How do we beat Houston?

[BlayZa]

some good suggestions and thoughts - but it's pretty hard to go past the 'score more points than they do' philosophy....

 

[umair]

Yao will dominate Oden. Lol but forreal, I'm not here to trash talk or anything. Good luck to you guys in the series. You guys have a great 10 deep roster, with all players capable of doing something big. It'll all come down to matchups and who takes advantage. If Roy can get past Battier/Artest, and Outlaw/Fernandez come up big, then you guys may have a chance. If Yao dominates Oden, it's over. But good luck anways. My prediction is:

Game 1: Rockets (Blazers first playoff game in like 5 years, it'll be new to them, they'll be nervous)
Game 2: Blazers (close game)
Game 3: Rockets (dominate at home)
Game 4: Rockets (close game)
Game 5: Blazers (7+ points)
Game 6: Rockets (close it out)

 

[gatorpops]

On defensing Yao, try to play him straight up with Joel and put great pressure on the entry pass. And rebound. We need to be very agressive at all rebounds.

 

[TripTango]

Yao will dominate Oden. Lol but forreal, I'm not here to trash talk or anything. Good luck to you guys in the series. You guys have a great 10 deep roster, with all players capable of doing something big. It'll all come down to matchups and who takes advantage. If Roy can get past Battier/Artest, and Outlaw/Fernandez come up big, then you guys may have a chance. If Yao dominates Oden, it's over. But good luck anways. My prediction is:

Game 1: Rockets (Blazers first playoff game in like 5 years, it'll be new to them, they'll be nervous)
Game 2: Blazers (close game)
Game 3: Rockets (dominate at home)
Game 4: Rockets (close game)
Game 5: Blazers (7+ points)
Game 6: Rockets (close it out)

First off, that's a reasonable set of predictions. I only disagree with Game 1 (and Game 7, of course!). The Yao/Oden matchup is probably not as important as the Yao/Przybilla matchup, actually. Of course, Yao still gets the nod there, but it's not as wide a gap -- the Gorilla is playing some mighty solid ball, and he's crafty enough to hold his own.

As far as nerves go, I agree to an extent. Still, with the way that the Blazers have been winning lately, I think their confidence will easily roll over and quell some of those early-playoff jitters.

I see this one going to seven.

Regardless, here's to a good clean series!

 

[LittleAlex]

Regardless, here's to a good clean series!

With Ron Arrest on the floor, a clean series is simply not possible.

 

[mook]

The Yao/Oden matchup is probably not as important as the Yao/Przybilla matchup, actually.

Actually, I think think it'll be the Yao/Aldridge matchup that's pivotal. We're at our best when Aldridge fronts Yao, because his length prevents the lob, and his quickness allows him to recover.

Przybilla has never been great at fronting people. He does his best work near the rim, and fronting Yao will put him 17 feet away from the basket.

On the other end, Yao obviously won't be guarding Aldridge. But Aldridge's ability to put up more points than Yao is going to be critical to this series.

 

[gatorpops]

First off, that's a reasonable set of predictions. I only disagree with Game 1 (and Game 7, of course!). The Yao/Oden matchup is probably not as important as the Yao/Przybilla matchup, actually. Of course, Yao still gets the nod there, but it's not as wide a gap -- the Gorilla is playing some mighty solid ball, and he's crafty enough to hold his own.

As far as nerves go, I agree to an extent. Still, with the way that the Blazers have been winning lately, I think their confidence will easily roll over and quell some of those early-playoff jitters.

I see this one going to seven.

Regardless, here's to a good clean series!

I don't foresee any nerve problems. These kids have shown a remarkable composure and poise latley, not unlike the 1977 team.

 

[MARIS61]

Utilize our depth to a great extent, which is our only edge.

 

[maxiep]

I think the way to stop Houston on offense is to cover Brooks like a blanket. Really play pressure on-the-ball defense, even if you have to rotate our guards in and out to keep them fresh. Make the Rockets play with a short clock and force turnovers. Batum needs to carpet Battier on the wing as he's been a killer with that corner three. Force Artest to beat you.

On offense we have to push, push, push and push some more. Force Yao to run. Brooks is quicker than Blake, but Roy is quicker than Ron Ron, Batum is quicker than Battier, LMA is quicker than Scola and Wheels is quicker than Yao, much less Joel or GO. I'd also like to see us play some small ball, with a three guard lineup, Travis at the four and LMA at the five.

 

[Ghost Pepper]

Outlaw, Rudy, LA and Roy need to attack the glass early in the game and get Yao in foul trouble. Once that is established and he sits pound the ball into Greg and Joel in the second quarter. This will inturn draw their defense in, and we can go to work on the outside with Blake, Rudy, Travis and Roy.

