And I'm a little worried about my little guy because, him , witnessing all that JLin is going through under this coach , is also now going in to his nerves. At his tender age , I don't even know if it's healthy for him to be witnessing all those disrespect and abuse. I don't even know how to explain , coz i myself do not have the answers... sigh :(
If adults feel the angst about the mistreatment JLin is getting and oftentimes , get out of control as evidenced by the posts in this board , how much more with your little guy , whom you say is at a very tender age.
Just tell him to hold on and let Jeremy himself answer all the ???'s , by his consistent show of "class" and "character" throughout this ordeal. That's what makes Jeremy a good role model to kids.
I hope he hangs in there, @chan c, and see how JLin wins it in the end [might be a while, but there's no doubt in my mind J triumphs.] He'll eventually have to learn about these types of hardships, and what better teacher than JLin to help show him how to persevere, and overcome adversity. [We'll be right here with him, just as frustrated, and hopeful.]
He's very very lucky to have such a caring dad. =)
Yes,indeed! This Jeremy Lin saga has become such a rich source of inspiration and learning experience for me and my kid. It paved the way for me to have concrete examples to show my kid about perseverance and character. The way Jeremy has handled himself all season long was unbelievable. He is the definition of "triumph over adversity".
So , it's good. We'll definitely hang in there ... :) [with you all ^-^]
I agree, you gotta have a certain type of KILLER MENTALITY no matter what. But I think sometimes you just get fed up with all the BS dished out at you...
It's not easy to be clutch when you have someone holding a knife at your back just waiting for you to fall on it.
A young team needs to be coached in ways that helps them be confident in what they do. However, Mchale's favoritism to Harden and Parsons is so blatant that the rest of the starters are playing with fear knowing that any slip up from them and they will get benched. This is why when Lin gets to be the PG, the bigs tend to perform better. They know that if they mess up for Lin, he'll continue to feed them no matter what.
I think Lin knew that it was wrong for Mchale to bench him when he had built the lead up to 10-12 pts. He was probably fuming on the bench thinking that had he been the coach, the Rox would have won the last 2 games easily. If you've played any serious ball, you'll know that the way to take an opponent out of their game is to get them mad and not thinking clearly. Ali was a master at that with his Pre fight gamesmanship. In this case, Lin was being played by hisown coach. How conflicted would you be? On the one hand, you want to win, but on the other you feel like Mchale deserves this lost. No athlete can deal with so much internal turmoil and perform properly.
A good coach will always accept the blame upon himself first but you'll never hear Mchale take the blame for his blunders.
Painful game to watch. Rockets have no set plays. They all look confused and don't know what to do. Just run around and get lucky with a three pointer by Parsons at the end of regulation. Also, no inside game and no rebounding.
Why move at all if Harden is just going to hold it for 10 seconds? I see the iso ball as the problem, not the movement. Any movement is a result of Harden waiving people to try to get them to distract a defender to open a lane.
At least the public at large see how Lin gets frozen by Mcfail in the fourth again. I hate Mcfail so much I hope he gets flu and can't coach couple games
For me, it's sitting here staying up late watching a game that should have been over mid-way through the 4th. Why play Bev for 5.5 mins? Sun Tze wouldn't allow that, to waste precious time on the battlefield. McHale just chewed up starter energy in an OT that didn't need to happen had he just game-managed.
Everybody has said this. We aren't getting out of the the first round, and that's not because this team cannot beat OKC. McHale or staff will just have to keep imprinting their brand of bball during the 4th quarter, and now, gone are the days of 23-3s or ball movement with playoff whistles, better teams, and everybody steppin' up.
Funny now Harden just keeps trying to go in, and either he's denied and dumps to Lin or Parsons with 1-3 sec on the clock, or he tries his contact and gets nada but great blocks by defenders.
I'm sure next game threading will reach 500+ comments:) each half... plus the.post game...
Bad bad game... Even for lin as well ... just hoped he hits those shots.. But i.cannot blame.him.for that anyone who.sits the.game for long cannot really have chance to impact the game so.fast .like what mcjail did to lin...
Exactly Lin looked great! Those long stretches of benching f'ed him over BIG time. Welps looking forward for next season. Hate to be a downer but we'll be swept
I suspect Lin might be a bit banged up these last few games.
I know his shot can be streaky, but some of his misses were really awful tonight (kind of random in terms of how he missed, too).
Looked flat footed on defense tonight and against Phoenix. Previously thought he was a bit tired (even though he has played really extended minutes in a few games), so now I think he's got assorted bumps and bruises that are preventing him from playing like his normal self.
Awful game by Rockets as a whole, but I think they really lost game in first half with all of that sloppy play when it looked like they were really outplaying Lakers despite close score.
Rockets really beat themselves (like they often do). Knicks, before recent winning streak, still could claw way back into games because they would force other teams to beat them (play solid defense, don't turn over ball, make a few shots).
Plus Rockets have way too many streaky shooters (Garcia seems to be only one pretty reliable from three; everyone else is either red hot or ice cold).
Thankfully Lin has until Sunday to recover before first game in OKC.
Yes, it was like 4th Q and OT were just ISO halfcourt games, with no options except if one step got you into some lane. So easy for Howard to get there to protect the paint.
The Rockets were on their way to a double-digit win LED BY JEREMY LIN.
And then McHale iced him AGAIN for 12 minutes of game-time even though Beverly was playing like garbage, fouling 3 times in two minutes to put LA on the line.
Lin gets Rox up by 12. Gets benched for 12 minutes as the team loses the lead and the momentum. Then is called back in at 6 minute mark. LOL. What the hell is wrong with McHale. His stupidity is written on his face. And the disrespect is evident on the team. Harden will always fail in the playoffs b/c cheap calls are harder to come by. I hope Rox get a new coach. McHale is not a bright man.
You're wrong...he was called back with 5 minutes left!
This loss is 100% on Kevin McHale.
Jeremy was utterly FANASTIC...until McHale benched him for HUGE stretches.
First Half: 2-3 to start. Long benching. 0-4 finish.
Second half 2-2 to start. Extremely long benching. 0-5 finish.
McHale's racist underestimation of Lin cost them this game and the 7th seed. Rockets will be swept easily and without a doubt...UNLESS MCHALE WAKES THE HELL UP AND PLAYS JEREMY LIKE A PG WITHOUT CONSTANT 9+ MINUTES BENCHINGS.
It appears to me that Mchale and Morey wanted to deliberately show the national audience that they don't need Lin to win. Morey has already said that Bev is the type of PG they need on this team. Morey and Mchale wants to showcase their stars and prove that they didn't make a mistake by cutting Lin.
Mcfridge is definately the right name for how he froze Lin tonight on the bench until he got nice and cold.
Yes, Bob ... It felt like that, that they wanted to win with Bev, Harden, and Parsons and then either sit Lin like before or put him in when it's not looking good to save face.
We had a chance to blow out the lakers and they looked pretty bad for 3 quarters till stupid coach sit Lin for too long after he was leading the charge in the 3rd. I have never seen a coach so clueless, god help us
I agree! We kept the lead and every time they came close we extended. This last few games makes it obvious. ROX NEEDS a new coach. McHale wont get them far. But seriously idk why Lin was constantly benched for long periods tonight. If he wasnt would we have won? Maybe? We did lead MOST of the time... ugh its glaringly obvious we don't stand a chance up against OKC. We will get swept....
Like I keep saying, McHale is going to get outcoached so bad in the playoffs. Every crunch time is a Harden iso. Or if he calls a timeout, then Harden inbounds the ball and gets the handoff back... for a Harden iso. You know that the other teams have video of this, right?
Well the consolation is this is not that bad of a loss because if we r going to get swept no matter what what it is more entertaining to watch OKC than spurs play! Mcfail, dig a hole!
No, that's not the consolation. The consolation is that it should be clear to the front office that McHale is a loser and shouldn't come back next season.
Can anybody tell to JLin (friends of JLin) leave the Rockets if the coach and coaching staff still continue to be the rockets coach nxt season...too much disappointing lose..
I think so. JVG and them were talking abt Houston being one if the main ones chasing Dwight, who knows, Lin and Asik may afterall be traded like that one rumor... also from this game...when Lin came back he didnt have that fire, he just seemed to not care. He wasnt throwing fits or anything. He was just there, OT he seemed like w.e. I hope he leaves
I have to give credit to Laker defense as well...every time a Rocket player drove in...Howard would leave his man and get in front of the Rocket player..and the other Lakers would rotate quickly to cover the Rocket big men...
The teams know how simple the offensive set Rockets run...there's nothing the Rockets can do...
But if they went with the JLIN PNR game...they would have broke down the defense pretty well because all they had to do was run a "HIGH PICK N ROLL" this would get Howard to play at the 3 point line...which give Lin a very open lane without Howard to block him...and Gasol is not a high flyer blocker or fast enough to get into a charging position...why they didn't run HIGH PNR...I have no clue...
McHale choked away Rox's 2012 season, and would've done the same this year if not for the O'Neal goaltend.
But naturally, Morey, the GM who drafted Royce White and passed on Leonard, Faried and Batum - among other laughably bad moves - will give his horrifically incompetent HC another contract.
I don't even care about being the 8th per se. It was a long shot to advance, so OKC will at least be fun to watch.
But I DO CARE how McHale RUINED Jeremy's confidence at the absolute worst time. In fact, the whole team's confidence looks shot.
All in one quarter, McFail damaged his players beyond measure. That's how bad he is. League's worst coach by a lightyear. He is godawful...anyone off the street could do better.
Darnell Mayberry @DarnellMayberry 2m Game 1 of Thunder-Rockets will be 8:30 p.m. Game 2: Wednesday at 6 p.m. Game 3: April 27 at 8:30 p.m. Game 4: April 29, time TBD 10:54 PM - 17 Apr 13
Okay I need to get this out. This is my take. I'm disappointed in Jeremy tonight for his performance in the OT. The fourth I could understand, but knowing what a clutch player he has been in the past, I really thought he would regroup and bring it on in the OT. Wasn't meant to be.
However u just can't ignore the gigantic elephant in the room. Lin was playing well but it seemed like every time he was getting hot, McHale took him out. The worst stretch was clearly between the third and fourth, when he came out before anyone else and saw everyone go back in before him (way later). I dont care how mentally tough a person us. That has to eat away at u psychologically. and we know Lin has a lot of pride.. He has said many times that he can't just turned it on and off. McHale instead of fostering an environment in which Lin can succeed, just makes it too difficult. Just imagine being in lin's shoes.. The big lights, national stage, cameras on him, the last game of the season, important game and then he gets treated like this, especially when bev wasn't even doing that well. I'm sure all the frustrations of this season just resurfaced while just wasting away on the bench.
Judging by how Lin looked, I think he had mentally checked out and hence the poor performance in the 4th, and he couldn't regroup himself in the OT.
Mchale's sub pattern tonight was essentially an accurate recap of how frustrating of a season it has been for Lin and us, the fans. I am still disappointed Lin couldn't rebound but I recognize the reason behind it.
well said. Lin is the most mentally tough person in the NBA and its not close. but even this he could not overcome. i am praying Lin gets traded. then when they play in Taiwan, McHale can get booed out of the country.
I thought it was just me! But yes I even noticed. That was a diss to Lin. On national tv he pulls this kind of stunt on Lin. And this is why Im glad we lost.
