Gonna C/P my End of Game Thoughts from last page (warning: wall of text)
- I went to watch Les Miserables last night and I quite enjoyed it but it was really depressing so I went and listened to Monty Python's Always Look On The Bright Side of Life like 5 times. So I am going to look on the Bright Side of this Game! :)
- Lin had a very good first quarter. He wasn't swishing but he sure was dishing, setting up teammates with confident passes. He racked up 5 assists quickly, and that was probably also the best stretch the Rox had the entire game.
- OKC are a terrible matchup for the Rox. If I recall, KHuang thinks the Trailblazers are the worst match up with OKC second, but I still feel OKC is the worst. Having Sefolosha and Ibaka around basically nullifies Lin and Harden, whose games rely so much on getting in the paint. When both Lin and Harden are cold from outside the arc, like they were tonight, it was never going to be much of a game.
- The Rockets have walked away with 2 wins in 4 games in 5 days, in a punishing away schedule that had them facing Bulls, Timberwolves, Spurs and Thunder. If you had told me at the start of the season that they would win 0.500 of those games I would have been sceptical. But I am frequently wrong and I am glad to be wrong about these things. :)
- I'm not going to bash McHale because, as I have said, this is a Lin fansite, not a McHale hatesite. :) However, the Spurs and Thunder games show that a run-and-gun offence is not going to be very successful in the playoffs - and the Spurs and Thunder are more than likely the teams the Rox will meet if they get in at 7 or 8 seed. McHale - you need to come up with some decent half-court sets that actually involves motion and not have the Rox players take turns to play 1 v 5!
- I thought Lin's TOs could be partially attributed to smart double teams (the one where he threw the ball away down the middle was one) but mainly to tiredness.
- Torocan from CF believes that the cold 3-point shooting from Lin and Harden were simply attributable to tired legs. Maybe. But when you are up against an elite defensive team in the paint, you are going to be able to shoot well or there's nothing much you can do.
- Parsons going 0-5 from 3-point land indicates that he still has some ways to go before he becomes a reliable kick-out option. But insane levels of streakiness and inconsistency are to be expected from such a young team.
- The Rox are not an elite team, and we shouldn't expect them to be able to match up to OKC when the Rox had just been through a grueling back to back.
- I can't decide if going underneath screens vs Westbrook is a good idea. On one hand, you do want to encourage him to shoot jumpers. On the other hand, if Westbrook is making those jumpers, should you continue to go under the screens?
- Strangest stat of the night for me. HOU only had 3 more TOs than OKC. An example of how my perception tricks me. It felt like HOU had a 100 more TOs to me when I was watching the game!
Great recap as always. Agree with pretty much everything, but would like to emphasize this:
"this is a Lin fansite, not a McHale hatesite."
I'd like to extend that to this is not a hate site, period. Alas, for the guilty, falling on deaf ears I'm sure.
Can't wait to see Les Mis (next week). Favorite musical of all time, the cinematography looks epic in the previews, and gotta say I'm partial to Anne Hathaway ;)
@ wifflewiffle Sometimes, some people thought himself is rational and reasonable but infact self- righteous and that is worse than people who show their true colors. I don't know how you guys distinguish between hate on Mchale and not hate on Mchale. I would like to hear what kind of comments sounds hate Mchale what kind is not. Btw, my first sentence is not point to u.
You're right about claiming to be objective and rational is often masking another kind of bias! I think I fall prey to that pretty often. After all, who thinks of themselves as being biased? For me, hate are some of those comments like saying Lin should try to force McHale out, which to be fair only one person has actually said that.
I feel constantly calling McHale McFail is kind of lame toobut I can understand that attraction of catchy nicknames :)
great points as always, @wiffle. Lin's and Harden's penetration will definitely be neutralized by athletic big men and the back end of the back-to-back game definitely resulted in tired legs.
I guess we do need to look at the positives that this young HOU team has clearly surpassed expectations. Noone in the right mind would expect them to have a winning 16-14 record. And McHale is doing his best with the players that he has now and I have no doubt that he's looking to develop Lin as a complete PG so I won't second-guess his "tough love".
I'll be patiently waiting to see who will be a reliable big man to play PnR with Lin and Harden next season. I also wish there would be a veteran PG to mentor Lin in Houston.
"I'll be patiently waiting to see who will be a reliable big man to play PnR with Lin and Harden next season."
You and me both.
"I also wish there would be a veteran PG to mentor Lin in Houston."
Be careful what you wish for! Who would be good enough to mentor Lin without threatening his position? The guys I can think of off the top of my head are pretty rooted where they are.
@wiffle "not a mchale site" get out of here with hat liberal crap, you make no mention of the coaching failures in this game nor say anything about the incompetent rotation among the players...Mcfail is still fail
@Nom, well JKidd was actually the best one because he can't play for extended time but he's the best mentor other than Nash (again, no LA speculation here. just purely from the best senior-citizen PG perspective. Too bad both are not available. I heard Fisher also went back to LA to be close with his family. So yes, we're running out of veteran PGs who look to mentor budding PGs.
@bto, idk if McHale's "tough love" would work wonders for Jeremy in the future but I noticed from small things (i.e. texting him after games when McHale was in MN waiting for his ill daughter, Jeremy's comment that he can joke around with McHale on the personal level in the gym during 1 interview, etc.) that McHale has had the best intention for Jeremy's future. McHale is clearly forcing Jeremy to play up to his standard (no silly TOs that we know Jeremy can be prone to) or he benched him first. The important thing is McHale plays him again the 4Q so he can learn from his mistakes and develop.
