[Playoffs] 09 Rockets - Blake's 47 put Rockets down 0-1

[Awesom3]

I'm a little frustrated with my Knicks dynasty with LeBron and also there are a LOT of Knicks dynasties here. I'm going to start one with the Rockets who have a pretty good chance at the championship this year with the addition of Ron Artest so YA!

Platform - PS3
Rosters - Default Rosters as of December 12
Season Length - 29 games
Quarter Length - 6-8 minutes depending on my mood.
Difficulty - All-Star
Sliders - My own sliders that I am working on that has a balance of realism + fun.

Roster
PG - Rafer Alston
SG - Ron Artest
SF - Shane Battier
PF - Luis Scola
C - Yao Ming
6 - Tracy McGrady
7 - Carl Landry
8 - Aaron Brooks
9 - Chuck Hayes
10 - Brent Barry
11 - Steve Francis
12 - Dikembe Mutombo
IR - DeAndre Jordan
IR - Luther Head
IR - Von Wafer

[Awesom3]

Rockets getting ready for the season

Injuries have been the story of the Rockets since the Yao Ming era began. Last year the Rockets made history, winning 22 straight games. The Rockets finally made the playoffs but were held back by injuries. Yao Ming was out for the late part of the season, Tracy McGrady was bothered by a sore shoulder, and starters Rafer Alston and Shane Battier were also banged up. Veteran guard Steve Francis also did not play for most of the season due to an injury.

The highlight of the Rockets season were the acquisitions of Ron Artest and Brent Barry who help to add more depth to the Rockets squad.

"My everything feels good. I probably won't be able to play 100% right off but I'm in good shape." says Tracy McGrady. "It's going to be a good year. Ron Artest is going to help us out a lot."

Rockets will tip off with a game against Ron Artest's former team, the Sacramento Kings at the Toyota Center

[Awesom3]

Rockets blow out Adelman's former team in home opener

Rick Adelman answered to the "We Want Steve" chants as the Rockets had a comfortable 15 point lead with 3 minutes left in the half. Luis Scola stole the ball and passed it up to Luther Head who passed it to a trailing Steve Francis for a vintage Stevie Franchise dunk. Steve Francis made a 3 and tough contested lay up to help the Rockets hold on to their lead at halftime. The Rockets had their lead at 28 at one point i the 3rd before shifting in their 2nd unit. Kevin Martin had 41 points, most of them coming in the second half and the Kings only shot 36% from the field. Steve Francis had 19 on the game and Yao Ming had a perfect 10-10 night from the field. Ron Artest only had 8 points in his Rockets debut but 6 Rockets were in double figures and every Rocket had an assist.

Rockets Player Of The Game - Yao Ming, 20 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, 10-10 FG

Draft Prospect Scouting Report
Name - Glenn Blount
College - Miami (OH)
Position - Shooting Guard
Height - 6'6
Age - 20
Projected - Top 5

Strengths - Strong finisher in the paint, capable of running the point, very tough mentally and physically, good hands, good leaper,

Weaknesses - Does not grab a lot of rebounds, not strong enough on NBA level, jumpshot could improve

[Awesom3]

Rockets acquire former Aggie DeAndre Jordan and Dikembe Mutombo

Rockets management announced that they have reacquired Dikembe Mutombo and have traded Joey Dorsey for DeAndre Jordan after learning that Yao got a sore hamstring in a small injury during practice. Yao Ming will still be able to play. Mutombo has been the Rockets back up center for the last 4 seasons and has helped down key stretches when Yao Ming was out due to injury. The Rockets also made a move to acquire DeAndre Jordan in a trade that sent Joey Dorsey to the Clippers.

[mp3]

Awesom3 start

Good trade imo Jordan has alot to learn so could pick up a thing or two for Yao.

Iam following.

[Awesom3]

Thanks. I hope you guys don't mind the brief presentation but I think with short recaps, fast progress and a short season length there's less chance that my Association will end prematurely. Sorry I don't have my PS3 with me right now so this recap lacks stats.

Rockets lose close game against Hawks 87-94
Al Horford made his presence felt as he had an impressive 20 point, 12 rebound, 5 assist, 1 steal and 1 block performance against arguably the best center in the league.

"When you're that athletic and strong and you can make free throws, you're going to be good in this league" said Yao Ming. Horford converted all 6 of his free throw attempts. Yao held his own with a respectable 25 and 8 to go with 3 blocks and 2 steals but was outrebounded by Horford on a few key plays in the closing minutes. Only 3 Rockets were in double figures this game with McGrady adding 24 and Artest with 14.

