Rockets 22-game win streak

[Kembal]

So I know there's general apathy about the NBA here, but I'm kind of surprised there hasn't been a thread about the Houston Rockets' winning streak. It's at 22 games as of today, after they thrashed the Lakers on national TV, and they've finally taken possession of the 1 seed in the Western Conference. (they haven't lost since Jan 27!)

Not that it's going to be easy to hold that seed, considering there's only 4.5 games seperating the 1 seed from the 8 seed in the West. And while the East isn't anywhere close to the West overall, Boston, Detroit, Orlando, and Cleveland are pretty damn good.

This literally is probably the best season I've seen in the NBA in a long time. I'm looking forward to seeing Houston take on Boston on Tuesday. (Saw the game against New Orleans for win no. 18 two Saturdays ago...that was awesome.) So....am I the only NBA fan on the PC? Or are there others?

[Lyonis]

So....am I the only NBA fan on the PC? Or are there others?

Yes, but I hate you :)

[Stanley Burrell]

So....am I the only NBA fan on the PC? Or are there others?

Isiah Thomas represents my home team. So yes.

[Peanut Butter Jelly Time]

Considering this streak will be ending unless Garnet, Allen, Pierce, and Rondo all skip out of town, not really sure this post will go on much longer. Let me just be the first to say: Congrats to Kevin Garnett for putting up 25 points, 17 rebounds, and 10 assists on his way to snuffing out one of the greatest team winning streaks of all time.

[Kembal]

Allen's got a bruised left heel. He might not play on Tuesday.

And hell, if Landry comes back, I'm not worried at all, even if Allen plays.

[Rimalon]

I follow the NBA like it's my job (and it sort of is).

Thing about the Rockets' streak is, and this is an arguable point, but they've played absolutely NO ONE at full strength during it.

They caught the Hornets off guard twice, but I still maintain that the Hornets aren't really a quality team to begin with. They've beaten the Dirk-less Mavs and the Gasol-less Lakers. And Cleveland twice when they were still reeling from the big trade they pulled off. Other than that, they've been beating up on sub-.500 teams.

If they can run the streak through their hellish schedule this week, then I'll admit that they MIGHT win a seven-game first-round series. But it looks mighty bleak for them with no Yao. The first round of the West Playoffs, regardless of seeding, is going to be brutal (yet awesome). I wouldn't be surprised if all four top seeds got "Golden-Stated" and went down in flames. Just how tight it is!

-Sea Wizard, Utah Jazz fan. The Jazz, coincidentally, WERE THE LAST TEAM TO BEAT THE GODDAMN ROCKETS.

[Peanut Butter Jelly Time]

Unless Bobby Jackson went back in time to his days with the Gophers, Rafer Alston plays some serious Skip 2 My Lou ball, and have Yao, Steve Francis, and Hakeem Olajuwon come back in the best shape of their lives, I don't see the Rockets even coming within fifteen points against the C's. Sorry to be a buzzkill :(

Mind you, I'm a rocket fan, but having just recently heard Shane Battier's San Francisco lisp, I'm a bit wary of his toughness.

[RichardCranium]

I follow the NBA like it's my job (and it sort of is).

Thing about the Rockets' streak is, and this is an arguable point, but they've played absolutely NO ONE at full strength during it.

They caught the Hornets off guard twice, but I still maintain that the Hornets aren't really a quality team to begin with. They've beaten the Dirk-less Mavs and the Gasol-less Lakers. And Cleveland twice when they were still reeling from the big trade they pulled off. Other than that, they've been beating up on sub-.500 teams.

If they can run the streak through their hellish schedule this week, then I'll admit that they MIGHT win a seven-game first-round series. But it looks mighty bleak for them with no Yao. The first round of the West Playoffs, regardless of seeding, is going to be brutal (yet awesome). I wouldn't be surprised if all four top seeds got "Golden-Stated" and went down in flames. Just how tight it is!

-Sea Wizard, Utah Jazz fan. The Jazz, coincidentally, WERE THE LAST TEAM TO BEAT THE GODDAMN ROCKETS.

The Hornets are definitely as good as the Lakers and infinitely better than the Mavs and Cavs. You suck at your (sort of) job.

