Stopping Deron is a high priority. However, it's my opinion that keeping Okur from shooting 3s and making shots is even as important. He knows how to put on a psychological momentum against us. Same thing for Milsap, I know it's funny to most people to concentrate on this guy but for some reason he always has those intangible rebounds and points that deflate our spirits. He needs to be taken out of this series as well.
what about brewer? he was a non factor last season but this season he has been phenomenal. check out his avg FG% and steals
I think we can stop Deron if we make him guard Brooks. His tailbone is hurting, and they don't have a backup like Fisher. Deron's going to have a hard time with Brooks IMO if he has to guard brooks. Its extremely tiring to keep up with Brooks. Just ask Steve Nash.
Putting Scola on Okur instead of Boozer may be to our advantage. Scola should do fine in hassling Okur's three-point shot, but it will also keep Scola from picking up quick fouls in the post against Boozer, which would then allow him to stay in the game longer. One disadvantage is Scola may be out of position for defensive rebounds, so other players would have to pick up the slack.
yeah, i see foul trouble if scola defends boozer. but i'll sacrifice taking away momentum from okur and his daggering threes for someone who can defend boozer fairly and rebound the ball fairly.
How many battier on Okur instead? Okur isn't a big and strong Centre. I think battier's awesome face guard defense will work pretty well on Okur yet at the same time keep our paint occupied with rebounders. I think Landry can keep kilenko, and scola can handle boozer. But it could be the other way around. Scola on kilenko and landry or boozer, or even hayes on boozer.
We do a pretty good job on Okur. The main problem is Boozer. Harpring also has a way of burning us every chance he gets.
Seriously, the Jazz's roster have the weirdest names in NBA. I mean the more we say it, the weirder it gets. A guy named Boozer.... A guy named Harpring..... Millsap..... Kirlenko....Okur.....
I think if the team makes Boozer earn his points, take tough shots, and limit his foul shots it has a solid chance. Don't forget about Okur. Williams and AK47 are not as good a 3 shooter as Okur. Do this, and get those rebounds and the Rockets win the series. The 4's have to play smart defense, and not commit silly fouls to put a good FT shooting team on the line. Easier said than done.
Deron - I doubt anyone could stop him, but hopefully we can contain him Okur in the past has been pretty much a non-factor in the playoffs. We just have to chase him off the 3-point line Milsap seems so long and active - we'll probably be too concentrated on Boozer to lookout for him
yea but you guys need to keep in mind, our main problem against utah is probably going to be our lack of offense, rather than what we do on defense. chuck hayes can provide some great D, but then that is one less guy on offense who can put the ball in the basket. i just don't see any way that we beat this team.
In the first game we played the Jazz this season, Boozer was torching Yao as usual and Utah went on like a 10-0 run in the first qtr. Yao got in foul trouble, so in comes Scola on Okur and Hayes on Boozer. Miraculously the Jazz stopped scoring. The one huge positive of not having Yao is having 5 players capable of defending all 5 positions.
Okur had some poor offensive games in last year's playoff vs Rockets. But the main reason was Okur guarded Yao and used most of his energy on the defensive assignment. So, the Rockets must be very careful here. It's because when Okur gets on a hot streak, like any other good shooters, he'll be unstoppable. With his height advantage and perimeter game, Okur's defender, who is likely to be Scola, must be ready to run out to Okur when he catches the ball and put a hand on his face.
At the start of games , Scola won't be on Boozer because you don't want Mutombo guarding Okur out in the perimeter. But as the game progresses, I can see Boozer getting a variety of defensive looks. When Deke's out, I think any combination of Scola, Hayes, and Landry can be used to defend Boozer and whoever else. I think Scola and Landry will do fine in limited minutes, but personally I'd like to see Hayes get physical with Boozer and soften him up as much as possible. I think the key here will be Mutombo's defense on Boozer, and how good and efficient is the help defense the rest of team gives him. If Mutombo can be effective on Boozer for 20-25 minutes, it will be really give Adelman many more options the rest of the game.
honestly, i'm not worried about boozer. Boozer is more of a player that puts icing on the cake when his teammates are out there doing their job well. That's why this thread is concentrated on whom I think the rockets need to stop in order for momentum to be on our side this is because we all know BOOZER will get his. but i dont give a crap...boozer can still average 30 plus thru out the series but that's simply not enough to beat us.
Sorry to derail your thread there. I agree, it's not important to shut down Boozer. We just need to do enough so that we can concentrate on the rest of the team. Milsap should be one player to watch though in terms of what kind of frontcourt boost he'll be providing from their bench. It'll also be interesting to see how Adelman counters.
i believe that battier on okur may work - not for most of the game, but i remember during our games vs. the kings mcgrady was playing brad miller because miller plays on the perimeter, and this strategy worked. maybe adelman will employ it in this series?
