The Rockets held the Nuggets to 37.8% shooting from the floor but they were outscored 59-43 in the second half so it didn’t matter in the end. Luis Scola had another monster night with 28 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocked shots on 12 of 16 shooting from the floor. Kevin Martin pitched in with another solid effort finishing with 21 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists. Yao finished up with 14 points, 6 rebounds and 2 blocked shots in his usual 23 minutes last night. The Rockets are now 0-3 on the year.

The Rockets have signed 34-year old center Erick Dampier to a 1-year, $2 million dollar deal. Dampier played in 55 games (47 starts) for the Mavericks last season and he averaged 23.3 minutes, 6.0 points, 7.3 rebounds, 0.6 assists and 1.4 blocked shots per game. Dampier has now played in 921 games (749 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 25.1 minutes, 7.8 points, 7.4 rebounds, 0.9 assists and 1.5 blocked shots per game. This was a good signing for the Rockets as you can never have too many quality big men. Plus, the Rockets need help at center with Yao Ming not allowed to play on the second game of back to back nights and he’s also limited to 24 minutes a night when he does play.

UPDATE: (11/9/2010) - It appears that the Rockets got cold feet and they decided against signing Dampier.

The Rockets were without Yao last night as he’s not allowed to play on the second game of back to back nights. They just couldn’t play any D last night as the Warriors shot 55.4% from the floor and that was the big reason for the loss last night. Luis Scola was a absolute beast for the Rockets last night as he led the way for them with 36 points and 16 rebounds. Kevin Martin only shot 5 of 14 from the floor but he still finished up with 28 points and 4 assists last night. Chuck Hayes took over at center last night and he responded with 16 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists on 8 of 12 shooting from the floor in 39 minutes. The Rockets are now 0-2 on the year.

The Rockets gave a great effort last night as they led this game 62-51 at the half. They just couldn’t sustain that level of play in the second half. The Rockets hit the boards hard in this game outrebounding the Lakers 53-44 which gave them a good chance to win this game right until the end. The starting guards were outstanding in this game. Kevin Martin (26 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists) and Aaron Brooks (24 points, 3 rebounds and 9 assists) gave the Lakers fits all night long. Luis Scola was an absolute beast inside for the Rockets last night as he finished up with 18 points, 16 rebounds and 4 assists in 33 minutes on the floor. Chase Budinger was very solid off the bench for the Rockets in this game with 13 points and 5 rebounds in only 22 minutes on the floor. But the sight for sore eyes was seeing Yao Ming on the floor. Sure, he fouled out in 23 minutes and he only shot 4 of 11 from the floor but he still finished up with 9 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocked shots which is pretty impressive in his first regular season game in over a year. The Rockets are 0-1 despite looking pretty darn good in this game.

The Rockets were 42-40 last season but they have made big time improvements to the roster for 2010-11. Yao & Brad Miller are going to share the center position (instead of Chuck Hayes) this year. Rookie forward Patrick Patterson & SG/SF Courtney Lee have been also brought in to solidify the bench. With those things in mind I would bet the over as the Rockets are going to be the best team in Texas this year. The Rockets are also 45-1 to win the NBA Championship and I think it’s something worth making a bet on at those odds.

64-year old head coach Rick Adelman led the Rockets to a 42-40 record despite starting Chuck Hayes at center. This year Hayes will be the #3 center behind Yao and Brad Miller. The Rockets also added Courtney Lee in a deal and they matched offers to Kyle Lowry and Luis Scola who were restricted free agents. Adelman has led the Rockets to a 150-96 record (61%) during the regular season in his three years in charge. He also had a 9-10 record (47.4%) for the Rockets in the post season. Adelman now has a career record of 902-577 (61%) during the regular season and he is 79-78 (50.3%) during the post season. The Rockets are loaded this year and Adelman is the right guy to get the most out of them.

30-year old Yao Ming is back. But he will have a likely limit of 24 minutes a night in an attempt to keep him healthy all year. Yao has played in 481 games (471 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 32.7 minutes, 19.1 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.9 blocked shots per game. Just having Yao on the court makes the Rockets a much better team as they have to respect him in the paint which will open up shots for other Rockets. Don’t expect averages of much more than 10 points, 5 rebounds and 1 blocked shot per game but the Rockets would be happy with that if it means he can play in 70-80 games this year.

