Do the Rockets play better without Yao and T-Mac?

[Deuces88]

I don't watch a lot of Rockets basketball much but I did take interest in this Lakers-Rockets series and I thought about this question.

It seems to me that the Rockets play more as a team without their stars. They pass a lot and their shot selection seems better. With T-Mac (and sometimes Artest), there are usually some "hero shots" because they believe since they are the "best player" they should be the one controlling the scoring. This makes for poor shot selection at times and not enough passing.

When Yao was there, he kind of clogged the lane, limiting Scola's game. Furthermore, the offense is often ran through Yao which slows down the game considerably.

Without T-Mac, there is more passing and better shot selection and without Yao they are playing a faster game and Scola can go off more (like he did in game 6).

But this is just from my limited observations. I'd like to hear what Rockets fans actually think.

[Artest93]

Only based on matchups, b/c they match up so well with the Lakers without Yao makes them a faster, more physical team. Against the Blazers, this would not have worked, if the Rockets win, Denver would matchup better

[Indazone]

That's coaching. Adleman.