NBA Blogger Previews: Your Houston Rockets!

Today is the Southwest Division bloggers entry day, and we were honored to represent the Houston Rockets.

Team Name: THE Houston Rockets
Last Years Record: 55-27
Key Losses: Bobby Jackson and maybe Dikembe Mutombo
Key Additions: Ron “No Lay-ups, Crazy Pills, Ron Ron” Artest

1. What significant moves were made during the off-season?
Steve Novak leaving this team will come back to haunt it. I have no idea how Daryl Morey can sleep at night knowing that he traded away the next Reggie Miller. Novak could average 30 in this league, you know, if he was always left open, didn’t have to create his own shot and was allowed to not play defense. It’s unfathomable to me that we could let that kind of player go for nothing but a pick swap!

I guess Ron Artest coming to the Rockets for Bobby Jackson, a rookie and a sure thing NBA first round bust next year is big news, but I just don’t see it. That guy can’t even shoot 60% or play defense for 49 minutes on average a game. Wait, just a second, my sources are telling me that he actually is pretty good.

The Artest trade will go down as one of the biggest steals in NBA history if you ask me, and since you did, that’s my stance. Even if Greene turns out to be a solid player, we got a top 30 player for a rookie, an old PG and a future very late round pick (I can only assume). That’s a steal as long as Ron Ron can play more like No Lay-ups and less like Crazy Pills. I believe he can. I don’t think anyone who has paid attention to the man thinks he is stupid, and this is a contract year. He will be playing to stay on the best team he’s ever been a part of. That’s right; it’s a step above the Pacers team that was ruined after the brawl. There are two players on this team better than anyone on that Pacers team, and Ron was the second best player on that team behind O’Neal. Plus, I love crazy on my team, just one guy can be crazy, but I really think you need that one guy.

2. What are the team's biggest strengths?

Defense – JVG installed a philosophy with this team and the greatest coaching move Rick Adelman could have made was to reinforce that philosophy. There are a couple of teams equal to the Rockets on the defensive end, but none of them are better, that’s not conjecture, that’s a fact. When you go down the lane, you won’t enjoy it, when you shoot a 3 pointer, someone will be in your face, and when you try to take your man one on one, someone will come around with the help defense. It’s the best part of our game, and it’s generally infallible no matter how poorly we play on the offensive end in a given game. We rarely get outplayed by a good offense and that is a testament to what JVG put in and to how good a coach Adelman is to not try and fix what wasn’t broken.

Coaching – I truly believe Rick Adelman is a fantastic coach. That’s not to say that JVG wasn’t, I still have a mad man crush on that guy’s basketball knowledge. But JVG getting a raw deal doesn’t change the fact that Adelman was a fantastic hire, that the offense got better throughout the year and was rolling when Yao went down, and that his staff is solid to very good.

Ugly Free Throws – No team in the league can boast a worse free throw shooter than Chuck Hayes or a center that shoots their technicals like Yao Ming. That means that 1. There are a lot of bad free throw shooters on the team and 2. Yao is one of the best centers at the stripe of all time. Watching Chuck shoot free throws is one of the guiltiest pleasures around, you know, provided it’s in a blow-out and the Rockets don’t actually need them to go in the basket.

3. What are the team's biggest weaknesses?

Offensive Consistency – Last year, with players in and out of the lineup, the Rockets could not keep things straight on the offensive end. If Rafer was having his 1 good game out of every 4 games, then the Rockets were likely to win. If Yao was playing and the others around him fed him the ball, we were likely to win. If Tracy was playing defense and turning it into transition points or magically hitting the 20 foot jumper, we were likely to win. All of those things were hit or miss though, and that’s what needs to change. I think that this will be fixed with the arrival of Artest, but it does mean that Bobby Jackson can’t come in to calm the team down when Rafer is not playing well. In all, the team’s consistency on offense will hinge on two things: 1. Can Rafer play as well as he did last year and improve on his decision making and 2. Can Ron Artest keep it together and fill in the gaps on offense. I think 2 is almost a certainty and the jury is out on 1. I really want good things from Rafer, but fool me once…

Injuries – It is very clear that Yao going down for the season ruined any chance of the Rockets getting out of the first round. That didn’t stop them from trying and putting up a fight, but it was not one they could win. McGrady goes down every year for some time and even Alston hurt the team by being out with an ankle injury in the playoffs. If the Rockets are injury free for the entire year, I will personally guarantee a championship. The issue at hand is that it is very unlikely for that to be true. I am hoping that they can limit them, that Yao’s injuries are just flukes and that McGrady can continue to play through the ailments that he has. The addition of Artest means that if TMac goes down then the Rockets can be okay for short stretches, and it means the same thing for Battier. With Shane already fighting an injury before the season has even started, Artest is going to need to be counted on to step in right away. A full preseason slate should help with that. I also think that clears the argument about which one of them will start.

4. What are the goals for this team?

Win the Championship this year; it can not be any simpler. Artest only has this year left on his contract and there are no guarantees after that about the team. Tracy isn’t getting younger and only has a few years left on his contract and Yao is a ticking time bomb of injuries. A championship this year is the goal and the team should accept nothing less.

Predicted Record: 63-19 1st place in the West, NBA Champions

NBA Final Standings:
The East: Playoff Teams

1. Celtics (win Atlantic) - Injuries will happen this year, they will figure them out
2. Magic (win Southeast) - Will be really good
3. Lebrons (win Central) - I just can't call them the Cavaliers, the only good player they have is Lebron
4. Pistons - Old, not getting much younger
5. 76ers - Got better with Brand, didn't lose anything
6. Raptors - Losing TJ Ford, adding the walking wounded in O’Neal moves them down for me
7. Heat - DWade will make them a 3 game above .500 team
8. Bulls - I think they play better this year

The West: Playoff Teams (Top 3 teams have a shot at 60+ wins)

1. Rockets (win Southwest) - We would have been #1 last year without Yao going down
2. Hornets - Exceptionally good and getting better. They have my two favorite non-Rockets in West and CP3
3. Lakers (win Pacific) - Good, will struggle a bit putting Bynum in but will be very good.
4. Jazz (win Northwest) - I hate you, I hate you so very much Utah Jazz, but you are pretty solid

5. Spurs - They have 2 more years left before they have to turn the team over to Parker, I can't decide if that is a good thing.
6. Mavs - I could see them winning anywhere from 44-55, they are a wildcard. It depends a lot on how Josh Howard handles this offseason. I think Dirkstatic will still be awesome though.
7. Suns - Old, very old, but have Amare for the future. Hill won't be as good and Shaq will have a big downturn. They'll make the playoffs because of Nash.
8. Trailblazers

Playoffs

East Semifinals: Boston, Orlando, Lebrons, Philly

East Finals: Boston, Orlando

West Semifinals: Houston, NO, LA, Utah - Advance

West Finals: Houston and NO

NBA Finals: Houston v Orlando

Champion: Houston - Yao shows DHo why he's the best center in the league

Let's Take This Thing to a 7th Game!

