Houston Rockets on fire!

They are really coming together nicely. I'm not sure if anybody outside of Houston has heard much about Carl Landry, but this guy was the steal of the draft. He doesn't just settle for the jumper, he literally tries to take it to the hole and shatter the backboard everytime he has a scoring opportunity. He's a young Dennis Rodman, but he can score. Luis Scola, man we owned the Spurs in that deal. This guy, while not technically a rookie, is a solid power forward. Throw in T-Mac and Yao and this team could do great things.

I wasn't real excited about losing Bonzi Wells though, but nothing's perfect.

Peace

reply to post by Dr Love


I like Landry too.

He reminds me of a thicker Robert Reid.

I mean we both know he's no Billy Paultz.

Watch out for my Celts though. Yeah we dropped the first two on the west coast swing and we got Diesel and the Suns tonight. We'll be around at the end.

Becker

Oh yeah.......my boys destroyed the best team in the west on their home court.

No team is safe now.

Becker, I'm likin' the Celtics, but those Pistons have the playoff experience. It should be interesting in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Peace

reply to post by Dr Love


I'm a little more worried about LeBron and the Cavs. They made a great move getting Big Ben Wallace, Delonte West, and Joe Smith.

I see the Celts are going to make another run at Brent Barry if he clears waivers. Ainge is always looking for a nice perimeter guy. Barry would be great off the bench for a little punch.

Nice to have a fellow NBA fan around.

Becker

I agree Dr Love that the Rockets are playin incredibly well! Saw them play a couple of weeks ago and was really impressed with them!! I thought the key to their emergence was the great D that Shane Battier brings out every night on the elite players he faces!! I've never been a fan of their coach Rick Adelman though as he has always been an offensive coach that very rarely stresses the defensive side of the game so I'm not sure he's the guy to get them over the hump when the games get physical come playoff time!! The trade they made really suprised me too as why would you make a move when they're playing argueable the best hoop anyone's played this season!! Cavaliers made a POOR DECISION moving 2 of their most physical defenders in Hughes and Gooden. Being a Pistons fan I was concerned about the Cavs taking the
Pistons out again until they pulled the trigger on this trade. Mike Brown is clueless in running an offense and now he's got 2 new guys to work in and one has NO OFFENSIVE GAME at all and he only makes 16 million a year!! Forget about em!! Pistons vs Celtics should be a whale of a series but I fell the Celtics will be in the finals! vs ??????? And as always I'm available for a game of horse ANYTIME, ANYWHERE!!!

Fellow Rockets fan here!

They're playing awesome right now. But losing Yao was disastrous.

I really really like Carl Landry. He's their future leader, I can tell. They need to hold on to him with everything they have.

They really do have a very good team with Yao.

They have a big guy with Yao who can get you 25-30 points a night with 10+ rebounds. T-Mac who is a little too on and off for my taste, but still a 30-35 point capable player.

Carl Landry who gets 15-20 points while only playing 15-20 minutes coming off the bench. Rafer Alston who sets a nice tempo with his quickness and has been on FIRE lately with the 3's.

Luther Head, last year I was all over him because he took stupid shots. He has been MUCH improved this year. He's taking better shots and is hitting them. If I had to give an award for the "most improved player" out of the Rockets players, I would give it to Luther Head.

Chuck Hayes, I like his hustle. He forces turnovers, he gets rebounds - he does a lot for a guy that doesn't look very big compared to other centers and power forwards. Of course Luis Scola. Yeah man. That was a TOTAL steal from the Spurs. Complete ownage in that trade. It feels good to have things go so much in our favor in trades for once. And against the Spurs no less.

Then there's Mutombo. What can you say about that guy? 41 years old and he's still going up there, snatching rebounds, blocking tons of shots, giving the finger wave He's awesome

Then you got guys on the bench like Steve Novak, Aaron Brooks and Bobby Jackson, all capable of hitting shots, all good players.

They have a very good team, and a lot of these guys are younger guys, so as long as they handle their business, they should have a pretty good team for a while. I'm excited about that!

Yao was a big loss, and I'm concerned that these two wins without him may not tell the whole story because it was Washington and Memphis. Hopefully I'm wrong. But I'm concerned about that road game in Dallas coming up. Dallas has lost 3 games at home all year, and Houston is under sized now. That would be a huge statement to the league if they pull off a win there.

I'm going to end this long post with this where Rick Adelman commented on people basically saying that their 14 game winning streak is garbage because they've only played a few good teams:

“It’s always interesting because early in the year we were playing all those good teams and we were .500 back and forth and you weren’t doing the job,” he said. “And now you sweep the month and people bring up the fact that you only played four or five good teams. … I think it’s a terrific accomplishment.”

Yahoo Article

Amen!

I'm glad someone said it!

You're damned if you do, damned if you don't. :shk:

Alright, I'm done. GO ROCKETS!!

[edit on 3/1/08 by NovusOrdoMundi]

Fifteen in a row!

