Preseason Game 1 "The Hidalgo Story"
by Xiane on Oct 5, 2010 11:15 PM CDT
in Game Recaps
Email
PrintThere it is, your first NBA preseason Rockets game. The game was played in front a of pretty good crowd in Hidalgo, Texas (down in the Valley) home of the Rockets AAA affiliate "Rio Grande Vipers".
Orlando won it 97-88, and except for a push by the Rockets starters (with Hill in place of Yao) in the second half to narrow the gap, Orlando looked to be in control from midway through the second half on.
The Magic did their usual thing of inside out, and hit a goodly number of 3s. Rashard Lewis looked good, and a better fit at the SF/Big Wing spot, and Vince Carter once again reminded me what all the fuss was about so long ago. He can really do everything upon the occasion of it occurring to him to do so.
Dwight Howard apparently had some Hakeem magic rub off on him as he made a couple of bank shots, and drove to the basket looking fairly fluid, rather than the Wounded Cape Buffalo he normally resembles when doing anything but dunking. Dwight Howard with even a semblance of a proper center's offensive game is something to fear - if you have to respect his short jumper and spin move on D God help you (19/12/3blk in 27 min) .
Two last magic points - Marcin Gortat has surprisingly fast hands and nimble feet. He's a legit NBA starting center, maybe even an all-star given the sorry state of the position in general. JJ Redick looks like an NBA player - he was faster, stronger looking and more assertive than I've ever seen him. I'm surprised and dismayed.
Let's talk Rockets after the jump.
As for the Rockets, well it's all about Yao. He looked healthy (until he ended his night grimacing and limping - I'm guessing he tweaked his back somehow). The injury which I hope and pray is minor occurred when he was fouled on a shot. He also looked hesitant and slow and Howard put his new arsenal of moves on full display with Yao. (That's fine Dwight, let's see that when it counts.) Yao's play will improve with time and conditioning, assuming he's feeling fine. He fell a few times, but didn't seem to land awkwardly. I suppose I'm going to hold my breath every time he hits the deck.
Overall I'd say the Rockets timing looked off. It's one thing to practice full speed, it is another to go to game speed. Orlando is an essentially unchanged side that won 56 games last year - they looked like they were just knocking the rust off. The Rockets job is harder. They have to integrate Kevin Martin, Courtney Lee, and Jordan Hill as Yao's backup (at least until Miller comes back).
Ok, Bullet Points (The Lazy Man's Friend (tm))
- Kevin Martin looked good to me. Aggressive on offense, driving the rim, shooting without hesitation. His shot was a bit off, but seemed to come around in the second half. I'm unworried. His D wasn't bad, and he was active, with quick hands, causing a few steals. He's not a standout defender, but he's far from hopeless. There's a reason he's nicknamed Speed Racer. He's that fast.
- Courtney Lee - Well, well. Mr. Lee looks like very good value. Active D, aggressive on drives and shots, I thought he was the best Rocket player tonight. His ball handling wasn't Paulesque, but it was competent, and I think he can play some PG for you against Deron Williams and other large PG.
- Kyle Lowry - looks like his old self, only stronger and more assertive about getting his own shot.
- Luis Scola - looked a bit lost on offense.
- Aaron Brooks - that pull up middle jumper off the drive is one of the most unstoppable shots in basketball. He needs about 4 of those a game.
- Jordan Hill - much the same - flashes of brilliance, flashes of incompetence. He's a player that is just going to need a lot of minutes to develop consistency.
- Patrick Patterson - only played garbage time. He's large. I consider him the natural evolution of Ron Artest, but we'll see.
- Jermaine Taylor - hit a 3. If he's found that range we've found our "Instant Offense"
- Chase Budinger - logged a lot of minutes and looked ok. Like Martin his shot was a little off, but he looks like the answer for an offense-minded SF.
- Chuck Hayes - looked quick and useful, looks like the same strength with less bulk - he's not going to play C, and can go back to shutting down PF/SF and anyone else he comes near. Put back some garbage buckets and played good D.
That's all I've got. I hope Yao is ok.
19 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
We want a strong Magic team
That way Miami has to play tough all season long to get Home Court and the teams beat ech other up so much in their Play-Off match-ups that they’re worn out by time they face the Rockets in Finals.
I didn't get to see the game
but obviously Yao just playing, plus the integration of Lee, Hill, and Martin full time into the lineup is what matters most to me.