Last night was an absolutely wonderful experience. After complaining about the lack of fans in their seats prior to tip-off, by about 1 minute gone in the first the crowd was fully in place and rocking. I have been to Game 7 of the Finals, and to Game 3 of the Finals and it was not louder than it was last night. The arena was absolutely electric. Apparently only the real Rockets fans (and there are real Rockets fans that didn't make it) decided to show up for this game and I could not have been prouder of the fans for the first 46 minutes of the game. Utah Sucks chants (No, it's not classy, no I don't care), Let's Go Rockets, stomping and clapping left and right, it was a great experience. I do have to take a minute to whine about fans leaving early though. There is absolutely no advantage to leaving with 2 minutes to go in the game, none. Please, next time, sit your butt down and cheer for the team who just gave you your money's worth.

I'd also like to take a moment to say something to the guys over at MyUtahJazz and here goes: FU guys! FU completely! Stop being such nice, upstanding, good fans that I feel like I have to defend Jazz fans! I really liked living in my world that assumed all Jazz fans were a-holes, that whined incessantly and went home with their ugly wifes. Now I know that most Jazz fans are good people that just love their team and aren't any more irrational about it than I am with my team. Seriously, screw you guys.

I've ridden him a lot in 3 of the first 4 games, and I will praise him as he deserves it, but Tracy was incredible last night. He didn't really change where he shot the ball from, he changed how he shot the jumper instead. He didn't fall away from the basket, instead he used repeated spin moves and picks to shoot jumpers that he was able to step into or jump straight up for. It turned into his first non-sub 50% shooting night in 23 games. Good job Tracy! Instead of using his knee as a limiter, he drove just enough that the Jazz were forced to think about it. That opened him up to a decent amount of clean looks at the rim and it paid off. Good game overall and finally a good 4th quarter.

The team moved the ball well and played phenomenal defense, we even got a few favorable non-calls on some ridiculous flops by the Jazz. I loved every minute of being there last night.

Now we just have to take care of business in Utah to bring it home!

Well how about THAT!

From a commenter this morning "Just about every questionable call went Utah's way, and the Rockets still pulled it out. "

I for one agree with that sentiment to a large extent. I had a unique perspective on the game last night as I went into the lion's den and tried to represent The Dream Shake on MyUtahJazz's live blog. (FYI, if they do it again, can some of y'all please come over and help me? Don't be jackasses, represent the Rockets fans well, but help me keep their heads out of the clouds.) And all game there was constant bitching about the officials and how the Jazz were not getting a fair shake in the game. Let me preface the rest of this with this tidbit: I have to give them credit that when I called them out on said bitching, they did watch replays and most of the time agreed with my assessment that either the proper call was made or the proper no call was made. I too ate crow a couple of times with my mis-analysis on the replays.

Okay, with that out of the way; every fan base thinks they are getting hosed. I for one cannot look at the free throw discrepancy and believe any Utah fan could think they didn't get the better of the calls last night. In that crazy fourth quarter stretch where the Jazz were called for 3 fouls on one series, they questioned every single one (Hell I would have too if it happened to the Rockets), but every single one was a completely legitimate call and I would have been furious if any of them were not called. For CB Jack, Ron Boone and UtesFan, read it back, y'all were crazy with a few last night. I don't point this out to say that there is anything wrong with the craziness, I just find it funny how different one can see it with Red or with Hideous Blue tinted glasses on.

Anyway, the Rockets played very well and didn't make mistakes. They only had a 22 game winning streak-esque 9 turnovers. And Rafer was a huge key to the game (He still sucks, don't worry loyal Dream Shake readers, I'm not going to jinx him!), his 5 assists to 1 turnover ratio was great and was exactly what the Rockets needed. Just to insure I don't jinx him, he did end the game on a 1-5 streak from behind the arc. He only played about 3 minutes of defense on Deron Williams, but honestly, that was probably the biggest key to the game. Locking up D-Will late turned the game in the Rockets favor. I liked that he didn't overexert the hamstring and used it when he absolutely had to.

Enough has been said about Tracy here lately, but it looked to me like he figured out how to properly help the team without killing himself through the first 3 quarters. He played defense in short spurts and didn't waste energy chasing someone unnecessarily, it really was pretty impressive. His fourth quarter was actually borderline good, mind you it didn't get all the way there, but it wasn't even in the realm of horrible like the first two games. His two last shots were not good (for the horrible almost missed everything last shot that is an understatement), but his defense on the other end made up for it both times immediately following the misses.

As Dave said earlier, Luis Landry is back! The Luis part hasn't gone anywhere, but the Landry part was a sight for sore eyes. He was everywhere, getting rebounds, chasing lose balls, willing the Rockets to a victory. Jazz fans that didn't get to see him during the streak, that is almost exactly what he was like every minute on the court. I say almost because his explosiveness isn't there yet, but he finally realized that he can still hustle and help the team.

All in all, I'm not getting my hopes up too much, but this is the Rockets team I thought would win the series in 7. A guy can still hope, right? Win Game 4 and I promise to bring my We Believe sign to the game!

Rockets to the Playoffs - "We're Coming"

The good guys have now won three in a row; that's a winning streak I believe! The Rockets took care of the LA Clippers last night despite Elton Brand playing his first home game of the season. They played a brand of basketball not seen since the days of the streak. Every time LA closed the game to 11 or 12, the Rockets took it as a personal insult. Each mini run by the Clippers put Houston in lock down defense mode and they eventually blew the some cannon ball sized holes in the Clips.

In the second half I became somewhat nervous as the Clippers whittled away a bit at the once 20 point half time lead; getting it down to a respectable 13 points by the end of the third. The Rockets have not been playing consistent second halves as of late and while I knew they were going to win the game, deep down the possibility of a less than stellar outcome nagged at me. The fourth quarter put my mind at ease, helping me get to sleep later than night as I wouldn't be up late trying to see where it went wrong. Houston pushed it to 20 within 5 minutes of the quarter beginning and never looked back, sending the Clippers to their 54th loss of the season and winning the first two games between the two by an average of 21.5 points.

