<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'></p> "I did not expect it to be as difficult as it has been," Rick Adelman said. "We don't get a lot of easy baskets. Guys get used to playing a certain way sometimes, and it takes awhile to break that. And frankly, we've shot it so poorly as a group that it's even more glaring.</p> </p> "But I think the more opportunities you get to push the ball and get an easy basket here or there just helps you in the long run. It's something that we have to keep working at."</p> </p> But who will spearhead the Rockets' push to improve upon their average of 7.5 fast-break points per game? Rafer Alston is their best pace-setter and distributor in the open court, and since Aaron Brooks has yet to gain Adelman's trust, getting the Rockets running falls on Steve Francis, Mike James and Luther Head. -- Houston Chronicle</p> </div></p>
The Rockets also lost their ability to lock teams down late in games. The defensive stops don't seem to be there anymore for this Rockets team. The close games they've lost this year are probably games they could have won last season. ORL -5 DAL -7 @TOR -7 @SAC -8 @MIA -7 DAL -6 @SA -6 @MEM -6 Rockets are 12-13 right now and have lost 8 games by less than 9 points. If the Rockets just won half of those 8 games they would be a respectable 16-9 on the season right ahead of the Hornets.
