Thanks for sharing. This is the only reason I hate Howard, you can say people are hating on him for smiling which is unfair to most Rockets fans, but he totally deserves it if he keeps having this nonsense attitude and joking before the game. Why the **** are you shooting threes when you could be working on improving your game. The best are the best because they do the same things over and over and are serious and focused. Doesn't sound like Howard is. The difference between the teams is evident, no coverage vs. coverage. I agree that a huge part of this is because of coaching.
Exactly. There's nothing wrong with a player's coach, but JB just seems like he wants to be "one of the boys" instead of an authority figure on the team. Even McHale did a better job of managing egos than JB did. It seems like after we lost Sampson and McHale, the players on the team stopped giving a ****.
"We will learn from this." "We are turning the corner." "We weren't ready but we will be next time." "We are growing and getting better." "When we get healthy we will get better." This is the 2015-2016 Rockets mantra, anything to kick the can down the road. The Rockets coach and players talk more about "growth" and "getting better" than any team I have ever followed.
Do you guys really think it's on the coaches? You don't think, as long as JB has been around basketball, he knows the importance of preparation? Do Dwight and Harden seem like the kind of pair to want that kind of discipline, like Ray Allen pregame routine type of $hit? I doubt it. That's not who they are and guess who knows that now? Morey. That's why he was ok with a soft coach like Kevin staying here for this long. That's why some players went on record to say they needed things to be more strict, with more consequences, after Kevin was fired, implying that JB brought that...but a coach can only push players so much. If they don't want it, they'll just stop responding, like they did with Kevin. JB is likely trying not to lose this team again, so he has to pick his spots and sometimes let Jet do what he does, since sometimes criticism is better coming from am actual teammate, a vet. A hard ass coach could be the solution, but it also could cause a big mess. It's really on the players.
Unfortunately I don't think JB ever even had the team... As much faults as McHale had, it's like if I knew they were going to fire him and just promote JB I'd rather McHale hung around till the end of the season, the team would be in a better/same spot or.... We'd be lotto bound. I honestly think that while McHale might not have been a good x/o guy at least he has nba rapport with the players. I mean the team is basically headless/autopilot. For example... JB makes damning comments about players focus and then doesn't retaliate for ****. At least McHale would say "play harder" instead of empty threats. JB is in a tough spot, he's basically in a position that he's going to fail no matter what. I mean Les/Morey have to know with the egos on the team there has to be a good HC. I mean it's not like Morey is Pat Riley to oversee everything... Morey just has a calculator and can make good trades
dont forget "its just one game" "its just two games" "its just three games" "its just 48 games into the season" "its just the playoffs" "its just basketball" "its just 10 turnovers. i could've done 20 if i wanted" "i still make more money then you when i take a s***"
JB has a better rapport with them than Kevin did.....JB also brought more discipline and consequences than Kevin had in place. The players themselves said this after the firing. JB also makes players earn their PT more than Kevin did. People need to realize JB isn't incompetent. I wouldn't be suprised if most around the league consider him a better coach than Kevin. He's got things to learn, sure, but that's natural, when you're in a new position.
It's ultimately on the players. Doesn't matter if you have a coaching staff of Pop, Phil Jackson, and Red Auerbach if the players go out and throw the game plan out the window and play for themselves. The issues on this team won't be solved just by getting Thibs or whatever coach is in vogue. Even those coaches need an off season and a season or two to truly implement a cultural change.
Why not? When the team actually plays together and communicates on the floor consistently we are very dangerous.
