Houston - Over and Out

Another first round playoff exit for the Rockets, this time not even making it to a game 7. Utah blew them out of the gym last night, and it wasn't even close.

He gets basically no credit when they win and all of the blame when they lose, but you really can't put this one on T-Mac. He did his part with 40 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 assists. The question is where was everybody else?

Oh well, no point in dwelling on it. I mean without Yao Ming for half the season they did win 55 games, and had a 22 game winning streak in the middle of it. That's not bad by any stretch of the imagination, but we all know that sports are about championships.

So like I said when I first started this blog, I'm There... Already with my teams collapsing down the stretch and in the playoffs. Sure enough, just like last year, both of my favorite teams (Cowboys, Rockets) did it again this year.

But the beauty of being a sports fan is that there's always next year. Yao will be back (I hope), and this team has a lot of young talent. They'll make another run. In the meantime, somebody let me know who wins the whole thing because I'm through watching for a while.

Win Or Go Home

Attention Rockets:

This is it. If you lose tonight, it's summer vacation time.

Yeah, yeah, I know - Utah has played a rough series, the refs haven't been exactly helpful, and you've had to work through injuries.

Doesn't matter.

I've tried to be as helpful as I can throughout this playoff series, but apparently y'all haven't been predisposed to listening. So here's my surefire advice on how to not only win tonight, but maybe the series as well.

1. Rebound the ball.

2. Make the easy shots.

3. Convert your free throws, especially in the 4th quarter (that means you T-Mac).

Number three might be the most important. All of these games have been close, and the margin of victory in the losses has been less than the number of missed free throws.

Hello?

Anyway, hope this helps, and well be rooting for you tonight.

UPDATED: Told ya so. Make the free throws, win the game. Now go do it again in Salt Lake City on Friday night.

They're Alive. Alive!

Maybe it was the protesters out front. Or that Rafer Alston was back on the floor after missing the first two games of the series. Perhaps it was Tracy McGrady doing his best superstar impersonation by actually showing up in the 4th quarter. Or that the team actually shot better than 50% from the free throw line. Whatever the reason, the Rockets finally won a game, and now have a reasonable shot to make this series at least interesting.

The Rockets look like a completely different team offensively and defensively with Alston running the point, and Carl Landry needs more playing time. You knew it was on after he had his tooth knocked out. But give Utah credit, he was playing like a man possessed before that, and Carlos Boozer decided to slow him down with a forearm to the grill. Not that it was intentional, but hey, it got him out of the game for a little bit.

The Rockets have a long way to go to actually win this series, but they can take a mighty big step by doing the same thing in Game 4 and bringing this thing back to Houston tied 2-2.

Hope is still alive in Houston.

Just Make The Dang Free Throws

Well, the intensity was better, Tracy McGrady played like a superstar for most of the game, and the team played better overall defense, but still lost to the Jazz to go down 0-2 in the best of 7 series.

In other words things look pretty grim, especially with the next two games coming up in Utah.

What's really killing the Rockets is that they miss so many easy shots right at the rim, and their inability to make free throws (something I forgot to mention in my last post). They lost by 6. They missed 10 free throws, most at crucial times including 4 in the 4th quarter. That's more than the final margin of victory. This lead off paragraph from the Chronicle basically sums it up:

The tough part was done. The Rockets got the shots. They got the stops. They had the game, and new life in another first-round playoff series only just began, back in their hands.

The easy part, however, was beyond their grasp. They missed the shots from the line and at the rim. They did not get the rebound after the stop with the game on the line.

And T-Mac; one point in the 4th quarter? One? That's money time for all of the superstars I've ever seen in the NBA. McGrady is a very notable exception so far in his career.

But take heart Rocket fans, Utah did lose the first two games last year before rallying to win the series in seven, so all is not lost.

Yet.

But it will be, much sooner than we all want, if the Rockets keep doing all of the little things that helps to lose games instead of win them.

Hello, Rockets? The Playoffs HAVE Started.

Attention Houston Rockets!

We know there's been all kinds of talk about how long its been since you've actually made it out of the first round of the NBA playoffs, but y'all don't have to take that so seriously.

Talk about laying an egg. Game 1 was terrible. The only one on the team who seemed like he realized that the regular season is over and that this is the actual playoffs we've been talking about all year long, was Luis Scola.

Luckily, its a best of seven series, so you have a chance at redemption on Monday night. Here's my suggestions towards a better outcome.

