timeout efficiency. But when you compare the two, the Rockets see the biggest jump in efficiency coming out of timeouts. https://www.nba.com/article/2020/02/28/notebook-alex-caruso-rockets-jimmy-butler#houston