I've had plenty of coaches and teachers that didn't respect me.
But as long as I improved myself under their watch, I was cool with that.
I personally don't care if McHale likes Lin or not. I don't even care if McHale coddles other players while making Lin the whipping boy. All I know is that Lin is developing well under McHale's watch.
I'm fine with McHale's coaching and even usage of Lin, though most people here disagree with me.
Heh, Kidd and Nash were the two off the top of my head. Fish isn't qualified imo to mentor Lin. Problem as I see it, Lin's already too good. Nice problem.
Now if we were to talk fantasyland and say we had a veteran ex-point guard *coach* to mentor him... too bad Magic was a bust at coaching.
If Parsons was on another team, he wouldn't be near as productive as he is here. No other team would let Parsons handle the ball as often as he does considering how many TO's he creates vs asts he creates. He's loved by the Rockets like Lin was loved by NY...they're home grown guys (Jeremy could have been home grown had NY matched). No matter how s.hitty he plays, he won't get near the criticism other players get.
Can someone give me an explanation as to why Lin played so few minutes tonight? I'm not trying to start an argument but I'd like to get some guidance on this. Please don't bring up "he was tired" or make excuses for Mchale like, "Lin has to earn his minutes" bc Harden and Parsons did not play well tonight and they didn't get benched. Parsons also has had very poor TO's but he doesn't get taken out of games.
@wifflewiffle to me, it is always acceptable to get preach and criticism from one without an arrogant mind but respectful, modest way. I respect people for that. I really despise people who acts like they are rational and yet really self-righteous. I did have respect for you. In term of the hate on Mchale you mention about here, I may not like the nick name too but I don't think people here are truly hate on Mchale. To me, truly hate is calling some one sucks for no reason, love to downgrade people no matter how good they are, always negative view about the person.
@k.smith, I think coach didn't take harden out because there is no one to replace him. Parsons, didn't get benched because delfino was out to a flu or something. JLin got benched cuz there is Toney douglas.
To answer your question from the previous thread, if they don't allow Lin to play through his mistakes and keep benching him, how is he supposed to grow. If Dantoni benched Lin in that Toronto game where he played poorly for 3 quarters, we would never get to see his game winning shot. I know coaches have a job to protect to, but I don't like double standard when it comes to Lin. This is why I am upset about the coaches. If they held everyone to the same standard (including Harden), then you won't see me bashing them.
Lin has a lot of pressure to prove that he is legit. The way the coaches are treating Lin, they are not helping him at all. Only the strong survive, and Lin is tough mentally, but even the strong ones do break if push too far. I don't think he will break, but he is the type of person that will do well if he is giving the freedom. As a coach, your job is to recognize your starters strengths and weakness. Their job is to help him (and their players) play to his strengths and work with him to improve on his weakness. If they know that he is not a catch and shot guy (especially from the 3), then way have him continue to camp there?
The way they are hurting him, he might not get a contract after this one is over. Sure some NBA team might offer him a minimal contact. Sometimes, being too nice will only hurt him and he will be out of a league. That is why I hope he will express his unhappiness to the owner and if they are okay with the coaches, then please do trade him. Either him or the coaches.
I do like you as a poster, I think you are smart and sensible person. But I don't like you acting self righteous here. As fans, we are allowed to vent our frustrations, especially on his fan site. Where else can we vent? Clutchnet? Please don't act above others.
Dec31 ATL @ HoU = W or L 70/30 Jan2 NOH @ HOU = W Jan4 HOU @ MIL = W Jan5 HOU @ CLE = W Jan8 LAL @ HOU = W or L 50/50 Jan9 HOU @ NOH = W Jan11 HOU @ BOS = W or L 50/50 Jan12 HOU @ PHI = W or L 50/50 Jan15 LAC @ HOU = W or L 25/75 Jan16 HOU @ DAL = W or L 50/50 Jan18 HOU @ IND = W or L 70/30 Jan19 HOU @ MIN = W or L 50/50 Jan21 HOU @ CHA = W Jan23 DEN @ HOU = W Jan25 HOU @ NOH = W Jan26 BKN @ HOU = W or L 70/30 Jan28 HOU @ UTA = W or L 50/50 Jan30 HOU @ DEN = W or L 50/50
January is a critical month, this is where we'll know if we are indeed playoffs bound or not. If we can win 13 out of 18 games, we'll be in the playoffs for sure.
What a coincidence that the Rockets WIN (5 straight) when Lin is the primary ball handler and distributor, attacking, scoring, and passing. The Rockets LOSE when Harden dominates PG and plays hero iso-ball, and Parsons and Douglas play poor point guard.
The Rockets were only down 5 points with 3 minutes left in the 2nd quarter, when Lin was inexplicably benched for Tony Douglas' terrible defense. OKC then went on a 13-0 run and finished up 18 at halftime.
Tony Douglas is a TERRIBLE defender, point guards always light him up. Douglas was an astounding -20 +/- (negative 20) in only 12 first half minutes. Finished at -31.
Jeremy Lin faces a double standard short leash. Other players get turnovers or make a poor shot and the Rockets' coaches keep them in. Lin gets yanked immediately. The Rockets' coaches have probably single handedly cost them from 3 more wins this year with idiotic coaching decisions.
