<div align="center"> <font color="red">Rockets (4-2)</font> at <font color="red">Heat (3-2)</font> Sunday, November 12, 2006 7:00 CT; FSNSW, ESPN </div> [div=50%] <font size="3">Projected Starters</font> <div align="center"><font color="red"> <font size="1">(R. Alston, T. McGrady, S. Battier, Chuck Hayes, M. Yao)</font></font></div> <font size="1">Leading Scorer: Yao Ming - 26.2 PPG Leading Rebounder:Yao Ming - 9.3 RPG Assist Man: Tracy McGrady - 6.2 APG The 'X' Factor: Tracy McGrady (18.5 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 6.2 APG)</font> <font size="3">Backcourt</font> <font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/rafer_alston.jpg[/imgl]<font color="red">Rafer Alston</font> Rafer enters this game in a good situation. He is pushing the offense well, however, as of right now, he lacks that consistency the Rockets need from their point guard. Some nights he'll be off, some nights he'll be on fire. He'll get torched by a second year kid (twice), or will shut down a known Rocket-killer. Half-by-half, we don't know who will show up. So, against an opponent who has had his share of great games, Alston needs to show up. Hitting down the open jumper will be key, as the Heat will be quick to jump on Yao. </font> <font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/tracy_mcgrady.jpg[/imgl]<font color="red">Tracy McGrady</font> I would have never thought, that in his time in a Rockets uniform, Tracy McGrady would be called an 'X' Factor. But, here is the day. Because, it rests completely on his shoulders, whether or not the Rockets will pull out a victory or not. As it stands now, the Heat have the advantage, Shaq and Wade will put in their due. But whether or not BOTH McGrady and Yao show up, is up in the air. If McGrady rediscovers his form from two seasons ago, and Yao follows up his dominating performance with another, this game will be over before it begins. So here's to you, Tracy -- Bring back the old 'Mac. </font> <font size="3">Frontcourt</font> <font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/shane_battier.jpg[/imgl]<font color="red">Shane Battier</font> Hearing the Rockets PA say announce Battier's name after a basket is reason enough to like him. But if you're not in that boat, he adds so much to this team. Coming off his not-so-good performance against the Jazz, Battier has proved his worth. He will be matched up with some of the trickier Heat players, and he'll have to be at the top of his game to nullify them. Not that his consistency ever comes into question. Expect a good game from the former Duke star, and we'll be chanting, "Who's your daddy?" "Battier!" all the way home. </font> <font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/chuck_hayes.jpg[/imgl]<font color="red">Chuck Hayes</font> Chuck, Chuck, Chuck. After a few very poor performances, the kid has proved his worth to our team. Van Gundy has given him a spot on the roster (much to the appetite of AXB and durvasa) and has earned a starting role. Going up against a guy who had a similar story to his, Hayes will look to prove why he should keep his role on this team. Expect him to get more than a few looks, as the Heat will most probably double Yao on every occasion. It's up to Chuck to make the most of it. </font> <font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/yao_ming.jpg[/imgl]<font color="red">Yao Ming</font> What else can be said about this guy? Yao has single-handedly destroyed the Knicks and Mavericks, and without him, we would be looking at 1-5, not 4-2. If there was any doubt about his place in the league as the premiere big man, it has been silenced with his incredible 35-17-7 performance against the Knicks. But now, he is challenged by the former number 1 in the league. Though aging, Shaquille O'neal won't have forgotten all the tricks that got him where he was. This is the chance Yao has been looking for, a dominating performance against the former number 1 and the defending NBA champions will establish him as legitimate candidate for the MVP early on. That being said, Pat Riley is no fool and will look to double Yao before he touches the ball. </font> [/div] <font size="3">Projected Starters</font> <div align="center"><font color="red"> <font size="1">(G. Payton, D. Wade, A. Walker, U. Haslem, S. O'neal)</font></font></div> <font size="1">Leading Scorer: Dwyane Wade - 25.4 PPG Leading Rebounder:Udonis Haslem - 9.7 RPG Assist Man: Dwyane Wade - 7.0 APG The 'X' Factor: Shaquille O'neal (13.7 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 1.3 APG)</font> <font size="3">Backcourt</font> <font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/gary_payton.jpg[/imgl]<font color="red">Gary Payton</font> The Glove has finally gained the one thing that'll push him into the Hall of Fame. It's interesting to see how he has progressed as a player, from a superstar to a sixth man, Payton still has some left in the tank. And he'll be looking to make good use of his offense against Rafer Alston. As long as we are able to contain Payton and limit his distribution, Rafer will have a good enough game to cancel him out. </font> <font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/dwyane_wade.jpg[/imgl]<font color="red">Dwyane Wade</font> As if last year's clinic against the Mavericks didn't propel him into superstar-dom, Dwyane Wade is fixin' to have a great year. It seems players are labeled superstars the younger they get -- with Wade leading this new wave. And against a person who has almost been forgotten by the general public (Tracy McGrady), Dwyane Wade will look to lament his place as a premiere guard. It is doubtful that McGrady will have to chase the kid around, but don't be surprised if Tracy will want to take him on offense on multiple occasions. McGrady probably has more to prove this season than