Yao is Olajuwon of that year. Comparing both seasons, Yao had more points, rebounds, assists, blocks, the same fg%(almost exactly), a much better FT%, and we still couldn't get to 45 wins. Did Walt williams, Matt Bullard, and Andersn have that much of an effect on this team? Or is it the 'zone defenses' that everyone except our boneheaded guards can adjust to? I know you think that the loss of this year will somehow jolt a winning mentality into our team, but I don't see it. If losing is any kind of therapy we should've been cured this year. I don't really believe in the " Oh we need time to adjust to a big man like Yao." Steve and Cat had played with Hakeem in the beginning of their NBA years, last year steve barely played in a system that was suppose to be guard oriented, I highly doubt he got adjusted to it that quick, yet when he gets another big man all the sudden they don't know how to play with him? And even worse, their team falls apart at the end of the season right when it should be its strongest. I don't understand how anyone could give these guys chance after chance and say that losing will help them be stronger. If anything they've gotten use to losing and seem to almost expect/accept it.
I only hope,for the sake of humanity and houstonians,that "spacecity" isnt Rudy or with the org. That logic from the first post is exactly why this team turns down tradeing for Amare to play along side with ming. Or tradeing for lewis,or ..ah..forget it.
Many of losses were a case of being out coached. Many nights, even on wins, they looked unprepared. Most still lack the fundamentals and this is a fairly young team that need to be taught. And unless the guys are having a problem setting their VCR clock, I don't know what they can learn from this "staff". I see talent but, I don't see any discipline or direction. More time will not correct either. Repeating the same problems is not a encouraging sign. And most "explanations" from this "staff" are "we just couldn't put the ball in the hole." If I were Les - this is unacceptable.
How do you suppose that trade would take place? "Hello, Sun's GM? This is the Rocket's GM, would you trade us your Rookie of the year candidate? I can offer you any package consisting of Eddie Griffin, Moochie Norris, Cuttino Mobely and Glen Rice. Thanks for stepping aside next year and letting us into the 8th spot, we appreciate it." j
I don't think when you are rebuilding like the rockets you can have the luxury of keeping a team together like you can if a team has consistently won recently. The Rockets have their 2 superstars in Steve and Yao. Now it is time to get them good role players that can help them win consistently. Team needs: 1. A tall pg or sg with pg skills: Gosh how I would love Brent Barry in a Houston uniform for anything outside of Steve or Yao. Eric Snow in philly comes to mind, except he is injury prone. Marko Jaric in Clipperville would be nice too. Or Derek Anderson in portland. There are others I missed as well. The reason for height is while a guy like Parker is nice, it would make our backcourt defense awful. Maybe Boki becomes this guy, but I prefer to not take that chance. 2. An enforcer on the glass to compliment Yao at pf. Mo Taylor is a nice player, but a player like PJ Brown coming off the bench with Cato would really help this team. He can also start. 3. A decent back up point guard. Moochie Norris is going to be around for awhile so either he improves or I sign a nice backup for the exception, and he can stay warm collecting his paycheck on the bench. 4. Shooters. Glen Rice is our only 3 point threat that will consistently burn guys for sagging on Yao. A guy like Jon Barry, Matt Carroll, Mike Dunleavy, Jr. could really help. Maybe we could call Dale Ellis, Ricky Pierce or Dell Curry out of retirement . If we can do at least two of these four things, this team should be playoff bound next year. Also, provided his demands are reasonable keep James Posey, he plays good defense, rebounds and works on his game: look at how his shooting has improved as a Rocket. Finally, as far as Cuttino Mobley is considered. Nice player but I like him a lot more as a 6th man scoring off the bench then I do as my starting shooting guard for the rockets. Particularly because he wont get the touches he needs with Yao and Steve dominating the ball. These arent major team shakeups, just some tweaking. Until we make the playoffs again, we as a team should be looking to find that deal that can put us over the hump, and even if you make the playoffs, you should always look to improve. This team has some small holes, but none too great that an offseason of phone calls and hard work by the front office can't fix.
Next year the west has 1, Kings 2, Mavs 3, Spurs 4, Lakers 5, Wolves and a bunch of upcoming, just as good as Rox if not better teams 6, Jazz 7, Blazers, 8, Warriors, 9, Hornets, 10, Sonics, I have a hard time to "easily see this very same group of guys being a 4 or 5 seed team next year", if you mean we keep the same coaching staff. I feel it's either changes or another year of sucky Rudy style ball.
