Blogs

You knew we couldn’t let the Rockets’ season come to a close without hearing from Daryl Morey one more time. So what is the Rockets GM up to now that the team has been eliminated? Is Tracy McGrady really the best passing wing in the NBA? And does Morey still think Boston is the team to beat this year? Read on to find out.

JCF: So now what? Do you get a break? Or do you just dive straight into draft and free-agent prep?

DM: It’s both. Free agency arrives a couple days after the draft so you gotta be ready for both. So with the coaching staff it’s more about free agents or trade targets. Then with the personnel side it’s more draft. Then we’re also working on off-season player development plans for the players; strength and conditioning plans as well. So we’re packing in a lot of off-season planning this week, then that will free up more time to study free agents, trade targets and draft eligible players for the next seven weeks.

JCF: So you don’t mind running down your list of trade targets, do you?

Nothing ruins a sporting event more than some hack who won’t give the score, or keeps screaming, or gets facts wrong. Here are Houston’s five worst offenders.

5. Clyde Drexler was one of the greatest basketball players the city of Houston has ever produced. As a broadcaster, well, let’s just say that as a broadcaster he was a better coach. Sure, he’s an improvement over Calvin Murphy, but that’s just because he doesn’t waste time talking about cookies.

4. Mark Vandermeer has a great voice. Unfortunately, when he’s broadcasting a game, you get the feeling that he’s more concerned with trying to fit in one of his catchphrases than he is with actually describing the play. You also get the feeling he’d be happier hearing his voice on a SportsCenter highlight than with the Texans winning a game.

To be a sports fan is to embrace the inevitability of pain.

Sure, every once in a long while there those who find themselves lucky enough to cheer for teams like the Bill Russell-era Celtics or 10-Cups-in-15-years Montreal Canadiens. But for most sports fans, embracing your favorite franchise often means bracing for the worst, year after year after tortured year.

Far more often than not, your team is going to end its season with a loss. That’s just the way it is. Of course, all losses are not created equal. That’s why ESPN.com’s Bill Simmons created his ingenious “Levels of Losing.” But no matter how you slice it, the agony of defeat is never pleasant. It’s sort of like that horrific Def Leppard and Tim McGraw collaboration ABC is using for its NBA playoffs coverage. You can listen to it loud. You can listen to it soft. You can even change the channel the second that blasphemous first note bombards your sense of hearing and good taste. But no matter what you do, exposure to such toxic audio assault is going to leave you nauseous and begging for mercy. Losing is like that, too.

You may not know this from reading my writings, but I like sports. I watch lots of sports. I listen to lots of sports. And I have lots of opinions based on what I listen to, and what I watch. If the play-by-play guy and/or the color analyst is really good, I can sit through a bad game and actually enjoy myself. But if the analyst or play-by-play guy stink, a really good game can be ruined.

Now Houston has been home to major league professional sports franchises since 1960. So while the city might not have the sports broadcasting history as places like New York or Chicago, it does have some. For instance, one of the current voices of those great NFL Films highlight packages, Harry Kalas, started by doing play-by-play for the Houston Astros. Jim Nantz of CBS Sports got his start in Houston.

I thought I would take a few minutes to give you what I consider to be the five best sports broadcasters in the history of Houston sports.

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before.

Last night, the Rockets grabbed an early lead and never looked back, thanks in large part to a balanced offensive effort, crisp ball movement, inspired play by a cast of no-names off the bench, and superior defense. Sprinkle in a sublimely efficient effort from Tracy McGrady (29 points on 13-26 shooting to go along with 5 boards and 5 assists) and it’s no surprise Houston cruised to a ho-hum 26 point victory over its latest victim.

Sound familiar? Of course it does. This was the act that played to rave reviews inside Toyota Center and other select venues across the country throughout all of February and most of March. Yes, for one more glorious night, Houston’s favorite off-Broadway performers returned as the Rockets recaptured the mojo of 22 in a row. And just like old times, it brought the house down.

So the morning after the Rockets’ 95-69 Game Five victory over Utah, Houstonians everywhere want to know: Will there be an encore, or was this simply a one time only reprise?

