The Battle Of 1 & 2: The Chef vs. The Beard Warriors vs Rockets WCF Thread
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Playoffs: Scouting Rockets-Warriors
Who'd have thought back in January, when the Rockets' Dwight Howard said the Warriors weren't the best team in basketball, that we'd see these teams playing for the chance to go to the NBA Finals? Yet here we are, with each team taking a very different path. Houston breezed through its first-round opponent, Dallas, and stared elimination in the face against the Clippers, going down 3-1 in the series and facing a large deficit in Game 6 before mounting a furious comeback to force Game 7, and eventually prevailing. The Warriors, on the other hand, had as tough of a sweep as you can have in the first round, including a miraculous comeback in Game 3, and briefly looked mortal through three games against the Grizzlies before dominating the last three games. Now, the self-proclaimed "swag champs" of Houston will play Golden State, the best-record champs of the regular season, to see who will have the right to represent the West in the Finals.
QUESTION 1: The Warriors swept the season series against the Rockets 4-0, but Dwight Howard played only two of those games and arguably wasn't 100 percent healthy. How does a fully healthy Howard change this series?
Elhassan: Ideally for the Rockets, Howard can provide a stronger presence in the paint than they had in their regular-season matchups against Golden State. The common perception of the Warriors is that they are an offense-driven outfit, fueled by a barrage of 3-point makes. The reality is that they live and die off their defense and love to get easy baskets in transition against discombobulated defenses. Howard's role as an above-the-rim athletic type (something the Warriors really don't have a matchup for) can give Golden State problems offensively, which in turn gives the Rockets' defense a chance to reset in the half court. That's the optimal version of how this goes for Houston; realistically, the Warriors' ability to go small without suffering the usual consequences of such (their defense actually gets better) allows them to turn the tables and force Houston to adjust to be able to guard them. The Warriors can go five on the perimeter, making Howard leave his comfort zone in the paint to venture out and guard Draymond Green, where Green can attack off the dribble and collapse help defense.
Doolittle: The big thing is that having Howard to protect the lane allows Houston to extend its perimeter defenders a little, though they can't get blown by on a regular basis. The Warriors (i.e., Stephen Curry) will drive-and-kick Houston to death if the Rockets' defense scrambles, so defenders will have to be disciplined when helping. That's the theory, anyway. During the season, Golden State scored 130.5 points per 48 minutes vs. the Rockets when Howard was on the floor, so Houston has to hope for the healthier version of Howard. Ideally, his presence will help the Rockets execute their preference of forcing a preponderance of midrange jumpers.
On offense, Howard gives Andrew Bogut something to do other than play roving help defender as he got to do so often against Memphis when Tony Allen was on the floor. The Warriors aren't a great rebounding team, so that is an area Howard can exploit on both ends of the floor. If he can do so, he will keep Golden State out of transition on one end and get Houston into its own running game on the other end. Yet Howard can't go out and guard Curry and Klay Thompson on the perimeter, so the battle may be lost before the game ever gets to him.
QUESTION 2: Golden State swept Houston this season with the Rockets' best on-ball defender, Pat Beverley, in the lineup. How can Houston defend Steph Curry without Beverley (wrist surgery) available?
Elhassan: The Griz did a nice job in Games 2 and 3 of defending Stephen Curry by basically making him see two defenders every time he touched the ball. Every pick-and-roll Curry tried to run ended up with him having a defender on his hip and a big man playing up and attempting to corral, forcing him to make a pass, which Memphis also did a good job prepping for by playing with hands high in the passing lanes. Of course, Curry exploded in the last three games, but the general premise of the defensive strategy is as sound as you can expect against the MVP. For Houston, not having Beverley available is an obvious disadvantage (Memphis had the luxury of Mike Conley to stay attached to Curry), but the Rockets do have bigger defenders, such as Corey Brewer and Trevor Ariza, who can try to use their size and length advantages to make it tougher for Curry. Additionally, Pablo Prigioni might be helpless in one-on-one scenarios, but as a piece in a larger defensive scheme, he's capable of sending Curry toward the help. The bigger question is, will the Rockets' bigs outside of Howard have the defensive discipline to work in concert with their teammates, to ensure Curry doesn't go off? Although the Rockets were much-improved on defense this season, they aren't quite as fine-tuned as the Grizzlies were on that end of the floor.
