Last night the Rockets did things to the Mavericks that I can't remember them doing since the 90s.
The ball movement was Hoosier's-esque and we have more than just Jimmy Chitwood to shoot the ball. With the exception of the end of the 2nd quarter the Rockets completely outplayed the Mavericks. And while the defense only showed up in spurts for the first three quarters, it turned the intensity to 11 in the fourth quarter.
My general observations:
Jason Kidd can still be a good player for the Mavericks, though it is clear he will have games where he is no longer effective
Ron Artest is a man amongst boys most of his time on the court. His offensive skill set is as raw and good as it possibly can be. He just does whatever it takes to score. There is not a better defender in the league, period.
While I still think Dirk is the best Euro player, he is a little flopping, whiny baby. He also played that game dirtier than I've ever seen him. His elbow was flared out every time he turned around and you could see even he didn't believe that he was able to get some of the foul calls he did. And remember, I actually really, really like Dirktastic, but some of that was bush league.
Josh Howard is really good, but is one of the most annoying players in the league to go up against. He is like the hot girl who knows she's hot. His play is arrogant and will get the Mavericks in trouble sometime this season. I just see him getting knocked out at some point in his career, I can't really explain it. And I haven't seen anything about it to this point, I have no respect for any American that doesn't understand why they should respect the National Anthem, if not celebrate it.
Josh Howard's jackassery got him a chest bump from Yao. And it also drew a tech from Artest who was just trying to pull Yao away. Of course it's Crazy Pills and he can do nothing calmly. Reasons I love that guy
Aaron Brooks is the fastest guy in the league, taking over the title from TJ Ford. His skills with the ball are so fast that even if you knew what he was going to do, you couldn't stop it.
Luther Head won't see the court again for more than mop up duty. Honestly, he should be on the inactive list and Von Wafer should be activated. And I feel bad, because he seems like a really good guy. Then I realize that he's a multi-millionaire and don't feel so bad anymore.
Rafer Alston is the perfect fit for this team. Matt, you were right
Yao Ming, Yao Ming, Yao Ming, Yao Ming, Yao Ming, he's like good and stuff.
Off topic
Oh, and I watched the 3rd and 4th quarters of the Suns/Hornets game. The Suns are imminently beatable this year, and CP3 already has a squad minus Tyson Chandler humming. This is going to be a hell of a race between the Rockets, Hornets, Lakers and Jazz.