34-year old Brad Miller is the perfect complement to Yao at center. Miller played in 82 games (37 starts) for the Bulls last season and he averaged 23.8 minutes, 8.8 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game. He has now played in 793 games (592 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 29.5 minutes, 11.7 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. Miller knows every trick in the book and unlike Yao he is a good outside shooter. Miller is still capable of starting if Yao gets hurt again this year.

27-year old Chuck Hayes is back once again for the Rockets and they were smart to keep him. Hayes played in 82 games (all starts) for the Rockets last season and he averaged 21.6 minutes, 4.4 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. He has now played in 350 games (170 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 18.4 minutes, 3.6 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.0 assist per game. Hayes will also likely get P.T. at power forward this year for the Rockets.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE CENTERS OF THE HOUSTON ROCKETS: B+

30-year old Luis Scola was re-signed in the off-season and it was a smart move for the Rockets as he keeps getting better. Scola played in 82 games (all starts) for the Rockets last season and he averaged 32.6 minutes, 16.2 points, 8.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. He has now played in 246 games (203 starts) in his first three years with the Rockets and he has averaged 29.2 minutes, 13.1 points, 7.9 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game. Look for Scola to be even better this year with Yao or Brad Miller playing center for the Rockets this year.

23-year old Jordan Hill was a nice gift from the Knicks last year for T-Mac. Hill played in 47 games (0 starts) for the Rockets & Knicks last season and he averaged 13.3 minutes, 5.2 points, 3.7 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. He is a player with a really nice upside but he’s going to have to work hard to get minutes on the Rockets.

21-year old rookie Patrick Patterson is a player with a very nice upside. Patterson played in 38 games for Kentucky last season and he averaged 33.0 minutes, 14.3 points, 7.4 rebounds, 0.9 assists and 1.3 blocked shots per game. He played in 97 games in his three years at Kentucky and he averaged 34.0 minutes, 16.1 points, 8.2 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.6 blocked shots per game. Patterson will be a big part of the future for the Rockets but playing time will be likely hard for him to come by this year.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE ROCKETS POWER FORWARDS IN 2010-11: B+

32-year old Shane Battier will be the starter at small forward for the Rockets again in 2010-11. He played in 67 games (62 starts) for the Rockets last season and he averaged 32.4 minutes, 8.0 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.4 rebounds and 1.1 blocked shots per game. Battier has now played in 685 games (560 starts) in his NBA career and he has avergaged 33.4 minutes, 9.8 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.0 blocked shot per game. He has hit 38.5% of his shots from three point range in his NBA career so the Rockets will just want Battier to keep playing unselfish basketball. If he plays D and makes his open three pointers the Rockets will be happy with him.

22-year old Chase Budinger is a lot like Battier as a player. He played in 74 games (4 starts) as a rookie for the Rockets last season and he averaged 20.1 minutes, 8.9 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. Budinger also shot 36.9% from three point range as a rookie last year.

Courtney Lee will also likely get some minutes at small forward this year and he’s a solid player.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE ROCKETS SMALL FORWARDS IN 2010-11: C

26-year old Kevin Martin is back for a full year at the starting shooting guard for the Rockets. Martin played in 46 games (43 starts) for the Kings & Rockets last year in which he averaged 35.5 minutes, 20.6 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.0 steal per game. Martin has now played in 355 games (267 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 30.9 minutes, 17.4 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.0 steal per game. Martin is also a pretty good long distance shooter as he has hit 38% of his three point attempts in his NBA career to date. I look for Martin to be the Rockets’ leading scorer in 2010-11.

24-year old Courtney Lee will likely back up Martin at shooting guard while also getting more P.T. at small forward in 2010-11. Lee played in 71 games (66 starts) for the Nets last season and he averaged 33.5 minutes, 12.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.3 steals per game. He has now played in 148 games (108 starts) in his first two years in the NBA and he has averaged 29.1 minutes, 10.3 points, 2.9 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.1 steals per game. Lee is a solid defensive player and he has shot 36.9% from three point range in his first two years in the NBA. I look for Lee to be a big asset off the bench for the Rockets this year.

23-year old Jermaine Taylor will be #3 in line for minutes at shooting guard for the Rockets. He played in 31 games (4 starts) last season as a rookie and he averaged 9.8 minutes, 4.1 points, 1.5 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE ROCKETS SHOOTING GUARDS IN 2010-11: B+