ClutchFans Game Thread: Grizzlies @ Rockets 12/5/2007

Is it just me or does Bonzi's energy level change from game to game? Some nights he's super active and others he seems more lethargic.

I hate to say it, but this season could come down to how well Bonzi plays, and his performances have proven to be a real wild card.

 

rafer wasn't playing that well in the fourth, t mac was doing more facilitating than anyone. he played a good game, but it didn't warrant him playing the entire second half.

but that's not my only complaint about rick adelman rotations. I was wondering in the first half why he let t mac and yao play so many minutes. it just doesn't make since. why is t mac in the game up 20 with 4 minutes left. when he gets hurt, adelman is going to look like an idiot.

 

I don't think you can narrow it down and say it's all on Bonzi. Outside of McGrady and Yao, we just need somebody else to step up, especially when one of the stars is off their game. Last night, there were three: Battier, Scola and Bonzi.

Next game it could and probably will be somebody else.

 

i got to disagree with you on that play.

Yes, Alston is fast comparing to our others guards. however, did you take a look at him after he raced down the court? did you see what he was doing 9 times out of 10?

often time alston was our first player ran to the opposing team's court with maybe one or two guards/forward standing there.

guess what he did? he dribble the ball few time and put up an act that looks like he was trying to blow off the defender to the hoop. Instead, he dribble back few steps and waiting for other players from rox. then it was tmac doing all the play making job, and alston just stood around and camping out the 3s.

alston just can no longer finsih it around the hoop.

 

Yao: Hey O-fer, you better gimme that damn ball, or I'm gonna chase you down...

 

rafer: " yo, yao ling ling, i've got it under control. Watch me tear drop the ball like a meteor!"

yao "damn this motherf!@#$"

 

it's all about miss match....

 

watever..tmac is teaching yao to "throw it down"

 

Denver has shown nothing this year. They have only managed a mediocre record with the easiest schedule in the league. Who have they played? Us once and LAL twice and lost all 3, even lost to the Knicks.

New Orleans will be tougher, IF they can keep all of their players healthy. Rarely do all of your players remain healthy the following season, and they dont have the depth to absorb any injuries.

GS became GS late last year, but how much credit do they get in the following season for their performance in April? Just last March they were still losing to teams like New York, Washington and Portland. Admittedly they're better now but have not added firepower or a new system; additional improvement will be gradual.

LAL has not changed materially and still do not have enough to compete at the end of the season with the elite of the West, which will include us.

 

Great to get a good win and team effort...Let's see if it continues...

 

Scola: 5/5
Battier: 5/5
Bonzi: 4.75/5 for poor FT shooting
Yao: 4.75/5 for missing one FT
T-mac: 4.75/5 for poor shooting
Rafer: 4/5 for doing his job
Steve: 3/5
James: 2/5
Chuck: 2/5

i didnt notice Head was there for 30 seconds..

 

uuh.... bad defense by memphis...dont celebrate yet, we should be doing this to them, it should be a blow out everytime with this team but i gotta say we did get our help this time, hope this continues. great lobs by tmac--->bonzi, should do it more often

 

Lack of confidence in the team down the stretch.We have collapsed so many times even with Yao and T-Mac in the last few minutes and couldn't afford to lose. Yes, it's risky but we don't have the luxury of resting Yao and T-Mac right now.

 

Agree with everything Solid stated.
Great game by T-Mac.. didn't have his usual scoring performance but that's okay.. I'd rather have the facilitator over the scorer any day (as long as others are making open shots).. role players responded and played well, hopefully this is a start of a more consistent contribution

 

hey guys, you will not belive my luck i got to go to this game!<my 1st in toyota center sec107 row 6 seat 9> and on top of that had a pass to the lexus lounge man it was nice to be so close. and didn't buy a thing. one thing i do think is it's time to start scola. man i had a blast

 

oh and by the way how nice is this ticket c107 row6 seat 9!!!!!!!

 

No, Battier does not have quickness in any physical sense. The only quickness he possesses is mental. Battier, plain and simple, is below average athletically.

 

We were not up by 20 points with 4 minutes left and Memphis was continually making little runs to cut our lead to 9 or 10. We kept T-Mac in to win the game.

 

Is it obvious? Coach RA think that RA is far better than Francis and James overall.

 

Good argument. They have had an easy schedule. Still, this team is not a walkover for Houston. They will win their share of games and it is hard not to see them making the playoffs with two top-flight scorers and the reigning defensive player of the year. They also have a solid coach and plenty of role players (Martin, Nene, Smith, Kleiza, Najera).

I don't feel comfortable banking on the assumption that one of the players that was injured last year will get injured again this year. The bottom line is that this team was like the Rockets team 2 years ago in that they faced numerous injuries to key players. In this case though, they still nearly made the playoffs. The Rockets, themselves, have had trouble in recent years against the Hornets. The Hornets are a legit playoff and there is no reason to believe it will be easy for the Rockets to finish ahead of them.

Late last season they also beat almost every single top tier team and humiliated some of them. Specifically, they swept Dallas during the regular season (not considering the playoffs) and also beat Phoenix, Utah, Detroit and Houston (even though McGrady left that game early).

So, I think they should get plenty of credit for what they did during the second half of the season. And, right now, they are one of the hottest teams in the league over the last 10 games and would have likely won a few more games if Jackson didn't have to sit out the first seven.

And do they need to add firepower?? They have more firepower than any other team in the league even after losing Richardson. It is a strong argument that they had too much firepower last year. Plus, Azubuike has proven to fit their system well and has contributed significantly throughout the first part of this season (13+ ppg and nearly 5 rpg).

We can not assume we will finish ahead of GS.

Derek Fisher is not material? I would take that material for the Rockets any day. Odom missed 26 games last season too. If he stays healthy that is some more material. I don't want to make assumptions that the Rockets will easily finish ahead of a team like NO or LAL because those team will have key injuries.

Plus, the Lakers did make the playoffs. Every game that Bynum gets under his belt is making him better and he just turned 20 years old. His stamina has improved this season and he is becoming a legitimate force in the middle. They have Kobe Bryant. This is another team we can't assume will just fall of the map and finish behind us in the standings.

And the 4 teams above are not as good as the top 4 teams in the Western Conference (SA, DAL, PHX, UTA) who all pretty much can guarantee themselves a playoff spot. At this point, you can not put the Rockets in this category.

The argument remains the same: HOU, GS, DEN, NOH and LAL will all likely be fighting for the final 4 playoff spots at the end of the season. As of today, I could see any one of these teams sitting at home in late April, including the Rockets.