There were many encouraging items from the victory, let's break them down list style, and in no particular order:

1. Tracy took less than 20 shots on a night he wasn't shooting well, instead of shooting more he dished out 9 assists and added 8 rebounds, 1 steal and 1 block, thank you Tracy, it is appreciated
2. For the first time in a few weeks, when the reserves came in they extended the lead. This is how we had so many double digit wins during the streak, and it was nice to see it again
3. Luis Scola was 4-5 from the field and 8-10 from the line for 15 points and 5 rebounds. He was stellar early on and was able to rest a bit late in the blowout. Scola has seemingly found his way at the free throw line, now if he can add his 15-17 foot jumper back in he could be a complete force in the playoffs. He's too good of a shooter to keep doubting himself from out there
4. Carl Landry dunked, I can't remember the last time he did that. Hopefully the knee is starting to heal, we need the old pick and roll to the rack back
5. Luther Head looked confident taking the ball to the basket, it was a nice site to see. He's better than he's played this year, and it would be nice to see that more
6. Shane Battier held Al Thornton to 4-13 shooting and thoroughly frustrated the rookie all game. He's is the Defensive Player of the year, it's not even arguable
7. Aaron Brooks showed why he has so much promise, putting up 18 points on 7-9 shooting and adding 4 rebounds, 4 assists and 0 turnovers
8. The ball movement was a thing of beauty. They didn't chunk a lot of shots up early in the clock and looked for the open shot on just about every possession. When it was evident TMac wasn't going to make it to the game for long stretches, Tracy set the tempo with his passing. He shot a few too many threes, but mostly played within the offensive flow
9. Playoff spot clinched - For the commenters that have said "stay tuned" to the Rockets not making the playoffs, where are you now? The Rockets are in, and currently have the 6th best record in the entire NBA and are 2 games back of 3rd place (first place in the west). Not too shabby
10. 6 players were in double figures and Dikembe was one missed dunk away from joining them. The scoring distribution was fantastic

Overall I enjoyed watching this game, and that's a huge plus in a blowout. The team moved well without the ball no matter what the score was and that is very encouraging coming up on the playoffs. Next up for the Rockets the Seattle/OKCity Durants on Wednesday at 7:30PM CST in Houston. My wife and I will be there, I'm looking forward to TMac showing up to play KD again.

Kevin Durant? Meet Shane Battier.

I do not believe you two have been properly introduced...

Mr. supposed Front-Runner for the Rookie of the Year?

Meet the 2008 NBA Defensive Player of the Year.

What's that, K-Smooth? 2-17 FG shooting? Only 4 points?
Awwww, so sorry!

Hey, don't mess with Shane. You wouldn't like him when he's angry.

Rockets Win! Now help out the ladies!

It wasn't a 20 point win like I thought it would be, but the T-Wolves never really threatened. They may have cut the lead to only a few points in the fourth, but the Rockets put it in cruise control late and won by double digits, increasing their lead in every quarter.


Luis Scola was fantastic last night but Carl Landry was not to be outdone. Scola had 18 point and 18 rebounds and just manhandled the young Timberwolves on the boards. He did that in 35 minutes, while poor Landry had to suffer with only 16. How did he do in those 16 minutes? 11 points and 4 boards. Together they had at least one rebound or one point in each of the minutes they were on the floor. That my friends is why Luis Landry is so important to this team. Having only one part of the monster helped us lose 3 of 4 games. Having them both back is why the Rockets will have playoff success.


Tracy McGrady, seriously man, we know it hurts, stop making such a big deal of it. I've played games with a torn rotator cuff and preened less. You are hurt, you are not injured, play through it and stop letting the other team know what ails you. On two different occasions they went after his shoulder, all because he showed them exactly what was wrong. Stop doing that! Also, if you wouldn't mind focusing in the first three quarters to go along with your great 4th quarter play of late it would be much appreciated.


Al Jefferson ended the game with the quietest 21 points in NBA history. I really like the guy, and think he has a huge future, but to those saying he's like KG statistically, that is fine and dandy, but his competitive fire doesn't seem to be stoked nearly as much. I think he'll be a good pro and in the long run the T-Wolves will have won that trade, but it's not because Jefferson is as good as KG, it's because he'll play many more years from here on out.


The good guys get a few much needed and deserved days of rest until Sunday when they take on the Spurs in San Antonio. There isn't much more to say about the game, so let's move on to more pressing matters. I ignored the first round, but the Rockets Power Dancers need your help. Voting begins today for the ladies to try and win the championship after getting stopped in the championship round last year by the Miami Heat cheerleaders. So go to NBA.com and vote!

Rockets Win! Get to Face Scorching Suns

The Rockets won last night and get to turn it around and go to Phoenix to play the Suns who have finally put something together in the post-Marion days. Not a lot of insight to the game, except that Golden State should be much better than they are. They have too many good players to be fighting for the last place in the West. With the athletes they have they really need to learn how to play defense and Al Harrington needs to learn how to dunk (he missed 3). Carl Landry was phenomenal and proved last night how much the Rockets have missed him in the 5 previous games. Our defense was not very good, but at times did show up. I fully expect it to be better tonight in Phoenix.

Phoenix Suns: 46-22 (25-10 at home) 7-3 in their last 10

Houston Rockets: 47-22 (21-12 on the road) 8-2 in their last 10

The Rockets get to keep up their streak of playing teams without a key player as Raja Bell should be out with an injury. McGrady should be happy to not be guarded by him.

I've said the Rockets would lose this game, but I fully believe a win is obtainable.

Go Rockets!

Rockets vs. Lakers - a new kind of double/double!

The Rockets have won 22 games in a row. Yes, in a freakin' row. 22!!!

For all those who said the Rockets' Streak was just a fluke... that we didn't play any good teams... that we're really not that good of a team? Yeah, suck it - we just beat the Lakers. Who were the #1 team in the West until the Rockets decided today that it's our turn at the top.

So, yeah, that's 22 consecutive wins. The 2nd best Streak of all time.
And, in case anyone has forgotten - that is now TEN (10) consecutive wins since the Ming Dynasty abdicated his throne until next season.

It's like a double-double... 12 wins in a row with Yao. 10 wins in a row without Yao.

