HOUSTON ROCKETS (26-17) AT MIAMI HEAT (18-26) Storyline: Well, what?s to say about this one? Miami is definitely improved since starting the season 5-15. They are coming off two consecutive wins against two respectable opponents, New Jersey and New York. Miami undoubtedly has talent, starting with the versatile Lamar Odom and adding valuable contributors in Brian Grant, Caron Butler and Dwanye Wade. They are just two games out of eighth spot in the East; however, that speaks more for the East than it does for Miami. The Rockets are one of the hottest teams in the league. They have won seven of their past nine, with the latest being a 99-87 thrashing of Orlando last night. Yao Ming is continuing his aggressive play, as he netted a career-high 37 points in only 34 minutes in Orlando. The Rockets, even more impressive, have won five of their last six road games, evening their overall road record to 12-12. With a win tonight, they can put themselves 10 games over .500, which is not an easy task in the ultracompetitive Western Conference. PROBABLE STARTERS ======================================= Miami Heat G: Rafer Alston- Alston is a decent point guard who has uncanny speed and quickness, yet he is nowhere near the caliber of a starting position. He averages 8.9 points and 4 assists a game, which are nice numbers, but has a streaky shooting stroke and can be very turnover prone (averaging 1.48 on the season). Expect Francis to take Alston to school, schooling him in all aspects of the game. G: Eddie Jones- Jones has been on a tear of late, averaging 19 points a game, and hitting 12 of his last 24 3-point attempts. He is phenomenal at playing the passing lanes, although he?s averaging the lowest steals/game average of his career (1.05). Overall, he?s having a sub-par season by his standards, but must always be accounted for. He has the ability to score big whenever it?s needed. Just ask the Knicks, whom Jones burned for 26 points on 5-7 3-point shooting. F: Lamar Odom- Finally healthy after so many seasons marred by injuries, Odom is likely the MVP of this Heat squad. Odom is putting together a nice year, averaging 16.8 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists per contest. He will likely be the lone target of the Rockets? defense, since so much of Miami?s offense goes through Odom. F: Caron Butler- Butler is having a horrendous year, due to slow recovery of his injuries. He?s averaging only 7 points a game on 33% shooting and is clearly not his normal self. He has the rep of being an aggressive slasher who can finish at will and penetrate the lane, but he has not showed to be the player he was during his rookie season, when he averaged 15 points and 5 rebounds a game. C: Brian Grant- Grant is Miami?s workhorse, who does all the dirty work. He is a consistent performer and performs admirably as an undersized forward playing the center position. Grant?s averaging a solid 9 points and 7 rebounds on the season, while providing tough physical defense. Expect Yao to simply dominate Grant, who stands 6?9?. HOUSTON ROCKETS G: Steve Francis- Francis has not been his usual scoring self, but that?s because he is doing a great job running the offense, playing defense and pounding the ball inside to Yao. I expect him to have a great second-half of the season simply because he?s conserving so much energy by deferring to Yao and taking smart shots. G: Cuttino Mobley- Mobley is another noted scorer who has deferred to sacrificing shots in exchange for victories. Mobley is still a dangerous scorer, averaging 15 points and shooting 39% from 3 on the season. However, it?s his post passing and perimeter defense that has made this season arguably one of the best. Expect him to do a stellar job containing Jones, while also making Jones work on the offensive end. F: Jim Jackson- As the Rockets? best perimeter defender, I would expect to see Jackson defend Odom. Jackson is superb at pressuring the ball and using his length and size to ward off opponents from attacking the basket. Offensively, he will likely make Odom work, since Jackson loved to play point forward and move away from the ball. Jim has hit 8 of his last 16 trey attempts and Odom will have to be sure to stay on him at all times. F: Kelvin Cato- Cato has seen his minutes decline greatly due to the aggressive play of Maurice Taylor off the bench. Cato is only averaging 20 minutes a game in his last five games, and that is in large part due to his lack of offensive ability. He is a phenomenal rebounder (7.9/game) and interior defender. However, Taylor is providing 12 points and 5 rebounds off the bench, while always keeping the pressure on the defense. C: Yao Ming- Simply the best big man in the league over this recent stretch. Yao is averaging 23 points/game and 11 rebounds/game over his past seven games, including an absurd 37/10 game against Orlando in which he hit 15 of 23 from the floor. Expect more of the same against a drastically undersized Miami frontline. ===================================================== KEYS TO WINNING: Miami: All Miami can pray for is that they force Yao and Maurice Taylor into foul trouble. That would put Houston?s two most consistent scorers on the bench. However, Francis and Mobley also have the ability to go nuts offensively, especially against an inexperienced Miami backcourt. Foul trouble, and the prayer that Houston neglects Yao offensively, are Miami?s only real chances of winning. Houston: Simple- pound it inside. I would expect Yao to get near 30 shots tonight if he isn?t in foul trouble. Taylor will also have a field day offensively, as no Miami forward has his combination of strength and quickness on the perimeter. Francis should have no trouble penetrating the lane. One huge key to definite victory: keep the ball put of Odom?s hands and make him a nonfactor. Make an ineffective Butler or a Brian Grant beat you, and exploit Eddie Jones? willingness to gamble for steals. PREDICTION: Houston 80 Miami 66
I think this game will be a blowout in the Rockets favor. The Heat simply are too small to hang with the Rockets inside players. I think Yao Ming will have a dominating night like he did last night and light it up for 25+. I also expect Francis to have a big game considering he is going against the Alston and Taylor because of the lack of interior presence. My sleeper pick tonight is Kelvin Cato. I think he will have a huge game on both sides of the ball. Face it, Odom cannot hold Cato's jock in the post. I expect him to dominate on the glass tonight as well. Houston 92 Miami 78
The game is over, and it went the exact opposite of what Dexter predicted, haha. The Heat dominated the Rockets 95-81, and Rafer Alston dominated Francis, lol. I don't really want to double post, so here are my comments in thread made in the Heat forum: http://justbball.hotmel.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12769
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting HoustonHoopa33:</div><div class="quote_post">HOUSTON ROCKETS (26-17) AT MIAMI HEAT (18-26) Expect Francis to take Alston to school, schooling him in all aspects of the game. Expect Yao to simply dominate Grant, who stands 6?9?. All Miami can pray for is that they force Yao and Maurice Taylor into foul trouble. That would put Houston?s two most consistent scorers on the bench. However, Francis and Mobley also have the ability to go nuts offensively, especially against an inexperienced Miami backcourt. Foul trouble, and the prayer that Houston neglects Yao offensively, are Miami?s only real chances of winning. PREDICTION: Houston 80 Miami 66 </div> please predict all Heat games from now on. no, really.
