Requiem for an Awesome Season. Really.

Tracy, Luis, Shane and the gang are now officially in offseason mode. We will hopefully get to see Yao perform in the Olympics in a couple months. Other than that, the Houston Rockets are mostly dormant until next October.

Now that my hangover has mostly subsided, I can properly look back on the 2007/2008 Houston Rockets season for what it was. And the correct answer is "amazing." Yes, the NBA... where amazing happens. Yes, the Rockets lost in the first round again. Yes, it was to Utah again. Yes, I still really, really hate the Utah Jazz. Yes, Tracy McGrady still has to contend with the criticism that he's not a clutch performer (and I'm not straying from that belief myself just yet). None of this defines the '07/'08 Houston Rockets, however.

The team started out 6-1 with a new coach and a new offensive system. (This blog started the next day.)

Immediately thereafter, the team struggled and was below .500 in the insanely competitive Western Conference in mid-December. Most everyone gave up on Houston. Called them "disappointments" and "failures" and I think they even made John Hollinger cry.

Then a great thing happened - this team learned how to play basketball the right way. Yao and Tracy took over, but now they had help from Shane Battier on the defensive end, boosts of energy from Luis Scola and Carl Landry and Aaron Brooks. Rafer Alston even managed to have an out-of-body experience and shoot over 40% from January though March. (Which was even more surprising given how much Rafer sucked in November and December.) McGrady had his annual sabbatical due to "injury" - and again everyone thought the Rockets were done. Yet they started winning. And then continued to win. And then everyone noticed that they weren't just winning, but winning as a team. When McGrady returned to the lineup, he finally bought into the new offensive scheme - and things just took off!

On Tuesday, January 29th, the Houston Rockets beat the Golden State Warriors. The Rockets did not lose again until Tuesday, March 18th. 22 consecutive wins. In a row. This included victories over such playoffs teams as New Orleans, Los Angeles, Denver, Cleveland, Dallas, and Washington.

On February 26th, the Rockets got the news that Yao Ming would miss the rest of the season with a stress fracture in his foot. Again, everyone gave up on Houston. Once again, Houston found new ways to win -- another 10 in a row.

An injury depleted roster finished with 55 wins in the most competitive and cut-throat Western Conference in history. The Rockets even scrambled to have home-court advantage in the playoffs. That was impressive in its own right. Granted, home-court advantage disappeared almost immediately... but I'm going to try to keep a positive outlook on this. I mean, at least I wasn't a Miami Heat fan this year!

The best part is that the Rockets look loaded next year. They are due for a truly healthy Yao/Tracy combination. Scola is going to average 16 and 10 next year. Just watch. Luther Head might get sent packing (he just has to go). Aaron Brooks may be ready to be the full-time backup PG. The draft might bring us an athletic swingman. That's really the only thing the Rockets are missing -- an athletic 2/3 position player who can slash and create his own shot. Gerald Green could have been that player, but he has a 10 cent head. Maybe the Rockets can find the next Kevin Martin or Monta Ellis or someone like that late in the draft this year? I trust Daryl Morey...

and Yao Ming is going to come back angry!

I guess the conclusion is that while it really hurt to be a Rockets fan on Friday night, the long-term outlook is quite bright.

Go Rockets! 2009 is going to kick ass!

edit: Hey, Jason Friedman, stop stealing my headlines!!!

Angry Yao makes me smile

This clip always makes me smile. Sadly, we have another 7 months before we can see Yao go off on an NBA referee again.



Someone else needs to step up in the "unbridled anger" category for the Rockets now. We know it won't be T-Mac. Maybe it will be Carl Landry (they do call a lot of fouls on him!)?

Go Rockets!

Rockets... Bulls... and being overlooked

Rockets riding an 11 game winning streak into the matchup with the underachieving Chicago Bulls tonight. This after beating down the New Orleans Hornets and CP3 on Friday night. Oh, and that was in New Orleans. Rockets kicking ass and taking names when they hit the road.

Tonight's mission? Stop Ben Gordon. Ben Wallace is no longer there to f--k up the Bulls' chemistry. Joakim Noah is actually going to get playing time. Fortunately we have the "Luis Landry" combination to match his energy level for 48 minutes.

Yeah, I like our rookies better than Chicago's... just look at this guy!

Scola even dresses up better than Noah. (And we do like Noah here, he just acts like a jackass sometimes!)

Meanwhile, I'd be remiss in overlooking this latest quote from the Fat Ass. Shaq to Yahoo:

“Amare Stoudemire is the best big man in the game right now,” O’Neal said. “I didn’t know he was that good. But talking to him and watching him play … he’s the best big man in the game.”

Yo, Shaq - how many times does Yao have to kick your ass before you show him some respect? It's okay, now that you are in the West again, you'll get to see Yao up close and personal a few more times each year. Next time he's going to run you over.

Ahhhh, forget Shaq. His new team just got blown out today. Again. Giving up wayyyy over 100 points. Again. Yeah, nice D there, Shaq. Time to go for an even dozen there, Yao.

It's like Gary Potter says -- harness in the good energy, block out the bad. Harness. Energy. Block. Bad. It's like a carousel. You put the quarter in, you get on the horse, it goes up and down, and around. Circular, circle. Feel it. Go with the flow. Get thee to the Happy Place, Yao!

Still unable to discuss things rationally

Neither Lee nor I have really recovered from Tuesday's debacle. It's taking all of my strength not to completely freak out and give up on the Rockets.

Then I remind myself of the situation. We were playing good, team basketball - even without our supposed leader and best player - and at one point surged to 20-17. Winning five in a row. I'm doing my best not to be too myopic in my emotional outlook on the season. Besides, we do have some definite bright spots we can focus on:

1. Luis ScolaOur 27 year old foreign rookie is really starting to find his groove in the NBA. 8 points, 5 rebounds, 52% shooting and a hell of a lot of hustle every game. Ricky even has him on the court to close out the games instead of Chuck Hayes now. Scola almost single-handedly kept the Rockets from choking on Tuesday. (Unfortunately he was no match for the natural disaster that is Rafer Alston.)

I am even the proud owner of a Rockets/Scola #4 jersey that I bought at the game during halftime Tuesday. Practically the only good thing to come from that whole evening!

2. Aaron Brooks

Granted, when the Rockets drafted Chris Rock's little brother, I was annoyed. I thought Glenn Davis was a better choice for us (not knowing we'd get Scola). I thought drafting a midget in round 1 was a wasted pick. I was wrong.