Before anyone says anything about it... yes, I saw Rafer score 31 points. And make eight (8?!?!) three-pointers. I am still in shock and in total disbelief. He'd have gone for 40 if he could make a layup!! (Hey - I can't completely be nice to Rafer - even after a career day on national TV!)

Okay, okay - Rafer killed the Lakers and gave a double-middle-finger to my season-long criticism. I admit it.

On the flip side... Rafer's career day effort was sorely needed. Tracy McGrady had a rough and I mean really rough day. Maybe not as rough as Kaz Matsui's backside... but rough nonetheless. 4-16? In a huge matchup against Kobe? 0-4 from the three-point line? 11 total points? Ouch, babe - very ouch.

But this is why the Rockets are a true team. And why this team kicks ass. When T-Mac has a bad day - it's not a problem. Rafer steps up. Or Scola steps up. Or Mike freakin' Harris steps up. Or Bobby Jackson? Bobby Jackson?!? Wow - awesome game from Bobby, by the way.

Of course, the real MVP of today was one Shane Battier. Considering he's a Duke grad and all - it should not be surprising given that today was Selection Sunday for the NCAA tournament. It's kind of a big deal at Duke I hear. As an SMU alum, I would not know. But back to Shane. The MVP of the NBA this year is Kobe Bryant. It is, just trust me. What does Kobe do with Shane guarding him? 11-for-33. Yes, that's not a typo. THIRTY-THREE shots. 33%. It's like Evil Rafer played for the Lakers today and wore #24. And in those 33 shots, Kobe only scored 24. That's a phenomenal defensive effort.

Shane Battier must have earned himself a spot on the NBA All Defensive First Team with today's effort (he already belonged, but today's performance should get him all the votes).

Kobe? pwn3d, bitch.

The Houston Rockets - #1 in the Western Conference. #1 in the Southwest Division. #1 in the hearts and minds of NBA fans and all of America. 22 and counting.

Next up? Rockets host the Boston Celtics on Tuesday. We did a Q&A with the guys over at CelticsBlog. Their answers to our off-the-wall questions should be posted here sometime on Tuesday morning.

Also - for a gameday live-blog of today's Rockets/Lakers game - head on over to Hardwood Paroxysm. Matt did a bang-up job blogging Rafer's big day.

Rafer says FU Dream Shake for number 22!!!!

Rafer Alston just scored 31 on 8-11 shooting from the three point line (we'll pretend he didn't shoot from inside the line) and ran the offense very efficiently. I will personally take responsibility (Richard Justice style) for his domination of the Lakers as I feel he did it just to shut us up. In fact, just to keep it up and so I don't jinx him, you still suck Rafer (but I do like you, and that was a hell of a game).

The crazy thing is, I can't give Rafer the singular title of player of the game. I will give him co-player of the game though, as Shane Battier frustrated Kobe Bryant to no end. He held Kobe to 11-33 shooting and made him visibly upset on 5-6 occasions. Shane also only allowed Bryant to dish the ball off for 2 assists and made him turn it over 3 times. I love 2-3 Assists to TO ratios for the other teams star guard. He was in his grill like a dead bug on the front end of a Mack truck. I am openly campaigning for an injustice to be righted; every year Shane Battier does not make the NBA 1st team All Defensive team is a travesty of the utmost.

The game was so incredibly exciting that I can't even clearly remember all of the events. Tracy didn't score in the entire first half and it was so impressive of a game that it didn't even matter as the Rockets took a 15 point lead to half time. It happened so fast that I don't even remember exactly how it all transpired. I know there were a lot of Rafer Alston three pointers, some Bobby Jackson drives and some Shane Battier in your face defense but it's all a blur right now. Suffice to say, a lot of Laker tail was kicked in the second quarter.

The second half started with a huge Lakers run, driven mostly by poor Rockets defense and horrendous Rockets shooting. LA got within 2 in the third, but never took a lead after they lost it with 10:22 left in the 2nd quarter. That's a real testament to the Rockets defense; they bent after getting a big lead, but never broke. Kobe scored with 4:56 left in the game to get to 24 and cut the lead to 5. Then came sheriff Shane to lock him up, causing Bryant to miss 4 shots after that and turn it over once. It was all over after that shot, the Rockets got the difference up to 15 in the last few minutes and ultimately won by 12.

To anyone saying the Rockets haven't played anyone, Rafer's message to us is our message to you. Next up, the Rockets play the Boston Celtic at 8:30PM at Toyota Center? Could it be 23?

21 in a row, and here come the big guns

The Rockets won their 21st game in a row on Friday night and I only was able to hear the 3rd quarter on the radio and the Rockets took off, then I had to mute it and the Bobcats came back. Then I got home and watched and they started dominating again. Basically I'm not allowed to miss a second of the Lakers game on Sunday. I don't have a lot to interject about the game that can't be summed up in the following: The Bobcats have a a lot of young guys that are good, but not great. They could be very good in a couple of years if they stick together. The Rockets are a much better team and road the young team wave for a bit before dominating the rest of the game. There, end of recap.

Next up, 2:30PM at Toyota Center tomorrow: The Los Angeles Lakers and Kobe Bryant minus Pau Gasol

So just to recap, the Rockets got New Orleans without David West, then Dallas without Dirk, and now LA without Gasol. You know how much sympathy I have for those teams? We have no Yao, so screw them. The Rockets have won regardless, so I just don't have any bad feelings about how other teams have showed up on the court. We're now tied for first place with the Lakers in the West, they own the tie breaker right now with a better record so far in conference. A win tomorrow would give the Rockets the season series 2-1 and they would own the first tie breaker and not need to get to the second.

Los Angeles Lakers: 44-20 (22-12 on the road) 7-3 in their last 10

Houston Rockets: 44-20 (25-9 at home) 10-0 in their last 10

The Lakers lost their last game to the New Orleans Hornets, beat the Raptors at home before that and lost to the Kings at home before that. They aren't playing as well as of late as they were right after the Gasol trade, but they are easily a top 3 team in the league right now. I'm not sure how badly the Gasol injury hurts them as much like Mike McDermott before Worm came along, they were winning before he got there. In a one or two game situation it could seriously interrupt their flow, but I'm not ready to say it will.

