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Why did Denver and Brooklyn refuse to play this guy again?

Jamaaliver wrote:Why did Denver and Brooklyn refuse to play this guy again?

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'Cause his energy/effort waned until, all of a sudden, he decided to play hard for HOU?

Do I win the prize?

Daaaaaaamn....

Any word on red head kingpin?

DirtybirdGA wrote:Any word on red head kingpin?

He"s a definite "maybe" for tonight!

The Huert returns!

Thanks for the update.

Kemba, Jokic, Beal, Griffin, Towns, Simmons, George, Westbrook, and LeBron. What do those NBA players have in common? All of them are All-Stars. And all of them have been handed an L during the season, courtesy of Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks. As the scene shifts from the homestand to Houston for a bout with the Rockets (8 PM Eastern, Fox Sports Southeast and 92.9 FM in ATL, AT&T SportsNet in HTX), will MVP finalist James Harden become the talented tenth to join this list?

It’s hard to imagine it, on paper. While currently listed as probable, The Beard’s cervical strain could keep him shelved for another game, meaning the Hawks may have to wait until the rematch at The Farm on March 19.

Yet even without him, the Rockets (34-25, 5th in NBA West) have returned home fresh off a 118-112 toppling of the Warriors, in Oakland two nights ago. Harden’s top co-stars, Chris Paul and Clint Capela, are now fully healthy, the latter shoring up the frontcourt defense for coach Mike D’Antoni’s club (112.0 D-Rating, 25th in NBA; Atlanta’s 112.7 ranks 27th) in a sorely-needed way.

Back in front of the Toyota Center crowd for the first time in the past two weeks, Houston knows they have their work cut out for them to eclipse Portland (2 games ahead) and attain first-round homecourt advantage. It should be even more pressing to avoid a dogfight with the Western Conference teams beneath them (9-seed Sacramento 3 games back) and possibly missing the playoffs for the first time in seven years.

That scenario wouldn’t help the reigning league MVP’s prospects to repeat at all, although it would be indirectly advantageous for Atlanta, as the Hawks’ conference tank-rival Cleveland would not cash in on a 2019 lottery-protected draft pick (dealt by GM Daryl Morey in a three-way, salary-dumping, pre-deadline deal, bringing Iman Shumpert to H-Town).

The sense of urgency from the Rockets will have to begin to show against teams far worse than the Warriors, the defending champs who Houston has now defeated thrice this season. An upset win by the Hawks tonight would drop D’Antoni’s club to a mediocre 16-13 versus clubs with sub-.500 records.

While the latest win over the Dubs is representative of how dangerous an out the Rockets could be if they enter the playoffs healthy, their prior two games, road losses versus the playoff-hungry Lakers and Wolves, offer hints as to why they might not enter the postseason at all.

Consider it a lock for the reigning and current league leader in scoring (36.5 PPG; 4.3 more FGAs and 1.3 more FTAs than last season’s NBA-high 30.4 PPG campaign) to extend his NBA-record 30-plus point streak to 33 games (last time he fell short, back in December, he scored “just” 29). That’s even if Harden’s minutes are limited tonight (Houston has a back-to-back coming up in a couple days).

That’s even if Atlanta’s DeAndre’ Bembry (probable, quad contusion), filling in at the wing for Taurean Prince (out, personal leave) and a minutes-limited Kevin Huerter (probable, ankle sprain), uncorks some of that on-ball tenacity versus Harden that enthralled Hawks fans just two years ago. After two seasons of struggles to stay healthy, Bembry’s sturdiness as a key element of coach Lloyd Pierce’s rotations may be his most valuable asset. He’s the only Hawk aside from Young to have appeared in all 60 games for Atlanta (20-40).

Key to Atlanta’s chances at victory won’t be the quantity of Harden’s points, but the quality. Kent Bazemore (career-highs 13.2 PPG, 52.0 2FG%) will also have a hand in slowing Harden’s rolls (to the basket), but he and other Hawks must be mindful not to fall for the traps The Beard sets for defenders to draw trips to the free throw line. Harden (career-high 87.1 FT%, 89.1% at home) draws 27.2 percent of his points from free throw attempts (3rd-most in the league), and 41.3 percent on three-point shots.

Over 87.5 percent of Harden’s shots are unassisted, so the limitation of his And-1 opportunities can stifle the Rocket offense (HOU 13-2 when granted over 30 FTAs; 4-9 when gifted less than 20, incl. the losses at MIN and LAL). In the rare situations where Harden does pass the rock, Paul (8.3 APG, career-low 42.4 FG%) and his teammates are less likely to catch-and-shoot as they are to swing the ball around the horn searching for spot-ups in D’Antoni’s three-point and paint-heavy system.

The Rockets are more likely to pull-up for threes (20.2 pull-up 3FGAs per game; next-highest team takes just 11.0), and it’s not merely Harden (11.4 pull-up 3FGAs). Paul’s 4.4 pull-up trey attempts rank 5th-most in the league, making Young’s 3.7 pull-ups look miniscule.

Contesting without fouling Houston’s perimeter shooters will be top priority for Bazemore, Bembry and the Hawks on defense. Of Harden’s top three-point-shooting teammates, none currently shoot better than P.J. Tucker’s 36.3 3FG%. CP3 is just behind Tucker at 36.1 3FG% (31.9 3FG% on those pull-ups), his lowest accuracy mark in six seasons.

