Tracy McGrady... Stop shooting so many jumpers and take the ball to the hoop... develop a killer instinct and you may become great...

You have to punish teams and you do that by taking the ball to the rim... pop in a tape of the nba finals last year and watch D-Wade punish them.

I think Tracy has to realize that they need to slow down little after they take double digit lead. Bc seeing from today's game when rockets take a double digit lead or comfortable lead, Tracy made many bad decisions, took quick jumpers and gave fast break opportunities to Deron Williams. Tracy needs to walk the ball and feed it to interior monster YAO.
The key is keep feeding YAO. Don't take those mediocre jump shot please.... or they will go down 4-2 or 4-3 to the Jazz. Cos Sloan is that good....

tmac deserves all his losses so far.. he left toronto cause he was selfish.. he wanted be "the man"

well he got his wish in orlando and now he realizes he cant do it alone so he forced a trade to be with yao.. but i guess he's had enough heartbreaks that this is the year he should win

dear author,
what is your name again? who are you to call out T-Mac? Charles Barkley can call out Boozer. Magic can call out whoever he pleases. They have earned enough respect to get personal. A personal letter to T-Mac? You earned some style points in a writer's craft high-school class. Some style, maybe, but definitely no class.
And another thing... If you're really a Tracy fan, why not enjoy the current results? At least come up with something original. Yes, we've all heard it before. "Tracy McGrady has never advanced past the first round." I'm sure your letter will help motivate him to take his career to the next level. Oh no, not another 'call out' by... what is your name again?

A player can only do so much individually.... As far as the hole being exposed in their defense....duh, that's when coaches have to step up. Obviously Jerry Sloan did. So don't try to put everything on T-Mac!!!!!

T-mac, this year you said that if you don't make it past the first round, its on you...you got a good team this year, so let them help you, let Yao help you, but at the same time, you need to take it to another level... there is no letting up in the fourth quarter, there is no letting up after taking a double digit lead, impose your will on them and don't let them even feel like they have a chance at getting back, CLOSE and FINISH

Good job Tracy, a job well done for you and your team. I am so proud of you guys.Make sure you get some rest because you are going to need it. The next time you play Utah they are going to be on fire. All you and your team have to do is take care of the ball,(turnovers)pick up your defense and take the home crowd out of the game.

Your article stated T Mac got a raw deal in Orlando and that is pure HOGWASH. Orlando got the raw deal. TMac was a lazy overpaid underperforming player from day 1 of his stay in Orlando. They did well to unload him.
Gary C.

I love Huston, but they have not done anything in the serious yet. They need to win a game in Utah to feel comfortable. Tracy mcGrady needs to stop shooting long jump shots and drive more and get to the foul line. After watching game 2, it is very clear that Tracy isn't at the level of Kobe, Dwade, or Nash...

Tracy has the hunger this year... I see the team going at least to the conf. finals.... barring no injuries....

If the Jazz receive the same home-court officiating bias that the Rockets obviously got, then this series will easily be 2-2 at the end of the week.

and tracy.....your perseverence is so key. man i've watched EVERY game since you came to houston, and i love the way you've developed. if your shot isnt falling, you'll make an insane drive quite often with a higlight worthy finish. so keep bringing it. you guys play intelligent bball.......and have toned it through the end of the season. remain focused. remain confident. the rockets are capable of PLOWING through the playoffs....JUST DONT GET COCKY!!!!

Since when is 9 for 29 a "great" performance? Half the guys in the NBA can shoot like that, they are not great either. That is what is wrong with the NBA, no wonder the rest of world beats up on us, they play a team game.

