What will the Parsons / Lin less Rocket Offense look like?

[Fattz]

Lin and Parsons pushed the ball --> As of now the Rockets playing pace slowed way down

We will need a lot of spacing to use Howard; but I don't think a 3 point shooting power forward is the answer --> We will get beat up on the boards won't be able to start fast brakes as easily for transition offense. We need a sure shooting mid range, boxing out, pick setting, passing, rebounder with a high BB I Q power forward.

Can Jones be the 3rd option (Parson's role) and push the ball from the power forward spot? Can Johnson (rookie) take Lin's role?

Right now more questions than answers...

(the Rockets are more than Howard and Harden)

[MaxRider]

lol lin and parsons push the ball

[Freefloater]

it will be among the best offenses in the league...we have the beard top 5 scorer in the league, howard the best center with polished post game .,.daniels monster 3p shooter....ariza a great 3p shooter

[Mr. E]

I think that any changes in offense will be negated by the improvement in defense.

Parsons will be the bigger loss for us offensively. I don't know exactly what to expect from Ariza on that front, but I understand that he is a consistent 3-point shooter and we aren't looking at him to be a major offensive focus with Howard, Harden & I'm going to say Jones until something changes.

Lin's ability off of the bench will be missed, but it won't be too much of a loss. His strength for us was that he was pretty much the only other "creator" that we had on offense. He was inconsistent in that role, but a lot of that was due to him not being a good fit for the team after Harden was acquired. If we make another move this offseason then I think that it will be at the PG spot.

I think that we have plenty of "weapons" on the bench, but we don't have that second-team quarterback right now as far as I can tell.

[OrlandoHouston]

A lot of Harden, a lot of Howard & a lot of shooting

[Fattz]

I think that any changes in offense will be negated by the improvement in defense.

Parsons will be the bigger loss for us offensively. I don't know exactly what to expect from Ariza on that front, but I understand that he is a consistent 3-point shooter and we aren't looking at him to be a major offensive focus with Howard, Harden & I'm going to say Jones until something changes.

Lin's ability off of the bench will be missed, but it won't be too much of a loss. His strength for us was that he was pretty much the only other "creator" that we had on offense. He was inconsistent in that role, but a lot of that was due to him not being a good fit for the team after Harden was acquired. If we make another move this offseason then I think that it will be at the PG spot.

I think that we have plenty of "weapons" on the bench, but we don't have that second-team quarterback right now as far as I can tell.

Did not see any of the SL games but read the box scores... Is Johnson a combo gaurd that could get playing time as a rookie? Is he the answer for Lin's role? If not who will fill it?

(I think Foye and Denver just traded for 2 sg and are set in the backcourt... should get a look)

[MKL]

A lot of Harden, a lot of Howard & a lot of shooting

^ this

Also we can't defend PFs.

[HTown_TMac]

Iso, Iso, Iso..

Wait, basically the same as last season.

[RollingWave]

Pace wise it probably will be effected, as the OP noted Lin and Parsons was 2 of the 3 main transition player for the team and some of the stuff they do is very hard to replicate.

Ariza is also not as good of a off ball cutter as Parsons, so I imagine the ball movement could get worse in a sense. Ariza got most of his 3 point shot in the corner last year, but as a team the Rockets weren't very good at getting that shot, the question is how much of that is scheme and how much of it is simply personnel execution(as in, purely because you had Jones took a lot of those shots. or was it because by default you had your PF hanging out here and wanted your wing at the 45% angel etc.)

Overall result is hard to say, because the Rockets last year looked like 2 different offense trying to piece itself together and often looked quarky in the process, a lot of experiment and stuff so we don't know if they can fit together more seamlessly this year or they change things up, not to mention everything is relative as we won't know what other teams adjustments are like.

In short, it'll certainly be in the top 3rd of the league, but let's note one obvious fact here, the team was 4th in offensive rating and 2nd in points per game, which means it's by default more likely to get worse than better. I think the PPG part will almost certainly get worse due to the pace probably getting slower, the key is to see if it can stay top 5 in efficiency.

[quatin]

it will be among the best offenses in the league...we have the beard top 5 scorer in the league, howard the best center with polished post game .,.daniels monster 3p shooter....ariza a great 3p shooter

Ariza is a good spot up shooter from the corner. Someone needs to break the defense down and create for him. On the Wizards that was John Wall. Now we have to rely on Harden to distribute the ball for him. On top of that, we haven't been setting up corner shots ever since Patterson left.

If we had a real coach, I would have more hope on fitting Ariza into a 3&D role. However, I think Ariza will just be a defensive wing. The offense willl be Harden isos and Howard post-ups. Rinse and repeat, whether we win or lose.

[Freefloater]

it will be among the best offenses in the league...we have the beard top 5 scorer in the league, howard the best center with polished post game .,.daniels monster 3p shooter....ariza a great 3p shooter

Ariza is a good spot up shooter from the corner. Someone needs to break the defense down and create for him. On the Wizards that was John Wall. Now we have to rely on Harden to distribute the ball for him. On top of that, we haven't been setting up corner shots ever since Patterson left.

