The Dream Shake - Rockets meet Clippers in the Western Conference semifinalsThe best footwork on the Internethttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/34031/32x32.png2015-05-18T08:00:03-05:00http://www.thedreamshake.com/rss/stream/83059142015-05-18T08:00:03-05:002015-05-18T08:00:03-05:00Who is your series MVP?
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<figcaption>Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>The Houston Rockets completed the 3-1 comeback, now you as a Rockets fan must vote on who is the series MVP.</p> <p>Now that we can breathe, have a drink and enjoy the <a href="https://www.thedreamshake.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Houston Rockets</a> going on to the Western Conference Finals (first time since 1997) to take on the <a href="https://www.goldenstateofmind.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Golden State Warriors</a> and MVP Stephen Curry.</p>
<p>Before we start talking about that though. We can enjoy this a little bit more and I would like to kick some voting out to you the fans to decide who the MVP was for the series against the <a href="https://www.clipsnation.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Los Angeles Clippers</a>.</p>
<p>You can vote for <span>James Harden</span>, <span>Dwight Howard</span> or <span>Trevor Ariza</span>, but because I'm not here to play favorites you can also vote for <span>Patrick Beverley</span>, <span>Donatas Motiejunas</span>, <span>K.J. McDaniels</span> and <span>Joey Dorsey</span>! To show that we can really get in depth and because they both had a hand in advancing the team to the Western Conference Finals. Yes, I'm talking about both <span>Kevin McHale</span> and Daryl Morey.</p>
<p>Don't worry you'll be able to vote for <span>Jason Terry</span>, <span>Pablo Prigioni</span>, <span>Terrence Jones</span>, <span>Josh Smith</span>, <span>Corey Brewer</span>, <span>Clint Capela</span>, <span>Nick Johnson</span> and Kostas "Big Papa" Papanikolaou.</p>
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<p>You can vote for each player or vote for none or vote for just some. Thumbs up for a positive impact, thumbs down for a negative impact or note vote for no impact.</p>
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https://www.thedreamshake.com/2015/5/18/8618519/2015-nba-playoffs-who-is-your-houston-rockets-series-mvp-vs-los-angeles-clippersKevin Nesgoda2015-05-17T19:59:10-05:002015-05-17T19:59:10-05:00Rockets legacy assured after game 7 victory
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<figcaption>Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Regardless of what happens next, the 2014-2015 Rockets have officially left their mark.</p> <p>One week ago, the <a href="https://www.thedreamshake.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Rockets</a> were at a <a href="http://www.thedreamshake.com/2015/5/11/8583945/game-4-blow-out-has-rockets-at-crossroads-nba-playoffs-2015">crossroads</a>, having just been shellacked by the <a href="https://www.clipsnation.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Clippers</a> 128-95 to go down 3-1 in the Conference Semifinals. Things looked bleak, and there were only two options.</p>
<p>They could fold like a piece of fresh laundry, going out without so much as a whimper, and head into an offseason of uncertainty after a season of playoff underachievement.</p>
<p>Or they could step up, grow together as teammates, and make history.</p>
<p>The Rockets chose option B.</p>
<p>First, they stepped up, as they held their ground at home, pounding the Clippers 124-103 to earn back some of the respect they had lost in the previous two blowouts.</p>
<p>Next, they grew together as teammates in the epic comeback of Game 6. <span>James Harden</span> rode the pine in the fourth quarter and cheered, as mid-season acquisitions <span>Josh Smith</span> and <span>Corey Brewer</span> swam straight into the shark frenzy and rescued the Rockets from the jaws of defeat in a 119-107 shocking victory.</p>
<p>The Rockets overcoming a 19-point second half deficit added to the franchise's playoff lore during this 20th anniversary of the last Houston championship squad and will always remain a defining moment from this season.</p>
<p>And then they made the history books. With their 113-100 wire-to-wire victory over the Clippers at home in Game 7, the Rockets became just the ninth team in NBA history to win a playoff series after falling behind 3-1. They also became the first Rockets team since 1997 to make the Western Conference Finals.</p>