And while you are at it, Tracy, wipe that childish snarl off your face. You know, that Mr tough guy look, like you are the badest dude on the court, that you make when you make an acrobatic shot. You have some amazing moves, but that little-boy-acting-like-a-big-boy look is silly. It makes me laugh every time I see it. Ohh la la, look at tough guy Tracy, he just made a shot. Quick, scowl.
And, while you are at it, do us all a favor and see how many more times you can jump into a defender and draw a foul. Do you practice that? Do you and Kobe get together in the summer to go over that move? It sure looks like it. It's well polished. That makes me laugh too. That move is exactly why I tune in to NBA games. Just ask my wife. I am constantly saying stuff like "Hey babe, let's go watch some basketball players draw some fouls and shot free throws, if we're lucky maybe we will see some guys play basketball too." Maybe you should combine that killer move with your wicked tough-guy pouty face. Now that would be cool.
PS congrats on the 2-0 lead.

This guy, the author, calling out TMac is laughable. Who is he anyway?
He has trouble getting his shot off at the local Y but has the arrogance to call out TMac. Do us all a favor, Mr. Author, resist the impulse to write open letters from here on out.

You can't fault Tracy for wanting to get out of Vince Carter's shadow and pave his own path. And to say he "underperformed" in Orlando is ridiculous. (I don't consider scoring titles underperforming). He is learning to play the game for his team, not for stats. There are several players who have never learned that (AI, Kobe). I think Houston is a legit contender, as long as they can avoid the Suns, who have owned them the last couple of years.

Half the guys in the league cannot shoot 9 for 29. True, that's not a good percentage, but if you think 200 guys are capable of creating 29 shots for themselves you don't understand NBA basketball. T-Mac is still one of the top 5-10 players in the game.

Letter to self. Don't write open letters that ask for a response. Tracy might want to write you back in person. I live in Houston and I am real about our chances. We have holes but we have some heart as well. This could be one of the last chances Tracy gets becuse of his back issues. Lets give the guy a break for being young in the past and give him the oppotunity to show who he is today. He is not a Jordan or Kobe but he is a great player who given the chance may just get it right this time.

It will be really interesting to see if Houston can win a game where they dont make twice as many free throws as the Jazz take. Having said that if Houston improves to shooting poorly from the three point line the Jazz are in trouble. It is hard to win with your starting center and small forward are avg 4 points a game combined.

Haters galore on this message board. T-Mac made plays when he needed to play. Mutt, what's wrong with drawing fouls? Your goal as a scorer is to, let me guess, score! Jump shot, dunk, layup, free throws, it doesn't matter. Drawing fouls is a veteran strategy. Also, what's wrong with showing emotion (i.e. mean-mug facial expression) when you make a play. Emotion is a part of sports. Finally, the person that said TMac was selfish for leaving Toronto to be "da man" does not understand the game. What player doesn't want to be the leader and focal point of his team, especially when you and everybody else knows you have the talent to do it? TMac probably was a ball hog and selfish in Orlando, but who did he have on that team to pass the ball to anyways? Exactly...no one. Selfish, huh. Let's not forget he averaged 6.5 assists a game (from the 2 guard position) this year and is considered 3rd in everybody's vote for MVP. He's not just a scorer anymore, he wants to win and is a good teammmate.

I agree with the author. T-mac has been up in the 1st round before. Just because we held home court is no reason to celebrate. If he wants to get out of the 1st round then he does need a win-now attitude. Don't think just because you won on your home court (which is expected) that you now own the series. Remember, this is a 7-game series, not a 5-game series. Remember Mike wanted to win every game. Don't celebrate small victories. Celebrate a championship.

Everyone continues to throw the Orlando mess back at T-Mac, yet no one remembers how THE ENTIRE WORLD was on that bandwagon...Grant Hill, TMAC, Horace Grant, Darryl Armstrong, Pat Garrity...they were the preseason title favorites 2 years in a row only to watch injuries destroy them. McGrady did everything possible for that squad and kept them competitive in their postseason appearances. Now if only he would have stayed in Orlando to team up with Hill, Nelson, and Howard...THAT would have been the real redemption that he is seeking now!

Sure creating 29 shots is tough to do, but what about creating shots that you actually make. Maybe that is what is wrong with the NBA. No question T-Mac is among the elite players but celebrating him going 9-29 is like celebrating a guy hitting 30 home runs and sriking out 180 times a year and hitting .200, big deal.