Since I didn’t see anything, I’ll just say that I’m not surprised Scola looked a little lost. All of a sudden, the block is being occupied by some 7-6 guy. Eventually, he’ll realize that he’s going to get wide open 15 footers all day as long as he roams around and sets screens and the like.
I’m glad Chase played. Like Lee (of TDS, not Courtney), I didn’t think he would play.
Finally, there is a silver lining to the Miller injury. Obviously, you never want to see anyone get hurt ever, but it’s minor and it’s giving Jordan Hill the chance to log some serious minutes and get better and more acquainted with our offense and the NBA in general.
I can’t wait to start writing game previews again. I decided not to write about the preseason because we’ve got midterms coming up soon.
How many Biletnikoffs does he have? NOT TWO!
No worries.
I think you can save previews for games that count.
I’m not sure how fired up I’ll be to write about pre-season games, but since this was the first one, I thought it was good to do.
As for Miller, no one wants to see him hurt, but Worrell and Clyde kept making jokes about it being a very veteran injury, allowing him to miss training camp and some preseason games.
"Each in turn... volunteered his suggestions, his invaluable suggestions."
Twitter - xiane1
The Dreamshake
haha
well then Miller probably joked with them about it, and that’s why they made fun. He’s pretty hilarious and let’s be honest: I’m willing to play all 15 players for 12 minutes each and then play the D-Leaguers the rest of the way.
Stupid Adelman having to get his rotations down…
How many Biletnikoffs does he have? NOT TWO!
I watched the game with the Magic announcers
They are terrible
by Rockets4LIFE on Oct 6, 2010 12:56 PM CDT up reply actions
Patience ... patience
Our biggest project is introducing Yao back in the starting line-up so it’s not surprising the first unit’s timing is off. Everybody’s watching what Yao will do or not do. It throws everyone’s timing out of sync. I have a suggestion: let’s run the offense without making Yao the focus at this time; let’s park him at high post. On defense, let him reserve his strength on defense and grabbing rebounds for now. That way, we integrate him slowly and not put so much pressure on him.
Our opener with the Lakers—isn’t Kobe also recovering from an injury? Will that make the match-up more even?
My Observations Were....
1. Yao looked slow and out of sync , and Dwight Howard might have made it looked even worse. But overall it was a huge first step, he also seemed out of breath when there were a couple fast breaks back to back. I think by game day he will be doing a lot better
2. Rockets overall looked really rusty. Sometimes a little confused on both ends of the floor. But something that will work a lot for the Rockets is the double screen stop and pop, especially for Chase and Brooks.
3. Jordan Hill looked the same to me, maybe a slight improvement on defense. Patterson looked good for the couple minutes he was there grabbing rebounds and running the floor with ease.
4. I still dont like J. Taylor, i think he ball hogs too much and forces too many bad shots up.
5. Chuckwagon looked great, even quicker on his feet and providing solid D, and a couple crazy put backs or layups a la chuck.
6. I was very impressed with Courtney Lee, this guy is pure energy and toughness, perfect with the Rockets and matches well with Lowry and the 2nd unit.
7. Kevin Martin looked really good too. Seems like he was hitting the weights a little this summer with a little more muscle in his arms. He was very quick, drove to the basket and overall played really smart basketball.
8. Battier defense was on lock, too bad Vince Carter made some of those really tough shoots even though Battier was as close as you can be with out fouling.
9. Scola was wayyyy off this game. Really rusty but im sure he will come back to beast mode very soon.
10. Overall I think once the Rockets play a little bit more together and Yao get his 24 minutes in and with Brad Miller back, the Rockets will be very very good. Very fun to watch and serious contenders in the West.
did you watch summer league?
Jordan hill looked horrible and out of place at the 5 and was constantly getting abused on D. Last night was a huge improvement
by Rocket94 on Oct 6, 2010 7:40 PM CDT via mobile up reply actions
I was comparing him to what I saw last season
I didnt watch the summer league, but reports say he was playing with an injury at the time (turf toe), which explains his bad performance. So I think its not fair to compare his summer league performance with Tuesdays game.
From what I saw, he just seemed to stay in front of the defender better by moving his feet and keeping his hands up.
the turf toe could explain most of it
Never heard that but would agree that injury does horrible things to your movement
by Rocket94 on Oct 8, 2010 4:04 AM CDT via mobile up reply actions
'rocket 94' hmmmm....