Aaron Brooks is Iverson-quick. He willingly plays defense (though he's still learning how to do it at the NBA level). He makes really good passes in traffic. He can score when Yao is being triple teamed. He knows not to give the ball to Luther Head when the shot clock is running down.

Yes, he's a true rookie, which is why he's not starting (and hopefully the only reason we still have Rafer on the payroll). But Brooks' quick growth puts me at ease and will only accelerate Daryl Morey's decision to hit the eject button on Rafer when the season ends. Since we are not winning a ring this year - I can rest comfortably knowing we at least have one competent point guard on the roster who will only get better by next year.

3. Yao Ming

Yeah, the tall guy is still on the roster. Not that Rafer or Luther are aware of this.

One day he's actually going to get mad enough to hit Calvin Booth with that elbow. Then the days of hack-a-Yao-with-impunity will hopefully be over. Yao's elbows have to be even pointier than Dikembe's - it has to hurt like hell if you get clipped with it. Yao needs to take advantage of this.

Of course, with 5 additional b.s. calls against him Tuesday, Yao is this much closer to losing it. He's like a race car in the red... and I'm just saying it's dangerous to have a race car in the red. He could blow. I still maintain that would be a good thing. Except for opposing players.

Anyway, T-Mac returns Saturday supposedly. Spurs come to town. We better not need 13 points in 30 seconds. Let's just keep a lead this time for the whole game. Is that asking too much?

Yao was fouled, dammit! Twice!!

A bit of a disclaimer this morning: I was at yesterday's game. At half-court. 10th row. Phenomenal seats. Only to watch the Rockets blow an 8 point fourth quarter lead. It just about killed me. Or had me ready to be fit with a straitjacket. I would have had a post-game review up yesterday, but I just couldn't do it. I wanted to, but...

Normally I am a rather rational and logical person. Except when it comes to the Rockets. My emotional balance runs parallel to their season - when they play good, solid team basketball, I'm a pretty content and reasonable person. When they start playing not to lose while also getting screwed over by the referees... I tend to become unstable and highly irrational.

Yesterday afternoon, I was so agitated after the Rockets game that I couldn't even properly enjoy the Cowboys choking against Elisha and the Giants!

Oh, and YAO WAS FOULED you sons of bitches! Fouled, I say! Twice!!

Look, I love Chris Paul's game. Maybe not as much as Lee, but I recognize greatness. And when matched up against Rafer, Chris Paul looks even better than normal. It was not fair. Then Ricky got smart and put Aaron Brooks into the game. The midget actually held his own and managed to stay in front of Paul... then Ricky put Rafer back in. (Oh, Brooks, while you played great, please stop taking so many 3s - it's not your shot. You were 1-5 this game. You should never shoot more then 2-3 of those a game. Ever.)

Rafer... 4-13 from the floor. Again. At what point does he realize that he's not making shots and should just stop? He missed 2 layups. He missed open 3s. He missed that "tearput" thing he calls a shot. Oh, and he failed to get back on D to stop Paul. Ugh.

Meanwhile, Yao had another beast of a game. 30 points, 16 rebounds. The 6 turnovers are bullshit because 3 of them were when he was hacked to pieces but the refs must have been busy watching the end of the Colts game. What the hell? Peyton lost and little brother Elisha won? I wonder how the post-game family conversation went. Oh.... of course.

Anyway, back to the Rockets game. This game is precisely why we probably should not trade T-Mac. If he were able to play the 4th Q, we probably do not blow the lead. We played soft and tight and stopped running, moving and passing the ball around. Predictably, the Chris Pauls came back and took the lead. (Though the play Byron Scott drew up at the end to get Paul the layup was very well done... I was impressed.)

Nevertheless, I can't change the result. The five game winning streak is over. Playing like a bunch of five-assed monkeys at the end of the game did not allow the number to be "6".

(oh, and on an unrelated note... Corey Brewer is a bad-ass, Lee. But, yes, he's skinnier than me, and that is not a good thing.)

That is not the formula for success

Thank God it is 2008 - for 2007 could not have been more disappointing and frustrating if you were a member of the Houston Rockets.

Monday night's effort and result was a metaphor for the entire season to date. Start strong, look impressive... then go limp and lose to Golden State.

In the process, we may have stumbled upon an anti-formula. Whereas the formula for success is simple: play inside-out, feed the Big Man, and then make open 3s... the Rockets tried a new formula Monday night. Let's break it down:

1. Announce that T-Mac will possibly miss 7 more games. (check!)
2. Only get the aforementioned Big Man (that 7'5" guy named Yao) all of eight (8!!) shots in the entire game. (check!!)
3. Play Rafer Alston 44 minutes and also allow him to chuck bricks seventeen (17!!) times. (check!!!)

For those without math degrees, Rafer shot more than twice as much as Yao. Brilliant!

4. Miss 10 layups. Yes, I am looking at you, Bonzi.

and...

5. Go up by 11 points in the third quarter and immediately declare victory. And by "declare victory" I mean stop playing defense, stop passing the ball, stop trying to take the ball to the basket and stop rebounding. Then again, the Rockets made no effort to rebound all night. Out-rebounded 47-34 by Golden State. Ouch.

Of course, there is an easier way to explain how/why the Rockets lost Monday:

When Rafer Alston is named "Player of the Game" by Bill and Clyde... you're pretty fucked.

Throw the switch, Mr. Garrison!!!

Vacations Rule!

It’s Lee bitches…
I’m back and the Rockets are too after a long layover from the playing like shit tour. I had a great vacation and it’s extending into tonight because I just got back from some gumbo and fried shrimp at Pappadeaux’s and forgot to start the DVR so it’s there were only 9 minutes left in the first when I started watching. The Rockets are back to the scene of the start to their downfall, their first loss of the season and the awful, yet talented Memphis Grizzlies’ Fed Ex Forum.

So far Yao seems to be taking the game seriously with TMac out resting his laurels, or whatever you rest when you aren’t really hurt but don’t want to play. Unfortunately his aggressiveness tonight has got the best of him and he has 3 fouls. Again though, he doesn’t whine when he actually fouls someone, so I don’t get why refs don’t see this.

