I have a confession to make - I gave up mid-way through 3rd quarter, when they were trailing 19 points. Not that I don't expect runs at any given NBA game, nor did I not know that a couple of 3s would change everything, but I didn't like the body languages of Rockets players, especially those of corner stones.
Dwight seemed to be mentally beaten - he was agitated, and started to whine and moan about every contact and look for confrontation. Frustration was written all over his face. Not only was he not helping the team, he was simply distracting his teammates. Harden was settling for contested long jumpers, and he let Matt Barnes got into his head. JJ Redick did a very solid job to bother Harden ( I didn't expect that, not for a career mediocre to below-average defender against the MVP runner-up ).
All these just presented a not pretty but very familiar picture to me - the usual 3rd quarter collapse at big stage, choking all the way. I posted the never tired Choke City picture, and then was countered by furious Rockets comeback led by Josh Smith - seriously, yes, that I-do-not-pass-and-I-am-too-good-for-defense JS. Hats off, congrats, my apology, and gratitude for this exciting experience.
Last few minutes, both Paul and Griffin looked scared. I didn't expect that either. They are both experienced enough, especially Paul, and I seriously believe that they might have been over the hump after the Spurs series. Guess I was wrong again, as usual. The seemingly low-hanging fruit didn't make them more hungry and more serious, but rather distracted and worrisome. Never been to conference final for CP3, at his caliber, it's biting into him inside every season. This time, it looks so real, so logic, and so sure. And yet, the closing game is always the most difficult one, and it still takes 48 minutes.
Clippers passed (actually threw) the ball around as if it was a hot potato. Nobody wants to shoot, because they were afraid of missing. At the other end of the floor, they were all praying and hoping that Rockets miss. Murphy's law at its best, Rockets just couldn't seem to miss. Josh Smith, who couldn't throw a ball into an ocean a few days ago, all of the sudden, he shot with confidence and made 4 3s at critical moments. Jordan's out of bound saving landed into Brewer's hands, and of course he made that short corner 3.
Dwight Howard, who was so clearly out of the game with his mindset, all of the sudden just switched back to that No. 1 big man mode. He grabbed every rebound in sight, and contested every shot. Moreover, he came out to set screens, and at one point, he dragged two defenders with him, and Josh Smith rewarded his effort by knocking down another 3.
42-15, that was the scoreboard for that 14 minutes of amazing comeback. All those points, except one made FT by Howard, were scored by new additions aquired this year. James Harden, the MVP runner-up, sat on bench for the entire 4th quarter. Well, not entirely true, he did sit on the floor stretching at one point, to get himself ready to check in. Also, near the end, he couldn't sit but stood nervously, jumped up and down for his teammates. McHale, as much as I have dissed him as a head coach over the years, for lacking of flexibility and adjustment, he's never aftraid of big name players. I guess as HOFer, you can have that luxury, and as old school, he does believe in play hard. We laughed at his "play harder" motivational speech, but last night, he had the guts to keep Harden on the bench for the entire 4th, and ride the guys who got us there. For that, he deserved tons of credit.
Is Rockets team better without Harden? Hell no. But it was better for that 14 minutes, when Harden wasn't playing aggressively and got agitated. Still, Harden's triple-double in game 5 was the initiator, and his first half performance in game 6 was impressive. I certainly expect a more focused and aggressive James in game 7, coz he's got a lot to prove too.
Unlike Hockey, it's extremely hard to come back from 1-3 in basketball. Rockets did that, with a lot of drama. Now we have forced a game 7, with all the momentum and home court. There is reason for optimism, but there is nothing to protect, still a hard fight ahead to actually WIN that game. Clippers are not going away, Paul and Griffin are too proud to give up.
May the best team win. Still, it would be a whole lot sweeter, if Rockets comes out at the top.
Go Rocket! Go Dwight! Go 胡子，Go Smith, Go Brewer, Go Terry, Go Jones, Go 冰箱！(yes, I said it).
Dwight seemed to be mentally beaten - he was agitated, and started to whine and moan about every contact and look for confrontation. Frustration was written all over his face. Not only was he not helping the team, he was simply distracting his teammates. Harden was settling for contested long jumpers, and he let Matt Barnes got into his head. JJ Redick did a very solid job to bother Harden ( I didn't expect that, not for a career mediocre to below-average defender against the MVP runner-up ).
All these just presented a not pretty but very familiar picture to me - the usual 3rd quarter collapse at big stage, choking all the way. I posted the never tired Choke City picture, and then was countered by furious Rockets comeback led by Josh Smith - seriously, yes, that I-do-not-pass-and-I-am-too-good-for-defense JS. Hats off, congrats, my apology, and gratitude for this exciting experience.
Last few minutes, both Paul and Griffin looked scared. I didn't expect that either. They are both experienced enough, especially Paul, and I seriously believe that they might have been over the hump after the Spurs series. Guess I was wrong again, as usual. The seemingly low-hanging fruit didn't make them more hungry and more serious, but rather distracted and worrisome. Never been to conference final for CP3, at his caliber, it's biting into him inside every season. This time, it looks so real, so logic, and so sure. And yet, the closing game is always the most difficult one, and it still takes 48 minutes.
Clippers passed (actually threw) the ball around as if it was a hot potato. Nobody wants to shoot, because they were afraid of missing. At the other end of the floor, they were all praying and hoping that Rockets miss. Murphy's law at its best, Rockets just couldn't seem to miss. Josh Smith, who couldn't throw a ball into an ocean a few days ago, all of the sudden, he shot with confidence and made 4 3s at critical moments. Jordan's out of bound saving landed into Brewer's hands, and of course he made that short corner 3.
Dwight Howard, who was so clearly out of the game with his mindset, all of the sudden just switched back to that No. 1 big man mode. He grabbed every rebound in sight, and contested every shot. Moreover, he came out to set screens, and at one point, he dragged two defenders with him, and Josh Smith rewarded his effort by knocking down another 3.
42-15, that was the scoreboard for that 14 minutes of amazing comeback. All those points, except one made FT by Howard, were scored by new additions aquired this year. James Harden, the MVP runner-up, sat on bench for the entire 4th quarter. Well, not entirely true, he did sit on the floor stretching at one point, to get himself ready to check in. Also, near the end, he couldn't sit but stood nervously, jumped up and down for his teammates. McHale, as much as I have dissed him as a head coach over the years, for lacking of flexibility and adjustment, he's never aftraid of big name players. I guess as HOFer, you can have that luxury, and as old school, he does believe in play hard. We laughed at his "play harder" motivational speech, but last night, he had the guts to keep Harden on the bench for the entire 4th, and ride the guys who got us there. For that, he deserved tons of credit.
Is Rockets team better without Harden? Hell no. But it was better for that 14 minutes, when Harden wasn't playing aggressively and got agitated. Still, Harden's triple-double in game 5 was the initiator, and his first half performance in game 6 was impressive. I certainly expect a more focused and aggressive James in game 7, coz he's got a lot to prove too.
Unlike Hockey, it's extremely hard to come back from 1-3 in basketball. Rockets did that, with a lot of drama. Now we have forced a game 7, with all the momentum and home court. There is reason for optimism, but there is nothing to protect, still a hard fight ahead to actually WIN that game. Clippers are not going away, Paul and Griffin are too proud to give up.
May the best team win. Still, it would be a whole lot sweeter, if Rockets comes out at the top.
Go Rocket! Go Dwight! Go 胡子，Go Smith, Go Brewer, Go Terry, Go Jones, Go 冰箱！(yes, I said it).
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