McGrady deserves to lose this series and every post-season series. I am so sick of "analysts" stating that a team needs a star to succeed. What about the Pistons a couple of years ago? Did you hear McGrady's post-game comments? He feels he has the "supporting cast" to "help him advance to the next round." That is one of the most selfish statements I've ever heard. He deserves to lose, as does any team that feels the need to sign such a selfish, arrogant player with a horrible attitude and a playoff resume to match. I'll cheer for him when he refers to the team winning, not himself and his supporting case. What a joke!

The only reason Tracy doesn't take the ball hard to the rim as much as he could is fear of aggravating his back problems, which would be the end of this team in the playoffs if he had to sit out a few games for back spasms. Ever wonder why he does not dunk very much anymore? He is capable of driving to the rim and dominating close inside, but he has to play smart with his back if he wants to go as far as he can in the playoffs. He can knock down those jump shots he missed last night all day long, but all the greats have some off nights. He still got to the line a lot which helped out tremendously. You wont see him miss that many jumpers the next game, he wants to advance too much.

McGrady deserves to lose every game in which he participates. He obviously has been listening to the "analysts" on TV who constantly proclaim that a team needs a star to win in the post-season (never mind what the Pistons did...). His post-game comments say it all. Did you hear this garbage? He feels he has the "supporting cast" to help him advance to the next round. Imagine the arrogance!!! Imagine being relegated to the role of "helping precious, snot-nosed T-Mac win a post-season series." I cannot believe anyone would cheer for this egomaniacal blow-hard, let alone pay him to disrespect your players. The fans need to cheer for players who respect their team, who accept leadership without making it all about their individual success, and play a good brand of basketball. McGrady is among the most selfish in sports, and winning and selfishness rarely go hand-in-hand. That may be why he loses, or it may be that his "supporting cast" is sick of him and wants to go hang out with people who actually respect them. Houston, I'm sorry this is the type of trash you have to cheer for.

McGrady - Overrated, overrated, overrated, and he quit on his team last year. Rockets might win this round, but too many headcases for them to go far in the playoffs

T-mac needs to keep doing what hes doing. Hes developed into a player that can take you down himself, but once you try to double-team him, he dumps it off unselfishly. If his supporting cast could hit the open looks from beyond the arc, the rockets would be dominating the jazz more than they are already. And is it so wrong that he wanted to get out of a half-filled toronto house and get to playing in the bigtime?

You got to be kidding !!!..selfish ???.compare T-mac assist with any other....see what you come up with. He takes the jumper because he can. he drives the lane when the defense gives it to him because thats smart basketball. Deserves to lose..???..im glad hes not on a team you root for...Dikembe Mutombo..Juwan Howard both cant say enough about his leadership and unselfish play...he swithed teams so now you dont like him..???..well...i guess you dont like life..all players change teams..hell...I switch jobs a few times..are you in the same job since school..good luck T-mac and Rockets...long time coming..!!!

Also McGrady wasn't going to Orlando to be "THE MAN" he was going to Orlando because A)Florida is his home state B) He was going to be the "Co-Man" with Grant Hill before Hill's ankle exploded and McGrady had to carry some awful teams. The second best player his entire stay in Orlando was Darrell freakin Armstrong, it's a wonder they made the playoffs at all when he was in Orlando.

I am a Jazz fan and haven't really watched much T-Mac for a couple of years. After watching him these past two games, I have determined that he is a good player, but he sure is arrogant. All of his talk about how he is the team and they would be nothing without him makes me lose respect for him. He isn't the irreplacable member of that team...Yao is. You could bring in a handful of wing players to do the same thing he does...but Yao i the elite commodity on that team. T-Mac needs to get off his high horse, stop winking at every camera he sees, and just play ball.

My son and i sat scewaming at the Mac Daddy in the first half, "Tracey..take it to the rack" second half, mission accomplished. Maybe the fouls called were a little lopsided, but frankly, Utah was a mess under the boards. Think Yao and chuck hayes had anything to do with it? If the rockets get the 3 going in Utah it could be a short series. not counting on that though. Go Rockets! hey it's great to have decent team to root for again.