Seeing the coaches favor Douglas over Lin in late game situations (supposedly for defense), shows that they are using the same prejudiced eye test that Lin has battled his entire life. This reminds me all over again of the Golden State season, when Keith Smart (more like Keith Dumb) routinely idiotically played Acie Law (worst player in the entire league) over Lin for that entire year.
I'm no veteran member but can I respond - at 4:00 left in the 2Q was exactly when this game was lost. Lin had just scored an and-1 to bring the game to 50-52. Next thng you know Aldrich offensive foul (turnover). Westbrook misses layup Rox failed to rebound. Alrich bad pass (t/o). Lin bad pass (t/o) - some have argued that Lin's bad pass was a result of a miscomm between him and Alrich who missed his spot in the paint where the pass was going (Lin was seen chewing out Alrich afterwards). Lin was forced to foul Durant. So a 2 point deficit became a 9 pt deficit and Lin gets pulled from game. The 9 pt deficit then doubles into a 16 pt deficit.
So as Anon has rightly pointed out this turned out to be a terrible substitution. But what was even worst was why was Alrich in there in the first place when Smith was available. I am not saying that with Lin in there the Rox would have won, since clearly they were tired and probably would have lost in any case.
The Rox were not down by that much and clearly no need for TD to be in there since all he can do is shoot 3s. Should have called a time out, sub Asik back in for Alrich and finish the quarter. That and the fact that Lin was on an assist rampage. All I can conclude is the coaches went back to their old ideas on Lin, oh he is a turnover machine and can't shoot. Put their B team out there against the OKC's A team and got killed. I would love to hear the coaches' reasoning.
I always appreciate your "thoughts of game" in the post game section. I think we were very excited and thinking too highly of our Rockets team after they won 5 in a row especially with Lin seems to be more aggressive playing his game. I admit I am one of them. I agree Rox is not at the same level as SA and OKC. We need to realize and continue to remind ourselves that Rox is still a very young team. When Lin was playing well the first quarter, Rox was still in the game. Once Lin showed his timidness (may be he was tired or may be he was just upset that the coach rotated him out when he was dishing out all those assists), things started to go bad. I still think McHale needs to let Lin plays thru his mistakes. But I am not the one who pays his salary. I can only voice my opinions. Lin really showed he's no longer aggressive in the game when he passed up the layup and dished the ball back out early in the fourth quarter. Even though he was probably worried about the block shot which OKC has done many times in the game, he should not give up trying. He may be able to get to the foul line. Let's hope our coaching staff seriously study the SA and OKC game films and come up with something constructive for the game plan next time we play these elite level teams again. Cheers.
As much as I want to see lin progress every game, its paramount that he stays healthy and injury free for the season. What bothers me is that he gets one hard foul at virtually every game. Despite being targeted he still plays hard most of the time.
The Rockets were too darn tired. Unfortunate but nothing to panic about.
Don't feel too bad. Even the mighty Heat and the hulk LeBron lost 2 back to back road games: to the LOWLY Pistons yesterday by 10 points and to the MEDIOCRE Bucks today by 19 points. LeBron had 6 TOs and Wade had 3 TOs. (The Heats had 20 TOs.... the Bucks only had 5 TOs).
The Rockets lost back to back games to the 2 TOP teams.... I guess if the Heat can lose by 19 points when LeBron and starters played for 9 minutes in the 4th Q, it's not so crazy for the Rockets to lose to a top by 30 points.... Both Lin and Harden had 4 TOs each and Rox had 24 TOs.
I knew the Rockets were bone tired and I had a feeling that the Heat's players must be tired too, so I did a quick research and found out the Heat's situation was identical to the Rockets: Both teams played 4 games in 5 days and 3 of those games were on the road - And both of their opponents today rested for 2 days prior and also had not played back to back games for at least 7 days (7 days for the Bucks; 9 days for the Thunder).
You're welcome. I thought it might make you feel better. (;~)
It would be fantastic if the Rockets can somehow finish 4th in the Western Conference. Then they don't have to play the Clippers, Thunder or Spurs in the first round of the playoffs. And then anything could happen - like a miracle! (If you think I'm assuming that the Rox will make the playoffs, you're right, haha).
That's correct..... I also didn't want to highlight the Thunder's 21 TOs because wifflewhiffle had already pointed that out, but mainly because the Thunder also had 53 Rebounds (to Rox's 36) as well as 9 Blocks (to Rox's 2). Right now the Thunder is in another league and they do have a more expensive roster.
I have been crazy busy and haven't seen the last two games.
As you guys know here, I consider OKC the 2nd toughest matchup for Lin's Rockets (Portland #1 and San Antonio a distant #3) because of the max contract midrange shotblocking.
Until the Rockets get an interior scorer who can actually score occasionally over jumping jacks like Ibaka, the Rockets will continue to struggle against the max contract shotblockers patrolling the midrange with impunity.
The problem is that such scorers are not available to the Rockets.
You've been crazy busy and I haven't as much because I've been in the flatlands for an extended time for the holidays.
I don't always agree with you but it's okay.... BTW, I think the Thunder is more tough for the Rockets. With the Blazer, Rox lost twice in OT as you know.
Interesting to see this thread pops back up in ClutchFans which was originally posted in 4/2012. The original poster stating McHale's problems before we got Lin and Harden. We seem to say similar problems with the coach here.
http://bbs.clutchfans.net/showthread.php?t=218754
This team is going nowhere with this guy in charge. Even if we happen to get more talent, he cannot take us anywhere. He is as clueless as it gets.