Doolittle: Don't know. But then again, can anyone? Beverley or no, Curry is unguardable, and this series is really a challenge to limit the other Warriors. Although it would be nice to have Beverley. Still, when we were scouting Houston's last series against the Clippers, my primary concern for the Rockets was Beverley's absence. Jason Terry and Prigioni are heady, steady veterans, and Prigioni's moxie helped set the tone in Houston's Game 7 win. But neither player contained Chris Paul one-on-one. Yet it didn't seem to be a huge factor. Paul missed two games, which certainly helped. But when he did play, he averaged 21.2 points and 10 assists. Good numbers, but not crazy, off-the-charts numbers. To me, the worst you can say about whatever solutions Rockets coach Kevin McHalecomes up with for the Curry conundrum, he's going to get what he's going to get, but not exponentially more. But I don't think you can point at the absence of Beverley and say that it matters all that much. For the record, Curry played 82 minutes against Houston with Beverley on the court, and 63 without, per NBA.com/stats. With no Beverley, Curry averaged 31.7 points per 40 minutes and shot 60 percent overall, and 61.5 percent (!) on 3s. With Beverley on the court, Curry was at 25.9 points and shot 56 percent. Defender-neutral superstar.
QUESTION 3: James Harden had his struggles against the Clippers, and Klay Thompson went through several droughts against the Grizzlies. Which All-Star SG has a better chance of getting back on track?
Elhassan: Thompson, without a doubt. Unlike Harden, Thompson is getting ready to face an easier defense; Harden's life just got a lot more miserable. He has to face the league's No. 1 defense, which has the flexibility to guard him either individually with long, active defenders who can constantly switch -- such as Andre Iguodala, Shaun Livingston, Thompson or Green -- or, as the Clippers did, with weakside help showing on the strong side, forcing Harden to pass over the top against a defense that can cover a lot of ground quickly and turn turnovers into buckets in the blink of an eye. Moreover, Harden has the burden of being the focal point of his team's offense, which of course makes him the focal point of his opponent's defense. Thompson has the luxury of being an afterthought in many regards; because so much energy must be expended to keep Curry in check, Thompson faces fewer (and lesser) defenders and can operate off down-screens without the prospect of seeing the type of help defense he saw against the Grizzlies.
Doolittle: Thompson. He wasn't great against Houston during the season, averaging 21.5 points in four games but with a true shooting percentage of just 53.1, a number propped up by his team-high 6.3 foul shots per game. He hit just 25.9 percent on 3s against Houston. However, who is the impact defender who will hound Thompson in this series? Brewer? Ariza? OK, they're pretty good, but doing it that way also means cross-matching and freeing up Harrison Barnes, who shot 53.8 percent on 3s and 61.6 percent overall against the Rockets.
But I'm burying the lead here. Harden is a much better offensive player than Thompson, and the majority of the time I'd answer this question with something like, "Harden. Obviously." But the problem is that Golden State has Thompson to defend. Per 40 minutes, Harden averaged 23.3 points on 36.2 percent shooting during the 110 minutes he was on the floor at the same time as Thompson. In 35 minutes without his annoying presence around, Harden shot 50 percent and averaged a whopping 42.3 points per 40 minutes. A point-plus per minute! And when Warriors coach Steve Kerr wants to get creative, there is also the menacing presence of Green. The Warriors just have better individual defenders.
Predictions
Elhassan: Warriors in 5. Golden State is not like any team Houston has faced; the Warriors' depth and collective defensive excellence separates them from every team in the NBA. With their ability to show different looks (on both ends of the floor) and the overall brilliance of Curry, the Warriors have the upper hand in almost every category.
Doolittle: Warriors in 5. I just don't see the Rockets getting enough stops consistently, especially when Golden State has the wherewithal to force Harden into a subefficiency showing. The Rockets had the worst defensive rating of the second round. Yes, Houston was playing the Clippers, and if you adjust for that, their showing wasn't that bad. And it also was skewed by three particularly poor performances. But Golden State is a much more complete, balanced and varied opponent.
Don't be surprised if...
Elhassan: Barnes continues his under-the-radar excellent play. While Curry, Thompson and Green continue to garner much of the media attention, Barnes has turned in a silently effective, consistent playoff showing, whether by scoring versus the inevitable mismatches he faces or by playing excellent defense and rebounding as a small-ball 4.
