By Kelly Dwyer Wednesday, Dec 12, 2007 9:21 am EST http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/nba_experts/post/Why-are-the-Rockets-only-11-11-;_ylt=Aq5_vVaaDjBIYsn8sAUgLhC8vLYF?urn=nba,57413 Unfortunately, Houston's problems can't be traced to an underlying soft streak, or any other hacky football coach clichés that Yao Ming has obviously begun to adhere to. Monday night's loss in Philadelphia was a particularly pathetic showing, especially when the Rockets didn't even bother to feign any interest in trying to chase down Philadelphia's hoards of running swingmen as they leaked out in transition. Rick Adelman's club passed on using Philadelphia's pressure against itself (for a Princeton devotee to have a team run so few backdoor cuts to mitigate Philly's perimeter fancy, pitiful ...), and the team had more or less ceded the game to the 76ers by the start of the second half. The problem with the Rockets is that things go a lot deeper than any sort of easily labeled psychological issues or semi-dramas. On a cold, statistical level, there aren't many obvious faults to be pointed out, either. The team is defending worse than last year and scoring less (seventh and 17th in defensive and offensive efficiency, down from third and 15th in 2006-07), but those sorts of slow starts can be blamed on a rotation that is featuring four important new cogs (Luis Scola, Mike James, Steve Francis and last year's forgotten man, Bonzi Wells) and a new coaching staff. Even without a massive rotation overhaul, a major trade, or an inspired bout of bootstrap-pulling, I don't think it a wild assumption that the Rockets (as presently constructed) should be able to vault back into the top five and top 10 respectively in terms of defensive and offensive efficiency. But will that be enough? This team was considered by some to be a championship contender, and a quick look up and down this impressive roster lends that sentiment a whole heap of credibility. This could be a brilliant, versatile squad that goes deep and works well in just about any setting. So why the glum faces, and 11-11 record? Well, for starters, orthodoxy has to be shown the door. Or orthodoxy, at least, as the Rockets have come to understand it. In Shane Battier, you have an expert help defender who contributes little offensively save for the occasional outside shot, and eschews rebounding opportunities on either end to leak out and either encourage (after a teammate has pulled in the defensive board) or discourage (after the other team pulls in a defensive board) transition opportunities. Despite his limitations, he's a lovely thing to have in a five-man unit. With power forward Chuck Hayes only rebounding 15.7 percent of available misses (down from 17.5 last year, and 19.6 the year before), and the Rockets comfortable amongst the top of the NBA in denying teams a chance at offensive rebounds, Houston can ill-afford to have two defensive clones at the forward spots. Especially when one considers Hayes' developing turnover issues. So while we like the idea of having a defensive beast at the four-spot start the game, only to cede to a solid scorer off the bench who would presumably be hitting shots that he wouldn't get if placed in the starting unit, we have to admit that the idea isn't really working in reality. Luis Scola needs to start. Or, at the very least, needs to play alongside Hayes or Yao in a smaller lineup for longer stretches, because the Battier-Hayes-Yao triptych just isn't getting the job done, and limiting Yao's (and, to a lesser extent, Shane's) minutes would be asinine. The Rockets also need to be open to the idea of going long stretches with smaller lineups, because the most productive five-man units the Rockets have boasted thus far have featured Yao, Bonzi Wells and Battier (and not Tracy McGrady, sadly), with Luther Head and Mike James in the backcourt running together; or McGrady with Rafer Alston, Battier, Scola and Hayes. Either way, Battier has to remain a mainstay. And, while Steve Francis has had a pleasant comeback while putting up some solid individual stats in late November, the current starting lineup featuring Francis at point guard has given up 61 points (scoring only 40) in just 29 minutes of action this season. I'd never thought I'd say this, but Rafer Alston needs to hurry back. If it were any other team, in any other division, one would feel comfortable affording the Rockets another month (or even more) to figure things out. But a 58-win run in the Southwest may only be good for third place and a fifth seed in the West, so it's imperative that the Rockets get cracking, and start taking chances right now. I still feel comfortable in saying that this year's Rockets have as good a championship chance as the Spurs, Celtics and Mavs, and that this team shouldn't be relegated (in theory, I submit) to the second tier with the Suns, Jazz and Pistons. But the status quo, as presently established, cannot continue.
I just tracked down this article too. (Thanks to Kelly saying he used the knickerblogger stats in today's article) To be perfectly honest, I am surprised that Chuck wasn't relegated to bench status when they had the 4 day break. I even posted that I thought Scola would start ahead of him. But our problems aren't only offense, they are defense as well. So what do you do?
Nice writeup, Kelly. Deep down I think we all believe the Rockets have the personnel for a top tier team. Things just look too gloomy, and there are no signs it's turning around yet. We can only hope for the best.
The Rockets are not hustling period. Back cuts, screens, rebounding, and defense all require effort. It appears that the wanna be scorers are saving their energy for offense. Philly and Toronto shot the lights out with minimal effort. MJ is not hitting or playing D. Chuck isn't rebounding anymore, because he has to get back on D to cover Yao's man who running past him like a porsche around a yugo.
It is mind-blowing how little offense RA has brought. My only guess at this point, other than maybe RA has relied on different players historically, is that we are just too weak at starting PG. Take a system that seems fairly reliant on good PG, add a league that is more reliant today than it was historically on good PG play, and look at the Rockets PG play...there's your answer, I guess. I'm all for any change to the starting line-up involving Shane or Scola, though.
We simply do not have a championship mentality. Remeber when the first season Jordan came back? He was relentless both on the court and on his teammates. He literally willed the Bulls into three championships through his own talent, effort, leadership, and occasional put down of a teammate. In the same way, Duncan, Parker and Ginobili never take a play off. They play every possession hard and smart. TMac takes plays off. He doesn't come back on D. He sags way off his man and doesn't fight through screens. He walks up the court and rarely runs on offense. He settles for a jumper way too often. Like it or not, TMac is the most important member of the Rockets. Without him, we are a .350 team. With him, we are much better but not at the championship level because TMac is not a championship player and cannot exhort his teammate to play hard and smart becasue he himself doesn't.
