We should have killed the grizzlies. Why can't we close the deal? ------------------ The truth is out there... but I forget where...
I knew that we'd have a tough time with Vancouver. First of all, we luckily beat them last time and that was with steve francis. This time, we could have easily won , but <strong>we missed our free throws so much</strong>. I don't know how many free throws we missed, but I do know that we were at one point 15-25 from the free throw line. Plus, we got killed on the boards in the 4th quarter. The Grizz got so many offensive boards. Even though I am glad that we got the win, I am a little disappointed that we once again nearly let a 4th quarter lead slip away. And Walt Williams is a total idiot for getting that 5-second call on him! If this were a quality team, we would've lost, but then again, if we had stevie francis, it might have been a totally different story. <strong>peace</strong>
I'm glad we got the damn win but if Rudy hadn't kept Anderson on the bench for the whole fourth this game would not have been close.Those are the kind of mistakes that costs you games against good teams.(especially without Stevie)I know we are headed in the right direction,but sometimes I worry about Rudy. Go Rockets! 7-12 w/momentum and improving chemistry. HH
It wasnt all that nice in the 4th. But **** it, Its a win and I will be glad to take a win right now.
1. The Griz played extremely hard because of all the ex-Rockets on the team. 2. The Rockets were missing Francis and Dream. 3. The Rockets have improved but still have a long ways to go. They still make lots of mistakes. 4. Barkley gets tired in the 4th quarter, misses shots, plays weak defense, and makes mental errors. Having Francis around would help a lot with this. I agree we should be happy with a win but it's also good to ask questions. The Rockets need to get to a point where they are blowing some of the bad teams away. This will make the other teams less confident about playing them. The Rockets have the depth to do this especially as we get further along into the season. ------------------ Doesn't Rudy know that there are geniuses at clutchcity.net!! [This message has been edited by Air Francis (edited December 06, 1999).]
Barkley gets tired in the 4th quarter, misses shots, plays weak defense, and makes mental errors. Having Francis around would help a lot with this. I agree with you totally Air Francis. But what I dont' understand is, why don't we use someone else. Shandon proved he can score; let him be the focal point of our offense when Barkley is tired. When Steve comes back in, I think we should still try to run plays for Shandon. And plus, what about 2 sandwiches? He is huge and can just walk in the lane and throw up a layup. He is so damn big that no one can stop him; when they double team him, he can play the role of barkley and pass it out to the open shooters. When in crunch time, give it to barkley, but earlier on, let other people get the ball. AND BTW, air francis, I think Walt sort of got out of his slump today.
While Cato was in the Rockets were not getting defensive rebounds, were not scoring and Cato gave some stupid fouls, then CB came in, had an assist, made 2 points, that were 4 points in a row. That's why CB played in the 4th. As for the final goul to Price, I think that's a smart foul as Price was not shooting well, 2-7 and he missed a FT.
One reason the game was close, was because Walt Williams or anybody else cannot guard Abdur-Rahim. He was dominating in the final period. One of the few Rockets weaknesses I see is Defense from the SF position. Players like Rahim, Finley, Garne tt, Hill really blow up on us. One final note is to tell Walt Williams to get his head out of his ass!!! This guys head is never in the game, and tonight it almost cost us. For those of you who didnt catch the game. Williams got a 5sec call for holding the ball way too long late in the game.
One reason the game was close, was because Walt Williams or anybody else cannot guard Abdur-Rahim. He was dominating in the final period. One of the few Rockets weaknesses I see is Defense from the SF position. Players like Rahim, Finley, Garne tt, Hill really blow up on us. One final note is to tell Walt Williams to get his head out of his ass!!! This guys head is never in the game, and tonight it almost cost us. For those of you who didnt catch the game. Williams got a 5sec call for holding the ball way too long late in the game. ------------------ Stevie Wonder says "they call him FRANCHISE because his dunks are for sale at an arena near you."