- Poor rotations - Poor in game situational changes - Cannot run plays for **** - And several others
Someone recently pointed out that all the great coaches used to be Point Guards.
It's hard to say about McHale right now because of the 5 game winning streak against good to very good teams (i.e, not great for poor teams). But I don't have faith in him as a coach and his record isn't good. I think Sampson is the smarter coach of the two but they are two peas in a pod when it comes to their attitude towards Jeremy. At least they've been told to use Lin more properly since THE Spurs game.
I watched the Blazers against the 76ers game tonight. I can imagine how much better the Rockets would be if Batum was here in place of Parsons. Batum not only was a legit playmaker on the offensive end, he basically guarded everyone from PG to PF. Whenever someone was hot, the Blazers coach put Batum on him and he shut that person down. He's so fun to watch. Well there is a reason someone got paid 10 millions per year while another one was a 2nd round pick and was paid 900K.
As much as I desperately want to hold on to the utter euphoria of Linsanity, sometimes just have to wake up to the somber reality that this amazingly gifted and humble asian kid really stand NO CHANCE going against preconceived notions and beliefs that are deeply rooted and indelibly engrained.
That magazine cover with Jeremy surrounded by the Laker Players summed it up perfectly
Uh, I think Jeremy Lin is already succeeding in the NBA. He's clearly established himself as a bona fide NBA player. The question is, just how high is his ceiling - 6th man? Starter? All-Star? That remains to be seen.
Because when there's something different, people initially try to reject. If Jeremy is strong willed like many of us think he is, then he will overcome this. If not, then he wil be a flash in the pan. I agree with the former. There's a saying:
How long to flash in the pan to no longer be considered a "flash in the pan"?
based on the opinions of all the experts who had to evaluate/scout Jeremy's talent in his basketball career, poor Jeremy flashed in the pan thru middle school, high school, college and now with some of the most brilliant stats in NBA history for a new starting player.. He still a flash in the pan?
My question is, how long to flash in the pan? ANy ideas?
I wont call JLin as elite, but rather a rare and unique player. If only the coaches know and understand the rare gem they have!
if you want steal he could give you the numbers, if you want assist he could give the numbers, if you want scores, he could give it as well if you want purely defense, he could work on most of NBA players for a low score and blow them off.
End of the day, the ball is on the coach court, on how they want to use him. But do they realize it?
Jeremy Lin is not just a bona fide NBA player. Based on his brilliant play on more than a regular basis (when healthy), he has shown the potential to be an elite player...
However, do the coaches feel the same way/see the same great plays? or do they selectively retain only those errors as to reinforce their preconceived beliefs about jeremy's abilities? If the coaches don't see what the unbiased fans see, why not? Why does Jeremy suffer a distinctly different treatment? Why does he get pulled immediately after 1-2 bad plays and no one else is treated the same way? Why, after proving himself to be worthy of a starting position in the NBA time and again... his abilities are still debated and often questioned?
You've completely missed the gist of my previous post
i understood your post. I just can't accept your prediction that Lin has NO CHANCE of getting past the biases and preconceived notions, stereotypes, etc., to maximize his potential.
Based on how Jeremy was/is treated by all the college scouts/coaches/nba scouts/analysts/fellow nba players/ nba coaches/general managers/owners, it certainingly is looking that way, isn't it?
I didn't watch the Roxx's game vs OKC but was listening to the guy from conservative new media (link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oR5gvdH67Gc) and he basically said that Lin was having trouble running an offense, creating his own show and others when Harden is off the floor. He also mentioned that according to a scout report, Lin has some kind of technical flaw in his shooting flaw and it will take time for him to get there. Can someone please clarify on what he was saying? Thanks in advance.
One question, I said that the coach McHale was the worst of the last two games of Houston With a better coach, Houston would have won the last two games for me So what is more important to the Houston now, hire a coach best or 1 experienced player to be the team leader?
i'm not impressed with mchale's rotations, his frequent benching of lin after a mistake - why doesn't mchale treat the others the same?
however, look at all of the other nba coaches that had him and overlooked him - remember d'antoni had him as the 10th man - d'antoni had no other choice than to start him.
Gonna C/P my End of Game Thoughts from last page (warning: wall of text)
ReplyDelete- I went to watch Les Miserables last night and I quite enjoyed it but it was really depressing so I went and listened to Monty Python's Always Look On The Bright Side of Life like 5 times. So I am going to look on the Bright Side of this Game! :)
- Lin had a very good first quarter. He wasn't swishing but he sure was dishing, setting up teammates with confident passes. He racked up 5 assists quickly, and that was probably also the best stretch the Rox had the entire game.
- OKC are a terrible matchup for the Rox. If I recall, KHuang thinks the Trailblazers are the worst match up with OKC second, but I still feel OKC is the worst. Having Sefolosha and Ibaka around basically nullifies Lin and Harden, whose games rely so much on getting in the paint. When both Lin and Harden are cold from outside the arc, like they were tonight, it was never going to be much of a game.
- The Rockets have walked away with 2 wins in 4 games in 5 days, in a punishing away schedule that had them facing Bulls, Timberwolves, Spurs and Thunder. If you had told me at the start of the season that they would win 0.500 of those games I would have been sceptical. But I am frequently wrong and I am glad to be wrong about these things. :)
- I'm not going to bash McHale because, as I have said, this is a Lin fansite, not a McHale hatesite. :) However, the Spurs and Thunder games show that a run-and-gun offence is not going to be very successful in the playoffs - and the Spurs and Thunder are more than likely the teams the Rox will meet if they get in at 7 or 8 seed. McHale - you need to come up with some decent half-court sets that actually involves motion and not have the Rox players take turns to play 1 v 5!
