The Houston Rockets: Where Amazing Happens

The NBA has campaigned all year asking the question,  “Where will amazing happen this year?”

The Houston Rockets have taken the Lakers to the edge of the cliff in their playoff series, and whether or not they push them off, the Rockets have had themselves an amazing year. A year once again filled with injuries, emotional situations, and doubt from all ends of the media.

The Houston Rocket’s road to the playoffs was not easy this year, and losing home court advantage in the last game of the season only made their playoff look bleaker than they already were.

In the first round though, the Rockets were able to handle the Trailblazers with a combination of grit and toughness.  Portland was simply too young and inexperienced. They put up a valiant effort, but ultimately fell to Houston.

I think most people were under the impression that the Rockets had a successful season by just winning their first round playoff match up. The Rockets on the other hand began to say, “hey, we’re here, let’s win as many games as we can.”

Moving into the second round, the Rockets knew in the back of their minds that they had to face the big bad Lakers: a team that has been getting an immense amount of credit since the season began.

Los Angeles has a starting lineup filled with talent, and a closer who virtually can’t be stopped in Kobe Bryant. If one thing was obvious, it was that the Lakers were the better team, and the Rockets didn’t really have a chance. People thought they could maybe win one game, at the most take it to six games. What does this team do instead? They come storming into L.A. and send a strong message to the Lakers by winning game one.

In the first game of this series Aaron “afterburner” Brooks really caused havoc for the Lakers, showcasing how important speed can be in this league, and Kobe Bryant even compared Brooks style of play to that of Tony Parker. Yao Ming was also focused during this game, scoring 28 points to help the Rockets steal a game in LA. The next day however, reporters were still sold on the Lakers easily winning this series.

In game two the Lakers regrouped, and took care of business. Kobe put up a quiet 40 points, while Yao put in a really quiet 12 points. Kyle Lowry and Carl Landry combined for 46 points, but outside of their positive production the rest of the Rockets were relatively quiet.

In game three the series switched to Houston, and in front a rowdy Toyota Center crowd, the Rockets let the Lakers put up a quick 30 points in the first quarter. The true game changer occurred in the third period however, when the Lakers outscored the Rockets 24-14, killing most of the momentum the Rockets had.

The real glaring issue was watching Yao Ming limp around on the court like a wounded soldier. Initial reports claimed it was just a sprain and that he would be ok, but after some work had been done on his foot they realized it was a lot worse than previously thought.

It was later announced that Yao had a left ankle sprain and a hairline fracture in his left foot. This was a big blow to a franchise that had already lost a dynamic scorer in Tracy McGrady, as well as the only other seven-footer they possessed in Dikembe Mutumbo.

Game four was a big question mark to me. How would this team handle Yao being out?

They have handled it before, but never in the second round of the playoffs. I never had any doubts about the effort that this team would put forth, but effort without talent sometimes doesn’t cut it.

Shane Battier give a great speech in the hallway of the locker room before game four as Yao looked on in his tailored suit

“ All year long the only thing that matters is the guys in this huddle,” Battier said to his Rocket teammates. “Every game we have played freely, fiercely, and we have fought. We have to go out and do the same thing today. It’s going to take all 11 guys, 48 minutes, and four quarters today. Lets’ do this! Let’s go take what’s ours!”

That’s exactly what the Rockets did.  Without looking back they outscored the Lakers 29-16 in the first quarter, and pulled off a stunning victory in Clutch City in front of a delirious crowd.

Aaron Brooks became a hero in this game, and the Red Blazer-Jacket phenomenon began (props to Kenny Smith for rocking the Red Blazer and the rest of the TNT staff).

Hope and optimism was sky high in Houston, but no one forgot where that plane was headed to the next game. Los Angeles was the next stop in this series, and boy were the Rockets about to get a rude awakening.

Games have been consistently won in the first quarter in this series, and yet again the Lakers won this game in the first quarter by outscoring the Rockets 35-24. No one decided to show up on the Rockets end, while the Lakers had good, balanced scoring from every guy on the team.

Jack Nicholson was finally able to get up and clap with a sigh of relief as a well-executed game from the Lakers led to a 40 point victory, tying the record for the Rocket’s worse loss in playoff history.

When you have $37 million of the Rockets' $70 million payroll sitting on the bench in suits and you lose the last game by 40 points, it is tough to believe that a team has the mental or physical fortitude to win in game six. It was possible to imagine the Rockets keeping it close all the way to the end, but to think that Houston would win this game dominantly seemed like a stretch of the imagination.

Once again the first quarter proved to be a daunting task for the Lakers in Houston however, and the Rockets outscored them 17-1. I was shocked that Luis Scola was pounding the paint the way that he was in this game. He had Pau Gasol standing in disbelief, frantically trying to learn how to play defense on-the -fly in game six of a playoff series. Luis Scola dominated in the first half, and Carl Landry dominated in the second half for Houston. An impressive showing from the Rockets in this game forced the Lakers to play a game seven back in LA.

"Here we are. The team that was supposed to be too small, too slow, too whatever," said Shane Battier after Houston’s game six victory. "Now we're going back for a game seven, and it's a tournament situation: one game. We have nothing to lose. No one thought we'd be here. We're just going to take our shots, play loose, and play with energy and we'll take our chances from there."

I know how difficult this game seven is going to be for the Rockets, but this team has nothing to lose at this point. They have to put everything they have into this one game if they want to pull of an upset.

Win or lose, this has been an amazing playoff run for the Rockets. The roster that Daryl Morey put together has suffered injuries, but they have remained resilient. Shane Battier is the one guy Kobe Bryant did not want to see in the playoffs. Combine him with Ron Artest, and the gritty paint play of Chuck Hayes, Luis Scola, and Carl Landry, and Houston has a lineup that puts forward a solid effort every single night, no matter whose out with an injury

Win or lose on Sunday, the Houston Rockets are “Where Amazing Happens.” I’m proud of this team, and happy to represent them as a fan of the NBA.