If successful on the defensive end versus Harden and Paul, Baze can enhance his net impact in the outcome of tonight’s game. Shaking his long-range shooting funk with a 5-for-9 3FG effort on Saturday (9-for-36 in prior ten games), while stepping up defensively versus another usage-monster in Devin Booker, helped Atlanta shade the Suns (zero FGs in final 4:15 of the game) and avoid another humbling home loss to a hapless team.

Secondary in defensive priorities for Atlanta will be John Collins (19 points on 10-for-10 FTs, 14 rebounds vs. PHX), Dewayne Dedmon (6 blocks vs. PHX), Omari Spellman and Alex Len limiting Houston's lobs and entry-passes into the paint, with Capela, the revived Kenneth Faried and future All-BIG3 first-teamer Nene being the likeliest targets. Atlanta’s bigs cannot get caught mesmerized by ball-watching Harden’s dribbling expeditions, instead focusing on keeping the paint clear of their man and boxing out. Young and off-ball defenders can help by deflecting or picking off interior passes.

The Hawks’ shot at upsetting another All-Star would be stronger with an unlimited Huerter and Prince available, but Morey’s maneuvers have left Houston (NBA-lows of 23.0 FGAs per game and 40.4 FG%, incl. 31.2 3FG%) playing two-deep at many positions. If they can avoid foul trouble themselves, Young (23 points, 11-for-12 FTs vs. PHX) and Collins will find the Rockets’ reserves exploitable on offense.

Although Capela's return is hoped to change the calculus, the Rockets allow a league-high 52.4 paint points per-48, their susceptibility to floaters and lobs higher when Clint sits. If the shot clocks stop a lot, it needs to be because it’s the Rockets (22.6 personal fouls per 48 minutes, 4th-most in NBA) who are hacking opposing stars, not the visitors (ATL’s 23.5 PFs per-48 are 2nd-most in NBA).

Harden does what he can to help on defensive possessions (career-high 2.1 steals per-36), but it has usually been for naught (career-low in D-Rating, as per basketball-reference) regardless of whether Capela is sharing the floor. Harden and Paul have been a tepid +0.9 points per 100 possessions as a two-man unit, out-assisted by 2.5 dimes per-100. Although their floor time has been limited as a trio due to injuries, the net figures for Harden-CP3-Capela have been similarly underwhelming (minus-2.8 points, minus-0.9 assists), and it will take more than tonight’s game to turn that around.

While winning this game ought to be straightforward for the Rockets, this is far from the last time they’ve played at-or-below the level of their competition, and they may be in for a surprise if the Hawks bring their Pesky As They Wanna Be mindset to the floor. This evening, will Harden, and Houston, have a problem?


Let’s Go Hawks!
~lw3

This is gonna be a tough one for us. Hate to sound like a broken record (Peoria).. cough cough.. but I hope we develop chemistry and play hard..

On Harden..

Here all week folks!

Ps Can we be the team that holds Harden under 30? Give Bembry a shot defensively on him then throw Prince on him.

Pps Look for passing wizardry from Trae and Cp3. Hope the vet doesn’t teach our youngun a thing or 2...or maybe he needs it with all those nutmegs and bounce oops.

GO HAWKS!!!

Houston is a 12.5 point favorite.

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Spud2nique wrote:This is gonna be a tough one for us. Hate to sound like a broken record (Peoria).. cough cough.. but I hope we develop chemistry and play hard..

On Harden..

Here all week folks!

Ps Can we be the team that holds Harden under 30? Give Bembry a shot defensively on him then throw Prince on him.

Pps Look for passing wizardry from Trae and Cp3. Hope the vet doesn’t teach our youngun a thing or 2...or maybe he needs it with all those nutmegs and bounce oops.

GO HAWKS!!!

Prince is out - personal.
Bembry, Baze and Anderson should all get turns guarding Harden.
I would love for the Hawks to break his streak .

jayu70 wrote:

Spud2nique wrote:This is gonna be a tough one for us. Hate to sound like a broken record (Peoria).. cough cough.. but I hope we develop chemistry and play hard..

On Harden..

Here all week folks!

Ps Can we be the team that holds Harden under 30? Give Bembry a shot defensively on him then throw Prince on him.

Pps Look for passing wizardry from Trae and Cp3. Hope the vet doesn’t teach our youngun a thing or 2...or maybe he needs it with all those nutmegs and bounce oops.

GO HAWKS!!!

Prince is out - personal.
Bembry, Baze and Anderson should all get turns guarding Harden.
I would love for the Hawks to break his streak .

I do recall Bembry giving him fits that one game. Jussayin

It's be a dbl whammy for the Rockets if we can get the win and hold Harden under 30.

Lw3, I found this stat very interesting in your spectacular game preview...



Paul’s 4.4 pull-up trey attempts rank 5th-most in the league, making Young’s 3.7 pull-ups look miniscule.


It’s hard for me to fathom this...I’m not exactly super excited about this if I’m D’antoni. Paul does hit threes well but his shot mechanics do not scream pull up threes in any way. Cp3 is an accurate shooter but by no means does he have a Trae like quick trigger. I feel for cp3’s threes to be effective for Houston, he needs to have his feet set. Having said that, I hope he takes 10 of these pull up threes against us, it’ll help ignite the fast break going the other way off a long board.


BREAK HARDEN’S STREAK BREAK HARDEN’S STREAK!

Both teams can shoot the ball

Rockets Asst coach singing Young Trae's praises St halftime.

CP3 picked 3 fouls in. 4 minute span to end the half. That could come into play for us later in the game.

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