Seems like we have a rahat huq and his ‘red94’ blog. We don’t take kindly to your high-brow analasys and big-colledge words types here. This is a strictly blue-collar/blindly adoring fan blog and as such has no room for hyper-intelecuals and ruthlessly honest appraisal….ers.
But to be more on point, I’m not sure anyone would have ascribed much significance to a preseason rockets’ W, at least not outside houston and beijing anyway. Fact is we went a team which for the last 3 seasons has been a perenial title contender, which has shifted its roster negligably over that time (outside the carter trade and the barnes exodous) and looks to contend again.
We are fighting our way into contention with a litany of new talent and aspiring youngins. All I cared about was wether or not yao would be tentative about his foot or not. Well, as it turns out he was maybe too cavalier, diving on the floor etc, for comfort.
The heart’s still there, as is the passion, energy(I’m being super, duper serial here. ‘Energy’ is what we saw, the fact that yao is one of the slowest player in the league on a good day should help validate that claim) , and focus. Just gotta wait for that footwork and conditioning (as much as can b expected anyway) to come back, which should be happening just 6 short months from now…
One last caveat, I’m thrilled that now that mr.courtney lee has taken the floor, all the wonton ignorance (understanable ignorance as anyone coming from a 12-win campaign may be a little foggy on some folks’ radars, though being only 1 post-season removed from starting on a defense-oriented finals team as a rookie tends to cause one to wonder….and wander for that matter) and speculation as to how he should be traded and doesn’t fit our culture and all this jive when the truth is he, from the first moment I saw him, is the shizznizzle.
He is a walking, more often running, embodiment of our teams philosphy and attitude. Think a taller, faster kinda lowry with a better shooting touch and even more tenacious defense. Obviously lowry’s ability to move the ball and set the pace of a game are unmatched, at least in our locker room and id bet more than a few others around, and no one else is quite that crazy attacking the rim.
Anyways, our bench looks good. Our starting line up will get its chemistry back and yao (hopefully) will return to form at one point or another. There’s a lot to be excited about, a lot to be worried about, but that is the hallmark of every season the big man plays
by ShookednShanghaied11 on Oct 7, 2010 12:34 PM CDT via mobile up reply actions
'rocket 94' hmmmm....
Seems like we have a rahat huq and his ‘red94’ blog. We don’t take kindly to your high-brow analasys and big-colledge words types here. This is a strictly blue-collar/blindly adoring fan blog and as such has no room for hyper-intelecuals and ruthlessly honest appraisal….ers.
But to be more on point, I’m not sure anyone would have ascribed much significance to a preseason rockets’ W, at least not outside houston and beijing anyway. Fact is we went a team which for the last 3 seasons has been a perenial title contender, which has shifted its roster negligably over that time (outside the carter trade and the barnes exodous) and looks to contend again.
We are fighting our way into contention with a litany of new talent and aspiring youngins. All I cared about was wether or not yao would be tentative about his foot or not. Well, as it turns out he was maybe too cavalier, diving on the floor etc, for comfort.
The heart’s still there, as is the passion, energy(I’m being super, duper serial here. ‘Energy’ is what we saw, the fact that yao is one of the slowest player in the league on a good day should help validate that claim) , and focus. Just gotta wait for that footwork and conditioning (as much as can b expected anyway) to come back, which should be happening just 6 short months from now…
One last caveat, I’m thrilled that now that mr.courtney lee has taken the floor, all the wonton ignorance (understanable ignorance as anyone coming from a 12-win campaign may be a little foggy on some folks’ radars, though being only 1 post-season removed from starting on a defense-oriented finals team as a rookie tends to cause one to wonder….and wander for that matter) and speculation as to how he should be traded and doesn’t fit our culture and all this jive when the truth is he, from the first moment I saw him, is the shizznizzle.
He is a walking, more often running, embodiment of our teams philosphy and attitude. Think a taller, faster kinda lowry with a better shooting touch and even more tenacious defense. Obviously lowry’s ability to move the ball and set the pace of a game are unmatched, at least in our locker room and id bet more than a few others around, and no one else is quite that crazy attacking the rim.