I actually can't wait for this game. The Lakers are a team that other tams have measured themselves against since the beginning of my basketball watching days (1986) and Sunday is no different. Kobe Bryant vs. Tracy McGrady is a huge match up. Or it would be if Tracy was actually going to guard Kobe. Instead the real match up for me is Shane Battier who has said that Kobe is the best player he's ever tried to guard. I say tried because Kobe torches everyone, even Shane hasn't found a way to slow Kobe down. I am hoping that is different this time around and the incredible team defense the Rockets have been playing of late can at least give him a small speed bump to go over. I also am hoping we can get back to a 40%+ shooting Rafer Alston and that we can control the clock a little better. In our last two games we took some really silly shots as a team overall early in the shot clock. We weren't using our offensive sets very efficiently and we need to get back to it.

What's my prediction? 22 in a row. Come on, have you seen the Rockets the last 21 games in a row???

Blackjack! (The good, the bad and the ugly)

That's 21 in a row. TWENTY-ONE!

In a row!

It was another trap game we survived. Barely. It was rather clear that everyone was looking ahead to Sunday. Or scoreboard watching. Or calculating "what ifs" for the standings. And that's okay - it's natural. I'm quite happy with winning 21 freakin' games in a row.

The Rockets are now in FIRST PLACE in the Western Conference. And in first place in the impossibly difficult Southwest Division (must still hold off San Antonio, New Orleans AND Dallas. Yikes.)

Also - do not attempt to dunk on Dikembe. It's a bad, bad idea.

That's the good.

The bad? Uh... am I allowed to say anything bad about Rafer? [yes, yes I am.]

You took another 19 shots? Where at least six or seven of those were wayyyyy too early in the shot clock or purely forced. Things to remember, Rafer: (a) you have teammates. Pass them the ball; and (b) you make about 50% of your layups. T-Mac, Scola and well, most everyone else makes a higher percentage. Pass them the ball.

There is no excuse for ever going 2-10 from the three point line. Ever.

That leaves us with... the ugly. And there's no good way to say this, but, why the hell was Tracy McGrady playing all of the 48 minutes?!?!? We shouldn't need him to play the full 48 just to beat Charlotte.

We need him for the next five games. Which, oh, by the way - FU NBA schedule maker! We have to play the Lakers on Sunday and then Boston, New Orleans, Phoenix AND Golden State... all in 7 days. Now T-Mac is going to be dragging ass because of pure exhaustion. This scares me. The only consolation at the moment? Well, for one - we have a 21 game winning streak. And the Lakers, Celtics, Hornets, Suns and Warriors DO NOT. Ha ha. But also - Pau Gasol, Chris Paul AND Ray Allen all got banged up last night. I'll take that.

I just need a healthy and rested T-Mac.

Who has won NINE in a row without Yao.




Go Rockets - make it 22 on Sunday!

Rockets/Hawks - the Best of Both Worlds!

Last night's game was not only our 20th (!?!?!!) win in a row... it was also the best of both worlds for me as I write today's recap. And no, I am not referring to Randal Graves' movie selections when I say "Best of Both Worlds." I promise.

No - it's a twin killing, because not only did we win - and win ugly - in a very classic "trap game", but now I also get to insult, cajole and ridicule Rafer Alston mercilessly after actually saying something nice about him yesterday afternoon. I think a chick-with-a-dick could have outplayed Rafer last night.

Seriously, 3-18? What convinced you that taking eighteen-freakin'-shots was actually a good idea, Rafer? Was it when you finally managed to hit the rim on shot #7? I mean, usually an 0-8 first half shooting display would encourage me to tone it down in the second half. But no, you chucked up ANOTHER ten shots! An impressive display of hubris!

Hey, Rafer - you suck! Ya jackass!


I can't believe you are a professional basketball player, Rafer. You should have been working in the snack bar during the 2nd half! What the hell was that shooting display last night?!?!?

Okay, okay - enough about Rafer. It's pretty clear he sucks again and the "old" Rafer re-emerged after two months in hiding. I sorta liked the new Rafer, but last night reminded me why I still hate the mere concept of "Rafer Alston, starting point guard."

______

As for the game itself - the win was absolutely freakin' necessary. And thank God we have T-Mac, Luis Scola and Chuck Hayes. Carl Landry would have been MVP of this game, but unfortunately he and Yao were back in Houston playing cards. For the first time in the streak I actually thought the outcome might be in doubt.

Let me put this in a different perspective. Richard Justice will probably rip this off later today, but whatever. Let's look at the standings. Right now the Rockets are 44-20 and on a 20-game winning streak. We are still one game behind the Los Angeles Lakers for #1 in the Western Conference. Everyone knows this.

BUT - what if, for some crazy reason, we "only" went 15-5 over the last 20 games? I mean, it wouldn't have been all that surprising to lose to Cleveland once, the Hornets once or twice, the Mavericks or even the Atlanta team we saw last night. Not to forget about Denver. If we somehow dropped five of those games, we'd be 39-25. Still respectable, right? And yet, we'd be in 8th or 9th place in the West and still scrambling just to make the playoffs. Especially if one of the hypothetical losses was to Denver.

Think about this: We needed every single one of the games we won during the streak. How ridiculous is that?

Last night's game is why we love the Rockets though. To explain it using a poker metaphor - it was a classic night of being card dead and yet grinding out a profitable evening anyway. We couldn't shoot. We had trouble rebounding. We couldn't pass the ball either (thanks, Rafer). And yet we just found a way to stay in the game and somehow steal a victory. The NBA equivalent of a successful bluff.

Of course, it helps when the Hawks decide to try to guard Tracy McGrady with Marvin Williams. Yeah, that makes no sense. Thanks for the gift, uhhh, who is the Hawks coach again? I forgot his name. Do they even have a coach right now?


Well, a win is a win. And I'll definitely take it!

Friday night - the Charlotte Bobcats. Another young, athletic team.
Win #21 in a row!

Go Rockets!

We roll out the D team and roll on to #20

The Rockets played one of their worst offensive games that I can remember last night and still won by 8. And Marvin Williams deserves a special place on Santa's bad list for a dunk with 5 seconds left that purposefully ended the Rockets' double digit victory string at 10 (still the NBA record but only tied for it). Yeah for you Marv, you ended the double digit streak but your ass still got kicked. I guess he didn't want to add insult to injury.

This game actually played out about like the last time the Rockets had a long streak going into Atlanta. The Rockets won this one mostly because Atlanta is about 2 years away from having a winning team, but they also won because they turned up the defense when they had to. That's the great thing about this team; typically they have enough offensive firepower to win games, but have the defense that does not necessitate it.

