Rockets Forecast: January 18
This last week proved to be much more difficult than previously anticipated. The Rockets have now dropped six of their last ten games and been bumped to third in the Southwest Division and the New Orleans Hornets are threatening to bump them further down the pecking order. With trading rumors buzzing around, there is no short of distractions for this Houston Rockets team. Nevertheless, they are professionals and as the old adage goes, “the show must go on”. The McGrady situation will work itself out in time, but the Rockets desperately need to refocus themselves on the task at hand—winning now. With Atlanta, Denver, Portland, and Phoenix all coming to town next week, the Rockets need to find a sense of urgency this week or they could risk going on an ugly streak of losses.
Monday, January 18, 2010, 2:00 PM vs. Milwaukee Bucks (16-22) FSH
The Bucks have won their past eight games at home but continue to struggle on the road. With Michael Redd done for the season and quite potentially his career, and the departure of Richard Jefferson (their leading scorer a year ago), the Bucks have struggled to find consistent scoring. Jennings looked brilliant early on and appeared to be in the driver’s seat to be the running-away favorite for Rookie of the Year, but in the wake of his double-nickel 55-point performance earlier in the season, he has hit the proverbial rookie wall the past few weeks. On the other hand, Andrew Bogut has really stepped it up as of late. So far in their eight January contests, Bogut has been extremely impressive. With the exception of a down game against the Lakers, Bogut has averaged 16.6 points, 12 rebounds, 2.43 blocks, and an impressive 71% from the charity stripe. The key to winning Monday’s matinee starts and ends with slowing down the Big Aussie.
Friday, January 22, 2010, 7:30 PM @ San Antonio Spurs (24-15) FSH, FSSW
After a nice three-day break, the Rockets will travel to San Antonio to take on the Spurs for the second time this season on Friday. This lone-star showdown ended with a notch in the win column for the Spurs last go around the Rockets will look even the season series on Friday. Despite being a mediocre road team this season, the Spurs have excelled at the AT&T Center this season with a mark of 17-6. The Spurs have really started to pick-up the pace as of late and the Rockets, will have their hands full with Tim Duncan. Duncan has been the one constant all season for the Spurs all season long. Parker, Ginobili, and newly-acquired Richard Jefferson have all had their fair share of ups and downs so far this season but through all the ebbs and flows, the Big Fundamental has not wavered. The long short of it—when Duncan’s productivity is limited, this Spurs team struggles mightily to win.
Saturday, January 23, 2010, 7:30 PM vs. Chicago Bulls (18-20) FSH
The Rockets come home Saturday to wrap up the week with a home game against the Chicago Bulls. The Bulls have won seven of their last ten heading into this week but have a putrid road record at 4-13. So while, it’s crystal clear that the Bulls are a different club on the road than at home, the Rockets mustn’t take anything for granted. The Bulls still have a wealth of talent, and a terrific young point guard that can come out on any given night and win a game single-handedly. Furthermore, you never know what kind of energy level you are going to be able or unable to muster up coming off a difficult back-to-back against a quality Spurs club. Nevertheless, it’s safe to say, if the boys come to play, this one should be in the bag.
Prediction: (2-1)
I think the Rockets will take care of business will win two of three games this week with the bad-egg being the San Antonio Spurs. They are playing great ball lately and are really starting to gel and gain chemistry with the new pieces they acquired this past off-season. Duncan is a great talent and will prove to be just too much for this undersized frontline to handle. Enjoy the light week ladies and gentleman because next week is going to be a doozy.
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