You nailed it...except blaming Jeremy is silly. Physically, sitting that long STIFFENS the muscles. This is scientific fact. There's a reason no starter EVER sits that long. There's a reason baseball pitchers don't return after an extended rain delay.
Now combines the physical effects of extended, irregular benchings plus the psychological damage inflicted by McHale...and that's an obstacle nobody in the NBA could deal with. I repeat: NOBODY HAS EVER BEEN TREATED LIKE THIS. EVER.
And the fact that McHale did this in the FINAL game of the season??? What was McHale thinking? Why did he choose to treat his starting PG like garbage again going into the playoffs? What is his agenda?
I'm beginning to be very concerned that he really is trying to oust Jeremy from Houston -- maybe to use Aaron Brooks and afford a dominant low-post PF and C (trading Asik and Lin in the process. I am stunned and furious at his treatment of Jeremy. Inexcusable.
Just before he got the call at about 6.5 mins left, they showed him chewing on his mouthguard. Just before that, I thought I saw him in the background get off the bench and stretch like a frog, antsing to get it.
We have these 2 things going on to kill the potential of this team:
1. let crunch time be iso ball. (Or, let Lin mess around for a few quarters getting people warmed up, then let Harden play his game). Call time outs and come back with what announcers were saying is a quick handoff to Harden. Yes, way to use time outs!
2. Try to win with people like Bev and Del and small ball as much as you can. Have Parsons be PG as he wishes.
Anybody else notice though Lin didn't do much, he had the presence of mind to take his double team and throw to a wide open Parsons for the tie at the buzzer? I don't think he was hesitant - he just knew that was the right play. Harden, Bev, and Parsons probably would have made the wrong choice.
That's why the score keeps racking up for Rox when he's in, and why it keeps sliding when he's out - every choice on O and D is generally made well.
I don't buy into all the conspiracy of Morey and McHale trying deliberately to make Lin look bad and I don't even know McHale realizes what he is doing.
Lin looked perfectly fine at the end of the third when he jumped off the bench to greet bev with a big smile. But being a competitor that he is, I am sure he was eager to go back in with perhaps bev and him manning the backcourt to start the fourth while harden rests. I mean McHale did tease Lin with the lineup for the past few games.
But with every break in action, lin's name never got called. He saw parsons, Asik and harden all go back in way before him. That has to be soooo deflating to experience as a player. I wouldn't even want to play. And then u see the lead u worked so hard for evaporate. And then with 5 min, he gets to go in.
EFF that. That is an absolute travesty.
I just know this is what to expect in the playoffs. The silver lining in all this is the team lost the game.. Hence not rescuing McHale from his coaching incompetence.
What I wonder is are we the only ones seeing this? Does les see this at home and seeth like us? If u r a fan of Lin, u just can't be pleased.
You don't bench a starter for 12+ minutes of game time. His muscles are all warmed up from playing 20+ minutes of the game...and then you ice him while he's hot.
It's simple biology. This is all on McHale. All of it. If Jeremy has somehow played well after the benching, that would have made him better than MJ. Which he isn't.
Ksmith, Every athlete has pride, has desire and will to win. At every game, there is point in time when one team will all of a sudden lose a bit of those emotional attributes and that is often the turning point of the game. If an athlete loses his pride, desire and will, then all is lost. Mchale has done everything in his power this year to break Lin and tonight was maybe the last straw. Lin definately played with nothing inside after being benched.
I believe that Lin already was upset with Mchale for his bad coaching against the suns. Lin knew the importance of this game better than Mchale. When the Rox were up by 12, Lin knew that the lakers were close to the breaking point. If Mchale had left him in for a few more minutes, Lin would have broken the lakers will to fight and the rest of the 4th would have been a breeze. Just like that, Lin saw from the bench the post season chances of advancing vanish in front of him. Lin was fuming inside, emotionally a wreck and broken.
Mchale deserves this lost because of the way he didn't allow lin to stomp on the lakers when he had them running for cover. I don't blame Lin, I blame Mchale!
I don't even blame Harden really. He had no help out there -- with Jeremy on the bench for so long. And then McHale can draw up any plays and refuses to let anyone but ISO-Harden make plays.
James was actually somewhat "generous" trying to give Jeremy a last-second 3 down the stretch (though it was a bad decision).
zx ... it's not generous when you do nothing but probe iso for a lane, and failing that, you give it to Lin with 3-4 secs (sure, it's generous because he normally gives Lin parsons 2 secs) left AND Lin is covered.
You're supposed to make a move with the time so you can give it to an open man. Or there is some motion opening up a man.
You're right -- I even shouted that at my TV. "Stop giving him the ball with 4s left!"
I'm just so furious at McHale. It was his benching of Lin for 12 minutes that made it a close game to begin with...so I don't even want to talk about Harden's mistakes.
zx, I knew you knew that too. I was just writing that for the kids. Yep, we should have iced the game and then it's bunny hoppin' time with Bev for all of us kids to enjoy. Instead, we ate ice cream before dinner, got a sore stomach, and lost the game.
Lin started at the 3rd quarter the score was 50:44 lead by 6 points Then Lin got foul and Hit 1/2 FT Made a 9 ft fadeaway jumper Made a 27 foot 3pter Assist Parson for a layup made a turnover Then Lin was taken out with 4:24 left in the third quarter and the score was 63:55 McHae Put him back in with only 6 minutes left and score was 81:81 and the momentum was all but gone to the Lakers.
Lin was sitting out on the bench for about 20 minutes before getting back in the game!!! What kind of sick coach will do a thing like that to his player?
Dear God: Please give Jeremy Lin a better coach, for the sake of all the little kids out there who need to learn from a great role model. Me too. Amen.
Good one for the kids then! Someone tweet that to Jin and his bruthas. Let's get FB and Twitter afire with a trending wave on google. But, I am not a social network maven ...
Chan C ... tell your son it's ok to keep cheering for JLin, because if Lin can, he will try and we should always try. That's what a blessed life is, to be given the chance to try.
@JoeTeam , "to keep cheering for JLin ..." Yeah , that's the best that I can do for now.
But as I have posted above , I'm a little bit worried for my little guy because , at his tender age , I don't know if it's healthy for him to be witnessing all the disrespect and abuse that JLin is getting from the coaches(of all people). I can see that it's also really getting into his nerves.
Well Chan C ... then you have to teach him well to not let it affect him, because he will face not only what he sees Lin facing, but the pocket veto where he doesn't even know he's being vetoed. It's not a race thing - it's just that people are like that. Kids should learn how to make choices in adversity, so you can point out what Lin says or what he does to stay ascending. You cannot hold a person down who desires to ascent. But, you can hold down an ambitious person, because they are not made of the right driving force. Lin desires to ascend, and he's never been held down yet.
And I'm glad JLin himself proved to be a good role model for my kid by the way he has handled himself all season long, given his situation. He kept his integrity and character in tact and my kid was also a witness to that.
To give McHale credit for the Rockets entering the playoffs is idiocy at its finest... The players on the team are really good and loves playing basketball and when they are on they are spectacular, hence the number of games won but when it comes to closing games like this they are in the dark because their "coach" doesn't even have any set play apart from Harden ISO and now Parsons ISO (laughable).. Mc Hale has no idea what he is doing even when they win, hence, the after-game-remarks of "I think... I thought..."
My personal opinion......Morey and mchale didnt want lin only les the owner believes in lin.they trying very hard to oust lin from houston.if lin ask to be trade after the season...they surely be happy.
Les believes in Lin's talent and wants him for leadership/marketing reasons as well. Morey and McHale don't believe in Lin as a starter but are "stuck" with him.
McHale definitely wants him out. Morey...I don't know. I think he's fine with Jeremy, though he'd gladly trade him for a "star" big man.
Yeah, I'm obviously venting a bit, but I'm now convinced McHale truly does not see Jeremy as anything more than a Jarrett Jack-type -- great backup, fringe starter.
After you say it twice, you will have peace because then it's not in your control, and anyway, it never was in our control. This is just a lesson in life, and I wonder if when I see that happening to me if I can overcome this kind of thing too. Good lessons, if I'm a kid learnin', and I should be to stay growing.
yes, pray for 0-4 sweep trying the same ISO-Harden against the Thunder.
Or a small miracle for Lin to be the true PG in at least one game to win big, then went back to losing with ISO-Harden.
Whichever scenario will get McHale fired because he simply does not trust Lin's game. Imagine 2 years of the same old thing. Better start prayin', folks :(
Jeremy Lin @JLin7 I gotta be much better...time to move on/get ready for the playoffs. Much love to the fans who supported us faithfully through the season!! 11:21 PM - 17 Apr 13
He did speak the truth, though. He was a bit upset for being left in the bench for too long and it affected his forced shooting and trying to force something to happen.
The only way he can overcome being iced for too long was to keep his emotion under control and be ready pick his spots to score when he gets back in.
He gotta be better to play under control after being iced for too long by his coach.
add to zx quote: Jeremy leans back, stretches out his stiff back, and says "Ahhhh well (exhales), tomorrow is another day. Like Melo said, that was ridiculous ..."
The only one positive for me is to see McFale fails on his own sword by getting swept in the playoff for relying on ISO-Harden, failing to use Lin as the 1st or 2nd PG, and not coaching any set plays even during crunch time.
I don't think McHale will ever see Lin's potential as the best playmaker. It has been 82 games and he just failed to see it.
Yeah I expect the worst but still hope for the best, but things like this still bug the hell out of me.
It wouldn't surprise me, by the way this team has played the last few games, if they lose the last 6 games and call it a season.
I hope, at least for my sake and mental health, that one of the two, McHale or Lin, is let go in the off season. This is a marriage that just can't work...
I don't know which one is more likely, for McHale to be fired or Lin to get traded.
On one hand, Les won't let go of Lin's marketing power but on the other hand, McHale will stubbornly continue to bury Lin behind Harden and Parsons as playmakers in the next 2 years.
And he is praised for leading a young team to the playoff so it's hard to envision him getting fired.
But I believe something will happen to unleash Lin before his 3-yr contract ends. It's just meant to be.
"But I believe something will happen to unleash Lin before his 3-yr contract ends. It's just meant to be."
Agree with you, psalm. The divine power has a way to make things work out the way they meant to be. I firmly believe that Jeremy will be able to unleash his full potential and become a superstar before his contract expires with the Rox. We fans need to be patient and must have faith.
LOL, lookie here at 1:08 Lin with 2 bigs and Blake on him. He's patient and finds one of 2 wide open (Ask, Smith). This is why he slowly stretches a lead. Why can we see it and not Rox coaching?
I think we should exchange places : Rox coaching staff should be in front of the TV watching the games , and JoeTeam , Bob C F Chan and our other bball afficionados here take charge of the Rox coaching. :>
I couldn't coach bball, but maybe KHuang, Bob C F Chan, Joe, others many to mention.
Me, I would just do 2 things:
"James, do you remember how much fun it was to blow out the other guys by 20? Let Lin get you the ball in the open ... don't worry about your stats. They always come when we're on top. Feel the Force Luke. You're that good."
"Chandler, don't dribble unless it's a straight run to the basket. But you're running off the ball great!"
Oh man, from where do I start!? I guess I will start by Lin to feel a little bit unbias. I thought Lin had a good game, 8 assists, but needs to hit those shoots. Needs to be more effective. 4/14 is not the Lin we know. HOWEVER, that takes me to my second point. I think you can take 4 of those shots off because they were forced shots by *cough Harden *cough when he decides to hold the ball off for 18 seconds and stay in the 3 point line and pass it to someone else *cough Lin *cough so that he can shoot a forced shot.