I don't talk about the streak because I hate McGrady and they whipped the Hornets twice during it so I don't have a leg to stand on when it comes to a "debate" about it. They still won't make it out of the first round so I guess it's nice while it lasts.

[Drew]

I like the NBA, but unfortunately my team is the Heat. So all I have to look forward to is a 25% chance to get Michael Beasley aka Derrick Coleman 2.0

[Gan]

Haha Kembal. I thought about starting a streak thread last night after the game but was out with the mrs then forgot about it.

I actually had tickets to last weekend's Hornets game but couldnt make it.

I think Battier gets credit for good coverage on Kobe. Although Kobe's coverage on Tmack was more pronounced. Sorry I missed watching this game, it looked like a good one.

[Latrinsorm]

Thing about the Rockets' streak is, and this is an arguable point, but they've played absolutely NO ONE at full strength during it.The statement I like about the streak is that the 95-96 Bulls didn't manage to do it, so it doesn't really matter WHOM they played. (Incidentally, those Bulls had streaks broken up by juggernauts the likes of the 35-47 Nuggets, the 21-61 Raptors, and the 41-41 Hornets.)

I like the NBA alright. It would be about a million times better if certain people could stop being such ridiculous Kobe or Spurs fanboys.

[Rimalon]

The Hornets are a friggin' joke (as put on display yesterday, when Detroit thwacked them.) But they didn't have David West, so I guess that's their excuse.

I wouldn't be surprised at all if Denver gets in and they drop out. Lot of games left to play.

[Anebriated]

Its an impressive feat no matter how you look at it. I know theyve been beating up on teams not at full strength but you have to figure they are without yao for the last few and chances are a team should have gotten lucky and pulled out a victory over the Rockets.

As for me, Im a 76ers fan. There hasnt been much for me to get excited over for years. Nice young core they are building though, could be 1 solid player away from having a good competitive team.

[Latrinsorm]

Aren't the 76ers currently in the top 8 in the East and just beat the Spurs? That seems like something worth getting excited over.

[Anebriated]

Yeah they are, theyve pulled a few big wins lately but 8 years of crappy play isnt exactly dismissed after 2 weeks of good ball.

[Ambrosia]

Heh, born and raised in Houston, I'm a huge Rockets fan, doesn't matter if they do bad or good. :) Anyway, I'm an even bigger Astros fan. I can't wait till it gets warm and I can start going to games again.

[Kembal]

I'd buy the whole concept of the streak not being that impressive if we hadn't lost Yao for the season. But considering how everyone's stepped up since his injury, that whole "teams not at full strength" argument doesn't fly. We lost arguably the best center in the NBA, and are still winning. :)

Though, if the Rockets lose tomorrow, I'm going to blame it on the fact that I titled this thread Rockets 22-game win streak instead of Rockets winning streak.

[Gan]

H-Town represent!

[g++]

We lost arguably the best center in the NBA.


Dwight Howard, argument over

[Anebriated]

Yeah and they made it to what, 15 wins before they lost yao?

[BigWorm]

I'd buy the whole concept of the streak not being that impressive if we hadn't lost Yao for the season. But considering how everyone's stepped up since his injury, that whole "teams not at full strength" argument doesn't fly. We lost arguably the best center in the NBA, and are still winning. :)

Though, if the Rockets lose tomorrow, I'm going to blame it on the fact that I titled this thread Rockets 22-game win streak instead of Rockets winning streak.

Yeah, I found that comment about the Rockets' opponents not being full strength very ironic since Houston has been without Yao, but I don't think you can say that he's the best center in his conference, much less the league.

[Gan]

And another reason why I dont follow sports daily like I do politics.

Armchair analysis... ugh

Who has time for both?

[Lyonis]

Haha Kembal. I thought about starting a streak thread last night after the game but was out with the mrs then forgot about it.

I actually had tickets to last weekend's Hornets game but couldnt make it.

I think Battier gets credit for good coverage on Kobe. Although Kobe's coverage on Tmack was more pronounced. Sorry I missed watching this game, it looked like a good one.

