As long as Tracy McGrady was living his Magic Johnson childhood
fantasy or at least the November version he thought he'd go all the
way.
So while piling up assists, he pump-faked Memphis forward Hakim
Warrick out of his sneakers, drove toward the middle then slid a
behind-the-back, no-look dish to Yao Ming for a dunk.
McGrady then practically danced his way back down the court,
grinning along the way as the Rockets, unable to take one of their
commanding leads to an easy rout, found another way to enjoy
themselves in an 85-76 win over the Memphis Grizzlies before 16,707
at Toyota Centre on Saturday night.
"That's playing with chemistry," said Yao, who had 28 points and
blocked three shots. "That's really fun basketball.
"We thought this basketball game is not just a job for us at
that moment. It's something very fun, like playing a video game or
something."
McGrady, the NBA Live '07 cover boy, had 19 points and matched a
career high with 13 assists.
But he had his assists so easily that on a night the Rockets did
not shoot well from 3-point range (8-of-27), they still led by as
many as 15 points.
"It's fun, especially when you're winning," McGrady said. "To
see your teammates scoring the ball, it's fun. I take a lot of
pride and passion in doing that. I'm trying to make these guys
better. We're winning ballgames. Any time you're making plays and
winning, it's always fun."
More than fun, it was effective and came with some flair, with
the behind-the-back pass to Yao.
"Oh, that's sweet," Yao said, making up for the alley-oop
McGrady tried to give his earth-bound centre.
"He just forgot I'm not Stromile (Swift). I can only jump this
high," Yao said with his thumb and forefinger an inch apart. "I
play on the ground, not in the air."
On a night the Rockets defended well enough for the Grizzlies to
make just 26 of 69 shots, even with a second-quarter run, the
Rockets needed just enough offense to push them through their
tendency for a late-game slump.
"They're confident in themselves," McGrady said. "Those guys are
shooting the ball with great confidence. It's great to draw two
guys to you and see those guys wide-open. They can sit out there
and read all the labels on the ball, count up all the laces on
there and still have time to shoot the ball.
"You got to score the ball. When I pass the ball, they're making
shots. Why do I have to score the ball? It's all about making
shots. If they don't make the shot, I'll make the shot."
But after leading by as much as 11 quickly, the Rockets broke
down when they went to the bench in the second quarter and trailed
by two heading into the second half.
As soon as they went back to what worked, with McGrady
triggering the offense and Yao finishing it, the Rockets spent much
of the night threatening to turn the game into a blowout.
Yao made all five of his shots in the third quarter; McGrady
seemed to especially relish life as a playmaker.
Avoiding letdown
The Rockets have spent much of the month demonstrating that no
lead is safe. McGrady sat for the first three minutes of the fourth
quarter, then immediately fired a pass to Luther Head for a
3-pointer that pushed the lead back to 71-59.
McGrady followed that with a drive, passed to Chuck Hayes for a
layup and then blew past Rudy Gay for a slam. The Grizzlies didn't
close within single digits until the final minute.
For a change, instead of hanging on at the end, the Rockets went
after McGrady's personal assist record, never quite getting the
last one. But for all the grief McGrady gave Hayes for missing a
first-half layup, no one really seemed to mind.
(China Daily November 27, 2006)