do work son
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"@tomhaberstroh: Patrick Beverley spent the last two nights at the hospital. Had a 103.8 fever yesterday. 101 tonight. Sleeping in a hospital bed tonight."
HOUSTON ROCKETS Thread '14/'15 - Offseason - Picks (+ Jason Terry)
- Thread in 'Sports & Training' Thread starter Started by Peep Game,
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Refs seemed to call a fair game at the end Kinda favoring us
There was like 2-3 plays where LMA was jerking his head back in the post tryna get a call but he didn't and Dwight played great D.
I was holding my breath every time he was in the post down the stretch cuz Im used to them calling any little bs for LMA
Im glad they didnt tho hopefully it stays like this for game 6
Matthews did get called for a bs call on Harden when he reached where there was not really much but **** it they owe us
There was like 2-3 plays where LMA was jerking his head back in the post tryna get a call but he didn't and Dwight played great D.
I was holding my breath every time he was in the post down the stretch cuz Im used to them calling any little bs for LMA
Im glad they didnt tho hopefully it stays like this for game 6
Matthews did get called for a bs call on Harden when he reached where there was not really much but **** it they owe us
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Game 7 would be crazy.
do work son
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I'm kind of disappointed our organization hasn't sent video to the league about Dwight just getting hacked like crazy. Same for Wes Matthews hand checking on the perimeter, but to a much lesser extent than robin v Dwight
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Yep. 11 tickets bought. Sunday 2:30 game brahs. Presale is up.
jewbacca
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Didn't get to watch much of the game cause I'm studying for finals, but great W.
We're going to win this series, believe that.
I know Lin sucks, but he's capable of giving us a great game like he did tonight. He's the ultimate feast or famine type player.
Gotta get Harden rolling. Hopefully he mans up and goes off in Portland.
We're going to win this series, believe that.
I know Lin sucks, but he's capable of giving us a great game like he did tonight. He's the ultimate feast or famine type player.
Gotta get Harden rolling. Hopefully he mans up and goes off in Portland.
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Its not even that Lin sucks its just that hes not consistent at ALL and makes the same mistakes over and over. He has nice tools and when on hes a good player
Lin is mentally weak and it seems like he doesn't believe in himself which causes all those dumb *** TOs and picking the ball up
I always throw it around and say he sucks but he really doesn't hes just weak lol
He gives us these flashes of great play like today then lays a dud the next game
Here's to hoping that he gets his **** together and is on next game
Because were really gonna need em
Lin is mentally weak and it seems like he doesn't believe in himself which causes all those dumb *** TOs and picking the ball up
I always throw it around and say he sucks but he really doesn't hes just weak lol
He gives us these flashes of great play like today then lays a dud the next game
Here's to hoping that he gets his **** together and is on next game
Because were really gonna need em
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Maaaan. Going to Atlantic City for a bachelor party this weeekend. Going to have to try and find a way to watch the game Friday night.
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Lin hasn't been the same since he ran up against the Miami Heat when everybody was going crazy over Linsanity in NY. We on a road to 3 straight and I believe we can pull it off. If Portland doesn't close this out in six its over for them.
Its not even that Lin sucks its just that hes not consistent at ALL and makes the same mistakes over and over. He has nice tools and when on hes a good player
Lin is mentally weak and it seems like he doesn't believe in himself which causes all those dumb *** TOs and picking the ball up
I always throw it around and say he sucks but he really doesn't hes just weak lol
He gives us these flashes of great play like today then lays a dud the next game
Here's to hoping that he gets his **** together and is on next game
Because were really gonna need em
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If we win game 6, we are winning the series. Lose in 6 or win in 7. Gut feeling.
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offense flows much smoother with the ball in Jlin hands. He plays his heart out when the games on the line.
2 more to go...
2 more to go...
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i think it's quite obvious Harden is struggling because the Rockets are letting him isolate too much and not really play calling. particularly against Wes Matthews who at all times is the best perimeter defender on the court. They're handling this about as dumb as OKC are handling Tony Allen draped all over KD. Harden has the ability to facilitate the entire game even when his shot isn't falling. They should continue to exploit matchups. That's a huge part of basketball. Lin is eating against Mo Williams, Dwight against Robin Lopez, Chandler off rotations and being aggressive. Bev off being left open. If we are going to get Harden shots, the Rockets need to make a more concerted effort to get him easy looks. They aren't gonna do that though, so we should just be running primarily through Dwight until Portland starts loosening up.
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Its not even that Lin sucks its just that hes not consistent at ALL and makes the same mistakes over and over. He has nice tools and when on hes a good player
Lin is mentally weak and it seems like he doesn't believe in himself which causes all those dumb *** TOs and picking the ball up
I always throw it around and say he sucks but he really doesn't hes just weak lol
He gives us these flashes of great play like today then lays a dud the next game
Here's to hoping that he gets his **** together and is on next game
Because were really gonna need em
all he has to do is accept his role. he should be aggressive when he has a mismatch and only continue to try and play make if he is the hot hand. After that, literally just stop the late turnovers and we're good. His knock really comes down to being careless with the ball in critical moments. And honestly he usually only commits the bonehead turnovers whenever he's not playing well over the course of the game. ie: not the hot hand
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coolbeanz
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Let's Go!
do work son
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What's wrong with James Harden?