Aaron Brooks is a better passer than I remember him being at Oregon and has really impressed me with his, “I don’t give a shit, I’m a good player” attitude. He shoots the ball ridiculously fast; his release is perfect for creating his own shot. I am beginning to like him similar to how I liked Sam Cassell his rookie year, and that is a huge compliment from me. The best part about him is that I don’t have to bitch about how much Rafer sucks because he is taking some of his minutes. Don’t get me wrong, Rafer still sucks shit through a straw. (That has to be a top ten phrase for how much someone sucks, right?)

Mike Miller kills me; he is way too good of a basketball player to be as shitty as he is.

Dikembe is one of the best arguers in the league. I have literally never seen him leave a call alone. I have no idea what he says though, it could be like Dick Bavetta and Charles Barkley, just a lot of jawing but him asking how the ref's kids are. But regardless, he talks after every single foul called against him. And because he’s the cookie monster, it actually doesn’t bother me. The guy makes me laugh. I think the guy in charge of that commercial with all the foreign NBA players lets him speak just so I can get a chuckle.

Rockets have been really good about the 2 for 1 situations this year, and it’s no different at the half this time. They run Adelman’s offense perfectly in those situations. The rest of the time you ask? Not so much… This half time they actually get a 3 for 1 because Stromile Swift traveled, but couldn’t capitalize on the third chance. To be fair there were only .3 seconds left, so it was a touch and toss situation for Bonzi. We were up 12 at one point and the Grizz got it to one, but a 9-4 run by the boys in red got it back to 7 at the half.

You know what sucks about Rafer more than anything? He seems like an okay guy when it comes to charity off the court. Obviously he’s had his breaking laws fun, but it’s mostly been little stuff. He always seems to be on at half time doing stuff for da kids. Also, his girlfriend Ashley Walker is kind of hot. Of course he’s got some bank so that’s really not a surprise.

I’m headed to the Texans game n Sunday, and then every second of my sports energy can be focused on the Rockets. The Texans have a chance to finish 8-8 and give the city of Houston (or at least those non-Titans traitors) a little hope going into next season. Seriously, I love my Longhorns, I love Vince Young, but on the field, in the NFL, he is the enemy. I wish him good luck, but nothing but losses against the Texans. And speaking of the Horns, congrats to the good guys in Burnt Orange for their 7th consecutive 10 win season, the third best such streak of all time, one better than the poster boys of ESPN USC I will add.

The Rockets come back from half time with a bit of hustle; I like it when that happens. I don’t like it when Rafer shoots the “tearput” though, that thing always infuriates me. Clyde actually said he thought he was at his best when he was doing that, I guess he just sucks a little less when he does. Though I will give him some backhanded credit, he has been playing better since Aaron Brooks became a factor; it’s too bad he couldn’t do it on his own. I’ll take him sucking less in any way I can though.

Seriously, Mike Miller has all of the tools, he can shoot, jump, pass and rebound, but still sucks, his lack of motivation pisses me off. I had all of the drive, but just didn’t have the natural skill. Truthfully, the Grizzlies as a whole are a bunch of disappointments. Miller, Gasol, Swift, Darko, all potentially great players, all woeful underachievers. The entire team seems to be exactly what the Rockets aren’t and that is crazy athletic. I guess I’ll take what we have if that is what you get with athletes.

The Rockets are playing like a team and Yao is not F’ing around when he’s near the basket, he’s emphatically dunking it every chance he gets. I honestly think he’s sick of this crap about not being able to carry a team. He is even running the court and going after every lose ball. That could get him in trouble, but I still like it. If they keep letting Swift go over Yao’s back, I’m afraid Yao may punch him. Yao with 17, 8 and 2 blocks with 3:07 left in the third really seems to be playing well and doing it within the offense. Right after I typed that Yao gets called for a foul on a play where he wasn’t closer than a foot to Gasol the whole way. I’m not sure why I have to stress the fact that Yao does not bitch when he fouls or when he’s not fouled, why the hell do refs not get this? He also reacts pissed at himself when he does foul, so if in doubt, watch Yao’s reaction, he’ll tell you if he screwed up or not. Do I really have to start a letter writing campaign to the NBA???

The Rockets defense tonight is the best I’ve seen them play in weeks. The Grizz aren’t shooting terribly and they are trying as hard as they can. The Rockets are just stopping them. At the end of the third, the Rockets were up by 13, just need to keep it going for another 12 minutes.

Aaron Brooks is in the game to start the fourth; that warms my heart. As ugly as it is, his herky-jerky dribbling is awesome. He brings the ball up efficiently and quickly, it’s exactly what I want to see when he comes in. His defense is definitely lacking right now, but with his speed that can be brought around. His speed is his equalizer for his height, bigs can’t guard him to block his shot so he can go into the trees to penetrate.

This post wouldn’t be complete without talking about Luis Scola or Shane Battier; both are having complete games tonight, and playing good individual and team defense as well as playing well on offense. Scola looks like he should be the second banana at times on a team, I still think after the All Star break we are going to find our stride. It is up to a 20 point lead with 6:45 left in the game. They are using the shot clock and taking time off, I love the slow down, 4 to 5 pass till you find an opening offense when you have a big lead.

It’s nice to be back to blogging and I really enjoy keeping these as running game blogs. I like piecing them together from notes as well, but it always seems to flow better like this. Maybe it’s because I’m not a real writer, I’m something better, more refined for today’s day and age, a blogger if you will. Plus, I get to type and laugh at the same time at stuff like Bill Worrell commenting on Quagmire with something like: “It’s great to be ambidextrous, he likes to use either hand”. Unfortunately he followed it up by saying that it’s good for the Rockets that they are proving they can score without TMac. The problem with that is it can be good, but only if Tracy allows it to be. He has a tendency to try and show why he’s important after he comes back from being hurt. Regardless, I like 15+ point wins anytime they come. Hell, I like 1 point wins, I just like to win.

22 and 11 and 4 for Yao with 2:46 left, yes, he’s good. Just in case anyone was still wondering. His hustle and desire to play as a team is the defining aspect of this game. I love the guy. He’s not Hakeem (and people need to get over that) but he’s a hell of a good player and will easily go down as the best center of his era, that’s all you can ask of a guy. At the end of the game Stromile Swift was apparently trying to prove some crazy point, Yao dominated him on three straight possessions and proved his point wrong. I’m not exactly sure why people think he can’t play defense, it’s just absurd.

Great game by the Rockets, a 103-83 win. Game ball goes to the entire team. Check out this box score.

Six players in double figures and Hayes had 11 rebounds so I’m calling it 7. Towelie still sucks and Bonzi really does not have his shooting touch right now. I’m assuming it will come back since, unlike Towelie, he as had one in his career.

