The Houston Rockets are off to a 2-1 start after beating Portland last night. With Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady out with injuries and former Rocket Ron Artest departing for the Lakers, Houston is picked as a long shot to make the playoffs. However, guys like Shane Battier keep plugging away and fight through adversity:
"That's a testament to the guys in this locker room," Battier said. "We have guys who don't make a lot of excuses, who play to win, regardless of the situation. People take that for granted, but it's rare in sports over a long period of time. This is the third year we've faced pretty significant adversity and not once have we made an excuse, 'Well, Yao's not here, Tracy's not here.' We plug in the next guy and play harder.
"It's been pretty impressive. It's as impressive a three-year span that I've ever experienced, at least in terms of team attitude. The attitude sometimes can last for a year and then it crumbles the next time you face adversity. But we've always had a good attitude here in this locker room."
1.17.2010
BRANDON ROY - GETTING TO THE FT LINE
Good thoughts from Portland all-star Brandon Roy on getting to the rim when his legs are tired. Portland played their 1st back to back games the other night which is very tough to do in the NBA. Said Roy:
"I'm maturing and learning the game and saying when you get leads you've got to try to build on them by getting to the free throw line. You don't have to always shoot jumpers."
"I was a little tired and I noticed it on my jump shot. I said, 'I've got to be aggressive to get to the basket.'
"They did a good job of trapping me in those pick and rolls and not leaving me, so I just started trying to get early breaks -- when we're bringing it up, just try to attack right away and try to get to the cup and try to draw some fouls and try to put some pressure on them."
"I'm maturing and learning the game and saying when you get leads you've got to try to build on them by getting to the free throw line. You don't have to always shoot jumpers."
"I was a little tired and I noticed it on my jump shot. I said, 'I've got to be aggressive to get to the basket.'
"They did a good job of trapping me in those pick and rolls and not leaving me, so I just started trying to get early breaks -- when we're bringing it up, just try to attack right away and try to get to the cup and try to draw some fouls and try to put some pressure on them."
DEFENSE
“That’s all that defense comes down to: it’s heart,” Ollie said. “ It’s some technique but it’s heart and trying to stop your man because a lot of guys don’t want to play defense, they don’t want to challenge themselves because it’s not a glamorous spot where you’re going to be on SportsCenter or do anything like that. It’s just a man-on-man desire to stop your man and have that self fortitude and I think he has all of those characteristics.”
CHUCK HAYES
Chuck Hayes is the most remarkable player on the NBA's most remarkable team.
Don't believe me? Let's check in at Toyota Center and run it past some people who should know.
“It's pretty amazing what he does,” Battier said. “He's a huge reason we've been one of the best defensive teams in the league the last few years.”
This is what Carl Landry has do say, “He's the perfect player,” Landry said. “He rebounds, plays defense, takes charges, gets steals. He does the dirty work.”
What does Luis Scola think of him?
“It's a pleasure to play with him,” Scola said. “He plays hard. He does everything a basketball player should do. He's a great teammate.”
He shows you size doesn't matter. He's an NBA center. He's also 6-6, 238 pounds.
Almost every night, he's assigned to guard a guy at least 6 inches taller and 30 to 40 pounds heavier. He does it because of his heart, drive and smarts.
Hayes is averaging 8.8 points and 7.8 rebounds. He's out there because of what he gives the Rockets defensively. His 65-percent shooting percentage is the NBA's fifth-best. He's seventh in the league with 2.4 steals a game.
He does not fly like Kobe Bryant. He does not have Dwight Howard's size. He doesn't have Tim Duncan's slick moves.
All Hayes proves is that guys who care and work hard can still do special things.
“He's a competitor,” Rockets assistant coach Elston Turner said. “It's the way he competes every night. It's the way he's coachable and knowledgeable. Those are things we love. When you can compete, sometimes it doesn't matter if you're undersized. Sometimes winning and losing is just a matter of who plays the hardest.”
