ClutchFans Game Thread: Grizzlies @ Rockets 2/29/2008

Yao will be missed as much or more defensively as offensively. People just don't drive very much on the Rockets when he's in the game and in the rare instances when they do get by their man, Yao is there to protect the basket.
Last night it was a layup drill for the Grizzlies.

Not a good sign. Opponents are going to get cleaner looks in the perimeter and/or more layups. Landry and Scola are not shotblockers.

 

Balanced scoring and team defense wins games. As long as they keep playing together and playing hard toughnosed defense, I don't think we will miss a beat. Mutumbo's defense is actually better than Yao's. If nothing else, we will be constructed much like the Detroit Pistons now. Our center Mutumbo is not that far off from Antonio McDyess.

 

it actually means 3 things.

1) PERIMETER defense is getting beat. alston/bobby jackson getting beat off the dribble and letting em blow past.

2) TRANSITION defense is getting beat. when you're jacking up shots and scoring 4 points a stretch (like we were doing in the 2nd quarter) the other team gets down the court and gets a lot of layups and long passes to the basket before you're set up.

3) INTERIOR defense. this is where we're hurting a ton. it's 100000x more significant than numbers 1&2. when deke was in there a la the first quarter he was intimidating and affecting everything like yao does for us and they had like 2 points in the paint. when deke goes out everything opens up and everyone goes to the basket. so yeah this is a huge problem.

lack of post-up like blender says is an issue. we lost our 2 best and most versatile post up players with yao and bonzi. tmac can post. and scola can work with his back to the basket but he gets blocked and misses a ton and no one is going to double team scola down there. other than that it's pretty bare which will definitely bite us in the ass

 

Good point..

But it seemed worse last night than others.

 

I'm really confused with what you're trying to say here. Unless you're being wholly sarcastic, I can't really tell what your point is.
Are these supposed to be the common thoughts of the media, like ESPN?

 

sorry clutch...but the only thing thats lame is ur tireless criticizing of Rafer... It was also strange how smooth the offense was running with RA in the game

 

Bobby Jackson brings a lot of positives but it seems that he doesn't handle the ball as well as Brooks or Rafer but he is an upgrade over Head...

 

Forget Rafer for a second. It must really kill you to see Battier and Tmac shut Gay down. Face it, Battier is a better player. He is a winner.

One day, Gay can be better than Battier, but that day is not here yet. And if that day ever comes, Tmac and Yao could be on their last legs, so Battier is definitely a better complimentary player next to Yao and Tmac.

The ambigously gay duo of Gasol and Gay did not work out for Memphis. I guess you'll be having your choice of ping pong balls for the next 10 years.

 

huh??? I registered that name the day of the draft after the trade...a week later i was on board with the reasoning behind the decision...but GAY is going to be an all-star... something battman will never be

 

Whether an AllStar or not Gay will command $15mill+/year starting in 2010. So the Rockets would have Gay during his learning period of 2007-2010 and then lose him to free agency when he gets better?

The Rockets made a great decision.

 

By watching the Grizzlies playing Jazz, I can't believe their record. They play well.

 

thats incorrect....they would be able to offer more than any other team and mac could possibly be off the books by then

 

That's what I am saying. The Rockets would not have him on the cheap. They would have to offer him $15 mill/year which increases to $19mill a year at the end of the contract.

The Rockets don't want to build around Yao and Gay. So the Rockets did not lose anything. They actually benefited by having Battier instead of Gay

 

Rudy Gay is a LOOSER! It's real, he never won anything since HS and not kepping him was a smart move. He has talent, nothing to say, but he has no work ethic, no passion, no heart. He's lucky to be on a poor team because in Houston, he would be useless.

Battier has always been a winner, if the Rockets wanted to win, a leader, Battier was a perfect target.

JVG is right when he talks about Gay, Houston made the right move.

 

I think we agree

 

Id have to agree.

I also laughed when Milicic was talking smack to Mutombo, I hoped that Mutombo would do his signature winger wag right at that moment in his face

 

I went to this game! . . It was pretty fun . . but I hated it when I was cheering on the players (Rockets players of course) and people would yell at me, "SHUT UP, STOP YELLING, LET THE ROCKETS PLAY!" . . I was like WTF in my mind . . I've been to numerous games, and this was the first time it happened . . Jeez Rockets fans . . I was just being a Rocket fan, unlike those angry baboons who yelled at me! . . It made me sad, cuz they call themselves Rockets fans! . . Ugh anyways, hopefully when I go to the Hornets game, i'll have different company around me!

Time to sleep on #14, and wake up for #15, good night! =D

 

That dunk was the most aggresive offensive move I've seen from him. No one was going to get in Mutombos way.