18 replies to this topic

[Red94]

New post: Recap: Houston Rockets 107, Los Angeles Lakers 105

[kjy112]

Ooooh starting PG controversy. Jeremy Lin benched and played only 20 mins vs Tony Douglas's 28 mins. Discuss....

[Forrest Walker]

This benching feels more palatable for the starters. The bench guys were rolling, and that's all there was to it. It felt like that Spurs vs Mavs game last year where Pop kept the bench unit in because they closed the gap. Most of the time the starters will be the ones getting it done. Against the Lakers, just happened to be those guys. And good for them.

[xsamc1]

When it comes to Lin, there will always be a PG controversy. His fans love him. His critics hate him. Douglas had a great game but Lin wasn't benched because of his performance. He was benched because he picked up his second foul early in the game. Then when Sampson put him in again, he picked up another quick foul. And then again. Fortunately, Douglas was able to pick up the slack on offense and defensive so at the end of the game, Sampson went with Douglas. He created a few steals and had timely baskets.

Is it me or has Lin's been bringing up the ball a lot more in the last two games and initiating the offense? Despite all the criticism that Lin gets about his turnovers, I feel more comfortable having him bring the ball up the floor than Harden. Which brings me to my last observation. What's going on with him? I don't see him playing much defense and I don't know if it's because he's trying to save his energy for offense but I wish he would put some effort on the defensive end. Granted, I think he had like 4 fouls yesterday but whenever I see a fast break, he just back peddles and concedes the basket. At least I see other players trying to go for the block or charge. When his offense isn't there, he should be putting more effort on the defensive end.

[Sir Thursday]

Ooooh starting PG controversy. Jeremy Lin benched and played only 20 mins vs Tony Douglas's 28 mins. Discuss....

Nah, there's no controversy here. Unlike the Portland game where the call was more marginal, here Douglas was the only guy who had it going all game long and deserved to be on the court at the end of the game. I did find myself wondering with a few minutes left whether Sampson would decide the guys out there were tired and bring back the starters, but he didn't, and justifiably so. Douglas would have to be able to do this consistently to stand any chance of impinging on Lin's starting time in the long haul, and I highly doubt that will happen. What we're seeing with Douglas correlates with the reports out of his previous time in New York - an incredibly streaky player who can occasionally produce brilliance but was often mediocre. Tonight we saw the brilliant side, but if you've watched the games this season you'd be incredibly uncomfortable with expecting him to be able to produce like this on a regular basis.

Smith, on the other hand, has probably cemented himself as the backup C with that performance, as Paul wrote. He was great on the offensive boards and did an excellent job down the stretch making his shots and free-throws while under immense pressure. Loved what I saw and hopefully this proves he can handle a few more minutes. Probably a good thing to take a little bit of the load off Asik's shoulders.

ST

[willdarling]

'The Lakers just pooped their big-boy pants!'

Agree with Mr Walker. Rockets went with people producing on the night and came out with the W. I don't think it is reflective of anything more long term.
Having said that Lin needs to up his FG%...

[rocketrick]

I felt the Rockets played a very good game against the Miami Heat a couple of weeks back in Toyota Center but we lost the game primarily because of LeBron James' greatness. So it feels good to beat the LA Lakers while not playing as well as the Rockets are capable of playing. Active crowd last night, too.

[ale11]

Last night was just like the game against Chicago: Douglas making a three to give us the lead in the final moments.
Lin wasn't all that bad last night, just got into foul trouble way too quickly.
And Sampson took all the right decisions....I mean, the bench got you back in the game, they were rolling, it wouldn't be fair to those guys who did a better job containing Bryant and Howard, but mostly, it would be stupid to take out of the game those guys who were making buckets (it's not like Lin and Patterson, or Harden, were making some anyway). It's nice to see the bench stepping up, but it shouldn't be an indicative of anything long term related to the starting lineup. Lin is getting starting lineup salary, and he will remain in the starting five, period. But it's a good thing to know that sometimes (hopefully, not too often) you can rely on your bench to pick up the slack. Of course, this was the chance to beat LAL, next time we meet against them plus Pau and Nash won't be any easier. And getting 21 offensive rebounds won't happen every day either.

