thacabbage runs down his thoughts on the game: http://www.red94.net/2009/11/thoughts-on-rockets-lakers.html Completely agree. Which comes back to the debate -- is playing hard a skill? I say yes, because its not something anyone can just do with a snap of their fingers. The Rockets are going to play hard all year, because it is what they are best at. Its just what they do. Jason Friedman mentioned this a week or two back -- we need to start a grassroots campaign to get Chuck Hayes selected to an All-Defense team. If he can actually sustain this level of play throughout the season, it demands some sort of official recognition. I'm not so sure I agree with this. To me, its about playing the percentages. Kobe is a great player, but I'll take my chances with him playing against Battier 1-on-1. To me, that a 50/50 play. If we're leaving Artest wide open, the Lakers offense (read: Kobe) is too good to not get him the ball. And shooting spot up 3s is just about the best thing Artest does. He's at least a 35-38% shooter when he's wide open like that. Actually, probably much better. And with the extra point that comes with a made 3-pointer, I'd rather just take my chances with a 2-point look. There's also a smaller chance of a long rebound sailing over our diminutive frontline's heads. Agree on point 1. As for point 2, a lot of the effective motion the Rockets are getting is predicated on pick-and-roll and sharp passing. McGrady, if he doesn't return as a shell of what he once was, will help in both those areas. Ariza tried to split the double teams again and again, and I don't think successfully pulled it off even once. Actually, that's something Tracy doesn't even try to typically (and its probably why, year after year, he keeps his turnover-rate amongst the lowest at his position). One thing that Ariza did do yesterday which was sort of T-Mac like was pass the ball over defenses. He did a good job of finding guys underneath (especially Hayes).