Harden, Harden, Harden. I like you, I don't like you beard that much, but I like you in the Rockets uniform. But oh man you get me mad, so mad sometimes. It's like sometimes I wonder, WHAT IN THE WORLD ARE YOU THINKING ABOUT!? Because it surely is not winning the game or the.... SHOT CLOCK!!!!
Basketball 101. When you are winning a game, you run down the clock... When you are losing the game you DON'T run down the clock. Oh and btw. 24+24 is 48. and 48-22 is 26. Good luck with those 2 seconds left when you are losing BY THREE! I mean, I don't know much about basketball, but this is just common sense things. You losing by ten, with 48 seconds left. Make sure you have enough time ~10 seconds perhaps for your last possession. But I knew all these things were going to happen when I witnessed probably the most insanely coaching decision I have ever SEEN!
Winning by 5, lakers put Howard and Gasol in. And you put *drum rolls CARLOS DELFINO AND SMITH! I mean, you don't need to be a rocket scientist to figure out that that equation equals destruction. I mean common, DELFINO on GASOL!? Who... anyways. But that's not all, oh no, of course not. You lose the lead and you say ok Asik comes in. Now, anyone with common sense says, THANK YOU take delfino out. OH, but no no no no. Asik comes in for Smith, and you leave Delfino on Gasol. Good luck getting a rebound. And from then on it was Rockets panic mode. And yes, you know what that means. Harden Panic Mode.
No someone should tell Harden and McHale that Harden is not superman. And that it doesn't matter what all these people say that if you believe hard enough it will come true... It won't! You got to learn from your mistakes. Harden is NOT superman. Oh, yeah and McHale you know they gave you that white board for something and it was not to write, "Give it to Harden."
I'm done with my rant. I got so mad, oh one last thing. Good job NBA on the refs, they need an excellent job for you.
Sorry for the misspelling or wrong words. I was on my rant mode so forgive me. And about McHale sub patter for Lin I agree. But it has been touch so much I didn't even wanted to get into that.
@JoeTeam I was watching the game with my cousin and I was going insane. My brain cannot comprehend such a lack of common sense for a PROFESSIONAL team. I mean it makes you wonder like, idk, I just don't understand how ANYONE can make such moves and be considered anything else more than a mediocre coach that shouldn't be coaching a playoff team. Maybe the bobcats perhaps, if he wants.
jp ... the world is full of people at pay grades above us, making dumb decisions that hurt hundreds and then thousands. I only learned in recent years it's not worth fighting, but more, just navigate. I don't get too emotional about Lin's journey ... I love it, don't get me wrong. I learn from everything and you all. I just know he's coping too, and getting stronger for when he's at the higher pay grade. Meanwhile, I'm sure when he leads, he's doing it well. So, take heart ... this is a good journey for him and all of us. And, when he's with his peeps or doing his foundation, he's the boss and taking the lessons of failed leadership to be a better 'dad'.
Good call on the Del thing ... when the announcers said that, I was thinking ... wow, how dumb. Lin out, Del in with that mismatch. Thought he was tanking for a sec there.
I agree, I mean I used to a bit but I try not to get too into the whole Lin thing. He is my favorite player right now, but there is things in life that you just got to learn to live with and try to be at peace. But completely agree with you.
"BALLGAME. Rockets lose. Will face the Thunder. Just absolutely unbelievable. I’m so livid right now that it’d be in my best interests to take some time and gather my thoughts. But screw it. The Rockets choked away the lead and then, until and after a miraculous Chandler Parsons straightaway 3, inexplicably proceeded to go away from their set offense and resort to “hero-ball.” I just literally have no words right now.
That offensive scheme down the stretch of the 4th quarter and overtime was a complete disgrace. I don’t care who is to blame, whether it’s Harden or whether it’s McHale. It was a disgrace. Now, Houston will start the season in Oklahoma City. Complete choke job, two years in a row."
JLin didn't play well, but this loss wasn't on him. He didn't get enough minutes (no surprise).
Hmm, I think our bigs did good. Asik did good and Smith too. If you are talking about Harden's defense then you know the answer to that. But Harden's ISO and total disregard of how to properly use time in a basketball game was the definition of an overkill. Lin, yes, but he did pretty good driving. It was more not hitting some open shots and many forced shoots because of the genious idea of someone wasting 18 seconds off the shot clock and passing to someone else by doing absolutely nothing. I mean, you would think that you would at least drive to the lane to get an open man for three but no, that's too much work. And I think Patrick was decent tonight.
1) Yes. Well, if not intimidated then totally outmatched.
2) No. Though by luck more than anything else.
3) Yes. But that's not why he shot poorly. (BTW, Kobe was quoted telling his teammates to let Harden get his but make sure to shut down Lin).
4) Yes. And his clumsy fouls put the Lakers in the bonus with 9m left in the 4th.
This loss is 100% on McHale.
Rockets were on their way to a pretty easy win with J-Lin in control...and then a 12 minutes benching iced him. Jeremy was also iced in the first half for 9 minutes. It was like night and day -- playing great, benching, then played poorly.
You did miss an exciting game though. Parsons nailed a last second frozen rope to send it into OT (which we should've never even let it get to that point).
On your questions:
1) Were the Rockets bigs intimidated by Gasol and Howard? No, they just played like the All-Stars that they were. We defended them well at times, but they are also still very, very good. But defintely not intimidated.
2) Did Harden get lit up again by nonscorers? No, Meeks had 9pts. Blake had 24pts off Bev/Lin, but it took him 20 attempts.
3) Was Jeremy Lin being trapped by a man guarding him close and max contract shotblockers waiting for him in the lane? No, traps, but D12 was pretty big down the stretch. He changed many shots and Lin didn't finish as well (or any of our guys). D12 had an awesome strip of a driving Harden late in Q4... total monster play - but D12 is like All-World, right?
4) Did Patrick Beverley get roasted again? I don't think he was effective tonight. McHale keeps giving him opportunities to show-up JLin.
I still suspect that the main reason the Rockets lost was Harden going selfish. Am I right?
For all of McHale's tired lecturing about ball stickiness, he's got James Harden who's the stickiest of them all. And that McHale doesn't hold Harden accountable is BAD COACHING.
If had to place blame for this game, I would say Harden for his reckless shooting, then McHale for his lineups.
Harden had 6 TOs, 2 of which would have easily led to 4pts but he threw bad passes to open guys.
Even if Harden goes for 40pts, he does so via iso. And I just don't think that's sustainable, wise, or clever. But he shoots and plays with tremendous freedom knowing he is the star.
He passed more out of the iso, but it was like w 3 secs on the shot-clock. I think JLin bricked a few 3s because he had to beat the shot-clock.
I ditto the answers above, and just say that if you watch and feel the game flow as if you were playing it, it was obvious it was slipping away into halfcourt bball well before the game tied up.
McHale even said, Rox were walking the ball up, sticky, etc. Well, coach, why not let Lin in and yell at players to go to team game?
To me, it was halfcourt bball against 2 bigs, and you can't beat them if you let them camp in the paint. Obvious you have to get them to run a bit.
People, people... McHale isn't going anywhere. He just coached Houston back into the playoffs. And Morey also believes he should be Coah of the Year candidate.
As for Lin, I wouldn't be surprised he was traded. I definitely think D'Antoni would like to see him as a Laker.
But the big hurdle is that JLin is such a massive fan favorite, he won't be traded out of Houston. I think McHale wants to put him more as a 6th man.
He doesn't hate JLin, he just doesn't trust him enough to carry or manage the team.
Which I completely disagree with... JLin should play starting point guard minutes. Right now its PG by committee.
Even Rahat Huq (red94.net) wrote after this game:
"As usual, I have no idea what Kevin McHale was doing with the lineups. Lakers gained their momentum when he ran a lineup featuring Delfino at the ’4′ against Gasol. Lin has also been sitting this entire time after having his way with LA in the 3rd. So, so frustrating."
Lin started at the 3rd quarter the score was 50:44 lead by 6 points Then Lin got foul and Hit 1/2 FT Made a 9 ft fadeaway jumper Made a 27 foot 3pter Assist Parson for a layup made a turnover Then Lin was taken out with 4:24 left in the third quarter and the score was 63:55 McHale Put him back in with only 6 minutes left and score was 81:81 and the momentum was all but gone to the Lakers. Jeremy may sat on the bench for about 15 minutes wondering if it's time to go home but the Lakers keep crawling back. Nobody seemed to want to play anymore. Mighty sick and tired of the rotations used byMcHale who doesn't seem to know who is the starter and treated them accordingly.
I just got back from the game and haven't read through the thread so I may be repeating what people have already observed or noted. I sat behind the basket next to the Lakers bench.
Unfortunately, I'm not knowledgeable in basketball like others people who have attended games, but I'm just going to add my observations. I will probably ramble a bit in a stream of consciousness because I'm exhausted, my voice is hoarse and I don't want to forget my thoughts.
First, however, I am livid, as my friend could attest to as I was venting in the car. I am not surprised that McHale has reverted to failure. As far as I'm concerned, without stats or facts to back me up, the Rockets made it to playoffs because Harden and Parsons were injured and missed games. They were gunning for 6th only to scrape by at 8th. Today's game was like we pressed rewind to two weeks ago. Nightmare deja vu. Jeremy's minutes and utilization... riding the pine for long stretches, and out in the first at around 3 minutes and back in the fourth with less than 7 minutes. I was hoping I could see mini-Linsanity. Nope. I was hoping I would see Lin only with second unit. Nope. McHale inexplicably thought it was better to go with what causes the Rockets to struggle in games they could and probably should win.
First quarter, Jeremy was getting into a groove, shooting and passing. Blake was getting shots though, so defensively there were some issues. Blake did get numerous screens throughout the game. I saw very few for Jeremy from what I can recall.
At some point, Harden had horrible passes for alley-oops. Parsons, however, outshined Harden's failed alley-opps with two horrendous turnovers (from my current memory). The one into the crowd was frankly embarrassing. The Laker fans around me were laughing and so was I.
After Harden's two failed, flashy passes (actually maybe it was two to Asik and one to Jones), Jeremy came in and fed the ball to Asik for two dunks. Smart and got the job done.
I know Harden's game is getting fouls, but it's really boring to watch and doesn't get it done all the time. There was one time where he got a foul call and was very happy.
Jeremy really picked up his defense on Blake in the second half, when he was in. Overall, Beverly definitely has hustle and he's scrappy, which is really visible, but as noted by others, he wasn't good for long stretches in this game. It really seemed like his positives becomes a net negative when he's in too long.
I told my friend to note the lead when Jeremy sat in the third. When he miraculously appeared in the fourth, I told my friend to note that the lead vanished, and in fact, the Lakers were tied or up by one. Again, Jeremy came in too late and Beverly was in too long.
In the end, Harden and Parsons got their stats, congratulations. Parsons did have a good game offensively, no question, but still should not be trying to be a PG. I can't recall but it seemed that when Parsons got his chance to be alone with the second unit. It was mostly, if not all, him. His teammates did not seem particularly involved. I just remember thinking, Parsons, oh, Parsons again, oh there he is again. Good for him, he is making his shots tonight.