Around The League
+ Hornets are off to a 4-0 start and the Thunder have surprisingly won their first 3 games of the season.
+ Danny Granger had 8 blocks in the season opener.
+ Alonzo Mourning surprised all Heat fans by signing with the Lakers.
+ Cavaliers acquired Beno Udrih in a trade that sent Anderson Varejao and their 1st round pick to Sacramento
+ Clippers have signed Darius Miles
+ Rockets have traded for DeAndre Jordan and have resigned Dikembe Mutombo

Draft Prospect Scouting Report
Name - Everett Hale
College - North Carolina
Position - Power Forward
Height - 6'9
Age - 21
Projected - Top 5

Strengths - Good free throw shooter, excellent low post defender, shot blocker, strong rebounder, very good work ethic, good leaper, quite strong, capable of dunking on larger defenders.

Weaknesses - Not the best athlete, not a very polished offensive game, only does what he is comfortable with - needs to keep on working to succeed on the next level.

[Awesom3]

I'm going to be doing a small reset this time trying out some new sliders. I'll just edit some of my posts... I've made the same moves (acquiring Mutombo + Jordan) and I think the schedule is the same.

[Awesom3]

Rockets blow out Knicks at home
Rockets had an amazing 143 points in regulation as they put on an offensive clinic against the New York Knicks.

"I was surprised... I thought they would cool off after the 41 point first quarter." said Rick Adelman.

Everyone in a Rockets uniform... Even Dikembe Mutombo and Chuck Hayes scored. Yao Ming led the way with 28 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 blocks in just 3 quarters. Carl Landry had 27 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals. Luther Head added 8 points and 9 assists.

"It was fun out there." said Carl Landry "Luther and I were playing like Stockton and Malone."

Power Rankings
1. Rockets
2. Hornets
3. Cavaliers
4. 76ers
5. Bulls
6. Heat
7. Thunder
8. Kings
9. Nuggets
10. Celtics

Draft Prospect Scouting Report
Name - Gus Cobb
College - Tennessee
Position - Small Forward
Height - 6'7
Age - 21
Projected - Top 5

Strengths - Good mid range game, good free throw shooter, strong, good shot blocker for position, great hands, strong dunker, can make difficult shots, has a lot of upside

Weaknesses - Bad shot selection, bad behavior- has been arrested 3 times in college and was suspended after infamous Tennessee brawl.

[Awesom3]

Rockets silent Jazz in OT

After a strange deal that sent Kyle Korver to Toronto for Jason Kapono, Jazz fans had nothing to be confused about after Kapono had 22 points on the night. Deron Williams had a season high 15 assists.

For the Rockets, Sometimes you have T-Mac scoring 25 and Yao with 24 but that is just not enough. Hello Ron Artest. Artest provided the spark that the Rockets did not have last season in the playoffs and had 20 points on the night.

Defensive rebounding was a problem last night when the teams collected a total of 34 offensive rebounds. McGrady, who was only 2 for 10 on 3 pointers hit them when the Rockets needed them most. He found himself open on transition at the 3 point line and did a vintage McGrady pull up 3. His second came in overtime to put the Rockets up 107-104 before the Rockets finally won the game when Ron Artest had a huge AND1 with 20 seconds left to put the Rockets up for good. Artest converted on all 8 free throw attempts on the night. Ronnie Brewer converted on a 3 that sent the game to overtime with 0.2 left on the clock.

Draft Prospect Scouting Report
Name - Billy Brock
College - Minnesota
Position - Power Forward
Height - 6'10
Age - 20
Projected - Top 5

Strengths - Lots of upside, will probably be best player of the draft, Soft touch around rim, good free throw shooter, excellent shot blocker and strong rebounder, good conditioning... has played 40 minute games in college, very strong, good hands, does intangibles.

Weaknesses - Does not like to shoot much, needs to bulk up.

[Awesom3]

Rockets D hold off Nuggets
Yao had another spectacular night scoring 32 points and collecting 8 rebounds. Ron Artest had 10 points in the first quarter but was scoreless for the rest of the game. Veteran Mutombo came off the bench and collected 8 rebounds. J.R. Smith led the way for the Nuggets with 21 points. The tandem of Ron Artest and Shane Battier held Carmelo Anthony to a season low 11 points on 5/14 shooting.

"We played good defense on their shooting tonight... They only had 3 turnovers and we had 14 but our defense on their shooting did it, and another spectacular night from Yao." said Shane Battier. Shane Battier and Aaron Brooks, known for their shooting are both in an early shooting slump with both of them shooting near the 30% clip from the field. With the except for Brent Barry and Luther Head, every Rockets is shooting below 30% from 3 point early in the season.

