that's right, but there's a big diffference between this series and the last... PRESSURE. it was on the lakers in game one and will be even more so in game two. against portland the pressure was all on us and it showed. they are playing with the burden of having to play with a lot of poise to beat us and they couldn't get it done last night. the lakershow is used to making runs on teams and having them quit. we aren't gonna quit. awesome game rox. i'm not saying we're going to sweep or even that the lakers aren't still the favorites to win the series but i won't take away from what the rockets did last night because the lakers played poorly. that's their problem and the onus is on them.
I just want people that made the thread and where whining about Brooks play to realize that he is doing EXACTLY what he is supposed to do.... AB has started 35 games...and is already having games like this...maybe, just maybe Adelman knows what he is doing...huh? DD
If the Lakers have to adjust to Aaron Brooks, we definitely have our work cut out for us. As for all of you who keeps getting on Brook's case, lets get this straight, we will not win this series without him contributing big. He is the only one on this team who can create his own shots and does it at a good percent. And Yes we need that when Yao gets bogged down and when our offense gets stagnant. Not to mention, PG play is Lakers only glaring weakness and Brooks can and should exploit that. So lets all stop whining and encourage this young man to play out of his mind.
Man you are SO defensive. He did (mostly) EXACTLY what he was supposed to do last night. In the three stinker games against Portland, which is when this thread was started, he did not do those things (unless run-under-and-then-run-out, pass up open shots, run the "pick and freeze"was exactly what he was supposed to do....) Hopefully he continues to do exactly what he's supposed to do....if not, it's Lowry time.
there are a lot of people who haven't been watching ball as long as others. AB is a developing player. if people can't understand that then no amount of chastising is gonna help them see. i've been saying for a while what adelman clearly knows---> we need AB's offense and are gonna have to live with his mistakes.
I agree, and it is annoying to get these threads where people who have no clue about what is going on out there are whining about a player that has started 35 games total. AB is going to be fine, he has a lot to learn, he is not the best passer - but he has shown progress, that pass through the lane to a cutting Scola on the baseline was SWEET. The problem with this thread is you had a bunch of Yao fan's whining about him not passing the ball to Yao...... It is not about that, it is about playing the team game and taking advantage of what the defense gives you..... If teams are going to over commit to stopping Yao someone else needs to grasp the opportunity and step up...it is a team game. DD
FOUR players averaging above 15 points in the playoffs THAT is team ball, if the left one don't get ya, the right one will. This team is better than the Tmac and Yao only team. DD
DaDa I'm not sure if I've posted in this thread, but I'm in the start Lowry over Brooks club (though I don't think the difference between them is very big), especiallly based on regular season play. After the the first two Portland games in which he did very well, the next 3 games I thought Brooks did badly but bounced back in game 6. He played brilliantly tonight, and I thought looked more in control than in the first 2 Portland games. The biggest beef I have with Brooks play is that while he can get past his man, a lot of his drives aren't effective. Many times against Portland he'd drive in, realize he won't be able to finish at the rim, dribble out, the defence resets and we just wasted precious shot clock time. At least with Lowry there's a good chance for free throws, and Lowry despite his poor 3p% has a higher TS% than Brooks on the rockets this season. The big difference tonight was Brooks was making his layups. Hopefully that continues. Lowry's also had problems during the Portland series with sloppy turnovers, and especially after last night, the starting job for this series is Brook's to lose. He definitely deserved his minutes last night. Next season though, I'll be hoping Lowry can get over those errors and push Brooks for the starting spot again.
well, we knew we would get that from three of them. otherwise we'd already be out of the playoffs. hell, we wouldn't even have made the playoffs. brooks is the x-factor. when he fully understands what he's capable of, he can be unguardable. he's the only guy on the team with that potential.
We need Brooks 3pt shot to allow Yao some room, if Lowry wants to start, he has to extend his range to include the 3pt shot. And right now, Lowry is playing decent as a playmaker, but is not shooting the ball all that well in the playoffs to date. .33% FG is not getting it done, he can do better....and I like having Lowry and Brooks as options..... More options is great. DD
o rly? So Scola, Wafer, Landry, Lowry, Brooks are better than David Wesley, Ryan Bowen, Luther Head, Scott Padgett, Juwan Howard, Rafer or any other role players the Rockets have had in the past 5 years?
I won't say individually they are one to one better but they are currently performing better then those guys. Although I still say Rafer wouldn't have done that bad a job.
DaDa, I was hoping for better play from Lowry in the playoffs, so I won't argue starting him over Brooks this year. Next year though it should definitely be considered. He won't go off for big scores like Brooks, but he is a better gam manager, better perimeter defender, earns more extra possessions with better steal and rebounding rate and has a higher TS%. Brooks is better at preventing the double team against Yao with his shot, but Lowry is better at beating the half front imo. Yao can block off his man for Lowry to get to the hoop when they do that, and I'd rather Lowry taking it to the hoop instead of Brooks. And of course starting Lowry over Brooks means Brooks will get significant PT too, so the 2 options thing applies in this case too.
Saito, We will have this talk later, but if Brooks continues to play well, I doubt Lowry starts..... DD
I was being sarcastic. Scola, Landry, Wafer, Lowry, Brooks >>>>> any of those other role players from years past.
What was impressive about Brooks last game was that his offense came within the Rocket's system. It wasn't just an individual offensive performance like Game 1 of the Portland series, where he just shot out of his mind. This time, I thought he was kind of playing possum on offense during the first half. He wasn't shooting bad, but not great either. In fact, I was worried he was being too tentative. It was when the Lakers started giving him the gaps in the second half that Adelman told him to get aggressive. When his opportunities came, he carved up Fisher and the Lakers' interior D. If he keeps showing such patience and is able to take advantage of what the defense gives him, he's going to have an excellent series.
DD, u know what we have to deal with around here. Any thread that is created about brooks is because yao didn't get the ball. Then people criticize his passing. There have been a lot of times where he makes a pass and guys miss shots or fumbles. What's frustrating for a passer is that he's responsible for the delivery of the ball until the receiver has it in hand, but anyone that has watched basketball long enough can see if a guy gets around a seal, its not the passers fault, but he gets the turnover. I also don't know why people expect a guy with 35 starts to all of a sudden be a great player. Its called growth for a reason and i'm not buying the whole start lowry thing either. The 1st unit needs brooks more than lowry. When teams don't double yao, it effects shane and scola's ability to get shots. If u insert lowry, now u have 2 non scoring threats and another that is limited by what they do to yao. That's not a accident, that's the truth.