Doolittle: Houston doesn't take any midrange shots. OK, that's impossible. But consider that the Rockets already take midrange jumpers at a lower rate (10.7 percent) than any other team, and only the Sixers had a worse accuracy from that range during the regular season. Golden State, on the other hand, allowed the lowest shooting percentage on midrange shots (37.8 percent) in the league. Why would Houston ever shoot from there? They won't, not very often, anyway.
BPI projection
82 percent chance Warriors win series. Most likely series outcome is Golden State in five.
Who'd have thought back in January, when the Rockets' Dwight Howard said the Warriors weren't the best team in basketball, that we'd see these teams playing for the chance to go to the NBA Finals? Yet here we are, with each team taking a very different path. Houston breezed through its first-round opponent, Dallas, and stared elimination in the face against the Clippers, going down 3-1 in the series and facing a large deficit in Game 6 before mounting a furious comeback to force Game 7, and eventually prevailing. The Warriors, on the other hand, had as tough of a sweep as you can have in the first round, including a miraculous comeback in Game 3, and briefly looked mortal through three games against the Grizzlies before dominating the last three games. Now, the self-proclaimed "swag champs" of Houston will play Golden State, the best-record champs of the regular season, to see who will have the right to represent the West in the Finals.
QUESTION 1: The Warriors swept the season series against the Rockets 4-0, but Dwight Howard played only two of those games and arguably wasn't 100 percent healthy. How does a fully healthy Howard change this series?
Elhassan: Ideally for the Rockets, Howard can provide a stronger presence in the paint than they had in their regular-season matchups against Golden State. The common perception of the Warriors is that they are an offense-driven outfit, fueled by a barrage of 3-point makes. The reality is that they live and die off their defense and love to get easy baskets in transition against discombobulated defenses. Howard's role as an above-the-rim athletic type (something the Warriors really don't have a matchup for) can give Golden State problems offensively, which in turn gives the Rockets' defense a chance to reset in the half court. That's the optimal version of how this goes for Houston; realistically, the Warriors' ability to go small without suffering the usual consequences of such (their defense actually gets better) allows them to turn the tables and force Houston to adjust to be able to guard them. The Warriors can go five on the perimeter, making Howard leave his comfort zone in the paint to venture out and guard Draymond Green, where Green can attack off the dribble and collapse help defense.
Doolittle: The big thing is that having Howard to protect the lane allows Houston to extend its perimeter defenders a little, though they can't get blown by on a regular basis. The Warriors (i.e., Stephen Curry) will drive-and-kick Houston to death if the Rockets' defense scrambles, so defenders will have to be disciplined when helping. That's the theory, anyway. During the season, Golden State scored 130.5 points per 48 minutes vs. the Rockets when Howard was on the floor, so Houston has to hope for the healthier version of Howard. Ideally, his presence will help the Rockets execute their preference of forcing a preponderance of midrange jumpers.
On offense, Howard gives Andrew Bogut something to do other than play roving help defender as he got to do so often against Memphis when Tony Allen was on the floor. The Warriors aren't a great rebounding team, so that is an area Howard can exploit on both ends of the floor. If he can do so, he will keep Golden State out of transition on one end and get Houston into its own running game on the other end. Yet Howard can't go out and guard Curry and Klay Thompson on the perimeter, so the battle may be lost before the game ever gets to him.
QUESTION 2: Golden State swept Houston this season with the Rockets' best on-ball defender, Pat Beverley, in the lineup. How can Houston defend Steph Curry without Beverley (wrist surgery) available?
Elhassan: The Griz did a nice job in Games 2 and 3 of defending Stephen Curry by basically making him see two defenders every time he touched the ball. Every pick-and-roll Curry tried to run ended up with him having a defender on his hip and a big man playing up and attempting to corral, forcing him to make a pass, which Memphis also did a good job prepping for by playing with hands high in the passing lanes. Of course, Curry exploded in the last three games, but the general premise of the defensive strategy is as sound as you can expect against the MVP. For Houston, not having Beverley available is an obvious disadvantage (Memphis had the luxury of Mike Conley to stay attached to Curry), but the Rockets do have bigger defenders, such as Corey Brewer and Trevor Ariza, who can try to use their size and length advantages to make it tougher for Curry. Additionally, Pablo Prigioni might be helpless in one-on-one scenarios, but as a piece in a larger defensive scheme, he's capable of sending Curry toward the help. The bigger question is, will the Rockets' bigs outside of Howard have the defensive discipline to work in concert with their teammates, to ensure Curry doesn't go off? Although the Rockets were much-improved on defense this season, they aren't quite as fine-tuned as the Grizzlies were on that end of the floor.
