Don't be fooled by the title, I still think theyl have a ways to go. It's been a long time coming. This is the team that I wanted to see from the midway point of last season. The offense spread out, the defense, the comeback victories, and most importantly, the confidence the guards have in Yao Ming. Watching them pass the ball last night, they looked like a team. I know the Rox lost last night, but watching them play, I thought to myself that this was the team I have wanted to see for so long. No longer does it seem to me that Yao is being frozen out by Cat or Stevie as it seemed last year and the first half of this year. No longer does it seem like a anomaly when both Yao and Stevie have good games together as evident by this recent stretch. This is the happiest I have been watching them play in two years. I know that the Rox are only 8-6 this month, but if they continue playing the way they are, sharing the ball, having confidence in all five players on the court, they can only get better. They need to keep this starting lineup and bring Cato off the bench, this group has chemistry now. Keep it up Houston, you will not only be a handful in the playoffs, but for many years to come. STuart
I agree wholeheartedly. Last night may have been the 1st time this year where I thought the team was OVERPASSING to Yao! I lot of times they would drive and have the open shot but would try to hit Yao to finish. We need to keep doing this. After the big fella gets some rest, this kind of play will make us tough.
Its just not last night, but very recently. Stevie, though inconsistent, seems to be hitting his stride at the right time. I am hoping he has found a way to co-exist on the court with both Yao and Cat. Stuart
I need to give major prop to SF3 for his elevated play recently. Both Yao and SF3 have a great March (their best month for the season). The problem is largely due to Cato's injury, JJ's injury, and Cat's inconsistent outside game (definitely need a good backup 2 for the team). We played more West conference teams in March. If we had had Cato for the last 5-6 games, we would probably have won the games against Suns, and the Wolves.
Both Steve and Yao have played well for a while now. We lost some tough close games because our outside shots were not falling and we've playing lots of games without rest and on the road. Our perimeter shooting is not exactly on fire now, e.g. JJ and Cat. Hope they'll turn around in the playoffs.
sabonis; I know you are signing off as "Stuart" but are you really Yao MIng? I'm asking that because I just read in ESPN Magazine that Yao's online name is "sabonis" because he was so impressed with him in the '88 Olympics. C'mon Yao if its you and you don't want anyone else to know you can send me a private message through this site. Oh yeah totally agree with you that last night this team looks like its coming together. Props to Francis, it looks like he's getting back into his offensive groove. Also even Yao, is that you, had an off game I'm guessing that had more to do with exhaustion from the OT Milwaukee game the night before. That said this team has shown a propensity to go into slumps so I'll hold out saying this team has really come around.
...no, it's his translator whose duties are reduced to forum reading and findings reporting...so all of you YOFs, line up and hail the Yaoster, for he has eyes on the board.
I think one of the overlooked reasons why you like this team all of a sudden is Maurice Taylor. Suddently there are no weak links offensively on the starting and finishing team. They are much more cohesive, especially offensively with Maurice starting. You pay if you double anyone as all can score.. Maurice's effort on defense and rebounding against Minnesota while not all star caliber, was suffcient that he wasn't a weak link. I'm not saying Maurice is the key talent as it is obviously Yao, with Steve his sidekick. However, when you have all five starters contributing things work better. Our Championship teams had that with Hakeem center, Thorpe or Horry at pf, Horry or Elie at SF, Max or Clyde at shooting guard, Cassel or Kenny at point. The teammates at crunch time all could contribute offensively and defensively, though only Hakeem was an All Star except for Clyde in the second championship. This is also not to say that we couldn't use Cato, especially backing up both Maurice and Yao.
Although they're 8-6 this month, they've had fairly close and winnable games. If you don't include the Memphis blowout, all the games Rockets lost have been by small margins. They could easily have been 13-1 in the month if they were able to finish off close games. They led the Kings in arco by 17 pts, but lost to them in the end when pressure got to them. We just need more poise especially when pressured. They were able to win 3 out of 4 OT games this month which shows this team can perform in clutch situations. Their plays still leaves a lot to be desired, but it's a major improvement from last season. 3 Wed L.A. Lakers L 96-93 34-26 Y. Ming 33 Y. Ming 8 5 Fri @ Minnesota W 112-109 35-26 Y. Ming 27 S. Francis 6 Y. Ming 6 7 Sun Dallas W 101-98 36-26 Y. Ming 29 C. Weatherspoon 10 Y. Ming 10 9 Tue L.A. Clippers W 90-85 37-26 S. Francis 24 Y. Ming 10 11 Thu New Orleans W 97-86 38-26 C. Mobley 31 Y. Ming 9 13 Sat Memphis W 88-80 39-26 J. Jackson 20 Y. Ming 11 15 Mon Phoenix L 99-97(OT) 39-27 Y. Ming 29 Y. Ming 19 19 Fri @ Golden State L 90-84 39-28 C. Mobley 25 Y. Ming 9 21 Sun @ Sacramento L 100-95 39-29 M. Taylor 23 J. Jackson 11 22 Mon @ Portland W 93-85(OT) 40-29 Y. Ming 28 Y. Ming 13 24 Wed Toronto W 90-89(OT) 41-29 Y. Ming 25 Y. Ming 17 26 Fri @ Memphis L 109-86 41-30 S. Francis 17 Y. Ming 7 28 Sun @ Milwaukee W 111-107(OT) 42-30 Y. Ming 27 Y. Ming 13 29 Mon Minnesota L 94-88 42-31 C. Mobley 17 M. Taylor 17 S. Francis 17 M. Taylor 10
I think Cato did his time. Having Taylor in the starting lineup in the beginning of the year with Yao would have undermined Van Gundy's plan to focus on Yao Ming offensively. Now that Yao has "earned" his spot as offensive centerpiece 80% of the time, having Mo Taylor as another post threat would be great. I also still am waiting for the Rox to post JJ more often. He is an excellent post player. Stuart
One thing that occurred to me is that it's been a long time since I've seen Steve and Cat play selfishly. Sure, they still make boneheaded plays regularly and occasionally do their 1-on-1 schtick, but those long stretches where those two seemed determined to do everything on their own seem to be a thing of the past. Hey, if they've learned to play unselfishly, there may be hope that they can learn to play a smarter game as well.
