The gap between Rox and elite teams are huuuuuge. No sure Rox can win more than 2 games against Spurs, Thunders or Denver in a series.
The biggest indicators of this is our Conference record and of course the division record. We are the only playoff team with a losing conference record... in the west and the east. These Rockets play playoff intensity basketball through the season and beat the weak teams but certainly have had difficulty against the good ones. And that's fine... This team is a work in progress and has already outperformed its projection. Next season we should get into the playoffs with a strong winning record within the conference as well.
Their coach also preaches discipline and defense. I like McHale but sometimes I wish he would be less of a friend and more of a hard-nose coach to these young players.
I was really hoping the Rox would win tonight's game, because Denver is the only team above us in the Western Conference that we haven't beaten at least once. Unless the Jazz upset GSW tomorrow we don't have much chance for the 6th seed.
The biggest indicator of where you stand is your vs. +.500 teams record. We are 21-21 which is about right. Golden State is 17-23, which is why I always laugh when people think they have a chance to win a series. Memphis is 23-17 and the Lakers are 14-25. I haven't wanted to play Denver because they are 2nd in the league to Miami against good teams. When you look at the East (outside of Miami), it is clear why they are such an inferior conference. They just beat the Hell out of sub-.500 teams and struggle against quality opponents. New York is 2nd in this category in the East at 19-18. It is horrible. We are able to beat the lower teams, but just have a very tough time with the elite teams... We probably won't win a playoff series, but a game or two would be fun.
Agreed, that is a very clear indicator. The conference record is a muddier version of it, but this is exactly what i was getting at in my previous post. Basically, we need to temper our expectations in the playoffs this year.
Yeah I know what you mean, I always view the teams through the same prism, but using the +.500 record instead of conference record as a guide. But basically the West is the analogue of going against the over-.500 teams, so the conclusion is the same :grin:
Despite the tough loss tonight, I think 6th seed is still there for the taking. Houston still got a more favorable schedule than Golden State (down the stretch) and they own the tiebreaker...Why not get 6th? If they do, and they get Denver, so be it? Who the f*** cares if Denver is the overwhelming favorite? "Ya gotta believe! There could be an upset....
They are the Rockets except about 3-4 years in the future, and minus a James Harden level star. They run and gun like us, but the fact that they are all vets means that they don't make one-tenth the boneheaded plays we do. Long story short: without a star, they will be stuck in mud by the second round for the foreseeable future. I would much MUCH rather be a Rockets fan with our future potential. Good riddance.
Lakers face Clippers tomorrow also so we could be right back up 3games over the Lakers so no biggie. Jazz face Warriors also Anyways it's good to know we are basically out of Nuggets way