Rafer was horrible last night in almost every non-assist oriented way. His defense was bad and his shooting was awful. That's the last non-offseason positive post we'll have up about him. Sorry guys, we aren't risking jinxing this team again just to give some semi-deserved props to him. It's almost like he was smoking some weed before the game and it mellowed him out too much. Usually when he sucks I don't hate him because he recognizes it and is visibly upset. I never noticed him get mad at himself last night and it was a much deserved internal conflict.

The game ball last night goes to Chuck Hayes with 8 points and 12 rebounds, he kept the team together when Luis Scola went out early with foul trouble. He even completed a few pick and rolls that were ill-advised by Luther and Rafer. Why is it again that they pass to him on a normal basis?

Some crazy "shooting" stats: The Rockets were 30-90 shooting last night including 6-29 from behind the arc. That's 20.7% from 3 and 33.3% overall. They didn't end their awful shooting there, they were respectful to the free throw line and shot 17-26 for 65.4% from the line. Basically it's the worst shooting performance I can remember ever watching them have. I'm not saying they haven't had worse, it's just fresh and is the worst I can remember.

Next up for the Rockets is the Charlotte Bobcats at 7:30PM on Friday night. Number 21 could be on the horizon.

Rockets Win! And My Personal F the Haters Post

I didn't get to see the game last night, but was constantly refreshing the blackberry and seeing the dominance that is our 19 game winning streak. Apparently we couldn't shoot but again found a way to win, making Carter and Jefferson quit early which is the key to beat New Jersey. I can't recap it much more, so on to more pressing issues:

I'm still trying not to cuss, but some of the world really doesn't want me to fulfill my goal. I've heard countless times that the Rockets streak is against a bunch of patsies and isn't really that impressive. To which I say...lots of words that I can't have an almost 2 year old repeat, no matter how funny it is when he does. Seriously, the teams pretty much all play the same schedule, give it up already, just applaud them for what they've done, and that's kick a lot of butt. I've compiled some eye opening numbers below, keep in mind, these numbers are just to date and the Rockets have Atlanta and Charlotte on the schedule next and will win at least 21 in a row.

By the numbers:
19 wins in a row

10 wins in a row by double digits

7 wins in a row since our All Star center went out for the season

3rd longest winning streak in NBA history

31 losses since January 29th by teams over .500 to teams below .500

42 losses since January 29th by teams over .500 to the teams the Rockets have beat

46 wins since January 29th over teams above .500 by teamst he Rockets have beaten

2 teams that the Rockets have beaten that don't have a win over an above .500 team

4 losses since January 29th by the Spurs, Lakers, Jazz, Celtics and Pistons
5 losses since January 29th by the Warriors
6 losses since January 29th by the Magic
8 losses since January 29th by the Hornets, Nuggets and Cavaliers
9 losses since January 29th by the Suns and Raptors
10 losses since January 29th by the Mavericks
13 losses since January 29th by the Trailblazers
0 losses since January 29th by the Rockets

11 wins against teams .500 or below on way to 19 in a row by Houston in 07-08

10 wins against teams that finished .500 or below on way to 19 in a row by LA in 99-00

9 wins against teams that finished.500 or below on way to 20 in a row by Milwaukee in 70-71
6 teams in league with that finished.500 or below records when Milwaukee won 20 in a row

19 wins against teams that finished .500 or below records when LA won 33 in 71-72
14 wins against teams that finished above .500 when LA won 33 in a row
9 teams in the league that finished with .500 or below records when LA won 33

2 billion apologies owed to the Rockets for trying to denigrate their awesome streak


Yes, the Rockets have feasted a bit more than the 99-00 Lakers (by 1 game) and the 70-71 Bucks (by 2 games) in their streak but look at LA's 33 game streak. They won only 14 games over teams above .500 and won 19 over teams .500 or below. Why isn't LA's streak knocked down? That's 57% of their wins over teams .500 or below, the Rockets are getting knocked for that exact same 57%. And I don't recall the Lakers losing Wilt or Gail Goodrich or the Logo or Jim McMillan or even Elgin Baylor, Happy Hairston or Pat Riley during that stretch. The Rockets lost Yao Ming the best center in the NBA and have kept it going! And let it be known that 33 is ridiculous, even more so than 19 so in no way do I think LA's streak should be diminished, they played the teams in front of them.

So stop, think, and look at the numbers, the Rockets are making history, just enjoy it. And to all 4 of our readers, if you see someone knocking the streak, send them this post please.

Maybe the Boston Globe was right after all (19-0!)

Last night, the Houston Rockets did what the New England Patriots could not - get that ever elusive 19th win (in a row). Suck on that Tom Brady and Bill Belichick! We are #1 - but you aren't! That's NINETEEN (19) WINS IN A ROW!

Fortunately for T-Mac and the Rockets, Elisha Manning is not on the regular season schedule. Though he has been showing up for a lot of basketball games lately - I think I even saw him at the Duke/UNC game!



Then again, not even Eli is a match for Luis Landry. (Come back Carl Landry - we need you. Bad! It was pretty clear we had a hole in our post offense last night!!)

What is there to say about last night's game? The Rockets could not shoot straight. They could not pass the ball. And they could not make free throws. So, they said "to hell with this, if we can't score, neither can New Jersey!" They then proceeded to shut down Jefferson. And made Vince Carter quit before the 3rd Q. VC quitting isn't exactly a surprise though - that had to be part of the gameplan.

Dikembe would not allow the Nets to score. At all.


I hesitate to write much more, because the game was really, really ugly on the offensive end. The Rockets recovered to shoot 46%, and the Nets limped to a 30% shooting game. No one player scored 20 points (T-Mac had 19 and then sat out the 4th Q). The Rockets free throw shooting was atrocious (though Tracy did go 6-7). 13-26. And we missed both of the FTs following technical fouls. Not quite a repeat of the Detroit game, but that is ugly. We cannot beat the other elite teams if we continue to shoot 50% from the FT line. It's unacceptable. Hopefully it's a byproduct of boredom from being up 20+ points every game.

Yeah, that's 10 wins in a row in double figures - tying a mark most recently matched by the Nets a handful of years ago. Impressive, indeed.

The 19 wins in a row ties the mark most recently matched by the 2000 Shaq and Kobe squad - on the way to their first of three rings (and the first of many locker room fights). Speaking of which, today is Kobe Bryant Blog Day over at Hardwood Paroxysm. Since Kobe is my current favorite player to have absolutely no connection to the Houston Rockets, I kinda sorta have to contribute. That should be posted shortly.

A 19 game winning streak (and counting) and day to write about Kobe. Awesome.

Go Rockets!

The streak is maturing before our eyes!

18!!!