When Jeremy was out there, he did appear to be vocal. There was a time when I saw Jeremy communicating to Parsons about a defensive rotation, but Parsons either did not understand or did not want to listen. Not sure, but it seemed a bit frustrating. There was another time when Jeremy was gesturing for his teammates to get up on their players on defense and not just stand around in the paint... it seemed to no avail. There was another time when there was a huddle and Jeremy was outside the huddle and turned away, ready for the huddle to be over. Seemed like he knew there was nothing of value being said. I could be overanalyzing or reading a lot into what I saw but it's my interpretation.
Lakers fans were out in full force today. Honestly, being born and bred in LA, I am a Lakers supporter. So, I'm cheering for Jeremy when he's in and cheering for the Lakers when he's out. Sorry, I'm just not a Rockets fan, per se, because of Jeremy's treatment this season.
Yes, Jeremy had a bad shooting night. Regardless, I am glad he kept at it.
Whatever it is, or why ever this is, after Parsons returned, the Rockets have been losing even though Parsons has been performing well. Don't know what the moral of the story to that is.
The friend who attended this game with me is a Lakers fan and an objective observer. She is also a journalist. I had told her about Jeremy and the history of his season this year and last year. At the end of the game, she acknowledged that I was right. That everyone on this forum was right. That Jeremy was shafted this game, and like everyone here knows, practically every game this season.
I can only see this ending satisfactorily in one of two ways as people here have already noted before -- (1) trading Jeremy, or (2) firing McHale. One would think that the logical thing is firing McHale, especially considering last season and how his team tanked at the end to miss the playoffs. I'd rather Jeremy get out of Texas. Too many dangerous things happening there recently anyhow.
On a random note, I wondered all night what D'Antoni would think of how McHale used Lin. I'm sure D'Antoni was just thinking about winning the game and was focused on his players, but if he ever just was asked and reflected on it, I would love to know. I'm not saying D'Antoni is the best coach, I will note, however, that Blake has stepped up these past two games, and been doing great. It was apparent to me that D'Antoni really seems to have a better feel for the game and his players.
Regarding Parsons return and Rox losing, the simple truth is pure math. Harden iOS= 30pts, Parson stat padding 25 pts. Where are the rest of the pts coming from? When Lin is second option, he at least distributes and develops his other players to help with scoring. Lin elevates his teammates around him. Harden and Parson on the other hand minimalize them and renders them unnecessary so they can't help the team in any meaningful way.
I knew this was going to happen but it's so painful to watch when it happens right before your eyes.
Maybe Lin isn't who I thought he was. Why the hell does Mchale continue to play Parsons/Bev/Delfino starting at the end of the 3rd qtr? Why did they move away from staggering Lin/Harden's minutes in December? Remember that 10-12 game win stretch?? We were playing team ball and their minutes were staggered.
They must have stats on these lineups, it must be that the Parsons + 2unit is better than staggering Lin/Harden's minutes.
If there is one silver lining to this game, is that finally, after 82 games, the Rockets/NBA fans and media are finally realizing that McHale is a poor coach. Even in the other Rockets forums, they are blaming the loss on McHale. I have no idea why it took 82 games for people to recognize this, McHale's been doing this all season long. Posters in this forum figured it out after the first few weeks of the season.
It's the same as box score reporting. People look at the fact that Houston blew up their entire team and were in a rebuilding year, with the lowest payroll in the entire league this year. So they assume that McHale must have been a genius coach to exceed expectations and make the playoffs. But actually, Morey did assemble a young team with immense talent and potential. A good coach could have maximized his players' strengths and achieved 6th seed or higher.
Anyways, McHale finally got exposed on national television. And he will be further exposed in the OKC series.
Silly Harden pushed Jeremy into MWP with about 1:30 min left in 1st half. Jeremy was called for the foul but if you rewind and watch it you will see clearly that Harden intentionally pushes Jeremy from behind causing Jeremy to plough into MWP. So stupid by Harden and could have caused injury to Jeremy.
Not sure Harden did it on purpose. I suspect Harden was gunning for a steal and ran too fast to stop, then bumped Jeremy. Jeremy got a foul and, yeah, could have inflicted injury because of that bump.
Is it just me or anyone else felt that Lin felt disrespected and acted like he didn't give a shit after he was the last starter getting put back in the 4th?
I also suspect if the Lakers didn't get the lead, Lin would probably sit the whole 4th no matter how Beverley played. And Lin likely felt the same too.
Yeah , what a game!
ReplyDeleteI'm not mad like I was yesterday.
ReplyDeleteMcHale is just what he is. Everyone can see it except him. That's why he's McFail.
how about the owner in Les?
DeleteLes' short term focus is Harden; Jeremy is the long term investment for Les.
Deletemchale lost this one.
ReplyDeleteMCHALE GAMEPLAN
Deletelol, via.
Deletebtw, via, i was in HK...thinking of hanging out with you...
=)
DeleteLMAO
DeleteYay! LOL... :)
DeleteVery funny!
DeleteHa ha ha... Thanks @via.
Delete'just laughing those blues away after such a disappointing loss.
jesus christ, harden ISO is like 0/7 in clutch situation the past few games. -.-
ReplyDeleteRockets are going to get swept on the 1st round by the OKC Thunder.
ReplyDeleteLakers has a chance to beat the ailing Spurs.
Denver will murder the Warriors
Clips vs. Grizz will look like the 2012 playoff matchup and will reach game 7.
sounds about right
DeleteAww! My kid was just so disheartened with this loss.. :(
ReplyDelete(He was cheering so hard throughout the game...)
Though I kinda was expecting it when JLin sat for too long...
You definitely don't sit your starting PG for too long...they get cold real quick...
DeleteThat's right , @Ety.
DeleteIt's still a mystery to me why coach keeps doing that to Lin.
There's so many theories out there but I really can't figure 'til now... :(
Yep, many theories...
Delete[Sorry about your guy, @chan c...rooting for a team coached by McHale = extreme disappointment/ hair-tearing angst for sure.] :/
Yeah! you said it perfectly @via.
DeleteAnd I'm a little worried about my little guy because, him , witnessing all that JLin is going through under this coach , is also now going in to his nerves. At his tender age , I don't even know if it's healthy for him to be witnessing all those disrespect and abuse. I don't even know how to explain , coz i myself do not have the answers... sigh :(
Oh , I feel for you @chan c.
DeleteIf adults feel the angst about the mistreatment JLin is getting and oftentimes , get out of control as evidenced by the posts in this board , how much more with your little guy , whom you say is at a very tender age.
Just tell him to hold on and let Jeremy himself answer all the ???'s , by his consistent show of "class" and "character" throughout this ordeal. That's what makes Jeremy a good role model to kids.
I wonder what that bamboo dude going to say this time.
DeleteI hope he hangs in there, @chan c, and see how JLin wins it in the end [might be a while, but there's no doubt in my mind J triumphs.] He'll eventually have to learn about these types of hardships, and what better teacher than JLin to help show him how to persevere, and overcome adversity. [We'll be right here with him, just as frustrated, and hopeful.]
DeleteHe's very very lucky to have such a caring dad. =)
Thanks @via. :)
DeleteYes,indeed! This Jeremy Lin saga has become such a rich source of inspiration and learning experience for me and my kid. It paved the way for me to have concrete examples to show my kid about perseverance and character. The way Jeremy has handled himself all season long was unbelievable. He is the definition of "triumph over adversity".
So , it's good. We'll definitely hang in there ... :)
[with you all ^-^]
I was confident we were winning this game during the 3rd quarter. McHale never ceases to amaze. It truly is amazing.
ReplyDeleteAs mad as I get at Mchale, Parsons/Harden, I really wanted us to win this game.
DeleteWhat happened? I'm so lost. Lin disappointed me tonight. If you're clutch, your clutch, it doesn't matter how long you've been sitting on the bench.
McHale doesn't learn from his mistakes. He always takes out Lin at certain times no matter what.
DeleteI'm a Lin fan, and I agree benching him if he's cold. But Lin was playing great both in the 1st and 3rd quarter. There is NO NEED to bench him.
Steve Blake shot 6-20 and still got 47:59 of PT.
I agree, you gotta have a certain type of KILLER MENTALITY no matter what. But I think sometimes you just get fed up with all the BS dished out at you...
DeleteIt's not easy to be clutch when you have someone holding a knife at your back just waiting for you to fall on it.
DeleteA young team needs to be coached in ways that helps them be confident in what they do. However, Mchale's favoritism to Harden and Parsons is so blatant that the rest of the starters are playing with fear knowing that any slip up from them and they will get benched. This is why when Lin gets to be the PG, the bigs tend to perform better. They know that if they mess up for Lin, he'll continue to feed them no matter what.
I think Lin knew that it was wrong for Mchale to bench him when he had built the lead up to 10-12 pts. He was probably fuming on the bench thinking that had he been the coach, the Rox would have won the last 2 games easily. If you've played any serious ball, you'll know that the way to take an opponent out of their game is to get them mad and not thinking clearly. Ali was a master at that with his Pre fight gamesmanship. In this case, Lin was being played by hisown coach. How conflicted would you be? On the one hand, you want to win, but on the other you feel like Mchale deserves this lost. No athlete can deal with so much internal turmoil and perform properly.
A good coach will always accept the blame upon himself first but you'll never hear Mchale take the blame for his blunders.
"Lin disappointed me tonight. If you're clutch, your clutch, it doesn't matter how long you've been sitting on the bench."
DeleteLin has never been a "come off the bench cold and knock down a 3" guy. He is a rhythm player. The more he plays in a game, the better he is.
Lin has plenty of weaknesses (despite some opinions here =), and McHale is good a maximizing all of them.
Lin is not happy in Houston
ReplyDeleteHe not have the ball in his hands
Lin will not be in Houston next season
and the fans are not interested in staying with Rox's game either...
DeleteI hope u are right
Deletewhich team is he going?
DeletePainful game to watch. Rockets have no set plays. They all look confused and don't know what to do. Just run around and get lucky with a three pointer by Parsons at the end of regulation. Also, no inside game and no rebounding.
ReplyDeleteThe movement without the ball is terrible ,
DeleteWhy move at all if Harden is just going to hold it for 10 seconds? I see the iso ball as the problem, not the movement. Any movement is a result of Harden waiving people to try to get them to distract a defender to open a lane.
DeleteAt least the public at large see how Lin gets frozen by Mcfail in the fourth again. I hate Mcfail so much I hope he gets flu and can't coach couple games
ReplyDeleteunfortunately, since this was on national tv, the public at large also didn't see lin perform well when he finally entered the game in the 4th qtr.
DeleteHope the Rockets management take action to replace the coach...
ReplyDeleteFor me, it's sitting here staying up late watching a game that should have been over mid-way through the 4th. Why play Bev for 5.5 mins? Sun Tze wouldn't allow that, to waste precious time on the battlefield. McHale just chewed up starter energy in an OT that didn't need to happen had he just game-managed.
ReplyDeleteEverybody has said this. We aren't getting out of the the first round, and that's not because this team cannot beat OKC. McHale or staff will just have to keep imprinting their brand of bball during the 4th quarter, and now, gone are the days of 23-3s or ball movement with playoff whistles, better teams, and everybody steppin' up.
Funny now Harden just keeps trying to go in, and either he's denied and dumps to Lin or Parsons with 1-3 sec on the clock, or he tries his contact and gets nada but great blocks by defenders.
