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[Serious] Why have Paul, Gordon , and Clint looked awful ?

Discussion in 'Houston Rockets: Game Action & Roster Moves' started by snowconeman22, Oct 31, 2018.

  1. daywalker02

    daywalker02 Member

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    I dun think it's worse preparation. It's just one of those horrible starts. Bad scenario and waste of half a season.

    Cannot find a real reason. Like Bzdelik took their souls with an alien basketball!

    [​IMG]
     
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  2. Matt78777

    Matt78777 Contributing Member

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    No one has mentioned Capela's injury. I think he hurt his foot in the preseason. Johnathan Feigen seemed to imply although he can play through it, it is still slowing him down. I sure hope this is the reason and not general complacency.

    CP3 to me is the real headscratcher. Losing a step is one thing, but don't think he should lose his sense too...
     
  3. trugoy

    trugoy Member

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    The main problem on offense is that there is no spacing because Carmelo's release is slow, so defenders can play one step off of him unlike Ariza who gets the ball up quick. This leads to entire plays breaking down because all you need is one man who is a step closer to disrupt the plays.
     
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  4. Rocket River

    Rocket River Member

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    I blame the orange patch of hair!

    Rocket River
     
  5. LorneMalvo

    LorneMalvo Member

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    He's lost neither.
     
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  6. Deuce

    Deuce Context & Nuance

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    Yeah, Capela's heel injury. I have been wondering about that curtailing his "burst." He was more active versus Portland. But then again, he had 3 days rest. Lets see how he is in the B2B with the Nets and Bulls. Nets' Allen will force Capela to run a lot.
     
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  7. JonesDaddy

    JonesDaddy Contributing Member

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    I wonder how much the freedom of movement emphasis has derailed the entire defensive strategy.
    A Chronicle article from last November spelled out the Rockets defense as "Talk it. Touch it. Switch it. Grab it."
    During a podcast from last spring (probably Simmons or other Ringer pod), I remember there being a discussion about how much grabbing and holding the Rockets do on defense.

    If you want a full conspiracy theory, I think the enforcement could have been targeted at the Rockets defensive style in particular.
    The league and all the talking heads love the beautiful basketball that the Warriors play, while hating the Rockets ISO heavy offense.
    In the West Finals, Golden State's beautiful offense was pretty stunted by the Rockets switching/grabbing defense.
    The Warriors (mostly Durant) played a lot of ISO because that is what the defense gave them.
    So is it outlandish to think that the league would want to enforce rules more stringently to discourage the defense that results in ISO offense?

    Bezdelik retired about a week before the points of education were announced, but I can't help but wonder if the two are related.



    As to Clint's struggles, my hope is that he bulked up over the summer to get stronger, but lost a step in the process.
    I think a lot of guys lift and bulk over the summer and don't realize how much speed they lose until they are playing in real games.
    Normally takes about 2 months before they slim back down a bit or learn to play with extra mass.
    If that's the case, then he should be fine with time.
     
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  8. alethios

    alethios Member

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    I partially blame the rule changes and the suspect officiating against the Rockets. We seem to be more of a target this year.
     
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  9. thedreamsteam

    thedreamsteam Member

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    So we are going 1-81 :eek:
     
  10. basketballholic

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    1. We replaced Ariza and Luc with scrubs and one of them got hurt.
    2. Harden dinged.
    3. Paul suspended.
    4. Capela didn't work hard and got paid. (Accept it. It's a huge part of the equation here.)
    5. Gordon knows he's probably being traded.
    6. Paul knows Gordon is probably being traded.
    7. The whole team knows Gordon is probably being traded and possibly some of them too (everybody but Harden, Paul, Tucker, and free agent signees until Dec. 15).
    8. Qi is dinged so no real backup 5. (yes, this is a factor. a bigger factor than we want to admit. because Luc is no longer with us to cover the backup 5)
    9. Melo is old. He's not going to grind defensively until we get close to playoff time. That's just the way it is. He's old and on a minimum deal. He's not going to take physical risks or really scramble hard and expend the energy. He wants to keep the tank full for the late season and playoffs. Most any player in his situation would be the same way.
    10. Bzdelik went belly-up on us two weeks before camp.

    I mean....combine those ten things.....we're fortunate we're not winless.
     
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  11. SageHare6

    SageHare6 Member

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    I’ll tell you exactly why snowcone:

    Capela is getting winded defensively because our defense and rotations suck. That is affecting his offense. As well as the offense and entry passes from his peers.

    Eric Gordon is not finding a good mix of layups and 3 pointers. If Gordon is reduced to just a three point shooter, he is less effective than if he is asked to penetrate AND shoot. That is the problem here. Plus it doesn’t help that pushes his range farther than necessary.

    Chris Paul is a victim of his own talk. He is competitive. But he is no Harden. And can’t be tasked to carry a team on points alone. Yet in the absence of Harden and in all these games where we are effectively trailing from the first minute, it’s just too much for Paul to carry on points alone.

    (aside - how many quarters have we actually even led???)