If we shoot jump shots in the early part of the games we will not win! Attack and be hard nosed is the only way the Rockets go down. Yao may be a great center but he's slow and fouls can get him. If he's gone, Oden and Joel can take over!

 

[igotask8board]

If the Rockets get away with manhandling Roy, Rudy and Outlaw what is our counter? We need to force them to double and pass to the open guy. The only way we do that is either have players lighting them up, or get some penetration. Frankly -- I think we got to go with who's hot and clicking. If that means Blake gets less minutes or Oden gets less minutes or even Roy, so be it. I am not worried about defending Houston, I am worried about scoring on them. As good as Sergio was last night, Nate needs to be quick to go to him if we are having trouble getting open looks. Sergio, if he is driving down the lane, can get the Blazers open looks. What's your game plan to score on Houston?

The conspiracy theorist in me believes the NBA wants to see a Lakers-Cavs final but also wants to see a Lakers-Blazers 2nd round matchup. I am hoping we get a little bonus from the refs. I really want to get out of the 1st round so we can see the Lakers in the 2nd round.

The Rockets have adopted a man-to-man defensive system. Basically, if the Blazers want to win, Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge will have to step up in a seven game series. These are the two kinds of players that gave the Rockets the most trouble all season. The quick, athletic PF that can hit the midrange jumper, and the tall and very quick guard that can hit from anywhere on the floor or penetrate. Artest and Battier will have trouble keeping up with Roy so Wafer will get a go at him.

Expect Outlaw, Oden, Fernandez, Batum, and Blake to struggle at times. One or two of them may be taken completely out of the series and benched in the later games. In the playoffs, your best players have to step up and create for their teammates. Nothing is given, everything is taken.


Good luck, and may the best team win.

 

[maxiep]

Why the hell would Roy publicly announce that he's noticed a weakpoint in their defense? Keep it to yourself and scorch 'em, man.

Quick asked him what it was and Roy demurred.

 

[maxiep]

Any thought to switching LMA and Joel on defense? Meaning LMA fronts Yao with Joel in the post banging Scola with the responsibility of doubling Yao? If Luis pops out for the 15 footer, then you have to let him and pick your poison.

 

[GoBlazersGo]

Expect Outlaw, Oden, Fernandez, Batum, and Blake to struggle at times. One or two of them may be taken completely out of the series and benched in the later games.

Should we also, then, expect Barry, Hayes, Landry, Lowry, Scola, and Wafer "to struggle at times" with "[o]ne or two of them be[ing] taken completely out of the series and benched in the later games"?

 

[TripTango]

Should we also, then, expect Barry, Hayes, Landry, Lowry, Scola, and Wafer "to struggle at times" with "[o]ne or two of them be[ing] taken completely out of the series and benched in the later games"?

Yes.

 

[GoBlazersGo]

Yes.

Oops... I kind of forgot the green font!

 

[TripTango]

Actually, I think think it'll be the Yao/Aldridge matchup that's pivotal. We're at our best when Aldridge fronts Yao, because his length prevents the lob, and his quickness allows him to recover.

Przybilla has never been great at fronting people. He does his best work near the rim, and fronting Yao will put him 17 feet away from the basket.

On the other end, Yao obviously won't be guarding Aldridge. But Aldridge's ability to put up more points than Yao is going to be critical to this series.

I just don't see a pure fronting defensive scheme working out so well. Ever try fronting 7 and a half feet? There's just no way that Aldridge would be able to deny him the ball consistently that way. I think we'll see more of Joel trying to keep Yao away from the basket.

Anyone have our previous games against them recorded? How have we guarded him in the past?

 

[hasoos]

Go look at the Houston losses and you will see several common denominators of every game:

1. PF position producing well for whoever played against Houston. In every loss the PF of the opposition put up some good numbers. In many of these matchups, the PF was actually a smaller type of PF such as Gay or Villenueva, and even in one case, Grant Hill playing PF.

2. Attack Aaron Brooks. The guy is a scorer. But if you watched U of O, and watch the NBA now, you know he isn't a defender. Common denominator is the opposing PG attacked him and put up some numbers, and broke down the paint to get others easy buckets.

3. Yao will get his. Attack him so he will get fouls, because the best way to stop him is to limit his minutes. He is not a great defender and will committ fouls.

4. Don't let nobodies like Von Wafer kill you. Respect all their players ability to score.

 

[LittleAlex]

I just don't see a pure fronting defensive scheme working out so well. Ever try fronting 7 and a half feet? There's just no way that Aldridge would be able to deny him the ball consistently that way. I think we'll see more of Joel trying to keep Yao away from the basket.

Anyone have our previous games against them recorded? How have we guarded him in the past?

