Why do Rockets suck?

[KingSpeed]

They have exact same roster that reached WCF. I'm confused.

 

[PDXFonz]

Wow, Kingspeed cant figure out one of the NBA's most obvious problems!

Their chemistry is atrocious because their incompetent management thought they could take any players in the NBA and stick them together regardless of play style and personality. They've never fit together well, and have always coasted by because their roster has been packed with some of the better individual talent in the league.

 

[theprunetang]

He does have a valid point though here. Yes, it should be safe to assume that throwing random players together regardless of fit and chemistry is stupid and should fail. However, it worked for then last year. Western conference finals is no joke. That is the quandary. What changed between this year and last?

 

[PDXFonz]

He does have a valid point though here. Yes, it should be safe to assume that throwing random players together regardless of fit and chemistry is stupid and should fail. However, it worked for then last year. Western conference finals is no joke. That is the quandary. What changed between this year and last?

The thing is, it's not a system where talent is more important than chemistry, or even vice versa. So you can have a decent amount of success with either a lot of chemistry and not as much talent, or a lot of talent and not as much chemistry. But ultimately it is not likely sustainable success.


I look at it like an analogy... like a baseball - where talent and chemistry protect the delicate inside of the ball. Talent can be the white part and chemistry can be the stitching that holds it together.

You can lose some of the stitching and the ball may stay together, but after a big impact from the bat (last years playoffs for the Rockets) the ball is going to fall apart.

It's that delicate dance that makes it so impressive that the Spurs 'ball' is still in game shape.

I think ultimately it speaks to the fact that if you are going to run a succesful franchise the most important piece is the General Manager, not the Coach, or even the players... That's just my opinion though.
* Not to say the coach and players aren't important, its a team and they all have to have talent, and chemistry together as well. But ultimately the GM is the one responsible for gathering all the materials.

 

[oldmangrouch]

Good question. If their "chemistry" is worse this season, that has been caused by their on court struggles - not the other way around. The same core group had no chemistry problems when they went to the WCF.

 

[BlazerDuckSeahawkFan94]

1. They are a team that is built around 3s and FTA while giving a fuck about defense.

2. All their good players are me first guys.

3. Their coach wants them to play some uptempo brand of basketball when they're clearly a half court slow down type of team.

 

[Draco]

The league is much more prepared to defend against analytic high volume 3 point shooting offenses. Two years ago the Rockets were atypical and innovative. Now the whole league is equally skilled at using and defending heavy 3 point light midrange attacks.

Other reasons; DMo was their best big last year but has been hurt. McHale got great production out of Corey Brewer and Josh Smith. Harden was in good defensive shape before last season from team USA. Dwight has severely declined athletically. Their chemistry issues manifest during the losing this year, teams can play through bad chemistry when winning as they did last year.

 

[oldfisherman]

This season, the Rockets offensive team stats are actually slightly better than last season. If everything else was equal, they should be winning more games. However, not everything is the same or better than last season.

This season the Rockets are allowing their opponents to score 6 more points per game than last season (106.4 this season vs 100.5 last season). That would indicate there is chemistry issues with their team defense.

 

[mook]

Harden's defense has somehow managed to regress even more. Although the team is loaded with good individual defenders, after a couple years of his horse shit they seem to have stopped trying. And maybe some of the players and even the fans are starting to question if it's a team they want to be on....

 

[Draco]

Good question. If their "chemistry" is worse this season, that has been caused by their on court struggles - not the other way around. The same core group had no chemistry problems when they went to the WCF.

We saw this with the 2001 Blazers. They got the WCF and had the best record in the league the next season. Chemistry was a concern; but the winning kept everyone in line. Then Rod Strickland was brought in, and that was the final straw that broke the camels back. The Blazers blew up and barely made the playoffs getting swept. Dysfunctional teams can play great when winning; chemistry matter when teams need to fight through a losing stretch. The Rockets fell apart at the start of the season and once they became a broken locker room the season was doomed.

 

[BlazerDuckSeahawkFan94]

We saw this with the 2001 Blazers. They got the WCF and had the best record in the league the next season. Chemistry was a concern; but the winning kept everyone in line. Then Rod Strickland was brought in, and that was the straw that broke the camels back. The Blazers blew up and barely made the playoffs getting swept. Dysfunctional teams can play great when winning; chemistry matter when teams need to fight through a losing stretch. The Rockets fell apart at the start of the season and once they became a broken locker room the season was doomed.

It will be really interesting to see how the Rockets handle James Harden this summer. I really don't think it's out of the realm of possibilities to see him moved and Morey fired when they lose Howard and strikeout on Durant.

 

[PDXFonz]

It will be really interesting to see how the Rockets handle James Harden this summer. I really don't think it's out of the realm of possibilities to see him moved and Morey fired when they lose Howard and strikeout on Durant.

He's not going anywhere. I'm so excited!

