Rockets need to dig deeper last 10 games By JONATHAN FEIGEN Copyright 2003 Houston Chronicle Of all the things Larry Smith shouted in the locker room in San Antonio on Thursday -- and he said plenty -- if just one got through, it was the right one. "Like coach said, we've got to start Saturday or we're going to be sitting (out the playoffs) at home," Steve Francis said. "We've got to come out these last 10 games, playing together these last 10 games, or we're going to be sitting our butts at home." Smith had taken over the Rockets for Rudy Tomjanovich at the toughest of times. The Rockets faced a stretch of seven games in seven cities in 10 days, finishing with a back-to-back with the Lakers and Spurs. The Rockets had just taken the emotional straight right of Tomjanovich's announcement that he would take an indefinite leave of absence, likely for the balance of the season, and the left cross of the three-minute fade to lose to the Lakers. They dragged into San Antonio and then stumbled around while everyone from 20-year-old Tony Parker to 40-year-old Kevin Willis flew past them. Francis moved too fast, Yao Ming too slowly. The only thing they did with any passion might have been Francis' barking at Smith when he was removed from the game in the third quarter. A contrite Francis said after the game that he regretted directing his frustration at Smith, whom he called his "dad." It was about the only thing that made Smith laugh Thursday and again Friday as a moment entirely too inconsequential for his concern. "Things happen all the time," Smith said. "I don't think it's a big deal at all. The thing I know for sure is, we're all in this thing to win. That's the most important thing. I know Steve is coming to work every single day, and he's going to compete every single night. That's a given." But with everything the Rockets had been through since they caught the Suns for the eighth playoff spot, they go into the season's final 10 games and tonight's game against the last-place Nuggets having lost one game from their position when Smith took over and their long road trip began. They are one game behind the Suns for the last playoff spot and hold the tiebreaker. "A lot went on this week for us," Smith said. "It was very trying. "It's been tough. One thing I'm proud of is our guys have battled. I'm very proud of that. Throw all those things in there, and they all had something to do with the situation. There were a lot of distractions going on, games we played our hearts out and didn't get, and the guys haven't had any days off or practice days in a while. "Emotionally, when Rudy came in and saw the guys before shootaround, no one said anything. They were stunned. The initial shock that he's not coming back, the guys were stunned. But they rebounded and played tough." By Thursday, they did not even make the pretense of fighting through the exhaustion. "All those things are behind us now," Smith said. "We got 10 games left. We all know the task at hand." Smith originally had scheduled a practice for Friday, a rarity after a back-to-back, and rarer still after four games in five days. After Thursday's performance, he canceled the practice, deciding the Rockets could benefit more from a day of rest. But if the Rockets are still dragging, they will find out quickly. The Nuggets fit the profile of the teams that have given the Rockets fits. They are the only last-place team that has not beaten them. And for all their offensive shortcomings, the Nuggets bring effort and athleticism. "They have a lot of energy," Smith said. "That team is very, very scary. You have to come out ready to play, because they do everything in their power to beat you." The best example of this might be rookie center Nene Hilario. He brings the combination of strength and energy to expose whether Yao can find anything in reserve for the season's stretch run. Yao has made four of 22 shots in his past two games and put up little defensive resistance. "I think about 80 percent of it is fatigue, right now," Smith said of Yao's struggles. "He has been battling guys. And in the last 10 days, we had a really tough road trip, and then facing Shaq (O'Neal) and (Tim) Duncan and (David) Robinson, that's not something you want to do all the time. And Shaq, I thought really wore him down. He hung in there. He battled him. But that takes a lot out of you when you play another game less than 24 hours later. Unlike a similar slump earlier in the season when Yao denied he was hitting a rookie wall, and then only grudgingly acknowledged that as a rookie, he might not really know what he was hitting, he did not deny he was worn out by Thursday. But he would not consider the condition insurmountable. "We all love to play basketball. We're professional basketball players," Yao said. "I think that we can get through the weariness because of our love of basketball." By then, Smith had just finished denouncing the use of excuses. But how the Rockets reached this point no longer mattered. With the countdown beginning from 10 tonight, the season might be judged solely by what is to come.
Rockets summary Maddox fined The Rockets fined guard Tito Maddox for missing the team's charter flight from Houston to San Antonio on Wednesday, and failing to join the team in San Antonio on Thursday. Maddox, who did not contact the team or return messages until Thursday, was not suspended and will be available to play today. Rockets general manager Carroll Dawson met with Maddox on Friday, but would not say why Maddox skipped the trip, and Maddox would only say he had a "good reason." "I should have communicated with someone," Maddox said. "It's personal, not really basketball related. "Personal reasons. Bad decision. Not thinking about the team before I did what I did by not getting on the plane, not making it to San Antonio. Bad decision. It's a good reason, but I should have communicated to somebody. "Now I have to take the punishment, the fine, suspension is possible. I have to pay for my actions." Maddox said he was not making any sort of protest about his lack of playing time this season. Maddox, who has played just 31 minutes, came off the injured list Wednesday, but did not play against the Lakers. "My opportunity will come," Maddox said. "But if I keep doing what I did the other day, it won't come." Trip canceled Rockets guard Steve Francis made all the arrangements to attend Friday's NCAA Tournament game between Maryland and Michigan State in San Antonio. He scheduled his flight back from Houston, made the calls to secure tickets, told players he saw Thursday he would see them again Friday. But when the Rockets were in a daze in San Antonio on Thursday, Francis decided to cancel his trip Friday. "I'm staying at home," Francis said after Thursday's loss to the Spurs. "I'm not coming back. I'm going to call my boys, tell them good luck. I wanted to come. I made arrangements to come. But I'm staying at home." -- JONATHAN FEIGEN
