3/3 - [Game 61] Rockets v. Mavericks 7:00 EST
Posted: Sun Mar 3, 2013 8:07 am
No pictures.
Honestly, even at home, Dallas has had our number....just like Denver/SA.
What to expect from Dallas/Rockets D.
1.) To leave their shooters wide open. Mayo, Carter, and Dirk are all 40% from downtown. Even Collison is at 38%. Considering how much we struggle to defend shooters, expect them to have a field day.
2.) We got abused by Nicholson and Tobias Harris. Now we face Dirk.....who has been 20/10 on 50/50/95 since the all-star break. I wouldn't be surprised if Dirk dropped his first 40+ of the season.
3.) Kaman will take Asik away from the basket.
4.) Considering we will be going small w/ Delfino at the 4...Marion, Brand, Dirk, Kaman will crash and control the boards, and will grab offensive rebounds at the most crucial possessions.
5.) Expect Brandan Wright to have a big game, because for some reason he loves playing against us. Also watch out for Crowder's energy, and even Mike James has made an impact off the bench.
What to expect from the Rockets/Dallas D
1.) To defend Harden well. In the first place Harden is hobbled, and since the second half of our first meeting w/ them (where Harden had 30 at half), they've basically shut down Harden, and held him to the worst game of the season the last time we played them @ Dallas.
2.) Lin will miss perimeter jumpshots
3.) We'll come out and take a double digit lead and subsequently allow Dallas to slow down our offense (they are 15th in DRTG), and their shooters will take control leading them back into the game. Keep in mind, Dallas is one of those "games" we've blown where we had a 9 point lead in the 4th quarter, and went on to lose.
4.) Thomas Robinson to be a huge negative on the court. And DMo to leave Dirk wide open because he comes all the way out to halfcourt to hedge on P&R defense.
5.) Beverley has been shooting it unreal since the trade...expect him to have a off night.
6.) Also expect us to miss FT's, Parsons stroke has looked awful, Asik is reliably poor, and Harden/Lin need to fill their quota of missing FT's too...just like the last time we played Dallas.
Not sure if Brooks will play, or if he's even w/ the team..
Also not sure if Harden is healed from that injury, because he was clearly a step slow.
All in all, Lakers already as close as they've ever been. All they need is to be 1 game back to pass us on the final game of the season. We continue our play, it won't even come down to that.
Another let down is coming. Or is it really a let down when you've seen this team lose to the Mavericks twice already? The only reason we beat Orlando was because of stupid mistakes by a bad team down the stretch.
What sucks even more is, Dallas is not out of the picture in the playoff race. If we were to lose these next two games to them, they'd gain huge ground, and basically also help the Lakers get in ahead of them. This would be ruining the hopes of not only Rocket fans, but the fans of many other around the NBA that would love to see the Lakeshow miss the post-season.
Loss.
Honestly, even at home, Dallas has had our number....just like Denver/SA.
What to expect from Dallas/Rockets D.
1.) To leave their shooters wide open. Mayo, Carter, and Dirk are all 40% from downtown. Even Collison is at 38%. Considering how much we struggle to defend shooters, expect them to have a field day.
2.) We got abused by Nicholson and Tobias Harris. Now we face Dirk.....who has been 20/10 on 50/50/95 since the all-star break. I wouldn't be surprised if Dirk dropped his first 40+ of the season.
3.) Kaman will take Asik away from the basket.
4.) Considering we will be going small w/ Delfino at the 4...Marion, Brand, Dirk, Kaman will crash and control the boards, and will grab offensive rebounds at the most crucial possessions.
5.) Expect Brandan Wright to have a big game, because for some reason he loves playing against us. Also watch out for Crowder's energy, and even Mike James has made an impact off the bench.
What to expect from the Rockets/Dallas D
1.) To defend Harden well. In the first place Harden is hobbled, and since the second half of our first meeting w/ them (where Harden had 30 at half), they've basically shut down Harden, and held him to the worst game of the season the last time we played them @ Dallas.
2.) Lin will miss perimeter jumpshots
3.) We'll come out and take a double digit lead and subsequently allow Dallas to slow down our offense (they are 15th in DRTG), and their shooters will take control leading them back into the game. Keep in mind, Dallas is one of those "games" we've blown where we had a 9 point lead in the 4th quarter, and went on to lose.
4.) Thomas Robinson to be a huge negative on the court. And DMo to leave Dirk wide open because he comes all the way out to halfcourt to hedge on P&R defense.
5.) Beverley has been shooting it unreal since the trade...expect him to have a off night.
6.) Also expect us to miss FT's, Parsons stroke has looked awful, Asik is reliably poor, and Harden/Lin need to fill their quota of missing FT's too...just like the last time we played Dallas.
Not sure if Brooks will play, or if he's even w/ the team..
Also not sure if Harden is healed from that injury, because he was clearly a step slow.
All in all, Lakers already as close as they've ever been. All they need is to be 1 game back to pass us on the final game of the season. We continue our play, it won't even come down to that.
Another let down is coming. Or is it really a let down when you've seen this team lose to the Mavericks twice already? The only reason we beat Orlando was because of stupid mistakes by a bad team down the stretch.
What sucks even more is, Dallas is not out of the picture in the playoff race. If we were to lose these next two games to them, they'd gain huge ground, and basically also help the Lakers get in ahead of them. This would be ruining the hopes of not only Rocket fans, but the fans of many other around the NBA that would love to see the Lakeshow miss the post-season.
Loss.