Doolittle: Don't know. But then again, can anyone? Beverley or no, Curry is unguardable, and this series is really a challenge to limit the other Warriors. Although it would be nice to have Beverley. Still, when we were scouting Houston's last series against the Clippers, my primary concern for the Rockets was Beverley's absence. Jason Terry and Prigioni are heady, steady veterans, and Prigioni's moxie helped set the tone in Houston's Game 7 win. But neither player contained Chris Paul one-on-one. Yet it didn't seem to be a huge factor. Paul missed two games, which certainly helped. But when he did play, he averaged 21.2 points and 10 assists. Good numbers, but not crazy, off-the-charts numbers. To me, the worst you can say about whatever solutions Rockets coach Kevin McHalecomes up with for the Curry conundrum, he's going to get what he's going to get, but not exponentially more. But I don't think you can point at the absence of Beverley and say that it matters all that much. For the record, Curry played 82 minutes against Houston with Beverley on the court, and 63 without, per NBA.com/stats. With no Beverley, Curry averaged 31.7 points per 40 minutes and shot 60 percent overall, and 61.5 percent (!) on 3s. With Beverley on the court, Curry was at 25.9 points and shot 56 percent. Defender-neutral superstar.
QUESTION 3: James Harden had his struggles against the Clippers, and Klay Thompson went through several droughts against the Grizzlies. Which All-Star SG has a better chance of getting back on track?
Elhassan: Thompson, without a doubt. Unlike Harden, Thompson is getting ready to face an easier defense; Harden's life just got a lot more miserable. He has to face the league's No. 1 defense, which has the flexibility to guard him either individually with long, active defenders who can constantly switch -- such as Andre Iguodala, Shaun Livingston, Thompson or Green -- or, as the Clippers did, with weakside help showing on the strong side, forcing Harden to pass over the top against a defense that can cover a lot of ground quickly and turn turnovers into buckets in the blink of an eye. Moreover, Harden has the burden of being the focal point of his team's offense, which of course makes him the focal point of his opponent's defense. Thompson has the luxury of being an afterthought in many regards; because so much energy must be expended to keep Curry in check, Thompson faces fewer (and lesser) defenders and can operate off down-screens without the prospect of seeing the type of help defense he saw against the Grizzlies.
Doolittle: Thompson. He wasn't great against Houston during the season, averaging 21.5 points in four games but with a true shooting percentage of just 53.1, a number propped up by his team-high 6.3 foul shots per game. He hit just 25.9 percent on 3s against Houston. However, who is the impact defender who will hound Thompson in this series? Brewer? Ariza? OK, they're pretty good, but doing it that way also means cross-matching and freeing up Harrison Barnes, who shot 53.8 percent on 3s and 61.6 percent overall against the Rockets.
But I'm burying the lead here. Harden is a much better offensive player than Thompson, and the majority of the time I'd answer this question with something like, "Harden. Obviously." But the problem is that Golden State has Thompson to defend. Per 40 minutes, Harden averaged 23.3 points on 36.2 percent shooting during the 110 minutes he was on the floor at the same time as Thompson. In 35 minutes without his annoying presence around, Harden shot 50 percent and averaged a whopping 42.3 points per 40 minutes. A point-plus per minute! And when Warriors coach Steve Kerr wants to get creative, there is also the menacing presence of Green. The Warriors just have better individual defenders.
Predictions
Elhassan: Warriors in 5. Golden State is not like any team Houston has faced; the Warriors' depth and collective defensive excellence separates them from every team in the NBA. With their ability to show different looks (on both ends of the floor) and the overall brilliance of Curry, the Warriors have the upper hand in almost every category.