- I thought Lin's TOs could be partially attributed to smart double teams (the one where he threw the ball away down the middle was one) but mainly to tiredness.
- Torocan from CF believes that the cold 3-point shooting from Lin and Harden were simply attributable to tired legs. Maybe. But when you are up against an elite defensive team in the paint, you are going to be able to shoot well or there's nothing much you can do.
- Parsons going 0-5 from 3-point land indicates that he still has some ways to go before he becomes a reliable kick-out option. But insane levels of streakiness and inconsistency are to be expected from such a young team.
- The Rox are not an elite team, and we shouldn't expect them to be able to match up to OKC when the Rox had just been through a grueling back to back.
- I can't decide if going underneath screens vs Westbrook is a good idea. On one hand, you do want to encourage him to shoot jumpers. On the other hand, if Westbrook is making those jumpers, should you continue to go under the screens?
- Strangest stat of the night for me. HOU only had 3 more TOs than OKC. An example of how my perception tricks me. It felt like HOU had a 100 more TOs to me when I was watching the game!
Indeed a wall of text..but thanks for taking ur time to write this!
DeleteI need a life! :(
Delete@2(wiffle)
DeleteGreat recap as always. Agree with pretty much everything, but would like to emphasize this:
"this is a Lin fansite, not a McHale hatesite."
I'd like to extend that to this is not a hate site, period. Alas, for the guilty, falling on deaf ears I'm sure.
Can't wait to see Les Mis (next week). Favorite musical of all time, the cinematography looks epic in the previews, and gotta say I'm partial to Anne Hathaway ;)
@ wifflewiffle Sometimes, some people thought himself is rational and reasonable but infact self- righteous and that is worse than people who show their true colors. I don't know how you guys distinguish between hate on Mchale and not hate on Mchale. I would like to hear what kind of comments sounds hate Mchale what kind is not. Btw, my first sentence is not point to u.
DeleteYou're right about claiming to be objective and rational is often masking another kind of bias! I think I fall prey to that pretty often. After all, who thinks of themselves as being biased? For me, hate are some of those comments like saying Lin should try to force McHale out, which to be fair only one person has actually said that.
DeleteI feel constantly calling McHale McFail is kind of lame toobut I can understand that attraction of catchy nicknames :)
great points as always, @wiffle. Lin's and Harden's penetration will definitely be neutralized by athletic big men and the back end of the back-to-back game definitely resulted in tired legs.
DeleteI guess we do need to look at the positives that this young HOU team has clearly surpassed expectations. Noone in the right mind would expect them to have a winning 16-14 record. And McHale is doing his best with the players that he has now and I have no doubt that he's looking to develop Lin as a complete PG so I won't second-guess his "tough love".
I'll be patiently waiting to see who will be a reliable big man to play PnR with Lin and Harden next season. I also wish there would be a veteran PG to mentor Lin in Houston.
Not really sure about McHale's "tough love". I will leave it at that. We can agree to disagree on this.
Delete@psalm234
Delete"I'll be patiently waiting to see who will be a reliable big man to play PnR with Lin and Harden next season."
You and me both.
"I also wish there would be a veteran PG to mentor Lin in Houston."
Be careful what you wish for! Who would be good enough to mentor Lin without threatening his position? The guys I can think of off the top of my head are pretty rooted where they are.
@wiffle "not a mchale site" get out of here with hat liberal crap, you make no mention of the coaching failures in this game nor say anything about the incompetent rotation among the players...Mcfail is still fail
Delete@Nom, well JKidd was actually the best one because he can't play for extended time but he's the best mentor other than Nash (again, no LA speculation here. just purely from the best senior-citizen PG perspective. Too bad both are not available. I heard Fisher also went back to LA to be close with his family. So yes, we're running out of veteran PGs who look to mentor budding PGs.
Delete@bto, idk if McHale's "tough love" would work wonders for Jeremy in the future but I noticed from small things (i.e. texting him after games when McHale was in MN waiting for his ill daughter, Jeremy's comment that he can joke around with McHale on the personal level in the gym during 1 interview, etc.) that McHale has had the best intention for Jeremy's future. McHale is clearly forcing Jeremy to play up to his standard (no silly TOs that we know Jeremy can be prone to) or he benched him first. The important thing is McHale plays him again the 4Q so he can learn from his mistakes and develop.
I've had plenty of coaches and teachers that didn't respect me.
DeleteBut as long as I improved myself under their watch, I was cool with that.
I personally don't care if McHale likes Lin or not. I don't even care if McHale coddles other players while making Lin the whipping boy. All I know is that Lin is developing well under McHale's watch.
I'm fine with McHale's coaching and even usage of Lin, though most people here disagree with me.
@psalm234
DeleteHeh, Kidd and Nash were the two off the top of my head. Fish isn't qualified imo to mentor Lin. Problem as I see it, Lin's already too good. Nice problem.
Now if we were to talk fantasyland and say we had a veteran ex-point guard *coach* to mentor him... too bad Magic was a bust at coaching.