The thing is, maybe our team does get better, but what about the other teams also. We finished just ahead of GS and Seattle. Is there any reason to think that those teams won't get any better also. Its been shown that Phoe 2 best players, Marbury and Marion improved more than 2 players we were really counting on in Mobley and Francis despite being younger. Posters can sit back and watch channel zero,but its clear especially with NO coming to the division that it will take close to 50 wins every yr to make the playoffs. 6 teams won 50 games in the west and another in Utah won 47, yet we are still stuck thinking about a 45 win season 2 yrs ago. This team needs changes to be made unless after the summer Ming comes in and avg 18pts 12rebs and 2 blks next yr. If that does happen , then the Rockets will be ok, but what if Amare avg close to that also. What if GS resigns Arenas. What if Denver gets a couple of good free agents to go along with their lotto pick. What if Memphis continue to improve as is did under Brown. I would rather not risk these what if and build a team that was capable of competing now. Think about this timeline: 1997: Mavs and Kings are lotto teams. 1998-99: The Kings draft J.Williams,trade for Webber and sign Divac. Also ,Peja shows signs of improvement after a injury plagued rookie season. Also in 1998, the Mavs trade for Dirk to add to Nash and Finley. The Kings go 41-41 and make the playoffs mostly with offense. The mavs finish strong and is looking forward to next season. 1999-00:The Kings win 50 games even after trying and failing with Nick Anderson at 2 guard.Barry and the bench mob is born,hedo is drafted late, team is playing better defense, but still loses to the Lakers in the 2nd rd. The Mavs make the playoffs with a up and down the court play. They lose to the spurs, but the seeds are planted. 2000-01:Once again, the team played well and had very good chemistry,but the team wasn't satisfied. The very productive but limited Corliss was traded to Toronto for Doug Christie making Peja the starter. The fan popular John Barry was traded for a seldom used Mateen Cleaves.The team let Tony Delk go and signed Bobby Jackson. The team won more games than the yr before and semed like a threat to la. Once again La knocked them out in the 2nd rd. The Mavs on the other hand won in the 1st rd, but lost to SA in the 2nd rd again. 2001-02: Even after another successful season, the Kings made more changes. They traded flashy but suspect J Williams for more consistent Mike Bibby. Webber and Peja are all stars and the team compile the best record in the entire league. Had lakers beat, but let them off the hook and the team lost in the WC to the eventual champs. The Mavs desperate to make things happen, trade J. Howard to Denver for NVE,Raef,Tariq and Avery Johnson. The team plays well , but bows out to the kings. 2002-03: The Kings despite injuries to Bibby,Jackson,Webber and Peja have the 2nd best record in the league. Throughout the injuries, they added players such as Keon Clark and Jim Jackson. Team is widely considered the best team in the league. The Mavs had the best record for most of the season , but collapsed at the end. Didn't add any significant players but played better defense. The team won more games than at any point in their history. What does this have to do with the Rockets? In that same period, the Rockets have had the #2 pick,#1pick and the #7 pick. During that same period, those teams even though showing signs of success, didn't stop improving their team. Word is, Until you win the title, you shouldn't ever stop improving your team. The Rockets should try to improve their team by any mean whether that means through personnel or coaching moves. Say for Phil Jackson,Rick Adelman,I.thomas or Don Nelson, any other coach in the league would love to get his hands on this talent.
I wonder if all the people that call our guards dumb have ever played organized basketball. I know they haven't played in the NBA. There is nothing easy in the NBA. These guys remind me of my uncle who swore that if he played in the NBA he would wait on Jakeem to fall-away baseline and block it. He couldn't believe the other players were so dumb that the couldn't tell he was going to take that shot. And all of our player took some bad shots this year - including Yao. To me, any fall-away shot he takes is a bad shot. He just happens to make some. I'd love to see him wheeling in the paint next year.
nice topic Space City. I also have a question to those who thought this season was a failure----- If Houston still maintained the 43-39 record, but still got into the playoffs because of a few more Phoenix losses down the stretch...would you still call this season a failure? In simple terms, we would be in the same boat as we are right now, but the only reason why we only got into the playoffs was because the other team (Phoenix) lost a couple of more games. Hope that made sense.....
Good questions, scv_rockets. I definitely would not think the season was a failure. But that's a big IF. Then another question would be, if we would be in the same boat as we are (43-39) right now, but the only reason why we were in the 11th place of the WC was because the other teams won more games, then would you change the view of the season? My point is Rox didn't play well that's why they didn't get the ticket. The mediore to bad performance had little to do with others.