Great game Rockets, let’s keep it up. The Raptors are up tomorrow night, let’s make it two in a row!!

The Sports Guy is pissing China off (and me)

Not much mention of Bill Simmons has been made here on this blog. No real need to, for it's not like he needs our help to build an audience. But now he's overstepping his bounds. He claims to be a semi-guru of the NBA game. This year's "Trade Value (Top 50)" column is nothing short of a traveshamockery when it comes to the Rockets.

Though before we begin -- Remember, China - your new target is this man:


For those unfamiliar with his columns, SG/Simmons likes to rank 40-50 NBA players based on their trade value. #49 would never be traded straight up for #50... #1 would never be traded straight up for #2. Unless Billy King or Isiah Thomas is making the decisions.

How does this concern the Houston Rockets? Simple, T-Mac and Yao are on the list and analyzed - but not necessarily in a positive way. (Yao is #9 and still gets trash-talked by a 5'10" white dude from Boston with a bad accent.)

___

# 28. Tracy McGrady I had him eight spots higher until the last second, when I remembered he hasn't won a single playoff series and makes $20 million a year.
___

For context, here are the three players listed immediately behind T-Mac: 29, David West; 30, Caron Butler; 31, Josh Howard. Are you f'n kidding me?

If the Mavericks called up and said "hey, any chance you would trade T-Mac? Josh Howard might be available!", Daryl Morey would do an Austin Powers/Dr. Evil-esque 5 minute laugh until he realized it was a serious question. Same for David West and Caron. Caron Butler was traded for Kwame Brown once, and no one has really classified that as the NBA's version of a Bagwell for Larry Anderson trade. And I like David West, but he's not a franchise player. Nor is he the next Carlos Boozer.

Granted, I realize T-Mac has not won a playoff series. I also realize I've been criticizing him for being a wuss and a 4th quarter liability of sorts. That doesn't mean I am ready to trade him for a one-dimensional role player. And if "playoff victories" is the measure of everything, how is Dwight Howard #2 overall? His team got swept last year. The Freak has yet to even win a playoff GAME. Kobe has not won a series since Jerry Buss sold the FatAss out of town (and you have no idea how much it kills me to use Kobe as an analogy here).

Meanwhile, SG has Baron Davis at #15. Yes, Baron Davis. He of the Beard, the wayward 3 point shot, and the constant injury concerns. T-Mac is a more skilled, evolved and better shooter than Baron Davis. Yeah, Davis won a couple playoff series... so what? He hasn't won a ring - and he's not winning one this year, either.

I think the California air is polluting SG's brain. Too many Jimmy Kimmel jokes might do that to you. But T-Mac doesn't even get the worst of it. Here's Yao:

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9. Yao Ming His untradeableness (probably not a word, but we're going with it) has been heightened by his value because of those aforementioned Chinese marketing ties. (I'm going out on a limb and guessing that it's lucrative to be the preferred NBA team for a country with more than a billion people.) On the flip side, his defense continues to cause problems, and he hasn't had the statistical surge everyone expected from an All-Star center in years five through seven of his career. If anything, he has regressed a little. Right now, he's a rich man's Rik Smits and that's about it.

Here's my question: Looking at the last 10 guys on this list, with the exception of Yao, each of them gives you a legitimate chance to win a title within the next five years as long as they're the best guy on a really good team. Could you say the same about Yao? To this point, no. Even Smits had some huge moments for the Pacers in the mid-'90s and ended up being the most underrated center of his generation. What has Yao done? His value has been completely distorted, as evidenced by the fact Houston never would have offered him straight-up for KG last summer ... even though KG clearly would have made the Rockets a better team. At some point soon, Yao needs to carry a good team or it's never happening. To be continued.
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A poor man's Rik Smits? Ha ha. That joke was funny back in 2003 in Yao's second season. Just because Yao has a super-sweet jump shot and can make a free throw does not make him Rik Smits. Fuck it, let's compare:

Yao:

career averages: 18.8 ppg, 52% FG, 9.0 reb, 1.5 assists, 1.9 blocks

Smits:

career averages: 15.1 ppg, 50% FG, 6.1 reb, 1.4 assists, 1.4 blocks

Smits NEVER averaged more than 18.5 ppg in one season. Yao averages 18.8 for his career, and averaged 25.0 last year (and will probably hit 25 ppg again this season). Smits NEVER averaged more than 7.7 rebounds per game in any one season. Yao averages 9.0 for his career, and will probably hit the 22/10 level or better this year. To compare the two is an insult, and is done only because Yao is a better shooter than Shaq or Dwight Howard and no one has ever seen a player like Yao before. The dude is 7'5", can shoot, can shoot *free throws* and is possibly the strongest person in the NBA right now.

Yao has gotten better EVERY single season he has been in the NBA. He's all of 27 years old. (Hakeem didn't win his rings until he was in his 30s, oh, by the way).

Oh, and let's also point out the players ahead of/behind Yao: Kobe is at #10 (that's a joke in and of itself, but this isn't a Laker blog), Boozer is at #11 and Dirk is at #12. Okay, that's great company to be in. SG somehow dismisses all of this by saying Yao gets rated higher because it's convenient to be the favorite team of a country with 1 billion people watching. Yeah, it has to be that... or maybe the fact that he can do this in his sleep:

We do not appreciate xenophobic, backhanded compliments here. Then again, this is more fuel for the "Yao is Angry, and you will not like him when he's angry" fire. Suck it, Sports Guy! You can go back to fellating Kevin Durant now.

The Mavericks own us like it's the Wild West or something

Ahh, it’s another installment of Houston vs. Dallas, one of what I feel like is two rivalries for the Rockets. The other is with the Utah Jazz, who I hate. The Mavs I at least have respect for. The Spurs are just a nuisance even though they have been the best team in Texas for quite some time. I’ve never really felt a dislike for them. I know that’s odd since they have owned us for a while. I probably just feel still pretty whole from the ass kicking Hakeem used to put on the Admiral. Last time we played we led most of the way and really blew it, pretty sad game; we’ve had real trouble putting teams away most of the season. Hey, look what happened! We led the first half and then completely blew it again. Tracy gets hurt and who knows if he’ll have swelling in the near future.

The Rockets were a little sloppy early but at least seem to be playing like a team. The Mavs were pretty sloppy as well, keeping the Rockets in the game. Francis with an early three assists, I hoped TMac would realize that Steve just wants to help, but it still appears that he wants nothing to do with helping Francis succeed.

