Speaker 1: Houston Rockets.
Speaker 2: He may dunking Rockets taking on the Spurs tonight eight thirty,
which could be either eight forty two or eight forty
seven depending on TV. Then tomorrow night will be in
Atlanta to take on the Hawks. Coaches with us here.
Do you get the guys prepared ever so differently because
of the late start or is it just the naps
go a little bit longer in the afternoon.
Speaker 3: No, we try to keep the schedule pretty much the same.
We don't push back, shoot around anything. I think guys
are in their routines and more than anything to your
point to give it as the next hour or so
to relax and get ready.
Speaker 1: Uh, talk about routines?
Speaker 2: What is the one thing that does bother a team
you've coached on how long enough you were a player,
you were an assistant coach? What makes routines, I guess
for anybody important. But why NBA players are so fixated
on on an hour by hour basis.
Speaker 3: I think you've once you've been doing it for a
certain amount of time, you just get in that mode
of you know when to wake up, when to take
your nap, with when to eat and kind of everything set,
especially on game days, first basepecific times, and you know
that's the game game day routine that a lot of
guys stick by. And when you get thrown off, whether
it's that time or something happens in the afternoon, a
lot of guys rhythm and timing and clock gets kind
of thrown off. So you try to keep it as
much as similar as possible. And that's why we didn't
move anything around, even though we're starting a little bit
later tonight.
Speaker 2: My assumption is that Alpi didn't go to you directly
before the game and say, santil Domi's going to guard me,
so let me have the ball as much as I can,
because that was as efficient as he's been as a
Houston Rocket.
Speaker 3: Yeah. I mean they did the same thing last game.
You know, a lot of teams want to put bigger
bodies on I'm in and so Jared Jackson Junior guarded him.
Alpi was guarded by Aldam Alaska, and we saw some
things that worked well in Memphis, but you know they're
going to try to plug lane with Jared Jackson being
the weakside help. And you know, Alpert made great passes
but also got the ball a really deep scoring position
before the double team could get there.
Speaker 2: You mentioned a man career highness sis he had fourteen
scoring numbers have dropped a little bit coincidental or has
it become a little bit of Hey, he's becoming even
better facilitator than he was, maybe even before the start
of the season.
Speaker 3: No, he's definitely grown in that area. I think he
missed some shots he would usually make. You know, he
went three for ten there. But you know, honestly, could
Tony assists if we if we knock down some open
shots earlier in the game before we finally started making
them later. But I think him getting downhill, he's starting
to see the court better. He had some really nice passes,
you know, one to Kevin on the back door, a
drop off or two to Alpie and then you know
some some kickouts off off of penetration, so you're seeing
the floor better. You know, he's that's a balance that
he has to strike all year. Is wanted to be
aggressive getting downhill and get to the basket, or when
he has to read and make plays, and like I said,
Jared Jackson Junior is sitting back clogging the lane off
of him. He ate up a lot of that space
that helped still came and then he made the right play.
Speaker 4: Rocket Tech coach Imadoka was here on Sports Talk seven
ninety Tarry Eason just tell us how well obviously he's
been shooting well from three and the things you liked
you're seeing from him.
Speaker 1: Keeping him in the starting lineup, it's.
Speaker 3: A you know, a big part of it was him
coming off the injury restrictions with the ankle, and so
we want to ramp him back up. He's gotten those
games under his belt now and you know, it doesn't
take a lot to see how effective he was and
we were when he was starting before he went out
with the ankle, and so like to have two really good,
lengthy defenders out there him and I'm in or that
Josh is that when he's out and Dorian getting his
way back in now. So I think they're formidable as
far as that. They did a really good job on
Spencer and Coward. You know, two young guys who were
really playing well for Memphis, and so you see their
numbers across the board, and we'll look for them to
do the same thing tonight with the Spurs.
Speaker 4: Guys, what is it like playing the Spurs. It's not
like you just played them, but not too many games ago.
Is there a little bit of cat and mouse game
with game planning tonight or is it kind of stick
to the same.
Speaker 3: Well there, back and forth, we saw some things really
did well against Webbeama specifically, you know, to hold him
to five for twenty one is a great job. We
took away his space, We're very physical, denied a lot
of his catches, got him off the spot, and so
that was a full team effort and everybody has to
kind of be on board with that. And then you
and then i'm in did a really good job of fox.
Jabari was exceptional on Castle.
Speaker 1: You know, only one.
