[ClutchFans] Houston shouldn't turn its back on Dwight Howard

It's tough. It simply hasn't worked out with Harden and Howard in terms of building a dominant core. It's not so much an indictment on Howard as a Rocket, but his age and contract. He would be the one the would need to be jettisoned and we'd hope Harden would mature as a player and person after this team goes from contender to an unknown in 1 full season. Harden is going to get a lot of scrutiny this offseason and I hope he uses to figure it out and dominate again.

I'm still very much optimistic for the future, this season was an abysmal disappointment so far, but there are still moves to be made to set up next season.

 

Just never clicked. And you're right, never dominated.

Granted, most of these other guys are guards & guards or guards & forwards and it's easier but...

LeBron & Wade
LeBron & Irving
Steph & Klay
Russ & Durant
CP3 & Blake
--------
Butler & Rose
Wade & Bosh
Duncan & Parker
Aldridge & Leonard
Aldridge & Lillard
Wall & Beal

How many times/nights did you say "Man, Dwight & James are clicking, just dominating the opponent, Rockets are rolling!"

While I have suggested fielding offers for James, we know that's not happening. He'll be here two more years before either side can decide to go their separate way.

Easier said than done but Rockets need to find him a second running mate.

 

This sucks but I believe they can stilll turn the season.

No way all the work from last year can go to waste like this

Just need one solid run of winning and we are back in the fold CMON H&H

 

I hope houston learns from the past... Especially with Utah and Dantley...

I know the Rockets are going to let Howard go and keep Harden because of age and they will regret it for years to come....

T_Man

 

I feel the same way, probably will do the same even I liked & trusted Howard more. The guy basically carried the team during the playoffs here, while Harden was terrible. It's just that Howard is on the decline, you cannot go anywhere with him unless you have a good group of role players, AND the system for them, which the Rockets don't have.

On the other end, you know you won't go anywhere with Harden as he is now, but you wish he will flip the switch in his head and be a real pro as the Rockets expected him to be. Keep your fingers crossed on that wish.

 

To add, they never seemed to be a "duo" but "teammates". They have certainly, at times, dominated individually but they never could put personalities aside to win.

 

Nobody on this team is likeable....have not watched a Rockets game in a couple seasons, since Scola left.

 

Lol make up call. Come on.

 

Thats just our contagious culture. Parsons transformed into a big douchebag here in Houston and is now humbling himself in Dallas. Players here act like little b****es.

Harrell and KJ were acting like teenage girls ranting about playing time. Everyone here acts entitled. Even the fans, just look at the condescending Morey fans. They know it all via stats.

 

That's just silly...the 2013 Rockets with Delfino, Beverley, old Harden, humble Chandler, Asik, Greg Smith, Garcia was a hungry squad full of toughness. Greg Smith held his own against Dwight & Griffin. There was a great spirit and culture back then. Even Lin was still okay. Then it all started to go downhill with Parsons becoming a douche, Lin playing like a b****, Morey jonesing for Carmelo, Harden's disastrous non-defense (last year was a fluke), Beverley injuries, D-Mo injuries, TJ not progressing, role players getting paid, Dwight's health, McHale losing the team etc. Outside of 2012-2013 and most of last year, we have been a great team to root for, but even last year we quit during the play-offs. I'm still uncertain about keeping Dwight, since our coaching staff and players are clueless how to use him and he refuses to be the best he can. We have Capela so I'm not worried. Play-off Dwight might be a thing of the past, we'll just have to see.

 

Just rewatched last nights game.. I cant believe how much Hardens game has drop down..

 

I have disconnected to a large degree from the Rockets. I haven't watched a game in weeks. I also haven't checked CF for quite some time. I was off exteneded time for the Christmas/New Year holidays and had no interest in watching games or checking CF. When I do check, I usually look at recent Houston Chronicle articles and then look at 1st page threads here. But it just won't be as often as in the past. So you guys won't have to read these tomes very often.