On Thursday, Kevin Durant stepped up. Now it's time for his former teammate to follow suit. Thanks to Durant's big Game 6, James Harden of the Houston Rockets is now the biggest playoff disappointment this side of Roy Hibbert.
While Harden's defensive shortcomings have been well documented, he was supposed to make up for them at the other end. With the Portland Trail Blazers contesting his every move, Harden has been unable to do that during this series, which the Blazers will try to close out at home in tonight's Game 6.
How has Portland done it? And how can Harden and Houston respond to try to keep their season alive? Let's take a look.
Keeping Harden out of the paint
First and foremost, the Blazers have achieved their goal of denying Harden easy opportunities. During the regular season, 30.6 percent of his shot attempts came in the restricted area, according to NBA.com/Stats. That figure has dropped by a third in the playoffs to 20.5 percent -- a difference of between two and three shots close to the basket per game.
Keeping Harden away from the hoop starts in transition. Per Synergy Sports, transition opportunities were the single biggest source of Harden's shots during the regular season, accounting for more than a quarter of his attempts. In this series, that's down to 15 percent, depriving Harden of his most efficient opportunities.
The next piece of the puzzle is on-ball defense from Wesley Matthews, with assistance from Nicolas Batum. Both players have aggressively denied Harden the ball and done a good job of keeping him in front of them defensively. Matthews' strength has been particularly effective in this matchup.
Still, it's impossible for a single defender to contain Harden, and the Blazers' big men have been conscious of where he is at all times, leaving them ready to provide help defense. Harden has had 8.6 percent of his shot attempts blocked in this series, as compared to 5.0 percent during the regular season.
Keeping Harden off the line
In addition to preventing Harden from getting easy attempts around the basket, Portland has taken away his easiest attempts of all -- free throws. During the regular season, Harden attempted .552 free throws for every field goal attempt. That has declined to a .322 free throw rate in this series.
Intriguingly, Harden is still drawing fouls just as often overall. However, according to Synergy Sports, 41 percent of the fouls he has drawn in this series have been shooting fouls, compared to 64 percent during the regular season.
While Harden has baited Matthews into a few shooting fouls -- particularly in Game 1, when he drew five of his 13 shooting fouls in this series -- the Blazers have done an excellent job of staying down on Harden's fakes and avoiding his rip-through move. Harden has mostly gotten to the line in fast-break situations, where Portland has little choice but to foul.
Frustration attempts
Beyond what the Blazers' defense has done, Harden has contributed to his own problems with poor shot selection. Too often, he has gotten frustrated with his inability to get to the paint and has settled for contested shots from midrange -- exactly what the Rockets want to avoid. This pull-up attempt against Batum with plenty of time remaining on the shot clock is typical of Harden's frustration attempts:
Harden
Synergy Sports Technologies
HARDEN SHOT SELECTION
Location 2013-14 Playoffs
Restricted Area .306 .205
Other Paint .108 .120
Midrange .186 .274
3-Pointers .400 .402
Though Harden has settled for some contested 3s as well, the biggest difference between his shot selection in the regular season and during the playoffs so far is 2-point attempts outside the paint.
About one-sixth of the difference between Harden's true shooting percentage during the regular season (.61
and in this series (.471) is attributable to his shot distribution. Another sixth is explained by his free throw attempts being down. The rest can be credited to Harden shooting lower percentages at the rim (41.7 percent vs. 61.4 percent) and from 3-point range (25.0 percent vs. 36.6 percent).
Solutions
At the risk of restating the obvious, a good option to get Harden going is utilizing him in pick-and-rolls with Dwight Howard. After experiencing success with the two-man game featuring All-Stars in Portland, Houston went away from it somewhat during Game 5. Synergy tracked just three Harden-Howard pick-and-rolls that generated shot attempts. Because of the respect Portland must pay the threat of Howard rolling to the rim, Harden has been most successful at getting into the paint with Howard as the screener.
Harden also has to be more decisive. While his patient, deliberate style has served him well in his career -- especially in terms of drawing fouls -- it's not working against an opponent that has him scouted well. Harden has been at his best when he has attacked aggressively while staying under control, as on the reverse layup he made with four minutes left in Game 5 as part of a run that secured the victory.
Because Jeremy Lin and Chandler Parsons both stepped up to score 20-plus points, the Rockets were able to win on Wednesday with Harden making just five of his 15 shot attempts. Facing a hostile crowd tonight in Portland, the Rockets will surely need more from Harden to force a Game 7.
While Harden's defensive shortcomings have been well documented, he was supposed to make up for them at the other end. With the Portland Trail Blazers contesting his every move, Harden has been unable to do that during this series, which the Blazers will try to close out at home in tonight's Game 6.