Speaker 3: Free throw forer guy that is a really good valbator,
and forced him into eight three pointers, which is not
necessarily his game. And so I think across the board
we did well to think we're gonna have to obviously
do his account for Champagnee much better. You know, he
got up ten threes in the first half, made six
of them, and then Moselle being back now they're they're
very similar as far as that, so he got another
shooters in the mix.
Speaker 1: Emil. I love the term valbator. It's just so good.
It's just the truth.
Speaker 2: I mean we compared to when you were playing, how
many how often you said that phrase when you're like,
oh I got to go against this guy.
Speaker 1: The guy's were searching for foul shots.
Speaker 3: I mean there was one or two guys baby in
the league, maybe three. It seems like there's one or
two guys on every team.
Speaker 1: Now team, Yeah, there's no sixty.
Speaker 3: Really it's really it's really different. I mean the physicality
of defense. Back then, if the rules were the same,
you would have fouled out every game for sure. And
so a guy that really stands out to me is
Kevin Martin. Great at you know, great first step and
great had drawing that foul if he drew a little contact,
and so playing against him a bunch and then played
with him briefly and Sacramento saw how good he was
with that. But back then it was you know, one
or two guys, and now it's a little bit of everybody.
So something you have to prepare for, and keeping guys
off the line is a major key to their success
and our team success.
Speaker 2: Any final decision about who's going to sit tonight or
maybe tomorrow, or is that still going to play things out?
How things go against the Spurs before you figure out
who's going to sit and stay.
Speaker 3: Oh, I mean, the only guys we really talk about
are the guys that can't play it back to backs yet,
and we're holding Tarry out and and Dorian tomorrow. They'll
both play tonight.
Speaker 1: Okay, very good. A lot of back to backs.
Speaker 2: I don't I don't know, you're not much of a
calendar looker because every time I ask you about who's playing,
You're like, we're only like.
Speaker 1: Two opponents ahead.
Speaker 2: But is it kind of a race to the All
Star break to give guys as much going as you
can and then you know, look you can get that
rest and that we're about the counter once that mid
season break starts.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I think. You know, for us, it's back to
back each week the rest of the way. And so
you know, we didn't have a lot early, but you know,
had the have the Philly Detroit. Now we have these
two and then next week it will be the same thing,
and then we finish with the Clippers back to back
at home, and so for us, it's finding that balance.
You know a bunch of games three and four nights
of back to backs, but you know, getting guys back healthy.
Getting guys off minute restrictions definitely helps, and they're relying
on your debt, you know. Obviously, Kevin and I'm in
their shouldering the load with the minutes, but I want
to save those down as much as possible. Any time
you get a chance to wrestle those guys, get a
comfortable win, it would definitely be beneficial.
Speaker 2: I love the Detroit game because it was a back
to back, it was a win, tough flight, whatever the
case be, getting in midl of the night there. How
many times are you going to see a team like
Detroit over the course of the season. And I don't
know if it's necessarily East versus West, because there's some
physical team obvious in the West. But that was kind
of a little bit more of an old school approach
to playing a basketball game, where it was not necessarily
a fifteen round boxing fight, but it was certainly, even
in the perimeter, a very physical contest.
Speaker 3: Yeah. I mean, we've established ourselves as the most physical,
if not one of them, in the last few years,
and so we want to maintain that identity while growing
and improving in other areas and understanding the success that's
brought us over the last years and then Detroit has
somewhat done the same thing. The personnel is definitely that,
and I think bigger staff is kind of getting those
guys on the same page as far as that. But
you look at Duran, you look at Stewart, you look
at some of their guys, their natural physical guys and defenders,
and so they bought into that and it's been successful
for them as well out on the East, and so
you knew that game was going to be somewhat that.
I think both teams enjoy that, enjoyed playing that way,
and we got the better of them this time. They
got the better of us early at home this year.
Speaker 4: One week and change away from trade deadline. Of course,
we know Steven Adams out for a link of time.
Are you in content constant contact with Rafel as far
as regards to trades or more focus on what's happening
on the court.
Speaker 3: No, we definitely talk, and you don't meet with you know,
every few days a week, especially around this time, and
so more so than anything, you know, people are checking
in and very interested in a lot of our pieces,
and so it's more adapt than anything. I think he's
just touching base with people and Obviously people are reaching
out with a lot more interest in us than we
do in other people.
Speaker 1: Do you ever respond back new phone? Who it is?
Speaker 3: And I don't get the calls anyway, Like.
Speaker 2: Cal Rafel, A good time for you, hey, you may,
thank you for the time, Good luck tonight and we
will see at the arena for the game against his Purst.
Looking forward to it. Thank you you got a hemay
a Doker with us here on the show.