tekdragon
11-15-2006, 03:02 PM
(apologies if this is hidden in another thread)
from Chron.com: (http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/lopez/rockets/4335744.html)
Nov. 15, 2006, 12:40AM
San Antonio maintains its superiority
By JOHN P. LOPEZ
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle
Let us count the ways the Rockets had seen pressure before Tuesday night.
Shane Battier had to speak publicly, addressing the Toyota Center crowd on opening night.
Yao Ming had to deal with gimmies like the Knicks and Bucks and Shaquille O'Neal — a formidable opponent on any night, but one against whom Yao now can have his way.
Tracy McGrady had to deal with a self-inflicted shooting slump that hardly shook the earth under the Rockets' feet, given Yao's great play.
Ball movement was easy. The defense was good enough. Selflessness was an easy mantra.
Pressure? That's not pressure.
Early looks deceiving
It was as if the Rockets could play dress-up, looking like a team that could contend with the best in the NBA because it won early and went into Miami and knocked out the defending champs.
The Rockets looked like a title-caliber team or, at worst, something much more than your run-of-the mill pretender. They caught the slumping Dallas Mavericks, a couple of bad teams on the road, the dysfunctional New York Knicks and the suddenly one-dimensional Miami Heat — that is, Dwyane Wade's dimension — at the right times.
But Tuesday brought a dose of real pressure and reality. The Rockets came home and found two things they had not yet experienced.
Expectations. And the San Antonio Spurs.
This awful ending to what began as a bright night, this 92-84 Rockets disappointment, may well be called a flop or even a choke by some.
It wasn't that. It was the perfect picture of what makes good teams great and, until further notice, makes the Rockets a team that has the ingredients to reach the next level but not the thing that matters most.
Spurs know the drill
The Spurs have been there. They've won games like this a hundred times and drunk the champagne that champions drink on three occasions. The Rockets' taste of these point-of-reference nights has been little more than a sip.
Pressure is being down by 19 points in the third quarter, on the road, with your stars struggling and time running out. That's what the Spurs faced and ultimately conquered, just like the
kind of team the Rockets want to be.
With a legitimate home crowd roaring, Spurs stalwarts Tony Parker and Tim Duncan struggling, and big shots falling for the Rockets, they danced off the floor Tuesday night just like they hoped they would.
One problem: It was halftime. :lol
McGrady knocked down a huge 3-pointer with a tenth of a second remaining before the break, pumped his fist and let out a huge scream. Everything looked peachy. The Rockets led 56-43, and a real statement-type win seemed just about a sure thing.
Meanwhile, the Spurs ambled off the floor like a bad martini — neither shaken nor stirred. That's the difference between what the Spurs are and what the Rockets must become.
"If you're only going to
play in this league hard and with great purpose when it's going well for you," Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy said, "then you're going to be limited."
The Spurs' flurry at the end of the third quarter became a dizzying display of might and depth, leaving the Rockets baffled over how to react and how to overcome pressure-situation guile, the one thing you cannot buy on the free-agent market.
The Spurs went on a 20-1 run after the Rockets led 74-55, forging a tie and wrestling away control the way teams that have their kind of playoff experience do. The Rockets, meanwhile, forgot how to play defense, started missing shots and were stunned over the blitz.
"We tried to pick and choose how hard we're going to play defensively," Van Gundy said. "When it got tough for them, they continued to play. When it got tough for us, we had a lot of give to us. It's the difference in the teams right now."
If the Rockets could purchase the thing that separates teams like San Antonio from others, rest assured owner Leslie Alexander would be cashing in some bonds and making a buy order.
But the only way to get the edge that pushes a team to strong performances — not just once against the Heat, but night after night, home or away — is to live it.
Put it this way: The best Spurs run came when their bench players, who outscored the Rockets' reserves 41-16, were on the floor. The Rockets countered with Yao (20 points), McGrady (26) and their front-line players.
But forget the likes of Duncan, Parker and Manu Ginobili. Counting only their bench players, the Spurs have experienced a whopping 367 playoff games combined. Rockets starters have played in a total of 81 playoff games.
It showed.
After scoring 21 points on 9-of-14 shooting in the first half, McGrady went just 1-for-11 in the second half with two rebounds.
Even worse over the final 24 minutes, the Spurs outscored the Rockets 49-28, outrebounded them 29-15 and shot 58 percent to the Rockets' 23 percent.
"It was unbelievable," McGrady said. "They didn't panic. They just took their time. They knew who they wanted to give the ball to, and that's the sign of a great team."
The Rockets played dress-up. For long stretches, they looked great. On any given night, or even for half a night in this case, this is a team that can look every bit like one of the best in the league.
The next step, though, is the hardest. Doing it every night. Like the Spurs.
