Finally it’s over! May the Rockets’ 2005-06 season rest in peace. In a microcosm of their season, the Rockets had a chance to win Wedneday night against the World Champion San Antonio Spurs, but Rafer Alston missed two free throws with 7 seconds remaining that could have won it, and that was basically the ballgame. Rockets lose 89-87.

Like many Rocket fans, I’m glad Rafer missed those free throws to give them a better chance at a higher draft lottery pick, although I still don’t think he’s the long-term answer at point guard (another abysmal 6-for-16 shooting night).

And the on-again off-again Juwan Howard scored 8 points on 3-of-11 shooting after scoring 31 points on 12-of-19 shooting in the Rockets’ last game against Denver. How come that continues to happen? Keith Bogans, who had such a great game in Denver with some clutch plays down the stretch, shot only 1-of-5 from the field for two points in 21 minutes. And David Wesley only made 3-of-11 shots for 10 points.

On the bright side, unlike Rafer who will be thinking about those missed free throws all summer, those Rockets who can go into the off-season feeling good about themselves are the following:

Stromile Swift, who led all Rockets with 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting.

Luther Head finished strong, scoring 17 points, grabbing 7 boards, and dishing 3 assists. But he did only make 1-of-5 from behind the arc.

Last but not least, Chuck Hayes was incredible, coming up with clutch rebounds (7), a block, two steals, and shooting 6-of-7 from the field for 14 points. All of that in 23 minutes!

So who do I see sticking with the Rockets next season? Here are my initial thoughts:

Will definitely be around:
Yao
T-Mac

Will probably stick:
Stromile Swift
Juwan Howard
Chuck Hayes – finished strong and could be the hustle guy that Van Gundy always loves to have around

On the bubble:
Bob Sura – hope his back shows improvement during the off-season. When he’s playing, he’s as tough as they get
Rafer Alston – if the Rockets can find another free agent point guard this off-season, trade him
Keith Bogans – inconsistent, but played well in spurts. Could be a good backup to T-Mac.
Richie Frahm – showed he can hit the three, which the Rockets really need
Ryan Bowen – can Van Gundy afford to keep a defensive specialist on the roster who can’t score?
Dikembe Mutombo – serviceable, but if the Rockets find a more athletic backup who can score…

Gone:
David Wesley – really toughed it out this year and tried very hard, but he’s past his prime. Thanks for all your heart over the past couple of years, D-dub.
Maciej Lampe – couldn’t get any playing time, even when the Rockets were bad. That must tell you something.
Rick Brunson – see directly above

Now with the season over, I’m going to continue tracking Yao’s recovery from foot surgery as well as discuss some of the Rockets’ moves this off-season that will help improve them from having tied for the worst home record in the league this season at 15-26.

john@YaoMingFanClub.com

To see the boxscore from the game, click here.

To read the Houston Chronicle’s article about the game, click here.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 19th, 2006 at 11:59 pm and is filed under vs. San Antonio. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.