The Rockets Look for Success Without Yao and Artest
The Houston Rockets possibly over achieved last season stretching a 7 game series with the champs Los Angeles Lakers. They fought hard, but just couldn’t pull it out.
Many wondered whether the Rockets could quietly emerge as a sleeper in the West, possibly one of the only teams with the ability to upset the Lakers in a series.
This nearly happened, as the Houston Rockets took the Los Angeles Lakers to a full seven games during the Western Conference semifinals last season. While the Lakers won this game 7 by a whole’ points, the Rockets had LA’s number during a few of these games, leaving many wondering just how dangerous this efficient basketball team was.
Under the effective leadership of head coach Rick Adelman, the Rockets team from last year will return for another season of basketball; only one thing has changed. Ron Artest, an integral part of this team, will no longer be a Houston Rocket. In fact, he’s now with the very team that put an end to Houston’s season last year.
The loss of Yao Ming for the entire season is devastating. While the Rockets have tough, physical players and will give their best efforts night in and night out – the Rockets can’t compete in the West seriously without Yao Ming.
Yao Ming, Tracy McGrady, Shane Battier, Aaron Brooks, and the rest of the team have a lot of work cut out for them. These guys do like a challenge.
Tracey McGrady can’t stay healthy either. McGrady is only 30 years old but this is his 12th NBA season and his body has a lot of miles on it already. McGrady never played all 82 games in a season – the most was 78 games in the 04′-05′ season. McGrady’s scoring average has decreased every season 02′-03′ also.
With that in mind, they do still have a deep team and have done well without him. If T-Mac can stay healthy and Yao does return this year, that’s a dangerous combo.
For more on the Rockets check out the Rockets forums at RootZoo Sports. Be sure to get the latest fantasy basketball news there as well.
Tags: sport, sports, game, hobbies, health, Basketball, the C, head, player, reviews, gambling, Success, Other, NBA, television, Basketball, entertainment, team, games, fitnessCan Danny Granger Lead the Indiana Pacers to the Playoffs?
The Indiana Pacers season did not live up their standards in 08′-09′ winning only 36 games. This is not how most remember the Pacers, but the Miller days are over.
The Indiana Pacers’ Danny Granger had a breakout season, and put himself on the map as one of the best players in the NBA. Few people realize this, as the Indiana Pacers are a below average team that gets little coverage.
Granger’s scoring averages have increased every year since he has been in the league since 04′. 08′-09′ Granger was fifth in scoring at 25.1 points per game – look for another year similar this season as well.
The Pacers have a young team with a good upside. The defense was their death blow last season giving up more points then they could score. More emphasis needs to be put on defense; we know the team can score.
His three point shooting was exceptional, as Granger averaged 2.7 three pointers made per game, and shot at a percentage that exceeded 40 percent. The Indiana Pacers were thrilled with this production and made it clear throughout the course of the season.
The Pacers will have to improve on their 36 win season if they expect to make the playoffs. The Pacers did draft A.J. Price and Tyler Hansbrough – what playing time they will see should probably be limited in the beginning of the season but increase as the season moves forward. Unless you are an outstanding rookie, rookies see little action their first season.
The last time the Pacers finished with a record above .500 was in the 04′-05′ season – Pacers fans would hope to avoid another sub .500 season for the fifth straight year.
The Pacers should win more then 36 games this upcoming season. The Pacers have a chance at the 8th or 7th seed even if everyone plays up to their potential and the defense improves. Granger should have an all-star season and be among the leaders in scoring once again.
For more on the Pacers, check out the Indiana Pacers forum at RootZoo Sports. Be sure to play their free basketball trivia with over 60,000 questions.
Tags: hobbies, television, war, sport, teens, gambling, Other, Dan, free, entertainment, recreation, team, game, Indiana, the C, sports, Basketball, Basketball, player, fitnessCan Larry Brown Lead the Charlotte Bobcats to the Playoffs?
The Charlotte Bobcats went 35-47 in the 08′-09′ season – the Bobcats best season since their inception since 2004. The Bobcats really have improved every season they been in the NBA – if this trend continues hopefully the Bobcats will make the playoffs for the first time in 2010.
While this is by no means a record to celebrate about, they just missed the playoffs by four games. The Charlotte Bobcats also played some of their best basketball toward the end of the season, and this left many NBA fans wondering whether the team might be able to continue moving into the direction of a competitive basketball team.
While there’s a decent amount of talent on the team, much of the credit has to go to Larry Brown, who joined the team as its head coach last season. Brown has a storied resume that includes stints in Detroit (where he won a championship), Indiana, Philadelphia (where he made the NBA finals), and other teams around the league.
A young basketball team typically does not know how to win close games and don’t do well on the road – this should change to a degree this season.
The Bobcats are in the Southeast division with the Orlando Magic, Miami Heat and Atlanta Hawks – this suggests the Bobcats can’t win the division but they don’t have to in order to make the playoffs.
One of the questions the Bobcats will have to answer is who is their go-to man. When the game is on the line who will the Bobcats give the ball to in order to make something happen.
