Here we go again. Another Tracy McGrady injury. Another uninspiring performance by the Houston Rockets at the end of a game.
The Rockets’ inconsistencies are almost more frustrating than watching George W. Bush speak. How can you surge back from an 18-point deficit (without TMac), take a brief lead, and then end the game without a field goal for the final five-plus minutes?! During which, a single possession presents itself with at least three wide open looks for a tying 3-pointer, followed by a buzzer-beating attempt for another tying tre after a perfectly executed intentional free-throw miss by Yao Ming. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!
What’s going on? How can one team be so good, yet so bad? Reminds me of the Clutch City vs. Choke City days of yore. This stressful inconsistency seems to be an inescapable trait of the Rockets year in year out.
Anyway, the Rockets lost another game within their grasp. What can you do but learn from it. Time to move on. And for roughly one week, the Rockets will be moving on without lazy-eyed superstar, Tracy McGrady.
TMac, the superglue that holds the Rockets together, will ride the bench for a few games with an elbow injury. What impeccable timing for the team’s go-to-guy to get hurt—right before the Rockets launch in to a threesome with the Spurs, Suns and Mavericks.
The week ahead will prove to be a pivotal one for the Rockets. The team will have to cope without TMac, forcing Yao Ming to exert himself as the Great Wall that he is. Other players will also be forced to step up their game. Perhaps this is where we’ll witness the second coming of Steve Francis. Or maybe the emergence of the team’s new little man, Aaron Brooks.
Chuck Hayes came out of nowhere to grab rebounds along with a starting spot in the Rockets’ rotation last year. Who’s going to step up this year and add a third head to the monster that is YaoMac?
Friday, November 16, 2007
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Adelman and Aristotle
I believe it was the great Greek philosopher, Aristotle, who once said, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Wise beyond his years, Aristotle was. Even though he was simply telling a nearby eunuch to quit fiddling with the DVD player, Aristotle’s words still enlighten the human soul to this day.
Unfortunately, Aristotle’s wisdom hasn’t quite resonated with the Houston Rockets coaching staff. Too bad Rick Adelman wasn’t in Aristotle’s marble chambers that chilly night in 346 B.C.E. to hear the philosopher’s profound proclamation. If Rick had been there, not only would he have been bewildered by Aristotle’s owning of a DVD player despite humanity’s non-knowledge of electricity, but he would have also learned a very valuable lesson.
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it! If Yao Ming is bigger and better than everyone else, keep feeding him the rock! Why on earth would you stray away from the immaculate game plan of Yao crushing the competition when it’s obviously been working wonders?
Going in to last night’s game against the Memphis Grizzlies, the Houston Rockets were 6-1, with their only loss being a fledgling defeat to Dallas in a game where Yao Ming saw fewer balls tossed his way than Rosie O’Donnell at a male strip joint. So lesson learned, right? Apparently not. Last night the Rockets were handed their second defeat of the season at the paws of the Memphis Grizzlies. Once again, Yao was a non-factor.
Yao was virtually man-handled on defense the entire game by Darko Milicic’s quick turnaround hook shot. Instead of feeding Yao in the post on offense and letting him save face by tooling Darko around on the other end of the floor, the Rockets’ point guards decided to try and take the game in to their own hands.
Rafer Alston and Mike James need to learn that neither one of them are Tony Parker—that little running teardrop isn’t going to cut it. Neither is a combined 6-19 shooting. If you have Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming on your team, use them. TMac did his job by dropping 41 points and making it look easier than a drunken sorority girl. But where were the rest of the Rockets? I can’t recall one play from last night’s game where Yao worked the post like he’s been doing all season (minus the game versus Dallas).
So here’s what I don’t get. If making Yao the crux of your offense works so wondrously every game, why stray away from that winning formula?
Hey Rick, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!
Unfortunately, Aristotle’s wisdom hasn’t quite resonated with the Houston Rockets coaching staff. Too bad Rick Adelman wasn’t in Aristotle’s marble chambers that chilly night in 346 B.C.E. to hear the philosopher’s profound proclamation. If Rick had been there, not only would he have been bewildered by Aristotle’s owning of a DVD player despite humanity’s non-knowledge of electricity, but he would have also learned a very valuable lesson.
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it! If Yao Ming is bigger and better than everyone else, keep feeding him the rock! Why on earth would you stray away from the immaculate game plan of Yao crushing the competition when it’s obviously been working wonders?
Going in to last night’s game against the Memphis Grizzlies, the Houston Rockets were 6-1, with their only loss being a fledgling defeat to Dallas in a game where Yao Ming saw fewer balls tossed his way than Rosie O’Donnell at a male strip joint. So lesson learned, right? Apparently not. Last night the Rockets were handed their second defeat of the season at the paws of the Memphis Grizzlies. Once again, Yao was a non-factor.
Yao was virtually man-handled on defense the entire game by Darko Milicic’s quick turnaround hook shot. Instead of feeding Yao in the post on offense and letting him save face by tooling Darko around on the other end of the floor, the Rockets’ point guards decided to try and take the game in to their own hands.
Rafer Alston and Mike James need to learn that neither one of them are Tony Parker—that little running teardrop isn’t going to cut it. Neither is a combined 6-19 shooting. If you have Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming on your team, use them. TMac did his job by dropping 41 points and making it look easier than a drunken sorority girl. But where were the rest of the Rockets? I can’t recall one play from last night’s game where Yao worked the post like he’s been doing all season (minus the game versus Dallas).
So here’s what I don’t get. If making Yao the crux of your offense works so wondrously every game, why stray away from that winning formula?
Hey Rick, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!
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