If Parsons was on another team, he wouldn't be near as productive as he is here. No other team would let Parsons handle the ball as often as he does considering how many TO's he creates vs asts he creates. He's loved by the Rockets like Lin was loved by NY...they're home grown guys (Jeremy could have been home grown had NY matched). No matter how s.hitty he plays, he won't get near the criticism other players get.
DeleteCan someone give me an explanation as to why Lin played so few minutes tonight? I'm not trying to start an argument but I'd like to get some guidance on this. Please don't bring up "he was tired" or make excuses for Mchale like, "Lin has to earn his minutes" bc Harden and Parsons did not play well tonight and they didn't get benched. Parsons also has had very poor TO's but he doesn't get taken out of games.
@wifflewiffle to me, it is always acceptable to get preach and criticism from one without an arrogant mind but respectful, modest way. I respect people for that. I really despise people who acts like they are rational and yet really self-righteous. I did have respect for you. In term of the hate on Mchale you mention about here, I may not like the nick name too but I don't think people here are truly hate on Mchale. To me, truly hate is calling some one sucks for no reason, love to downgrade people no matter how good they are, always negative view about the person.
Delete@k.smith, I think coach didn't take harden out because there is no one to replace him. Parsons, didn't get benched because delfino was out to a flu or something. JLin got benched cuz there is Toney douglas.
DeleteWiffle,
DeleteTo answer your question from the previous thread, if they don't allow Lin to play through his mistakes and keep benching him, how is he supposed to grow. If Dantoni benched Lin in that Toronto game where he played poorly for 3 quarters, we would never get to see his game winning shot. I know coaches have a job to protect to, but I don't like double standard when it comes to Lin. This is why I am upset about the coaches. If they held everyone to the same standard (including Harden), then you won't see me bashing them.
Lin has a lot of pressure to prove that he is legit. The way the coaches are treating Lin, they are not helping him at all. Only the strong survive, and Lin is tough mentally, but even the strong ones do break if push too far. I don't think he will break, but he is the type of person that will do well if he is giving the freedom. As a coach, your job is to recognize your starters strengths and weakness. Their job is to help him (and their players) play to his strengths and work with him to improve on his weakness. If they know that he is not a catch and shot guy (especially from the 3), then way have him continue to camp there?
The way they are hurting him, he might not get a contract after this one is over. Sure some NBA team might offer him a minimal contact. Sometimes, being too nice will only hurt him and he will be out of a league. That is why I hope he will express his unhappiness to the owner and if they are okay with the coaches, then please do trade him. Either him or the coaches.
I do like you as a poster, I think you are smart and sensible person. But I don't like you acting self righteous here. As fans, we are allowed to vent our frustrations, especially on his fan site. Where else can we vent? Clutchnet? Please don't act above others.
Please don't think I all about money or status, minimal contract means backup point guard.
DeleteDec31 ATL @ HoU = W or L 70/30
ReplyDeleteJan2 NOH @ HOU = W
Jan4 HOU @ MIL = W
Jan5 HOU @ CLE = W
Jan8 LAL @ HOU = W or L 50/50
Jan9 HOU @ NOH = W
Jan11 HOU @ BOS = W or L 50/50
Jan12 HOU @ PHI = W or L 50/50
Jan15 LAC @ HOU = W or L 25/75
Jan16 HOU @ DAL = W or L 50/50
Jan18 HOU @ IND = W or L 70/30
Jan19 HOU @ MIN = W or L 50/50
Jan21 HOU @ CHA = W
Jan23 DEN @ HOU = W
Jan25 HOU @ NOH = W
Jan26 BKN @ HOU = W or L 70/30
Jan28 HOU @ UTA = W or L 50/50
Jan30 HOU @ DEN = W or L 50/50
January is a critical month, this is where we'll know if we are indeed playoffs bound or not. If we can win 13 out of 18 games, we'll be in the playoffs for sure.
The road trips stretch are brutal while the home games aren't cake walk either
Deletesheet
That schedule is insane!
Deletewow who created that damn schedule?
DeleteWhat a coincidence that the Rockets WIN (5 straight) when Lin is the primary ball handler and distributor, attacking, scoring, and passing. The Rockets LOSE when Harden dominates PG and plays hero iso-ball, and Parsons and Douglas play poor point guard.
ReplyDeleteThe Rockets were only down 5 points with 3 minutes left in the 2nd quarter, when Lin was inexplicably benched for Tony Douglas' terrible defense. OKC then went on a 13-0 run and finished up 18 at halftime.
Tony Douglas is a TERRIBLE defender, point guards always light him up. Douglas was an astounding -20 +/- (negative 20) in only 12 first half minutes. Finished at -31.
Jeremy Lin faces a double standard short leash. Other players get turnovers or make a poor shot and the Rockets' coaches keep them in. Lin gets yanked immediately. The Rockets' coaches have probably single handedly cost them from 3 more wins this year with idiotic coaching decisions.
Seeing the coaches favor Douglas over Lin in late game situations (supposedly for defense), shows that they are using the same prejudiced eye test that Lin has battled his entire life. This reminds me all over again of the Golden State season, when Keith Smart (more like Keith Dumb) routinely idiotically played Acie Law (worst player in the entire league) over Lin for that entire year.
I wonder why none of the veteran members have responded to you...
DeleteYou make some great points.
@Anonymous speaks the truth.
