[Chron] McGrady lightens up, and shots fall

Feb. 15, 2006, 11:43PM
McGrady lightens up, and shots fall
Rockets' leader says off-court issues remain

By JONATHAN FEIGEN
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle

LOS ANGELES - Tracy McGrady was laughing too hard to speak, though nothing was all that funny.

A radio reporter had an oversized microphone, and Rafer Alston asked if it had been used to interview Bob Cousy. McGrady found that hilarious. David Wesley mocked McGrady for grabbing just one rebound. McGrady busted a gut.

For two weeks, McGrady was more than misfiring, he was morose. He was playing miserably and feeling worse.

But that fog, he said, lifted Tuesday and the Rockets marked the occasion by rolling up more points than in any game since 1995 while establishing 10 new season bests — points, assists, margin of victory, field goals made, field-goal percentage, points in the paint, first-quarter points, first-half points, fourth-quarter points and second-half points.


Demons, be gone
When McGrady said he "exorcized the demons" the bad side of the Rockets' first half of the season, if not the damage they caused, seemed gone, too.

"Me shooting poorly was because I was dealing with some personal things," McGrady said after scoring 28 points in 29 minutes on Tuesday.

"I guess it's safe to say I wasn't myself out there. Basketball was the last thing on my mind and it was showing. But when you're struggling, you just have to keep playing. It's a long season. You just have to continue to have confidence and continue to play.

"Coming from a scorer, you don't ever stop shooting. To get yourself going, if you're struggling with your shot, try to get to the free throw line, try to get easy baskets. That's builds up the confidence and that opens up the outside game."

McGrady did not say what those personal problems were. He did say they are not over but that he has been able to keep them from haunting him on the court.

"We're playing with a great deal of confidence right now," McGrady said. "We're just believing in one another. We realize we're not too far away. Whatever happens toward the end of the season, we're going to compete no matter what's at stake. But we understand that we're not too far out."

There is recent precedent to offer hope. The Rockets never reached this season's depths last season, but they hit the break on a roll, winning eight consecutive games.

That gave them a 32-21 record at the break. The Rockets head into tonight's game 22-30.

When they first sank to eight games under .500, McGrady said the Rockets were not just in a hole, they were in the Grand Canyon. It is still a long way to ground level, but they go into the last game before the break heading in the right direction.

"I don't think we had problems last year with expecting to win," Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy said. "I think we started playing well enough to win consistently and doing the things it takes to win.

"This year is very similar. I dont think it's about us not expecting enough of ourselves, I think it's about playing well enough to win consistently. It starts with our best two players, we know that; them playing consistently well, and when playing around them, (we have to play) a hard enough game, a smart enough game and a together enough game that can sustain you.


Schedule turns rugged
"Unfortunately, during the softer part of our schedule, they were out. Now, from this point on, it's brutal. It will also give us a clear idea of who we are when we complete these 30 games."

If the Rockets come out of Phoenix with a win, they would reach the All-Star break with wins in eight of nine games.

"You would have to judge our team more on a full roster than the roster we had in January," guard David Wesley said. "We're capable. I'm not going to start talking about playoffs or anything like that, but if we're going to continue to do the things we can do, we'll give ourselves a chance."

The Rockets are 7-2 since Yao Ming's return from toe surgery and 16-7 when he and McGrady both play.

"The record is still going to look lousy," guard Rafer Alston said. "But it shows without all the injuries what the record could be, what the first half of the season could have been."


ROCKETS SUMMARY
Suns are unique

After the Rockets piled up 128 points on the usually defensive-minded Clippers, the notion was proposed that the Rockets and Suns would offer one of those high-flying, high-scoring shows national television loves.

"Yeah, that's it," Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy said, trying to play along. "That's who we are."

The Suns are the league's top scoring, passing and shooting team. The Rockets rank 29th in scoring and shooting percentage, making such comparisons foolish.

But Van Gundy said the Suns defy most comparisons.

"Not everybody has Steve Nash," he said. "That's why they're rare. They have three reasons they're so unbelievable in transition: they have a unique point guard, four man ( Shawn Marion) and coach ( Mike D'Antoni) who has coached them in that game as well as anybody could coach anybody in any type of game.

"He structured the game around two unique talents, and then structured the pieces around them."


One of a kind night
As much as the Rockets enjoyed scoring 128 points, they are not ready to expect to win that way often.

"Our main focus is really defense," forward Tracy McGrady said. "We're not going out trying to put up 130 points. That's very rare for us. We just had an unbelievable shooting night, shooting 58 percent from the floor, having six guys in double figures, shooting 53 percent from beyond the arc. We don't have nights like that.

"Now Phoenix on the other hand, those guys are capable of putting up those kinds of numbers. That's what we're going to go in there trying to prevent. It's our last game (before the All-Star break). We're not going to get too comfortable. Everybody is getting ready for a break, but no, we're going to try to come out and get a win."

JONATHAN FEIGEN