(Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
The Houston Rockets' preseason slate was a seven-game reminder of why the preseason exists.
The team marched into San Antonio for the exhibition season opener two weeks ago and racked up 17 first-half fast break points en route to a 99-85 victory.
The next night in McCallen, the Rockets treated the ball like a department store promotional giveaway.
That comeback win over the Boston Celtics was as ugly and foul-filled as they come.
Anyone not paid to watch that contest should not admit to suffering through it.
No, GM Daryl Morey did not slip me some money under the table.
The squad flew to Indiana where the Pacers handed the Rockets a thorough butt kicking. The defense was as putrid as the shot selection.
Mixed in that preseason mixed bag—a denied comeback against the Bucks, a failure to close against the Mavericks, and a 124-112 triumph, an offensive clinic, in Toronto.
On one Rockets' possession in the home loss to the Bucks, free agent signee Trevor Ariza darted into the packed lane and threw a blind pass well over the outstretched arms of Shane Battier and into the front row.
Ariza could not have known to whom or where he was passing the ball. He flung it as if to abdicate responsibility for the fate of the stale, stagnant halfcourt offense.
He convinced himself the ball was a bomb and chucked it toward the perimeter in hopes someone else would be willing to disarm it.
Next, Bucks point man Luke Ridnour ran the ball up the court and fed Andrew Bogut for an easy lay-in against center David Andersen. Houston’s Aussie import offered no resistance on the play.
These moments of offensive misdirection and missed defensive assignments by newbies inspire an understandable reaction.
THIS team…in the playoffs? You must be joking.
The Rockets face compelling questions, such as, how will a roster with no All-Star performers outduel the Phoenix Suns or anyone else for one of the final slots in the West?
One man will provide the comfort and reassurance fans seek after a gruesome offseason of loss and lowered expectations.
A glance over to the bench explains why so many writers, including this one, think the Rockets can compete for a postseason berth with Yao Ming out until 2010 training camp and Tracy McGrady out for at least a few months.
The same Rick Adelman who has turned messes into works of art is staring at one of the biggest scrap heaps of his career.
Defensive stalwart Chuck Hayes will start at center, but he’s 6’6” with no appreciable offensive skills. Reserve center Andersen possesses a nice perimeter touch, but he cannot defend a lampshade.
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