What Went Right?
Houston had a great year behind its two stars. They won the most games (52) for the Houston franchise in 10 seasons. Tracy McGrady averaged 24.6 points per game, along with 5.3 rebounds and 6.5 assists. Yao Ming had the breakout season that a billion people have been hoping for since he came into the NBA. He averaged 25 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 2 blocks per game. He shot 51.6% from the field and 86% from the free throw line. Rafer Alston had a solid season in Houston by averagin 13.3 points per game and having the 4th most three-pointers made at 196. Luther Head came off the bench and ranked 6th in the league in three-pointers made at 177. Dikembe Mutombo started 33 games while Yao Ming was injured and as a starter averaged over 10 rebounds per game at the young age of 89 years old.

What Went Wrong?
They simply weren't able to make it past the first round of the playoffs. Yao Ming was hurt for 34 games which interrupted one of the best years for an NBA center in the last 5 years. The Rockets received very little production from the power forward position as Juwan Howard and Chuck Hayes were unable to provide any consistent help for Yao Ming. Bonzi Wells signed a 2-year deal that was supposed to help the Rockets off the bench but never got along with Jeff Van Gundy and quit on his team for most of the season. The Rockets ran into a really good Utah Jazz team in the first round and were unable to beat them out in 7 games.

Off-Season Overview
The Rockets made 3 major moves during the off-season: 1) They hired Rick Adelman to be the new head coach which will open up the offensive capabilities of this team. 2) They traded Vassilis Spanoulis to the Spurs for power forward Luis Scola (which will probably be the steal of the summer). 3) They signed the recently waived Steve Francis to solidify the bench with one of the best playmakers in the game today. This Rockets' team looks primed to make a move this season.
Players Added: Power Forward Chuck Hayes (Re-signed), Center Dikembe Mutombo (Re-signed), Point Guard Aaron Brooks (Draft), Shooting Guard Brad Newley (Draft), Guard Steve Francis (Free Agent, Portland), Center Jackie Butler (Trade, San Antonio), Point Guard Mike James (Trade, Minnesota), Forward Justin Reed (Trade, Minnesota), Power Forward Carl Landry (Trade, Seattle), Power Forward Luis Scola (Trade, San Antonio)
Players Lost: Power Forward Juwan Howard (Trade, Minnesota), Point Guard Vassilis Spanoulis (Trade, San Antonio)

Phil Barnett's Impact Players-
You have to feel for Tracy McGrady after last season’s first round loss to the Jazz. He put this team on his shoulders and left everything on the floor but left another post season without getting out of the first round. Houston has a solid core, but in the West, it could end up being another disappointing postseason for McGrady.

Breakout Player: If Yao Ming stays healthy all season, he will be a legitimate contender for the Most Valuable Player award. Through his first four seasons’ I was never sold on Yao being a great center and I was still iffy at the beginning of last season, but after he came back from knee surgery and picked up where he left off early in the season, I finally came around. Yao has improved significantly since the beginning of his career and he just may finally have that season we’ve all been expecting from the 7’6’’ man out of China.

Disappointing Player: This could be anyone on this roster because of the significant coaching differences between Jeff Van Gundy and new head coach Rick Adelman. Adelman’s offense involves a lot of player movement without the ball. It is going to be interesting to see how Houston adjusts to the new set, any one of these Rockets could struggle immensely or shine in this offense.


FantasyInsideronline.com Fantasy Sleeper-
Bonzi Wells, Shooting Guard- In the one season that Bonzi Wells played for Rick Adelman in Sacramento, Bonzi thrived in the offense-emphasized system. He averaged over 13 points and 7 rebounds per game as a starter for that squad. He also averaged 1.8 steals and shot 46% from the field. In Adelman's system, he could easily be part of a small lineup if none of the power forwards start to shine early on. Adelman loves Wells' hustle and toughness and knows how to utilize him on the floor.

Best-Case Scenario
I'm not going to lie; this team has the roster to win an NBA title. The best case scenario for this team is Yao and McGrady staying healthy all year long as this roster adjusts to Adelman's system in time for the playoffs. They win about 55 games and ride high into the playoffs with a lot of confidence. Yao Ming is able to carry the Rockets for most of the games in the playoffs as McGrady takes over when it counts and leads this team past first two rounds. Their depth in the backcourt allows them to weather the storm against Phoenix or San Antonio in the Western Conference Finals and the Rockets win their first championship since the Hakeem Olajuwon days.

Worst Case Scenario
Yao has foot problems and Tracy's back goes out again. The Rockets bench can't figure out their roles and chemistry problems arise from Mike James, Rafer Alston, and Steve Francis all fighting for time at the point guard position. Scola turns out to be an international bust and the power forward position isn't able to give Yao any help. The team draws the 6th seed in the West and has to face either the Spurs or Mavericks. They lose out in the first round for the 4th time in 5 years.

Talkhoops.net Prediction- 3rd in Division, 5th in West
I think that this is the team that can finally do it for the fans of Houston. However, I don't think it will happen this year. Rick Adelman led teams don't usually have much success deep into the playoffs. This year they will be facing 5 really tough teams in the West and will have a hard time getting past any of those 5 teams. I think the Rockets have another great regular season and lose in the first round as people around the team begin to question if Tracy McGrady can ever get the job done.