What's up fellas, this is my first post so try and take it easy on me if I end up sounding...uh...not...good? First off, I'm from Nashville, and, since Langhi went to school at Vanderbilt, I got to see the man in action. And believe me, he is the real deal (on offense anyways). Anyways, I think signing Mo was the first step in reaching the playoffs next year and I guarantee they will be in the playoffs. We all know the teams to beat are Portland, LA, and San Anton'. That leaves us and Minn,Phoenix, Utah,Sacramento,and Seattle for the final 5 spots. Here is my rundown: Teams on the decline: Minnesota- Minnesota did not improve in the draft or free agency and the death of Malik Sealy didnt help much either. We can let Garnett score all he wants but the Rockets are stronger and deeper in every other position so I believe we will have a better record then the T-Wolves. It will be a close one, though. Seattle- the "King Kong" trade falling through and losing out on Mo has left Vin Baker and the rest of the Sonics in a very demoralized state. Payton will again have to carry the load and his puny shoulders wont support it much longer. They'll have to hope for Lewis to pan out and prey Baker doesn't have to down too many bottles of Prozac. They got shlacked by an aging Utah team last year's playoffs and I dont see any reason why the Rockets shouldnt be able to overtake them. Utah- FINALLY, age is catching up with Utah and it showed in last years playoffs. With no more Horny, and Stockton and Sloan a season from retirement, it looks as though it is their last hoo-rah. Sure they picked up Stevenson,Marshall and Starks, the fact is though teams main duo will be on respirators by the end of the year. I think Malone and Stockton are throwing in the towel and if not,their efforts simply wont be good enough. Probable playoff spot but wont get far. The Rockets youth will get the best of the Jazz this year Question Marks? Sacramento- I saw Sacramento play twice last year at Arco. One game they were scoring on all cylinders and played solid D. The second time, they shot awful (J. Will) and played their defense was nowhere to be found. Webber was the only reason they won that night. This sums up the Kings in a nutshell. You never know what team is gonna show up. I believe they will either be a top 6 team or will be serious underachievers, again. If so, they can wave bye bye to Webber after next season. Keep an eye on this one. On the Rise: Phoenix- The Suns gave the Lakers a run for their money in the second round without Gugliotta and Kidd was not at 100%. Look for Phoenix to make the 4th 5th spot in the playoffs. Houston matches up well with Phoenix, though, so watch out Phoenix! Of course you all know Houston's situation, so I think the Rockets should at least be able to beat out ONE of these teams for a playoff spot.Please be honest and tell me what you think about the Rockets playoff hopes this year. AGREE-GOOD DISAGREE-GREAT! TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK ------------------ Now go away, or I will taunt you a second time!
Welcome LSM! Pretty good first post. I really don't have enough time to respond fully to your post at the moment, but I just have to ask: Where in the world did you come up with that name? Did I miss something this offseason?? ------------------ Ugh, Another Rockets off-season....I'm gonna need a keg of Pepto-Bismol.
Welcome LSM,sorry i dont really have any disagreements.Although i think maybe the Rockets might belong in the same column as the Kings.I mean i have been a fan since i can remember and the Rockets beat the good teams but always seem to lose to the teams we should beat,but i still think we will make it. ------------------
Good first post Larry---erhh...Moochie I'm with you on your assessments, and I believe the Rocks have definitely improved with the aquisition of Mo--although I have a sneaky suspician we could have done a little better in the draft. (who really knows though..we'll just have to see). Injuries will play a big part this year as I see quite a few teams that are "on the bubble." I agree that Seattle is on the decline, but I've learned to not underestimate the Jazz--as long as those guys can walk, they can set those screens. What you didn't mention though is Vancouver and Dallas. Vancouver is at least trying, and that may be enough to give their guys the confidence they need. Anyone who thinks they have no talent is fooling themselves. Sure, you need more than talent, but if these guys could string together enough wins to really believe in themselves, they could really make some noise. Same thing with Dallas, but amplified. Dallas has a great lineup now, but more than that--those guys are gonna have fun. Everybody works harder and does more when they love their job, and Cuban is going to make the Mav's players as happy as he can without breaking any rules (or at least without getting caught). Laugh all you want about all those assistant coaches, but they will really be a help when it comes to teaching fundamentals. Dallas is gonna have to screw up big time to not make it to the playoffs. How do I (the fan)see the West: (Don't ask me how I, the cynical realist, sees it) Lakers Portland Suns kings Jazz Spurs mavs rocks t-wolves sonics grizz clips nugz GS ------------------ stop posting my damn signature
Spurs Lakers Blazers Suns Rockets Kings Jazz Sonics Surprise of the West- Rocket's Bench. Young guns will come ready to run, run, run. Jazz are aging. Lakers will lose Rice, and then have to release their new thug SG. Blazers will be tough to the very end, when its time for Quitten to choke! First round Rockets/Suns matchup will be a fun one to watch! ------------------ -The expert has spoken, so shut up and try to comprehend the truth.
