FanHouse Preview: Rockets

FanHouse previews all 30 NBA teams in advance of the 2009-10 season.

There is a scene in Major League where the manager relates how ownership essentially has stacked everything she can against the team. They have no hope, because no matter what happens, they'll only be released as soon as it's convenient in pursuit of moving the team. Essentially, there is no reason for hope, no reason for effort, no reason for showing up to play. Tom Berenger's character looks up and says, " Well, I guess there's only one thing left to do ... win the whole (expletive) thing."

And that's pretty much where the Rockets are this season, barring the psychopathic sexbomb owner, threat of relocation, and the fact that they play a much more strenuous sport.

The Rockets enter the season with their best player on the shelf for the long-forseeable future as Yao Ming recovers from another foot injury. Tracy McGrady has said pretty openly he may never be 100 percent again. The rest of the team looks like a hodgepodge of also-rans, D-League fodder, and Shane Battier. Their big free agent acquisition, Trevor Ariza, warranted his contract based solely on four weeks of hot shooting and a lot of diving on the floor. They have no center. They have no true small guard. And it's entirely possible they'll make the playoffs. Again.

What Daryl Morey has done in Houston is the subject of much debate in the basketball world. Critics who despise advanced metrics-based decisions or the idea that Battier (or anyone for that matter) could ever guard Kobe Bryant for even a possession look at the roster with disdain, dismissing them as not having anyone good because no one outside of McGrady and Yao would ever be considered All-Stars. Meanwhile, his supporters point to the fact that despite crippling injuries which would send other teams tumbling into the lottery, his teams have thrived in difficult positions (something NBA players are not known for), rattled off huge winning streaks and pushed the mighty Lakers to seven games, a series which included three blowouts despite Houston lacking its best player. And yet, just as at the end of the much ballyhooed Shane Battier article, where Bryant drains it over him, the Rockets lost in the end.

What Morey has done in Houston is assemble a team that is greater than the sum of its parts. Aaron Brooks is coming into his own as an elite speed-guard, capable of creating turnovers, driving the lane, scoring at will, and setting up his teammates. Say the words "Luis Scola" to a Spurs fan and they cringe, one of the few phrases to illicit such a response this decade. Chuck Hayes isn't good at anything that shows up in a box score, and is only marginally good at most things that don't show up in a box score, but is incredibly good at a select group of things that very few players in the league are good at. Battier has become not only a defensive wizard, but a source of leadership on a young team. Kyle Lowry is a capable back-up point who doesn't come with the same baggage or demands as Rafer Alston. Carl Landry is a low-budget, high efficiency player who can play multiple roles at multiple positions. And the Rockets employ a variety of components that can serve individual needs. Pops Mensah-Bonsu as high-energy big man, Joey Dorsey as muscle-bound big man, Chase Budinger as athletic rookie ... the list goes on and on.

The Rockets are also able to manage a very large roster with patience and care, thanks to their affiliation with the D-League's Rio Grande Valley Vipers. Morey has used RGV before, sending Brooks and others down to polish their games. But this year, they've taken it to the next step, as the first team to use the new "hybrid" system, wherein the NBA club takes control of all basketball operations for the D-League team, bringing in their own coaches, management, scouting, trainers, and resources. This will allow them to manage different pieces and take a long-term view of some of their rookies while trying to remain competitive.

Now, for all these positives, it's entirely possible the Rockets could flame into nothingness. The fact remains that their best player, their single best player, one of the best players in the NBA, isn't expected to even be ready for evaluation until spring. McGrady returns, but I'm sorry, no one in Houston or anywhere else expects for McGrady to suddenly shake off his injury woes. And beyond that is the issue of trust after the problems McGrady made for the rest of the team last year, announcing his surgery to the press before consulting with the team, and the questions of leadership that abound, especially after the Rockets escaped the first round last year without him. Ron Artest is gone, and though Crazy Pills could definitely get an itchy trigger, he still provided a spark offensively and defensively that will be missed. In his place comes Ariza, who though very energetic and certainly shot well in the Lakers' title run, has yet to prove he can be a consistent, reliable component of an offense. His shooting is not what it appears to be to most after his raucous run in the playoffs. Don't believe me? Compare his 48 percent three-point shooting in the playoffs to his season mark of 32 percent. Maybe Ariza just magically uncovered something in his mechanics during last year's postseason that allowed him to unlock the mysteries of shooting. Or maybe he's another player who got hot and wormed his way into a new contract he probably wasn't worth.

The Rockets can't look ahead. They can't have expectations, goals or long-term perspectives. They have to keep their head down, their eyes focused directly in font of them, and go one step at a time. Every game will be a struggle, and any further significant injuries and they're pretty well sunk. Even if not, all signs point to a disappointing and frustrating year for the Rockets.

Then again, we've said all that before.

Last Season By the Numbers

Record: 53-29 under Rick Adelman. Finished 2nd in the Southwest Division, 5th in the Western Conference. Defeated Portland 4-2 in the first round. Eliminated by L.A. Lakers 4-3 in the conference semifinals.

Offense: 108.4 points per 100 possessions, 15th in the NBA. 14th in shooting, 22nd in turnover rate, 17th in offensive rebounding, 16th in free throw rate.

Defense: 104.0 points per 100 possessions, 4th in the NBA. 4th in shooting defense, 28th in opponent turnover rate, 4th in defensive rebounding, 2nd in opponent free throw rate.

Top Performers: Yao Ming led the team in scoring with 19.7 points per game. Among returning Rockets who are expected to be available at the start of the 2009-10 season, Luis Scola scored 12.7 points per game in 30 minutes, and Aaron Brooks averaged 11.2 points per game in 25 minutes. Yao was the top rebounder at 9.9 rebounds per game; Scola followed with 8.8 rebounds per game. Tracy McGrady averaged 5 assists per game in limited action.

All statistics via Basketball-Reference.com.

Player to Watch

FanHouse's Matt Moore and Tom Ziller preview one player to watch from each team. Here's a snippet of Moore's post on Rockets forward Luis Scola.

The biggest contributions Scola makes aren't even in the box score. Much like Shane Battier, the "No-Stats All-Star," Scola brings savvy and basketball intelligence that are off the charts, along with a fiery disposition and will to win. I don't know what they're feeding those boys in Argentina, but they have a drive to succeed that is downright intense. Scola in his limited time in the NBA has adapted incredibly well, using his Euroball-style skills to learn NBA facets. His defense on pick and rolls is at once aggressive and considerate, rarely allowing easy passes most bigs fall prey to. His frame allows him to muscle up to players bigger than him and his active hands and footwork enable him to frustrate players of considerably greater talent. What's best, Scola rarely allows his emotions to affect him negatively. He picks himself up and goes back to work.

See Moore's full post on Scola.

Offseason Tracker

IN: Trevor Ariza (free agency), David Andersen (free agency), Jermaine Taylor (draft), Sergio Llull (draft), Chase Budinger (draft).

OUT: Ron Artest (free agency).