Honestly, it was a great game to watch. This is the first game I've seen of the Rockets win streak and I was pretty damn impressed. They out hustled us in every aspect of the game, which has been the Lakers strong point this year especially coming from the bench. Kobe did put the lock down on TMac, while often over shadowed by his scoring skills, rape charges, ball hogging, etc...Hands down one of the best defenders in the NBA.

I also don't really hate you Kembal, I should reserve that word for what I truly despise, which would be all things Celtic. You can lump the Red Sox and Patriots in that group too :)




I like the NBA alright. It would be about a million times better if certain people could stop being such ridiculous Kobe or Spurs fanboys.

Kobe=Los Angeles Royalty

[Peanut Butter Jelly Time]

Kobe -should- be royalty. He does things nobody else can do. In all honesty, he makes McGrady look like Travis Outlaw, which still might end up being ok at least. At any rate, if he would stop going for so many steals, and just play the lockdown defense he's capable of, he'd be the best all around player in the NBA... not like he isn't already. Lebron is the only player who does more for his team, as the Lakers without Kobe would still be decent, but the Cavs without Lebron would have trouble taking on the Heat.

[Drew]

We lost arguably the best center in the NBA, and are still winning. :)





Yao is no where near the best center in the league. He gets the most votes for the all-star game because an entire country only votes for him. The guy can score, no doubt, and he gets an acceptable amount of rebounds. His real problem though is that he's a huge defensive liability. He makes Amare Stoudemire look like a stout defender. I thought he might improve over time but his defense has never got much better.

[Peanut Butter Jelly Time]

Yao is no where near the best center in the league. He gets the most votes for the all-star game because an entire country only votes for him. The guy can score, no doubt, and he gets an acceptable amount of rebounds. His real problem though is that he's a huge defensive liability. He makes Amare Stoudemire look like a stout defender. I thought he might improve over time but his defense has never got much better.

Tis the reason I'm now putting Andrew Bynum over Yao, should he come back healthy. Quality defense overshadowed by a developing offensive game, woo woo! Now all the Lakers have to do is somehow rip Tyrus Thomas away from the bulls, and they're a dynasty once Luke Walton turns into the best passing big man in the game, which he will.

[Stanley Burrell]

...

Mookie Blaylock has more stamina than Yao Ming.

[Latrinsorm]

At any rate, if he would stop going for so many steals, and just play the lockdown defense he's capable of, he'd be the best all around player in the NBA... not like he isn't already. Lebron is the only player who does more for his team, as the Lakers without Kobe would still be decent, but the Cavs without Lebron would have trouble taking on the Heat.I don't know if there's really a way to talk about "best all around player", but LeBron surpasses Kobe in just about every statistic imaginable (except free throw shooting, woooooo). In any event, it's pretty ludicrous to say Kobe does more for his team than (for instance) Nash.

[RichardCranium]

CP3 for MVP.

[Drew]

I don't know if there's really a way to talk about "best all around player", but LeBron surpasses Kobe in just about every statistic imaginable (except free throw shooting, woooooo). In any event, it's pretty ludicrous to say Kobe does more for his team than (for instance) Nash.


Kobe is one of the best defenders in the league, LeBron is a good defender. If I had to pick one of the two for my team that is only going to play this year, I take Kobe. Three or four years from now when LeBron has added some more tools he'll probably be better than Kobe is now, but he's not better than Kobe right now.

[Peanut Butter Jelly Time]

Kobe is one of the best defenders in the league, LeBron is a good defender. If I had to pick one of the two for my team that is only going to play this year, I take Kobe. Three or four years from now when LeBron has added some more tools he'll probably be better than Kobe is now, but he's not better than Kobe right now.

Exactly. Also consider the fact that Steve Nash is a defensive liability, and you have every bit of justification you need to not even place him in the top 5 players in the league. Defense is a must, and the Rockets are the perfect example of what happens when quality defense means above-average offense. Once their defense tires and essentially reverts to early season form, they'll look like crap.

[BigWorm]

Kobe can do almost everything well. Except pass.

[Lyonis]

Yao is no where near the best center in the league. He gets the most votes for the all-star game because an entire country only votes for him. The guy can score, no doubt, and he gets an acceptable amount of rebounds. His real problem though is that he's a huge defensive liability. He makes Amare Stoudemire look like a stout defender. I thought he might improve over time but his defense has never got much better.