[email protected]
from Chron.com: (http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/lopez/rockets/4335744.html)
Nov. 15, 2006, 12:40AM
San Antonio maintains its superiority
By JOHN P. LOPEZ
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle
Let us count the ways the Rockets had seen pressure before Tuesday night.
Shane Battier had to speak publicly, addressing the Toyota Center crowd on opening night.
Yao Ming had to deal with gimmies like the Knicks and Bucks and Shaquille O'Neal — a formidable opponent on any night, but one against whom Yao now can have his way.
Tracy McGrady had to deal with a self-inflicted shooting slump that hardly shook the earth under the Rockets' feet, given Yao's great play.
Ball movement was easy. The defense was good enough. Selflessness was an easy mantra.
Pressure? That's not pressure.
Early looks deceiving
It was as if the Rockets could play dress-up, looking like a team that could contend with the best in the NBA because it won early and went into Miami and knocked out the defending champs.
The Rockets looked like a title-caliber team or, at worst, something much more than your run-of-the mill pretender. They caught the slumping Dallas Mavericks, a couple of bad teams on the road, the dysfunctional New York Knicks and the suddenly one-dimensional Miami Heat — that is, Dwyane Wade's dimension — at the right times.
But Tuesday brought a dose of real pressure and reality. The Rockets came home and found two things they had not yet experienced.
Expectations. And the San Antonio Spurs.
This awful ending to what began as a bright night, this 92-84 Rockets disappointment, may well be called a flop or even a choke by some.
It wasn't that. It was the perfect picture of what makes good teams great and, until further notice, makes the Rockets a team that has the ingredients to reach the next level but not the thing that matters most.
Spurs know the drill
The Spurs have been there. They've won games like this a hundred times and drunk the champagne that champions drink on three occasions. The Rockets' taste of these point-of-reference nights has been little more than a sip.
Pressure is being down by 19 points in the third quarter, on the road, with your stars struggling and time running out. That's what the Spurs faced and ultimately conquered, just like the
kind of team the Rockets want to be.
With a legitimate home crowd roaring, Spurs stalwarts Tony Parker and Tim Duncan struggling, and big shots falling for the Rockets, they danced off the floor Tuesday night just like they hoped they would.
One problem: It was halftime. :lol
McGrady knocked down a huge 3-pointer with a tenth of a second remaining before the break, pumped his fist and let out a huge scream. Everything looked peachy. The Rockets led 56-43, and a real statement-type win seemed just about a sure thing.
Meanwhile, the Spurs ambled off the floor like a bad martini — neither shaken nor stirred. That's the difference between what the Spurs are and what the Rockets must become.
"If you're only going to
play in this league hard and with great purpose when it's going well for you," Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy said, "then you're going to be limited."
The Spurs' flurry at the end of the third quarter became a dizzying display of might and depth, leaving the Rockets baffled over how to react and how to overcome pressure-situation guile, the one thing you cannot buy on the free-agent market.
The Spurs went on a 20-1 run after the Rockets led 74-55, forging a tie and wrestling away control the way teams that have their kind of playoff experience do. The Rockets, meanwhile, forgot how to play defense, started missing shots and were stunned over the blitz.
"We tried to pick and choose how hard we're going to play defensively," Van Gundy said. "When it got tough for them, they continued to play. When it got tough for us, we had a lot of give to us. It's the difference in the teams right now."
If the Rockets could purchase the thing that separates teams like San Antonio from others, rest assured owner Leslie Alexander would be cashing in some bonds and making a buy order.
But the only way to get the edge that pushes a team to strong performances — not just once against the Heat, but night after night, home or away — is to live it.
Put it this way: The best Spurs run came when their bench players, who outscored the Rockets' reserves 41-16, were on the floor. The Rockets countered with Yao (20 points), McGrady (26) and their front-line players.
But forget the likes of Duncan, Parker and Manu Ginobili. Counting only their bench players, the Spurs have experienced a whopping 367 playoff games combined. Rockets starters have played in a total of 81 playoff games.
It showed.
After scoring 21 points on 9-of-14 shooting in the first half, McGrady went just 1-for-11 in the second half with two rebounds.
Even worse over the final 24 minutes, the Spurs outscored the Rockets 49-28, outrebounded them 29-15 and shot 58 percent to the Rockets' 23 percent.
"It was unbelievable," McGrady said. "They didn't panic. They just took their time. They knew who they wanted to give the ball to, and that's the sign of a great team."
The Rockets played dress-up. For long stretches, they looked great. On any given night, or even for half a night in this case, this is a team that can look every bit like one of the best in the league.
The next step, though, is the hardest. Doing it every night. Like the Spurs.
[email protected]