DeleteI'm no veteran member but can I respond - at 4:00 left in the 2Q was exactly when this game was lost. Lin had just scored an and-1 to bring the game to 50-52. Next thng you know Aldrich offensive foul (turnover). Westbrook misses layup Rox failed to rebound. Alrich bad pass (t/o). Lin bad pass (t/o) - some have argued that Lin's bad pass was a result of a miscomm between him and Alrich who missed his spot in the paint where the pass was going (Lin was seen chewing out Alrich afterwards). Lin was forced to foul Durant. So a 2 point deficit became a 9 pt deficit and Lin gets pulled from game. The 9 pt deficit then doubles into a 16 pt deficit.
DeleteSo as Anon has rightly pointed out this turned out to be a terrible substitution. But what was even worst was why was Alrich in there in the first place when Smith was available. I am not saying that with Lin in there the Rox would have won, since clearly they were tired and probably would have lost in any case.
The Rox were not down by that much and clearly no need for TD to be in there since all he can do is shoot 3s. Should have called a time out, sub Asik back in for Alrich and finish the quarter. That and the fact that Lin was on an assist rampage. All I can conclude is the coaches went back to their old ideas on Lin, oh he is a turnover machine and can't shoot. Put their B team out there against the OKC's A team and got killed. I would love to hear the coaches' reasoning.
@wiffle,
ReplyDeleteI always appreciate your "thoughts of game" in the post game section. I think we were very excited and thinking too highly of our Rockets team after they won 5 in a row especially with Lin seems to be more aggressive playing his game. I admit I am one of them. I agree Rox is not at the same level as SA and OKC. We need to realize and continue to remind ourselves that Rox is still a very young team. When Lin was playing well the first quarter, Rox was still in the game. Once Lin showed his timidness (may be he was tired or may be he was just upset that the coach rotated him out when he was dishing out all those assists), things started to go bad. I still think McHale needs to let Lin plays thru his mistakes. But I am not the one who pays his salary. I can only voice my opinions. Lin really showed he's no longer aggressive in the game when he passed up the layup and dished the ball back out early in the fourth quarter. Even though he was probably worried about the block shot which OKC has done many times in the game, he should not give up trying. He may be able to get to the foul line. Let's hope our coaching staff seriously study the SA and OKC game films and come up with something constructive for the game plan next time we play these elite level teams again. Cheers.
Its funny that Lin got elbowed in the face by K-Mart several times but the refs gave no call on K-Mart and even called personal foul on Lin.
ReplyDeleteThat is just batshit crazy racism
I saw that. Crooked officials. They need to show the tape to the league.
Deletehttp://www.nba.com/email_us/contact_us.html
DeleteYou can e-mail NBA about officiating.
As much as I want to see lin progress every game, its paramount that he stays healthy and injury free for the season. What bothers me is that he gets one hard foul at virtually every game. Despite being targeted he still plays hard most of the time.
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ReplyDeleteThe Rockets were too darn tired. Unfortunate but nothing to panic about.
ReplyDeleteDon't feel too bad. Even the mighty Heat and the hulk LeBron lost 2 back to back road games: to the LOWLY Pistons yesterday by 10 points and to the MEDIOCRE Bucks today by 19 points. LeBron had 6 TOs and Wade had 3 TOs. (The Heats had 20 TOs.... the Bucks only had 5 TOs).
The Rockets lost back to back games to the 2 TOP teams.... I guess if the Heat can lose by 19 points when LeBron and starters played for 9 minutes in the 4th Q, it's not so crazy for the Rockets to lose to a top by 30 points.... Both Lin and Harden had 4 TOs each and Rox had 24 TOs.
I knew the Rockets were bone tired and I had a feeling that the Heat's players must be tired too, so I did a quick research and found out the Heat's situation was identical to the Rockets: Both teams played 4 games in 5 days and 3 of those games were on the road - And both of their opponents today rested for 2 days prior and also had not played back to back games for at least 7 days (7 days for the Bucks; 9 days for the Thunder).
Thanks for the comparison. I think I felt better now. :-)
DeleteYou're welcome. I thought it might make you feel better. (;~)
DeleteIt would be fantastic if the Rockets can somehow finish 4th in the Western Conference. Then they don't have to play the Clippers, Thunder or Spurs in the first round of the playoffs. And then anything could happen - like a miracle! (If you think I'm assuming that the Rox will make the playoffs, you're right, haha).
just wanna point out that:
ReplyDeleteOKC: 21 TOs
ROX: 24 TOs
True but OKC converted the Rox turnovers into points at the other end, while the Rox only scored on a few of OKC turnovers ... transition defense.
Deleteyeah, unfortunately.
Deletebut as long as JLin looks fine (after being elbowed), I feel relieved.
his post game interview:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Su3NCeXHTdg#t=0s
That's correct..... I also didn't want to highlight the Thunder's 21 TOs because wifflewhiffle had already pointed that out, but mainly because the Thunder also had 53 Rebounds (to Rox's 36) as well as 9 Blocks (to Rox's 2). Right now the Thunder is in another league and they do have a more expensive roster.
Deletehighlight from geraldd39lin:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0g2ulikedhY
I have been crazy busy and haven't seen the last two games.
ReplyDeleteAs you guys know here, I consider OKC the 2nd toughest matchup for Lin's Rockets (Portland #1 and San Antonio a distant #3) because of the max contract midrange shotblocking.
Until the Rockets get an interior scorer who can actually score occasionally over jumping jacks like Ibaka, the Rockets will continue to struggle against the max contract shotblockers patrolling the midrange with impunity.
The problem is that such scorers are not available to the Rockets.