This is in response to Space City and all of those who have "bought" the Rockets "Let us stay together another year and grow together" arguement. This was the line they started spouting after the last game at Denver. That is simply a load of horse poop! Folks, you have a team that must play in the Western Conference which is home to the best teams in the league. This team has been stuck in a huge rut of mediocrity for the past 6 or 7 years now. The players may have changed but the results have pretty much remained the same. Now, during the same time period, they have been passed by Dallas, Sacramento and Phoenix - teams that have taken concrete steps to make the changes necessary to improve their competitiveness and standing in the division. The Rockets have not done so and as a result have simply gone backward. The end result of all those personnel trades, drafts and coaching by the current Rocket regime is that we have a team that, as presently constructed, is not competitive in its division. Let's say we keep everything intact and give them another "year". How will doing this make them more competative? The assertion here is that another year together will reduce or eliminate the level of inconsistent play and that it's been that very inconsistency that's what is preventing them from taking the next step forward. Even if that's true and they play with more consistency (particularly on offense) next season, will that in and of itself translate into success in this division? From what I've observed the answer is NO. The bottom line is that they simply are not doing the type of things that are necessary to succeed in the Western Conference. They don't play the type of offense nor defense that's required to succeed. Consistency for this team won't change this fact. If the Rockets were to come back next year with this same cast of players and coaches then the most we can expect is that they will play with better, maybe even wind up with a better record but then will be passed once again, this time by Seattle, who has recognized what they need to do to improve.
I might use the softer term "disappointment" as opposed to "failure", but the point is they DIDN'T make the postseason. And the reason they didn't is because in the last few weeks of the season, they consistently made the same boneheaded mistakes in games that had plagued them all year long. A lot of people go to the "won 15 more games than last year" card when defending this Rockets team. But that's a load of BS. The 2003 Rockets shouldn't be compared to last year's bunch. The 2001-2002 season was a disaster due to all the injuries and I won't hold Rudy and the players completely responsible for that. Instead, I rate this year's group as they compare to the 2001 Rockets. That team won 45 games and missed the playoffs by a couple games if I'm not mistaken. They had increased their win total over the previous season by 11 games. The future looked bright for them. Flash forward to the 2003 Rockets. They replaced an aging Hakeem Olajuwon with a younger, superior Yao Ming. The 2nd year Eddie Griffin fills the role of the 2nd year Kenny Thomas on the 2001 team. A better-skilled, more talented James Posey replaces Shandon Anderson. Glen Rice fills in for Walt Williams/Matt Bullard. While both teams have Kelvin Cato, this year's version is much improved. And last but not least, Steve and Cat were the backcourt starters for both teams, although you would think this year they'd be wiser and more polished players. So why then did the 2003 Rockets win two fewer games than their 2001 counterpart? Why did they play much worse down the stretch? Why did they struggle so much against bad teams when the 2001 group consistently took care of business against the scrubs of the league(remember them sweeping the Central Division?)? This can't all be due to the new zone defenses, can it? Are the coaches and players that inept that they can't adapt like every other team already has in the past two years? This is why I consider the 2002-2003 season a failure. They were worse this year than in 2000-2001. Not just record-wise, but in their play out on the court, their attitude, the lack of execution late in games, the dumb things they'd say to the media(talking smack after getting blown out by Dallas yet again, b****ing about not being in the East), and on and on. You can sit here and pretend this team doesn't have major problems to deal with in the offseason. You can insist that all they need is another year to cure their ills. But the truth is, this is no longer just about missing the playoffs. The Rockets have serious issues they need to address. Their chemistry is almost non-existent. Their younger players haven't developed since entering the league. They still have no set offense installed even after 82 games. Their defense disappeared in the last 2/3 of the season. They always played down to the level of their competition, no matter how many times they had their asses handed to them by crappy teams. And as mentioned before, they showed both in close games throughout the season and against Portland and Utah in must-win situations that they didn't have the heart or the sack to play smart and execute. The Rockets are a mediocre ballclub, plain and simple. They have been for years, and they'll continue to be if they don't make some major changes this offseason(and yes, that includes possibly replacing Rudy). Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if they had a worse record next year if they bring the same group back given the likely improved play of Golden State, Seattle, Phoenix, and Memphis.
Help me understand.... Why the rocks have one of the few "franchise" players in the league that doesn't play a lick of d. Why we ever have an 8 sec backcourt violation occur. Why dribblemania is allowed to continue. Why we have so many 24 second violations. Why the fastbreak is non-existant. Why we have guards that don't know how to get their teamates involved, other than the occassional alley-oop. Why there is no weakside movement. Why Griff continues to chuck 3s when he is not even consistant from 10 ft away from the basket. Why our team has trouble making a simple lob to the post to a friggin 7foot 5 giant. Losing to horribly ****ty teams. Why any of this is supposed to change w/o player or coaching change, since most of the last 4 years has been same old same old. We keep the same core together, and then we will get defensive effort out of the team? Or a fast break? Spreading the ball around? Yeah right, I hear that same **** every offseason.