The Rockets might be the NBA's smallest team. They have zero All-Stars. They're just a bunch of guys who exemplify how much can be accomplished with teamwork and unselfishness.
General manager Daryl Morey has said that playing hard is a skill, too. He meant that plenty can be accomplished by teams that outwork the other guys.
Don't believe me? Let's check in at Toyota Center and run it past some people who should know.
“It's pretty amazing what he does,” Battier said. “He's a huge reason we've been one of the best defensive teams in the league the last few years.”
This is what Carl Landry has do say, “He's the perfect player,” Landry said. “He rebounds, plays defense, takes charges, gets steals. He does the dirty work.”
What does Luis Scola think of him?
“It's a pleasure to play with him,” Scola said. “He plays hard. He does everything a basketball player should do. He's a great teammate.”
He shows you size doesn't matter. He's an NBA center. He's also 6-6, 238 pounds.
Almost every night, he's assigned to guard a guy at least 6 inches taller and 30 to 40 pounds heavier. He does it because of his heart, drive and smarts.
Hayes is averaging 8.8 points and 7.8 rebounds. He's out there because of what he gives the Rockets defensively. His 65-percent shooting percentage is the NBA's fifth-best. He's seventh in the league with 2.4 steals a game.
He does not fly like Kobe Bryant. He does not have Dwight Howard's size. He doesn't have Tim Duncan's slick moves.
All Hayes proves is that guys who care and work hard can still do special things.
“He's a competitor,” Rockets assistant coach Elston Turner said. “It's the way he competes every night. It's the way he's coachable and knowledgeable. Those are things we love. When you can compete, sometimes it doesn't matter if you're undersized. Sometimes winning and losing is just a matter of who plays the hardest.”
The Rockets might be the NBA's smallest team. They have zero All-Stars. They're just a bunch of guys who exemplify how much can be accomplished with teamwork and unselfishness.
General manager Daryl Morey has said that playing hard is a skill, too. He meant that plenty can be accomplished by teams that outwork the other guys.
JONNY FLYNN
Timberwolves rookie point guard Jonny Flynn speaking about head coach Kurt Rambis:
"Oh, he's definitely on me. But it's good for me. He's got to be harder on his point guard. Every coach in the league is going to be tough on the point guard because that's the heart of the offense, that's the engine that makes the train run. So I welcome it. ... Kurt being on me, wanting me to be my best, it's really helping me. Sometimes you need the toughness of a coach to make you a better player. It's motivating me, hopefully to be something special in this league."
"Oh, he's definitely on me. But it's good for me. He's got to be harder on his point guard. Every coach in the league is going to be tough on the point guard because that's the heart of the offense, that's the engine that makes the train run. So I welcome it. ... Kurt being on me, wanting me to be my best, it's really helping me. Sometimes you need the toughness of a coach to make you a better player. It's motivating me, hopefully to be something special in this league."
DEREK JETER - YOU DON'T HAVE TO HAVE TALENT FOR EFFORT
Good story on Derek Jeter told be A's General Manager Billy Beane:
Eight years ago, to his recollection, Beane watched Jeter run out a routine ground ball to shortstop in the late innings of a routine game in which the Athletics were beating the Yankees. Jeter ran down the first base line in 4.1 seconds, a time only possible with an all-out effort. Beane was so impressed by the sprint that he ordered his staff to show the video of that play to all of the organization's players in spring training the following year.
"Here you have one of the best players in the game," Beane says, "who already had made his money and had his four championships by then, and he's down three runs in the seventh inning running like that. It was a way of showing our guys, 'You think you're running hard, until you see a champion and a Hall of Famer run.' It wasn't that our guys were dogging it, but this is different. If Derek Jeter can run all out all the time, everybody else better personally ask themselves why they can't."
Told of the story, Jeter says, "It makes you feel good whenever anybody appreciates how you do things. The least you can do is play hard. It's effort. You don't have to have talent for effort."