Welcome back to more posting, KHuang!
DeleteYou've been crazy busy and I haven't as much because I've been in the flatlands for an extended time for the holidays.
I don't always agree with you but it's okay.... BTW, I think the Thunder is more tough for the Rockets. With the Blazer, Rox lost twice in OT as you know.
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ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteInteresting to see this thread pops back up in ClutchFans which was originally posted in 4/2012. The original poster stating McHale's problems before we got Lin and Harden. We seem to say similar problems with the coach here.
ReplyDeletehttp://bbs.clutchfans.net/showthread.php?t=218754
This team is going nowhere with this guy in charge. Even if we happen to get more talent, he cannot take us anywhere. He is as clueless as it gets.
- Poor rotations
- Poor in game situational changes
- Cannot run plays for ****
- And several others
FIRE MCHALE NOW!
Someone recently pointed out that all the great coaches used to be Point Guards.
DeleteIt's hard to say about McHale right now because of the 5 game winning streak against good to very good teams (i.e, not great for poor teams). But I don't have faith in him as a coach and his record isn't good. I think Sampson is the smarter coach of the two but they are two peas in a pod when it comes to their attitude towards Jeremy. At least they've been told to use Lin more properly since THE Spurs game.
I watched the Blazers against the 76ers game tonight. I can imagine how much better the Rockets would be if Batum was here in place of Parsons. Batum not only was a legit playmaker on the offensive end, he basically guarded everyone from PG to PF. Whenever someone was hot, the Blazers coach put Batum on him and he shut that person down. He's so fun to watch. Well there is a reason someone got paid 10 millions per year while another one was a 2nd round pick and was paid 900K.
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ReplyDeleteAs much as I desperately want to hold on to the utter euphoria of Linsanity, sometimes just have to wake up to the somber reality that this amazingly gifted and humble asian kid really stand NO CHANCE going against preconceived notions and beliefs that are deeply rooted and indelibly engrained.
ReplyDeleteThat magazine cover with Jeremy surrounded by the Laker Players summed it up perfectly
"Against All Odds"
Uh, I think Jeremy Lin is already succeeding in the NBA. He's clearly established himself as a bona fide NBA player. The question is, just how high is his ceiling - 6th man? Starter? All-Star? That remains to be seen.
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ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteBecause when there's something different, people initially try to reject. If Jeremy is strong willed like many of us think he is, then he will overcome this. If not, then he wil be a flash in the pan. I agree with the former. There's a saying:
Delete"The cream always rises to the top".
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DeleteSo beckons the question?
DeleteHow long to flash in the pan to no longer be considered a "flash in the pan"?
based on the opinions of all the experts who had to evaluate/scout Jeremy's talent in his basketball career, poor Jeremy flashed in the pan thru middle school, high school, college and now with some of the most brilliant stats in NBA history for a new starting player.. He still a flash in the pan?
My question is, how long to flash in the pan? ANy ideas?
exactly...good one joe mama.
DeleteI wont call JLin as elite, but rather a rare and unique player. If only the coaches know and understand the rare gem they have!
if you want steal he could give you the numbers,
if you want assist he could give the numbers,
if you want scores, he could give it as well
if you want purely defense, he could work on most of NBA players for a low score and blow them off.
End of the day, the ball is on the coach court, on how they want to use him. But do they realize it?
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ReplyDelete...
DeleteJeremy Lin is not just a bona fide NBA player. Based on his brilliant play on more than a regular basis (when healthy), he has shown the potential to be an elite player...
ReplyDeleteHowever, do the coaches feel the same way/see the same great plays? or do they selectively retain only those errors as to reinforce their preconceived beliefs about jeremy's abilities?
If the coaches don't see what the unbiased fans see, why not?
Why does Jeremy suffer a distinctly different treatment?
Why does he get pulled immediately after 1-2 bad plays and no one else is treated the same way?
Why, after proving himself to be worthy of a starting position in the NBA time and again... his abilities are still debated and often questioned?
You've completely missed the gist of my previous post
i understood your post. I just can't accept your prediction that Lin has NO CHANCE of getting past the biases and preconceived notions, stereotypes, etc., to maximize his potential.
DeleteBased on how Jeremy was/is treated by all the college scouts/coaches/nba scouts/analysts/fellow nba players/ nba coaches/general managers/owners, it certainingly is looking that way, isn't it?
DeleteRockets were blown out by last year's finalist, but hey Brookie, how is that Lin and Harden are streaks ahead in the All Stars voting?
ReplyDeleteAnyone can buy a championship but you can't buy style, verve and fan base.
I didn't watch the Roxx's game vs OKC but was listening to the guy from conservative new media (link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oR5gvdH67Gc) and he basically said that Lin was having trouble running an offense, creating his own show and others when Harden is off the floor. He also mentioned that according to a scout report, Lin has some kind of technical flaw in his shooting flaw and it will take time for him to get there. Can someone please clarify on what he was saying? Thanks in advance.
ReplyDeleteOne question, I said that the coach McHale was the worst of the last two games of Houston
ReplyDeleteWith a better coach, Houston would have won the last two games for me
So what is more important to the Houston now, hire a coach best or 1 experienced player to be the team leader?
i'm not impressed with mchale's rotations, his frequent benching of lin after a mistake - why doesn't mchale treat the others the same?
Deletehowever, look at all of the other nba coaches that had him and overlooked him - remember d'antoni had him as the 10th man - d'antoni had no other choice than to start him.