anyone in the league. </font> <font size="3">Frontcourt</font> <font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/antoine_walker.jpg[/imgl]<font color="red">Antoine Walker</font> The trigger happy power forward (minus "power") poses a problem for the Rockets. Though the Rockets will probably mix it up on defense, Tracy McGrady may see more than a few minutes defending him. Which is fantastic for the Rockets, as McGrady has a clear edge of Walker. On defense, Walker will be the odd man out, since he doesn't play any true type of defense. If he gets stuck on McGrady, however, he'll be in for a long night. </font> <font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/udonis_haslem.jpg[/imgl]<font color="red">Udonis Haslem</font> Haslem, like Chuck Hayes, was undrafted and has made a huge impact on the team that had the faith to pick him up. Against the Rockets, he'll most probably be helping Shaq guard Yao, and it'll be up to him to stay out of foul trouble. His offensive ability will be called into action against this Rocket defense, as he may get more than a few jumpers he'll need to knock down. Expect the Rockets to let Haslem get his, hoping that someone will out-do him. </font> <font size="1">[imgl]http://www.nba.com/media/playerfile/shaquille_oneal.jpg[/imgl]<font color="red">Shaquille O'Neal</font> O'neal is the 'X' Factor for the Heat, for two reasons: 1. He's coming off an injury. 2. He's playing against the new kid on the block. After his bruised knee has healed, Shaq gets no breather, having to play against the huge force that is Yao Ming. Though, he should be motivated for this game, that cannot be enough to limit Yao's versatility. Shaq might have lost his star treatment, as he has a bad habit of getting into foul trouble. Which bodes well for Yao. Offensively, he'll need to put in around 20 for this game to be close, and he must limit Yao to CLOSE to the same figure. </font> <div align="center"></div> <font size="3">Keys to the Game</font> Rockets <ul>[*]<font color="red">Yao </font> - If Yao can dominate against the Heat, he'll not only establish himself a a top 5 player in the league, but also the Rockets near win. The Rockets have to milk Yao regardless of how well he is doing. As long as he is not in foul trouble, he must get the ball, because sooner or later, he'll find his rhythm. And once Yao has that, he's unstoppable.[*]<font color="red">Limit Wade</font> - Dwyane Wade is just as big a game changer as Tracy McGrady was. And if the Rockets want to win this game comfortably, they cannot let Wade explode to the basket. Though we may have perimeter quickness, Wade has a knack of getting to the basket, where he can get many bad calls thrown onto Yao. Just as long as we limit what he does to the perimeter, this game is winnable.[*]<font color="red">McGrady's "Return"</font> - It came from the sources mouth that he'll "never be the same," but that doesn't mean that Tracy McGrady cannot impact the Rockets like he used to. Sure, maybe he's lost half a step, but so did Michael Jordan for the bulls. Tracy McGrady understands that he cannot just jump over people or fly in the air, now it's up to him to adjust to that. MJ found this dominant turn-around, McGrady needs to do something similar. And this applies, not only for this game, but for the rest of his career in a Rockets uniform.[/list] Heat <ul>[*]<font color="red">Wade </font> - If Wade can come out with a stellar game, it might be all the Heat need to win this game. He has produced against good defenses, but the Rockets pose a height advantage in more than one position. Added with the depth we have, he'll need to put in some extra effort to get around his average. If Wade fails to produce the goods, the Rockets will win this game in the third quarter. [*]<font color="red">Stop Yao</font> - If the Heat are lucky enough to have officials that hate Yao, then this game is easily winnable. Not only getting the big fella' into foul trouble, but also limiting the amount of passes he gets by fronting him (almost like a sandwich), can help stop Yao. Shaq might get in trouble early on with fouls, so it's up to the front court of Miami to help out. If Yao has a game like he did against the Knicks, this game won't be close. [*]<font color="red">Perimeter Defense</font> - The Rockets get drawn into Zone Defenses, but so far, we've been able to shoot ourselves out of them. If the Rockets are able to do that here, the Heat need to resort to man-to-man and play it well. The Rockets can also drive to the basket, so shutting us down at the perimeter is key. Yao is an excellent passer, and gets a few assists of his teammates hitting open threes, the Heat need to contest these threes. [/list]<font size="3">Prediction</font> A hard-fought game, but Yao decides to take over late in the third. It'll be interesting to see how T-Mac shows up for this one, but here's hoping he makes his entrance with a BANG! Expect a good game from Shane Battier, and we might see some appearances from Kirk Snyder, Juwan Howard, and Bonzi Wells, all who have gotten a limited amount of minutes in the regular season. If we can win this one, it might give us the confidence we need to build on this win streak, facing a team that has dominated the Western Conference for years, San Antonio. Rockets 98 Heat 91 <font size="1">*All pre, and post-game discussion should go in here. Thanks.</font>
I think Rockets will win 106-103. A very close and a high scoring game that Rockets will win. I like all matchups in this game. Payton vs. Alston; Wade vs. Tmac; Walker vs. Battier; Haslem vs. Hayes; Yao vs. Shaq. Tmac needs to bring his defense today or I think we may get Battier to guard Wade, isnt that what we said earlier? That tmac will play 2 but battier ad him will switch on defense? So I want battier on wade and tmac on walker.