I appreciate this article by Clutch very much. When winning becomes more important than character, you can count me out. Howard, I'm sure has regrets like all of us do, regarding things we have said and done in our lives. The longer one lives the more chances for mistakes. We'd like to think we learn and make fewer of them, but circumstances sometimes trump our gained wisdom. (I'd put Dwight's "silly" fouls in that category. I don't think a player ever feels calm about ticky-tacky fouls. Actually, as long as he has been in the league, to have it still happening, I think would grate on anyone.) He doesn't have "perfect" character. But, overall, he is a good blend of being and staying positive when the team is struggling, and being serious enough to give effort consistently. His off-court presence, seems larger to me, than Harden's. That's not a knock against Harden, but Howard just has a "presence" that is likeable.

Howard definitely had good numbers during the playoffs last season. Did he suddenly become old and bad in a few months in between? I don't subscribe to that perspective.

Anyone who's ever played games of any kind can relate to a loss of caring, once the die have been cast for a bad hand or situation. Playing Monopoly, if you don't land on the right squares to get the right properties, you may have a pretty good set of properties, but can still see the handwriting on the wall that you won't win the game. The game Risk is also that way. If you are playing with several players and are the last to roll the dice in the first round, you can, just by the countries you "got" to start, be attacked by every player in front of you and feel like everyone ganged up on you. But, it's really just the luck of the draw at the beginning.

The Rockets season is sort of like that. Ever notice how you start to not focus on the game much anymore when you know "this" game or "hand" just isn't the one you're going to win? So lack of focus is understandable as the season progresses and there is no miraculous turnaround. It then becomes self-perpetuating.

Like any fan, I would love to see the Rockets win a championship. Speaking of character being attractive, I was happy, like most here (I think?) that Shane Battier was finally able to win a championship. He was such a nice guy who worked hard and he "deserved it," as much as any player ever did. Sadly, there are a lot of really nice people in professional sports who should be rewarded with winning. But competition by its very nature decrees that to be impossible. Only a handful of athletes will know what it is like to win a championship in their career.

Howard smiling during games doesn't mean he is cavalier about winning any less than players who don't. I think his performance during last season's playoffs prove that. He is, as Clutch's article states, just a happy person. Additionally, sometimes happiness comes from being grateful for what you have in life. I think the longer a player has played without winning a championship, the more he becomes grateful for just having the career he has had. So in that context, if you are reflecting on the experience you might also conclude that you should relish every single moment and not stay so focused on the improbability of winning a championship that you forfeit the sheer pleasure of playing basketball and being compensated in one year with more than most people earn in their entire lifetime. And if you'll think about that for a minute, you'll realize that part of being a fan is that the enjoyment of seeing "your" team win is a small portion of your life, where, otherwise you are working day in and day out and not being compensated even remotely to the level of professional athletes. In most fans minds they think of their struggle to make a living, all they have to put up with and they feel they should be entitled to this one "small" pleasure of "their" team being a winner. I know, I used to be depressed the next day when "my" sports team lost a game the night/day before.

The problem of his production this season, is partly related to the change in how the game is played, but also partly because of the bad "hand" that has happened, for whatever reason. The whole team loses focus for greater stretches. He is not the offensive player that Hakeem was, so when you are trying to put points on the board when the whole team is in a shooting slump, in today's game, you, generally, don't look to the center position to ignite a run for a comeback. And the Rockets have played from behind a lot this season. Actually, I think they did last season, too.

James Harden is a very gifted athlete. Bu he requires the ball in his hands too much to accomplish what he does. Team balance suffers because of it. Everyone has fallen into the mindset that at the end of close games, it's Harden time." To be fair, this is true of most teams. There is considered the "go to" player in such game situations. And, it usually plays out the way everyone expects. But there are exceptions to "star" power. A classic example is the Detroit Pistons win over the Lakers, when the Lakers had, Bryant, O'Neal, Payton and Malone. Similarly, when the Rockets had Barkley, Olajuwon, and Drexler, they couldn't win a championship. It seems it is possible to have too much of a good thing.