We have seen some of this hustle from Smith and Douglas, that's why the biggest surprise last night for me was Delfino. I really didn't understand that signing back then, but he really stepped up last night, and didn't embarrass himself guarding Kobe (at least, not more than Harden). He is proving to be more than serviceable, and proving me wrong. I like that

[ItsAllGoodBro]

living in socal, i watched the game with a few lakers fans. they were pulling their hair out. a bizarre game. the rockets starters played badly, but steady coaching by sampson saved the game. Douglas kept the rockets around, and Greg Smith played his role. Smith in particular can finish around the basket when he has some daylight.

Criticizing Harden seems silly though. Just because his shot isn't falling doesn't mean he's not contributing a tremendous amount. He hit his free throws, and we all know how important that is. He also found Smith open for easy buckets time and time again. He had some bad turnovers, but it's the Lakers, a supposedly good team. Lin got into foul trouble early (as did Asik) and that really handcuffed those two. Parsons was so-so but played good defense down the stretch.

LA's bench KILLED THEM. Jordan Hill. I laugh when i hear lakers fans talk about how "good" he is. How he's a great "energy" guy. It's a classic case of the uniform making things seem shiny. Luke Walton was pretty good as a Laker..till he wasn't. Same with Sascha Vujacic. Hill is a low-IQ player and will always be that way. He left Greg Smith open time and time again. LAKERS FANS. TAKE IT FROM US. JORDAN HILL IS NOOOOO GOOOOD

[Alituro]

Nice post Paul. Games like last night's are why I'm a basketball fan. I think folks around here are a little tough on Toney. To me, he better fits the "point guard mold" over Lin with his style of play. He doesn't freeze the ball, he doesn't get trapped and rarely gets his pockets picked in the games that I've watched (I may be missing something). Yes, his decision making could use a little improvement, and you don't see "thread the needle" entrance passes like you do from Lin. But, he plays decent defense, shoots great at the line and has a much more consistent shooting form versus Jeremy Lean. Not saying I want the guy as a starter because he doesn't have that Lagniappe (little something extra) that Lin has, but I'm not filled with trepidation when he steps onto the court like I was with Brooks and Alston. He's a good back-up.

Lakers considering Hill as a good rotation player, solidifies the point that team is not deep enough to go far, also their injured, starting PG is like 40! Their starting PF has bubble gum holding his kneecaps together. Their new starting center can't hit a shot further than 5' from the basket. (not that ours is much better). And World Peace is a head-case.

I was pleased with Smith's performance against the League's premier center. He really got the best of him last night. I think he'll be doing nothing but getting better and better as he matures. He's got great huge hands, an explosive leap, and a soft touch when needed. I look for good things from this kid. The guys at CSN likened him to OT which is a huge compliment.

[Sir Thursday]

LA's bench KILLED THEM. Jordan Hill. I laugh when i hear lakers fans talk about how "good" he is. How he's a great "energy" guy. It's a classic case of the uniform making things seem shiny. Luke Walton was pretty good as a Laker..till he wasn't. Same with Sascha Vujacic. Hill is a low-IQ player and will always be that way. He left Greg Smith open time and time again. LAKERS FANS. TAKE IT FROM US. JORDAN HILL IS NOOOOO GOOOOD

This is a good point. I've been trying to figure out what the catalyst was for Smith and Douglas having such good games, but at the end of the day I guess it has to at least have something to do personnel on the other side of the ball. Aaron McGuire believes that Jamison is the worst defender in the NBA, and I can well believe it. As you say, Hill isn't a great team defender either. Howard has to be a bit of a roving presence, so if you set Smith up on the weakside he's going to get the attention of the 4 man a lot of the time...or not get the attention as the case seemed to be in this game. Smith put in one hook shot, but apart from that it was all garbage collection and catch-and-lay-in/dunk opportunities. Giving those up down the stretch is kind of unforgivable.

Similarly, I noticed down the stretch the Lakers put Kobe on Toney Douglas (I can't recall whether he covered him earlier in the game as well). Douglas was getting himself wide open looks in the corner whenever he wanted, it seems. There was one possession in particular that stood out to my sleep deprived brain (it was totally worth staying up until 3:30 AM to watch that game, but I was regretting it this morning). Bryant was completely out of position and the remaining perimeter defender had to cover both his own man and Douglas...Douglas ended up making a two with his foot on the line, IIRC. Now, I don't know if that was a game long trend, but I could well imagine it to be the case. And even if it wasn't, neither Duhon nor Morris is a particularly good defender from the PG position so it's not like any of the other players they could have put of him could have done a much better job.

