123 replies to this topic

[BrentYen]

Yes Lin is the difference, but b4 the series....I would think Hou could win without needing him to play well. 

[Alituro]

Last Night: 

• +20 pts in the paint
• +14 rebounds (thanks Asik)
• +29 pts bench production

and... wait for it...

• -3 pts on fast breaks

The FB points was a surprise, but the absolute dominance in those other three areas were quite remarkable. Other parts where we lacked:

(3) less free throws made, (1) less 3-pointer made, (2) more turnovers, and (6) less blocks, (1) less steal. However we did attempt (8) more FGs and made (9) more. +5 in OREB. What does this tell me? We won last night with our work in the post, mostly an absolute dominance on the boards begat the +20 in the paint. With the two outstanding post virtuosos we have, there is no way an advantage like that is not sustainable. This was the only game in the series that the rebound discrepancy was more than (6). There's the key right there folks, lock down the paint and dominate the boards, the rest will fall into place and the series is OURS!

[thejohnnygold]

 "No one does more off adrenaline, becomes more self-destructive from an over-awareness of the self.  As for the panic attacks, little can be done.  But going forward, even if the Rockets survive this series and proceed to the next, the Rockets must look to establish Lin early in games so that he isn't rendered completely useless by the end of them."

 

What kind of useless bile is this analysis of Lin.  Granted, he has been inconsistent, but writing this bit of vomit is quite objectionable.  Give this guy credit where credit is due.    Clearly he was the difference in the game.  Do you think Bev would have this type of game. even if 100% well?  Bev's a better defender, but not a better playmaker.

 

How do you really feel?

 

Alituro, it's true--Lin is like a box of chocolates.

 

I see those who shall not be named have finally showed up with the usual list of phrases at the ready.  Yo-Yo.  Limited Role.  Opportunity.  12+ shots (against terrible defensive teams...no one mentions this...weird).  Demotion.  Trust.  Bail Out Shots.

 

Is it the chicken or the egg?  Some say McHale/Harden cause this for Lin.  Others say Lin's play has brought it on himself.  I think it is funny (funny...not surprising) that Rahat is getting shredded for calling on McHale and the Rockets to get Lin the ball more, use him more, and let him run the show more.  I guess that's what happens when you don't use the above buzzwords.

 

I'm not picking a fight, or trolling--I just think one game does not atone for the rest nor is it an indicator that this will happen every time.  Lin played great yesterday and was huge for us.  He'll need to do it again Friday because the Rockets need all hands on deck to pull this off.

 

For all the talk about the Rockets' chemistry and how terrible it is and how selfish they are, blah, blah, blah....I see a team battling together, fighting hard, and getting stronger every game.  James Harden was ready to end Mo Williams after game 4.  Parsons' scream at Mo was...weird .  What I see is a family.  They can fight, snipe, and get irritated with each other all they want, but if someone outside the family tries anything it's on.  That's the way it should be.  Before anyone cries, "but what about Lin?!?!  They just left him on the floor!!!"  Just stop.  It was one play.  I've seen dozens and dozens that show the opposite.

 

Things are good.  Howard is beasting for us.  Every game needs heros to surface for us to make it to round 2.  If it's Lin--great.  If it's Daniels, Jones, Parsons, whoever--great.  The only thing that matters are two "W's".  The finger-pointing can wait.

 

Also, as one of the Twin Tower Experiment's hugest proponents it is nice to be somewhat vindicated--even if it is situational (as we always knew it would be).  I think they have played great together and Portland hasn't found much of an answer.  And did anyone read Hakeem's most recent interview...can't remember where I saw it, but he alluded to Dwight's evolving jump shot.  Made it sound like he was a year or so away from truly being lethal with it, but I like what I'm hearing.

[miketheodio]

For all the talk about the Rockets' chemistry and how terrible it is and how selfish they are, blah, blah, blah....I see a team battling together, fighting hard, and getting stronger every game.  James Harden was ready to end Mo Williams after game 4.  Parsons' scream at Mo was...weird .  What I see is a family.  They can fight, snipe, and get irritated with each other all they want, but if someone outside the family tries anything it's on.  That's the way it should be.  Before anyone cries, "but what about Lin?!?!  They just left him on the floor!!!"  Just stop.  It was one play.  I've seen dozens and dozens that show the opposite.

 

 

4 and 5 are what made me give full trust to the players as far as chemistry and camaraderie go.

 

bev with a smile at the end of the game trying to give mo williams the ball too 

[QNoir]

To be honest, I think Lin has played the best defense of any Rockets guard this series.

