NBA Finals 2014: Houston Rockets For Real! Phil Jackson Believes Dwight Howard’s New Team Is A Contender! But Will They Need Omer Asik?
The possible combinations for the Finals previously involved four teams-Miami, Indiana, OKC and San Antonio. For legendary coach Phil Jackson, Houston should be in the mix.
It is probably the Lakers' biggest mistake-or at least Jim Buss's. If there is someone who can make Dwight Howard and Pau Gasol work, it would be Phil Jackson.
It's too late, as the Zen master declared that he's not going to coach again (yeah, right, he's said that before). He can still make very qualified suggestions, and short of committing treason to Laker land, he admits that the Houston Rockets are deserving of the contender tag.
Does that mean he believes that Dwight made the right decision in ditching LA for the Rockets? Well, that would be treason..
In a long chat with USA Today, the coach with eleven championship rings (the most in NBA history) gives his assessment. However, there is one thing that the Rockets could not fulfill in Phil's ideal scenario: disgruntled center Omer Asik.
Asik has been on the trading block, but the Rockets failed to consummate a deal even until the deadline. Now they are stuck with each other. Jackson believes Asik could be vital in the Rockets' playoff run.
From USA Today, Phil Jackson on Houston: "They're playing well. They're starting to play really well together, and it's a chemistry thing that's starting to connect with them. Dwight was able to do things to people he could manhandle in the post early on, and he'd have good games or so-so games. But now the coordination between he and (Rockets small forward Chandler) Parsons - those guys are starting to get it and to know how to use him and to know how to play in what they're trying to do now, passing well out of it and getting three points shots. You know, a lot of people say they don't see them in the Finals in the West but I think they have a chance to be in the Finals in the West.
You know, they may have a young guy at (power forward), but with (backup center Omer) Asik back they might be able to start putting a lot of things together where there will be both Asik and Howard on the floor. And in the NBA playoffs, after the first game or so everything becomes halfcourt. And then it's (about) who can grind it out and defend. And when you've got big defenders, this may be an opportunity for them to really step through that to another level. They had a good run last year against Oklahoma - didn't win, but they pressed them. And now with Dwight there, they're looking for things to go forward a little bit. I think we've all wanted to see Dwight develop a really good post-up game, and I just saw his left hand come back, he started shooting again where it looked like his left hand was back. That's been one of his strengths, where he's been able to hold off with his right and shoot with his left - that's been one of the things he's doing well now again. So I like to see that. And I think it takes a long time to get over the type of back injury he had, and I think the Lakers weren't patient. I don't think our fans understood. I had spinal fusion, a back operation, and I know that I spent one year playing a backup role and it was difficult for me. And then after that one year of kind of getting back and getting my legs underneath me and getting a comfort zone and mobility back again, I had better years. The next three years were much better for me in my career. And I think that's going to happen to Dwight. So I encouraged Daryl."
From the architect of three three-peat championships and one back-to-back, Daryl Morey should definitely listen. PJ knows his hoops