2015 Playoffs: (2) Houston vs. (7) Dallas

[Lamrock]

Houston gets the 2 seed after all. They get to play a dysfucntional Mavs team. Perhaps Rondo kicks it into his proverbial "second gear", Dirk heats up and Carlisle's coaching is a major factor, but more likely the Rockets win it in 6.

[Andrew]

Yeah, Rockets in six. I'd say they're out come the second round, but they're good enough to get by the Mavericks without it going the distance.

[Brave Sir Rubin]

This is a tough one. The Mavs are significantly improved and Rondo could potentially (yet unlikely) be a rather valuable playoffs wild card. I'll go with Rockets in 7, but I wouldn't be extremely surprised if the Mavs somehow stole this.

[JaoSming]

Yao for 5

[Stress Fracture]

Rockets in 5.

Let's prove Charles Barkley wrong

[shadowgrin]

Rockets gonna choke this in 6.

[Kevin]

Dallas gonna get swept

[Mandich]

Rockets better advance unless Harden and Howard want to get rekt by the media.

This should be a great series, but I think Rockets are going to win this one with a couple of very close games (DAL OKC a couple of years back)

[Maverick]

Mavs in 7. Yep, on the road. Just watch!

Keep quiet Cubes!

[NovU]

Voted for Harden in 4.

Cuban and cos suck. Beard doesn't.

[Alpha_]

Mavs in 7.

[Stress Fracture]

Parsons is out indefinitely and Rondo is out with a "back injury."

[Spree#8]

Parsons is out indefinitely and Rondo is out with a "back injury."

The Mavs might put up a fight then.

[bowdown]

Sucks for Mavs...Atleast they got a championship in the Nowitzki era.

[deihatein]

fuck that mid season trade that cuban did.

[NovU]

Rockets are a contender. The Mavericks never had a chance in million years.



I said this before but Rockets fit my bill of contender this year. They got MVP and another superstar, on top of all those nice depth, defenders, and great cohesive role players. They've done quite well with their best big, and now that their best big is back, it doesn't matter D-Mo is dead or alive. They're good to go.

Obviously the Warriors are still step ahead though.

[Kevin]

Dallas is just covering up this Rondo isse with a "back injury". It's obvious Carlisle doesn't like that asshole.

[Stress Fracture]

They've done quite well with their best big, and now that their best big is back, it doesn't matter D-Mo is dead or alive. They're good to go.

Could've been better if D-Mo is playing, Clint Capela has been the first big off the bench.

[Spree#8]

While it's a tiny sample, I think it's good enough to believe the Mavs can at least avoid a sweep without Rondo.

[Andrew]

With some of the predictions of a Mavericks upset, I think the Rockets have been slightly underrated by fans and certain members of the media alike. The way things are shaping up, I think my pick of Rockets in six might turn out to have been selling them a bit short.

[Brave Sir Rubin]

With some of the predictions of a Mavericks upset, I think the Rockets have been slightly underrated by fans and certain members of the media alike. The way things are shaping up, I think my pick of Rockets in six might turn out to have been selling them a bit short.

I think that this is more of a case of overrating the Mavericks (as an almost identical team won the championship just a couple of years ago.) It's hard to underestimate the Rockets.

[Andrew]

I think it's possible, to a certain extent. Harden and Howard are frequently described as being overrated, to the point where they're probably not given enough due. As far as the media is concerned, Charles Barkley for one doesn't seem to hold the Rockets in particularly high regard.

[NovU]

Barkley can't be taken seriously especially on Rockets.

Barkley has long felt wronged by the Rockets because he felt that the Rockets did not sufficiently compensate him after he took a one million dollar salary, so the Rockets could sign Scottie Pippen. (See here: http://blog.chron.com/ultimaterocket...cs/#30304101=0.) As a consequence, Barkley has always used his platform on TNT to bash the Rockets. For example, despite Barkley’s recent claim that getting James Harden was a no brainer, he said at the time of the trade that he liked the trade for *Oklahoma City* and that Harden was not a “foundational player” you could build around. (See here: http://rockets.clutchfans.net/8155/c...barkley-idiot/.) You may also recall that he criticized the Rockets selection of Yao Ming and told Kenny Smith that he’d kiss his ass if Ming scored 19 points in a game as a rookie. Given that, his recent comments have much more to do with his dislike of the Rockets than his feelings on “analytics.” I’m sure part of his opinion is fueled by his frustration and insecurity about not being able to access something that has become important to understanding basketball. But I really think most of his venom is explained by his bizarre feud with the Rockets.

[Andrew]

Yeah, his falling out with the organisation has seemed to taint his opinions in rather petty and ridiculous (and indeed, ridiculously petty) ways.

[Stress Fracture]

Hey, he got $9M the next season then got injured. And he said on one Inside episode that he couldn't play when he arrived at Houston.