That entire country is one of the bigger ones too :). If you look at scoring as a zero sum game you see how important defense is. So what if you score 30 points, if your lack of defense lets the opponent score 40, it means jack squat. Well put sir.


Tis the reason I'm now putting Andrew Bynum over Yao, should he come back healthy. Quality defense overshadowed by a developing offensive game, woo woo!

<3 Bynum


I don't know if there's really a way to talk about "best all around player", but LeBron surpasses Kobe in just about every statistic imaginable (except free throw shooting, woooooo). In any event, it's pretty ludicrous to say Kobe does more for his team than (for instance) Nash.

No question Lebron and Kobe belong in the same category, it's really hard to say who is better. I can tell you this about Nash, in 20 years his name won't be mentioned in the same sentence as Magic, Jordan, and the other true greats. Lebron and Kobe both will though.

Kobe got us to the playoffs with garbage starters like Smush Parker in the ultra competitive western conference. Nash got his team there with a pretty kick ass line up. While Nash is good, the Suns would still have been a contender without him. The Lakers without Kobe on the other hand....I'd honestly rather think about castrating myself with a rusty butter knife.

[Stanley Burrell]

Kobe can do almost everything well. Except pass.

Shaq actually learned how to shoot freethrows when people critiqued his obese BMI. Which is why he will always be the > b-baller.

[Lyonis]

Kobe can do almost everything well. Except pass.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J6jOv0wwzNE

Me throwing the BS flag. Kobe is the most versatile and complete player in the league right now. Showtime is back.


And another reason why I dont follow sports daily like I do politics.

Armchair analysis... ugh

Who has time for both?

I'm sure you'll share this sentiment, with politics I sort of have this obsession about being right and finding the truth. There is something strangely relaxing about blind loyalty. Devotion to the home team accomplishes that quite well.


Shaq actually learned how to shoot freethrows when people critiqued his obese BMI. Which is why he will always be the > b-baller.

:rofl: On some honest shit, I feel pretty confident in wagering my eternal soul that I could hit a better free throw percentage than Shaq at 3 am after hanging out with my boy from Tennessee Jack Daniels. He was actually so bad at it that they changed the rules to prevent a "Hack a Shaq" defense.

[Latrinsorm]

Kobe is one of the best defenders in the league, LeBron is a good defender. If I had to pick one of the two for my team that is only going to play this year, I take Kobe. Three or four years from now when LeBron has added some more tools he'll probably be better than Kobe is now, but he's not better than Kobe right now.I'd say LeBron is seriously underrated as a defender, but it's a lot harder to put that into statistics so I'll agree to disagree here.
Also consider the fact that Steve Nash is a defensive liability, and you have every bit of justification you need to not even place him in the top 5 players in the league.When Nash is on the court, the Suns are +10.3 per 100 possessions. When he's not, they're -9.1 (worse than the Heat's -7.9, worse than the Sonics' -8.7). I didn't say he was a top 5 player, what I said was he did more for his team than Kobe does, which is just a fact (and which shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone as we are comparing a point guard to a shooting guard).

I'm not saying Kobe's some kind of bum (on the court), I just don't understand how people can put him ahead of LeBron when almost every objective measure says otherwise.

[Peanut Butter Jelly Time]

I'd say LeBron is seriously underrated as a defender, but it's a lot harder to put that into statistics so I'll agree to disagree here.When Nash is on the court, the Suns are +10.3 per 100 possessions. When he's not, they're -9.1 (worse than the Heat's -7.9, worse than the Sonics' -8.7). I didn't say he was a top 5 player, what I said was he did more for his team than Kobe does, which is just a fact (and which shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone as we are comparing a point guard to a shooting guard).

I'm not saying Kobe's some kind of bum (on the court), I just don't understand how people can put him ahead of LeBron when almost every objective measure says otherwise.

All of the above is due to your overbearing reliance on stats, rather than looking at results. Simply put, Kobe is on a team that has succeeded pretty much the entire year, even before the Gasol trade. Lebron is on a team that has struggled every year for the last decade, and lets be honest, a long time before that aswell. Kobe turned a bunch of roleplayers into a force in the West, and Lebron hasn't done much at all to establish any of the other players on his team, in the much easier East.

