Houston Rockets Tickets

The Houston Rockets made a major trade in the offseason that they thought would take them to the next level, but injuries so far have held them back.

The Rockets made the gutsy move of acquiring disgruntled forward Ron Artest, believing his toughness could help make the team a true contender for an NBA title.

However, both Artest and Tracy McGrady have missed significant time with injuries, not that it is surprising that either player got hurt. McGrady is still plagued by chronic knee pain and his scoring average is way down. You have to wonder how much longer he can go on like this.

Even Shane Battier has missed significant time, while Yao Ming has missed a couple of games as well. The Rockets should probably consider building a hospital into their home arena.

In the games Battier has played, he has been far less effective than we have come to expect. Carl Landry, who had a major breakout season as a rookie, has also taken a major step back this year.

Yao is having a solid year, but his numbers are also down. He is averaging nearly a double-double per game with just under 20 points and just under 10 rebounds per contest.

The good news is that the Rockets would still be in the playoffs if they started today, a minor miracle and a testament to the coaching job done by Rick Adelman. In fact, the Rockets are only four games out of first place in their division.

The team is also getting significant contributions from a couple of role players. Aaron Brooks has played well as the backup point guard and Von Wafer has started a number of games with Artest and Battier injured.

The problem with the Rockets continues to be point guard play despite the improvement from Rafer Alston. He still doesn't fare well when matched up with the elite point guards in the Western Conference such as Tony Parker, Deron Williams, Chris Paul, Steve Nash and the list goes on.

If the Rockets could somehow find a way to keep McGrady healthy, this group could finally advance to the second round of the playoffs and maybe even further. There is no doubting the collection of talent on this team.