Basic – Very often, an NBA team’s problems begin several steps away from the main objective of putting the ball in the hoop–sloppy passing, slow defensive rotations, indecisive movement without the ball, lazy box-outs. The Rockets have the opposite problem, as Jason Friedman explains on the team’s official site:
There’s a reason why the NBA is referred to as a “make or miss” league. It’s one thing to create quality chances; quite another to capitalize on them. Sometimes the process and the end result don’t play nicely with one another or see eye to eye. That certainly was the case Wednesday night when James Harden and Chandler Parsons – both above average three-point shooters – combined to hit just four of their 17 attempts from beyond the arc. But so long as the Rockets continue to build upon their Game 2 blueprint, the percentages should begin to tilt in their favor soon enough.
Before the series, Daryl Morey listed “variance” as the key factor that could give Houston a shot to win. After two games, variance has not been kind.
Linjury – The Houston Chronicle reports that Jeremy Lin is listed as day-to-day with a bruised chest muscle. Hopefully he gets well soon. It can’t hurt that he has a prayer chain that stretches around the globe.
The Commish – In another note from the Chronicle, David Stern says the Rockets have done a good job of handling the Royce White situation “under the circumstances.”
Tweet That- I was feeling okay about Houston’s valiant losing effort from Wednesday night. Then I saw this tweet and the ensuing picture:
That would be Parsons trying to close out on Sefolosha’s back-breaking 3 near the end of the game. If you were wondering why Kendrick Perkins is an NBA champion and a perennial starter on good teams, now you know. It’s all the little things.
The Immortal Kevin McHale – Via The Basketball Jones, Kevin McHale may be a vampire:
Anti-Awards – Omer Asik and James Harden came dangerously close to winning Hickory-High’s anti-awards in the categories of most blocked shot attempts and most turnovers in a game, respectively. Way to live life on the edge, guys.
Bad Russell – A fan at the Dream Shake breaks down the shot selection of OKC players, and oh my lands do we ever want Russell Westbrook to keep shooting:
A player can score a lot, but can he do it efficiently is a question I always ask myself. Russell’s eFG% (fg2m+1.53ptm/fga) is 47%. This puts him in the bottom 3 on the team, only ahead of Derek Fisher and Deandre Liggins. I think that speaks for itself. Russell as well doesn’t fair too well in PPS (Points Per Shot) recording only 1.08, which isn’t bad, but as for the whole team he is in the bottom 5, behind Sefolosha, Collison, Durant, Ibaka, Martin, and Hasheem Thabeet!
The Rockets best chance at winning a couple games in this series is in the hands of an OKC guard who played in last year’s finals. I’m just not sure which one.
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