The Rocket's MUST determine to play very aggressive defense consistently. Drive more than chunk. Run when possible. Use speed/quickness advantage. Must get into and stay in a "playoff mentality." Intensity is key. Avoid "daydream" lapses. No team wins a playoff series without a "dog fight" mind set.
I think the most important key to beating Dallas, the underlying foundation & principle on which everything starts is... RESPECT YOUR OPPONENT. 2005 We were up 2 against the Mavs. "No one ever comes back from down 2" we all said. Oh we got this. NNNNNNNOPE. LAST YEAR! Oh we want Portland. Oh we got Portland's number. NNNNNNNNNNNOPE. Take care of business and that all starts with respecting the opponent. We can beat the Mavs, but they are nothing to slouch on. No losing focus. No resting on a play every now and then. Full throttle the whole way. That said, look to this last game we beat them: http://espn.go.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=400579417 No D-Mo, No Bev. Howard back. We need to dominate them on the boards. Our bench needs to outshine theirs. We need to attack, most importantly via transition & transition runs led by Brewer, to insure shots at the FT line. Halfcourt attacks we might see refs swallow their whistles more, but attacking through transition will pressure refs to call the fouls.
1) Harden has to overcome the lack of whistles if that happens during a game. He's too good, too talented, too established and too multi-faceted to be neutralized by the refs or by ANY defensive scheme. Harden has really become "special" this season and there is absolutely no reason he can't elevate his play in the playoffs. The time is now to imprint his legacy. In short, I expect Harden to beast regardless of the refs or defensive schemes. 3) I don't want Howard to be posting nearly as much down low as last year's playoffs. Pick and Roll and play elite defense. The rest of the games/series will take care of themselves.
I agree completely. I don't care if the Rockets are matched up with this year's Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round. RESPECT YOUR OPPONENT! My hope is that Harden/Howard still feel that sting from last year's colossal disappointment and failure. Turn that "sting" into a positive and maintain focus on a mission to the Finals this year.
Mavericks are run by what Monta Ellis does on the court. Control him and we should be able to handle Dallas, handedly. Either let Monta have all the shots and make him beat us, singlehandedly or limit his touches and let others beat us. Obviously, got to limit Dirk's good looks. If he has to shoot, make sure its a contested fadeaway mid-range. I don't think we will see 2011 Dirk here but can't give him an opportunity to be 2011 Dirk. Otherwise, if we limit our turnovers (Please keep it under 20 and no live ball turnovers!) and guard their three point shooters (doable, except for Charlie V - he always gets open looks against us ), I feel pretty confident about this series.
Repped. This. We've started off so slow against teams we are favored to beat. Last year, everyone was excited for the Portland matchup but we got upended. Same with the Jazz a few years ago. Our season games in Dallas were close. That kinda concerns me. The upside is that hopefully Dorsey is not in the playoff rotation and Clint steps up big time. Damn, what a time to lose Bev/Dmo. We really have a good team, but those two would've put us over the top. We desperately need our bench to play well. Villanueva, Aminu, Barea, STAT can contribute greatly, and we need to respond. If Corey and Josh show up, we will advance. Another thing that concerns me is James. I'm terrified of getting robbed by the refs. Rondo has done a great job on Harden, and man, I'm desperately praying that Harden has another gear. We've seen him be the MVP, but man, I think he can potentially reach Hakeem Status if he turns it up. But again, I have palpitations about overlooking this opponent. I pray to God no one in that locker room has this mentality. There's a fine line between confidence and cockiness, and I really hope our team can discern it.
Just out of curiosity, how many people watched the Mavs play, let's say, more than 5 games this season, not including the 4 times they played the Rockets. What about the other teams in the division? Conference? League?
Great points. While losing DMO and Bev hurts, I disagree that we necessarily need them to put us over the top this year. I believe this set roster going into Saturday's game is good enough to win it all. Ariza, Smith, Jones and Brewer are HUGE additions and difference makers from last year. There will be instances, perhaps a game or so where the refs swallow their whistle in relation to Harden. As mentioned in my earlier post, James is simply too good to be neutralized by the refs or Rondo or anyone. He has all the tools and motivation (last year's debacle) to will himself to perform. I'm just hoping last year's loss still stings him to light that fire.
Switch on Defense. Do not wander on defensive assignments ( unless Rondo ) Keep Rondo out of the paint. Hit 3's. Play Capela as he's the most active defender we seem have outside of Dwight ( If Tjones is getting lit up and not responding don't hesitate to bench him with a quick trigger ) If Terry is not hot, immediately bench him for Prig. We are the better team. Dallas is strong at PF and quick at PG, problems that plague us historically, but both players are on the downside. They are also tall at C which has given us trouble offensively, but with Dwight back, we should be ok as he will be there for dump off as will be Capela.
Putting pressure on Dallas off long rebounds and steals immediately push. Harden playing the point in the half court either P&R too Howard/Smith/Jones, drive and get fouled/score or find a wide open shooter for 3 (Terry, Ariza, Brewer, Smith) great D Basically all the things that have made this team successful and so fun to watch. I think we are well tested and prepared. Just 48 mins of energy. Youth and energy will make it extremely tough for older teams like Dallas and SA
#1 Key to beating Dallas Give Harden a Pick near the half court line...once the pick is set...it opens up the entire floor for Harden and it puts a lot of pressure on the defense. Look at the highlights of Harden when he played for OKC...OKC still does this with Durant and Westbrook. Very High Pick and Roll and let Harden facilitate...Tyson Chandler nor Dirk can stay in front of Harden. If help comes...swing it if not easy drive to the basket.
