Mike D'Antoni better come up with some strategy when they double Harden. I mean it can't be this simple.
Small ball just isn’t a long term solution. We keep getting tired in the 4th quarter cause we’re fatigued. Hopefully we get a center next year who can help slow down Lebron & AD.
What if we win it all this year with small-ball? Series ain't over yet... But, looking forward to next year, don't forget that GSW with Curry, Klay and Donkey will be back and in contention as well. They probably won't have a useful centre either, so can't go too far in that direction. Remember, Capela was very much a non-factor against them a few years ago.
This has been a problem for this entire era, this team is just horrible in close playoff games. Look at our games this year, we have played 10 so far. The rockets won 4 of those 10 running away, not close in the fourth and won comfortably. In the other 6, they are 1-5 with the only win being in game 7 against the thunder, where they struggled just like us to score. The rockets just can’t generate any offense down the stretch of close games. You can see it coming a mile away and it sucks to watch it over and over.
This is just downright dishonest and blatant lies. Harden was torching Lebron one on one in game one and tonight had atleast three or four blow by moves against Lebron. Harden got nuterd when they started doubling him in the second half. there is a reason why they started doubling him after game 1 Einstein
If they draft wiseman they will have a already ready made young center. There were some chatter they could send that pick and wiggins to Orlando for that euro center I forgot his name
Maybe my observation could be different than yours or misjudged. Why are you getting so personal calling it "dishonest and blatant lies"? Keyboard warriors sheesh.
But Klay can actually shoot the 3. We are handicapped with Westbrook as our second superstar when it comes to 3 point shooting if that is our main philosophy. Green has gone cold as well and BMac.
This is the second series now that the Rockets have struggled with their opponent's smaller lineup. Against OKC the CP-Schroder-SGA-Dort-Gallo lineup gave us fits, now the Lakers are up 2-1 after abandoning McGee and Howard from their rotation. My question is, if the Rockets don't have the absolute best small lineup in the league, and the results so far do not suggest that they do, then why have they gone all in on it without even having an option to go big? Seems to be a flawed strategy if all the other team needs to do to beat it is ditch their big men as well.
Remember this thread? https://bbs.clutchfans.net/index.php?threads/observations-on-game-1-rockets-v-lakers-2020.307020/
In the clutch it’s on Westbrook to get the ball and make a play. If harden is doubled that gives Russ more room to operate and make a high percentage play for himself or open teammates. hardens gotta make himself more of a factor off the ball as well as that’s likely something the lakers haven’t game planed for.
Why aren't there more backdoor cuts against the double team? I think we've established Harden just passing the ball to someone else across the top of the circle, given time for the defense to get back to their man, isn't really working. But the few times when Russ and Jeff were making rim runs, it seemed to be effective. There has to be a better solution than just Harden dumping the ball to someone else, and hoping they make a play.
Lebron CANNOT guard james. I guarantee there was a 2nd guy shading ready to double at the right time. Bron simply does not have the foot speed to guard someone that has stepback capability. I wish they would single cover james with lebron it will be anothee 60+ point half.
To me this is a digest comment that deserves some elaboration. For years the Rockets were in pursuit of a "team" that could compete with Golden State. The thought they had it when Chris Paul was acquired. That game 7 when Paul didn't play suggested they might have had the right combination of players to beat GS. Now, going all in on small-ball with Westbrook, most of the rest of the league was dubious because there are very talented, legitimate "big" men in the league that, in crunch time, can more easily get that high-percentage shot that Daryl Morey would argue for, than the smaller Rockets players -- i.e., either a layup, dunk or short shot in the paint area -- will be able to. That was supposed to be Westbrook's specialty. (And I DON"T meant that as a swipe against Westbrook.) It is just a fact that a big man with skills who posts up around the basket will, not have his shot contested by shorter players as he might with an opposing big man. While as a big man he can contest attempted layups in the paint. (And of course, if your roster can draw that big man out of the paint, it does reduce his advantage that way.) If anyone saw Stephen A. Smith's comments going into game 7 of the OKC series, he said that if the Rockets didn't get past OKC that D'Antoni would be fired. He said, "You can book that!" Then he added, (my paraphrasing) that there are plenty of coaches that would love to coach a Harden-Westbrook led team. As I thought about what he said, I naturally asked myself, "What would another coach do differently with this roster that D'Antoni isn't doing?" Is there a coach who could take this roster and make it dominant to the extent that Golden State was? After all, GS didn't have a true center for several years as I recall. Dramond Green played that role, I think. IF I'm wrong due to poor memory someone please correct me. Just as a thought experiment, WHAT IF... it were possible to have a team with Curry, Thompson, Harden, and Westbrook? Or any combination that you might come up with to make a truly small-ball team with 4 MVP caliber guards. Then throw in a PJ Tucker type of player for defense on big men on other teams. Now you would have a high-powered back court combination at all times on the floor. Would that lineup be able to outscore most opponents? I have my doubts. There still might be too much defensive deficiency. The problem going into this series, as noted by most "expert" observers, (meaning current and past players and coaches) was the AD factor, due to the Rockets smaller players. The thinking was as mentioned above. In crunch time when you have to have a basket, a player of Davis' size and skills will have a higher percentage chance of scoring against shorter players. Unfortunately, unless the Rockets want to blow up their current roster, they're committed to trying to prove Morey's analytics can win a championship. And even though the temptation to bring in another coach might be great if the Rockets lose this series (which I think is more likely than not) the question does become: "Can any coach really improve much on what this roster is capable of?" Because this is based as much on Morey's analytics, as it is on D'Antoni's dream team for wide open "hooping," They have both made a bargain to go in on small ball. They might argue they can get "better" pieces for that system through free-agency or trades during the off-season, but I don't see them going back to the more traditional roster they had before Westbrook arrived. If they did that, it would be a colossal admission of failure of Morey's analytics. So, as bitter as losing this series will be to Rockets fans, the team, and the coaching staff, they will stay committed to small ball for the foreseeable future, unless... Tilman blows it all up by changing the coach and/or GM. I think for the sake of continuity and "chemistry" it would make more sense to keep D'Antoni around for another season. The Rockets version of small-ball has not been tried for even one full season. I have always doubted that a volume 3-point shooting "system" would ever win a championship. The Rockets kept the game close tonight because they took less 3-point shots and attacked the rim more. Stan Van Gundy commented during one of the games in the OKC series that "streakiness" IS the nature of 3-point shooting. There's a reason a made shot from that distance is awarded 3 points. I don't know it there is a good answer at this point. I think game 4 will be very telling. No team wants to go down 3-1. It's a death knell based on statistics from past NBA history. It's not impossible but does anyone here really think that the Rockets could pull that off? The Clutch City team had a wonderfully talented big man when that happened. (What IF the Rockets had an Olajuwon in his prime on this current roster?) So game 4 will be Houston's game 7 at this juncture. I hope they can win this series, but I'm a realist. I wouldn't put money on it. (I don't post much due to eye issues, and so I put this apology that I probably won't become part of any back and forth banter about what I've posted. I just like to put my 2 cents in occasionally. Also, please forgive any typos or other mistakes. Thanks!
But it’s amazing to me that Rivers and B-Mac were solid contributors all year long...now come this time of year they are non playable or complete liabilities. I just don’t get it
Suggest to do physiotherapy or Chinese pin operations to relieve the fatigue. I think rockets players need one day holiday. I think the only way is to improve defence first which is much more easier
meanwhile rookies, sophomores, even undrafted ones are serious contributors on other teams beating title contenders
