ClutchFans Game Thread: Blazers @ Rockets 2/13/2005

Hmm, if that's the case, its a no brainer play. But it seems loose to me. No player has possession should equal a loose ball.

 

Probably a combination of nagging injuries and fatigue from logging heavy minutes. Yet the Rockets have managed to win in spite of his struggle. All they have to do is survive one more game and then the team gets a well-deserved break.

 

It is something called "the big fat contract syndrome".

 

I think it's pretty obvious that Tmac is not himself lately. Maybe it's his back, or his hip. He's definately not 100% out there. Good to see him still get 9 assists all the time though.

 

Mabye Tmac was being guarded by someone as athletic as he is....sometimes the defense can matter, and I think Miles was bothering him a lot tonight.

Slumps aren't so bad when the team is winning.

DD

 

true

but didn't tmac have the same kind of minutes every game in orlando last year? (although i guess that could be a factor in him sitting the last few games of the season too...)

 

I thought the Promo was 80 points or less and 100 points of more?



Anyway what do I care - 7 in a row. Bring on the Bullets.

 

Its less than 80 or 100+.

 

I like the dunk from Yao with Sura's assist. That showed some fire and powerful from him. Much aggressive.

 

Championships runs are made out of games like this. Teams are not going to play well every night. To play poorly and win is priceless.

I see some complacency setting in and the streak may end soon if they don't get their heads together. TMac is obviously playing hurt. One more, then a week off. Tuesday is huge: a week to savor an eight game winning streak or a week to remember a loss.

 

Will, think about this...

You are right that we need to improve our team (D. Anderson! ). And Swift! Ok, I'm dreaming...but you get the picture. We know that we need some speed and athletic ability. We're trying to get that.

But you cannot ignore the fact that one of the reasons that we win close games is because we are as a team, disciplined and play controlled enough to do it in the first place. We aren't at the elite level yet where we can blow out every -- or most - teams yet.

I say, not yet.

Do you think that our teams from the last 5 year could have done this? I think not.

I agree that blowing leads is BAD. But winning close games is GOOD. The two are not necessarily related.

Also, I agree with isoman2kx. We have a problem with COMPLACENCY. We relax when we are UP in games. That is a bad habit. This is a relativity new team and they need to learn how to close out games better. Overall, they've done a good job. We have a decent amount of blowouts vs our opponents too.

I think that learning how to win close games are more important for the play-offs than what you will learn from a blow-out. I'm not saying that we should not try to blow teams out....if we can we will. I'm just saying that close games are the nature of the play-offs, i.e. nail-bitters.

 

Well - technically speaking, since we won the games, we did close out the games... but I get what you're saying

And being WAY too comfortable with leads is a bad thing - I think it's possible that the team was complacent today since they are so used to winning - hopefully this nail-biter serves as a "loss" to put a rocket under the team (pardon the pun)

 

No

 

I may be in the minority here, but I much prefer the complacency and occasional lack of focus and losing big leads, to the last few years of always scratching and clawing trying to erase a big deficit.

I think this team is coming together, but still has work to do, glad to see we are winning while they are coming together.

DD

 

Someone did do the "chuck the ball in the air" thing in the last week or so. I'm pretty sure it was Reggie Miller in this game:

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/playbyplay?gameId=250204011&period=4

It'd been several years since I had seen that, and it's bothered me to no end why teams NEVER do this. Maybe most players want to pad their stat sheet with the extra free throws.

 

You can still foul a player after he chucks the ball in the air, that would still stop the clock.

DD

 

That's very true! In fact, even when we got leads, it was very, very difficult to keep those leads; and over the course of the season those losses added up. Even though we could edge out some sqeakers here and there. It didn't really matter. We were never under control or disciplined enough to show any consistency.

 

True, it feels a lot worse when your team fights all game to erase a deficit just to come up short. (which is what Portland did)

Most of the times teams come up short, that is the reason that anytime a team does erase a big deficit, its a big story.

Getting big leads is a signs that a team is starting to dominate. However if they keep giving up big leads, then teams start declining in ability. But, some games like these do build character.

 

It also allows the coach to have something to talk about and show the team that there is still a lot of work to do.

I must admit I had visions of the Knicks game flash through my head as Damon shot it....

Whew !!

Lessons learned while winning are much better, IMHO.

DD

 

Although I didn't see the game, it would seem this so-called complacency tonight has more to do with failing to make a single three when it is such a big staple of the inside-outside offense these days. Plus our guards(!) were clanking free throws. Huge aberrations, hardly normal.

All this while the Trailblazers were making a higher percentage of threes than the All-Star Three Point Shootout winner will probably make.

I think that's pretty terrific when you can win without making a single three. I wonder when's the last time an NBA team did that.