I'm sure next game threading will reach 500+ comments:) each half... plus the.post game...
ReplyDeleteBad bad game...
Even for lin as well ... just hoped he hits those shots..
But i.cannot blame.him.for that
anyone who.sits the.game for long cannot really have chance to impact the game so.fast .like what mcjail did to lin...
Parsons and Harden didn't shoot the ball well tonight either...no one did actually...
DeleteLin was great tonight...until McHale benched him for 12 minutes.
DeleteNO PLAYER could deal with that...no starter ever has to.
Exactly Lin looked great! Those long stretches of benching f'ed him over BIG time. Welps looking forward for next season. Hate to be a downer but we'll be swept
DeleteI suspect Lin might be a bit banged up these last few games.
ReplyDeleteI know his shot can be streaky, but some of his misses were really awful tonight (kind of random in terms of how he missed, too).
Looked flat footed on defense tonight and against Phoenix. Previously thought he was a bit tired (even though he has played really extended minutes in a few games), so now I think he's got assorted bumps and bruises that are preventing him from playing like his normal self.
Awful game by Rockets as a whole, but I think they really lost game in first half with all of that sloppy play when it looked like they were really outplaying Lakers despite close score.
Rockets really beat themselves (like they often do). Knicks, before recent winning streak, still could claw way back into games because they would force other teams to beat them (play solid defense, don't turn over ball, make a few shots).
Plus Rockets have way too many streaky shooters (Garcia seems to be only one pretty reliable from three; everyone else is either red hot or ice cold).
Thankfully Lin has until Sunday to recover before first game in OKC.
Last 10 or 20 pages of Clutch Fans game thread is ripping McHale or Harden, by the way. Not too much mention of Lin.
Deletei know i am kindda rude, but I dont' even care about Clutchforum....even they praise Lin.
DeleteBecause Lin was just standing at the corner most of the time , is this the correct way to mention Lin .
DeleteI hope harden get flu and out the playoff and that's only way we have a chance to get one
ReplyDeleteYes, it was like 4th Q and OT were just ISO halfcourt games, with no options except if one step got you into some lane. So easy for Howard to get there to protect the paint.
DeleteHarden's not even the real problem. McHale is.
DeleteTHIS IS ALL ON MCHALE.
The Rockets were on their way to a double-digit win LED BY JEREMY LIN.
And then McHale iced him AGAIN for 12 minutes of game-time even though Beverly was playing like garbage, fouling 3 times in two minutes to put LA on the line.
I feel like McHale's hostage.
ReplyDeleteLin gets Rox up by 12. Gets benched for 12 minutes as the team loses the lead and the momentum. Then is called back in at 6 minute mark. LOL. What the hell is wrong with McHale. His stupidity is written on his face. And the disrespect is evident on the team. Harden will always fail in the playoffs b/c cheap calls are harder to come by. I hope Rox get a new coach. McHale is not a bright man.
ReplyDeleteYou're wrong...he was called back with 5 minutes left!
DeleteThis loss is 100% on Kevin McHale.
Jeremy was utterly FANASTIC...until McHale benched him for HUGE stretches.
First Half:
2-3 to start. Long benching. 0-4 finish.
Second half
2-2 to start. Extremely long benching. 0-5 finish.
McHale's racist underestimation of Lin cost them this game and the 7th seed. Rockets will be swept easily and without a doubt...UNLESS MCHALE WAKES THE HELL UP AND PLAYS JEREMY LIKE A PG WITHOUT CONSTANT 9+ MINUTES BENCHINGS.
I feel dumb watching this game till the end. And now I will be tired and sleepy tomorrow at work.
ReplyDeleteIt appears to me that Mchale and Morey wanted to deliberately show the national audience that they don't need Lin to win. Morey has already said that Bev is the type of PG they need on this team. Morey and Mchale wants to showcase their stars and prove that they didn't make a mistake by cutting Lin.
ReplyDeleteMcfridge is definately the right name for how he froze Lin tonight on the bench until he got nice and cold.
Yes, Bob ... It felt like that, that they wanted to win with Bev, Harden, and Parsons and then either sit Lin like before or put him in when it's not looking good to save face.
Deletetotally absolutely agree with you!
Deleteand Jeremy's facial expression plus his body language show clearly he is fully aware of it.
DeleteWe had a chance to blow out the lakers and they looked pretty bad for 3 quarters till stupid coach sit Lin for too long after he was leading the charge in the 3rd. I have never seen a coach so clueless, god help us
ReplyDeleteI agree! We kept the lead and every time they came close we extended. This last few games makes it obvious. ROX NEEDS a new coach. McHale wont get them far. But seriously idk why Lin was constantly benched for long periods tonight. If he wasnt would we have won? Maybe? We did lead MOST of the time... ugh its glaringly obvious we don't stand a chance up against OKC. We will get swept....
DeleteIt is really so hard to watch Mchale benching Lin ! He's not a coach. He's just been a doubter and never trusted Lin as a PG.
ReplyDeleteLike I keep saying, McHale is going to get outcoached so bad in the playoffs. Every crunch time is a Harden iso. Or if he calls a timeout, then Harden inbounds the ball and gets the handoff back... for a Harden iso. You know that the other teams have video of this, right?
ReplyDeleteI fucking hope harden gets injured on practice and McHale gets hit by a huge bus!
ReplyDeleteLol, er that is what I was thinking but thought it was a Bit malicious, but I share your feelings
DeleteLOL, is Sampson really that much better?
DeleteWell the consolation is this is not that bad of a loss because if we r going to get swept no matter what what it is more entertaining to watch OKC than spurs play! Mcfail, dig a hole!
ReplyDeleteNo, that's not the consolation. The consolation is that it should be clear to the front office that McHale is a loser and shouldn't come back next season.
DeleteThat will never happen and you know it, we will be swept by whoever we play so let it be OKC. Remember Morey is part of the front office?
DeleteCan anybody tell to JLin (friends of JLin) leave the Rockets if the coach and coaching staff still continue to be the rockets coach nxt season...too much disappointing lose..
ReplyDeleteJeremy will tell his agent and his agent will let Morey/Les know.
DeleteBut not until the season is over.
I think so. JVG and them were talking abt Houston being one if the main ones chasing Dwight, who knows, Lin and Asik may afterall be traded like that one rumor... also from this game...when Lin came back he didnt have that fire, he just seemed to not care. He wasnt throwing fits or anything. He was just there, OT he seemed like w.e. I hope he leaves
DeleteLife is good:
ReplyDeleteMarc J. Spears @SpearsNBAYahoo 18m
Do the Rockets run anything besides Iso?
Whoaa! At last somebody notices... :)
DeleteWait till the playoffs....
DeleteI have to give credit to Laker defense as well...every time a Rocket player drove in...Howard would leave his man and get in front of the Rocket player..and the other Lakers would rotate quickly to cover the Rocket big men...
ReplyDeleteThe teams know how simple the offensive set Rockets run...there's nothing the Rockets can do...
But if they went with the JLIN PNR game...they would have broke down the defense pretty well because all they had to do was run a "HIGH PICK N ROLL" this would get Howard to play at the 3 point line...which give Lin a very open lane without Howard to block him...and Gasol is not a high flyer blocker or fast enough to get into a charging position...why they didn't run HIGH PNR...I have no clue...
Good idea, I can see it in my mind and it might have worked to stop so many key Howard defensive plays in crunch time.
DeleteMcHale choked away Rox's 2012 season, and would've done the same this year if not for the O'Neal goaltend.
ReplyDeleteBut naturally, Morey, the GM who drafted Royce White and passed on Leonard, Faried and Batum - among other laughably bad moves - will give his horrifically incompetent HC another contract.
So , Rox was gunning for the sixth seed but found its way to the 8th seed. What a turn of events!
ReplyDeleteIf you expect to get swept away in the 1st round , what better way than to slug it off with the best team in the West which is OKC , huh!
Is that what these Rockets were thinking?
I don't even care about being the 8th per se. It was a long shot to advance, so OKC will at least be fun to watch.
DeleteBut I DO CARE how McHale RUINED Jeremy's confidence at the absolute worst time. In fact, the whole team's confidence looks shot.
All in one quarter, McFail damaged his players beyond measure. That's how bad he is. League's worst coach by a lightyear. He is godawful...anyone off the street could do better.
You'd hope there's actually a plan and not that this is the best McHale can do...
DeleteLol my thoughts too! So long 6th. And we were even 6tb for like and hr now we're 8th! What a joke...I still blame the coaches.
DeleteI actually think they want to showcase Harden single-handedly led the Rox to 6th seed but too bad Harden couldn't do it.
Deletelol. the Promotional and Marketing campaign failed miserably!
DeleteWhat a way to end the regular season , Rox!
And what a way to sabotage your team's confidence going to the playoffs , coach!
Darnell Mayberry @DarnellMayberry 2m
ReplyDeleteGame 1 of Thunder-Rockets will be 8:30 p.m. Game 2: Wednesday at 6 p.m. Game 3: April 27 at 8:30 p.m. Game 4: April 29, time TBD
10:54 PM - 17 Apr 13
The time of Game 4 of HOU/OKC is TBD, but will start at 8:30 CT. [ATL/IND Game 4 is scheduled on the same night.]
DeleteSo.....what date is game 1?
DeleteGame 1 - Sun April 21, Houston at Oklahoma City, 9:30 p.m. ET, TNT
DeleteOkay I need to get this out. This is my take. I'm disappointed in Jeremy tonight for his performance in the OT. The fourth I could understand, but knowing what a clutch player he has been in the past, I really thought he would regroup and bring it on in the OT. Wasn't meant to be.
ReplyDeleteHowever u just can't ignore the gigantic elephant in the room. Lin was playing well but it seemed like every time he was getting hot, McHale took him out. The worst stretch was clearly between the third and fourth, when he came out before anyone else and saw everyone go back in before him (way later). I dont care how mentally tough a person us. That has to eat away at u psychologically. and we know Lin has a lot of pride.. He has said many times that he can't just turned it on and off. McHale instead of fostering an environment in which Lin can succeed, just makes it too difficult. Just imagine being in lin's shoes.. The big lights, national stage, cameras on him, the last game of the season, important game and then he gets treated like this, especially when bev wasn't even doing that well. I'm sure all the frustrations of this season just resurfaced while just wasting away on the bench.
Judging by how Lin looked, I think he had mentally checked out and hence the poor performance in the 4th, and he couldn't regroup himself in the OT.
Mchale's sub pattern tonight was essentially an accurate recap of how frustrating of a season it has been for Lin and us, the fans. I am still disappointed Lin couldn't rebound but I recognize the reason behind it.
well said. Lin is the most mentally tough person in the NBA and its not close. but even this he could not overcome. i am praying Lin gets traded. then when they play in Taiwan, McHale can get booed out of the country.
DeleteI thought it was just me! But yes I even noticed. That was a diss to Lin. On national tv he pulls this kind of stunt on Lin. And this is why Im glad we lost.
DeleteSECONDED.
DeleteYou nailed it...except blaming Jeremy is silly. Physically, sitting that long STIFFENS the muscles. This is scientific fact. There's a reason no starter EVER sits that long. There's a reason baseball pitchers don't return after an extended rain delay.
Now combines the physical effects of extended, irregular benchings plus the psychological damage inflicted by McHale...and that's an obstacle nobody in the NBA could deal with. I repeat: NOBODY HAS EVER BEEN TREATED LIKE THIS. EVER.