"It's scary to think about it... A team that is currently 4-1 have most of their players in a shooting slump." said Chauncey Billups of the Nuggets.

Around The League
Pistons sign Jake Voskuhl
76ers sign Ruben Patterson
Spurs sign P.J. Brown
Pistons trade Stuckey to the Warriors for Belinelli
Raptors trade Kapono to the Jazz for Korver
Hawks trade Mike Bibby to the Jazz for Kirilenko

Draft Prospect Scouting Report
Name - Craig Holmes
College - UCLA
Position - Point Guard
Height - 6'
Age - 23
Projected - Top 5

Strengths - Lethal mid range jump shot, good free throw shooter, good all-around game, good athlete, very coachable

Weaknesses - Not the best athlete, sometimes does a lot of flashy passes, only 6', could be mismatch on defense.

[Awesom3]

Battier snaps out of slump when Rockets need him most
Battier made 2 crucial 3 pointers after what seemed like another horrible shooting night for him. Shane Battier hit a 3 that cut a once 30 point lead into a 12 point game and hit another 3 late to cut the Detroit lead to 91-88. Aaron Brooks make a key steal from Iverson to finish off a lone fast break where he nearly missed the lay up. Houston made another stop as Brooks found Battier open for another 3 but Battier failed to convert. Luckily Yao Ming grabbed the offensive rebound and with McGrady's man trying to take the ball off Yao Ming's hands, Yao dished the ball off to an open McGrady while effectively blocking 2 Detroit Pistons as McGrady slowly spots up and lets go for the go ahead jumper. Battier sealed the deal as he forced an airball on Rip Hamilton's jumpshot and the Rockets escape with a win.

Draft Prospect Scouting Report
Name - Randall Gibson
College - Georgetown
Position - Shooting Guard
Height - 6'7
Age - 20
Projected - Lottery

Strengths - excellent mid range jumper, gifted offensive player with lots of potential, exceptional leaper, able to get off difficult shots.

Weaknesses - Misses lay ups, not a spectacular rebounder and low basketball I.Q. - bad shot selection, always attempts dunks,

[Awesom3]

Strong defensive effort from Rockets as Rockets win 5 straight
Rockets held division rivals Mavericks to 75 points on just below 40% shooting. Ron Artest led all players with 23 points

(Yea I simmed this one)

Draft Prospect Scouting Report
Name - Bradford Lindsey
College - Duke
Position - Power Forward
Height - 6'10
Age - 20
Projected - Lottery

Strengths - Good free throw shooter, good shooter within 15. Good low post scorer and defender, strong, some potential, can contribute right away. Knows his role, big body

Weaknesses - Not very athletic or aggressive, doesn't block a lot of shots.

[Awesom3]

Barry sinks the Sixers
Rockets leading 3 point shooter Brent Barry put the Sixers away after sinking 3 consecutive 3 pointers to help secure the Rocket lead. McGrady was also spectacular from the line making all 4 3 pointers. The Rockets made a strong defensive effort as they literally packed the lane with bigs, forcing the weak shooting Sixers to take more jump shots. Steve Francis got to play as he had 7 points and added 5 assists. Rookie DeAndre Jordan made his debut scoring 10 points, collecting 3 rebounds and dishing out 3 assists. Yao had a 26 point game and sat out for most of the 4th.

Draft Prospect Scouting Report
Name - Jeff Caldwell
College - Purdue
Position - Power Forward
Height - 6'10
Age - 21
Projected - Lottery

Strengths - Strong, good all around post presence, makes his living on the block, one of the stronger players to come out of college, has a good hookshot, has some potential

Weaknesses - Nothing really stands out, foul prone.

[Mandich]

this is ok but nothing better than ok, put some effort man

[Awesom3]

Even doing short recaps is kinda boring for me... I'll pick this up again once I get to the playoffs.

[Awesom3]

After a truly MVP caliber season, league scoring and rebounding leader chooses the worst day to have a bad game. The Rockets were sitting on the 8th spot but a loss against the Clippers and a Utah win would mean the lottery for the Rockets since the Jazz hold the tiebreaker.

With what looked like a 20 point deficit heading into the second half, Rafer Alston hit a half court buzzer beater to cut the lead to 17 and gave a glimpse of hope to the sell out crowd at the Toyota Center. Steve Francis saw a lot of playing time with Baron Davis powering past Rafer Alston and Aaron Brooks and also made a pass to McGrady who calmly knocked down a jump shot to cut the deficit to 4 in the 3rd quarter. The Rockets managed to enter the 4th quarter down 5 after McGrady went on a 5-0 run by himself after being whistled for his 5th foul. McGrady scored 16 in the 3rd quarter.