The chemistry without Yao is as good, if not better than with him. Everybody is getting involved which is extremely tough to guard.

Dikembe Mutombo's presence on defense is as good as Yao's presence on offense. He's blocking shots like a maniac and he still has those Ginsu elbows.

Life is good!

Peace

[edit on 3-3-2008 by Dr Love]

It really irritates me how people always say their winning streak is because they're playing bad teams. They're in the same division as New Orleans, San Antonio, and Dallas, so they pretty much have the same schedule as these teams do. Does anyone question their winning streaks? No. Their winning streaks are just because they're good, but somehow, Houston's is because they're playing bad teams.

16 in a row! Dallas up next, with no Dirk.

GO ROCKETS!!

Rockets!!!???:shk: Signed, A Mavericks Fan... GO MAVS!!!

Man, you need some help picking your teams.

Hopefully if you watch hockey you're a Stars fan.

The Rockets winnning streak is impresive... if you can win more then 10 games ina row, you are doing something right...

But dont get ahead of your self, Portland had a 14 game winning streak eariler this year... and they didn't beat any good team during that streak.


The only good teams they played, Golden State, Denver, New Orleans and Clevland twice...

that only 4/16 games that were against good opponents.... compare with the next 10 games.... Dallas, New Orleans(x2), Lakers, Boston, Golden State and Phonix, and San Antonio...

Not quite the same as beating up on Memphis, Indiania, Milwaekee, Maimi, Washinton types they have been playing...

How they do over this next streach will be Key.

They can make the playoffs without Yao, they will just be first round fodder though...

And oh yea, Carl Landry is good. That was a good draft pick.

There is too much firepower in the west to play down your best player...

reply to post by TKainZero


I respect your opinion but..

San Antonio is currently on an 11 game winning streak. People just automatically assume it's because they're great. They don't look at the schedule. Because if they did, they'd see this:

Toronto
Cleveland
Charlotte
Minnesota
New Orleans
Atlanta
Dallas
Milwaukee
New Jersey
New Jersey (again)
Indiana

But no, let's closely examine the Rockets' 17 game winning streak. The Rockets are only winning because they're playing bad teams, but San Antonio is winning because that's just what the world champs do. It doesn't matter that most of their 11 game winning streak was Eastern teams.

And I'm sure this win against Dallas was because Dirk was suspended.

You can't win. Phoenix, Dallas, San Antonio - these teams go on winning streaks because they're great. Houston - they go on winning streaks because they're playing bad teams.

The hypocrisy is just amazing.

If the Rockets didn't beat these teams, people would say they suck. If they do beat them, it's because those are bad teams. If they beat teams like Dallas, it's because they didn't have Dirk. But if Dallas had Dirk, and Dallas won, it wouldn't be because Houston didn't have Yao.

Do you see the source of my frustration here?

You're damned if you do, damned if you don't. Just because the Rockets aren't the flashy over hyped team, that means they aren't capable of winning streaks without everything lining up just perfectly for them.

These are still NBA teams, and they still have to go out and handle their business. You don't win 17 games in a row by accident, and you don't win it by luck.

[edit on 3/7/08 by NovusOrdoMundi]

I took it upon myself to add up the records of the teams on the Rockets' winning streak, and the records of the teams on the Spurs' winning streak, and get a win percentage.

Houston: .453
San Antonio: .456

Look how close that is. But the Rockets are playing bad teams, and the Spurs are just good.

I mean, when does it become ridiculous? When do people say "you know what, they're just playing good"? Do the non-flashy teams ever get to that point? Or is there always an excuse?

Maybe they're just playing good. Maybe that's why.

They've beaten 8 straight teams by double digit points. They're 5-0 without Yao.

Maybe they're just playing good.

This is why these so called "experts" are a bunch of idiots. They don't watch the games, yet they have an opinion. Anyone who watches the games sees the chemistry, they see how the Rockets, despite not having a defensive minded coach anymore, can still play good defense. They don't see how much better they are at 3 pointers, how much better they are on the fast break, and how many more offensive weapons and role players they have, that they haven't had in the past few years.

That's why watching the games is important. You can throw all the numbers out there you want and try to analyze on paper, but if you don't see it for yourself, you have no clue what you're talking about. That's what a lot of "experts" are like.

Sorry TKainZero. This isn't all directed at you even though I responded to you. It's just frustration built up from hearing idiots like Barkley and Stephen A. Smith.

Originally posted by NovusOrdoMundi
Man, you need some help picking your teams.

Umm, really I don't. When was the last time the Rockets did anything worth mentioning? By the way, the little success that they are experiencing this year, will be short lived, rest assured.

Hopefully if you watch hockey you're a Stars fan.

Umm, as a matter of fact I am.

Originally posted by SpeakerofTruth
When was the last time the Rockets did anything worth mentioning?

How many championships does Dallas have again?

2? 4?

..oh wait, that's the Rockets and Spurs. Nevermind.

That was a good win last night, i tuned in after halftime.