And the fact that McHale did this in the FINAL game of the season??? What was McHale thinking? Why did he choose to treat his starting PG like garbage again going into the playoffs? What is his agenda?
I'm beginning to be very concerned that he really is trying to oust Jeremy from Houston -- maybe to use Aaron Brooks and afford a dominant low-post PF and C (trading Asik and Lin in the process. I am stunned and furious at his treatment of Jeremy. Inexcusable.
Lin was functioning like a toothpaste , Mchell Squeeze the tube only when he need to use .
DeleteNope, i'm not buying it. This has happened to Lin all season, he shouldn't have been surprised by his minutes or 3rd/4th qtr substitution.
DeleteHe played anxious and scared in OT. I expected more BUT I know that with this experience, he'll be better next tie.
Just before he got the call at about 6.5 mins left, they showed him chewing on his mouthguard. Just before that, I thought I saw him in the background get off the bench and stretch like a frog, antsing to get it.
DeleteWe have these 2 things going on to kill the potential of this team:
1. let crunch time be iso ball. (Or, let Lin mess around for a few quarters getting people warmed up, then let Harden play his game). Call time outs and come back with what announcers were saying is a quick handoff to Harden. Yes, way to use time outs!
2. Try to win with people like Bev and Del and small ball as much as you can. Have Parsons be PG as he wishes.
Anybody else notice though Lin didn't do much, he had the presence of mind to take his double team and throw to a wide open Parsons for the tie at the buzzer? I don't think he was hesitant - he just knew that was the right play. Harden, Bev, and Parsons probably would have made the wrong choice.
That's why the score keeps racking up for Rox when he's in, and why it keeps sliding when he's out - every choice on O and D is generally made well.
I don't buy into all the conspiracy of Morey and McHale trying deliberately to make Lin look bad and I don't even know McHale realizes what he is doing.
DeleteLin looked perfectly fine at the end of the third when he jumped off the bench to greet bev with a big smile. But being a competitor that he is, I am sure he was eager to go back in with perhaps bev and him manning the backcourt to start the fourth while harden rests. I mean McHale did tease Lin with the lineup for the past few games.
But with every break in action, lin's name never got called. He saw parsons, Asik and harden all go back in way before him. That has to be soooo deflating to experience as a player. I wouldn't even want to play. And then u see the lead u worked so hard for evaporate. And then with 5 min, he gets to go in.
EFF that. That is an absolute travesty.
I just know this is what to expect in the playoffs. The silver lining in all this is the team lost the game.. Hence not rescuing McHale from his coaching incompetence.
What I wonder is are we the only ones seeing this? Does les see this at home and seeth like us? If u r a fan of Lin, u just can't be pleased.
It's not about being "surprised." It's biology.
DeleteYou don't bench a starter for 12+ minutes of game time. His muscles are all warmed up from playing 20+ minutes of the game...and then you ice him while he's hot.
It's simple biology. This is all on McHale. All of it. If Jeremy has somehow played well after the benching, that would have made him better than MJ. Which he isn't.
Ksmith,
DeleteEvery athlete has pride, has desire and will to win. At every game, there is point in time when one team will all of a sudden lose a bit of those emotional attributes and that is often the turning point of the game. If an athlete loses his pride, desire and will, then all is lost. Mchale has done everything in his power this year to break Lin and tonight was maybe the last straw. Lin definately played with nothing inside after being benched.
I believe that Lin already was upset with Mchale for his bad coaching against the suns. Lin knew the importance of this game better than Mchale. When the Rox were up by 12, Lin knew that the lakers were close to the breaking point. If Mchale had left him in for a few more minutes, Lin would have broken the lakers will to fight and the rest of the 4th would have been a breeze. Just like that, Lin saw from the bench the post season chances of advancing vanish in front of him. Lin was fuming inside, emotionally a wreck and broken.
Mchale deserves this lost because of the way he didn't allow lin to stomp on the lakers when he had them running for cover. I don't blame Lin, I blame Mchale!
I will bet that if we get down 2-0 or 3-1 to OKC, that Bev will start over Lin.
ReplyDeleteJLin will have an extremely short leash in the playoffs.
So far , I like the idea of Lin playing along with Bev and Harden should be a sixth man , , it will be a better rotation for the playoff .
ReplyDeleteHarden takes responsibility for turnovers: "2morro &Thurs&Friday, I'll start focusin on OKC, but 2nite, I cant get over what just happnd."
ReplyDeleteHarden had green light for turnover every single min and every single game .
DeleteI don't even blame Harden really. He had no help out there -- with Jeremy on the bench for so long. And then McHale can draw up any plays and refuses to let anyone but ISO-Harden make plays.
DeleteJames was actually somewhat "generous" trying to give Jeremy a last-second 3 down the stretch (though it was a bad decision).
*can't draw up any plays
Deletezx ... it's not generous when you do nothing but probe iso for a lane, and failing that, you give it to Lin with 3-4 secs (sure, it's generous because he normally gives Lin parsons 2 secs) left AND Lin is covered.
DeleteYou're supposed to make a move with the time so you can give it to an open man. Or there is some motion opening up a man.
You're right -- I even shouted that at my TV. "Stop giving him the ball with 4s left!"
DeleteI'm just so furious at McHale. It was his benching of Lin for 12 minutes that made it a close game to begin with...so I don't even want to talk about Harden's mistakes.
zx, I knew you knew that too. I was just writing that for the kids. Yep, we should have iced the game and then it's bunny hoppin' time with Bev for all of us kids to enjoy. Instead, we ate ice cream before dinner, got a sore stomach, and lost the game.
DeleteLin started at the 3rd quarter the score was 50:44 lead by 6 points
ReplyDeleteThen Lin got foul and Hit 1/2 FT
Made a 9 ft fadeaway jumper
Made a 27 foot 3pter
Assist Parson for a layup
made a turnover
Then Lin was taken out with 4:24 left in the third quarter and the score was 63:55
McHae Put him back in with only 6 minutes left and score was 81:81 and the momentum was all but gone to the Lakers.
Lin was sitting out on the bench for about 20 minutes before getting back in the game!!!
What kind of sick coach will do a thing like that to his player?
A sick, racist coach?
DeleteI almost HOPE he's a racist...because otherwise he's simply a moron.
A sick coach who fails to see Lin's strength in running his offense.
DeleteA blind coach who forces his struggling star to make failing ISO plays without any set plays.
A stubborn coach who will get swept 0-4 in the playoff and be replaced by Phil Jackson next season.
I will pray with you, psalm234. Starting now ...
DeleteDear God: Please give Jeremy Lin a better coach, for the sake of all the little kids out there who need to learn from a great role model. Me too. Amen.
DeleteAmen, JoeTeam. Amen.
DeleteKwok's post = end of discussion
DeleteIt perfectly sums up McHale's idiocy and how and when the game was lost.
@psalm234 , @JoeTeam , "for the sake of all the little kids out there..." ( my little guy , included :> )
DeleteMe too. Amen!
Good one for the kids then! Someone tweet that to Jin and his bruthas. Let's get FB and Twitter afire with a trending wave on google. But, I am not a social network maven ...
DeleteChan C ... tell your son it's ok to keep cheering for JLin, because if Lin can, he will try and we should always try. That's what a blessed life is, to be given the chance to try.
DeleteAmen too everyone!
Delete@JoeTeam , "to keep cheering for JLin ..." Yeah , that's the best that I can do for now.
DeleteBut as I have posted above , I'm a little bit worried for my little guy because , at his tender age , I don't know if it's healthy for him to be witnessing all the disrespect and abuse that JLin is getting from the coaches(of all people). I can see that it's also really getting into his nerves.
Well Chan C ... then you have to teach him well to not let it affect him, because he will face not only what he sees Lin facing, but the pocket veto where he doesn't even know he's being vetoed. It's not a race thing - it's just that people are like that. Kids should learn how to make choices in adversity, so you can point out what Lin says or what he does to stay ascending. You cannot hold a person down who desires to ascent. But, you can hold down an ambitious person, because they are not made of the right driving force. Lin desires to ascend, and he's never been held down yet.
DeleteThat's right @JoeTeam. I'm trying my best here.
DeleteAnd I'm glad JLin himself proved to be a good role model for my kid by the way he has handled himself all season long, given his situation. He kept his integrity and character in tact and my kid was also a witness to that.
Hmmm, another one of those Kevin McHale's game, whats there to say! :(
ReplyDeleteTo give McHale credit for the Rockets entering the playoffs is idiocy at its finest... The players on the team are really good and loves playing basketball and when they are on they are spectacular, hence the number of games won but when it comes to closing games like this they are in the dark because their "coach" doesn't even have any set play apart from Harden ISO and now Parsons ISO (laughable).. Mc Hale has no idea what he is doing even when they win, hence, the after-game-remarks of "I think... I thought..."
ReplyDeleteMy personal opinion......Morey and mchale didnt want lin only les the owner believes in lin.they trying very hard to oust lin from houston.if lin ask to be trade after the season...they surely be happy.
ReplyDeleteI believe that as well more or less.
DeleteLes believes in Lin's talent and wants him for leadership/marketing reasons as well. Morey and McHale don't believe in Lin as a starter but are "stuck" with him.
McHale definitely wants him out. Morey...I don't know. I think he's fine with Jeremy, though he'd gladly trade him for a "star" big man.
MCHALE: WE DID NOT HAVE BALL MOVEMENT
ReplyDeleteFANS: SHUT UP MORON. YOU'RE THE REASON THERE'S NO BALL MOVEMENT.
Delete1) Taking out your point guard for 12 minutes stretches.
2) Letting Harden go ISO every single late possession.
3) Being mentally unable to draw up a single basketball play.
I hope he's just a moron and not something more sinister, @zxcvb [although I can't see how he can be this stupid...]
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteYeah, I'm obviously venting a bit, but I'm now convinced McHale truly does not see Jeremy as anything more than a Jarrett Jack-type -- great backup, fringe starter.
DeleteAnd that's Jeremy's "ceiling" in McHale's mind.
I'm not religious but I just might PRAY for McHale's firing at season's end.
ReplyDeletePhil Jackson. Stan Van Gundy. Jeff Van Gundy. Dave Blatt. ANYBODY BUT KEVIN MCHALE.
Please Les, get rid of his worthless, racist, incompetent ass.
see my prayer with Psalm above :-) Ima sersly prayin'
DeleteHehe, I'll gladly "co-sign" that prayer!
DeleteAfter you say it twice, you will have peace because then it's not in your control, and anyway, it never was in our control. This is just a lesson in life, and I wonder if when I see that happening to me if I can overcome this kind of thing too. Good lessons, if I'm a kid learnin', and I should be to stay growing.
Deleteyes, pray for 0-4 sweep trying the same ISO-Harden against the Thunder.
DeleteOr a small miracle for Lin to be the true PG in at least one game to win big, then went back to losing with ISO-Harden.
Whichever scenario will get McHale fired because he simply does not trust Lin's game. Imagine 2 years of the same old thing. Better start prayin', folks :(
Jeremy Lin @JLin7
ReplyDeleteI gotta be much better...time to move on/get ready for the playoffs. Much love to the fans who supported us faithfully through the season!!
11:21 PM - 17 Apr 13
Lin has to require his right to play as the starting point guard to the owner, Les.
DeleteYou don't have to do jack, Jeremy. McHale has to play you during 4th quarters.
