A LOOK AHEAD
John Granato: Things that will happen at some point in the Rockets-Warriors series
May 10, 2018, 7:09 am
James Harden's Rockets and the Warriors will make you think about several things this series. Rockets.com
At some point in this series…
You will marvel at how pretty Steph Curry’s jumper is.
The refs will have to decide on a flagrant one or two on Draymond Green.
You will hate Kevin Durant’s mouthpiece.
You will see a picture of Clint Capela next to this quote: “We are better than them.”
You will wonder why Draymond Green thought those clothes all went together.
At some point in this series…
Charles Barkley will say the Rockets just aren’t good enough.
You will laugh when James Harden and Draymond Green flop simultaneously.
You will wonder why Steph Curry took that crazy shot but then it goes in and you just shake your head.
You will be jealous of how pretty Oracle Arena looks just before tipoff.
At some point in this series…
You will jump out of your seat and yell at Draymond Green even though he can’t hear you because you’re in your house.
You will wonder why Gerald Green took that crazy shot but then it goes in and you just shake your head.
You will think that Klay Thompson is not really all that good at basketball.
You will think that Klay Thompson is unstoppable.
Draymond Green and P.J. Tucker will get tangled up and tempers will flare.
At some point in this series...
James Harden will make one of the prettiest passes you’ve ever seen.
The refs will have to look at another Draymond Green foul to see if it was a flagrant one or two.
The announcer will mention that this is Chris Paul’s first trip to the Conference Finals.
James Harden will walk around with his hands out in disbelief at a call.
Chris Paul and Kevin Durant will trade big mid-range jumpers.
At some point in this series...
Trevor Ariza will hit a huge 3 that will bring the crowd to its feet.
You will think the Warriors uniforms are cool.
You will throw something at your TV because of Draymond Green.
Charles Barkley will admit that he was wrong and the Rockets are better than he thought.
You will think that these Warriors might be the best basketball team you’ve ever seen.
At some point in this series…
Draymond Green’s leg will have a spastic attack and he’ll kick someone in a bad place.
James Harden will make one of the ugliest passes you’ve ever seen.
Steve Kerr will have a hair out of place.
Warriors fans will scream that James Harden just walked.
You will wonder why Chris Paul thought those clothes all went together.
At some point in this series…
P.J. Tucker will hit a huge 3 that will bring the crowd to its feet.
The refs will have to decide if another Draymond Green foul was a flagrant one or two.
You will hate Steph Curry’s mouthpiece
Draymond Green will skip down the court nodding and smiling and taunting the Toyota Center crowd.
At some point in this series…
You will worry that Clint Capela will get a max offer from another team this offseason
You will hate that there are so many days off between games.
You will hate Draymond Green.
James Harden will have a shot that will decide his big game legacy.
You will be proud of your Rockets.
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It should come as no surprise that after a slow start to the season, fans and media are starting to voice concerns about the organization's leadership and direction. The latest evidence of this involved Astros adviser Reggie Jackson and the comments he made on Jon Heyman's podcast, The Show.
Jackson discussed the Astros reported interest in starting pitcher Blake Snell. He said that ultimately, Snell was looking for a deal the Astros weren't comfortable with in terms of money and structure of the contract.
Which is interesting considering the Astros were okay with paying 5-years, $95 million for closer Josh Hader, but not willing to pay Snell 2-years, $62 million. We believe the opt-outs in Snell's contract were a dealbreaker for Houston. And of course the money played a role.
However, the Astros passing on Snell is not the intriguing part of the story. It was Jackson talking about the club's power structure in the front office and how they go about making decisions.
“Being fiscally responsible is what kicked us out of the Snell deal… That's too much for him… Between the 4 or 5 people who make decisions with the Astros, we don't play that game,” said Jackson.
Based on Jackson's comments in the interview, the decision makers are Jim Crane, Dana Brown, Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio, and Reggie. But not necessarily in that order. He also mentioned that they had conversations with manager Joe Espada and his staff, plus some input from the analytics department.
These comments add to the concerns we've had about the front office since Crane moved on from GM James Click and operated without a general manager for several months. Which led to the disastrous signing of Jose Abreu and to a lesser extent Rafael Montero.
Which begs the question, are the Astros in a better spot now with their front office? Many blame Dana Brown for the state of the starting rotation. While there were some red flags this spring, anticipating injuries to Jose Urquidy, Justin Verlander, and Framber Valdez is asking a lot.
But only bringing in Hader to replace all the innings left behind by Hector Neris, Phil Maton, Kendall Graveman, and Ryne Stanek always felt risky.
Finally, what can the Astros due in the short-term to weather the storm while Framber and JV rehab from injury?
And is Hunter Brown the biggest liability in the rotation?
Be sure to watch the video above for the full in-depth discussion.