At any rate, this thread may aswell be closed, as while I overshot KG's stats a bit, he still put the dagger in this win streak. ROCKETS GOT LEON POWE'NT!

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/90/Leon_Media_Day.png/167px-Leon_Media_Day.png

[Tsa`ah]

Call me when they're verge of having a 73-9 season or that win streak closes in on 33.

Sorry ... the NBA is dead to me since the last of the greats left the game.

[g++]

...ends...

[Peanut Butter Jelly Time]

Come on... Powe'nt... get it? Because Leon Powe, the C's fourth string PF, pretty much made the Rox' front line look like garbage? Bah, you people don't know funny when you see it.

[LMingrone]

Sorry ... the NBA is dead to me since the last of the greats left the game.

Come on. Lebron, Garnett, and Kobe would destroy those old school players. Picture those players facing up against a Bird, Jordan, or Magic. Who would win that 3 on 3? I'd bet on the former. Just an opinion.

Old bball was much more exciting, but todays players would destroy them.

[Gan]

:thanx: for jynxing it Kembal.

:tool:

:forehead:

:fu:

[Kembal]

Goddammit.

I was at the game too. They played the first half fine, but then just came out completely flat for the second half. :(

[Peanut Butter Jelly Time]

Bah! Your failure to recognize my hilarious posts has ruined this thread! GO HOME! ALL OF YOU! :(

[Gan]

Bah! Your failure to recognize my hilarious posts has ruined this thread! GO HOME! ALL OF YOU! :(

I'm sorry, did you say something?

http://forum.gsplayers.com/images/icons/icon4.gifSystem Error: AttentionWhore ver.2.0 has suffered a massive failure and will be shut down. Please use system restore to previous version or reinstall.http://forum.gsplayers.com/images/icons/icon4.gif

[Daniel]

Come on. Lebron, Garnett, and Kobe would destroy those old school players. Picture those players facing up against a Bird, Jordan, or Magic. Who would win that 3 on 3? I'd bet on the former. Just an opinion.

Old bball was much more exciting, but todays players would destroy them.

Lol. Dumbest post ever on the PC.

[BigWorm]

Come on. Lebron, Garnett, and Kobe would destroy those old school players. Picture those players facing up against a Bird, Jordan, or Magic. Who would win that 3 on 3? I'd bet on the former. Just an opinion.

Old bball was much more exciting, but todays players would destroy them.

Sorry, but you give me Jordan is his prime even with two average players on his team, and I would have a hard time picking against him. It's fucking Michael Jordan dude.

[Gan]

LOL at putting Lebron in the same category as Bird, Jordan, Magic, Kareem, etc.


ROFUCKINGL

[RichardCranium]

Not to worry H-Town. Tonight you can begin a new streak.

[RichardCranium]

See...

[Gan]

That game was UGLY. :(

[Latrinsorm]

All of the above is due to your overbearing reliance on stats, rather than looking at results. Simply put, Kobe is on a team that has succeeded pretty much the entire year, even before the Gasol trade. Lebron is on a team that has struggled every year for the last decade, and lets be honest, a long time before that aswell. Kobe turned a bunch of roleplayers into a force in the West, and Lebron hasn't done much at all to establish any of the other players on his team, in the much easier East.So you're saying when Kevin Garnett was on the Twolves he was a crappy player? Let's be honest, they struggled every year as much as the Cavs did.

It should be obvious a priori that a great player can play on a bad team and not get a lot of "results" - not even Jordan won the title every year. That's the whole point of statistics: obtain a more objective measure that isolates a player's individual contributions.

[Peanut Butter Jelly Time]

...but when you make judgements and comparisons based off of stats, while simultaneously ignoring outside influences on the players themselves, you lose the value that statistics would've otherwise held.

[Latrinsorm]

On/off +/- ftw.

[Peanut Butter Jelly Time]

Totally reliant on who comes in for them.

[Latrinsorm]

...

You'd have been better off saying LeBron's dunking mechanics were off.

[RichardCranium]

...

You'd have been better off saying LeBron's dunking mechanics were off.

He does jump entirely too high when he dunks.