ST

[Johnny Rocket]

Like everybody else here, I really loved the game. I watched in S. California with the Lakers announcers. They were simply stunned.

Smith will be a much better than Asik. I love Asik's defense and rebounding, but he's got no hands and will never be a good free throw shooter. He's also an uneven passer and commits a lot of turnovers. Smith has great hands and a great shooting touch (he's shooting 80 percent on free throws), and he rarely turns the ball over. Once he develops a mid-range game where he feels comfortable taking shots in the 8-10 feet range, he's going to be an even greater offensive force. Keep in mind that Asik is 26 and Smith is 21.

On Harden: He had a terrible shooting night, but had 10 rebounds and 6 assists. If the other starters had hit more of their shots, he might have had a triple-double. He set up Smith nicely on several drives in the fourth quarter.

[tombrokeoff]

hell of a win. i didnt get to watch all of it, for reasons well known, but i did catch some of the stream early and then late. i love wins like this. of course i would prefer NOT to see the starters struggle so mightily, but to gut one out. one they could have thrown the towel in on. gotta love it.

[Jeby]

It is impossible for me to hate Toney Douglas. He plays harder than anyone on the team, he has unflappable confidence (this is a skill, just like hustle) and he still knows how to defer to better players on offense.
He has no idea how to run the offense, and on defense he runs into picks like Wyle E. Coyote runs into walls, but he still has swagger.

[Bigtkirk]

Houston won a game that it should not have because of two factors -- the Lakers' unforced turnovers and the Rockets offensive rebounding. I figure that based on turnover differential and offensive rebounds, the Rockets probably had about 15 more possessions than the Lakers. You can win a close one occasionally doing that even while shooting poorly. But it's not a good idea to try and make a habit of it.

It sure is going to be fun watching Asik and Smith develop.

[Chichos]

Chris Duhon played 38 minutes for the Lakers so I'm not sure how much was Douglas playing out of his mind and how much was Duhon being just terrible.

I was at the game and first hand the Rockets had 0 energy until Douglas got in the game. Delfino played well but had some seriously bad shot selection at times. I also loved how into the game the starters were at the end even though they were watching from the bench. Lin was right there congratulating Smith as he came off the court.

All in all Paul nailed it, just an awful game until halfway through the fourth, where it turned into playoff basketball. Strange game but a win against the Lakeshow is always sweet.

[Stephen]

ST,
Hill was pulled @ the 6 minute mark for Howard.

The hacking strategy worked simply because the Rockets were able to score on every possession. When it started the Lakers had a 4 pt lead,when the last foul was taken Howard made his FTs and the Lakers had a 2 pt lead.
I thing the hacking worked,but not for the reason everyone else is claiming.(It didn't kill Laker momentum,the Rockets were surging before it and had out-scored LA 20-15 in the Quarter. The extra possessions argument doesn't really hold water either,assuming the game was played w/out the fouls,the Lakers were scoring on half their possessions and the Rockets probably would have scored twice,bringing the lead down to 1 or 2-which is what it was after the hacking.)
Instead I believe the hacking fired up the crowd,which the Rocket players fed off of-multiple offensive rebounds for example. Further the FTs gave the players a few seconds each possession to catch their breath-something bench players not used to extended minutes probably really needed.

[rockets best fan]

Stephen:
I disagree, the hacking strategy worked because it kept koby from taking over the game. when the laker starters came back koby was primed to finish the game. don't forget he was already having a super night. twice I saw koby try to hurry and shoot b4 we could foul howard. he was visibly upset with us for fouling howard. sampson scored a few coaching points with me last night.

[Stephen]

Rockets Best Fan
1:17 to go...Kobe misses 21ft jumper
:59 to go...Kobe misses driving lay-up
:13 to go...Kobe makes 3pt shot
:03 to go...Kobe misses 3pt shot.

Kobe was the Lakers offense in last minute and went 1-4.
I think it's pretty reasonable that without the fouling the Lakers would have gone 1 of 2.