Chron: Rockets say they take no one lightly

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/sports/bk/bkn/1814494

UPDATE
• Tonight: Los Angeles Clippers at Rockets
• When/where: 7:30 p.m.; Compaq Center.
• TV/radio: Ch. 51; KILT (610 AM) and in Spanish on KYST (920 AM).
• Records: Clippers 20-43; Rockets 32-30.
• Playoff watch: 32-30, one game behind No. 8 Phoenix in Western Conference.

Play in traffic long enough and eventually you figure out that it's dangerous -- particularly now that Yao Ming is a licensed driver.

Somehow, the Rockets could not pick up on the obvious perils the first time they played and lost to the Clippers (tonight's opponent at Compaq Center) or the second time. They couldn't quite get it after they played and lost to the Bulls (Friday's opponent at Compaq) or Heat, or when they were beaten by the Cavaliers or Grizzlies.

But this time -- after all the occasions they seemed to have learned their painful lessons but did not -- they insist they really do respect a struggling opponent. This time, they understand that the Clippers have beaten them twice. This time, they have promised again, will be different.

Sure the Clippers lost to the Hawks, but then so have the Rockets. The Clippers are without Elton Brand. But the Heat played without Eddie Jones the night they beat the Rockets.

With just 20 games left in the regular season, the chase for a playoff spot is urgent enough that the Rockets said there is no temptation to look ahead to Sunday's visit by the Suns.

They beat the Suns twice in three meetings. But they played the Clippers and Bulls a total of three times, losing all three.

"We're not going to creep up on anybody at this point," Rockets guard Steve Francis said. "Beginning (today) it's a must-win situation. We can make a push and it starts Wednesday.

"(With) Elton or not, it's been tough for us the last couple of years against them. We play well against a lot of other teams. But it seems when we play the Clippers, something goes wrong. We just want to try to continue something we started. This is the time if you have injuries, if you have anything, you have to suck it up now. These two games right now at home are real important before we play Phoenix.

"We're going to really, really focus on playing this team. This is a team we probably can beat. But if we don't play the right way, it probably won't happen. We've lost to both of these teams this year. We've lost to Chicago. And LA, we lost to twice. I can honestly say, these are games we really have to win."

That should help, but the Rockets' failings against the NBA's weakest teams -- they escaped Denver with a win -- have become so familiar and frequent, that some specific shortcomings must have been established.

To Glen Rice, the problem has been a lack of respect for every opponent. The Rockets generally play hard. But Rice said intensity has been missing.

"I think it's a lack of respect for the other team, not giving them the respect that they deserve," Rice said. "We have to understand they're in the NBA, they're good. Their records may be wrong at times. But they can beat you. It has happened to us. We should never downplay a team.

"You never see a team go out a step or two slow when they're playing the Lakers or Dallas or teams like that, unless they just get blown out because the team is on top of their game that night. But when we play the lower teams, teams that don't have such a good record, you look at the record and think they're a poor team and they're not."

But Maurice Taylor said there has been respect for other teams, arguing that the problem has been how the Rockets handle the pressure of being expected to win. Taylor said the Rockets have played with intensity, but perhaps too much tension.

"When we play the Lakers or some of the top teams, we're like, `OK, everybody is against us, nobody thinks we can beat these guys,' " Taylor said. "We have to have that same killer instinct against teams like these, teams we should fare well against.

"We respect them. But we're playing not to lose, instead of to win. We get out there and ... play so tight and teams like the Clippers and Chicago come in and play so loose, like they got nothing to lose. When we get in games like that, we want to win so bad, we don't want to let it slip through our fingers (and) we play not to lose. We have to play like we're going to win, like we think we're going to win."

Rudy Tomjanovich seemed to lend support, to a degree, to that theory. Tomjanovich cited the Rockets' free-throw shooting in the worst losses. They made 66.7 percent of their free throws in the first loss to the Clippers and 65 percent in the second loss. They made 48.1 percent in Atlanta, 68.4 percent in Chicago and 65 percent in the loss to the Heat.

Something else also must have been missing.

"We played hard," Tomjanovich said. "We got to the free-throw line ... and we shot 60 percent. What's going on there? Our guys said, `I got to make this. We've got to win this game?' I don't know.

"We addressed the respect factor. But we also talked about just going out and playing with a standard."

But given the Rockets' string of failures, the answer is probably that they have had shown opponents a lack of respect and played with a lack of toughness.

"I think it's like coach said. It's focus," Francis said. "It's not being mentally tough enough to withstand not being in the underdog situation. We've been good in the underdog position. But once we're predicted to win, things don't work out for us."

Either way, they no longer deny there has been a problem. But instead of being fooled into thinking of themselves as superior and therefore destined to beat poor teams, they seem to understand they can only be considered superior after they do.

"It has to be a matter of pride," Rice said. "If we're going to look at ourselves as one of the better teams in the league, we have to go out there and take care of business. We have to beat the teams we're supposed to beat."

 

Rockets summary

Backing Harrick

Rockets guard Cuttino Mobley and Clippers forward Lamar Odom on Tuesday defended their coach at Rhode Island, suspended Georgia coach Jim Harrick.

Mobley and Odom were together for only moments in the Rockets' practice facility locker room when the conversation turned to Harrick. Mobley played for Rhode Island in 1996-97 and 1997-98 and was friends with Odom during the 1997-98 school year. Odom was sitting out that season after transferring to Rhode Island from UNLV.

Georgia suspended Harrick with pay after an investigation revealed three players took a bogus basketball class taught by his son, assistant coach Jim Harrick Jr.

Tony Cole -- who was dismissed from Georgia last year -- accused Harrick and his son of breaking various NCAA rules. Cole said Harrick Jr. paid his bills and did schoolwork and said he used the elder Harrick's credit card to buy a television.

"That's a bunch of bull," Mobley said. "That guy is a coward. His lawyer outright said it. If they let him back on the team, none of this would have happened. I mean, what? What are you trying to do, get even about something? It's all ridiculous. My position about him is it's all ridiculous. This kid is garbage, that Cole kid, whoever he is."

Cole's lawyer, Steve Sadow, said Cole never would have made the allegations if Harrick had let him return to the team after charges were dropped in a rape case.

Rhode Island is investigating charges by a former secretary that Harrick had grades changed for players, had student managers write papers for players and arranged for players to receive lodging, cars and money from boosters.

"Lamar and I just were just talking about it," Mobley said. "Everything about Jim Harrick is he's a winner. It's as simple as that. You want to say he's a bad person? Look at yourself in the mirror and see how bad you are. He's loving kids and making them better people. I don't see how that makes him bad."

"It's too bad," Odom said. "A good guy lost his job. He wasn't deserving of that. I feel bad also for the kids at Georgia. They deserved to play in the tournament. It's not fair they are not."

Training wheels

Rockets center Yao Ming finally earned his driver's license Monday, inspiring teammates to kid him about his driving skills, or alleged lack of skills, now that he can take the wheel by himself.

"That only means he (is allowed to) drive," forward Maurice Taylor said. "That doesn't mean his driving skills are up to par, yet. Driving is a hard thing. It doesn't happen overnight. We saw what happened in the parking lot not too long ago (when Yao backed his Toyota Sequoia into a parked car at Westside Tennis Club in January).

"We were like, `Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh -- he hit it.' It was of those, `Oh no, he's about to hit it. Oh, he did hit it.' It was funny, though. You can tell how scared he was."