You would think this would be the case, but Houston has treated defenders fronting Yao like it was a Rubix Cube. For whatever reason, they seem completely incapable of getting him the ball when he gets fronted.

They may solve this puzzle in the playoffs, though.

 

[Minstrel]

You would think this would be the case, but Houston has treated defenders fronting Yao like it was a Rubix Cube. For whatever reason, they seem completely incapable of getting him the ball when he gets fronted.

They may solve this puzzle in the playoffs, though.

It comes down to Houston, like Portland, not having great entry pass skills in their guards and Yao not having great hands. They have trouble getting it over the defender and into Yao. So they just stop going to him.

And then if Artest decides that he needs to save the team, Houston is really in trouble.

 

[MrJayremmie]

1. Have a good strategy for Yao (front him, double him when he touches it, try to get him fouls, run when he is in there, use him in pick and roll situations and so on)
2. Take advantage of mis-matches and watch out for line-up disadvantages (Artest overpowering Batum... Brooks being too quick for our PGs... Scola/Hayes matching up with Outlaw at PF... etc.) -- (at the same time, look for switches on pick and rolls, look for Aldridge's height advantage, Blake being able to get past Brooks who isnt the greatest defender, and of course our 2nd units respectively, which I think gives us a big advantage)
3. Don't force the ball to a player who is off or being double team (we need other guys to step up, especially Travis and Rudy)
4. Protect our home court and take advantage of the energy in the building
5. Simply continue to play how we are playing overall, specifically continuing to play as a team (especially our bench, which we will greatly need)
6. Mental psyche (don't let the magnitude of the playoffs get to you and affect your game, and don't let players like Battier and Artest get in your head and frustrate you)
7. Of course, the most important one, Defense, Defense, Defense. We need to have the right defensive strategy and execute. Who are we going to force to beat us? Are we going to take someone away? Are we going to concentrate on Yao and their outside shooters? Whatever we do, execution is critical (as is having the right strategy of course) because allowing Houston to score 100+ on us will make it incredibly hard to win against them, as they are a very good defensive team. I think we definitely want to hold them in the high 80s (which is very possible, imo).

In my opinion, those are the most important points for our team in this first round series against the Houston Rockets. They are a really tough team, and one of the last teams I wanted to see in the first round. Our first home-stand is incredible important.

#1 Early lead. If we take them down 2-0 in the series by winning both of our home court games it should take a most of the wind out of their sails, turning this series from a 7 game grind fest to a 4-5 game breeze.

I think this is a valid point, but I think "early lead" goes beyond that. I think coming out and playing well in the 1st quarter and putting Houston in a double-digit hole to start of the game would be paramount for us. They don't seem to be a team that can score in a hurry and are mainly an inside-out team. Being down by double-digits might force Artest to try and take it over which would also be beneficial to us.

Also, about taking an early lead in the series, I think that is a good point. Going back to Houston with a 2-0 lead will put pressure on the team. Especially because the thoughts about them not being able to get out of the first round may be clouding their heads and forcing them to play a little more tense/tight, also bringing some increased pressure from the fan base.

On offense we have to push, push, push and push some more. Force Yao to run. Brooks is quicker than Blake, but Roy is quicker than Ron Ron, Batum is quicker than Battier, LMA is quicker than Scola and Wheels is quicker than Yao, much less Joel or GO.

Yeah, another great point that could easily be added to the list. LMA will have a huge advantage over their PFs, and Yao won't be able to get back on D. Running would help us get easy buckets and not just get the crowd involved, but help take Houston out of their grind-it-out half-court style of bball all the time. Would be wise to do this for sure, imo.

 

[Minstrel]

I wouldn't double Yao. Przybilla and Oden definitely can't stop Yao, but I think they're strong enough and good enough defenders to keep him around his season averages without the use of double-teams (Yao got most of his production against double-teams, which is why he's so valuable). If Portland can hold him to low-20s of points, and rebound well against him, without resorting to double-teams, they'll be in great shape. Houston's role-players are great at hitting shots when left open by defenders doubling down on Yao.

If Yao gets his averages but the rest of the Rockets are held to minimal production, Portland will do well.

 

[mook]

On offense we have to push, push, push and push some more. Force Yao to run. Brooks is quicker than Blake, but Roy is quicker than Ron Ron, Batum is quicker than Battier, LMA is quicker than Scola and Wheels is quicker than Yao, much less Joel or GO.

That's a great point. Portland is actually a really good uptempo team. It's one of the reasons we've made so many comebacks after being down double digits. We rush things a little more when we get down, which for most teams is bad. But when Portland rushes it takes us out of "molasses speed" and into "open court aggressive dunking mode." You blink and we've gone on a 10 point run.

Portland always plays faster at home, so it's another reason I like our chances of sweeping those first two.