Eight years ago, to his recollection, Beane watched Jeter run out a routine ground ball to shortstop in the late innings of a routine game in which the Athletics were beating the Yankees. Jeter ran down the first base line in 4.1 seconds, a time only possible with an all-out effort. Beane was so impressed by the sprint that he ordered his staff to show the video of that play to all of the organization's players in spring training the following year.
"Here you have one of the best players in the game," Beane says, "who already had made his money and had his four championships by then, and he's down three runs in the seventh inning running like that. It was a way of showing our guys, 'You think you're running hard, until you see a champion and a Hall of Famer run.' It wasn't that our guys were dogging it, but this is different. If Derek Jeter can run all out all the time, everybody else better personally ask themselves why they can't."
Told of the story, Jeter says, "It makes you feel good whenever anybody appreciates how you do things. The least you can do is play hard. It's effort. You don't have to have talent for effort."
CP3 - WORK ETHIC
Golden State guard and former All-American Stephen Curry had the chance to work out over the summer with all-star Chris Paul. Here is what Curry says about his work ethic:
"It's just his work ethic, what he does in the offseason to prepare. What's this? His fifth year? And he's working four hours every morning, going hard. I was trying to keep up. I can pick and choose some stuff that I saw him do, but nothing specific. It's just about being in the gym working hard everyday."
"It's just his work ethic, what he does in the offseason to prepare. What's this? His fifth year? And he's working four hours every morning, going hard. I was trying to keep up. I can pick and choose some stuff that I saw him do, but nothing specific. It's just about being in the gym working hard everyday."
KEVIN DURANT - D'ING UP
Kevin Durant has stepped up his defense this year for the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Says one Western Conference scout:
"This year I noticed he's more engaged. He's getting into his stance much sooner and not standing around, and getting back in transition. That's great because he's still very young -- he just turned 21. When you're that gifted offensively as a teenager, you just don't think about defense that much. I give a lot of credit to Thunder coach Scottie Brooks for getting him to buy in."
Says coach Scott Brooks:
"I spent time with Kevin watching the NBA playoff series and talking things over this summer," Brooks said. "There were so many great moments where great players were the ones defending -- Kobe, Carmelo, Paul Pierce -- and so many times the winning basketball play was on defense.
"Kevin always had the effort, but he didn't have the knowledge or the physicalness in his body to go through an entire NBA season playing defense. This summer he got his mind and his body right. He understood that if he was committed, we would be a much better team. We focused on defense from Day One, and when one of your better players is one of your better defenders."
"Knowing when to stay with your man and when to help out is one of the hardest things for young players coming in," Brooks said, "because you think you're playing defense if you're guarding your man, but you also have to be aware of what might happen three passes away.”
"We like to be as disruptive as possible, pushing people to the baseline, defending tight in the paint and closing out on shooters. We constantly talk about having a hand up in guys' faces -- you have to contest to make NBA players miss. And we like to force extra passes and get deflections."
Says one Western Conference scout:
"This year I noticed he's more engaged. He's getting into his stance much sooner and not standing around, and getting back in transition. That's great because he's still very young -- he just turned 21. When you're that gifted offensively as a teenager, you just don't think about defense that much. I give a lot of credit to Thunder coach Scottie Brooks for getting him to buy in."
Says coach Scott Brooks:
"I spent time with Kevin watching the NBA playoff series and talking things over this summer," Brooks said. "There were so many great moments where great players were the ones defending -- Kobe, Carmelo, Paul Pierce -- and so many times the winning basketball play was on defense.
"Kevin always had the effort, but he didn't have the knowledge or the physicalness in his body to go through an entire NBA season playing defense. This summer he got his mind and his body right. He understood that if he was committed, we would be a much better team. We focused on defense from Day One, and when one of your better players is one of your better defenders."