Anyways, our bench looks good. Our starting line up will get its chemistry back and yao (hopefully) will return to form at one point or another. There’s a lot to be excited about, a lot to be worried about, but that is the hallmark of every season the big man plays
by ShookednShanghaied11 on Oct 7, 2010 12:34 PM CDT via mobile up reply actions
'rocket 94' hmmmm....
Seems like we have a rahat huq and his ‘red94’ blog. We don’t take kindly to your high-brow analasys and big-colledge words types here. This is a strictly blue-collar/blindly adoring fan blog and as such has no room for hyper-intelecuals and ruthlessly honest appraisal….ers.
But to be more on point, I’m not sure anyone would have ascribed much significance to a preseason rockets’ W, at least not outside houston and beijing anyway. Fact is we went a team which for the last 3 seasons has been a perenial title contender, which has shifted its roster negligably over that time (outside the carter trade and the barnes exodous) and looks to contend again.
We are fighting our way into contention with a litany of new talent and aspiring youngins. All I cared about was wether or not yao would be tentative about his foot or not. Well, as it turns out he was maybe too cavalier, diving on the floor etc, for comfort.
The heart’s still there, as is the passion, energy(I’m being super, duper serial here. ‘Energy’ is what we saw, the fact that yao is one of the slowest player in the league on a good day should help validate that claim) , and focus. Just gotta wait for that footwork and conditioning (as much as can b expected anyway) to come back, which should be happening just 6 short months from now…
One last caveat, I’m thrilled that now that mr.courtney lee has taken the floor, all the wonton ignorance (understanable ignorance as anyone coming from a 12-win campaign may be a little foggy on some folks’ radars, though being only 1 post-season removed from starting on a defense-oriented finals team as a rookie tends to cause one to wonder….and wander for that matter) and speculation as to how he should be traded and doesn’t fit our culture and all this jive when the truth is he, from the first moment I saw him, is the shizznizzle.
He is a walking, more often running, embodiment of our teams philosphy and attitude. Think a taller, faster kinda lowry with a better shooting touch and even more tenacious defense. Obviously lowry’s ability to move the ball and set the pace of a game are unmatched, at least in our locker room and id bet more than a few others around, and no one else is quite that crazy attacking the rim.
Anyways, our bench looks good. Our starting line up will get its chemistry back and yao (hopefully) will return to form at one point or another. There’s a lot to be excited about, a lot to be worried about, but that is the hallmark of every season the big man plays
by ShookednShanghaied11 on Oct 7, 2010 12:34 PM CDT via mobile up reply actions
Shooked, you have great things to say,
But I cannot urge you strongly enough – use paragraphs!
The wall of text causes many readers to simply skip what you’re saying.
Also – we do a fair amount of highbrow analysis, but we mix it in with other things. There’s no groupthink with the writers. I’ve only met one writer here in person, so there aren’t marching orders and that sort of thing.
"Each in turn... volunteered his suggestions, his invaluable suggestions."
Twitter - xiane1
The Dreamshake
TDS and red94 are my favorite basketball sites
With the occasional freedarko and hardwood paroxysm sprinkled in.
by Rocket94 on Oct 8, 2010 4:12 AM CDT via mobile up reply actions
Like teachers would tell me...
I can’t give a grade on something incomplete.
The Rockets got a lot of work ahead of them.
by Nobody is Better Than Jordan on Oct 6, 2010 11:30 AM CDT via mobile reply actions
Preseason
Yea i think the Rockets, more than most teams, really need the preseason to work out the kinks and get re-accustomed with having Yao back.
Yao definitely lost a step but that was expected as long as he’s been out. Yao probably wont be back to his normal self until after all-star break IMO. But as long as he is 100% for the playoffs, i think that is what the big picture is.
I liked Yao's huslte, even though he was slow, but cringed when he dove to the floor
The BANHAMMER delivers the real justice
That's just turrible
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
Related FanPosts on The Dream Shake
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recent FanPosts
In Association With
Ball Don't Lie - NBA - Yahoo! Sport
- The Los Angeles Clippers, and Los Angeles Lakers? Gone till November
- The Jamaican national team reminds me that it has multiple NBA players
- Create-a-Caption: ‘Hey! Hey, I like your name!’
- A closer look at a big night for Brandon Bass, who ate well because Rajon Rondo kept feeding him
- Kevin Garnett takes a little shot at Philadelphia’s ‘fair-weather fans.’ His words, not ours (VIDEO)