Houston runs a slow-paced style because they have to. They have no point guard and their center is half a step faster than Shaq. Portland does it because that's the coach's style, and he knows how that's how you win playoff basketball. But he's definitely shown a willingness to play different teams differently, depending on circumstance.

The Rockets/Blazers matchup is defined by versatility. Houston is a jackhammer, and if you need jackhammering then that is the team for you. Portland is a toolbox. If one tool isn't working that night, you go to the next one and the next one and the next one, whether you are talking about players or playing style.

 

[MrJayremmie]

I wouldn't double Yao.

I'm with ya. I wouldn't either. I was just listing everything I could think of.

Edit -- but i'd probably try and do the other things I listed, tbh. Front him, use him in pick and roll situations, run with him in there, and go at him trying to get him to pick up fouls.

 

[mook]

I wouldn't double Yao. Przybilla and Oden definitely can't stop Yao, but I think they're strong enough and good enough defenders to keep him around his season averages without the use of double-teams (Yao got most of his production against double-teams, which is why he's so valuable). If Portland can hold him to low-20s of points, and rebound well against him, without resorting to double-teams, they'll be in great shape. Houston's role-players are great at hitting shots when left open by defenders doubling down on Yao.

If Yao gets his averages but the rest of the Rockets are held to minimal production, Portland will do well.

I'd double Yao, with Aldridge fronting.
Then I'd zone him.
Then single coverage with Przybilla.
Then double down with a guard, with Oden behind.
I might even try both Oden and Przybilla in there for a two minute gimmick.
Then single coverage with Przybilla.
Then zone again.
Etc.

The key is to go with multiple strategies, not because some fail (which, of course they will). But because it'll keep their offense out of rhythm. You want the Rockets to have to have to read the defense every time, never quite knowing if they'll be able to get the ball into the post until they try.

We've got the perfect team to throw every look imaginable at Yao. We should use that ability.

 

[hasoos]

Your crazy people. The best way to control Yao is to attack him and get him in foul trouble. If he isn't in the game, you don't have to defend him. He is not a good defender, and actually tends to committs fouls if presented with an opportunity.

 

[Sedatedfork]

The Rockets have adopted a man-to-man defensive system. Basically, if the Blazers want to win, Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge will have to step up in a seven game series. These are the two kinds of players that gave the Rockets the most trouble all season. The quick, athletic PF that can hit the midrange jumper, and the tall and very quick guard that can hit from anywhere on the floor or penetrate. Artest and Battier will have trouble keeping up with Roy so Wafer will get a go at him.

Expect Outlaw, Oden, Fernandez, Batum, and Blake to struggle at times. One or two of them may be taken completely out of the series and benched in the later games. In the playoffs, your best players have to step up and create for their teammates. Nothing is given, everything is taken.


Good luck, and may the best team win.

We'll see. I am hoping for a big Game 1 win for the Blazers. A loss in game 1 might set the team (and this board) into panic mode. If Aldridge is hitting his shot early that bodes well for the Blazers.

 

[Minstrel]

He is not a good defender, and actually tends to committs fouls if presented with an opportunity.

I don't agree with that. Yao's a very good defender. He challenges slashers when most centers concede, which leads to a number of "posterizations" that fuel the belief that he's a poor defender. The same thing happened to Ewing, who challenged slashers more than most. He'll take fouls, but almost never fouls out and plays good minutes. He's been the linchpin to Houston's consistently high-ranked team defenses and he's a very strong and good post defender.

It'll be great if Roy and others can get him into foul trouble, but it won't be because he's a poor defender.

 

[hasoos]

I don't agree with that. Yao's a very good defender. He challenges slashers when most centers concede, which leads to a number of "posterizations" that fuel the belief that he's a poor defender. The same thing happened to Ewing, who challenged slashers more than most. He'll take fouls, but almost never fouls out and plays good minutes. He's been the linchpin to Houston's consistently high-ranked team defenses and he's a very strong and good post defender.

It'll be great if Roy and others can get him into foul trouble, but it won't be because he's a poor defender.

We will have to disagree. I view it as the problem with most teams is that they don't challenge him. That is why he is viewed as a decent defender. When you have a young team that is not afraid of what a vet team would, you have to use it. Attack.

 

[Wheels]

I don't agree with that. Yao's a very good defender. He challenges slashers when most centers concede, which leads to a number of "posterizations" that fuel the belief that he's a poor defender. The same thing happened to Ewing, who challenged slashers more than most. He'll take fouls, but almost never fouls out and plays good minutes. He's been the linchpin to Houston's consistently high-ranked team defenses and he's a very strong and good post defender.

It'll be great if Roy and others can get him into foul trouble, but it won't be because he's a poor defender.

Agree.. if you dont get posterized as a big man.. you arent trying.