If we had a real coach, I would have more hope on fitting Ariza into a 3&D role. However, I think Ariza will just be a defensive wing. The offense willl be Harden isos and Howard post-ups. Rinse and repeat, whether we win or lose.

i am fine with that ...if harden and howard happen to be in a great form in playoffs time we can win the trophy...especially if harden make another step offensively and man up on d...

[CoolbeansB]

Looks like they may be better all around.

[baki]

Lack of the x-factor when Harden or Howard are not effective.

Think of the games that Lin and Parsons saved us from and you'll have your answer.

[Freefloater]

Lack of the x-factor when Harden or Howard are not effective.

Think of the games that Lin and Parsons saved us from and you'll have your answer.

dont you think t-jones might make a bit of progress? he isnt that old after all? i also expect beverly to progress hes in his 3rd season now...i also like papa as x factor....how bout daniels? a super sniper averaging 5-6 threes a game?
afterall if h and h will ball we really dont need noone to win the chip...theyre enough...

[hayden]

lol, the offense will look identical. no plays, no pnrs, just isos and pass if you can't beat your defender. unless you're harden, in which case... hoist up any shot or pass with 5 secs left on the shot clock.

unfortunately, we are talented enough to win games like this.. enough so, that McHale has been able to keep his job.

[moss_is_1]

I was wondering what your guy's bench will look like? You had a solid bench last year with Lin/Asik leading that unit...now there is a lot of unknowns. Who would you see getting PT from the bench, and who do you see stepping up?

If the Pacers were moving West, would there be an interest from Houston to swoop in on that? He'd offer a lot of what you'd need from that PF spot, plus lots of veteran leadership.

[RollingWave]

I was wondering what your guy's bench will look like? You had a solid bench last year with Lin/Asik leading that unit...now there is a lot of unknowns. Who would you see getting PT from the bench, and who do you see stepping up?

If the Pacers were moving West, would there be an interest from Houston to swoop in on that? He'd offer a lot of what you'd need from that PF spot, plus lots of veteran leadership.

Hard to say, at this point it looks like the guys who will get PT from the bench is

Isiah Canaan (1): 2nd year player, drafted in the 2nd round and played almost all of last year in D-League, can shoot, not sure if he can do anything else enough and is undersized. best case probably buffier Aaron Brooks.

Nick Johnson (1/2): rookie 2nd rounder, good athlete and seem to have a pretty good feel for the game on both end, can't shoot a lick yet though, has a reasonable chance of being good down the road but seems suspect as a first year wing. maybe he's Tony Allen, maybe he's nothing, hard to know.

Kostas Papalanilou (3) : a Greek Euro who's being brought over, seem like he's going to be a good role player as a 3 and D wing. question is can he adjust immediately? and how effective overall? I think he'll be an upgrade over Garcia for sure, but not sure if he'll really be better than Omri Casspi (who was very good to begin the year then faded.) the two things he does well are the same two things that typically take more than 1 year to translate.

Troy Daniel (2/3) : an undrafted rookie last year who lit up the D-league from down town and even played significant minutes for the Rockets in the playoff and had a big shot, it seems Daniels will definitely get his shot this year, but it is unknow how much his game will hold up in extended play, again, he can definitely shoot, not sure if he can do anything else though.

Donatas Motiejunas (4/5) : going into his 3rd year, the former 1st rounder seems like the safest bet to give the Rockets something this year, he has been in and out of the rotation in the last couple years, having started a portion of the games in his rookie year then being buried for long stretches in the 2nd year, it's do or die time for Dmo, he has the skill set and seem to have made some improvements to be a useful big.

Joey Dorsey (4/5) : Last seen playing for Toronto in 10-11, he has spent the last 2 years i Europe and was reasonably effective there, but at age 30 he hasn't even cracked 700 minutes in the NBA, it seems like a dubious bet that he would be a effective big that can be relied for more than a very small role.

The Rockets need at least half of these guys to pan out, but as you can see there's a fairly significant chance that doesn't happen.

[cat1]

What will the Parsons / Lin less Rocket Offense look like?

Slower pace, less fast breaks, less penetration (only Harden can penetrate now, Lin's penetration will be missed), more iso (Harden or Howard)

If I were the opposing team, I would focus on taking Harden out of the game since he is the main scorer, the ball handler and the weakest link on d. I'd have one or two tough sticky defenders on him at all time. I'd focus the offense towards him to get him into foul trouble or just to make him tired

[kinein]

* It will be a lot slower.
* Look to see Harden as the main on-the-ball guy.
* Ariza and Daniels will take turns shooting the three when D12 and The Beard aren't ramming it down the basket.

Teams will take what they saw in the playoffs and use it against Harden.
D12 will battle inside mainly with an occasional alleyoop from Harden.

You will see teams focus on taking Harden out of the game and teams to exploit his defense.
Teams will also look to get D12 into foul trouble early of course. If that happens see a lot of penetrations inside, and big-man play from opposing teams.

[cw3k]

Business as usual. 2 players and bunch of role players.

Harden will walk to half court and then get the ball, hold it with 3 seconds left and then either jack it up or go for an "assist".