Houston Rockets

Expectations are a funny thing. Did I say funny? Sorry, I meant to say that expectations are a cruel-hearted, unshaven bastard. Especially in the NBA. Early on, we cannot escape them. They’re with us always. Always, always, always. And they screw around with our power rankings. At heart, weekly evaluations should be impulsive and read [...]

Dwight Howard is a wanted man. Contract with the Houston Rockets aside, there are few teams in the NBA that wouldn’t welcome the arrival of Superman’s services. And the Los Angeles Lakers are one of them. Forget that they need rebounding and defense, they already know what it’s like to house Howard and they’ll want [...]

It’s over. You made it. No need to send reinforcements. The battle is over and the war has been won—the NBA offseason, preseason and all the crap that comes with it is over. Finally. You spent months wading through all the proverbial and, if you’re team is tanking, literal bull shit. Now you’ll be rewarded, [...]

If this Lakers’ season were a new movie, what would you call it? “Escape Plan?” Oh, wait D-12 already did that. “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2?” Or maybe “Prisoners,” to describe the Lakers fans and perhaps Bryant, himself. As the Lakers prepare to start the 2013-2014 season without veteran 5-time NBA champion and [...]

Dwight Howard chose to sign with the Houston Rockets over the summer. He did not, however, almost sign with the Dallas Mavericks. Following shoot around on Monday at the Toyota Center, Howard was asked if his free-agency decision came down to two teams—the Rockets and Mavericks. “No,” he said, according to the Star Telegram‘s Dwain [...]

Mike D’Antoni has jokes. There wasn’t much to laugh about for the Los Angeles Lakers last season and after losing Dwight Howard to the Houston Rockets, that’s sort of true today. Then, you know, there’s the whole Kobe Bryant still being injured thing. Reasons to smile aren’t exactly banging Los Angeles’ door down. Still, Magic [...]

Things change in the NBA all the time. Preseason basketball is often considered meaningless because, well, it is. It’s supposed to be a time for star players to work through rust, fringe players to secure roster spots and coaches to nail down rotations. And in many ways, that’s what it is.  But it’s also a [...]

In case Dwight Howard didn’t know, Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers have fans all around the globe. Think of it as an extended entourage. You mess with the Lakers or Kobe in the states, and you’ll inevitably feel the worldwide wrath. Superman officially knows what I’m talking about. His Houston Rockets journeyed to [...]

The NBA is supposed to be fun. A lot of people understand that. Others don’t. Those people, the overly serious and belligerently antagonistic ones, won’t want to see what follows. This mark’s the inception of The Hoop Doctor’s PG-13 NBA Power Rankings, where almost anything goes. Language may sometimes not be suitable for those reading at [...]

Dwight Howard is the king of free throws. Blind free throws, that is. Superman challenged Houston Rockets teammate James Harden to a blind free-throw shooting contest according to a report from the Houston Chronicle and brought to us by ESPN.com. Howard apparently defeated Harden, hitting on 8-of-10 from the line with his eyes closed. “I [...]