Nice post there LSM, but I got to say that I am a big Monty Python fan, so I love your signature. NEE! NEE! (Holy Grail Fans will understand.) ------------------ Save our children from the TAAS test: TAAS test report card TAAS test fact sheet Dog lover here....cats beware.
Here is how I see the West panning out 1.Lakers-defending champs end up with best record in the league again 2.Spurs-Anderson and healthy Duncan helps big time 3.Portland-too much talent to be any lower 4.Phoenix-team on the rise 5.Rockets-50 win season in Dream's last year 6.Seattle-GP,budding star in Lewis, improved Baker will help Sonics 7.Jazz-The last run of Stockton-Malone, THANK GOD! 8.Timberwolves-Gaping Hole at SG left by Sealy, but KG is too good to not make the playoffs Mavs and Kings will be close, but won't quite make playoffs. I see Golden State coming close to playoffs too, no really. Laker,Timberwolves-Lakers Spurs,Jazz-Spurs Seattle,Portland-Portland Pheonix,Rockets-Rockets, we upset Phoenix in 5 games, Goog is injured so he doesn't play in series and Mo Taylor dominates Cliff Lakers-Portland-another dramatic 7 game series, Portland wins this time. Kemp and Rasheed exploit weak PF position for Lakers. Spurs, Rocket-Rematch of '95 series, this time Spurs get the better of us due to their Front Court dominance. Spurs go on to win title. ------------------ "See they pick and pick and pick. Man they picked me to death." -Steve Francis on the Utah Jazz
I'd like to share the enthusiasm of this thread. Minnesota falling so far...? We'll see if the Wolves turn a negative into a positive. Signing Billups helped. KG getting past the death of his mentor? Don't know. That team always seemed to wax us. When I visited Houston in March, I went to watch the Rox-Wolves, knowing the Rox would get their heads handed them. And that's what happened. But the workouts of Steve, the possible emergence of Cato, the reason we got Mo in the first place.... 1. Lakers. Bob Costas ("Kobe, come here and let me take care of you, you're the GREATEST!") and the refs wouldn't allow anything less. 2. Spurs. Someone has to win the division, and it won't be us. Yet. 3. Portland. Depth, depth, depth. And a year smarter. And probably not done trading. And so much money they pay Stoudamire the max just to be the team's b****. 4. Phoenix. If their starting power forward was healthy and better fit their system, the Suns would be really, really dangerous. 5. Rockets. This is a generous spot, but what the hell? I can't put in the Jazz, who're slipping. Wolves? Gonna be tough after the tragedy. Sonics? (shudder) 6. Jazz. Hanging in there, those geriatric bastards. 7. Wolves. KG and Terrell Brandon. Nuff said. 8. Kings. Talented enough to make it in. Defense still not great, despite acquisition of Doug Christie. Out of playoffs? Sonics slide. Post-King Kong detonation. Mavs? Yes, improving, but changing. Too many new faces. That's the best-case scenario. We get #5. We have hope against Phoenix. Of course, we could be anywhere from #10 on up; but I have faith that our young team is hungry for what they saw the Comets receive: adulation, adulation, adulation. ------------------
It's really impossible to make these predictions, have u noticed how THE WHOLE LEAGUE is getting better? EVERY team seems to be talented now, the teams with the better coach/organizations are gonna get it done.....Rockets have a good chance at 7th or 8th, possibly 6th.....Mavs will come as close as 8th, as someone said, too many new faces......Lakers are gonna be tops, Spurs second (will win it), Blazers 3rd, Phoenix 4th......these are the fixed 4.....other 4 spots are up for grabs, Timberwolves will push harder (in my opinion), .....If everything goes right with Mo, and we're not overwhelmingly destroyed by injuries, then we get 7th.....Mavs 8th...Webber's kings at 6.....Sonics 5th......JAZZ OUT OF PLAYOFFS BY ONE OR TWO GAMES...Oh, welcome to the board LSM....... ------------------
'sup Leisure. Good first post and Monty Python RULES. The black knight always triumphs! ------------------ I need a new signature. 302
I think the key to success this year is Dream. If he can come back and just play good defense and grab some boards OFF THE BENCH we could be great. Just think how many big men that would give us to throw at LA and SA. ------------------
welcome larry ------------------ i am rather like a mosquito in a nudist camp..i know what i ought to do but i don't know where to begin...
