84 points is not evidence that "the offense works"
On his Chron blog, Jonathan Feigen supplies some interesting quotes on the Rockets' 90-84 loss to the San Antonio Spurs:
The offense works: A loss, but plenty to build upon
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One game usually proves nothing, and the encouraging performance of the Rockets' offense in the 90-84 loss to the Spurs on Friday normally would not, either.
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The key is to string enough of these sorts of offensive games together to learn from them and then to be an effective and efficient offensive team in the spring.
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Until then, they might want to get their defense in gear, get McGrady back (maybe much sooner than expected) and keep taking the ball to the rim.
The offense scored just 84 points! The defense held the world champs to 90 points. The Rockets actually held the world champs to fewer points than opponents have been averaging this season (91.55, which ranks the team fifth in the NBA in scoring defense). The defense was not the problem in this game (and, indeed, is still a strength of this team). The problem was that the offense couldn't produce enough points.
Now, I understand the point Feigen was trying to make (which makes this an improvement over some of his writing) -- namely, that Rockets fans can be encouraged that the team is showing some sign of being able to execute elements of Rick Adelman's offense, and that there are some things the team can build on from this game.
Unfortunately, that accurate assessment is somewhat overshadowed by Feigen's suggestion that this 84-point effort somehow was a good overall offensive performance, and that the team's defense needs to improve (when statistically, the team's defense is among the best in the NBA). Those are questionable assertions that detract from the valid points he was trying to make.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 11/17/07 01:00 AM | Print | Comments (0)
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