Right after TMac hit the floor with his knee and had to come out:
Worrell - When you’re young you go to the basket all the time, then as it goes on, you start shooting more jump shots.
Drexler- You have to take it to the basket, just pick and choose your spots

Basically I wish Tracy would turn into what Clyde was in his early thirties, a guy that could shoot the jumper and would, but would take it to the basket at will if the defense allowed it.

The McGrady injury didn’t look too bad, though I bet it hurt at the time and will have some swelling, it was basically the equivalent of bumping knees with another player but a little worse because the floor doesn’t move.

Did Dallas try to make their uniforms ugly, because they are terrible? They aren’t hideous like the jammy jerseys of the late 90s but they are really poorly designed.

At one point in the first half when I still had hope left for this game, Chuck Hayes drove to the basket and drew Dirk’s first foul, great play out of the “I suck on offense, so no one will expect this” mold. And Chuck has the ugliest free throw motion of all time, but he got a lane violation out of it which was nice. Chuck is great at what he does, but why do players keep trying to throw him the ball under the basket? What about the 90% of other times it’s been tried didn’t clue them into him being incapable of accepting or even thinking about the pass? Same goes for Mutumbo, even TMac tries to pass to him, that’s just poor planning on the drive.

On another note; Josh Howard is one of the greatest draft steals of all time. I just can’t see how anyone saw him at Wake Forest and didn’t think he could be like that in the pros. His game is perfect for the NBA and always has been. Great energy, getting even better as a shooter and always in the passing lanes, what more can you want from a late first round draft pick?

Yao loves playing against “The best center in the West” Eric Dampier. He uses him like no other. A turnaround dunk AND a turnaround reverse layup back to back at about the 3 minute mark of the first. Dampier sucks. I have to call it out, because I would have the other way, Yao fouled Stackhouse and it didn’t get called once in the first half, which never happens, I appreciated it. The only problem is that they decided on the other end that nothing against Yao except getting hit in the face was a foul, so that was not worth the trade off. Bonzi tells Yao to elbow the hit out of someone when going up. About fucking time someone said that to him. I’m getting really tired of them allowing guys to hammer his arms and not getting called for the foul, it’s freaking ridiculous. He started 4 for 9 and three of those “misses” were because he got hit and no calls. Yao is not happy with the way he’s being refereed. He actually went to talk to them at the half about it and of course they ignored him. Apparently you are allowed to front Yao by pushing him in the chest, the officiating in the NBA is pathetic at best. Dampier was doing that all night with no call, he also extended the hand and arm repeatedly and only got called for it once. I do not care that Yao has an advantage in size and height, how is that his responsibility? You call the game within the rules, you don’t make new rules for different players.

At one point in time the Mavs let Yao dribble with his back to the basket from 15 feet out to 5 before they doubled, that was dumb. Unfortunately the Rockets as usual decided that shooting jumpers 3 seconds into the clock was a better idea than getting him the ball. It’s freaking pathetic how selfish some of the guys on this team are. He started the first half with 14 and 10; I’ll take that, 14th double-double of the season…excellent. The problem is they kept going away from him every time he got into a rhythm. And I’ve asked it before and I’ll ask it again, why do the Rockets pass the ball to Yao’s junk when they do try and get it to him? They realize he’s 7’6 right? Dampier had pissed Yao off, not a good idea dude, now the Rockets have to get him the ball. Three straight trips afterwards, no ball to Yao… This is becoming an epidemic.

I have to call out Dampier one more time, Battier in-bounded a pass off his ass and caught it for the lay-up, seriously, Dampier sucks.

I took a lot more notes in the game, but that game just sucked. After playing like a team in the first half, sucking but playing like a team and hustling, they just blew apart in the second half. We are worse right now than we were last year at this time on offense. I can’t tell if they aren’t listening to Norman Dale or if he’s not yelling loud enough for them to hear.

Rockets lose by double digits, that’s 10 out of the last 11 to the Mavericks; I’m starting to hate them. The problem is that I can’t really hate them; we keep doing it to ourselves.

Yao is Angry

... and this is a good thing.

Rockets fall back to .500 and mediocrity after a 100-88 loss to the Sixers. Wait a second, we lost to freakin' Philadelphia. They have an aging Andre Miller (still better than Rafer) and Andre Iguodola - and that's it. They just fired their GM last week because he spent 10 years killing the franchise. And we just lost to them?

Yao post game: "When you are soft yourself, everything will feel tough," he said. "It's not because they are so tough. It's because of how soft we are."

It's hard to argue with that. The Rockets lack an enforcer of any sort. Chuck does the dirty work, but isn't exactly Dennis Rodman crazy. Bonzi *is* crazy, but he's too out of shape to start (or finish) a fight. McGrady's back could lock up at any moment. Dikembe just makes people laugh. Rafer sucks at everything, so I don't expect him to be any good at sparking some anger in the team. And Battier is the whitest man alive.

From the game recap:

Until the fourth quarter, when Adelman benched his starters, the most emotion the Rockets demonstrated came with a brief shouting match between Shane Battier and Mike James.

It's not exactly going to rise to the level of Kobe and the FatAss throwing down on the Court, and Mike James was probably just telling Battier to wipe that stupid look off his face - kinda like Butters getting grounded for looking funny in his school pictures.

One more game like this, and Yao should begin running amok and killing everyone in alphabetical order... beginning with you, Mr. Alston.

Big Pimpn' Keepin Leads, We be big pimpin in the New Jersey

The Rockets played at the Izod center and made Jay Z and the Nets their bitch for the 5th time in a row there. I watched it on the DVR as I didn’t get home until the 4th. Seriously, those things rule. The only problem is that I am dumb and at the end of my watching the first quarter I went to see “where the team was stats wise” on ESPN gametracker. The only problem was that I screwed myself; it showed me (obviously) the entire game. Why can’t they read my mind??? At least it was a win!

In the first I couldn’t believe my eyes. Yao jumped straight up and down and the referee didn’t call a foul on him!!! For some reason Vince Carter thinks that’s it is a foul, maybe he doesn’t know the rules like 90% of the refs, or maybe their miscalling of it so consistently has skewed his opinion. Of course they didn’t call anything in the first quarter and a half, so maybe the refs weren’t calling anything else so they couldn’t call that. It actually happened in the fourth quarter again, but that was only ten minutes or so after they did call it on him in the third. We have to work on consistency, but I liked it overall. The game was called pretty much perfectly for the Rockets. Contrary to popular belief, the NBA IS a contact sport/league.

