Is the difference between a regular season wonder and a post season blunder. I watched almost every game this last season as many of you did. With or without Yao, the Rockets get an enormous amount of wide open, virtual HORSE shots, and they miss the majority of them. Throw in the horrid free throw shooting, which indicates that the team lacks "shooters," and this a major factor in their success, especially in the post season. Yes, I agree they need more size, more athleticism, more quickness, among other things. BUT, more they anything they need players who can hit the wide open shot, they need shooters. TMac used to be a "dead eye" shooter, now he is an almost 30 something percent "misser." Rafer is good for one or two streaks a year, but normally shoots in the 30 percent range. The bad news, those two get most of the shots. Scola, Head, Hayes, et al miss an disproportionate number of lay-ups. Accurate shooting could bump this team up to a true contender. Many different players are being discussed on this board as possible acquisitions for a variety of reasons, but their shooting and free throw percentages should be a major consideration.
If open shots aren't falling, we have to attack the basket. We can't just sit there and keep shooting from the outside. Thats what the other team wants us to do. The bad thing about it is that we don't really have that many players that can attack the basket or break down the defense. I felt that at times, this team fell in love with the three point shot and would settle too much. We weren't putting enough pressure on the defense.
i completely agree. I think our terrible shooting has led people to getting excited about guys who probably shouldn't be in the rotation like Head and Novak just because they can hit an open jumpshot while they are void of any other bball skills. If the rockets can't put a team on the court that makes the majority of their wide open shots then they won't go anywhere. Its really sad.
Agree w/ TC. I don't understand how year after year we have the same exact problems. David West missing the majority of his open shots is in my opinion a main reason why New Orleans is home right now. I'm beginning to think foreign players are the best at hitting the open jumper, since most American players are all about the crossovers and dunks.
Shooting is crucial? Who says? It is why I wanted Novak to get a little more burn, even though his defense sucks, he is a good....nay....great shooter. DD
Peja should get some of the blame. How many jumpers did he clank? As far as driving to the basket, I agree, but our shooting woes continued there. I don't every remember seeing a team missing so many point blank shots.
Yeah, I know, I thought I would get the Captain Obvious post, but on the other threads a host of players are being discussed who have shooting percentages much like Rafer. I don't care how athletic or big they are, if they can't shoot, the Rockets should pass. Yep, the team who makes the most baskets wins.
shooting has declined from the past, generally speaking. a league-wide problem now. it is shooting that makes yao stand out; and it is shooting that has made mcgrady look, errr, itchy.
I think all of it has to do with how fresh our players legs are. We spend a lot of energy on the defensive end, as we are one of the best defensive teams in the league and our guys play major minutes. San Antonio is one of the best defensive teams in the league but their guys don't play anywhere near the minutes as our guys, especially leading up to the playoffs. I think this is part of Pop's brilliance as a coach is keeping fresh legs. He also has a better bench to work with .... Fresher legs == Higher shooting percentage
This has been my chronic lament... year after year. An increasingly undervalued skill. "Going to the rack" is important but developing a good mid-range jump shot, in addition, makes for a much more dangerous player. Also, goes hand in hand with being able to hit free-throws. What good is it to get to the line and then not convert??
the ball movement isn't the issue. as the creator of this thread correctly pointed out, we missed a huge amount of wide open looks. what we need is players who can knock down those wide open looks.
Shooting well takes *skill* players who practice. We don't like getting to many of these. Somehow, we prefer "heart" players who don't get any better with practice.