Since it is playoff time for the Rockets and Aeros, and since the Astros and Texans probably won’t be seeing the playoffs for a long time to come, I figured it was an appropriate time to visit the Five Biggest Choke Jobs in Houston Sports History.

So, in descending order, away we go.

5. January 1, 1979, Notre Dame vs. UH: The weather in Dallas is beyond awful. The temperature is below zero. It’s sleeting. But the Cotton Bowl must go on because CBS is paying lots of big bucks and the teams have been promised lots of money. The Houston Cougars are leading the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame 34-12 with only 7:37 remaining in the game. The Notre Dame starting QB has been sitting in the locker room, suffering from the flu. The QB is fed some chicken noodle soup. Notre Dame blocks a Cougar punt for a TD. The QB emerges from the locker room to pass for the two-point conversion to make the score 34-20. Notre Dame moves the ball 61 yards on their next possession, with the QB gaining the final three yards for the TD, then throws for the two points. And with 4:15 on the clock the score is suddenly 34-28. The Irish manage to get the ball back and, with :00 on the clock, the QB connects for an eight-yard TD to tie the game. The Irish make the PAT, and just like that, the Irish have won 35-34.

Oh, and the name of that Notre Dame QB: Joe Montana, and it was on this day that the legend of Joe Montana was born.

Daniel Kramer

The first rule of show business: Always leave them wanting more.

Too bad this isn’t Hollywood. For if it were, Tracy McGrady would surely have the whole world at his size 16 feet today.

Instead, he’s left with nothing but another round of mixed reviews and heated debate over his latest postseason performance: an all-for-naught near triple double that couldn’t prevent the Rockets from losing Game 2 to Utah, 90-84.

Do you focus on his box-score stuffing 23 points, 13 rebounds, 9 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks? Or are you only interested in his single, solitary fourth quarter point? Maybe your answer doesn’t even matter. Perhaps most telling of all is that, for many fans and critics, the reaction to T-Mac’s virtuoso first three quarters was not “What a show!” but rather “Why can’t he do this more often?”

Such is the burden of Tracy McGrady.

I have a pre-game ritual of sorts for Rockets home games: About an hour or two before tip-off, I arrive at Toyota Center, pick up my press credential and parking pass, park my car, make my way into the arena and find my spot along press row before finally settling in to complete some last-minute prep work for the game. It’s not exciting, but it’s worked for me all season long.

Saturday night, prior to game one of the Rockets’ first round series with Utah, that ritual got turned on its ear.

October 29th, 2007 found me laboring in front of my computer, trying to put the wraps on my NBA season preview. There was just one problem: No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t make heads or tails of the Western Conference. No one team stood out from the rest. Oh sure, there were plenty of talented clubs, but each seemed to be flawed in a way that would seriously sabotage its shot at the title. Finally, after banging my head against the wall for an hour, I settled on Dallas. Why not? The Mavs, as psychically screwed up as they were, seemed just as good a choice as any. Besides, it was only October, anyway. Surely the regular season would bring everything into focus.

Wrong, wrong, wrong.

171 days later, I still don’t have a freaking clue. If anything, the picture is even more muddled than before. I’ve gone back and forth so many times this season that my family gave me an abacus for my birthday just to help me keep count. Seriously, go down to the beach this weekend and I promise you won’t see as much flip-flopping as I’ve done this year with my Western Conference champion predictions. I’m a mess.

The recipe for postseason success in the NBA is pretty straightforward: Start with a couple stars who can consistently deliver the goods in crunch time. Mix in some role players willing to defend and do the dirty work. Finally, add good health, good fortune, and a healthy dash of experience and you’ve got yourself a team capable of bringing home a title.

Read over that recipe one more time, Rockets fans. Let me guess. It’s not exactly lifting your spirits, is it?

Well, let’s start with the good news then. The Rockets definitely have role players. Do they ever. In fact, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better, harder-working group anywhere in the NBA. They’re a huge reason why the Rockets rolled to 55 regular season wins, and they proved their worth yet again Wednesday night during Houston’s 93-75 dismantling of the Clippers.