I hope Bonzi plays. We need to limit Wade because if he goes off then the whole heat team gets involved. If we beat the heat then we'll finally get some respect in the league.
Wade is a very tough matchup for the Rockets. Neither McGrady or Battier have the quickness to play him effectively one on one. I expect Battier will be playing him initially, but look for Kirk Snyder or Luther Head to get significant minutes in this game if Wade is going off (which will likely mean the Rockets go small and Chuck Hayes is pushed out of the lineup for most of the game).
http://www.download.com/TVU-Player/3000-2194_4-10584888.html it has espn and cctv 5 which is a chinese sport channel. they dont show all the games.
If I'm not mistaken, TVU player has plenty of Chinese sports stations. Considering the fact that pretty much every Rockets game is on Chinese television, you can get pretty much every Rockets game. As for the game, it'll be a fairly even game, especially if Bonzi Wells comes back. This is where home court could really be an advantage. If the Rockets can somehow minimalize Wade's effectiveness and force him to commit turnovers, Houston could win.
Wade concerns me (as durvasa already pointed out), we need to get Yao established early and Tmac needs to counter Wades attack, by taking it to the basket.
Nice preview Mag, it's just as good as the home opener one against the Jazz, and it took all of us to do that one. Anyone see V-Span getting some minutes this game to guard D-Wade?
I think JVG is planning on putting Kirk Snyder on him because Snyder is 6'6 and is legitamtely the most atheltic player on the team.
<div class="quote_poster">TmacGarnett Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I think JVG is planning on putting Kirk Snyder on him because Snyder is 6'6 and is legitamtely the most atheltic player on the team.</div> Actually, you bring up a good point. Snyder might start this game solely to play up to Wade for the first half. Apparently (per CF), Bonzi was spotted in Houston today, so he might not play. I stress apparently. If Kirk or Shane gets in to foul trouble, I wouldn't be surprised if Span got the call up to defend someone. If we all look back to the summer, Spanoulis was playing against Wade on more than one occasion. Anyone read Q-Rich's comments on T-Mac? How, playing him physical makes him "fade away." To me, it seemed like he hinted that he was the sole reason T-Mac didn't score so much in that game. Me thinks a certain Tracy is 'bout to explode.
I can't wait to see Yao matchup with Shaq once again. I hope he gets to prove to people out there that he has surpassed Shaq.
Terrible start by the Rockets. McGrady being outdone by Wade, Yao by Shaq. We have no transition defense what-so-ever. We better get our act back together soon, or this is gonna be a blowout by the end of the second quarter.
Well Yao and Shaq are around the same right now, but Yao's really being fouled out there. So far Yao's got 7 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assists, 2 TOs, on 1-5 FG and 5-5 FT. Shaq's 8 points, 3 rebounds, 0 assists, 2 TOs, on 4-5 FG and 0-1 FT. So far, we're really only getting production from Hayes (sorta) and Battier. Meanwhile, Shaq, Wade, and Walker, are all producing for Miami. We really need to stop Wade here...
Does anyone agree that T-Mac just doesn't look right? I am sick of these ESPN broadcasters riding the Heat's jockstraps, but it is true what they are saying about McGrady. He just doesn't look so dominating, almost tired. Every game so far he looks like he was fixing to have a big game, but this might just be the worst performance he's put in the entire season. What has happened to him?!