DeleteHe's so damn humble it annoys me, ha. I'd be seething with rage at my coach.
What I Would Tweet:
"Hard to watch that lead slip away tonight. Felt stiff when I came back in. Gotta persevere no matter what."
way to be positive, JLin!
DeleteHe did speak the truth, though. He was a bit upset for being left in the bench for too long and it affected his forced shooting and trying to force something to happen.
DeleteThe only way he can overcome being iced for too long was to keep his emotion under control and be ready pick his spots to score when he gets back in.
He gotta be better to play under control after being iced for too long by his coach.
Great job staying positive!
add to zx quote: Jeremy leans back, stretches out his stiff back, and says "Ahhhh well (exhales), tomorrow is another day. Like Melo said, that was ridiculous ..."
DeleteThe only one positive for me is to see McFale fails on his own sword by getting swept in the playoff for relying on ISO-Harden, failing to use Lin as the 1st or 2nd PG, and not coaching any set plays even during crunch time.
ReplyDeleteI don't think McHale will ever see Lin's potential as the best playmaker. It has been 82 games and he just failed to see it.
#ISO-Beard = #Playoff-Sweep
Yeah I expect the worst but still hope for the best, but things like this still bug the hell out of me.
DeleteIt wouldn't surprise me, by the way this team has played the last few games, if they lose the last 6 games and call it a season.
I hope, at least for my sake and mental health, that one of the two, McHale or Lin, is let go in the off season. This is a marriage that just can't work...
Sometimes u gotta say eff it and move on.
I don't know which one is more likely, for McHale to be fired or Lin to get traded.
DeleteOn one hand, Les won't let go of Lin's marketing power but on the other hand, McHale will stubbornly continue to bury Lin behind Harden and Parsons as playmakers in the next 2 years.
And he is praised for leading a young team to the playoff so it's hard to envision him getting fired.
But I believe something will happen to unleash Lin before his 3-yr contract ends. It's just meant to be.
"But I believe something will happen to unleash Lin before his 3-yr contract ends. It's just meant to be."
DeleteAgree with you, psalm. The divine power has a way to make things work out the way they meant to be. I firmly believe that Jeremy will be able to unleash his full potential and become a superstar before his contract expires with the Rox. We fans need to be patient and must have faith.
5:01 JLIN HIGHLIGHTS VS LAKERS
ReplyDelete[Footwearfoot]
LOL, lookie here at 1:08 Lin with 2 bigs and Blake on him. He's patient and finds one of 2 wide open (Ask, Smith). This is why he slowly stretches a lead. Why can we see it and not Rox coaching?
DeleteYeah, HOW can they not see it?
Deletethanks, via. Good HD video by Footwearfoot
DeleteI think we should exchange places : Rox coaching staff should be in front of the TV watching the games , and JoeTeam , Bob C F Chan and our other bball afficionados here take charge of the Rox coaching. :>
DeleteThanks chan c:
DeleteI couldn't coach bball, but maybe KHuang, Bob C F Chan, Joe, others many to mention.
Me, I would just do 2 things:
"James, do you remember how much fun it was to blow out the other guys by 20? Let Lin get you the ball in the open ... don't worry about your stats. They always come when we're on top. Feel the Force Luke. You're that good."
"Chandler, don't dribble unless it's a straight run to the basket. But you're running off the ball great!"
Then I'd ride Lin like a freakin' Secretariat.
Thanks guys, but I'm no expert either. But Khuang and Michael terry know the game pretty well, so I defer to them.
DeleteHe he...Guys , did JLin's humility rubbed off on you? :)
DeleteYour bball know how and common sense are waaaaay better than Rox current coaches!
MCHALE INITIAL REACTION TO PLAYING OKC
ReplyDeleteOh man, from where do I start!? I guess I will start by Lin to feel a little bit unbias. I thought Lin had a good game, 8 assists, but needs to hit those shoots. Needs to be more effective. 4/14 is not the Lin we know. HOWEVER, that takes me to my second point. I think you can take 4 of those shots off because they were forced shots by *cough Harden *cough when he decides to hold the ball off for 18 seconds and stay in the 3 point line and pass it to someone else *cough Lin *cough so that he can shoot a forced shot.
ReplyDeleteHarden, Harden, Harden. I like you, I don't like you beard that much, but I like you in the Rockets uniform. But oh man you get me mad, so mad sometimes. It's like sometimes I wonder, WHAT IN THE WORLD ARE YOU THINKING ABOUT!? Because it surely is not winning the game or the.... SHOT CLOCK!!!!
Basketball 101. When you are winning a game, you run down the clock... When you are losing the game you DON'T run down the clock. Oh and btw. 24+24 is 48. and 48-22 is 26. Good luck with those 2 seconds left when you are losing BY THREE! I mean, I don't know much about basketball, but this is just common sense things. You losing by ten, with 48 seconds left. Make sure you have enough time ~10 seconds perhaps for your last possession. But I knew all these things were going to happen when I witnessed probably the most insanely coaching decision I have ever SEEN!
Winning by 5, lakers put Howard and Gasol in. And you put *drum rolls CARLOS DELFINO AND SMITH! I mean, you don't need to be a rocket scientist to figure out that that equation equals destruction. I mean common, DELFINO on GASOL!? Who... anyways. But that's not all, oh no, of course not. You lose the lead and you say ok Asik comes in. Now, anyone with common sense says, THANK YOU take delfino out. OH, but no no no no. Asik comes in for Smith, and you leave Delfino on Gasol. Good luck getting a rebound. And from then on it was Rockets panic mode. And yes, you know what that means. Harden Panic Mode.
No someone should tell Harden and McHale that Harden is not superman. And that it doesn't matter what all these people say that if you believe hard enough it will come true... It won't! You got to learn from your mistakes. Harden is NOT superman. Oh, yeah and McHale you know they gave you that white board for something and it was not to write, "Give it to Harden."
I'm done with my rant. I got so mad, oh one last thing. Good job NBA on the refs, they need an excellent job for you.
Great post, jp123! I agree with how you saw the Del assignment ... really hard to fathom.
DeleteSorry for the misspelling or wrong words. I was on my rant mode so forgive me. And about McHale sub patter for Lin I agree. But it has been touch so much I didn't even wanted to get into that.
Delete@JoeTeam I was watching the game with my cousin and I was going insane. My brain cannot comprehend such a lack of common sense for a PROFESSIONAL team. I mean it makes you wonder like, idk, I just don't understand how ANYONE can make such moves and be considered anything else more than a mediocre coach that shouldn't be coaching a playoff team. Maybe the bobcats perhaps, if he wants.
Deletejp ... the world is full of people at pay grades above us, making dumb decisions that hurt hundreds and then thousands. I only learned in recent years it's not worth fighting, but more, just navigate. I don't get too emotional about Lin's journey ... I love it, don't get me wrong. I learn from everything and you all. I just know he's coping too, and getting stronger for when he's at the higher pay grade. Meanwhile, I'm sure when he leads, he's doing it well. So, take heart ... this is a good journey for him and all of us. And, when he's with his peeps or doing his foundation, he's the boss and taking the lessons of failed leadership to be a better 'dad'.
DeleteGood call on the Del thing ... when the announcers said that, I was thinking ... wow, how dumb. Lin out, Del in with that mismatch. Thought he was tanking for a sec there.
I agree, I mean I used to a bit but I try not to get too into the whole Lin thing. He is my favorite player right now, but there is things in life that you just got to learn to live with and try to be at peace. But completely agree with you.
DeleteDoesn't matter if Rockets had a 20 point lead in the 4th. McFail coaching will make damn sure that they lose the game.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
Deletejeremy should play like its his last game mentally. play his game. attack the rim and dish, coz he will get benched no matter what.
ReplyDeleteJLIN PREGAME VS LAKERS
ReplyDeleteI was working and did not see this game.
ReplyDeleteFrom the look of the boxscore and comments, it seems McHale coached a BAD GAME.
My questions for people are these:
1) Were the Rockets bigs intimidated by Gasol and Howard?
2) Did Harden get lit up again by nonscorers?
3) Was Jeremy Lin being trapped by a man guarding him close and max contract shotblockers waiting for him in the lane?
4) Did Patrick Beverley get roasted again?
I will let Rahat (red94.net) fill you in:
Delete"BALLGAME. Rockets lose. Will face the Thunder. Just absolutely unbelievable. I’m so livid right now that it’d be in my best interests to take some time and gather my thoughts. But screw it. The Rockets choked away the lead and then, until and after a miraculous Chandler Parsons straightaway 3, inexplicably proceeded to go away from their set offense and resort to “hero-ball.” I just literally have no words right now.
That offensive scheme down the stretch of the 4th quarter and overtime was a complete disgrace. I don’t care who is to blame, whether it’s Harden or whether it’s McHale. It was a disgrace. Now, Houston will start the season in Oklahoma City. Complete choke job, two years in a row."
JLin didn't play well, but this loss wasn't on him. He didn't get enough minutes (no surprise).
Hmm, I think our bigs did good. Asik did good and Smith too. If you are talking about Harden's defense then you know the answer to that. But Harden's ISO and total disregard of how to properly use time in a basketball game was the definition of an overkill. Lin, yes, but he did pretty good driving. It was more not hitting some open shots and many forced shoots because of the genious idea of someone wasting 18 seconds off the shot clock and passing to someone else by doing absolutely nothing. I mean, you would think that you would at least drive to the lane to get an open man for three but no, that's too much work. And I think Patrick was decent tonight.
Delete1) Yes. Well, if not intimidated then totally outmatched.
Delete2) No. Though by luck more than anything else.
3) Yes. But that's not why he shot poorly. (BTW, Kobe was quoted telling his teammates to let Harden get his but make sure to shut down Lin).
4) Yes. And his clumsy fouls put the Lakers in the bonus with 9m left in the 4th.
This loss is 100% on McHale.
Rockets were on their way to a pretty easy win with J-Lin in control...and then a 12 minutes benching iced him. Jeremy was also iced in the first half for 9 minutes. It was like night and day -- playing great, benching, then played poorly.
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteYou did miss an exciting game though. Parsons nailed a last second frozen rope to send it into OT (which we should've never even let it get to that point).
DeleteOn your questions:
1) Were the Rockets bigs intimidated by Gasol and Howard?
No, they just played like the All-Stars that they were. We defended them well at times, but they are also still very, very good. But defintely not intimidated.
2) Did Harden get lit up again by nonscorers?
No, Meeks had 9pts. Blake had 24pts off Bev/Lin, but it took him 20 attempts.
3) Was Jeremy Lin being trapped by a man guarding him close and max contract shotblockers waiting for him in the lane?
No, traps, but D12 was pretty big down the stretch. He changed many shots and Lin didn't finish as well (or any of our guys). D12 had an awesome strip of a driving Harden late in Q4... total monster play - but D12 is like All-World, right?
4) Did Patrick Beverley get roasted again?
I don't think he was effective tonight. McHale keeps giving him opportunities to show-up JLin.
Thanks, guys.
DeleteI still suspect that the main reason the Rockets lost was Harden going selfish. Am I right?
For all of McHale's tired lecturing about ball stickiness, he's got James Harden who's the stickiest of them all. And that McHale doesn't hold Harden accountable is BAD COACHING.
Well, Harden's selfishness went hand-in-hand with Jeremy's 12 minute benching.
DeleteThe lead evaporated while Jeremy was out...causing Harden to play hero ball because the game was close and time was running out.