How has Portland done it? And how can Harden and Houston respond to try to keep their season alive? Let's take a look.
Keeping Harden out of the paint
First and foremost, the Blazers have achieved their goal of denying Harden easy opportunities. During the regular season, 30.6 percent of his shot attempts came in the restricted area, according to NBA.com/Stats. That figure has dropped by a third in the playoffs to 20.5 percent -- a difference of between two and three shots close to the basket per game.
Keeping Harden away from the hoop starts in transition. Per Synergy Sports, transition opportunities were the single biggest source of Harden's shots during the regular season, accounting for more than a quarter of his attempts. In this series, that's down to 15 percent, depriving Harden of his most efficient opportunities.
The next piece of the puzzle is on-ball defense from Wesley Matthews, with assistance from Nicolas Batum. Both players have aggressively denied Harden the ball and done a good job of keeping him in front of them defensively. Matthews' strength has been particularly effective in this matchup.
Still, it's impossible for a single defender to contain Harden, and the Blazers' big men have been conscious of where he is at all times, leaving them ready to provide help defense. Harden has had 8.6 percent of his shot attempts blocked in this series, as compared to 5.0 percent during the regular season.
Keeping Harden off the line
In addition to preventing Harden from getting easy attempts around the basket, Portland has taken away his easiest attempts of all -- free throws. During the regular season, Harden attempted .552 free throws for every field goal attempt. That has declined to a .322 free throw rate in this series.
Intriguingly, Harden is still drawing fouls just as often overall. However, according to Synergy Sports, 41 percent of the fouls he has drawn in this series have been shooting fouls, compared to 64 percent during the regular season.
While Harden has baited Matthews into a few shooting fouls -- particularly in Game 1, when he drew five of his 13 shooting fouls in this series -- the Blazers have done an excellent job of staying down on Harden's fakes and avoiding his rip-through move. Harden has mostly gotten to the line in fast-break situations, where Portland has little choice but to foul.
Frustration attempts
Beyond what the Blazers' defense has done, Harden has contributed to his own problems with poor shot selection. Too often, he has gotten frustrated with his inability to get to the paint and has settled for contested shots from midrange -- exactly what the Rockets want to avoid. This pull-up attempt against Batum with plenty of time remaining on the shot clock is typical of Harden's frustration attempts:
Harden
Synergy Sports Technologies
HARDEN SHOT SELECTION
Location 2013-14 Playoffs
Restricted Area .306 .205
Other Paint .108 .120
Midrange .186 .274
3-Pointers .400 .402
Though Harden has settled for some contested 3s as well, the biggest difference between his shot selection in the regular season and during the playoffs so far is 2-point attempts outside the paint.
About one-sixth of the difference between Harden's true shooting percentage during the regular season (.61
and in this series (.471) is attributable to his shot distribution. Another sixth is explained by his free throw attempts being down. The rest can be credited to Harden shooting lower percentages at the rim (41.7 percent vs. 61.4 percent) and from 3-point range (25.0 percent vs. 36.6 percent).Solutions
At the risk of restating the obvious, a good option to get Harden going is utilizing him in pick-and-rolls with Dwight Howard. After experiencing success with the two-man game featuring All-Stars in Portland, Houston went away from it somewhat during Game 5. Synergy tracked just three Harden-Howard pick-and-rolls that generated shot attempts. Because of the respect Portland must pay the threat of Howard rolling to the rim, Harden has been most successful at getting into the paint with Howard as the screener.
Harden also has to be more decisive. While his patient, deliberate style has served him well in his career -- especially in terms of drawing fouls -- it's not working against an opponent that has him scouted well. Harden has been at his best when he has attacked aggressively while staying under control, as on the reverse layup he made with four minutes left in Game 5 as part of a run that secured the victory.
Because Jeremy Lin and Chandler Parsons both stepped up to score 20-plus points, the Rockets were able to win on Wednesday with Harden making just five of his 15 shot attempts. Facing a hostile crowd tonight in Portland, the Rockets will surely need more from Harden to force a Game 7.
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Ready for this game
Tonight we gon see what this team is really made of and if they got "it"
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Talking about stopping aldridge, we need to get lillard under control
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Let's hope that we see more of this Lin tonight
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Come on Houston! 5 of the other match ups are sittin 3-3.. Rockets need to tie it up and bring it home!
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Not even at halftime and Asik and Howard each have 3 fouls
That 3rd foul Howard just picked up
They grown men refs!!!
Stop tryna **** us like that
That 3rd foul Howard just picked up
They grown men refs!!!
Stop tryna **** us like that
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Will be reeeeeeaaal interesting to see how the calls go down the stretch, which stinks cause the focus should just be on how good of a series this has been
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Hate the officiating more than the annoying Portland players
do work son
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every dwight howard post up has more contact involved than anything aldridge is getting. what can we do about it? nothing.