The streak is now of voting age!

(Uncle Sam wants you... to get on the bandwagon)

CP3 tried everything he could do. And I mean the 37 points and 11 assists kind of everything, but the Rockets continue to win. And win by double-figures. Again.

T-Mac had 41. First player to score 40+ in the Toyota Center since Carlos Boozer in the playoffs last year. I guess T-Mac doesn't hate the home rims so much anymore.

Rafer continues to figuratively give me the middle finger every time he takes the court now. A very, very impressive 20 points, just enough to cancel out the only All Star on the court last night. Rafer was apparently trash talking Chris Paul the whole game, too. Ballsy. For example:

"I don't like them. They don't like me," Alston said. "They keep telling me to stop talking. I'm great at talking trash."

Paul, considered an MVP candidate, was pretty good at it, too. "I wish I could be half as good as him one of these days in the NBA," Paul said, "since he thinks he's so great."

For a while I thought it was the Duke/Carolina game I was watching - with all the long-distance shooting and complete lack of free throws. Rafer, Novak, T-Mac, Battier, Luther Head... everyone was making threes. It was crazy. And I loved every minute of it.

Bring on New Jersey... as the streak marches onward to 21 (and it better hit 21 - our next three games are against sub-.500 Eastern teams).

Rockets/Mavs - "17" is legal in Texas!

To get the proper perspective on what is now a SEVENTEEN game winning streak - we go straight to the voice of authority. Chef.

Hey, Chef, what's the right size for a winning streak?

17.

But what if our best player gets injured and is out for the season after only the 12th win?

17.

But what if everyone says that we can't win without Yao and we're only winning because our schedule is soft?

17.

Okay! Thanks, Chef!

The Rockets absolutely destroyed the supposed streak-breaking Dallas Mavericks last night. No, they didn't have Dirk, but we'd have won even if he played. We didn't have Yao - and you don't hear us bitching about it. We've won five straight after having our season declared dead by such NBA luminaries as Stephen A. Smith, Charles Barkley, Jalen Rose and most of the blogosphere.

Our daily Luis Landry update? 29 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks and a handful of soul-crushing dunks by that Landry guy.

And holy hell - the Mavericks made Rafer look like CP3. Shooting, passing, dancing around... Dallas could not stop Rafer Alston. Rafer had a SEASON-HIGH 24 points to go with his 4 assists, 5 rebounds and 2 steals. The best part? During the game Marv Albert was openly fellating Rafer. 2 seconds after tip-off, Marv said that Rafer was having an "excellent season" (Marv must have been busy doing something else in November/December). Then, after halftime, Marv said Rafer is "having a career year" (no, he's not, but he was an absolute badass last night).

Then again, Reggie Miller said that Carl Landry's "weakness" is rebounding. Yeah, apparently Landry is a poor rebounder. Do the TNT guys watch any game film at all? Landry's weaknesses are free throw shooting and an inability to hide his God-like tendencies among normal human folk. That's it. The dude rebounds. He just doesn't have to when we shoot 54% and the other half of Luis Landry gets the available rebounds. Teamwork rules.

Speaking of ruling... I rule!!

I predicted a win against Dallas. I backed it up by taking a bet. And now that bet is paying off. Sometime later today, the unfortunate victims at The Big and The Brown will be posting my recap of last night's game. And, oh yes, I went back to the Toni Braxton story. Picking on Jason Kidd is fun and necessary all at the same time.

Don't mess with the Rockets, Texas (or me). Just stay out of my way. Or you'll pay. Listen to what I say.

17 wins in a row. Rockets are 41-20. Playoff bound.
Dallas? Not so much.

I'm calling it with 5 minutes to go, that's 17 in a row!

That's right, the king of superstition here is calling a game before the clock ticks 0. As Dave said, if we found a way to lose this it would be worse that Oilers/Bills, so screw it, it's over. As I type this, the Rockets have a 20 point lead and have eviscerated the Dallas Mavericks. 17 wins in a row is crazy talk people, only 6 teams in NBA history have ever done better than that. I'll wait till the game is over to toss in some stats, but suffice to say the Rockets kicked a lot of proverbial tail. Unless something dramatically changes this will be the 8th game in a row that Rockets have won by double digits, and they just happen to be leading by 17 and that is the average margin of victory they have had in that streak as well. It's also 11 games in a row won on the road. In our 4 losses this year, 3 have come at home, I'm not sure how that happens, but only having 4 losses all year will get me to gloss over it.

As an FYI, I'm trying to give up using four letter words and their variations. My boy is learning to talk and likes to copy daddy, so you may see some really poor filler words until I up my vocabulary to compensate. I had to say that because I bet Mavs fans have a few choice words for how everyone but Josh Howard played this lovely Texas evening.

And there it is, 17 games in a row!! The game is over, 113-98, keeping the road streak, the double digit streak and most importantly the overall win streak intact! I'm betting the guys over at The Big and the Brown are regretting that bet right about now. I'm going out on a 2 inch limb and saying they have no idea how ruthless Dave can be. It will be all in good fun... well most of it will be I'm sure.

Jason Kidd was borderline awful tonight only scoring 7 to go with 6 rebounds and 6 assists. He was not a game changer and never really caused the Rockets any fear. Of course you could say the same for Dampier and is 7 points and 8 rebounds. Seriously? I thought you were the "Best Center in the West"? What happened to that big guy?? Oh wait, getting destroyed by Yao isn't enough, you needed to be destroyed by Chuck Hayes and 41 year old Mt. Mutumbo? Without Dirk this game doesn't tell us much. It does tell us that the Mavs are done if he ever gets hurt though.

Tracy McGrady put forth his best offensive game of the season tonight, going 13-23 and only shooting 3 from the arc, scoring 31. His best stat was only 1 missed charity shot! All 9 assists were timely and passed from the double and triple teams the Mavs threw at him, and he only had 1 turnover. That's right, 1 solitary itsy bitsy turnover. TMac's rebound total of three was only low because the Rockets rarely missed, shooting 54% from the floor.

And you it's time, holy crapola, Rafer Alston was on fire tonight, 10-21, though he was 2-7 from behind the arc, for 24 points. My favorite stat tonight was his 4 assists to go with ZERO turnovers. He was throwing great passes and great ball movement lost him a few possible assists tonight. He had 5 timely rebounds and 2 steals, getting his hands in the passing lane to break up passes all game.