The Bobcats did acquire Tyson Chandler – who can be an effective rebounder. Over the course of Chandler’s career he has averaged 9 rebounds per game. Chandler wasn’t happy initially about being a Bobcat at first but he should be a major contributor this season. If the Bobcats want to be a playoff threat, point guard D.J. Augustin must raise his game to a whole new level.
The Bobcats have improved every season since they have been in the league, 2004. Their lowest win total was 15 games but those days should be well past the franchise. It is very possible the Bobcats can make the 8th seed in the East and give Cleveland, Orlando, or Boston fits in the first round match up. Charlotte is a good sports town and they want a winning basketball team to cheer for.
Lets hear your thoughts on the Bobcats forums at RootZoo Sports, the most active NBA forum online.
Tags: Basketball, NBA, Boston, reviews, television, teens, Major, games, Indiana, casinos, Other, game, sports, Basketball, head, hobbies, sport, Orlando, team, miami heatJack Nicklaus
Jack William Nicklaus, well known as “The Golden Bear,” was born on January 21, 1940 and may well be, as his fans will tell you, among the greatest pro golfers ever. Growing up in Columbus, Ohio, a pharmacist’s son, he was a student in Upper Arlington High School and beat a mild case of polio as a youth. Turning to golf at ten years old and shooting an amazing 51 for nine holes, he broke 70 at age 13 on eighteen holes.
As a junior player he won the Ohio Open in 1956 at sixteen years of age, the US Amateur twice (1959 and 1961), and an NCAA Championship in 1961. When Nicklaus played in the 1960 US Open he had a 282 and finished second behind golf great Arnold Palmer. He was also a part of and won the US Eisenhower Trophy with his team in 1960 with a four-round score of 269-this record still stands today.
By the close of 1961, Jack turned pro and in 1962, he played and won in one of his first major championship-The US Open. Beating Arnold Palmer, an achievement in itself, gave Nicklaus notice by fans and in 1966, he won the Masters Tournament for two consecutive years. He won the Open Championship as well in 1966, however, failed to win another until the Open Championship title again in 1970. During the years 1971-1980, he won nine major titles and overtook Bobby Jones’s record of thirteen titles. At 46 years of age, Jack won his 18th major championship, which was also his last, at the 1986 Masters Tournament-he was the oldest winner of this event.
He joined the Senior PGA Tour in 1990, where he racked up 10 wins by 1996 – eight of which were major tournament wins. His made his last Senior PGA tournament appearances in 2005. However, he has stayed active in the sport, writing on the subject, designing courses and even holding his own PGA tournament, the Memorial tournament. Hi runs one of the world’s leading golf course design firms and has written autobiographical titles as well as instructional works on playing the Nicklaus way.
Perhaps Nicklaus’ popularity came with golf’s popularity when he beat Arnold Palmer in 1962 at Oakmont in the US Open. With the emergence of television, Jack’s charisma, good looks, and true rivalry with Palmer attracted many viewers to golf-something they hadn’t seen before on TV. He won an unheard of prize money of $60,000 in 1962 and reached third place on the tour’s money list, and named Rookie of the Year. In 1963, one of his best years, he won the Masters and the PGA Championship.
In 1964, he won the British Open at St. Andrews and established a new record for lowest score in the last thirty-six holes-66-68. His Masters win in 1965 set a tourney record of 271-which stood until Tiger Woods shot 270 in 1997. In the 1968, The Golden Bear let his physical condition slip, which most felt affected his playing skills, but Jack improved in the fall of 1969 where he returned to top form. Sadly, he lost one of his biggest supporters and mentors, his father, Charlie Nicklaus in 1970.
Interviewed in 1970 after the death of his father, Nicklaus said: “I was playing good golf, but it really wasn’t that big a deal to me one way or the other. And then my father passed away and I sort of realized he had certainly lived his life through my golf game. I really hadn’t probably given him the best of that. So I sort of got myself back to work. So 1970 was an emotional one for me from that standpoint-it was a big boost.” Whatever the reason Nicklaus was certainly a record setter – he was the first player to win all four major tournaments twice in the course of his career.
In 1974, the PGA Player of the Year was given to Nicklaus for the third time and he was among the first to be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame. In 1975, he won his fifth Masters and his fourth PGA Championship. ABC named him Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year. Again, at the top of the money list in 1976, he played what he liked to call, “hang-back-and-hope golf.” In 1986, he won his sixth Masters-again and unbelievably was still going strong. His 1978 British Open win gave him a place in golf history where he won each major championship three times-a record finally tied by Tiger Woods in 2008. His Senior Tour wins include The Tradition (four times), the Senior Players Championship, and the US Senior Open. Along with his 100th career win (The Tradition) in 1996, he and his four sons and son-in-law had 299 courses open in 2005, an impressive 1% of all the courses in the world. Jack Nicklaus is The Golden Bear for record breaking, his playing style, and his off-the-course achievements and will remain one of golf’s greatest players of all time.