I am now convinced that we have and will continue to have the most feared and lethal backcourt in the NBA. That is, just as long as we keep Francis, Mobley and Anderson together for a long time. Next year is going to be something to behold. This last month has proven to me that not only will we be in the playoffs next year, but getting to the Finals is not out of the realm of possibility. I'm not just dreaming here. These are not words of unrealistic optimism! It could happen! The way we are beating playoff teams that are fighting for position has me encouraged. This is the time of the year that those teams should be building momentum. To lose to a sub-500 team is inexcusable going into the playoffs, especially if you are fighting for better positioning or homecourt in the first round of the playoffs. I don't want to hear any excuses about injuries on the other team. We been down that road every year for the past 5 years and that excuse has never worked for us so I cut no slack to the contenders. Another thing that is quite interesting is that Bill Worrell mentioned that we have a combined record of 4-4 vs. LA and Portland this season. No other team in the West has 3, much less 4, wins against those 2 teams. Again, leave the injury excuses outside! If someone wants to claim that we only beat LA because Shaq and/or Kobe wasn't in the game, then I say "Too bad!", we've been playing most of the season without our 2 superstars, not to mention all of the other injuries we've had this season. (Massenburg, Bullard, Cato, Rogers, Francis, Drew..... did I miss anyone?) We have a team that has found their groove. We have a backcourt that has been embarrassing some of the best defensive teams out there. Mobley has played Pippen like a yoyo all season. No one in this league can contain him it seems. Francis has been right up there with Payton, Kidd and Stockton. He has completely posterized most of the others with the exception Van Exel. Go figure! Shandon just keeps getting better and better. His defense has been awesome and his offense is at times unstoppable. Many could argue that Shandon is one of the best finishers in the league. Just watching those three in action is something to behold. That is why I think that Cuttino will stay in Houston for less money up front. We already have a good reputation with players for rewarding them in time. Not to mention that when you are as good as Cuttino it is probably better to win a title while you are still real young with your entire career ahead of you. Winning a title will only get you more money in the end. Teams will throw money left and right to acquire a proven Champion with mad skillz. The chemistry that this backcourt has is something special and it would kill me to have to break that unit up. I also want Hakeem to play his final year. He deserves it. Besides, deep down inside I want to believe that Hakeem can have one more solid season. If it weren't for his breathing problem he may have had a decent year. Who knows. If he overcomes that freaky asthma problem then he and Cato can share the center position. Or they can both play at once when we need to go big. He doesn't have to be the man anymore. He needs to block shots, rebound, and take advantage of mismatches in the post. Don't fool yourself, we still need a low-post threat in order to be a legitimate contender. Hope you guys enjoyed the season, I know I did. I can hardly wait for next season to get here. Shandon agrees. "We're playing for next year. Our core guys are healthy and will be back, and we're playing for that." Bring it on! ------------------ RocketFuel is taking the summer off!
You bring tears to my eyes, SpaceCity... I have said over and over that this has been a great year. The fun thing about this rebuilding year is that we all knew two things: 1. We will not be losing for long 2. Even if the team were to stay the same, next year they would automatically be better. It has been fun watching the fast growth and learning. It is different than the Clippers and even Bulls because the organizations are messes. But the Rockets have stayed in good shape. They sit this year out and then have another run of many years in the playoffs. It is even better than Portland they have made the playoffs every year since the creation of the basketball, but they have not won. Utah is the same. Indiana. Miami last few years. The Rockets have had the ultimate glory. This year they revovered from being the geriatric team. Now they are young and exciting. But unlike other teams behind all of the flash, there still lies a quality team and quality organization. It truly is amazing. ------------------ rimbaud post-a-thon 2000 [This message has been edited by rimbaud (edited April 19, 2000).]
Spacey ! That was a very nice thought out post , your always so positive and encouraging , it is so nice for a change to see a positive post then a negative one. I totally agree w/you though , next yr. should be a good one for us , hopefully whom ever we aquire will fit in with this team very quickly and will make us that much better . Our backcourt is killing teams , they simply cannot keep up with our guys all we need is some post up presence (Timmy my man! ) and we will be set for yrs to come ! Could we challenge the Lakers and the zen master ... HECK YEAH ! think about this guys , out of those 13 or 14 losses the lakers have 2 of those were against us ! Portland ... we should have beaten them the 1st time we faced them , they eventually will become our b****es and so will the Spurs and any other team in the West ! by default the east too ! I can't wait !
Thanks guys. Now it's all over. No more games. No more high-flying monster slams. No more lightning-fast breaks. Just a summer of impatience. A summer of scouring any and all news sources looking for trade rumors. A whole summer of wondering "What's next?! How much can we improve an already rapidly improving team?" You'd think I'd be used to this by now. Every year it's the same thing: "Man! I wish pre-season would hurry up and get here." Anyway, many thanks to the Rockets for this very entertaining season. Also, many thanks to Clutch and crew for the countless hours of hard work. Remind him that all those hours weren't for nothing. We all appreciate everthing he puts in to this site. I, for one, feel pride in knowing that I've been here since the beginning. When I'm 60 and talking to my grandkids I can tell them that I remember the days before the Internet and ClutchCity. I can tell then about how we all had to walk in the snow uphill (both ways) just to get a newspaper with outdated information and how happy I was to get that outdated information! Here's to Clutch and here's to a productive off-season. One more thing: Cuttino, please stay. Trust me, it WILL be worth it. You are destined for greatness, so making millions of dollars will never be a problem for you. Earn a title now and you will be one of the most sought-after players in the league. That us all. ------------------ RocketFuel is taking the summer off!