This is why I don't think that, now, Harden and Durant can be twice as good as either by himself. Being the "go to" guy stunts their ability to play without the ball in their hands as much. Harden's stroll through a season of MVP caliber play has redefined him. His self-image makes him approach the game differently than when he played with the Thunder. It is possible for bona fide stars to coexist, but it takes a lot of effort and time to get the chemistry right, if at all. It was done in Miami.

The Rockets organization does consider character of players as well as skill when selecting them. Is there a team that doesn't? As a side note, oddly, flopping seems to be considered a minor character flaw. Any team espousing character (as well as any individual player) should be the first line of defense against that detraction to the game. But almost any "great" player you can think of has embellished physical contact in their career as an edge to winning. In that sense their character takes a back seat to winning, in those instances.

Given the reaction of management to the bad start of this season, I wouldn't hold my breath that Dwight's demeanor and work ethic will guarantee an all-out effort to keep him here, should he decide to exercise his opt out clause. I would normally say a lot will probably depend on how the the team is playing at the end of the season. But who knows? Look what happened between the end of last season and 11 games into this one. Mistakes made trying to fix whatever ails the Rockets can continue. Hindsight isn't always 20/20, and new directions provide no guarantees.

Considering how close the Rockets got last season and how many years it took to get a "formula" that got them there, they may have already botched the "tweak" they thought was needed and hoped would get them to the promised land. Fans can always hope Clutch City II can be repeated from a low seed. History is against it.

 

Last year I feel like we went to dmo at the end of games as well as harden.

 

How will the Rockets regret giving up a center way past his prime? We're not talking about a Duncan or Gasol here. Dwight will continue to fall off hard because he has zero jumpshot to speak of.

You're against keeping the much younger Harden and the best SG in the league?

 

I am against keeping a player who is only about himself and not about the team... This is what happened to Utah when they kept Dantley.

Harden is not the best SG in the league... He has the POTENTIAL and SKILLS to be the best, but he is not the best..

Dwight is declining and I totally agree with that, but keeping this Harden is going to cost the Rockets and be a major set back...

T_Man

 

Harden's been the best SG in the league and this goes back 2 years ago. Even with his awful defense/effort, the stats support this. You can say it's because his competition isn't that great, but it is what it is.

What if Harden gets a better coach and improves his work ethic? The Rockets would regret trading him big time. No way you get a dollar for dollar trade if you deal Harden.

This conversation is irrelevant anyway. Morey's dream is a team with 3 stars. Morey is not going trade away a star (Harden) since that accomplishes the complete opposite. Trading Howard though (who is not a star at this point of his career) to try and get another star makes sense.

 

Do you have any ideal of who Adrian Dantley is? The type of player he was and the BS he put Frank Layden and the Jazz up to?

BEST is someone who plays on both ends of the court.. Offense and DEFENSE...

Right now Harden has no ideal of what Defense is or even heard of it.. So NO Harden is not the best SG in the league...

The Rockets are going to have a new coach next year and when Harden doesn't respond then, what will be your excuse..

I'm not saying that JB is the best coach out there... But you have 2 different coaches that have had the same issue with Harden... There comes a time when Harden has to start taking responsibility for his own actions...

So again.. Harden is NOT the best sg in the league...

T_Man

 

Harden's value on offense far outweighs his issues on defense. The stats prove it. If we're going to obsess over making Harden accountable on defense, why does the majority of this forum fail to make Howard accountable for his horrific offense? Generally, a player who excels at offense is more valuable to team than a player who excels at defense.

McHale and JBB might as well be clones, so consider them as one coach - equally clueless for the same reason. Harden responded well to Thibodeau/Coack K with FIBA.

Not sure what's up with the Dantley comparison. Harden last year already put up a year better than anything Dantley accomplished including a runner up MVP and WCF appearance as the primary player.

 

This.

Very good article Clutch. I support D12 for choosing Houston. He was the one free agent who chose our city. Lets get behind him.

I also remember the days of the non star, Courtney Lee, Luis Scola, Chase Buddinger days. Those were long years being a season ticket holder.

 

From those two statements right there is where I move on from this conversation

Thanks,


T_Man