Local article: Rockets won't make playoffs

Originally posted by sicnarf3

!sicnarF .rM ,emocleW

Overall pretty reasonable projections, but take it with a grain of salt. After all ... the Wizards in the playoffs? To paraphrase someone's sig, "Stranger things have happened, but none stranger than that!"

I like his prediction of Toronto in the Finals, but that will only happen if Hakeem has a good and healthy season. I hope he's right, but I think the Bucks are a safer bet.

As for the West, no major gripes, but I can't see Sacramento stopping SAS in the second round. CWebb isn't a championship caliber player IMO and Sac's O will be smothered by SA's D.

I do think we'll finish ahead of the Sonics and take the 8 spot. Whether we can pass Da Kid and the Wolves for the 7 seed is another matter, but I think we can. 49-33, 7 seed here we come! (This is important, because I think we could beat SA in the playoffs, but not LA, the likely 1 seed.)

 

How is Seatle Better than Last Year!!!!! What a Dumb AS***!!!

The only team's the Rockets have to worry about is Minnesota & Phoenix. I think if Phoenix has all their players healthy, it will be tough to keep them out of the playoffs. Marbury for Kid is an even swap, and Gugliotta & Penny really never played last year. Those two will be the key this year. Minnesota is the same as last year (with the addition of Woods), and the Rockets should beat them out of the 8th place (if not rank higher).

I think UTAH is on the verge of becoming the next Boston Franchise. Malone & Stockton cannot keep up the same intensity, and when they are gone - so is Utah.

 

The last time I checked, it takes 5 people to win a basketball game, not 1. As great as Micheal Jordan is, it's ridiculous to think that he can simply will a team that won a paltry 19 games into the playoffs! It's not like the supporting cast of Quitten, Rodman, and Harper are out there playing for the Wizards.

I just love how the experts think that this will happen. Nothing will be funnier to me than to see the Rockets make the playoffs to prove the experts wrong and for the Wizards not to make it.

 

Originally posted by barbourdg

Did Minnesota have Billups last year? Anyway, they also added Joe Smith, so I think they'll be quite a bit better. If Terrell Brandon stays healthy, they should be in the playoffs.

I don't think Kidd-Marbury is an even swap. I think Phoenix will stumble badly as he and Penny bicker and Marion wonders why he isn't getting all those easy shots he did when Kidd had the ball.

Washington also added some kid named Brown. They'll be a lot better, but not nearly better enought to make the playoffs!

 

Whats that saying... 'too many point guards spoil the broth'

 

yep, kidd is so much the better play-maker and sometimes you gotta have this potential to jell with the rest of the team, than a marbury-hog.

 

Joe Smith will not make much of a difference, he is way to overrated. As far as Phonenix, Kidd was an assist PG and Marbuy is a shooting PG (pretty close to even swap). Gugliotta looks to be back in form, and if Penny stays healthy they will be hard to keep out of the Playoffs. That team is definately better than last year (if all stay healthy). Minnesota, looks about the same as last year, I do not think that Joe Smith will guarantee them a playoff spot.

The biggest problem the Rockets, Phoenix & Minnesota will have in the future are the clippers. They might not make the playoff's this year, but they seem to be a lock for the playoffs within the next year or two. With Brand, they are probably one of the most improved teams in the NBA, and the old team gave the Rockets, Portland & the Lakers problems last year.

Lets hope that Seattle goes down hard (looked pretty bad last night against Webberless Sac.), and UTAH's goest back to the lottery in the near future.

 

This guy is an idiot.

The Celtics, Nets, and Hawks will all be better than the Wizards in the east.

Portland, Seatle, and the Jazz will be fighting for the 8th position in the west.

 

I agree with most everything Ricealum has to say.

KG and Wally are young, the former is one of the 6 best players in the league, and Brandon hasn't lost much. They still have most of their other role players (Peeler, Mitchel, Nest.). They add Joe Smith, Trent, Woods, (the guy immediately makes their already good defense better) and Billups to upgrade their role players and give them more depth. Over the last 3 years they have been a decent team (better record than Dallas across those years and always made the playoffs, ask SA if they present some challendges), there is no reason to expect them to not be in the middle of the lower 4 seeds in the West.

Jason Kidd made a lot of the Pheonix players look a lot better than they are. Marion still isn't much of an offensive player, though Marbury is younger and therefore the trade could be justified on those grounds, nobody in the right mind thinks he has the total positive impact on the floor that JK does right now (why the latter is 1st team all NBA and the former is not). Also, Phx still doesn't have any interior D, and Hardway or Googs are two of the most overpayed players in the league based on what they can actually produce on the court. Oh, and Phx lost their 2nd best offensive player and 3rd best overall player (Robinson) last year for peanuts. The only why they get in the playoffs is if we don't progress as expected or the Jazz totally fall off the face of the earth.