The Rockets are playing Great basketball. That was my first game seeing them without Yao, and mabye only the 3rd or 4th time this year.

Dallas did not have Dirk, and he is their main threat, while Houstan is just down 1/2 of thier duo. Would the game have been diffrent if Dirk were there... mabye...


This next 10 game streatch will dertermine if the make the playoffs or not.

They are on such a role right now... how long can they keep it up... How long can Rafer Alston be your starting PG... i know i would not feel good if that was the PG situation on my team...

Since Yao went down, every player on the roster has stepped up, and they needed too... but leaning on a couple of Rookies (Scola/Landry) and a man who is someehere in his 40's (Mutumbo) as your low post presnce... you are going to be disapointed at some point...

You guys have a GREAT coach now... and he might even push Phil for Coach of the Year honors if the Rockets can keep up this Run...


And you have to be so happy that got rid of ClubHouse Cancer (Bonzi Wells), and got a backup point Guard in Bobby Jackson. This move is better then the Kidd deal, or the Shaq deal...


PS, i would be pissed if i listended to the talking heads too... just ignore them, dont watch them... belive me, i am a Laker Fan, the months before the season, and about a month of the season, all i heard was Lakers are done for, Kobe is going out of town, blah blah blah.... next thing you know, Lakers are the best team in the leauge, and about 10 other Stars around the leauge are traded, and the Lakers Keep Kobe, land him a star, and have built the best Roster in the Leauge... I wouldn't take a Stephen A Smith rant for more then what it is, a mildly entertaining rant... And never listen to that bumbling fool Barkely... seriously...

Originally posted by TKainZero
Would the game have been diffrent if Dirk were there... mabye...

Probably, but I don't think he should grab people around the neck and throw them down, no matter how much I hate Kirilenko and his stupid nickname "AK-47".

Can't blame or put down the Rockets for that, though. That wasn't their doing.

Originally posted by TKainZero
How long can Rafer Alston be your starting PG... i know i would not feel good if that was the PG situation on my team...

He's been the starting PG almost all year. They started out good in the first 5 or 6 games of the year, then fell off. But now they've adjusted to Rick Adelman's offense. They get it now.

This isn't just some random 17 game winning streak. Maybe they are a little hot right now, and I certainly don't expect the winning streak to continue for a lot longer. But this isn't one of those streaks that, after it ends, they're going to collapse. The root of their success is they have picked up on Adelman's system. It took them about half a season to do it, but they've done it.

Alston has become much better in this new system, and as someone who watches Rockets games every night, I'm not at all concerned about their PG position. I think he has done good and will continue to do good. He does a good job of setting the pace because he's a quick guy, and he picks the right plays to run. Not to mention he can hit the three.

Originally posted by TKainZero
but leaning on a couple of Rookies (Scola/Landry)

Leaning on rookies isn't always good. I agree.

But Scola and Landry aren't your typical rookies. They're going to be very good players in this league. They rarely go on cold streaks. They consistently hit their shots. They are big bodies.

Everyone thinks Landry is better because he's a little flashier with his dunks and his power presence on the offensive end, and maybe he is a better offensive player than Scola, but all around, I think Scola is the better player. He can rebound, he hits his long range jump shots as well as Landry, and he has just as good a presence down low as Landry.

But the difference is the defense and rebounding. Scola is better there. Landry needs to improve on the defensive side of the ball.

Originally posted by TKainZero
and a man who is someehere in his 40's (Mutumbo) as your low post presnce

Ah, but you gotta love it, though

He brings a sense of excitement and he fires up the team. They see this allegedly 41 year old guy out there giving all that energy, stepping up for the team, doing his little finger wag thing when he blocks shots, and they take after him. They have no reason to not take after him. If he can do it, certainly they can, and they do.

If nothing else, I love Mutombo's energy. He's a big team player on the court and probably the biggest cheerleader when he's on the bench.

If you say Rafer is the man, then i will belive you. I know whats its like watching the same team play, over and over, night after night, you get to know them, far better then any of the TV anouncers.

Like this year with the Lakers, i knew, i couple weeks into the season, that this year could be special.


Mabye the Rockets can climb up and get the 3rd seed in the best case situation...

Phx, Dallas, and the Hornets are all slipping right now... and Houstan is just on fire...


What kind of offense does Houston run?

Ive been watching the Triangle for so long now, and now the lakers are playing it so well, that other teams offenses... well... just look strange...

reply to post by TKainZero


I'm not really familiar with all the types of offenses, but to describe it: It's much more fast paced from what Van Gundy ran. The fast break is much more improved.

They tend to keep two guys out on the perimeter, two guys just inside the perimeter, and one guy down low. That's probably what every team does, so not knowing the different offenses, I don't know if that's a clue as to what they run.

They shoot a lot of 3's. They take a lot of jump shots. They do that more than going down low. Even with Yao, they'd drive to the net and kick it out to him, and he's standing at the free throw line to hit the jump shot.