Also, Jeremy had gone ice-cold after his long benching, so I'm not even sure there would have been a different outcome if Harden had shared the ball.
If had to place blame for this game, I would say Harden for his reckless shooting, then McHale for his lineups.
DeleteHarden had 6 TOs, 2 of which would have easily led to 4pts but he threw bad passes to open guys.
Even if Harden goes for 40pts, he does so via iso. And I just don't think that's sustainable, wise, or clever. But he shoots and plays with tremendous freedom knowing he is the star.
He passed more out of the iso, but it was like w 3 secs on the shot-clock. I think JLin bricked a few 3s because he had to beat the shot-clock.
I ditto the answers above, and just say that if you watch and feel the game flow as if you were playing it, it was obvious it was slipping away into halfcourt bball well before the game tied up.
DeleteMcHale even said, Rox were walking the ball up, sticky, etc. Well, coach, why not let Lin in and yell at players to go to team game?
To me, it was halfcourt bball against 2 bigs, and you can't beat them if you let them camp in the paint. Obvious you have to get them to run a bit.
People, people... McHale isn't going anywhere. He just coached Houston back into the playoffs. And Morey also believes he should be Coah of the Year candidate.
ReplyDeleteAs for Lin, I wouldn't be surprised he was traded. I definitely think D'Antoni would like to see him as a Laker.
But the big hurdle is that JLin is such a massive fan favorite, he won't be traded out of Houston. I think McHale wants to put him more as a 6th man.
He doesn't hate JLin, he just doesn't trust him enough to carry or manage the team.
Which I completely disagree with... JLin should play starting point guard minutes. Right now its PG by committee.
Even Rahat Huq (red94.net) wrote after this game:
"As usual, I have no idea what Kevin McHale was doing with the lineups. Lakers gained their momentum when he ran a lineup featuring Delfino at the ’4′ against Gasol. Lin has also been sitting this entire time after having his way with LA in the 3rd. So, so frustrating."
I neither care nor think McHale "hates" Jeremy as a person. Of course he doesn't.
DeleteHe does, however, hate him as a player. Like I -- and Coach Nick at the excellent Bballbreakdown -- hate Russell Westbrook as a player.
"He just coached Houston back into the playoffs."
DeleteNo, you have it backwards. The Rockets players managed to make it to the playoffs despite McHale coaching.
Lin started at the 3rd quarter the score was 50:44 lead by 6 points
DeleteThen Lin got foul and Hit 1/2 FT
Made a 9 ft fadeaway jumper
Made a 27 foot 3pter
Assist Parson for a layup
made a turnover
Then Lin was taken out with 4:24 left in the third quarter and the score was 63:55
McHale Put him back in with only 6 minutes left and score was 81:81 and the momentum was all but gone to the Lakers.
Jeremy may sat on the bench for about 15 minutes wondering if it's time to go home but the Lakers keep crawling back. Nobody seemed to want to play anymore. Mighty sick and tired of the rotations used byMcHale who doesn't seem to know who is the starter and treated them accordingly.
[CNM] Game #82 2012-13: Jeremy Lin & Houston Rockets LOSE To Lakers In Overtime 99-95 -- Report & Analysis
ReplyDelete2013 NBA PLAYOFFS 1ST-ROUND SCHEDULE, TV INFO
ReplyDeletehttp://memegenerator.net/Kevin-Mcfail-Meme
ReplyDeleteFor those of u frustrated at McHale, check this out. It will help u feel much better:)
Solidz75, you're a bro and you've made my day. Thank you
DeleteI wonder if boy genius Daryl Morey still champions McHale for Coach of the Year!
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ReplyDeleteCHINESE FANS REACTION - HOU VS LAKERS
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FANVID: TOP 10 JEREMY LIN MOMENTS
ReplyDeleteI just got back from the game and haven't read through the thread so I may be repeating what people have already observed or noted. I sat behind the basket next to the Lakers bench.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, I'm not knowledgeable in basketball like others people who have attended games, but I'm just going to add my observations. I will probably ramble a bit in a stream of consciousness because I'm exhausted, my voice is hoarse and I don't want to forget my thoughts.
First, however, I am livid, as my friend could attest to as I was venting in the car. I am not surprised that McHale has reverted to failure. As far as I'm concerned, without stats or facts to back me up, the Rockets made it to playoffs because Harden and Parsons were injured and missed games. They were gunning for 6th only to scrape by at 8th. Today's game was like we pressed rewind to two weeks ago. Nightmare deja vu. Jeremy's minutes and utilization... riding the pine for long stretches, and out in the first at around 3 minutes and back in the fourth with less than 7 minutes. I was hoping I could see mini-Linsanity. Nope. I was hoping I would see Lin only with second unit. Nope. McHale inexplicably thought it was better to go with what causes the Rockets to struggle in games they could and probably should win.
First quarter, Jeremy was getting into a groove, shooting and passing. Blake was getting shots though, so defensively there were some issues. Blake did get numerous screens throughout the game. I saw very few for Jeremy from what I can recall.
At some point, Harden had horrible passes for alley-oops. Parsons, however, outshined Harden's failed alley-opps with two horrendous turnovers (from my current memory). The one into the crowd was frankly embarrassing. The Laker fans around me were laughing and so was I.
After Harden's two failed, flashy passes (actually maybe it was two to Asik and one to Jones), Jeremy came in and fed the ball to Asik for two dunks. Smart and got the job done.
I know Harden's game is getting fouls, but it's really boring to watch and doesn't get it done all the time. There was one time where he got a foul call and was very happy.
Jeremy really picked up his defense on Blake in the second half, when he was in. Overall, Beverly definitely has hustle and he's scrappy, which is really visible, but as noted by others, he wasn't good for long stretches in this game. It really seemed like his positives becomes a net negative when he's in too long.
I told my friend to note the lead when Jeremy sat in the third. When he miraculously appeared in the fourth, I told my friend to note that the lead vanished, and in fact, the Lakers were tied or up by one. Again, Jeremy came in too late and Beverly was in too long.
In the end, Harden and Parsons got their stats, congratulations. Parsons did have a good game offensively, no question, but still should not be trying to be a PG. I can't recall but it seemed that when Parsons got his chance to be alone with the second unit. It was mostly, if not all, him. His teammates did not seem particularly involved. I just remember thinking, Parsons, oh, Parsons again, oh there he is again. Good for him, he is making his shots tonight.
When Jeremy was out there, he did appear to be vocal.
There was a time when I saw Jeremy communicating to Parsons about a defensive rotation, but Parsons either did not understand or did not want to listen. Not sure, but it seemed a bit frustrating. There was another time when Jeremy was gesturing for his teammates to get up on their players on defense and not just stand around in the paint... it seemed to no avail. There was another time when there was a huddle and Jeremy was outside the huddle and turned away, ready for the huddle to be over. Seemed like he knew there was nothing of value being said. I could be overanalyzing or reading a lot into what I saw but it's my interpretation.
Cont'd thoughts...
DeleteLakers fans were out in full force today. Honestly, being born and bred in LA, I am a Lakers supporter. So, I'm cheering for Jeremy when he's in and cheering for the Lakers when he's out. Sorry, I'm just not a Rockets fan, per se, because of Jeremy's treatment this season.
Yes, Jeremy had a bad shooting night. Regardless, I am glad he kept at it.
Whatever it is, or why ever this is, after Parsons returned, the Rockets have been losing even though Parsons has been performing well. Don't know what the moral of the story to that is.
The friend who attended this game with me is a Lakers fan and an objective observer. She is also a journalist. I had told her about Jeremy and the history of his season this year and last year. At the end of the game, she acknowledged that I was right. That everyone on this forum was right. That Jeremy was shafted this game, and like everyone here knows, practically every game this season.
I can only see this ending satisfactorily in one of two ways as people here have already noted before -- (1) trading Jeremy, or (2) firing McHale. One would think that the logical thing is firing McHale, especially considering last season and how his team tanked at the end to miss the playoffs. I'd rather Jeremy get out of Texas. Too many dangerous things happening there recently anyhow.
On a random note, I wondered all night what D'Antoni would think of how McHale used Lin. I'm sure D'Antoni was just thinking about winning the game and was focused on his players, but if he ever just was asked and reflected on it, I would love to know. I'm not saying D'Antoni is the best coach, I will note, however, that Blake has stepped up these past two games, and been doing great. It was apparent to me that D'Antoni really seems to have a better feel for the game and his players.
Thanks for the game insights.
DeleteIt dawned on me , Lin to the Lakers isn't such a bad idea... hehe :)
There , maybe he can be unleashed as the real Point Guard!
Regarding Parsons return and Rox losing, the simple truth is pure math. Harden iOS= 30pts, Parson stat padding 25 pts. Where are the rest of the pts coming from? When Lin is second option, he at least distributes and develops his other players to help with scoring. Lin elevates his teammates around him. Harden and Parson on the other hand minimalize them and renders them unnecessary so they can't help the team in any meaningful way.
DeleteVery good game insights, thanks cali7.
DeleteThanks for the recap!
DeleteI knew this was going to happen but it's so painful to watch when it happens right before your eyes.
Maybe Lin isn't who I thought he was. Why the hell does Mchale continue to play Parsons/Bev/Delfino starting at the end of the 3rd qtr? Why did they move away from staggering Lin/Harden's minutes in December? Remember that 10-12 game win stretch?? We were playing team ball and their minutes were staggered.
They must have stats on these lineups, it must be that the Parsons + 2unit is better than staggering Lin/Harden's minutes.
Parsons plays well and we LOSE again. Just thought i'd mention that.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great ball handler, i'm glad Mchale likes using him as at the point.
If there is one silver lining to this game, is that finally, after 82 games, the Rockets/NBA fans and media are finally realizing that McHale is a poor coach. Even in the other Rockets forums, they are blaming the loss on McHale. I have no idea why it took 82 games for people to recognize this, McHale's been doing this all season long. Posters in this forum figured it out after the first few weeks of the season.
ReplyDeleteIt's the same as box score reporting. People look at the fact that Houston blew up their entire team and were in a rebuilding year, with the lowest payroll in the entire league this year. So they assume that McHale must have been a genius coach to exceed expectations and make the playoffs. But actually, Morey did assemble a young team with immense talent and potential. A good coach could have maximized his players' strengths and achieved 6th seed or higher.
Anyways, McHale finally got exposed on national television. And he will be further exposed in the OKC series.
Silly Harden pushed Jeremy into MWP with about 1:30 min left in 1st half. Jeremy was called for the foul but if you rewind and watch it you will see clearly that Harden intentionally pushes Jeremy from behind causing Jeremy to plough into MWP. So stupid by Harden and could have caused injury to Jeremy.
ReplyDeleteNot sure Harden did it on purpose. I suspect Harden was gunning for a steal and ran too fast to stop, then bumped Jeremy. Jeremy got a foul and, yeah, could have inflicted injury because of that bump.
Delete[Taped pre-HOUvsLAL game]
ReplyDeleteJOY DUNK CLUB EP 14: TAIWAN
Is it just me or anyone else felt that Lin felt disrespected and acted like he didn't give a shit after he was the last starter getting put back in the 4th?
ReplyDeleteI also suspect if the Lakers didn't get the lead, Lin would probably sit the whole 4th no matter how Beverley played. And Lin likely felt the same too.
You are not alone here. I felt the same way too.
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