[rottendoubt]

Haven't posted in here since the Yao Ming/T-Mac days.  Two thoughts:

 

1) Unrelated to last night's game - I think the problem with ONLY shooting free throws and 3 pointers is that you're making it too easy to defend against.  It's like playing rock-scissors-paper and only ever using rock or paper.  You need the threat of the long 2 to increase the effectiveness of the other two.

 

2) As far as Jeremy Lin goes, maybe the problem is the Rockets.  I think they just aren't point guard friendly given the team makeup and coach.  Look at how both Kyle Lowry and Goran Dragic exploded when they switched to new teams where they were allowed to be the #1 option.  Everyone keeps wishing we had one of them on the team instead of Jeremy, but who's to say they'd be any better if they were here?  Even AFTER playing as well as they have on their new teams, they'd probably STILL be the #3 option after Harden or Howard.  And that would definitely be the case if they never left the Rockets to show how good they can be.  In Dragic's case, there's a good chance he'd end up in the exact same role that Jeremy has now given that Pat Beverly is a better defender and role player alongside Harden.

 

What if Jeremy had Kyle's role in Toronto or Dragic's role with the Suns?  From the increase in playing time alone, he'd be putting up much better stats than he is now (maybe not as good as their stats, although if you look at his "Linsanity" numbers it's not outside the realm of possibility); and they'd be putting up much worse stats playing next to Harden and Howard.  In that scenario, we'd probably be wishing we had Jeremy on our team instead of Lowry or Dragic.

 

My two cents.

 

-Patrick

[Dusty]

Lin is inconsistent. Full stop. I love and hate him. I think a lot of us choose only one of those emotions. I acknowledge both.

[chantu]

How do you really feel?

 

Alituro, it's true--Lin is like a box of chocolates.

 

I see those who shall not be named have finally showed up with the usual list of phrases at the ready.  Yo-Yo.  Limited Role.  Opportunity.  12+ shots (against terrible defensive teams...no one mentions this...weird).  Demotion.  Trust.  Bail Out Shots.

 

Is it the chicken or the egg?  Some say McHale/Harden cause this for Lin.  Others say Lin's play has brought it on himself.  I think it is funny (funny...not surprising) that Rahat is getting shredded for calling on McHale and the Rockets to get Lin the ball more, use him more, and let him run the show more.  I guess that's what happens when you don't use the above buzzwords.

 

I'm not picking a fight, or trolling--I just think one game does not atone for the rest nor is it an indicator that this will happen every time.  Lin played great yesterday and was huge for us.  He'll need to do it again Friday because the Rockets need all hands on deck to pull this off.

 

For all the talk about the Rockets' chemistry and how terrible it is and how selfish they are, blah, blah, blah....I see a team battling together, fighting hard, and getting stronger every game.  James Harden was ready to end Mo Williams after game 4.  Parsons' scream at Mo was...weird .  What I see is a family.  They can fight, snipe, and get irritated with each other all they want, but if someone outside the family tries anything it's on.  That's the way it should be.  Before anyone cries, "but what about Lin?!?!  They just left him on the floor!!!"  Just stop.  It was one play.  I've seen dozens and dozens that show the opposite.

 

Things are good.  Howard is beasting for us.  Every game needs heros to surface for us to make it to round 2.  If it's Lin--great.  If it's Daniels, Jones, Parsons, whoever--great.  The only thing that matters are two "W's".  The finger-pointing can wait.

 

Also, as one of the Twin Tower Experiment's hugest proponents it is nice to be somewhat vindicated--even if it is situational (as we always knew it would be).  I think they have played great together and Portland hasn't found much of an answer.  And did anyone read Hakeem's most recent interview...can't remember where I saw it, but he alluded to Dwight's evolving jump shot.  Made it sound like he was a year or so away from truly being lethal with it, but I like what I'm hearing.

 

 I have issues with Huq's attitude in the article.  Here's another "gem":

 

   Yes, yes, yes, "he sucks", I know; he is not without flaw and if unleashed, is prone to the shot over the backboard (or something similar) at least once a game.

 

This is no way you talk about a major contributor to the Rockets.  Yes, he threw some "bricks" and will continue to do so.  And so will other players.  

 

Respect - give it and you'll receive it.   Lin had the best playoff game of his career. Don't p*ss on his parade for this one night.

[thejohnnygold]

 I have issues with Huq's attitude in the article.  Here's another "gem":

 

   Yes, yes, yes, "he sucks", I know; he is not without flaw and if unleashed, is prone to the shot over the backboard (or something similar) at least once a game.

