http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/12585248/houston-rockets-general-manager-daryl-morey-confident-rockets-win-nba-title-season Morey has thrown down the gauntlet. Podcast is nice... Morey throws some "punches" at the refs. Speaks about McHale (and backs him up). Says will know about Bev today. Listen, it's a good listen.
Daryl Morey, the GM of the Rockets, saying that the Rockets could win the title this year is hardly "throwing down the gauntlet". Of course the Rockets could win the title. They have 50 wins and are currently the second seed in a very tough Western Conference. Almost any playoff team in the West could win the title and the Rockets will have just as much a chance as anyone else. He was very clear in saying that Golden State would be the favorites, even saying "deservedly so". I am of the opinion that there have been times that Morey has talked too much. But IMO I think this time he did a good job of praising his team without going too far
Morey should've kept his gauntlet on, those things are worth a small fortune now! ... ....... ....... .......
The narrative all season long, and even before, has been that the Rockets won't do anything. We were predicted by most media to be worse than the Mavs going into the season. Fans and media alike have criticized our coaching and in the beginning our depth as well. Even before we acquired Josh and Corey, injuries forced our hand and we had to play that bench and lo and behold we had unforeseen depth and adding Corey and Josh only helped that. The current narrative is that the Rockets are more or less also-rans. Yes we have 50 wins but we won't do anything in the playoffs and may well go out in the first round. So to go from that to Morey proclaiming we can beat ANY team is saying a lot especially versus what most everyone else is saying.
Did you read what he actually said? "We won't go in as the favorite," Morey said. "I think Golden State, deservedly so, gets to be called the favorite. They've had a very historic season. I think the Golden State training staff hasn't been talked about enough this year. That team has been healthy and really that showcased everyone in Golden State. Coach [Steve] Kerr has done a great job. We won't go in as the favorite. We do feel like we can beat anybody in a seven-game series, and we're pretty excited to get going with the playoffs." What do you think he should have said in the interview? What is wrong with saying, "We do feel like we can beat anybody in a seven game series"?
ESPN has a narrative about Morey and they are attempting to keep it going. He said nothing that any other GM wouldn't say about their team but since he is the guy Kerr went after, they are going to hype it up.
I love how Mr. #HateHard became Mr. HateSoft whenever the spotlight was on for him to actually stand up to the person and team he criticizes more than anyone. All he could come up with was a criticism about how Harden wont get calls in the playoffs, and Morey's response was spot on. I don't know what you want the guy to do... NOT beat his man off the dribble, kick out, finish, or get fouled? A foul is a foul. Whether the NBA swallows the whistles for the sake of watch-ability for the fans sake is on them. Even if he's not getting the calls though he's still doing something that most of the time will end up in a good offensive possession.
Yes, if you look at pre-season expectations, the Rockets have been a surprise to everyone. People were saying that they may not make the playoffs at all and even if they do it would be as a 7th or 8th seed at best. The fact that we are currently the 2nd seed is amazing. It would be impressive anyway, but it is even more impressive when you factor in how many injuries we have had to deal with this year. Even now with the way that the Rockets have been playing, they still seem to be dismissed by fans and media. Tony Kornheiser on PTI said the Rockets would lose in the first round. Just yesterday Jalen Rose had GSW, Memphis, LAC and SAS making it to the second round (this was before we moved up the 2 seed). So yes, there are still questions about the Rockets. The media doesn't think Harden will have success in the playoffs when 'the game slows down and there aren't as many whistles'. The media doesn't think that the Moreyball concept of 3's and layups will work either. But what did you expect Morey to say? He was asked directly about how far the Rockets could go this season. As the GM of the Rockets, you would expect him to say that we could win it all. I don't think it proves anything about the media's perception of the Rockets team. And, honestly, I don't think anything will unless we go into the postseason and prove them wrong. Just like we have been doing all season long.
Morey pretty much had to say what he said. he can't go in and be like "oh we will finish 2nd in the West but have no chance at getting out the 1st round of the playoffs" Having said that, Morey needs to stay off the public media and all the self promotion he does until this team does something meaningful. And just making the playoffs doesn't count.
You do understand that Morey is getting interviewed, right? He's not setting up a press conference and announcing the Rockets as winning the title. In reality, he's asked questions like, "Do the Rockets have a chance to win it all?"...How would you respond to that question? He says that the Rockets do have a chance to win it all. Is that such a crazy comment for the GM of the #2 team in the West to make? He gave a ton of props to the #1 team. Not sure what you'd expect, but your response is inconsistent with reality.
If the starters and the bench play with the intensity of Corey Brewer, then we can beat anyone. The games we've lost have in my observation, always been because of mental errors: getting complacent, getting sloppy, getting soft on D, etc. They need to be ready to play these playoff games, knowing that everyone will be playing at their best. If they play at their best, they can win, but that's a choice they have to make.
He just said they can beat everyone leaving out to say that they can also be beat by everyone. Depending on matchups... not really saying much..... glad he is confident
I'm so sick of people b****ing about this. Who cares? Is there a game on right now that he's taking the attention away from? You do realize that Morey is one of the most requested interviews around the league right? Do you have any idea how many interviews the guy turns down on a daily basis? If Rich Cho was being asked to give interviews daily I'm sure you'd hear a heck of alot more Rich Cho. You do realize that the weekly 790 interview is part of the contract agreement between 790 and the Rockets right? You do realize that its important that when the two largest NBA media outlets CONTINUALLY misinform the world about your team that someone with the backing and education to correct those misinformation points publicly right? So give it a rest. When he gets interviewed people listen. I listen, and if you said you didn't listen then you are lying.
I didn't find Morey's response that convincing. There is reason to be skeptical of Harden's ability to be as effective in the playoffs when fouls are harder to come by. Harden has many skills and he obviously isn't exclusively reliant on getting fouls. We can all agree to this. But his ability to draw trips to the foul line is still a huge strength for him and for our team. Do we have enough creativity and flexibility in our offense to adjust when those whistles aren't going our way? I sure hope so.