The refs really called a great game; there I’ve said it for the first time all year…

As a team, the Rockets did a fantastic job of holding a lead. They ate clock like they were the 85 Bears, it was awesome. They weren’t in a hurry many times down the court and it helped them get better shots.

Overall it was a good game, we led pretty much the entire way, played some keep away and dominated a slightly above average team from the East. Granted they would be decidedly below average in the west, but that is neither here nor there.

Player Notes:
Stevie has really upped his passing game and he’s trying to get everyone involved. That will surely help his playing time once his ass bone stops hurting. And it’s obviously still bruised, that has to be the reason he grimaces every time he gets hit.

Bonzi missed 3 lay-ups, that is just crazy. Really he missed four, but one was on a foul, but should have easily been made. He made up for it by bricking a free throw right after.

TMac throws it right to Rafer…and he missed the shot. As he misses a fast break lay-up

The Hakeem footwork session really has paid off this year, Yao has looked exceptionally better around the basket. He just needs to learn to trust it. That’s what Hakeem had that no one else did, confidence that he was going to make the right decision. That confidence helped him flow. Yao still seems surprised when he makes an awesome move, that is slowly changing though, and that is awesome. Yao and his new moves completed their 11th double-double of the season. At one point in time Yao stood over Nachbar after dunking on him, it was obviously jokingly but it was no less awesome.

Giggity Giggity...alllllllriiiiiightt

It was good to see Bonzi finally hit lay-ups. - Tracy McGrady

I completely agree Tracy, it was nice. Bonzi and Scola were fantastic last night as was everyone else that played more than 3 minutes. Hell, even Rafer almost had a triple double. Of course he also shot three balls that didn’t hit the rim at all, but he still did two things decently, suck and pass the ball.

When we first got to the game we were handed Rockets Power Dancers calendars, and I have to say, they are pretty nice. I’m married and have a kid, so mine will never get put up anywhere, but it was still a nice gesture by the Rockets. It even helped me further prove that July sucks, it had a girl with my ex-wife’s name on it, it’s a long time exes birthday month and it especially sucks for July 24th, Rafer’s birthday. They really try to make the games a fun atmosphere, more than the Astros and MUCH more than the Texans. The only problem we had all night is that they decided that every dog has their day and put Rafer on the cover of the game guide.
The intros were hilarious with everyone looking up at the camera and trying to look hard. Shane Battier trying to be intimidating was a little like someone being scared by a bunny, utterly ridiculous. Is there a whiter man on the planet than Shane Battier?

The Rockets were 3/14 at the first timeout of the game, and unsurprisingly the Grizzlies were up 12-6. I think the Rockets were still on the hangover of Rafer inexplicably getting on the program guide, but maybe it was just that they came out playing like they have in the last few losses they had, completely selfishly.

Shortly after the timeout the Rockets went on a run. One thing was apparent early and often in the game: Rafer’s teammates do not trust him, especially on the fast break. Tracy and Rafer had a two on two fast break and Rafer was wide open completely unguarded and Tracy refused to pass him the ball. Instead he slowed it down just a bit and let Luis Scola catch up. How does it feel to be stranger to TMac’s child Rafer? You couldn’t be more untrusted if you slept with his wife.

Yao was in the game with 1:05 left in the first and he needed a breather. Why was he in the game? He was going to rest, why risk the foul? And of course, he picked one up with 4.2 seconds left on the clock and it proved the point. I know Ricky is experimenting, but that’s just silly.

Bonzi remembered how to play, but he still can’t jump right now. He got more athletic with his moves as the game moved on and really trusted his offensive moves. He looked like the Bonzi from his Sacramento days. I was pleased, and really, let’s be honest, that’s what’s important.

Much like Happy learned how to put: Scola learned how to play…uh ohhh

After the timeout the Rockets outscored the Grizzlies by 19 and were up 55-42 at half.
12 points for Scola and 16 for Bonzi, that’s what I’m talking about!

The low risk, high reward halftime show was by the Society of Karate. The only appropriate response? KICK ASS!! But alas no one got put in a body bag, swept the leg OR did a flippin awesome crane kick. Let’s just say I was more than disappointed. They could have made someone bleed for my pleasure at least!
After halftime Yao came back to kick some ass. He had four reposts on the night that were phenomenal. And because only one had Rafer throwing the entry pass he was able to convert on all of them. Towelie threw the ball to him at his junk, no idea why he doesn’t realize the guy is 7’6. It didn’t matter though because Yao is awesome.

I don’t care what Dave says, Battier = Shoota, choke on that baby!!!
One of my favorite moments of the night occurred during a timeout game where we found out we were on the west side of the stadium and 50% of the crowd on our side shouted Westside! When you get a chance to do that in life, you have to have some fun with it

Scola had an amazing move around a player to a reverse lay-up in the fourth. He touched the guy on the ass and maybe grabbed a little (cause that’s how Quagmire rolls), but it wasn’t hooking at all. They called the offensive foul, but I think even the ref thought it was a bad call. Great move by Scola, he needs to keep his filthy paws to himself though. I swear he wears sex panther cologne.
Tracy rebounded and passed his way to a triple double on a horrible shooting night. I’m glad to see he noticed he sucked from the field tonight and that he had to get the rest of the team involved. I hope he plays like this the rest of the year. I much prefer this Tracy to the shoot until it finally goes in Tracy. And I’ll take either one, he’s a great player either way, but he’s a top 2-3 player when he passes and rebounds like he did tonight.
The end of the game was awesome. I’m not sure if it was just as a big FU to Memphis or if Rafer didn’t know that the shot clock was running out, and I don’t put it past him, but the Rockets took a 24 second violation at the end with 4.2 seconds left. I’ve never seen a team do that.

All in all the Rockets dominated from the 6 minute mark in the first to the end of the game. A 13 point victory in a game that was never that close. We had a great time and we even found a few cool giveaways later in the season as the RPD calendar showed them all. Rock on Rockets, Rock on

the Twelve Days of Christmas - Rockets Edition

Traditional Christmas songs have a tendency to be overplayed (not to mention the inherent suck-factor). I therefore present you with: The Twelve Days of Christmas (Houston Rockets/NBA selfish wishes)...

On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ...

a series of blow-out victories!

