Youth and Inconsistency Goes Hand in Hand for the Rockets
The Houston Rockets have a roster that fans of other NBA teams can only dream of. The team has arguably the best center in the league in Dwight Howard and one of the best shooting guard in James Harden. Then there's a solid supporting cast of players that include a dynamic point guard in Jeremy Lin, a very capable and a star on the rise in Chandler Parsons. Then there's a bunch of solid role players to fill up all the positions. Oh, and there's a starting-caliber backup center Omer Asik whose also a valuable trade asset that could make the Rockets an even better team.
The future is bright for the Rockets and they have all the tools they need to be one of the best teams in the league for several more seasons to come. However, there is still one problem with the fast-rising team.
As load with talent as the team may be, this doesn't exempt them from the inconsistency that commonly plagues young NBA squads. They can look unstoppable one night and look like the very opposite on the next.
Even when they seemed to have figured out what works for them, its confounding how they seem to move away from the direction that has netted them more success. With so many talented players, the team often gets plenty of matchup advantages that provides an almost unlimited opportunities. However, they rarely make the most out of these.
Take for example Dwight Howard. Not many teams will have the player that can stop or slow him down. His speed, strength and athleticism makes it so hard for anyone to handle him. Yet, time and time again, he becomes an afterthought in the Rockets offense. When opposing teams try to deny Howard the ball, the Rockets just seems to give up on trying to get him the ball.
Then there's James Harden whose got the skills to take the ball to the basket and get good shots or fouls. However, there are plenty of instances when he bails the opposing teams by preferring to shoot jumpers. I admit that he is a good shooter. However, he is much more effective when his aggressive in penetrating as it forces defense to make tough decisions and thus freeing up other players on team or simply makes the one guarding him to back away from more which will result to a better jumper for him.