 

This is no way you talk about a major contributor to the Rockets.  Yes, he threw some "bricks" and will continue to do so.  And so will other players.  

 

Respect - give it and you'll receive it.   Lin had the best playoff game of his career. Don't p*ss on his parade for this one night.

 

I'm sorry to be blunt, but this needs to be said.

 

To Whom It May Apply:

 

This is a typical quick-trigger overreaction made without even attempting to apply context or understanding to it besides the tightly clung to assertion that everyone hates Jeremy.  It's not always about Jeremy and it's not always negative and what (somehow) cannot be figured out is that a huge portion of whatever "persecution" there is against Jeremy is a direct result of the onslaught of ridiculously pro-biased posts that are made about him.  There must be balance in the universe and for one to exist the other must too.  For the most part, we have found balance here and both sides tend to be fair about Jeremy....until something happens and it starts all over again.

 

Rahat was beating the anti-Lin people to the punch.  He was sparing us forum readers the inevitable posts about how "Lin sucks" and the "bricks" etc which automatically come when there is praise of Lin.   Read the article.  Rahat was praising Lin...which is why he knew, and felt compelled, to write those words.

 

This is no different than the current whine-a-thon going around about how Jeremy was booed when he came onto the court.  Once again, not about Jeremy....the crowd was reacting to a replay they didn't like that was airing on the jumbotron at that time.  But hey, the other version fits the narrative of persecution so we'll just go with that, right?

 

Jeremy fell down and no one picked him up.  Jeremy got booed.  Jeremy played great (for roughly 15 minutes) in the first 4 games so why is he being dogged on fan sites--they must hate him.  It never ends.  The truth is 99% of people like Lin and just want him to be more consistent in his play.  What people don't like are fans who put a player above the team and don't understand that inflating volume stats with playing time and usage rates does not make you a "good" player.  Yet, that is what they wish for--more stats!  When he does not achieve this they blame everyone and everything.  I'd be surprised if Clutch, the mascot, hasn't been blamed for something Lin did at this point.

 

The assertion that this is not a PG friendly team is another one of these myths.  Lowry was traded for a solid 1st round pick--meaning he looked good playing here.  Dragic was signed to a very good contract for a player who was, at the time, an upper level (not elite) PG--which means he looked good playing here.  Remember, these guys have hit their strides recently.  Lowry is in year 8 and Dragic year 6.  Prior to this they were on the cusp of turning that corner.  They also split time nearly evenly here which skews their stats.  If you look at per36 numbers to even it out all 3 (Lin included) are producing about the same averages.  As noted above, the difference is consistency.

 

We're all happy Lin had a good game, but we also have been watching him play for two seasons now.  The reality is what it is.  If you think Lin is infallible and that his inconsistency is someone else's fault then this forum is not going to be fun for you.

 

Thanks for listening.  Feel free to stay around as we can always use differing opinions, but let's keep it to facts and well formed opinions.  The gossip mill and TMZ-like sports articles (which are getting more and more popular) just won't cut it around here.

 

EDIT: typos

[McG]

News flash: vocal extremists are more likely to yell out their opinions on public forums. Doesn't mean the other 99% of us can't have rational discussions based on reason and analysis. No point in wasting your breath arguing with extremists (pro or con whatever the issue is). Just ignore them and carry on.

[thejohnnygold]

For fun, I'd like to show it is possible to quote articles positively too.  This is what happens when you take things out of context to create a narrative.

 

Here is what Rahat said about Lin in his post.  Clearly Jeremy is his favorite player and he is a huge LOF.

 

"The difference last night was Jeremy Lin.  I don't think it takes too much analysis to arrive at that conclusion...The Rockets must have Mr. Lin active and engaged, especially when the other team is guarding him with a lesser defender.  He can get to the rim almost at will, against most defenders...And when he's rolling, he's absolutely rolling, as he was last night...No one does more off adrenaline...the Rockets must look to establish Lin early in games...Lin, unlike Chandler Parsons--who the team curiously fed late in the Game 4 loss, is just too big and athletic for most point guards and too quick for most wings...He's just far too talented to not give you at least 10 points while putting pressure on the opposition's interior defense."

 

There you have it.  Rahat said all of that in his post.  You'll have to forgive him for being balanced in his scrutiny of a player--it is rare these days for a journalist to be objective, but it does still happen.

[McG]

(edited now that I found how to follow the discussion in the forums...)
 

thejohnnygold:

The assertion that this is not a PG friendly team is another one of these myths. Lowry was traded for a solid 1st round pick--meaning he looked good playing here. Dragic was signed to a very good contract for a player who was, at the time, an upper level (not elite) PG--which means he looked good playing here.