<p>The closeout game was their magnum opus in the playoffs up to this point, their most in-sync team effort to date in the postseason, and stood strongly as a prime example of playing with maximum effort and playing as the sum whole.</p>
<p>When you play the game the right way, good things happen. Whether it was <span>Terrence Jones</span> cleaning up a missed alley-oop to <span>Clint Capela</span>, <span>Dwight Howard</span> scoring off a blocked Corey Brewer shot, or <span>Pablo Prigioni</span> suddenly creating absolute havoc on the defensive inbound, the Rockets were always in the right place at the right time.</p>
<p>The total team effort included 31 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists and 3 steals from Harden, putting a stamp on the game as only an elite player can.</p>
<p>Howard showed up as well, with 16 points and 15 rebounds, scoring on dunks and put backs and patrolling the paint all afternoon.</p>
<p><span>Trevor Ariza</span> was magnificent and the game's true difference maker, scoring 22 points with 6 threes, mostly off of Harden drive and kicks, and he also played as versatile a defensive performance as there is in this game.</p>
<p>Ariza was matched up with <span>Chris Paul</span> at times, <span>Blake Griffin</span> at others and <span>J.J. Redick</span> still at others. And he defended them all extremely well.</p>
<p>Smith contributed 15 points and some timely shooting and defense on Griffin. Brewer sliced and diced his way to 11 points and played swiss army knife defense similar to Ariza. Prigioni had 3 steals off of inbounds plays, delivered accurate passes, had a clutch three-pointer and provided a steady hand at the point.</p>
<p>Even the Rockets who didn't flash on the stat sheet got involved. Despite scoring only 4 points on 1-6 shooting, <span>Jason Terry</span> helped set the tone for the afternoon by immediately diving for loose balls in the first quarter. Capela hit two timely free throws and had a blocked shot in his 6 minutes covering for Dwight. And Jones helped hold down the second unit with his hard-nosed play and defense.</p>
<p>The Rockets now move on to the Western Conference Finals and a match with the <a href="https://www.goldenstateofmind.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Golden State Warriors</a>, by far the league's best team this season. And while there are several major concerns that need addressed going into the series -- namely the Rockets' current penchant for oodles of turnovers and the fact that they lost the regular season series to the Warriors in a sweep -- take a moment first to enjoy one of life's great pleasures:</p>
<p>Watching your favorite team come together and leave their mark on the game we all love.</p>
<p>No matter what else happens this season, the 2014-2015 Houston Rockets have carved out their own page in the franchise history books.</p>
https://www.thedreamshake.com/2015/5/17/8618431/rockets-legacy-assured-after-game-7-victory-NBA-Playoffs-2015Darren Yuvan2015-05-17T17:22:24-05:002015-05-17T17:22:24-05:00Oakland Bound
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<figcaption>Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>The Houston Rockets completed the 3-1 series comeback against the Clippers to advance to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 1997. </p> <p>There were some in the national media that considered it a victory for the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.thedreamshake.com/">Houston Rockets</a> just to be here in a Game 7. You could tell that the <span>Kevin McHale</span> led group weren't just happy with playing in a Game 7, they wanted to be playing in Oakland in a Game 1 on Tuesday night.</p>
<p>They earned that right by defeating the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.clipsnation.com/">Los Angeles Clippers</a>, 113-100.</p>
<p>It is the ninth time in NBA history that a team trailing 3-1 in a series has comeback to win the series. It is the second time the Rockets have done it. <span>Chris Paul</span> and the Clippers have still not qualified for the conference finals.</p>
<p>Not to say that Paul and the Clippers didn't make it interesting in the fourth quarter. Paul helped cut the lead down to eight points, but a <span>Trevor Ariza</span> three pointer with 55.8 seconds left sealed the game.</p>