Entering the 4th, rarely used Steve Francis made a 3 to cut the deficit to 2 but the Rockets were never able to take the lead. McGrady finished the game with 43 points, 8 assists, 3 blocks and 5 3 pointers but fouled out with 6 seconds remaining as he fouled Chris Kaman. With the Rockets down 114-111 and their leading scorer fouled out, Steve Francis came in and knocked down a huge 3 but after a review the shot was waived off as the Rocket fans held their heads nervously as they walked out the stadium.

The entire Rockets team gathered up in the locker room as they watched the Jazz face off against the Kings which would determine their faith. The Kings were down by 10 at one point in the 4th but Rockets draftee Donte Greene hit huge 2 3s to put the nail in the coffin on the Jazz playoff pursuit.

After the game Rockets stars Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming gave a phone call to Donte Greene saying a big thank you.

"I didn't even realize what those shots meant... I guess that's why the Rockets drafted me." joked Donte Greene after the game.

The Rockets will face the Blazers in the first round of the playoffs.

[Martti.]

Damn, I hoped when Greene got traded, he would get like 25-30 minutes a game, but now - stuck in D-League.

Perhaps an upset?

[Awesom3]

Blazers got out to a hot start with Steve Blake knocking down 5 3 pointers in the first quarter en route to a 70 point Blazer first half. The Rockets were able to keep close and were down 8 points heading in to the 4th quarter. McGrady scored the first 7 Rocket points to cut the deficit to 1 but the Blake answered with 2 3 pointers. The Rockets weren't able to pull up until the last 3 minutes when Ron Artest and Shane Battier both made baskets and 3s to cut the lead to 3 with 2:27 to play. Yao converted on an And1 with 1:28 left and hit the free throw to cut make the score 124-126 with Rockets down 2. The Rockets converted on the next few possessions but could not find an answer for Brandon Roy. On a crucial play with the Rockets down 4, Yao Ming was called for 3 seconds in the key and the Rockets had no choice but to foul Steve Blake who calmly hit free throws to ice the game.

"Big win for us. There are a lot of doubters out there who believe we can't win in the playoffs." said Brandon Roy, who scored 37 points on the night.

Steve Blake scored 47 points including 11 3 pointers that had the Rose Garden chanting out Steve Blake after the win.

Yao Ming finished with 36 points, 13 rebounds, 7 assists and 2 blocked shots. Ron Artest and Tracy McGrady added 21 points and 18 ponts each. Aaron Brooks saw limited floor time after nearly throwing 3 straight passes that got deflected by the Blazers. Brent Barry had a very efficient 6-8 shooting night and manned the point with Alston throughout most of the game.

"It's an experience thing. Aaron is a great player but the playoffs are a different atmosphere. There's a lot more pressure when you're running the point since you're the facilitator." said Head Coach Rick Adelman.

The Rockets will look to even the series when the visit the Rose Garden again later this week.

Around the League
Western Conference Playoffs
Blazers (1) Rockets (8) - Blazers lead 1-0
Nuggets (4) Spurs (5) - Series tied 0-0
Hornets (3) Warriors (6) - Warriors lead 1-0
Lakers (2) Mavericks (7) - Series tied 0-0

Eastern Conference Playoffs
Heat (1) Bulls (8) - Heat lead 1-0
76ers (4) Magic (5) - Series Tied 0-0
Pacers (3) Nets (6) - Nets lead 1-0
Celtics (2) Raptors (7) - Series Tied 0-0

[kibaxx7]

Wow Blake 47 points... 11 3-pointers ... good luck in Game 2 man!

[Awesom3]

Thanks. I think I'll tune down the shooting sliders a little bit and improve the defense a little to get a slightly more realistic scoring game

[Awesom3]

The Rockets found themselves in a more controlled scoring game compared to the first game where both teams scored in the 130's. The Rockets were still in a 20 point hole at another point but eventually rallied and took the lead when Yao Ming hit a jumpshot with 6 minutes left in the 4th quarter. Rockets leading scorer Yao Ming showed signs of fatigue shooting 10 of 24 from the field. The Rockets kept the game close but found themselves down 2 and fouled Greg Oden with 1.5 on the clock. Oden hit the first and missed the second but LaMarcus Aldridge was able to secure the rebound as the Blazers take a 2-0 cushion as they head to Houston.

Steve Blake was held to 3-12 after a 47 point explosion the other night but LaMarcus Aldridge did most of the damage with 30 points, 14 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 blocked shots. McGrady lead the way for the Rockets with 28 points.

The series will go to Houston where the Rockets will host the Blazers at the Toyota Center.

[nba_baller]

Hey, whats up with not starting McGrady? He's pro !!!!