 

 

I think the point about the Rockets not being a PG-friendly team refers to the current, not past makeup of the team.

 

rottendoubt:

I think they just aren't point guard friendly given the team makeup and coach.

 

 

With a ball-dominant SG like Harden, a PG doesn't do as much as he would. Same is true, I'd say, for the Knicks with Melo (see what happened to Lin's numbers once Melo came back). So I'm not sure comparing Lowry & Dragic's time to Lin's is exactly apples-to-apples.

Edited by McG, 01 May 2014 - 10:21 PM.

[McG]

<deleted multipost>

Edited by McG, 01 May 2014 - 10:21 PM.

[timetodienow1234567]

You all know I'm a Lin fan but I'm a Rockets fan first. My perspective is that the core posters on this site criticize Lin more than any other player. When you see how good Lowry and Dragic did this year it's hard not to. I've also noticed that when Lin is praised, there is usually a qualifier attached to said praise that isn't there with other players. Most of you know what I'm talking about.

[Jatman20]

Players/coaches won't say it; but I will: officials have hurt the Rockets plenty in this series (esp in games 1,2 & 4). Home teams are suppose to get a majority of the calls.....we did not get those calls in game one or two. In fact the NBA has apologized for calls in both games. That paired with TJ's inability to guard Aldridge put the Rockets in a two game hole. Playoffs are about packing the paint and taking away fast breaks.....regardless of iso, PnR, weave, triangle offense, Princeton (back door cuts)---you need 3 pointers to spread the floor. Thus enter a rookie-D-leaguer in the form of Troy Daniels to supply "Space!!!" Like it or not that is the template for next season.....the offseason will be spent bringing in spacers, since Casspi and Garcia and others are not able to take on the role that such players as Ray Allen and Battier have done in the past for Miami. How would things be if we had obtained the experience of Bass to play Aldridge and spacing of C Lee??? ( minus Asik.....rest of playoffs to distinguish). I am judging the Rockets since game 3 with the adjustment of Asik on Aldridge......all stats should be as well. 46 and 43 points in game 1 & 2 was Aldridge playing all stratospheric.....Asik applying body weight on him throughout the game has helped.

[chantu]

I'm sorry to be blunt, but this needs to be said.

 

To Whom It May Apply:

 

This is a typical quick-trigger overreaction made without even attempting to apply context or understanding to it besides the tightly clung to assertion that everyone hates Jeremy.  It's not always about Jeremy and it's not always negative and what (somehow) cannot be figured out is that a huge portion of whatever "persecution" there is against Jeremy is a direct result of the onslaught of ridiculously pro-biased posts that are made about him.  There must be balance in the universe and for one to exist the other must too.  For the most part, we have found balance here and both sides tend to be fair about Jeremy....until something happens and it starts all over again.

 

Rahat was beating the anti-Lin people to the punch.  He was sparing us forum readers the inevitable posts about how "Lin sucks" and the "bricks" etc which automatically come when there is praise of Lin.   Read the article.  Rahat was praising Lin...which is why he knew, and felt compelled, to write those words.

 

This is no different than the current whine-a-thon going around about how Jeremy was booed when he came onto the court.  Once again, not about Jeremy....the crowd was reacting to a replay they didn't like that was airing on the jumbotron at that time.  But hey, the other version fits the narrative of persecution so we'll just go with that, right?

 

Jeremy fell down and no one picked him up.  Jeremy got booed.  Jeremy played great (for roughly 15 minutes) in the first 4 games so why is he being dogged on fan sites--they must hate him.  It never ends.  The truth is 99% of people like Lin and just want him to be more consistent in his play.  What people don't like are fans who put a player above the team and don't understand that inflating volume stats with playing time and usage rates does not make you a "good" player.  Yet, that is what they wish for--more stats!  When he does not achieve this they blame everyone and everything.  I'd be surprised if Clutch, the mascot, hasn't been blamed for something Lin did at this point.

 

The assertion that this is not a PG friendly team is another one of these myths.  Lowry was traded for a solid 1st round pick--meaning he looked good playing here.  Dragic was signed to a very good contract for a player who was, at the time, an upper level (not elite) PG--which means he looked good playing here.  Remember, these guys have hit their strides recently.  Lowry is in year 8 and Dragic year 6.  Prior to this they were on the cusp of turning that corner.  They also split time nearly evenly here which skews their stats.  If you look at per36 numbers to even it out all 3 (Lin included) are producing about the same averages.  As noted above, the difference is consistency.