<p>The Toyota Center was absolutely turned up (hate this phrase, but the kids love it) for this game. It was so loud that the whistles weren't heard when fouls were called, coaches weren't heard when timeouts were called. At one point, <span>Doc Rivers</span> had to run out into the middle of the floor to get the attention of the officials to get the timeout called.</p>
<p>Want proof? The entire lower bowl was standing for the just about the whole fourth quarter. They knew how big this game was.</p>
<p>You could tell the Rockets fed off this energy too. They got off to an early lead and never looked back. Four of the five Rockets starters scored in double figures.</p>
<p>Harden led the Rockets with 31 points. Smith had 15 points on 60 percent shooting, <span>Dwight Howard</span> 16 points and 15 boards, <span>Pablo Prigioni</span> had only four points, but came up with three huge steals off the bench. <span>Terrence Jones</span> had 8 points and <span>Corey Brewer</span> had 11 points. Ariza had 22 and 7.</p>
<p>The Rockets role players definitely outplayed the Clippers role players for the third straight game. <span>Matt Barnes</span>, <span>J.J. Redick</span>, <span>Austin Rivers</span>, <span>Glen Davis</span> and <span>Spencer Hawes</span> were all non-factors in this game. <span>Jamal Crawford</span> did have 17 points and his best game of the series. The other five combined for 14 points.</p>
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<p>Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals against the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.goldenstateofmind.com/">Golden State Warriors</a> will be Tuesday night on ESPN. The game will start at 8 p.m. local time. <span>Stephen Curry</span> vs. <span>James Harden</span>, No. 1 and No. 2 in the MVP voting. Get excited Houston!</p>
https://www.thedreamshake.com/2015/5/17/8618383/houston-rockets-vs-los-angeles-2015-nba-playoffs-game-7-final-score-james-harden-dwight-howardKevin Nesgoda2015-05-17T16:19:34-05:002015-05-17T16:19:34-05:00James Harden Likes to Dunk Too<iframe src="https://vine.co/v/eAKFTmg1KOn/embed/postcard" width="600" height="600"></iframe>
<div class="source source-img"><p><p>James Harden isn't the only one who likes to throw down on the Clippers.</p></p></div>
https://www.thedreamshake.com/2015/5/17/8618287/james-harden-likes-to-dunk-tooKevin Nesgoda2015-05-17T16:11:24-05:002015-05-17T16:11:24-05:00Dwight Howard Just Dunking About<iframe src="https://vine.co/v/eAK1W2nDLVn/embed/simple" width="600" height="600"></iframe>
<div class="source source-img"><p><p>Dwight Howard likes to dunk and dunk he shall.</p></p></div>
https://www.thedreamshake.com/2015/5/17/8618263/dwight-howard-just-dunking-aboutKevin Nesgoda2015-05-17T15:13:30-05:002015-05-17T15:13:30-05:00Terrence Jones with the Monster Follow<iframe src="https://vine.co/v/eAKhmIwthtJ/embed/simple?audio=1" width="600" height="600"></iframe>
<div class="source source-img"><p><p>Terrence Jones follows Corey Brewer's wild shot with a monster throw down!</p></p></div>
https://www.thedreamshake.com/2015/5/17/8618111/terrence-jones-with-the-monster-followKevin Nesgoda2015-05-17T14:42:48-05:002015-05-17T14:42:48-05:00Harden Feeling it Pregame<iframe src="https://vine.co/v/eAm9gOEIIlr/embed/simple" width="600" height="600"></iframe>
<div class="source source-img"><p><p>James Harden showing everyone that Stephen Curren isn't the only one that can do it.</p></p></div>
https://www.thedreamshake.com/2015/5/17/8618025/harden-feeling-it-pregameKevin Nesgoda2015-05-17T12:50:03-05:002015-05-17T12:50:03-05:00Rockets Clippers Game 7 thread
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<figcaption>Thomas B. Shea-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Nothing left to say about this.</p> <p><br><br>Game 7 of <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.thedreamshake.com/">Rockets</a> vs. <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.clipsnation.com/">Clippers</a> starts at 2:30 p.m. CT on ABC. We have your preview <a href="http://www.thedreamshake.com/2015/5/16/8615759/rockets-clippers-nba-playoffs-2015-game-7-preview-keys-to-the-game" target="_blank">here</a>. We have predictions <a href="http://www.thedreamshake.com/2015/5/17/8617373/nba-playoffs-2015-game-7-predictions-odds" target="_blank">here</a>. And we have the best readers talking about the game down there. Do it up.</p>
https://www.thedreamshake.com/2015/5/17/8617743/rockets-vs-clippers-game-7-game-threadEthan Rothstein