___________________

On the second day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ...

two Western Conference All-Stars

and series of blowout victories!

___________________

On the third day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ...

the third Championship Ring

two Western Conference All Stars

and a series of blowout victories!

___________________

On the fourth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ...

a fourth playoff win in one series (please!)

the third Championship Ring
two Western Conference All Stars
and a series of blowout victories!

___________________

On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ...

FIVE golden games from Rafer (I don't ask for much!)

a fourth playoff win in one series

the third Championship Ring
two Western Conference All Stars
and a series of blowout victories!

___________________

On the sixth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ...

a sixth man off the bench who can score and provide energy
(Bonzi? Scola? Stevie? anyone? ... Bueller?)

FIVE golden games from Rafer

a fourth playoff win in one series
the third Championship Ring
two Western Conference All Stars
and a series of blowout victories!

____________________

On the seventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ...

seven great games versus Utah/Dallas/San Antonio/Phoenix in round 1

a sixth man off the bench
FIVE golden games for Rafer
a fourth playoff win in one series
the third Championship Ring
two Western Conference All Stars
and a series of blowout victories!
______________________

On the eighth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ...

the return of #8 -- (in a Rockets uniform?)

seven great games in Round 1
a sixth man off the bench
FIVE golden games for Rafer
a fourth playoff win in one series
the third Championship Ring
two Western Conference All Stars
and a series of blowout victories!
______________________

On the ninth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ...

nine technical fouls from Yao (get angry, Big Man!)

the return of #8
seven great games in Round 1
a sixth man off the bench
FIVE golden games for Rafer
a fourth playoff win in one series
the third Championship Ring
two Western Conference All Stars
and a series of blowout victories!
___________________

On the tenth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ...

Ten More Years of the Ming Dynasty!

nine technical fouls from Yao
the return of #8
seven great games in Round 1
a sixth man off the bench
FIVE golden games for Rafer
a fourth playoff win in one series
the third Championship Ring
two Western Conference All Stars
and a series of blowout victories!
___________________

On the eleventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ...

eleven gratuitous South Park/Rockets references

Ten More Years of the Ming Dynasty!
nine technical fouls from Yao
the return of #8
seven great games in Round 1
a sixth man off the bench
FIVE golden games for Rafer
a fourth playoff win in one series
the third Championship Ring
two Western Conference All Stars
and a series of blowout victories!
___________________

On the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ...

12 Rockets players that can one day dream of being this clutch:

eleven gratuitous South Park/Rockets references
Ten More Years of the Ming Dynasty!
nine technical fouls from Yao
the return of #8
seven great games in Round 1
a sixth man off the bench
FIVE golden games for Rafer
a fourth playoff win in one series
the third Championship Ring
two Western Conference All Stars
and a series of blowout victories!

THE END

Game 18 - Bad title, worse game

The Rockets managed to lose on Saturday night to the Sacramento Kings, I wrote some notes while I was watching and planned on blogging about it right after the game. I didn’t, however, expect them to lose. I mean, the Kings were 5-10 coming into the game. I surely didn’t expect them to be 6-10 after the game. A couple of observations after I’ve cooled off:

Coaches in the NBA need to tell players to stop saving balls like morons; they keep throwing it right to the Rockets. Actually, scratch that, as long as the Rockets don’t start doing it they can keep it up.

Brad Miller trying to guard Yao one on one in the first half was hilarious. His “effort” in trying to do it on Yao’s back was phenomenally hilarious. On that note, Miller has been in the league ten years. He’s a good player, but he’s put in more work than he is naturally good. I’m still mad at my mother for not making me drink more milk. All I wanted was 7 more inches to get to 6’10, is 9% more height really that much to ask???

Yao starts off with 8, 3 and 2, in less than 4 minutes; and was 7/8 and 2/2 for 16 points, 4 rebounds and 2 blocks in only 10 minutes of play. He came out wanting to prove that the GS game was not really indicative of his game. Yao had a spinning dunk that showed how athletic he really is. He poster-ized the entire Sacramento team on that play, but I never saw that replay once on ESPN. You only get to see Yao highlights when he comes over at the last second when some little guy was already going up for a dunk and he gets “dunked on”.

Apparently you’re allowed to completely block Yao’s turning radius and fall down, then get an offense foul call. The referees were poorly prepared to do their jobs on Saturday night. In the first half there were 5 no calls on guys guarding Yao, and I have no idea why. They were all extremely obvious and right in front of referees, I hope Adelman goes after that fine that Van Gundy did. This is horrible; he is going to get hurt like this if they keep allowing it. And don’t give me that “Shaq was poorly ref’d” bullshit either. Shaq initiated contact every time down the court; Yao has a finesse game more in line with this site’s name-sake, he gets hammered on almost 8 feet worth of arms, and then nothing gets called, it’s really pathetic.

This is what I wrote in my notes around the middle of the second quarter:”There has been some seriously lazy referring tonight; they aren’t even looking like they want to be here. Especially Gary Zielinski, he has that old Steve Javy look when he always wanted to T up Hakeem. I’ll be surprised if Yao doesn’t get one tonight” And sure enough, Yao got tossed after yet another horrible foul call on him. At least this one could have gone either way unlike 3 of the 6 fouls they called on him.

Yao finally got one borderline foul call his way, I guess better late than never as it came with 3:57 left. Of course he promptly got tossed 56 seconds later.

There’s not a lot about Yao that I would change, but I really wish he had stronger hands. Though I wonder, if he did, would he shoot as well as he does? Also, when Yao commits a foul, he typically acknowledges it, why isn’t this looked at more by the league? When he gets pissed off, there absolutely is a reason for it. He’s one of the best players in the league at jumping straight up and down, and yet never gets credit for it. What is going on? I always thought because of the China angle he’d get more calls, not less.

The only player I asked for in the off-season was Artest. I know it was a pipe dream, but damn he would look good for the Rockets.

McGrady was extremely lazy with the ball through the first 2.5 quarters. He was guarded by the aforementioned Artest to be fair. Then TMac completely turned his game around with only 1 turnover after that and it really wasn’t his fault. He also ended his bad free throw shooting streak as well, missing the first one then hitting nothing but the bottom in 7 straight free throws after that. I also made a quick observation: Tracy’s rebounding always goes up on a second missed shot, it’s like he takes it personally. He played an excellent game overall and has been great every game he has played save the GS game where everyone sucked.