Great analysis, I agree totally. The Rockets as I have seen recently and constantly been told by my good friend Crossover, are one of the best, if not the best defensive team in the league. I have to agree after all they have Yao, Griffin, Cato and Mobley. Franchise has that awesome speed, plus he hasn't been turning over so much as he use to do. Rockets have a clean sweep, they take this by at least double digits.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Magic Johnson:</div><div class="quote_post">Rockets have a clean sweep, they take this by at least double digits.</div> For future reference, you'll probably want to read the entire thread before posting, I always see you replying to game threads with your predictions and pre-game thoughts, even though the game already ended one day earlier. The game was last night and Heat absolutely destroyed the Rockets in every aspect and won 95-81. Please, read the complete thread and every post before you actually reply. "Hey guys, I really think the Nets are going to take the Spurs in the NBA Finals... oh wait, nevermind".
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Accord:</div><div class="quote_post">For future reference, you'll probably want to read the entire thread before posting, I always see you replying to game threads with your predictions and pre-game thoughts, even though the game already ended one day earlier. The game was last night and Heat absolutely destroyed the Rockets in every aspect and won 95-81. Please, read the complete thread and every post before you actually reply. "Hey guys, I really think the Nets are going to take the Spurs in the NBA Finals... oh wait, nevermind". </div> Calm down...yes, nice win on your part and Miami played extremely well...but dont act like their Finals worthy...they're hardly even playoff worthy....
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting HoustonHoopa33:</div><div class="quote_post">but dont act like their Finals worthy</div> I never said they were. As far as being playoff worthy, the Heat are more than worthy of a playoff spot. If this was the 2004-2005 season, the Heat would be ranked #1 in their division.
ACCORD copied my avatar..but his sucks cuz the spinning makes u dizzy..anywayz the heat just had hot hands tonight while ours were cold..if both teams played their game, rockets would have taken this game easily. Anywayz i'm liking the new layout of this site, so that's y it's been down a couple of dayz.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting drm2dnk:</div><div class="quote_post">ACCORD copied my avatar..but his sucks cuz the spinning makes u dizzy..anywayz the heat just had hot hands tonight while ours were cold..if both teams played their game, rockets would have taken this game easily. Anywayz i'm liking the new layout of this site, so that's y it's been down a couple of dayz.</div> He may had that avatar for a long time and I wouldn't diss a moderator avatar like that if I was you. Back on topic........ I'd say Heat had a lucky day because if Yao had a 20-10 game, Heat would've lost.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Ming637:</div><div class="quote_post">He may had that avatar for a long time and I wouldn't diss a moderator avatar like that if I was you. Back on topic........ I'd say Heat had a lucky day because if Yao had a 20-10 game, Heat would've lost.</div> Oh ok accord i'm sorry I was just joking! ur avatar is cool i might b jealous..peace
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting drm2dnk:</div><div class="quote_post">ACCORD copied my avatar..but his sucks cuz the spinning makes u dizzy</div> Hahaha, yeah I saw the e-mail notification and was like "what's he talking about" then I came to the thread and saw your avatar that you made in MS Paint or whatever. That's hilarious man, LOL.
Too bad we lost. How could Yao play only 28 minutes and put up 9 shots? If the Rockets are ever going to win again he's gotta take more.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting franchise3:</div><div class="quote_post">Too bad we lost. How could Yao play only 28 minutes and put up 9 shots? If the Rockets are ever going to win again he's gotta take more.</div> In the post-game press conference, Heat coach Stan Van Gundy talked about how this was the most physical game the Heat have played all year and how they knew the only way they were going to walk out of this one with a W was if they (Brian Grant in particular) played physical.