1. Make your shots, especially the really, really easy ones.
2. Grab an offensive rebound every now and again. Second chance points are a bonus.
3. Conversely, grab a defensive rebound too. Second, and third, chance points for the opposition are NOT a bonus, for you.
4. Play with some intensity. I mean really, if you lose 3 of your next 6 games, the season is over. At lease act like that means something to you.
5. Make your free throws.

These are just my, a mere fans, opinion. And I hope y'all play a much more competitive game on Monday.

Rockets - Regroup and Refocus

It was a nice run while it lasted.

A nice, history making winning streak that propelled the Rockets from 10th to 1st place in the Western Conference. A streak that showed there is life without Yao Ming, and renewed the hopes of playoff success in this city.

And while we all knew it would be virtually impossible to match the all time winning streak of 33 games, we were hoping. With each win it seemed a little more possible. Maybe, just maybe these Rockets had caught lightning in a bottle and would do the impossible. Well that didn't happen. But if your 22 game winning streak has to end, it may as well be to the team with the best record in the league.

Still this is the second longest winning streak in NBA history. The Rockets have also positioned themselves for the playoffs, and have proven they can win with one superstar (Yao Ming) out for the season and the other (Tracy McGrady) not having to carry the team in order for them to be successful.

That's a good thing. Here's hoping the Rockets now refocus and start preparing the team for the playoffs. There's no time to sit around and mope because the Western Conference is too tough, and N.O., Golden State, and Phoenix are on the agenda for the next four days, all on the road.

This team reminds me of the Knicks from 1994 who went all the way to the Finals after losing Patrick Ewing for the season. Their entire style of basketball had to change, but they made the adjustment and kept winning. The team those Knicks lost too? The Houston Rockets. With any luck at all a serious run at the title is still very much a realistic possibility.

So what do you think basketball fans, do the Rockets still have a shot at winning it all?

Deuce Deuce

The Rockets just keep on on winning, and winning big. 22 in a row and counting, with the latest victim being the mighty L.A. Lakers and Kobe Bryant. This games hero? Rafer Alston, who scored 31 while our own resident superstar Tracy McGrady was held to just 11. But somebody always steps up, and as T-Mac said after the game:

"This was really all about how good the Rockets are. This is what this game was about (with) the Lakers coming in here on the top of the Western Conference. This game determined where we are. I think we answered those questions. We took on that challenge and we’re standing alone. And the streak keeps going."

Nuff said. Next up the Celtics.

21 and counting

The Rockets streak is at 21 in a row, the 2nd longest win streak in NBA history. They've moved from 10th to a share of 1st place in the Western Conference with the Lakers. Who they just happen to play this Sunday.

Can you say showdown?

This team is playing some really great, team basketball with someone different stepping up every night. Not to mention Tracy McGrady's all around play and fantastic defense anchored by 41 year old Dikembe Mutumbo who is blocking shots like he's on a mission. The pundits are still saying they can't win in the playoffs, but I'm not so sure about that. The next five games will tell; against LA, Boston, N.O., Golden State, and Phoenix.

Stay tuned.

WTF?

Since I'm on the subject of sports, I've got to ask the question; What the hell are the Giants thinking? Signing David Carr? Haven't they been watching this guy play? He had 5 years to prove himself in Houston after being the first pick in the 2002 draft, and any way you look at it, he was a monumental bust. When the Texans finally cut him, he was picked up by Carolina where he continued to display his complete inability to play the game. I mean, they ended up starting Vinny Testaverde over him. That's right, 44 year old Vinny Testaverde. And when he didn't cut it, they went to undrafted, rookie QB Matt Moore. One thing David Carr does have is the ability to turn almost every passing play into a sack. But according to the Giants:

"We look forward to working with him on the fundamentals of the game," Coughlin said. "We do have some technical things to work on, but we are anxious to work with him in our program. If we can place him in a positive environment, perhaps he can reclaim some of the things that people saw to draft him in the first round."

Uh, yeah, whatever. If somebody is the first pick in the draft and going into his seventh year in the league, the last thing he should be working on is "fundamentals." To paraphrase Geraldine Ferraro, if this guy was a Black QB, would he be in the position he's in today? Just a question.

20 In A Row

Have y'all been watching the Rockets lately? if not I suggest you check them out. Their winning streak is at 20 games and counting. And this is without Yao Ming who's out for the season. Now of course nobody thinks they can actually win the championship without their big man, but the way Tracy McGrady and the rest of these guys are playing I wouldn't exactly count them out. They haven't just been winning, but blowing people out (with the exception of last nights game). I'm just saying.