You and I saw the same thing in each game between the two this year. Yao started out like gangbusters in each one, almost single-handedly keeping the Rockets in the game (or in the lead), but as the game progressed, as Pau and LO continually ran ahead of him up court, we began to both get easier buckets, and he began to fade, such that in the 4th quarter he was next to useless.

Compounding matters, we also switched up how we defended him each game, usually at half time. In the first half we’d have Pau play him honest, allowing him to catch the ball in his preferred position. In the second, though, Pau would start shading him and forcing him to catch the ball farther out. So now Yao was both tired and frustrated at not getting the ball where he liked it, and as a result, his efforts to keep Pau at bay would be uneven, which resulted in Pau getting more than a few steals as he overplayed Yao.

I’d look for more of the same this series. Yes, there are more commercial breaks, but Yao is still not going to want to chase our bigs up court. Playing against a deliberate team like Portland was no help for Houston, because we play at a much faster pace. And after not having to guard anyone on Portland, Yao is going to have his hands full with our bigs, and will not be able to get his rest in-game like he could in the first round.

Plus, the problem Houston has is, unlike say, Utah, they don’t really have anyone who can get their own shot. Ron-Ron tries, but 4 out of 5 games he fails. So when the game gets tight in the 4th, they tend to have a higher number of failed possessions.

I used to worry about Houston because Battier and Artest were so effective against Kobe. But thanks to Michael Lewis and his “Moneyball” article, Kobe seems to make extra sure that he destroys those two. Thanks Lewis. I’m sure Daryl Morey is all that happy that he agreed to be quoted in that article.

I’d be surprised if this series goes 5 games. It’s setting up as a sweep for me.

Anyway, I think the key to this series will be the play of Lamar and the bench.

What’s interesting is the nba NEVER goes after its clips on youtube from what I’ve seen. Except suddenly they don’t want any video of the Rondo – Hinrich incident floating around?

I only hope that when it’s all over both teams come to center court, join hands and bow, because they’ve given us maybe the greatest show I’ve ever seen in this league. I don’t care if its just the first round, or that its defined by KG’s absence. This series has encapsulated everything I love about basketball and I don’t want to see it end.

Another thing to keep in mind regarding Yao’s conditioning is that, unlike the Blazers series that had multiple days in between games, this series will go strictly every other day. You have to think it’s an advantage to us since we’ve already gotten used to that schedule, right?

But in the end, our best defense against him is our offense. Our bigs can post on him, spot up. And of course, we can run the pick and roll and which is his biggest weakness. Against the Blazers he could sag off so much he gave Roy trouble since the Blazers’ bigs were not threat at all on the roll.

I think Adelman took him out of one of the earlier games because of his lack of pick and roll defense, as the coach said, not his stamina issues.

This will be a great series. I have been loving the way the Rockets have been playing. Artest/Battier vs. Kobe will be very interesting to watch. And Yao is a great player.