Houston
Rockets
Southwest
| 2009-10 Team Rating | |
| Offense | Defense |
| 104.5 | 105.5 |
| 18th Overall | 17th Overall |
2009-10 Season Stats
W
42
L
40
PCT
.512
GB
13
CONF
28-24
DIV
9-7
HOME
23-18
ROAD
19-22
LinksVideo | Statistics | Tickets
|
Category | Grade | ||
 It's night and day from a year ago with the return of Yao Ming to the lineup. Veteran Brad Miller joins as backup, but all hopes rest upon Yao.
|
B |
||
 Point guard Aaron Brooks was last season's Most Improved Player. Now it's Kevin Martin's turn to settle in and take off. They can run and they can score.
|
B |
||
 Yao's return will make the lane less like a red carpet to stroll down. Shane Battier and Courtney Lee are both outstanding defenders on the wings.
|
B |
||
 They overpaid to keep Kyle Lowry as backup PG, but kept a solid bunch together. Rookie Patrick Patterson could be a solid and dependable addition from the start.
|
B |
||
 In his first three years on the job Rick Adelman has been busier than a one-armed juggler with all the injuries and changes. But he rarely misses a beat.
|
A |
||
B
Summary
The Rockets have to feel like they've awakened from a nightmare where they had to play an entire season without their All-Star center Yao Ming (reconstructive foot surgery) and also deal with the distraction that was the end of Tracy McGrady's career in Houston.
The goal now is to put all of that quickly in the past and regain the momentum that had been building in 2009 when they beat Portland in the first round of the playoffs and gave the eventual champion Lakers all they could handle in a seven-game second-round battle.
They spent big money to keep Luis Scola next to Yao at power forward and then quickly moved out Trevor Ariza after a one-year experiment. The front line is now solid with Shane Battier returning to the starting small forward spot. He's backed up by Chase Budinger and rookie Patrick Patterson. The hustling Chuck Hayes goes back to being a force off the bench and Brad Miller finally gives the team a backup option at center.
With Aaron Brooks, Kevin Martin, Kyle Lowry and now Courtney Lee in the backcourt, the Rockets believe they are potent enough and deep enough to make a push for a top seed in the West. Of course, that all depends on Yao.
--Fran Blinebury
Explanation of Marking System
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