steve francis was making a conscious, concerted effort to get yao ming touches almost every time down court. and, not coincidentally, the offense flowed much better than in the past. that is a huge accomplishment not to be overlooked.... congratulations, steve. you're understanding the game better and better every day...
i posted a thread a while back stating that i thought when the rox could lose a game and still get it down into the post that we would have turned the corner. well we lost a game and still posted yao. lets turn the corner.
Also, our turnovers were WAY down. However, Steve, leading the team with 3 assists, would have only been in a 3-way tie for 3rd on the Jazz. Remember back in junior high when the coach would tell you things like "4 passes before we take a shot" or "everyone on the team touches the ball once before anyone takes a shot." Maybe the Rockets need an assistant coach who will take this team back to junior high rules, so more players feel like they're involved and we start racking up decent assist numbers.
Good point, verse. I noticed that as well. Yao's #'s reflect it. What a tough loss. Is that the most minutes Yao has played so far? His play was also a positive, although he made some rookie mistakes (which is to be expected, unfortunately) and was really sucking wind at the end. The play of Terence was a positive. Those were a couple of clutch 3's. A win tonight would be huge. I'm not expecting it, but it'd be huge if we could bounce back and win at the spazz-holes place.
It's hard to find silverlining in a tough loss like last night's, but I agree with verse's post. It's good to see our two star players working off each other.
read my post about assist #'s. An offense system around throwing it down to the big man and let him operate doesn't give the pg a lot of assist since the big man makes his own moves to get shot instead of the pass leading up to the shot. I liked how both Steve and Ming played though, and hey, a offense oriented around throwing it down to the big won't get the pg a lot of TO's either so you got to take the good w/ the bad.
another positive i saw was a concerted effort by francis to keep moving after he made the entry pass. that was VERY encouraging! it didn't happen every time, but hey, i don't think anyone expected it to... more important was that there was improvement, which is all i ask of this season: consistent improvement by the players. (i've given up on that notion for the coaches...)
But the problem is that the move that Francis or Mobley or Norris would make after these passes is the same frickin' one that ANYBODY WHO WATCHES SPORTSCENTER knows is coming. In fact, the Jazz defended that move pretty well and forced some tough shots by Mobley and often prevented the pass to Francis. But baby steps, I suppose. Now let's focus on more creativity.
This is true. Francis had zero turnovers. The team turnovers weren't half that bad either, compared to Utah's. Houston had 11 to Utah's 20. Although I am still bewildered by the choke last night, at best it was a learning experience.
As someone that was not able to watch the game on TV last night I appreciate the info about Yao in this thread. I think I also read in the GAME Thread that Yao got the ball, passed it out of the post, re-posted and then got it back? Is this the case? Can anyone confirm this? If this is indeed true then that is a HUGE improvement! This is a sign of a mature team that has patience in getting Yao the ball in the spot that he is comfortable with. It just seems like in the past they would give Yao a look and if he was not in his comfortable position then they would go away from him. But from the posts I have read it appears they weren't going to take no for an answer in getting him the ball. They kept trying and trying. I liked seeing Yao get 16 shots last night. I liked seeing that he went to the FT line 13 times! That is more like it! That is what it is going to take just about EVERY NIGHT for the Rockets to win games and get to the playoffs! I liked seeing Yao get off early in the game. That is when he is his freshest and we have to take advantage of that. The games in which Yao scores around 7-9 points and grabs 3-4 rebounds in the first quarter are ususally the games in which Yao has a big game and ususally the Rockets WIN those games. Yao and Steve need to be the two work horses on the team. They are their two best players, their two all stars! Besides the fact that the Rockets actually lost last night the point distribution of Yao and Francis and the role players seemed pretty good. The problem is this team can't get that "consistency" every night. If we play the way we did last night against most teams we win the game. Last night just wasnt our night. Nevertheless, I am glad Verse brought up this thread. I am more encouraged about Yao the Rockets after seeing what he did last night. I will be even more encouraged if I see his effort and the teammates effort in getting him the ball on a nightly basis. Chris
Chris, Yao did get the ball much more and when he did, our offense looked good. Yao got his team mates a layup and lots of wide opened 15 footers. The thing about last nights game that stood out to me was that we lack role players (not suprisingly). Utah had alot of guys that contributed with things that are off the box score. Loose balls, screens, tip balls, defense, scrap and other things that win ball games. That is where they beat us. They were able to translate those "scrap plays" into some points and that was the difference.
you're right. that is not a surprise at all. these role players were built around a francis/mobley dominated offense. expect some minor changes to be made in the offseason to place role players on the team that fit yao ming. namely a banger at the 4 spot, a spot up shooter at the 2 spot and a different b/u point guard, if at all possible.
I agree, those are the target areas. This is a young team still in transition from the Mobley/Francis era to the Yao/Francis era and like you said, the role players need to compliment our two stars. And the target areas you list above seem to be the areas that if filled properly would greatly augment our two stars. I don't see Moochie being the answer at the b/u point guard spot. This team needs more from that position than what they are getting now. I like Mobley and the effort he gives but unfortunately I don't see him as the answer at the 2 spot. We need a "combo guard" at the 2 spot that can shoot the 3 point shot and play some PG for Steve to allow him to roam free at times. I would LIKE to believe that Eddie could be the answer at the 4. Not sure he will ever be a "banger" though. But a jumping jack rebounder, that blocks shots and brings some consistant offense to the table (outside jump shot around 15 feet and some post moves) and can play at minimum "average" man on defense is a player I HOPE Griffin will turn into. In my opinion this off season for Griffin will be HUGE! He HAS to put on MORE muscle and has to work on his post moves. We need to see some significant progress on his game next season. Enough with the 3 pointers! Chris
I will concur, Steve made a good effort to get Yao involved early and keep him involved. There were a few times when he probably shouldn't have forced it into Yao where Yao was out of position, but last night was certainly a start.
Steve does make an effort to involve Yao Ming, especially in the first quarter, then reduces his effort. Last night was a good example, too much Steve and Cat in the fourth quarter, with Cat playing like he was about to be traded or something. Francis needs to get others involved in 4th qtr. offence, especially Yao Ming. Rudy should give more direction on how he wants his players to play.
you know ming actually had many touches in the 4th, but was more indecisive because they were basically cheating on defense and not playing any player, but in between ming and whoever fed him. solution: feeder has to clear out to get the spacing and make them commit either way...the Jazz did not commit to defending or doubling him , but made him hesitant and therefore he held the ball wasting away ball movement seconds..... lesson should be learned that Yao has to make his move or draw the defender and pass....he cannot hold the ball but kudos to Steve for getting him the balll\
Another positive was the play of T-Mo yesterday.He shot the ball well in OT and brought us back in the game.
From what I saw in the fourth quarter, I remember Yao passing alot to his teammates like Terence but they unforunately misses the shots. Hopefully, we can get someone who can hit the threes like Bullard via trade.
