There is alot of good teams in the West...so I dont expect that we win the Western Conference...but if we do...we WILL win the finals I just hope we go past the 1st round...we havent done that in awhile
for me it's AT LEAST the WCF. this team is good enough to beat any team. remember, we BARELY lost to phoenix this yr w/ tmac struggling and yao in foul trouble and we still had a lead into the 4th. i expect JVG to devise a defensive plan to just slow down the suns. w/ tmac, i believe. he ALWAYS has another level in the first round. maybe in subsequent rounds, he'll avg 33-35 pts and go to another level. i don't know, i feel like we cna win it all this yr. i expect a win all the time.
I wouldn't be satisfied (exactly) with a 2nd round exit, but I could certainly live with it and be very optimistic about things. If we met the Suns in the 2nd round I also couldn't really expect to win, but I would be content if we took them to 7. Same for the Mavs. But the general consensus seems to be that we could take anyone in any round (except perhaps the suns because of it being an awkward matchup) if our team is healthy-and I do agree 100% with that. All that said, I feel in my bones that this isn't our year to go to the Finals. I think in the next 2-3 years we will... but not this season. What I feel is that we will make the WCF and go 6-7 games with the Mavs or Suns. A title this year would be great, but that, to me, would be fine.
I really find this hard to vote on for the simple fact that we have not had t-mac and yao play at an MVP level at the same time so until we get yao back its tough to say, also i like Bonzi's improvement and if we get him to play like he did in last years playoffs then the sky's the limit.
I think you go for all the marbles EVERY year, at least if you have the talent. How far you get can also tell you if you have the talent. But, you don't just try to get to the playoffs one year, then to the second round, etc. You have to approach it to win it all. There are so many factors which can take it away from you, even if you have the talent. Injuries and health, chemistry, motivation, momentum, fan support, hot games by players, matchups, coaching, schedules, and even ref calls determine how far you go. You never know when you'll get that chance to go all the way again, if everything lines up, so you always plan to do whatever it takes to win. Now if you're rebuilding, and you know your talent can't do it, then getting a taste of the playoffs and each stage is valuable for experience, and you know the pieces you have to add. If you're been to the Finals, you know how hard it is to get there, and that helps, no doubt. But, this year, as long as Yao rounds into shape, and McGrady stays healthy, along with everyone else, we DO have the talent. Dallas, Phoenix and San Antonio can have bumps and still do well. We don't have much margin for error. But, if we do what it takes, we CAN win, I believe, and if that's true, then I want nothing less than winning it all. Of course, we may find out we just don't have it yet, and that we need more pieces to pull it off. That can be acceptable too, as long as management does what it takes to get those additional pieces. It is what it is, as long as we do our best.
Wow I am suprised at the disparity in numbers between just winning the West vs. taking home the championship.
The disparity is there because the league's 5 best records are and have been in the West for most of the season(Detroit and Houston tied at 34-19). Most NBA experts have been saying all year that the West is so much more dominant than the East, and that sentiment seems to be reflected in voting.
I want nothing less than a ring. I guess thats unfair, since Yao is just getting back soon hopefully, but I just feel like we have the sqaud to make a serious run. Go Rockets!!!
I think getting through the first and battling in the second is essential. Taking a second round series the seventh game or winning outright would be a successful season. Thats with the idea that if we lost in the 2nd round it would be to one of the top three teams, and not a Lakers or Jazz or Nuggets.
Definitely a WCF exit. It would be amazing because we are flying under the radar like crazy and we improved so much.
why are people satisfied with anything less then a title, I don't care if we win 1 game in a season or go undeafeated with a first round out, it still doesn't mean crap unless u get the ring, every team is a failure unless u get the ring so why would you settle to be a failure. That attitude is what seperates champions and great players.
It had been a long while since Rockets has a team that can go all the way and I believes this is THE TEAM with a dominant Yao and 'THE' McGrady. WHY SETTLE FOR LESS THAN A CHAMPIONSHIP? I BELIEVE IN WIN NOW MODE. Go Rockets!
i voted for second round. another first round exit will be a total catastatravisty. of course i want us to win and imo, we are right there in that second tier of teams behind dallas and the suns - san antonio, detroit, rockets. this is a team built for the playoffs and once in i give us as good a shot as anyone, but i will not be totally dissapointed if we loose in the 2nd round - it is still progress. with all the injuries we have had over the last couple years and the fact that our two superstars have never won a playoff series and the franchise hasnt even won one in 10 years, getting to the second round is a realistic goal to set and definately shows progress. on an mvp-related note, i was working in san antonio today and the two daytime dudes they have on sportstalk 790 were naming a bunch of mvp candidates and both claimed that duncan, parker AND ginobili were all legit mvp candidates, but the fact that they are all so great negates each other. one even said "gilbert arenas cant do what parker and ginobili do, they play a team game. arenas just jacks up shots".
i voted wcf exit...as long as we dont play the suns. our style will matchup well with any other team in the nba except the suns. unless jvg adjusts drastically during a playoff game(unlikely).