Honestly, here is the fan point of view I've noticed. These things arise, people start to whine... and then Mobley or Griffin or Steve has a great game and people say, "Oh, there's the potential -- leave it alone". It's the same reason why people were so high on Moochie. HE SUCKED as a PG from the very start, and yet his buzzer beaters and infectious personality got people into believing he was an integral part of the team. Now, that he sucked for a whole year, people realize he's not even worthy of being trade bait.
I agreed with most of what you say. We do need time to have this team get used to play with each other. Their stats goes down because many times Cat & Steve takes bad shots or simply they could not hit some open shots. In case you did not notice, Yao still takes much less shot than either of the guards. I think Cat & Steve really need to work hard on improving their passing skills, so they can move the ball around more and not just run very predictable offense. Steve is definitely improving. His assist is up just because he's a unselfish player that is willing to give up the ball, that does not mean he's a good passer that gets his teammate good shots most of the time like Jason Kidd. He also need to work on his defense and FAST BREAK skill. Cat is also turning around his game by trying to involve Yao more at the second half of the season. He's far from a consistent production guard that we needed and he lacks the team ball smart to really invole everyone. It's really clear there's no guard on the Rox that can run the show now. We don't need that many weapons, we just need someone that can get the ball to the right player at the right place at the right time. (For example, you can drive in the dish out to Rice on the wing for a 3 pointer; run a pick and roll with Yao to use his passing skill.) Here's the example of players we need desperately: Jason Kidd, Gary Payton, Tony Parker, Steve Nash, Andre Miller, John Stockton.
One more time for the 'slower people in the group'... Why the Rockets couldn't duplicate or better their 45-win season of two years ago: 1) ZONES WERE ILLEGAL THEN While it's true every team had to adjust to this, not every team was built EXCLUSIVELY to take advantage of the rules at that time. The league had just done away with hand-checking, making it illegal. The Rockets as a response to this, acquired quick guards who could break defenses down off the dribble, and BUILT THEIR TEAM AROUND THEM. What does the league do? They BRING BACK THE HAND-CHECK, and MAKE ZONES LEGAL. Look at EVERY team ahead of the Rockets in the standings. How many of them are built EXCLUSIVELY around small, quick guards. The answer? ZERO. Naturally these rule changes affected the Rockets MORE than most teams. 2) HAKEEM OLAJUWON The Rockets were 20-23 when Hakeem had his 'breakout' game against the Knicks. They finished 45-37. Hakeem COMMANDED the ball in the post. Yao Ming does not. It doesn't take much to figure out that Hakeem's emergence was a HUGE factor in the Rockets almost making the playoffs that year. 3) 16-0 The Rockets' record vs. the Central division that year. This set a record, I believe. Does anyone dispute that this was a feat unlikely to be duplicated? A fluke, basically. The team's record against the East that year was a flat-out anomaly. This led to an inflated record, and of course, inflated expectations for fans. 4) THE SURPRISE FACTOR The Rockets snuck up on NOBODY this year. EVERY team wanted to show up Yao Ming and the Rockets, EVERY time they played. Do you not think this makes a difference? Why do you think the Rockets lost to bad teams this year? They overlooked them. The Rockets were beneficiaries of this CONSTANTLY two years ago. People didn't even notice them on their schedules. 'The Rockets? Pfft. Easy win, we just need to show up and we'll get the 'W''. The exact OPPOSITE happened this year. Teams marked Rockets' games down on their CALENDARS (4th best road attendance in the NBA is a decent indicator of this). EVERYONE wanted to dunk on the hyped-up rookie Yao Ming. The Rockets are NOT experienced enough or good enough to deal with this yet. This was NOT a problem for Phoenix, Utah, etc. The Rockets flat-out overachieved two years ago, and they're being penalized for it now. FACT. From ESPN, 2 years ago: ...the Houston Rockets ... not only did they belong in the playoffs, but they could have given the Spurs a legitimate Round One scare if their guards caught fire. Put them in the East and they could have advanced to the Conference Finals with a few breaks. And just for the record, Rudy Tomjanovich gets my vote for Coach of the Year -- he loosened the reins, handed his offense over to Cuttino Mobley and Steve Francis, relied on fast breaks and isolation drives and somehow chiseled out 45 wins in the impossibly tough West. How many coaches would have completely changed their style like that? Amazing job. What have you done for me lately, right?
Space City, TheFreak, et al, there are a lot of us old-time Rocket fans that believe the same way as you. Some of us just come to read and don't often post.
If the Rox doesn't make the right move in the right direction, they could be lost in the shuffle in the loaded west. How long was it when people realized that Hughes,Thomas,Rodney White, and a slew of other potential superstars are very ordinary. Isn't the Bucks waiting for Thomas to be the next Pippen or even the next glen Robinson. The Wizards are still waitin for hughes just like the warriors and 76ers were. Griffin is beginnig to fall into this class as well as Taylor and all the other so called potential stars on this roster.