You don't need to give T-Mac any advice. Neither does anyone else, for that matter. He's gonnna do his own thing this year. No one is STOPPING him!!!!

bahahahahaha. I love when player is praised for going 9 for 29., Who cares how many points McGrady scored, he shot less then 33% from the field. This would be tantamount to considering Antoine Walker a good basketball player. Anyone in the NBA can put up double digits if the shoot they ball 30 times. It is true that McGrady excelled in other aspects of the game (10 rebounds, 5 assists) but 9-29 from the field and 1-8 from 3 is not a great performance by any means.

TMac and the Rockets played a very good game last night but everyone saw that they were shaky at the end of the game. To win this series they would need to be consistent from the beginning to the end of each game. Van gundy knows better. The Jazz will come back at them in Utah even tougher. Beware Rockets. You have not won yet. Big up to Dikembe.

As a Houstonian, at least for the immediate future, I am rooting for the Rockets. I've always known T-Mac to be a tremendously gifted athelete. He has the talent to be one of the top 5 players in the league.

His weaknesses, however, include his mental approach. Sometimes he lacks the killer instinct that you see in a Kobe or a D-Wade. In addition, as in last nights game, he sometimes chooses to settle for low-percentage jump shots when he has sufficient ability to take the ball to the hole or post-up smaller guards.

I believe that T-Mac and the Rockets have enough to make it out of the first round but will be keeping my fingers crossed thereafter.

He's a shooter and shooters shoot the ball even when they aren't falling. It's a bad sign when the shooters stop shooting because the shots aren't falling. Also, every team has role players and those players know exactly what they are there for. If they had the talent to be the star(s), they wouldn't be a/the "role" player(s)

It is very clear to any observer, Rockets or Jazz fan, that the officiating is terribly one-sided and the tale of this series so far...

I love it when people ridicule players for fighting through a tough shooting performance and winning the game. Tracy worked through it and led his team to victory. Sounds like something Michael Jordan used to do all the time. How can you fault that?

Happiness for the Rockets is making it out of the 1st round. T-MAC will not make it alone, but with the best team he has ever been a part of, and he has stated so. Watch Battier for example. Houston will make it to the second round because they can play DEFENSE. Jerry Sloan knows who has the better defensive team and he can't blame the referees. Van Gundy knows defense wins championships. So give T-MAC a break.

Man, oh man! After seeing all these responses, I'd just have to say ... those of you who speculate on T-Mac & say how selfish he is and all, look at one thing, in Orlando (same team you guys seem to keep throwin' at him), he averaged about 40+ points in that 1st round. Selfish, I think so. And I don't think he let up in the series against Detroit. They just figured out a strategy to stop him, which is exactly what they do to Lebron, D-Wade, Kobe & just about any other high talent. I too, was upset that they gave away a 3-1 series lead, but look at it this way, teams study you for a reason. If you're the scorer, they'll look to stop you in any way they can. And don't be the only player averaging over 15 ppg. Then they'd really get you. mac has developed his game nicely over the years! No, he hasn't grown to the calibur of a "great" player, but I think that's mostly in part to his injuries. As far as being a shadow, He was right to get out of VS's shadow, didn't Kobe want that? Didn't AI want that when Derrick Coleman was in Philly? I mean, come on you guys, you have to evaluate this from all sides! If we keep sayin', "Hey, let's bash Mac for his performance", then what does he show for it? They're up 2-0 against a strong Utah team, so give them credit. My only thing is that I don't want the TEAM to get comfy, not just Mac. So, let's see what'll happen over the next few games. And to the person that made that comment about drawin' fouls by jumpin' into a guy, you're hilarious. I hope you don't think for one minute that it doesn't happen in every game. It's just what players do to get free shots. Wouldn't you, if you had a defense hounding you for the ball? Sucker them in and take the foul!

after game 2, tracy sounded like the same damn egotist he has always been, referring to his team as a "supporting cast" who would help "him" get to the second round. i got news for you, tracy, you are doing well in houston because the TEAM is better. yao is a legitimate star now and you are as much a "supporter" as he is. you'll never win until you learn the team concept.