Doolittle: Warriors in 5. I just don't see the Rockets getting enough stops consistently, especially when Golden State has the wherewithal to force Harden into a subefficiency showing. The Rockets had the worst defensive rating of the second round. Yes, Houston was playing the Clippers, and if you adjust for that, their showing wasn't that bad. And it also was skewed by three particularly poor performances. But Golden State is a much more complete, balanced and varied opponent.
Don't be surprised if...
Elhassan: Barnes continues his under-the-radar excellent play. While Curry, Thompson and Green continue to garner much of the media attention, Barnes has turned in a silently effective, consistent playoff showing, whether by scoring versus the inevitable mismatches he faces or by playing excellent defense and rebounding as a small-ball 4.
Doolittle: Houston doesn't take any midrange shots. OK, that's impossible. But consider that the Rockets already take midrange jumpers at a lower rate (10.7 percent) than any other team, and only the Sixers had a worse accuracy from that range during the regular season. Golden State, on the other hand, allowed the lowest shooting percentage on midrange shots (37.8 percent) in the league. Why would Houston ever shoot from there? They won't, not very often, anyway.
BPI projection
82 percent chance Warriors win series. Most likely series outcome is Golden State in five.
Steph didn't walk up into any 3 point shots. The Rockets came with a soft double team once he crossed half court which made Curry give the ball up. Where he hurt us was his moving with out the ball. Whoever is guarding him has to be more alert but I like what they were trying to do to him. He's gonna hit shots so what he shoots doesn't determine how the Rockets played him.
I've never said this would be easy for the Rockets becuz I have them in 7. And for all the deficiencies you saw it was only a 4 point game. GSW defense wasn't exactly flawless or impenetrable.
Rockets played exactly the way I envisioned in that first quarter. I said prior to the series that a big thing was for Josh and TJones to take it to Draymon Green and not let him sway the front court advantage Houston was going to have, as Dwight was going to hold up his end against Bogut.
So of course the biggest disappointment was the village idiot (Josh) making the most costly fukkup by killing Dwight's knee. After game 6, I had said Josh gets a pass from me for the rest of the playoff run... but i was talkin about just stupid bonehead basketball plays... not damn near crippling the franchise big man.
unintentional as it was..A very close second to that, disappointment wise, was Terrance Jones. Dude just played shook/ soft as shyt... and that sequence where it was 75-74.. and he bricked 2 point blank layups that led to a Warriors transition 3 for Curry to make it 79-74... lol... yea...
Outside of that, I liked how the Rockets played on both ends... and Harden was phenomenal. Terry gotta start hitting those wide open 3s tho... and just gotta hope that Dwight's knee sprain gets better/manageable if not by tomorrow then by game 3 in Houston. They couldn't secure a 50/50 defensive rebound for the life of them in that 3rd/4th quarter, so they're going to need to man up, plus have Dwight there to aid with that.
labelplant
Wilt Chamberlain
The rockets played really well on both ends, except their transition D was lacking. They hit the offensive rebounds hard so that's always an issue with them but you can't beat the Warriors like that. Even if you're gettin some of those offensive rebounds. McHale kind of slowed down on sending everybody to the boards in the latter part of the Clipper series and they gotta get back even more so against the Ws. Also I know he was hitting them but if I'm the Warriors I'm fine with Hardens midrange jumpers. As long as he isn't going of on 3s.
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Logic Is Absent Wherever Hate Is Present
who the real mvp?
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How you utter Malcom and these fake ass nikkas in the same scentence? Really?You realize that Malcom X is that same color right?
So Malcolm and Steph Curry are on the same level to the typical Golden state fan. Terrible. The Black panthers are rolling in their graves right now...
Just realized this weekend is Houston Appreciation Weekend 
Bout to be some fukkery afoot for game 3
Bout to be some fukkery afoot for game 3
Just realized this weekend is Houston Appreciation Weekend
Bout to be some fukkery afoot for game 3
should be interesting
my body is ready for tonight though
because you Andrew Bogut, you not supposed to play good
"This season, Andrew Bogut held opponents to 41.4% at the rim (3rd best in the league) and ranked 3rd in defensive rating (95.2). The Dubs were 58-9 in games Bogut played, compared to 9-6 in games he missed."
G.O.A.T Squad Spokesman
Logic Is Absent Wherever Hate Is Present
Do you actually watch basketball games?because you Andrew Bogut, you not supposed to play good