 

We're all happy Lin had a good game, but we also have been watching him play for two seasons now.  The reality is what it is.  If you think Lin is infallible and that his inconsistency is someone else's fault then this forum is not going to be fun for you.

 

Thanks for listening.  Feel free to stay around as we can always use differing opinions, but let's keep it to facts and well formed opinions.  The gossip mill and TMZ-like sports articles (which are getting more and more popular) just won't cut it around here.

 

EDIT: typos

 

I don't see why you need to defend Huq.  I sure he's a big boy and can write is own defense.   He wrote what he wrote, and I interpreted as disrespect.  I like Jeremy (a lot  )  but this was not the point of the post. Simply that his tone was overly negative in view of one of the best games in his career, and most all,  the Rockets have a new lease on life, and live to battle another day.   

[rottendoubt]

(edited now that I found how to follow the discussion in the forums...)
 

thejohnnygold:

 

I think the point about the Rockets not being a PG-friendly team refers to the current, not past makeup of the team.

 

rottendoubt:

 

With a ball-dominant SG like Harden, a PG doesn't do as much as he would. Same is true, I'd say, for the Knicks with Melo (see what happened to Lin's numbers once Melo came back). So I'm not sure comparing Lowry & Dragic's time to Lin's is exactly apples-to-apples.

 

My point: A lot of people are wishing we had Lowry or Dragic instead of Lin, but if you swapped either one of them for Lin this past year I'm not sure anyone's numbers would be all that different.

 

Jeremy Lin
as starter for knicks 2011-12 (25 games, 34 minutes), 19.97 PER for season including time as bench warmer/injured
18.2 pts, 3.7 reb, 7.7 ast, 0.3 blk, 2.0 stl, 4.7 to, 44.5/34.3/79.6

Goran Dragic
phoenix suns 2013-14 (76 games, 35.1 minutes), 21.43 PER
20.3 pts, 3.2 reb, 5.9 ast, 0.3 blk, 1.4 stl, 2.8 to, 50.5/40.8/76

Kyle Lowry
toronto raptors 2013-14 (79 games, 36.2 minutes), 20.20 PER
17.9 pts, 4.7 reb, 7.4 ast, 0.2 blk, 1.5 stl, 2.5 to, 42.3/38/81.3

[lin fan]

I don't see why you need to defend Huq.  I sure he's a big boy and can write is own defense.   He wrote what he wrote, and I interpreted as disrespect.  I like Jeremy (a lot  )  but this was not the point of the post. Simply that his tone was overly negative in view of one of the best games in his career, and most all,  the Rockets have a new lease on life, and live to battle another day.   

 

I think we need to keep things real. What I read from Rahat's article was that  we to need to bear with these lapses, and eventually  he will come through if given the minutes and reins to PG. I am just shaking my head now, now they realized in the playoffs with their backs to the wall. 

Just imagined if this was given a chance to develop in the season and pre season.   Anyway I remembered that Rahat wrote an article pushing for Rockets to start Lin before the season started.   I still believe that Harden is an awesome player, despite his current doldrum, perhaps it's time to welcome lin into the core of the team and hopefully we win the next game. one game at a time. 

[rockets best fan]

@JG

I am not as wary of picking a fight on Lin. J-Lin is a mediocre PG. he had a good game last night, but will probably disappear for the rest of the series. this playoff series has lasted 5 games thus far. Lin has showed up in 1. so before the LOF's start rolling out the red carpet, they should spend a little time viewing Lin objectively. Rahat was generous in his assessment. had I assessed him he would look like bar-b-que

[rm90025]

Lin hasn't been inconsistent.  He has been inconsistently used. What he did in Game 5 was predictable from his performances in the other 4 games. During his first half stints in each of the prior 4 games, he has run the offense and shifted the score in Houston's favor because he has been every effective at getting the ball to the bigs and wing shooters.  When he has played limited minutes, he hasn't had quite the same impact.  The Rockets had no choice but to rely on Lin because Harden has been outclassed iby Wes Matthews, and Beverley is too ill to carry the load.  His 21 point effort is simply the product of McHale giving him more time on the floor to play his game.  He could've had 20 points in games 1, 2, or 3 if he had been given the minutes and shot attempts. The Rockets are now 2-1 when Lin gets 10 or more shots in a game in this series and should've been 3-0 (if they hadn't blow the lead that Lin helped them get in the Game 1 OT).

The people that Rahat Huq should be focusing on are James Harden and Kevin McHale. Each has underwhelmed in this series.  Lin has delivered what he is supposed to for this team. He can be the team's 2nd or 3rd best player when given the opportunity.