I know it's too early to make any predication for playoffs, but my gut feeling is that whoever loses tomorrow's game will be out of playoff, Wolves or Rockets. I'll check back on this post at the end of the season
Latest rumors say Brandon's career is over. Take that with the four lost picks and Minnesota's got nowhere to go but down.
So this means if we get into the playoffs, we deserve it and we are one bad ass mamma jamma team that can take it to anybody
Rockest only hope is Minnesota palying like crap toward end of season...cuz the lakers will be there. Rockets need a 7 to 8 game winning streak.... that would be nice. Inconsistent play will be the death to their playoff hopes. However, if they paly like they played the last two games, the sky is the limit.
I don't really care what the Rockets schedule is. If they make the playoffs, it's because they're one of the eight best teams, not because their schedule was too easy/hard for them. Either way if they prove they can't beat the big teams in the 2nd half and grow some more to be playoff bound, another lottery wouldn't the Rockets a single bit for next season, oppose to making the playoffs and not growing as a team and getting an early first round exit. Either way I'll be content with the Rockets. Of course I'd love to see them win it all, and feel they're capable of doing it, but if not, it's no biggie in my eyes. The fun part is watching this team grow into just that. A team.
The winner of the Eastern Conference should be allowed to play Shanghai Sharks for some worthless trophy/title. Jeeez - the west is like an African Jungle; survival of the fittest. The comforting part is the the Rox will be (fingers crossed) 8 games over .500 ball by the AS break and be in the 6 Spot in the West (toes crossed). We will have tie break over LA and *Minny and hopefully Phoenix. LA will have 23 loses going into the AS weekend - so that means they will have to win 24/25 wins out of their then remaining 35 or so games i.e. playing .714 ball after the ASG. Of corse this scenario is assuming Minny, Jazz, Rox and Suns at least play .500 ball after the ASG. Are you ready to RUMBLE? *Assuming we win Tuesday 02/04/03
Two complaints: 1. This is assuming there will be no further trade for Rockets. What if Rockets trade Mobley for Elton Brand? Will that change the playoff picture? 2. Let's just focus one game at a time, can't we?
Last two games a glimmer of what can be. Let's see if we are tough enough to take the "new look" Rox on the road and grind out some wins. Team hasn't shown it can beat a good team on the road yet. The one exception might be our win against the barely-over-.500 Magic. I've always used a system to determine where a team stands at any point in the season by comparing their record against the number of home and road games played. For instance, we've played 26 home games and 20 road games. We are 26-20 so that puts us level...basically a .500 team. If we were 27-19 we would be +1, and so on. Over the season the schedules balance out. In our situation, I think we've got a pretty good shot if we continue to learn and improve. And our depth should pay off down the stretch. Even if we lose in the first round, just making the playoffs in the West would be fantastic for a pretty young group just starting to figure it out D R
The Lakers current record and their play hasn't shown signs of them making the 5th or 6th seed. They could roll off a streak, but they're 3 full games behind, which means that they'll have to roll off a big streak and then another. Minnesota always executes well and they'll make the playoffs for sure. The Jazz and Suns have shown signs of slumping, but the Jazz are experienced and the Suns have enough talent to win the gimmies. The Rocks are streaky, and they haven't shown signs of winning it on the road. But they will make the playoffs.... Heck even if they suck, David Stern will make sure of it. The way it looks, 4 teams are fighting for 3 spots. The Rocks, Jazz, Suns, and the Lakers. You kinda expect the Lakers to make it, but they haven't done anything convincing this season to deserve it. Wins off of Phoenix, Minnesota, and an injured Sacramento was once expected of them, wasn't it?
I am still waiting for the Jazz to break down this season. This team looked like they were put together with gum and duct tape: 1. two 40-years old "stars", c'mon there's gotta be some common biological sanity here... 2. Mark Jackson? Didn't he retire like 3 years ago? 3. Calbert Chaney? Ditto 4. Matt Harpring? 5. Greg Ostertag? He wasn't any good even when he had all his body parts intact... Anyways, if Jazz falls off, and Lakers make it, I'll be 8 for 8 on my preseason playoff prediction. (yes, I DID pick Phoenix to make it, and no I didn't pick Seattle or the Clippers). If Jazz keeps jazzing though, I say it's between the Lakers and the Rockets. If Rockets split the remaining two meetings and thus win the tiebreaker, they are in.
The key for the Rockets is to continue playing the way they have at home, and do their best work on the road against East teams. We seem to play very well against the East, so hopefully we can do that. Lakers won't finish above us. 5- Minnesotta 6- Houston 7- Utah 8- Lakers Phoenix will finish with the best record not to make the playoffs.
It is going to be a tall order for this current Lakers team to win it all even they make because of the amount of energy they will need to make the playoffs. I don't see them doing higher than 7th - and that makes Dallas, Sac-Town and Portland fill a little uneasy just thinking about it. Not to look way ahead of myself (I cannot help it) but the thought of finishing either 5th or 6th and potentially facing either Utah, Portland or Sacramento makes me optimistic of our first round matchup. I just want to avoid Dallas and Lakers in a short series based on matchup and our head-to-head results (though no team in the West is a pushover). Anyway it is too early to start all that match up stuff - lets just pray and hope that our team stays and plays together like they did in the last 2 games.
We must win this game agains Minny and I think the players realize it, thus makin the atmosphere bigger. When that happens the Rockets win. If we win against Minny we MUST win against Cleveland. I think we have a very good chance at the playoffs.
Let's see... Minnesota is 18-5 at home, is on a EIGHT game home winning streak; what the Rockets have? Oh, they are 7-13 on the road. Okay, I got the picture
Man, 21 road games....the only positive thing is the games are going to be on Channel 51! But seriously, this team really has to show it's maturity on the road and win against the big teams in order to show some strength in the playoffs.
Our record so far: At Home Against winning teams: 12-3 (80%) Against losing teams: 7-4 (64%) On the Road Against winning teams: 0-9 (0%) Against losing teams: 7-4 (64%) Projected record based on the past: At Home Against winning teams at 80%: 6-1 Against losing teams at 64%: 5-3 On the Road Against winning teams at 0%: 0-13 Against losing teams at 64%: 5-3 Total projected record: 42-40 Such a record will land us about #5 in the East and #9 in the West. Not looking very good. To get into the playoffs, we'd better start beating some good teams on the road or taking better care of the crappy teams at home, or both.
Easy, your projects might make sense if they are independent events--but they are not. It all depends how poor or well the Rockets string together games over major stretches. The Rockets have shown if they play well they can get wins anywhere (they should have beat Phx and SA on the road but let them slip away at the end), but they have also shown they can lose to scrubs at home as well. We also have more talent than San Antonio. But we don't have any single player with near the consistency of TD or KG--which keeps those teams from too many sustained poor stretches of games. Again we definetly have the talent to be a 4th seed or so. However that is pretty unrealistic goal at this point even if we jell because our bad stretch over the last month lead to Portland and SA getting some seperation. The key to us is not who we play, but how we play. If Yao has a strong second wind and has consistency up there with Duncan and Garnett I assure you we will make the playoffs regardless of the schedule. If he tires again and has ineffective stretches the whole team is going to have to sratch and claw to try to nip Utah or the Suns at the end. Honestly the Suns are going on fumes more than people think--if either Marion or Marbury offensive games slip even a little, and they very well might because of how well and long (heavy minutes) they have been playing, the Suns become a very average team at best. Utah should not be as good as they are, but they always defy logic so who know--I would not count on them giving up a slot (free falling), though the Rockets, Suns, Wolves and Lakers all have the talent to bury them if all those teams jell.