    AngeySage
     
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  12. BigMaloe

    BigMaloe Contributing Member

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    Capela
    Has looked much better the more and more as the games have gone on. He had that foot injury and I think the lingering effects where/are the cause of his step being slow.

    He was significantly slower on his second jumps which is something he excels at. Also, has not been explosive and with a foot that's not 100% that makes sense.

    He has started looking better and looked the beat, imo, against portland.


    Gordon

    Sure there MAY be something to "hes knows hes being dangled in trades", but to me I dont think that's it. Hes a pro and hes been traded.

    What makes me think is the problem, was he was having Achilles soreness before the season and at the begining.

    That always (secretly and to myself, never saying it or typing it until now) scared me, because i remember players with torn Achilles having Achilles soreness prior to it tearing it that season.

    It's privately been a huge scare to me because I didn't want to speak it I to existence.

    Chris Paul

    Idk..

    Hes looked the worst imo, maybe because I expect significantly better. Hes been like a zombie out there.

    A lot of it is poor shooting, but there are a lot of questionable shots and indecision. It's like hes a bit lost.

    I think hes also suffering from a lack of confidence now. I think having harden back and him abusing 2nd teams will get him back.


    .
    .
    .


    Overall this teams confidence is shottttt...

    We need to string together a couple wins to start getting our mojo and our "swag" back
     
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  13. whiskeyred

    whiskeyred Contributing Member

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    @cyberx any insight on our awful start?
     
  14. BigMaloe

    BigMaloe Contributing Member

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    The league shortened the 3pt line for Jordan...
     
  15. asianballa23

    asianballa23 Member

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    2 words, fat contract
     
  16. B-Bob

    B-Bob "94-year-old self-described dreamer"

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    [​IMG]
     
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  17. deb4rockets

    deb4rockets Contributing Member
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    I'm not too worried yet, simply because we only lost one game with James, CP3, and Clint all playing. That makes all the difference in our ability to spread the floor, and adds to our defense and scoring. EG is no replacement for James or Chris, and without one of those two we aren't that good. . EG is too streaky with his shooting, and not as good at drawing fouls or getting assists. With Chris missing a couple games, then James missing a couple games, everything is all out of chemistry. We looked pretty good in preseason, so unless we keep losing with James, CP3, and Clint, I still have some optimism that we will turn this around.
     
  18. Mathloom

    Mathloom Contributing Member

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    It's not just that Gordon and Tucker know they might be in a trade, it's also the fact that they know just as much as we do that Harden and CP3 would have had to green light it for Morey to proceed. Hard to follow a leader that approved your exit, even if your exit is a sensible decision.
     
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  19. jeevinesh

    jeevinesh Member

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    Ball got sticky
     
  20. JonesDaddy

    JonesDaddy Contributing Member

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    Some thoughts on EGo...

    While it has been speculated that he's "a pro" and isn't letting trade talks, etc bother, I wonder if that is actually the case.
    These are the things that I've been thinking about in respect to his struggles.

    1. How did he feel about the Ryno deal?
    Isn't there a story about Ryno helping us land EGo? How did he feel about how Anderson was dealt? It would have been one thing to package him and some picks for a positive return, but let's be real, he was dumped for slightly less toxic contracts that may have no tangible value to the team. If they were friends enough to come to Houston from Nola together, maybe that hurts a bit? Maybe he misses his friend? Locker room chemistry seems like such a fickle thing.

    2. How is he reacting to the trade talks?
    I can't figure out, if I were EGo, "would I want to be traded to the Wolves?".
    In Houston, I'm a 6th man at best (probably 7th man now), but I would start with the Wolves.
    My deal is up in 2 years, so it's never too soon to be thinking about my last big pay day.
    On the other hand, it is cold up there and I'm not going to be competing for a ring.

    I can't figure out if he's struggling because he doesn't want to be traded or because he does.
    Which leads me to...

    3. Has EGo already requested a trade and it just hasn't leaked?
    Are we sure he still wants to be in Houston?
    You just traded one of his friends for scraps, his name is all over the media in trade talks, he got bumped to 7th man for me7o's pride.
    I'm thinking maybe a Beverley type situation here, quietly requesting a trade and the team trying to acquiesce without the media finding out.
    Morey approached him for an extension (per reports), and it makes sense that EGo wouldn't sign what he feels is an under market extension.
    However, it's not unreasonable to think that those conversations would lead to general discussion about the future.
    I'm blanking on more examples at the moment, but in the past, Morey has dealt players into favorable situations (Morris, Bev, ???)
    Maybe they have a general understanding that if Morey can find a trade that upgrades the team and puts EGo in a bigger role, it would be advantageous for all parties.
    With the repeater tax coming, I can't see any way the Rockets will keep EGo after this contract.
    Morey will almost certainly try to use him for an upgrade or try to replace him with someone cheaper.

    EGo was pretty crappy in Nola, and turned things around here, but one part of that I always remember is that he didn't want to be in Nola.
    He signed an offer sheet with the Suns and was basically begging for it not to be matched, but it was.
    Maybe he's unhappy and it is affecting his play?
    He certainly doesn't seem to be having any fun playing this year.
     

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