Luis Landry was 11-19 from the field and 7-10 from the line for 29 points. They had 3 offensive boards and 8 defensive for 11 total rebounds. They also had 3 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Again, they ruled. And darn you Blinebury, it's Luis Landry, not whatever that ridiculous thing you came up with, come on man, you can use it, I don't mind. You don't even have to credit me.

Great win gentlemen! Only 5 turnovers in the entire game, with 3 coming after it was decided for good. Next up for the Rockets is not cakewalk. The Hornets come into Toyota on Saturday night at 7:30PM CST. I'll put up a preview tomorrow night or Saturday morning, either way, I'm going to enjoy 17 in a row.

Speaking of cake, I think I might go find myself a piece.

16 in a row, could 17 be next?

The Pacers review is short. The Rockets destroyed them with teamwork and offensive/defensive efficiency for 1.75 quarters. Then they let the Pacers back in for about a quarter with lazy jump shots because they got bored with a 20+ point lead. Unlike the Rockets team that would have lost this game in December, they decided to turn it back on and put the game away for good at the end of the third quarter going back up by 16. In the fourth it was more of the same. In a 4:20 span from around the 10 minutes mark to around the 5 minute mark the Rockets killed any hopes of a comeback with stifling defense not allowing a single point. From the beginning of the 4th until they built a 25 point lead with 4:54 to go the Pacers only scored 4. It was brutal defense that caused it, and when the Rockets had a lapse Indy was so scared of the defense that they shot poorly anyway. The Rockets forced allowed only two layups in that span and one was missed, the other was the last 2 points in that time frame.


Here is the shot chart, the good guys forced a ton of bad shots:

Luis Landry Update: 10-18 and 6-8 from the line for 26 points, 7 offensive and 7 defensive boards for 14 total rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and 1 block, typical bad-assness

Special props go out to Shane Battier who once again shut down the opponents best player. Mike Dunleavy only scored 13 points on 9 shots, Shane tore him up. Yes he hit 3 of 4 three pointers, but 2 of them Shane wasn't on the floor for and the other 2 he made 1 and Shane was in his grill. Next up for Shane is Josh Howard.

It all adds up to a franchise record 16th win in a row, the last 7 of which have come by double digits and an average of 17+ points. And here's the crazy thing, if the Rockets can get past Dallas tonight, then they get to return home for CP3 and NO, which I like more than playing them in NO even if we split the series the wrong way so far this season, and then the schedule gets easy again. But first things first.

Last night the Rockets took the 30 minute flight up to Dallas to take on the -allas Mavericks, no Dirk no D fellas, and what's good for the Wi--rds and no Agent Zero is good for -allas. And contrary to popular belief the Mavs actually play pretty good D, so they would have had it going into the game if Dirk was around. Tonight they go head to head at 8:30PM CST in Dallas at the American Airlines center.

That brings us to why Dirk is out for the game. On Monday the Mavs took on the Utah Jazz, a team I actually hate, unlike the Mavericks. During the first quarter Dirk gently placed AK47 on the floor because the hardwood came from Russia and he thought he should be with his family. Unfortunately for Dirk the refs didn't know he was just testing AK's durability (those things are supposed to shoot in any weather and with any amount of abuse) and that he found the rumors to be untrue. Personally I think the foul should have been a flagrant 1 and not a 2, but I'm not complaining, anytime you don't have to face a superstar is a good thing, and Dirk just so happens to take pleasure in kicking the ever living turds out of the Rockets.

I keep seeing and hearing "The Rockets wanted to play the Mavericks at full strength." Here's my response: That is absolutely ridiculous. In basketball more than any sport the athletes have short term memories, they won't really care or remember that Dirk wasn't there when the playoffs come around. They are just going to remember that they have scoreboard on the Mavericks, period, end of story. Though, let's not forget, a lot of times teams come out on fire the first game of a superstar being gone, so the Rockets will need to temper that, or just play some shut down defense and eliminate the possibility. Anyway, back to my point, the Rockets just want the win, they don't want to face the Mavericks in the playoffs anyway and winning is one way to help avoid that. Winning is a contagious thing in the NBA, it just blurs together and who you played doesn't matter, you gain confidence and then you simply remember that you win, and that's how it is.

Dallas Mavericks: 39-22 (25-3 at home) 5-5 in their last 10

Houston Rockets: 40-20 (18-11 on the road) 10-0 in their last 10

Though the Mavs have lost 2 in a row and 5 of their last 10, all of those were on the road. They have won 12 in a row at home, and their 3 losses were to Washington by 12, Denver by 13, and Cleveland by 7 all before the new year. They are 19-11 on the new year, so 7-11 on the road and 12-0 at home. I'm thinking I would have rather this game be at Toyota, but I'll take no Dirk as the equalizer. They've also won 6 straight overall against the Rockets and 5 straight at Dallas to go with 10 of 11 at Dallas. You know what I take from that? 1. The Rockets are due and 2. The Mavs lost 1, rolled off 5 in a row, lost one, rolled off 5 in a row, and now the Rockets come in to take 1 from them. I like that trend as sick as that sounds.

What's my prediction? I think you know where this is headed... 17 in a row!

Check out Mav's Moneyball and The Big and the Brown for the Dallas side.

It's a bird... it's a plane... it's...

Superman???

No! It's Luis Landry! Here to save the day for the Rockets -- again.

That's 15 in a row, bitches! We kinda called it. And yet no one believed us. Maybe now you will listen?? Hey - the Rockets are going to make the playoffs. We are. In fact, we'd have an awesome re-match with Utah if the playoffs started today. And we'd have home court freakin' advantage, too. Just like last year.

But unlike last year, the Utah Jazz will actually have to defend our power forwards. Who can actually catch, shoot and just enjoy being awesome. Sorry, Chuck Hayes, I like you, but awesome you are not. Okay, maybe a little awesome, but not Luis Landry awesome.

No Yao? No problem. Luis Landry only tore up the Nuggets for 30 points (on 14-26 FG) and 19 rebounds. I think they even made Iverson piss himself in fear. The Answer went an awesome 7-22 from the field, doing his best Kevin Durant impersonation. Looks like you do need practice, there, Allen.

Rockets... 39-20, 5th in West (though would have HCA against Utah, currently 4th because of the stupid rule that division winners get seeded higher).

Teams that may NOT make the playoffs:

Denver
Phoenix

Yes, I'm calling it now. The Shaq trade has backfired so much that the Phoenix Suns are going to be in danger of completely missing the playoffs. It's not Houston that has a playoff problem, it's the Fat Ass and his band of merry men.