great post larry, welcome to the board. I too would like to be optimistic about the season.. and i do think the play-offs are likely. I don't share the #5 spot opinion that some do, however, i'm not thinking it's out of reach. I still believe we're more of a 7 or 8 team. Our 3 spot is still shaky, unless walt proves he can play like he did during the third trimester for a full length's 82 games. I do however love the versatility of our bench. I don't think i've been as confident in the bench as i have this year. For once, the team isn't loaded with CBA talent, but rather fine NBA players, and fine NBA backups. I have a feeling stevie, cat and shandon are going to tear up the league. The jury is still out on Mo. Moochie's a fine back-up..and his game suits the tempo very well. I think we're solid. Of course, our bench is still made up with young players, and that's why you can't expect them to out perform 5 or 6 year vets. Elie#17 ------------------ Oh.. so this is how you add a signature huh? coo coo.
For the first time in a long time I haven't felt bad about our bench players , I feel rather confident that they will on certain nights out-perform the starters.... it's gonna be fun ! ------------------ When I die I want to go right after watching a rockets game !
Sane: So you're saying we should put the interests of one man above that of the team and all its fans? I happen to agree that Hakeem should start... but don't let sentimentality get in the way of the team's progress. One man should *never* come before the team... But hypothetically, if it meant the difference between the playoffs and the lottery, would you bench Hakeem Sane? Don't debate whether or not this would happen... I don't think it would. I want you to make the decision based on the hypothetical. ------------------ Shandon Anderson rocks. The lottery sucks. Playoffs 2001.
I can't see the Rocks finishing as high as 6th unless at least 6 of the following criteria are met: 1) Hakeem is healthy for 85% of the season and averages >= 12 ppg, 7 boards, and 1.25 blocks. 2) Cato *noticeably* steps up his level of intensity. Not just Shaq, but EVERY 5. 3) Mo Taylor averages >= 32 min/game, 16 ppg, 7 rebs, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block. (The 17 ppg and 6.5 boards were last seasons numbers. He is only a 14.8 career ppg player). 4) Walt Williams picks up where he left off in April - around 17 ppg for the last 2 months. 5) Dan Langhi gives *quality* minutes at the 3 and exceeds or matches Rashard's 2000 season stats: 19 min, 8.2 ppg, 4 boards, 3 assists (the assists are much greater than). 6) The ENTIRE team cuts down on turnovers. From the 26th worse of 17.3/game to at least a Portland or San Antonio level 15/game. This small improvement would put them in the bottom of the upper half (11th thru 15th). 7) The starting lineup is relatively injury free for extended periods and consequently learns some team defense. 8) Steve manages to avoid the "Sophomore jinx". 9) Both Shandon and Cuttino equal their production from last season. IMHO, 6 of these gets playoff spot #6. Otherwise, we are in a dog fight for #8 with the Kings, Mavs, and Nuggets. ------------------ GATER
I think starting Hakeem or Cato isn't the difference between making it to the playoffs or not......Hakeem can do anything Cato can do this year, so he deserves to start anyway.....and if Cato is just as good as Hakeem turns out to be, and they play equally, then the starting place goes to Hakeem.......But if Hakeem plays worse than Cato, he has said he won't play a bad season, he'll play only if he's productive, so he'll retire if he's not good enough to start over Cato.......But loyalty has to count for something, so Hakeem should get some more consideration for that...... But like I said, playing one or the other isn't the difference between making the playoffs or not....... ------------------
