Not happening ... Port 94, Bricks 88 OT! They're consistent, they find ways to lose. The mantra of NYK!
WTFFFFF: Final 88: 94 Knicks lost... Knicks lost... Knicks lost... Knicks lost... Knicks lost... Knicks lost... BIG L to Knicks. BIG D for me
Considering they are both recovering from the flu, I'd expect them to be even more lethargic tomorrow night - but I won't hold it against them. Let's see if our role players can lift the stars again tomorrow night. I don't see any chemistry problems on this team. Rafer had a poor shooting night, it might be that he needs to handle the ball more to be effective. But Rafer being more effective isn't the goal of the team, it's the TEAM being more effective. And when T-mac is in the line-up - guys like Hayes, Yao, Scola, and Landry will all be more effective since T-mac draws double teams and that creates opportunities for them. If you notice that we had 5 guys in double figures tonight. Most of them were the bigs.....Scola, Landry, and Yao. Only Tmac and Battier scored in double figures. What you are seeing is Adelman's offense working. The ball is going inside more, we're getting easier shots, as a team we shot 48% tonight. That's pretty good. We also had 25 assists - which is pretty darn good to. Stars are going to coast a bit in games. YOu have to understand when you play 40 minutes, you are going to relax at times because you have to pace yourself for the final 5 minutes. Yao use to make the mistake of wearing himself out by the 4th q. The difference might not just be increased endurance, it might be that he's playing smarter - picking times to rest a bit and pace himself more. But that's the advantage of having a deep and competitive bench - those guys are dying for minutes, so they will play with heart and desire and tire their little hearts out because guess what, they only have to play for limited minutes. No one can play at a super-hustle pace for 40 minutes. No one. It's selective viewing to focus on the points when a player is pacing themselves. You focus on what you want to, but the truth is, every starter who plays heavy minutes except super skinny rookies with bunny legs is going to do it.
Don't fret, it's too early to worry about the standing - we're probably going to pass and be passed a few times before all is said and done.
Damn, when are Portland and GSW ever going to lose? Aside from us beating them, they never seem to lose. That's how it feels like anyway...especially when you're out of the playoffs...
What they're human, they get sick? Perish the thought! Your post is right on! What I said, too! T-Mac recognized Landry was hot down the stretch and just kept feeding him instead of taking a lot of shots. He also recognized he really did not have it, tonight. This just in ... that's what star power can do for you. If you are having issues from the perimeter, then dish, penetrate and create shots for your teammates. That's what he did! Personally, I like the way this team is starting to develop and the way RA is fueling the competitiveness for playing time. It's a good problem to have.
They will - don't worry. Just not against the Knicks. The schedule gets brutal later on....that's when the playoff will be decided. For now, we just need to keep pace and stay within striking distance.
I hope you're right. I know it's in another thread, but now that the Lakers got Gasol, and Golden State looks pretty good, I think we'll have to hope for Portland and Denver to drop out. I don't see anyone else dropping.
Anyone else notice that Brooks had as many assists as Rafer did in 1/3 of the time??? Also, Lakers now become title contenders with the trade they made today. Easily one of the elite of the NBA now.
If we're a true contender, the only teams we have to worry about are Phoenix, Dallas, and San Antonio. New Orleans is unproven. The Lakers are definitely going to be better, but not as formidable as Shaq-Kobe.... And we are going to finish ahead of Golden State, Portland, and Denver, because we're better than those teams. I think it will end up like this: Phoenix Dallas Lakers Utah New Orleans Houston San Antonio (because of Parker's injury) Golden State ------------- Portland Denver We'll draw the Lakers in the first round. Not an easy match-up. Landry and Scola will really have to mature to contain bynum, and now Yao will have to contend with Gasol. If T-mac and Kobe is a wash.... Then that leaves our bench against theirs, and I think they have a slight edge...but you never know....I think Brooks will be the x-factor. Maybe Novak will be someone who can be an x-factor too.
Damn, that's bold. I like it though. Honestly, I can't even make predictions at this point, the west is crazy. I don't know what the NBA can do, but this east-west disparity is ridiculous. Once Kidd comes to the west, it'll be even worse - which sucks for us.
i said it once and il say it again.. mcgrady is a cancer and his negative attitude is slowly spreading and the team fire that the team gained while he was out will start to blow out.. at the end of the game after the buzzer... mcgrady went to the middle of the court made sure the camaras where on him and pointed towards the sky.. as to say yeah i did it.. sort of like taking credit for things.. the guy anoys me so much.. maybe im just letting it get to me a tad too much but i cant stand him.. his attidtue and the vibe he gives off.. its anti team and selfish just bad in every way
Actually it looked like Tmac's leg was bothering him from the start. He was getting no lift at all on his jumpers in the first half (or in warmups either). So he was passing a lot and trying to get to the basket (and not getting calls) The tech at the end of the 2nd and then the face foul at the beginning of the 3rd got a bee under his bonnet and he was getting a litte more lift. In person, Tmac's jumper looks even more whack than it does on tv. It's a straight line. He has hardly any arch on the thing at all, which I think is why he struggles so much when he can't jump. If he doesn't get up on his jump the shot keeps hitting the front of the rim. Something that's going to get increasingly worse as he gets older.
Agreed. Just thought it was comical how many saying T-Mac is T-Crap and he's a cancer and he sucks and yada yada yada. It would be nice if you a few of these newbies actually knew their head from their ass. In other words, actually know and understand the game of basketball. I mean T-Mac like I said recognized what he could do tonite and what he couldn't do, bottom line he helped to position us to win by setting up teammates, but hey what do I know! I'm just a dumbass homer! Their rants are nauseating to me.
T-Mac you might be able to use the flu excuse for, but Yao is coming off a monster night against GS and he's had three days to rest. I liked the balanced scoring, but the defense was awful. Yes, the Pacers were hot from three point land but it really helps when the Rockets don't bother getting out to the three point line to defend. The Rockets played lazy tonight and the area where lazy play is most obvious is defense. Also, T-Mac's handling the ball too much. Look at his line: 6 of 19 and 9 assists. If he was playing in the system like Adelman intended at the beginning of the year his assists would be down and his points/shot percentage would be up. He's got to give up the ball and let the PG handle it. Then he can get those open looks 10 to 15 feet away from the basket instead of having to create for himself. That also means that when he gets the ball he doesn't stop and hang onto it looking to drive, at least most of the time. Instead that ball has got to keep moving, and he's got to keep moving. I thought this road trip would be a good opportunity to try and work T-Mac into the offense because they're playing a bunch of cream puffs, and it looks like they're to need every advantage they can get while they try and get the offense working.
The bad thing is we will have a dark March. So I am execting we are able to win every game we could at Feb and Porland and Warriors would lose every game they might lose. Knicks was playing good but I guess the luck was just not standing by the Rockets' side.
Exactly. It is hard for Yao to be open, any hesitation will lose the window to pass it to Yao. It is pathetic that this team has almost no good entry passer. Scola the other day had a very good lop pass, right on money. Good lop pass when Yao is fronted normally means two points.
Preach on. All these YOF's and T-mac haters are so f'n annoying. You'd think they'd realize that this is a Rockets forum for Rockets fans. Get their complaining asses to some nut-riding website where they can love on Yao all by themselves.