 

[mook]

That said, I'm starting to wonder if we target Dwight during the offseason.

Interesting article about free agent destinations for him. I think our team is one of the more attractive options, especially given the contrast in chemistry and ball movement compared to the Rockets.

There are some massive, bright red flags with Howard--especially age. But they are the reason why we might be able to get him.

 

[PDXFonz]

I shudder thinking about being the team who pays Dwight a multi year max only to find out he really doesn't give a shit about winning at all anymore. Has Houston's "hell" soured him, or rekindled him?

I don't think I could be a GM just because I know I don't have the balls to make a move like Dwight Howard this summer. He's either going to make someone look like phenomenal, or cost them their job.

 

[BlazerDuckSeahawkFan94]

I shudder thinking about being the team who pays Dwight a multi year max only to find out he really doesn't give a shit about winning at all anymore. Has Houston's "hell" soured him, or rekindled him?

I don't think I could be a GM just because I know I don't have the balls to make a move like Dwight Howard this summer. He's either going to make someone look like phenomenal, or cost them their job.

I agree so much with this. However if NO got him for something REASONABLE (say 3 years/55million) I'd be on board.

 

[theprunetang]

The league is much more prepared to defend against analytic high volume 3 point shooting offenses. Two years ago the Rockets were atypical and innovative. Now the whole league is equally skilled at using and defending heavy 3 point light midrange attacks.

Other reasons; DMo was their best big last year but has been hurt. McHale got great production out of Corey Brewer and Josh Smith. Harden was in good defensive shape before last season from team USA. Dwight has severely declined athletically. Their chemistry issues manifest during the losing this year, teams can play through bad chemistry when winning as they did last year.

Draco nailed it with this and his next post. Combine all of this with two historically great 1 and 2 seeds and you get the 2016 Houston Rockets.

 

[PDXFonz]

I agree so much with this. However if NO got him for something REASONABLE (say 3 years/55million) I'd be on board.

I'm not even sure I care about the monetary figure as much as I care about the contract length.

If Dwight want's to win and see's he can win here then I think he would re-sign. If we sign him to a multi-year and he can't win here then we are stuck with a potentially unmovable contract that eats into our cap space.

 

[Strenuus]

I dunno... ask NASA.

 

[KingSpeed]

The league is much more prepared to defend against analytic high volume 3 point shooting offenses. Two years ago the Rockets were atypical and innovative. Now the whole league is equally skilled at using and defending heavy 3 point light midrange attacks.

Other reasons; DMo was their best big last year but has been hurt. McHale got great production out of Corey Brewer and Josh Smith. Harden was in good defensive shape before last season from team USA. Dwight has severely declined athletically. Their chemistry issues manifest during the losing this year, teams can play through bad chemistry when winning as they did last year.

I thought DMo was hurt LAST year. He started tonight.

 

[ripcityboy]

Ummm. No chemistry. A bunch of pampered superstars got the only person with a semblance of control fired. Just a thought.....

 

[jlprk]

The thing is, it's not a system where talent is more important than chemistry, or even vice versa. So you can have a decent amount of success with either a lot of chemistry and not as much talent, or a lot of talent and not as much chemistry. But ultimately it is not likely sustainable success.


I look at it like an analogy... like a baseball - where talent and chemistry protect the delicate inside of the ball. Talent can be the white part and chemistry can be the stitching that holds it together.

You can lose some of the stitching and the ball may stay together, but after a big impact from the bat (last years playoffs for the Rockets) the ball is going to fall apart.

It's that delicate dance that makes it so impressive that the Spurs 'ball' is still in game shape.

I think ultimately it speaks to the fact that if you are going to run a succesful franchise the most important piece is the General Manager, not the Coach, or even the players... That's just my opinion though.
* Not to say the coach and players aren't important, its a team and they all have to have talent, and chemistry together as well. But ultimately the GM is the one responsible for gathering all the materials.

Best post of the month. Best 3 hours of your life, writing that!

 

[KingSpeed]

Where's Superbeard?

 

[mook]

I'm not even sure I care about the monetary figure as much as I care about the contract length.

If Dwight want's to win and see's he can win here then I think he would re-sign. If we sign him to a multi-year and he can't win here then we are stuck with a potentially unmovable contract that eats into our cap space.

In total agreement here. I'd be fine with signing him to a max deal for two years, but it's the idea of committing long-term to him that's worrying.

Still, though, there's going to be a lot of money available this summer, and Dwight is really only competing with Horford for big money at the center position. A 19 PER center who can usually play 2200 minutes is a pretty valuable commodity to any team hoping to compete.

 

[Draco]

That said, I'm starting to wonder if we target Dwight during the offseason.

Interesting article about free agent destinations for him. I think our team is one of the more attractive options, especially given the contrast in chemistry and ball movement compared to the Rockets.

There are some massive, bright red flags with Howard--especially age. But they are the reason why we might be able to get him.

