The Rockets are Broken

The "Basketball for Thought" is a commentary by Kris Gardner.

April 29, 2004

Less than 12 hours have passed since the Los Angeles Lakers ended the Houston Rockets' season with a 97-78 whitewashing in Game 5 of the first round of the 2004 NBA Playoffs. People began offering their "fix-it plans" for the Rockets since the game ended. Well, it's my turn to offer my 2 cents.

First things first, the Rockets are broken; so, yes, they need to be fixed. Sure, the team made the playoffs for the first time in 5 seasons; however, losing in the first round should not be worn as a badge of honor. After the Lakers won game 4 Sunday afternoon, fans and members of the media as well said "this series very well could be 3-1 in the Rockets' favor". Big deal. If Shaq would hit his free throws, games 1 and 4 would not have been close. The fact is the Rockets trailed. Period. The Lakers are a better team than the Rockets. Period.

Fans (re: the Steve Francis' haters) want the Rockets to trade Steve this offseason. Why? The main objective of a trade is to acquire equal (if not better) talent in return. Which available players in the NBA could the Rockets obtain to meet that basic mantra? Allen Iverson? While AI is a more explosive scorer than Steve, AI is also older than Steve. Plus, Iverson's body has begun to break down on him the last 2 seasons.

I am not saying the Rockets should not entertain offers for Francis; but, if none of the offers will improve the Rockets, Rockets' management should simply say "thanks, but not thanks" and hang up the phone.

I personally believe the current roster is not suited for head coach Jeff Van Gundy's system. Bringing in veterans Mark Jackson and Charles Oakley (they're combined ages must be 150) during the season plus trading for Clarence Weatherspoon give a clear indication of the type of players JVG likes: smart, tough players who don't make mistakes.

The Rockets need to upgrade their forward spots. Jim Jackson had a much better season than I thought he would especially considering he started the entire season at small forward. However, JJ is nothing more than a spot up shooter now; and, the Rockets need someone who can shoot coming off screens and slash to the basket.

Kelvin Cato should back up Yao Ming. Cato has his strengths and his weaknesses; but, he seems to be more effective as a backup center than a starting power forward.

Cuttino Mobley did a good job defending LA's Kobe Bryant in the playoffs; however, Cuttino's game fluctuated far too much in the series. He either shot three pointers or drove to the basket. Nothing in between. Cat disappeared far too much in the series.

Yao Ming needs to get better. The big fella needs to add more low post moves to his offense as well as maintain his spot in the low post (on offense and defense). He needs to demand the ball; and, once he gets the ball, make something positive happen for the club.

The Rockets' bench has to improve. Eric Piatkowski had a horrible season. His poor play surprised me a lot. Mo Taylor is a good player coming off the bench; but, if Mo and Cato both come off the bench, who is the Rockets' starting forward next to Yao Ming next season? Plus, if Jim Jackson moves to the bench, Houston has to obtain a starting small forward, too.

Bostjan Nachbar should have seen more minutes this season. No question his defense is not as great as Van Gundy would like; but, "Boki" does enough things well (slash to the basket; pick up a few fouls; hit the occasional 3) to warrant more minutes than he received in the regular season.

The current roster lacks the mental toughness to overcome miscues on the road. Poor shooting led to poor defense. Poor shot selection led to transition baskets. Also, the team has to learn to stop arguing with the referees because unless those verbal wars make you play better don't waste your time and energy.

This team is not good enough to stand pat in the offseason and simply hope maturation will make the squad a championship contender next season. The other teams in the Western Conference aren't going to sit on their hands this summer accepting the status quo and the Rockets should not either. Always remember a basic belief in the NBA: "if you stand pat, you fall behind."