Tracy McGrady in one of his best games of this season !!

.......................Suns vs Rox Game Highlight Video


.......................

...................Player of the Game: Tracy McGrady

...................................39 pts, 11 Rebs, 9 Asst.

http://blogs.chron.com/nba/2007/04/rock ... _on_1.html


April 17, 2007

Rockets 120, Suns 117: Bring on the playoffs with a fitting tribute to CD

This is what the Rockets have spent all these months searching for.

It was one game, sure, a regular-season game at that. It was far from perfect, with the Suns shooting better than any team has against the Rockets all season and with another late lead, 10 points with 2:14 left, nearly slipping away in a terrible and interminable two minutes.

But there was a feeling that seemed different, better. It felt like the playoffs, and there seemed a hunger and determination that felt right.

Tracy McGrady attacked the first half as he had not in Phoenix, punishing the Suns for the defensive attention paid to Yao Ming. And when the Suns had to abandon some of that to help on McGrady, Yao was tougher and stronger at fighting the fronting defenses for position and snaring the entry passes to him.

It was telling that against the league's fastest team, Yao willed himself to the finish, playing 38

Rocket Power Dancers

I would have preferred it if Rudy Gay were wearing a Houston Rockets uniform today instead of Shane Battier.

Edit: I'd love to be wrong here.

what a surprised win.

TSSSSSSSSK, then the Rockets will not be achieving its current 52W/29L season, with Yao Ming missing 33 games and Tracy McGrady missing 10 games. People are just conveniently ignoring/overlooking the unsung heroics, hustle, stability, consistency, tenacity, never-say-die-spirit, hard-nose defense, stable offense (particularly his 3-pointers) that Shane Battier has brought to this team.

Take a look at where the Memphis Grizzlies is in Western Conference with Rudy Gay and Stromile Swift? ROCK BOTTOM !!!

Pry, I hate to sound like a jerk, but you've been following basketball for what 5 years now??? Do you really think the Rockets are going to win a championship this year?? I'll give you a hint to the answer. It rhymes with go.

How much better can the Rockets get??? T-Mac isn't going to get much better, Yao isn't giong to get much better, Battier isn't giong to get any better. Is Rafer going to all the sudden learn how to hit jumpers next year or is Luther going to magically learn how to be a pg??? Rudy Gay has upside. He can get better and possibly be a 3rd star in a couple years. Instead we're stuck with the modern day Rick Fox to Yao and Tracy's Shaq and Kobe. Only there's no Fisher, Horry, or Brian Shaw.

T-Mac lead the Rockets to 20-12 without Yao. With Gay and Stro instead of Battier they might lose 1-2 more games. They'd still be going to the playoffs with Rudy Gay and his upside with actual championship hopes down the road with the possibility of winning 2-3. Now, the Rockets are going to have to be luckier than is usually necessary to win a title. Rudy Gay could suck and the Rockets be worse than with Battier, but I'd take the chance to be horrible OR a real contender than being a longshot for a few years.

Wow. This might be one of the only things we disagree on! Normally we agree on everything. My argument against Gay has nothing to do with his upside, which is ridiculous. My argument is that he wouldn't fit well with this team. JVG demands proper defense, something Battier can do and Gay can't, not yet. I'm not saying he won't be a great defender one day, but he isn't right now. It usually takes rookies a few years to get D down. Plus, he doesn't yet have the intangibles that Battier does, and doesn't have anywhere near the hustle. FInally, his game is best found in an up and down wide open Phoenix style game, not a half court grind it out game. I feel like his talent would be wasted in Houston, since what we really need are spot up shooters who can play D. Sure slashers help some, not trying to take away from them.

Also I think Battier has untold positive effects on chemistry and team unity that Gay would not have.

Gay is going to be great, no doubt, but the timing is just all wrong for him to have been with us in Houston.

Now Brandon Roy on the other hand.... That is a rookie we could really use...