The Kings really, really suck. At one point in time in the second, the Rockets had played defense on about 3 possessions and still had a 6 point lead. Overall, the Rockets sucked a LOT worse than the Kings on Saturday though. They only forced 5 turnovers all game against a team that averages about 15 a game. They also let them score 30 in the third and 28 in the fourth. They played a total of 10 good defensive possessions, and I’m not exaggerating, I counted. I honestly can’t remember the Rockets playing a worse defensive game in the regular season, and I only remember Game 7 of the Dallas series a few years back being close.

One last thing: I realize it doesn’t cost me any money, but why can’t I open multiple Game Cast windows on ESPN without tricking the system? I just wanted to see the Missouri vs. OUsucks game and watch the Rockets stats at the same time.

Yao is not subtle

Big game tonight. Rockets face the insanely-hot Suns (lame pun alert). Yao v. Amare and all that...

We are 8-7, they are 11-3. A win will do a lot of good for both the standings and the Rockets' collective ego. Even Yao is taking this one seriously. From the Houston Chronicle article today:

---
Tonight's game in Phoenix should be the best test of that. In the loss to the Suns, Yao was rarely in good scoring position and McGrady was out with his sprained elbow.

"At least we're moving the ball better," Yao said of wins over the Nuggets and Clippers in their last two games. "I know who I should pass to, but I think we still need to work on that. When they come to double-team me, it's still not perfect."
---

Hold up, that was almost subtle there, Yao. "I know who I should pass to...." I guess that also means Yao knows who he should not pass to. This guy:

Look at that - Rafer wide open. I expect to see that, oh, every game. Jeez, even Uncle Rico's throwing motion is more fundamentally sound than Rafer's jumpshot.

I'm even more worried now that Rafer actually had a decent-to-good game on Monday. He scored double figures, shot 50% and the Rockets won. Yup, that's a definite "oh, shit, he thinks he's good now" moment just waiting to happen. And now we expect to play an up-tempo game with lots of jump shots and running-and-gunning? Uh oh.

I think Tracy McGrady expects it too, and he's trying to stop it:

"The one thing you have to do in this league is stay the course. Whatever your game plan is, whatever your offense is, you have to stay the course and keep on executing. That's what our system is all about, making the game easier, not settling for jumpers, and being able to put myself and Yao in easy scoring positions."

translation: Hey, Rafer, stop shooting. Give me or Yao the ball and get out of the way. Maybe try to play a little defense on that dude with the beady little eyes and flapping head.

... at least that's what I think "staying the course" should be.

My prediction for the night? Rockets 112, Suns 109 - T-Mac with a surprisingly clutch layup and the following FT to put the game away. Rafer likely does his best to keep the Suns in the game with a 3-13 (1-7 on 3s) effort...

I'm still holding out hope for Yao and T-Mac to give him the Private Pyle treatment in the locker room:

Bob Barker should just kick Rafer's ass

"You suck, ya jackass!"

Will Rafer just go away?

Nearly one month into the season now... he is sucking more than usual. Which is impressive in its own right.

current stats for '07/'08:
29 minutes per game;
34.8% shooting (22.4% on 3s);
7.4 ppg;
62.5% from the FT line;
and all of 4.6 assists per

Rafer has scored in double figures exactly twice (18 versus Dallas on 11/21 and 11 versus the Lakers on 11/14 - naturally, the Rockets lost both games).

(yes, he missed this shot...) Rafer's likely excuse... "Yeah it is about time. I mean I just can't get the ball in the hole. I *want* to, but I just can't do it!"

Rafer is too much of a little bitch to actually get angry and yell at the ball like Happy though. Personally, I think it's about time that T-Mac and Yao invoke the Dante Hicks rule with Rafer... as in "don't pass to this guy, he sucks!"

If the guy had one single skill that was actually useful, maybe (and I stress *maybe*) we might be able to find a role for him to actually help the team. Instead, he can't shoot 3s. He can't make layups (or that floater/"flip" shot he continues to try). He can't even be trusted to sink his free throws at the end of games (yeah, our 7'5" center shoots 90%, our starting point guard shoots below 70% - that's ass backwards).

Even Bob Barker has an opinion:

"I can't believe you're a professional basketball player. I think you should be working at the snack bar....... There is no way that you could have been as bad in the And-1 league as you are in the NBA."

go ahead, Bob, kick his ass...

I bet Caroll Dawson even had a Ron Burgundy moment back in 2005 when he traded Mike James for Rafer. As in... "I immediately regret this decision"

Rafer was most definitely a bad choice!

Yes, Toronto is definitely laughing at us for that one. Shit. Even Brick Tamland wouldn't have been dumb enough to make that trade. Yup, talk about your all-time backfires.

(current record: 7-7, wayyyy behind San Antonio, Dallas and freakin' New Orleans in the division. 6 game losing streaks tend to do that to you.)

oh, a certain Lt. Daniel Kaffey wants me to relay a message to Rafer, too:

"you're a lousy fucking basketball player, Skip!"

(hey, that gives me a good idea! Any readers/players willing to give Rafer a Code Red?)

on the path to .500?

Big game tonight. Rockets host the Mavericks and their nazi-poster boy (blonde hair, blue eyes...) reigning MVP.

If at any point I see the Rockets leading 88-82 in the 4th quarter, I'm going to have flashbacks to 2004 - and I might never recover. Then again, I can always pray for this to happen again:

Or is it bad form to pray for injuries? Does it count if you ask for an opposing player to get hurt? I think I need a judge's ruling here. And since I've been praying (unsuccessfully) for Emmitt Smith to get hurt since the early 1990s - can I carry over those prayers to the other Dallas team?? There's gotta be a loophole allowing for this, right?

Check that. I already have bad enough karma. And I don't rock the cool 'stache like Earl Hickey. So let's just move along...

The Rockets started 6-1. They have now regressed to 6-5. With Dallas coming into town. Dallas gave us our first loss. Or rather, Jason Terry did. It's time to exact a modest level of revenge. Or at least preserve some form of regular season dignity.

Maybe Yao just needs to "Go America All Over Everybody's Ass" tonight...

(or would the Chinese government not allow this?)

Screw it - Go Rockets! 7-5 here we come!

Remember when...?

A week ago the Rockets were 6-1 and at the top of SI's power rankings...

6 days later - we're 6-5. After a 10 point loss to the Suns.

Fuck!

Hold on - was that a Stevie Franchise sighting??? It was!

3-11 shooting in 23 minutes... ah, Stevie is back. And still not passing the ball.