Francis spent a short amount of time posting up - I think it was in the latter parts of '00 - the Suns were toying with Kidd in the post and Rudy played a few games with Stevie receiving in close - I think that wore off..... don't know if he does it well or not, but with such a size advantage it's got to be tempting to try!
Last year Shaq got outplayed by Hakeem in the November game in Los Angeles-- do you think Hakeem is a better player now than Shaq? Or could it maybe have been one bad game?
I don't think the Rockets can beat the Spurs as they are currently playing. That's not to say the Spurs are drastically better than the Rockets, but rather... you can't beat the Spurs by throwing your guards into the paint against Duncan and Robinson. You've got to take hit the open jumper. The Spurs, imo, have a questionable perimeter defense. We've got to take advantage of that and play asymetrically with their power.
Avery never averaged 26-12. Hakeem is a hall-of-famer, Avery is not. Francis should never, ever be outplayed by someone like Avery Johnson. The potential for something like that to happen just shouldn't exist. And please quit using the Lakers as an example. The Lakers are champions. They are allowed some lapses. The Rockets are two-time lottery dwellers desperately trying to make the playoffs in a ridiculous conference. They should NEVER have lapses like the one on Friday.
Didn't Francis have a migraine or the flu or something? His heart definitely wasn't in it. Cat's banged up more than he's letting on. Doesn't mean they'll be healthy Tuesday but I'll take Francis and Mobes over Van Excell and Avery Johnson any day. It's going to be a very tough matchup but if Francis can impose his will as he seems to be looking to in most games, we might be able to pull it out. There's going to be ups and downs this year, lets face it. And somethings up with Mobes. Hell he's only attempted like 10 or so free throws this year compared to Francis' 30 plus. He's hurting in my opinion. Either that or he's playing possum.
The Rockets are not likely to win tomorrow. If we play our very best, get lucky, and San Antonio is flat, we might squeak by with a narrow win. The Spurs play very well as a team, but it all hinges on Tim Duncan- who I think is the most complete player in the league-even above Garnet for mental toughness. If we do play them well, and we may not be able to with Mobley's ankle, and still lose, it is not the end of the world, Duncan will defeat many this season. I think ZRB is right, we play in a sick conference, where excellent teams like SA and Sac are dominated by LA. I wish we could win but the odds are highly against us....
If the Rockets played their best, then they would do more than "squeak" by the Spurs. I think San Antonio is a one man show, and highly over-rated. I am simply doubting the Rockets' ability to play up to their potential. Talent-wise, Houston is top four in the west. The Rockets simply don't know how to execute like other teams. They are wasting their talent by losing to teams like Denver. If the Rockets play their best, and the Spurs play their best, then the Rockets will squeak by. If the Rockets play their best, and the Spurs play an average game, the Rockets will win easily. If the Rockets play like they have the past few games, and the Spurs play average ball, then San Antonio will win. Finally, if the Rockets play like they have the first seven games of the season, and the Spurs play their best- then I will be attending that Phoenix-Seattle game faster than you can say "massive blowout".
I'm looking forward to Parker v. Francis, it will be good to see how he matches up this early into his starting career. Parker had a good game v Baron Davis, so who knows... The top 4 in the West "talent-wise" are: LA Sacto SA Portland Houston has given SA some good games as of late, but I feel a little home town optimism in here. That's cool, we all do it. SA is less a "one man show" now than it's ever been. Oh well, it should be fun.
Whatever ZRB. You say don't use the Lakers as an example, but Cat's example is perfectly fine. And saying the Rockets shouldn't have lapses like that is ridiculous because this is a young team that is incorporating new players into the system. It's insane to expect this team NOT to have lapses. We're not world title contenders, at least not yet, and expecting this team to dominate every night isn't realistic. Avery Johnson is a star veteran player with championship experience. He's a Stockton type player. To think that Johnson wouldn't take advantage of an off night is crazy. You don't have to be a superstar to get the job done. EVERYBODY has off nights, EVERYBODY! NOBODY dominates every night, not even Michael Jordan even though the media tried to make it seem like he never had an offnight. Time to rebound and come back strong. I don't know how in one breath you can say this team has the talent to be a Top 4 team and call San Antonio overrated, and then in another breath think that if the Rockets play their best they still have an outside chance of winning the game. This team doesn't have Top 4 talent. Early success has spoiled people. This team can and should get to the playoffs, but they're not a finished product they're still rebuilding. This team isn't a two time lottery team by the way, they got there once, and then almost made the playoffs last year. The Spurs aren't nearly as good as I thought they were though, and I think the Rockets can beat them. For your sake I hope so, because the same thing you're saying about Rockets fans going into this game is what everybody else is saying about the Spurs dethroning the Lakers. "Home own optimism".
I'm sorry, but outside of Duncan, there is not much talent on the Spurs. A lot of former talent, but no current talent. Having Duncan guarantees 50 wins, but there isn't much else on the Spurs. I rank the talent like this: Lakers Blazers Kings Rockets Mavericks Spurs (thanks entirely to Duncan) Clippers Sonics Suns Nuggets (with Mcdyess) Wolves (all Garnett) Warriors Grizzlies Jazz
A 27 point lapse to the Nuggets is not acceptable for a team trying to make the playoffs. Maybe a 5 or ten point loss, but not 27. Edit: Well, it looks like another loss tomorrow. Mobley is questionable. Steve will have to go for 50.
ZRB, Couple of things I noticed: 1. Hakeem should be able to outplay Shaq on a given night, but Avery Johnson can't play to the level of Steve Francis? Avery may not be Hakeem, but Steve Francis isn't Shaq either. 2. It's ok for championship contenders to have lapses, but not ok for young teams like the Rockets? Shouldn't it be the other way around? I guess I'm missing something here....
Avery Johnson never averaged 26-12 in a season. When a former superstar outplays a current superstar, that doesn't surprise me. When a former decent role player outplays a current star, that does surprise me- and piss me off. And Francis wasn't only outplayed by Johnson- he was outplayed by Van Exel. A double-crap night!
Van Exel, if you haven't noticed, has the capability of going off for 35 points and 10 assists almost every game if he gets enough touches. He may have been selfish in LA, but right now he is a very, very good player. And also, what Hakeem did back in 1995 has no bearing on what you should expect from him today. He is not the same player.
But we know Hakeem is capable of putting up huge numbers, as he did several times last season. Avery Johnson never was, and never will be a star. Francis should have at least been able to shut him down, if not outscore him.