I'm certain we could get him; the question is should we try to get him? No, I wouldn't consider it at any price; even for a cheap $5 million per season. His production is decreasing at an accelerating rate. He has no basketball skills outside strength, size and athleticism. He has major injury history. He makes frustrating fundamental mistakes. He doesn't have any long term upside. Aging former superstars are the most difficult players to coach and to accept lesser roles. He wouldn't accept the Chris Kaman role happily and his production doesn't guarantee him a larger role. Better to miss an opportunity for a small gain than risk a major problem.

I'd rather see us try to sign Boban, Gasol, Biyombo, Joakim, Mozgov, Mahimi, Sullinger, Ezeli, Speights, Al Jefferson, DMo, Zeller or even David West.

 

[Draco]

I thought DMo was hurt LAST year. He started tonight.

He was hurt in last years playoffs; he was one of their best players last regular season. The team played better with him in place of Dwight. He's been hurt throughout this season. He failed a physical two months ago causing the Pistons to rescind a trade for him.

 

[Draco]

That said, I'm starting to wonder if we target Dwight during the offseason.

Interesting article about free agent destinations for him. I think our team is one of the more attractive options, especially given the contrast in chemistry and ball movement compared to the Rockets.

There are some massive, bright red flags with Howard--especially age. But they are the reason why we might be able to get him.

I suspect Dwight ends up in Dallas. That's if he even opts out though. His value has declined so much he might opt in to cash in that final year at $20 million. He'd then force the Rockets to trade him. He probably believes he can play well and rebuild his value to earn a new huge contract from a new team. He's running low on franchises that'll have any interest in him. Center is the most overcrowded position in today's NBA. Times have certainly changed from when backup stiff's all got massive contracts.

 

[Draco]

In total agreement here. I'd be fine with signing him to a max deal for two years, but it's the idea of committing long-term to him that's worrying.

Still, though, there's going to be a lot of money available this summer, and Dwight is really only competing with Horford for big money at the center position. A 19 PER center who can usually play 2200 minutes is a pretty valuable commodity to any team hoping to compete.

Dwight is a shell of his old self. He now has inflated rebounds from the JJ Hickson effect; hoarding uncontested boards, stealing teammates rebounds, and not boxing out his man. Thats why the Rockets are 20th in rebounds even with their fast pace, but gave up more rebounds than all but 9 teams. They have the lowest defensive rebounding rate in the league at 72.8%. Dwights 11 RPG is fools gold which will only be worse next season.

Run away, fast. Not to mention center is the deepest position on our roster; with Meyers we have three of them.

 

[mook]

I'm certain we could get him; the question is should we try to get him? No, I wouldn't consider it at any price; even for a cheap $5 million per season. His production is decreasing at an accelerating rate. He has no basketball skills outside strength, size and athleticism. He has major injury history. He makes frustrating fundamental mistakes. He doesn't have any long term upside. Aging former superstars are the most difficult players to coach and to accept lesser roles. He wouldn't accept the Chris Kaman role happily and his production doesn't guarantee him a larger role. Better to miss an opportunity for a small gain than risk a major problem.

I'd rather see us try to sign Boban, Gasol, Biyombo, Joakim, Mozgov, Mahimi, Sullinger, Ezeli, Speights, Al Jefferson, DMo, Zeller or even David West.

He still gives you 14pts/12 rebs/62%FG/1.6blocks. It's nowhere near his peak, but if he'd been putting up those numbers for the past decade he'd be considered much more desirable right now.

As for having no skills outside of size/strength/athleticism, well, neither did Shaq, and he was still a putting up 17ppg when he was 36. At 30 years old, Dwight's best days may be behind him, but he's still got some good years left in him.

I'm firmly in the camp that any team can tolerate one knucklehead, and may even benefit from it. I'd rather Horford or Ezeli, but I could see Howard as an option.

 

[Draco]

He still gives you 14pts/12 rebs/62%FG/1.6blocks. It's nowhere near his peak, but if he'd been putting up those numbers for the past decade he'd be considered much more desirable right now.

As for having no skills outside of size/strength/athleticism, well, neither did Shaq, and he was still a putting up 17ppg when he was 36. At 30 years old, Dwight's best days may be behind him, but he's still got some good years left in him.

I'm firmly in the camp that any team can tolerate one knucklehead, and may even benefit from it. I'd rather Horford or Ezeli, but I could see Howard as an option.

I'm sure Dwight can put up stats; but does it make the team better? His last two years in Orlando his team was #1 and #2 in defensive rebounding rate. This year the Rockets were #30. I don't want my favorite team to get players that put up meaningless stats and cost the team wins.

Shaquille Oneal in Phoenix is a great example. They won 10 more games the year prior and the year after. He put up stats but hurt the team. Those Suns missed the playoffs. The next year when he left they made the conference finals.

 

[jlprk]

He'll play better for McMillan.

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