I too would have liked to see Anderson in at the end. Seems like if he isn't scoring well, Rudy kind of forgets about him. Abdur-Rahim destroys a lot of people. that must be expected and cant blame Walt for that. Rox must continue to be aggressive in the fourth. When that is the case, one player cant outscore us in the fourth. Would've like to see Anderson going to the rack in the end but who can complain? We got the W. Yeah and what's up with WW and that 5 second inbound play? Geno on 950 said that before the play Barkley told him if he couldn't get it in in time that they still had 2 time outs. And then like a complete fool he doesn't call time out. The Wizard has been an extreme disappointment in my opinion. [This message has been edited by RocketHead2 (edited December 07, 1999).]
It was so close because Vancouver played hard, injuries, for the first half of the fourth quarter we were settling for nothing but threes, and refereeing. Had there not been the two intentional fouls at the end we would had 14 or 15 fouls called on us while they had 3. Now had we lost it would have been our own fault but the refs did not help. There were mant phantom fouls in the 4th quarter. It started off when Cato is running down the court because if he goes a few more feet he is out of bounds and he gets called for the foul because Okeeze was following him two close. You knew that if Rahim did not go one-on-one or if some one was going to penetrate there would have been a foul called most often by the referee that had the worst position. Although the thimg that got me the most about the refs was that every time Rahim would make his move towards the inside or got the ball by out of bounds line he would step out of bounds and a referee one foot away. I remeber one time that you have Rahim traveling all over the place he has one foot in bounds and has his other foot on the "R" that is out of bounds. It was that superstar treatment Hakeem never got. Oh well we won and when it counted we did execute for the most part but we should have never allowed it to get that close.
We did close the deal. We got the win. The game was close because Shandon Anderson didn't shoot well. He was 0-5 with just 1 point. Fortunately he did rebound(7) and pass the ball(7) well. Who cares. These days I'll take a win any way we can get it. You don't get extra points for blowing teams out. ------------------ There is no offense without a good defense.
A WIN is always nice, isn't it? ... but can we hit more tree throws ...? I think this was the top reason why the game was so close. Also, Walt Williams was dreaming during the inbound pass. How can you commit a 5-second violation with only a few seconds left in the game and with 2 timeouts remaining? Despite all the efforts the players put in this game, I have to say they did have luck in the end. Both Price and Harrington missed crucial free throws. Anyway, guys, it's a WIN!
Rocket's Pimp, "the game was close because Shandon didn't shoot well" Shandon played 26 minutes and still put up 7 rebounds and 7 assists.So he had a bad shooting night in his limited time out there. What about the great D......and the threat to drive to the hole or get that shot going too?We would not have won this game if Shandon hadn't played his usual all around game.You all don't see problems with Rudy sitting him now and almost losing a game we had to have?What does this tell us of Rudy's willingness or ability to draw up plays and integrate him into the offense when Stevie returns.....It disturbs me. FF, I think Cato is a much better player when Francis is on the court.The penetration dishes are much more frequent and get him involved in the game early.There is a certain chemistry between Stevie and Cato.With Stevie's court vision and the team playing at a faster speed Cato benefits. Peace to all, HH [This message has been edited by Hardwood Hammer (edited December 07, 1999).]
Good points about Shandon, HH. I hope Rudy doesn't opt to not call plays for Shandon when Stevie gets back. I think that Francis would have an easier time getting his shot in the flow of the game than Shandon.
JeffB, What's your take on the situation with Mobes becoming a free agent after this year?I would have to get alot in any trade for him,but I hate to break up this developing chemistry and see Cuttino improving with every game.It's a tough call,but we do have a major need,a 3.Quality for quality eh? [This message has been edited by Hardwood Hammer (edited December 07, 1999).]
I don't want to lose Cat. (Even my wife doesn't want to lose Cat.) He and Francis have such a great rapport and seem to sharpen each other's skills. I wouldn't break that up. Also, Cat may end up being this teams Oakley in terms of his work ethic and hustle. I hope he wants to stay in Houston, though. It would take a major frontcourt player for me to give up Cat. I can't even imagine a scenario that would make me give up Cat. I mean he is no Jordan, but he represents a lot about who the Rockets are and I wouldn't want to let that go.