You held serve! Stop walking around like you did something, you were supposed to win at home...Have two big games in a hostile environment(it gets loud in Utah)and get ready to take your TEAM to the next level.

Oh give me break. All this "Mr. First RRound" stuff is such a tired storyline. He is a great player, he is on a flawed but smart and improving team, McGrady is fine. Stop making it out to be the curse of the bambino or something.

Man, what a bunch of cry-babys on this post. I didn't read anything about being "praised" for going 9-29.... by the way 9-28 is what the article said. There might have been an un-even balance of free throws, but the Jazz should still be thankful that more weren't called as bad as they were pawing at Yao Ming. Boozer is the only great player that the Jazz have. AK has been dismantled by Sloan. Rockets will win the series barring any injury. As far as Arrogance? What athelete doesn't have an oversized Ego? Nobody playing in professional sports THATS FOR SURE!! All you posters that are crying about T-Mac, go cry a river and get over it. He is a great player with lots of talent. Talk about FG% MJ was life-time .497, TM is .437, not that bad for a guard. Your 4's and 5's are supposed to be the high percentage shooters. You talk about the Jazz cold shooting, the Rockets aren't going to shoot that bad all series long EITHER. Should be a close series. Go Rockets.

A couple points to make: 1)T-Mac really is trying to be a team player. He now realizes that's what it takes to win. 2)He is paramount to the team's winning. They won without Yao, however, they didn't win without T-mac. 3)He is the team and the other guys are his supporting cast, however, he always refers to himself and Yao as the team's superstars. In fact he has often said that the ball has to go through Yao in order for the Rockets to be successful.
Now back to what the author wrote about... he better realize that 2 wins do not mean the series is over. He only needs to look back at the Dallas series a couple years ago. His attitude should be about finishing off Utah, not about celebrating holding serve.

For anyone who thinks T-Mac is arrogant ...

He isn't. He hasn't been this entire season. Anytime anyone presses him to say that the Rockets are his team, he refuses. He is always adamant that it is his and Yao's team.

He's only claiming that "it's all on [him]" now because he knows how important his play is to the team's success. You guys need to do your research before you start slamming someone's character.

I think all this criticism of McGrady is a bit silly...what he's done in the past is of little concern as it relates to his actual play in this series.

As for his attacking the hole, quite frankly he no longer has the athleticism to finish at the basket consistently. Anyone who's watched him this year sees it.

McGrady's pure scoring ability has gone down vastly -- yes, VASTLY -- since his Orlando days and even since 2005's series with Dallas. But he's gained one thing -- a very cerebral understanding of spacing, and a great feel for how the defense is shifting on him. It's allowed him to average a career high in assists, and it means he's playing the best basketball of his life, regardless of his lower scoring averages.

Those who attack his 9-29 shooting neglect that he also got to the line 14 times, which in the flow of the offense is equivalent to 7 made shots. Bump it up to 16-36 shooting and it doesn't sound so bad.

First of all yes T-Mac is a great player but he’s not yet a leader. I have been a Houston Rockets fan from the begging with the rockets were a team to be reckoned with. Have we forgot who the Houston rockets are ill tell you who made the rockets who they are Olajuwon, Clyde and Cassel and that’s what the Houston rockets needed to be focused on how to be a team that can compete in the nba. Even if we pass first round that’s not the NBA final we still have spurs, Dallas and phoenix to go through and neither one team I have enough confidec we can beat because they have the one most important key that the rockets don’t they have a starting 4 or 5 who can come out and play some ball all we have is T-Mac & Yao unfortunately that’s not going to cut it and if we should be focused on anything its getting those guys playing rockets basketball im talking about the Rafer the Juwan and , Shane battier we need a consisnat scoring performce from these guys in order for use to advance so if they finals end at Utah then we have won but please just cause we won 2 doesn’t mean we won the serious and T-Mac if there is one advice as a rockets fan I can give you takeeeeeeeeeee the ball in get Utah in foul trouble and then have yao post up and start dishing you guys at the three pointer line and lets close this serious on a 4 sweep lets be the first to make the statement that we are the Houston Rockets and all roads through the NBA finals is goanna too go through Houston baby.