"Knowing when to stay with your man and when to help out is one of the hardest things for young players coming in," Brooks said, "because you think you're playing defense if you're guarding your man, but you also have to be aware of what might happen three passes away.”
"We like to be as disruptive as possible, pushing people to the baseline, defending tight in the paint and closing out on shooters. We constantly talk about having a hand up in guys' faces -- you have to contest to make NBA players miss. And we like to force extra passes and get deflections."
BILLY DONOVAN - THE ARC OF A SEASON
Found a really good article on Billy Donovan talking about Florida's struggles lately. After beating Michigan St. and Syracuse earlier in the year, Florida has dropped its first two conference games and Coach Donovan is asking himself how his team is going to respond. Here is a little from the article:
Gators coach Billy Donovan has had quite a philosophical viewpoint while coaching an elite program. He has plenty of experience managing egos with a roster that has had its share of big-time players mixed with classic four-year players who are necessary to win at a high level. He has been to three national title games and won two, and consistently has Florida known as a national name, even during the past two struggling seasons.
Donovan said he has seen the arc of a season.
"Every team is jacked up for the start of practice, but then the excitement wears off," Donovan said. "You have the first game and then everyone is focusing on minutes. Then you start to distribute them and then you start to understand there is a ceiling to get better. We have a high ceiling."
But Donovan admits there was a dip in intensity when the Gators came off the Michigan State win and Syracuse effort but then landed with a thud when they failed to hold on to a double-digit lead against Richmond in Sunrise, Fla., and then fell flat by losing at home to South Alabama.
"I'm anxious to see how this team responds against LSU," Donovan said. "It's critical for us to separate ourselves. Do they come together as a group? How will this team come together for practice Thursday? What kind of effort will we have? There are external motivational things that happen, like playing Michigan State or Kentucky. But how internally motivated are you?"
Gators coach Billy Donovan has had quite a philosophical viewpoint while coaching an elite program. He has plenty of experience managing egos with a roster that has had its share of big-time players mixed with classic four-year players who are necessary to win at a high level. He has been to three national title games and won two, and consistently has Florida known as a national name, even during the past two struggling seasons.
Donovan said he has seen the arc of a season.
"Every team is jacked up for the start of practice, but then the excitement wears off," Donovan said. "You have the first game and then everyone is focusing on minutes. Then you start to distribute them and then you start to understand there is a ceiling to get better. We have a high ceiling."
But Donovan admits there was a dip in intensity when the Gators came off the Michigan State win and Syracuse effort but then landed with a thud when they failed to hold on to a double-digit lead against Richmond in Sunrise, Fla., and then fell flat by losing at home to South Alabama.
"I'm anxious to see how this team responds against LSU," Donovan said. "It's critical for us to separate ourselves. Do they come together as a group? How will this team come together for practice Thursday? What kind of effort will we have? There are external motivational things that happen, like playing Michigan State or Kentucky. But how internally motivated are you?"
1.14.2010
HOPE
Hope shines brightest when the hour is darkest.
Hope motivates when discouragement comes.
Hope energizes when the body is tired.
Hope sweetens when the bitterness bites.
Hope sings when all melodies are gone.
Hope believes when the evidence is eliminated.
Hope listens for answers when no one is talking.
Hope climbs over obstacles when no one is helping.
Hope endures hardship when no one is caring.
Hope smiles confidently when no one is laughing.
Hope reaches for answers when no one is asking.
Hope presses toward victory when no one is encouraging.
Hope dares to give when no one is sharing.
Hope motivates when discouragement comes.
Hope energizes when the body is tired.
Hope sweetens when the bitterness bites.
Hope sings when all melodies are gone.
Hope believes when the evidence is eliminated.
Hope listens for answers when no one is talking.
Hope climbs over obstacles when no one is helping.
Hope endures hardship when no one is caring.
Hope smiles confidently when no one is laughing.
Hope reaches for answers when no one is asking.
Hope presses toward victory when no one is encouraging.
Hope dares to give when no one is sharing.
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