What a season. Despite missing Yao Ming for 27 games (and T-Mac for 16), the Houston Rockets somehow managed to compile 55 victories, a 22-game winning streak, and home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs. Place those accomplishments within the framework of the brutally competitive Western Conference, and they’re perhaps doubly impressive. But for now, they belong in the rearview mirror because the Rockets arch-nemeses from Utah are rapidly approaching.

With that in mind, it seemed like the perfect time to track down Rockets GM Daryl Morey to get his thoughts on the team’s upcoming showdown with the Jazz. There was just one minor problem: Morey was doing playoff prep work in his office until 3:30 AM Wednesday night / Thursday morning. So if the parties involved seem a little ragged and weary during the course of the conversation, we simply ask that you keep the ridiculously late hour in mind. Thanks.

JCF: Was there a small part of you that was secretly hoping for another shot at Utah in the playoffs?

DM: No, we just wanted home court. So there’s no Jazz revenge factor, at least for me.

JCF: When you look at this match-up, there are two big things that stand out: Utah’s size and the Deron Williams factor. How on earth do you deal with him, especially with Rafer out for at least the first two games?

Just a stunning, incredible win for the Rockets.

Talking to various media members before Houston’s Friday night tilt with Phoenix, absolutely NO ONE gave the Rockets a chance to win. For my part, I even made a friendly wager with a Rockets superfan that Houston would lose by more than 15.

By now you know the result: Rockets 101 – Phoenix 90.

Since I obviously know nothing about the game of basketball, I’ll hand the rest of this mini-column over to a couple guys who do: Two-time MVP Steve Nash, and his teammate Raja Bell.

There is an air of inevitability surrounding the Houston Rockets these days. Like a racehorse attempting to soldier through the stretch run with a broken leg, this club is both admired and dismissed. Oh sure, everyone appreciates the heart and courage on display. But, though they dare not say it out loud, nearly every observer is thinking the same thing: Someday soon, probably at the end of April, this horse will be put down.

Of course, none of this registers in the Rockets’ locker room. They simply stubbornly go about their business of winning games; Wednesday night’s 103-80 stroll in the park over Seattle being the latest. No Yao Ming? No problem. They’ll just turn 12 straight wins into 22. Take away T-Mac? Their bench guys will break off a 23 point victory. The Rockets simply refuse to even acknowledge the possibility that their injuries have left them broken and overmatched.

But outside the Houston locker room, the whispers have already begun. Looking for first round fodder out West? The Rockets are your team. Who cares how many wins they compile? Drawing the Rockets to begin the playoffs is like finding a first class ticket to the second round.

It seems fitting somehow that, on the night the NCAA played its men’s championship game in a packed domed stadium before millions of fans watching worldwide, the man who made it possible was, once again, denied admission into the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Oh, Dickie V. got in. And the one-dimensional Adrian Dantley got into the Hall. And the deserving Patrick Ewing, and the even more deserving Hakeem Olajuwon. But the man who helped to make Hakeem the Dream was turned down, yet again.

The Rockets 22-game winning streak is ancient history. With little more than two weeks left in the regular season, the club’s sole focus is now on playoff positioning in an attempt to finally put an end to a decade of postseason futility. So it seemed like the perfect time to check-in on GM Daryl Morey for his unique perspective on the Rockets’ stretch run.

JCF: Over the course of the last two weeks, you guys have played five playoff-caliber teams. The end result: Four losses, all by pretty sizeable margins. Considering that’s the quality of competition you’re going to be facing come playoff times, does this worry you at all or do you not lose much sleep over it?

DM: It’s concerning. You want to win every game. I think big picture, though, we feel like we’ve competed hard in most of those games and come up short. But we feel there are adjustments we can make to improve our play the next time.

JCF: What about the fact that you guys don’t have that second go-to scorer with Yao out? Everybody else in the Western playoff picture features—at the very least--two big scoring threats. Can you survive in the postseason at such a disadvantage?