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Matter of Trust
McGrady has confidence in the team's perimeter shooters down the stretch
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Damien Pierce
Rockets.com Staff Writer
HOUSTON -- Orlando coach Brian Hill knew he had to make a tough choice in the closing minutes of Sunday's game against the Rockets.
Should he let Tracy McGrady -- one of the league's elite scorers -- drive one-on-one to the basket or should he double the Rockets' star at the risk of being beaten by Houston's perimeter shooters.
He learned pretty quickly that neither option is any good.
"He just makes your whole defense collapse (towards the paint)," Hill said after watching McGrady pass out of double teams in a 97-93 win over the Magic. "He kicked the ball out and we tried closing out. They are one of the best three-point shooting teams in the NBA."
McGrady is turning it into an art form this season.
The Rockets star, who is averaging a career-best 6.1 assists, has been daring opponents to double him through the first three months of the season.
Why? Because he trusts that his teammates will knock down the open shot when a defense comes crashing down on him.
The seven-time All-Star is finding wide-open teammates on the perimeter after forcing a defense to collapse on him. More often than not, his teammates are drilling the open shot. The Rockets entered Monday's action shooting 37.9 percent from long range, good enough for the fifth best mark in the NBA.
McGrady firmly believes either he'll beat you or his teammates will.
"That's who we are," McGrady said. "When teams want to double up on me, my job is to make the right play for the team. My teammates do a great job of getting spaced out and getting to the right spots. I know where they are going to be. What makes it sweeter is they are knocking down shots. When they are knocking down shots and I am playing the way we are playing, we are tough to beat."
The Rockets showed as much during Sunday's 97-93 win over the Magic.
With Hill having little choice but to double a hot-shooting McGrady, the Rockets' star guard picked apart Orlando's defense. He repeatedly found open teammates, finishing with a team-best six assists.
During the closing minutes of the fourth quarter, McGrady even opted to give the ball up when the Rockets were clinging to a mere 90-88 lead. He fired a pass across court to Luther Head, who calmly stroked a three-pointer that gave Houston all the breating room that it would need.
The Rockets finished with 14 three-pointers against the Magic, one off the team's season high.
Despite thriving in clutch situations, McGrady is clearly comfortable defering to his teammates when he's doubled in the closing minutes.
"We know the ball is coming to us every time he gets double-teamed," said Rockets guard Luther Head, who is the team's leading three-point shooter at a 44.2 percent clip. "He's great. I don't know how he sees what he sees. I used to be surprised that he could find me when I'm on the opposite end of the court, but now I know it's coming."
Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy agrees.
"We have Tracy McGrady and very few others do," Van Gundy said. "He's got great vision."
Hill and the rest of the NBA are certainly learning as much.