People need to stop complaining that the Jazz didn't get enough calls. The Jazz probably could have gotten called for more fouls. They hack Yao all game and the refs don't call half of it. They didn't even call the intentional foul at the end of the game when the Jazz opened up a gash on Yao's arm. The reason there was such a disparity in the free throws is because once the Rockets (especially T-Mac) figured out that they could't hit a shot, they started taking it to the basket. They were being agressive and got fouled. I hope T-Mac can take the ball to the rim from the opening tip instead of waiting till the third quarter to realize that his shot isn't falling.
The Jazz did not attack like the Rockets did in the second half. Williams got tentative and settled for jumpers. Kirilenko was too busy crying to have any impact on the game. The only person that was being agressive was Boozer. By the way, Boozer did not expose a hole in the Rockets interior defense. He just hit tough shots that he's probably not going to be hitting the rest of the series. I think the Rockets take one in Utah then finish the Jazz off in 5.

Five factoids that may be of some relevance:

The Rockets are 2-9 w/o Mac and 50-21 with him (including 21-10 w/o Yao).

McGrady has the same two scoring titles, is one year younger and is probably going to place higher in the MVP voting than Kobe (who he regurarly outshines head-to-head). Yet he stated recently that the best player in the NBA is "Kobe, hands down."

He also has stated repeatedly that he loves to dump it down to the big man every time he can, as evidenced to his team-leading (and tops in the NBA for a non-PG) 6.5 assists pg.

He shot 29 times because the other two perimeter players (Alston and Head) went 3-12 with 5 turnovers (Tracy had none), most of them open jumpers. Mean while he went to the line 14 times (making 12).

McGrady has the third highest playoff scoring average all-time, behind only MJ and AI.

So, IMHO, Mac had a pretty good game an was one of the key reasons why the Rockets won Monday (and why they have won games all season long and will continue to win games in the post-season). Also, he's far from the conceited prima donna most of you make him up to be.

You guys are freaking HILAROIUS!!! Yao is the irreplaceable piece, Tmac isn't huh? What happened when Yao went out? Who carried this team to the playoffs? And what was the regular season record for this team minus Mcgrady? I'm not gonna give you the answers, but I'll give you a hint. No McGrady = No Postseason. No Yao = Still a winning record. And for the record, Tmac saying he likes his supporting cast is no insult. Why not ask Battier or Alston if they consider themselves McGrady's equals. I'm guessing.... not so much.

tracy has been amazing in this series so far. It is yao and his team, but mcgrady is the playmaker of the team. Every play goes through him first and often winds up with an open 3 for another player. He went 9/29 which isn't very good but as a team the rockets shot in the 30's no one on the team shot well...and no one on the team could get their shot off. Every player would just pass it back and rely on tracy to do something. I doubt anyone on his team is upset he took so many shots even though he missed alot, but when he needed to he came through.

Anyone saying he's selfish should read what Bill Simmons said...whos usually very honest, if you asked any player who they'd want to play with out of other SG's in the league like vince carter or even tmac carter they'd all want tmac instead

Hello, Tracy, I think you did not doing good enough. I really don't think are you are as good a 13s in 35s. Please make your job continuous and work with Yao. You will be the best. A chinese fan.

Another thing...for those complaining about the free throw disparity...

Not all teams are created equal when it comes to how many free throw attempts they earn. Utah is a jump shooting team, and a damn good one by the way. They don't penetrate a lot, and so they don't get an enormous amount of free throws.

The Rockets have one guy (Yao) who gets to the hole 15+ times a game, it's only logical that he's going to end up with 10+ free throws a game.

Tracy Needs Attack The Rim More, So Does Yao. That's the Winning Key.