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Re: How 'bout those Rockets!!!

Peter McCollum wrote:
> 	*ahem* no early comments but the Sonics were on only one days 
> rest and didn't slip up until late in the 3rd quarter.
What game did you watch, Peter?  Surely not the same one I saw.  The 
Rockets led by 10 after one and 9 at the half.  Houston never trailed 
after the early moments of the first quarter.  The game was over for 
all intents and purposes by the middle of the third.  And who's fault 
is it that the Sonics were tired?  Not the Rockets who swept their 
first round series.  And if you listen to George Karl and company, 
the five game battle with the Suns only helped the Sonics.

> Remember what 
> happened to Phoenix after they beat the Sonics in the 1st game and 
> thought it was going to be easy? If not I'll remind you 122-78, that was 
> the final score.
I seriously doubt that the Suns ever thought it would be a cakewalk 
over the Sonics, but if they did, that was their mistake.  The 
Rockets are unlikely to take the Sonics lightly.  Nobody said Seattle 
wouldn't be a dangerous team.  And the Rockets know better than most 
that a series isn't over until win number four (after all, they twice 
overcame 2-0 deficits at the hands of the Suns in the Western 
semifinals).

> Just look to the records, the Sonics won 14 strait from the 
> Rockets at one point, they've beaten the Rockets in 5 out of 5 playoff 
> series together,
True enough.  However, the Rockets won the season series three games 
to one (and that solitary loss was without the services of Clyde the 
Glide).  The Rockets have also yet to lose a postseason game in 1997, 
while Seattle is a less than stellar 3-3.  And if the Sonics think 
they can coast by the Rockets based on their laurels of past success, 
then they better get the golf clubs ready for the imminent offseason and the 
moneybags ready for Sean Kemp for next year.

> they have the homecourt advantage, they only need to win 
> 1 in Houston to make it hell on the Rockets, who then have to play the 
> next 4 in Seattle, the loudest arena in the NBA.
Dead wrong.  The Rockets have the home court advantage.  The Sonics 
were the two seed in the first round because they won the Pacific 
division but have lost the home court due to Houston's victory in the 
season series.  And the series is a 2-2-1-1-1 so there won't be four 
in a row in Seattle.  In fact, unless George Karl quickly discovers a 
way to clamp down on Elie, Maloney, and the other three point 
bombers, there will be a paltry two games at Key Arena.

> Just look at what 
> happened last year, Gary Payton WORKED Houston last year, with the sonics 
> up by 6 late in game 3 he took Hakeem to school and put in a pretty 
> finger roll to ice the game and picked up the foul. Then he grabbed a 
> loose ball on the floor away from Hakeem in game 4 to put the series away 
> after a clean sweep.
Congratulations.  Gary Payton is the man.  The Sonics swept the 
Rockets last year.  New year, new ballgame.  No Seattle sweep this 
year.  And the Rockets have new blood in Maloney and old but proven 
blood in Barkley, Willis, Johnson, and Threatt.

>Even tonight with the Rockets playing well Hakeem 
> was almost not a factor,
That's the beauty of the win.  Hakeem scored the fewest points of any 
Rocket starter (Elie - 20, Barkley - 19, Drexler - 22, Maloney - 17). 
Watch out if the Dream goes ballistic.

> Elie may be a problem for now but Nate McMillan 
> will be back when the series comes back to Seattle for sure if not by 
> game 2.
I'm glad you're the team doctor now.  We'll see.  Still, McMillan 
can't cover Barkley, Olajuwan, Maloney, Elie, and Drexler all at 
once.  He'll help Seattle, but it will be too late and not enough to 
stop the Rockets machine.

>Nate McMillian, and NOT Elie is the best underrated defender in 
> the game, 2 years ago he led the league in steals with only 28 MPG, 
> that's a PRETTY number,
Still living in past glory.  Let me know when he gets out of the 
hospital ward.

> he shoots 48% from 3
Elie's shooting 76% from downtown in the playoffs.

>and has better leadership 
> skills than Barkley, Clyde and Hakeem put together, when talks, people 
> listen.
This is a bold and ridiculous statement.  Nate is a valuable leader, 
but so are Barkley, Drexler, Olajuwan, Elie, Johnson, Willis, and all 
the others.  Plus Rudy T, is the man.  You've got to wonder about 
George Karl given his history of early and unexpected exits from the 
playoffs.

> 	Early predictions: Sonics in 6,
If they can win four out of the next five (including two at the 
Summit), I'll give them their props, but let's get away from this 
fantasy land.  Rockets in six at max.

>Payton trash talks his way over, under and around Clyde
He can talk trash with the best of them (so can Chuck), but he'll be 
resigned to doing that in garbage time because the Rockets will 
continue to dominate like they did tonight.

> and puts another move on Hakeem that makes him 
> wonder why 6' Payton can work all 7+' of him like minimum wage labor. 
That's pretty arrogant.  You're brilliant prediction of Payton 
schooling the Dream is that he once made a lay-up over number 34.  
I'll take our chances with Hakeem over the Glove inside nine times 
out of ten.  Speaking of minimum wage labor, that's what Seattle 
should be paying McIlvaine, not $35 million.

> Kemp finds his stroke from the inside and ups the point production and 
> avoids foul trouble JUST like he did against Phoenix. He wont grab the 22 
> rebounds, but 14 a game is nice
Maybe he had his way with Phoenix and their four guard, no inside 
game scheme, but no way against the big, solid bodies of Dream, 
Chuck, and Willis.

> and Schrempf is starting to look better 
> from the outside as well now that he's away from Rex Chapman.
Yeah, Shrempf was great on Elie (7 of 8 from the field) tonight.  I 
think the NBA All-Defensive first team becons.

>And the Big Smooth, Sam Perkins, shows that he's still the best big man on the 
> outside.
Boy those eight points he contributed tonight really killed the 
Rockets.  Heck, Barkley had one more three and a better percentage 
from downtown than Sleepy Sam did tonight.

> Oh yeah, George Karl still wont look like he's broken a sweat, 
> Rudy T will spaz out and get a T.
Your crystal ball is amazing.  George Karl probably won't break a 
sweat because he'll have no reason to be intense about all the 
blowouts the Rockets will administer.  Rudy T. is the man.  That's 
why he'll coach the next Dream Team.  And Karl will be back in the 
CBA before long, coaching Houston's farm club.

Bring on the Jazz!

-Chris Lotz
Trinity debate
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