All those whispers about the Rockets maybe being better off without Tracy McGrady? Whether or not they have legitimacy (another debate for another time), they certainly weren't coming out too loudly last night at the Bradley Center.
More than 200 million fans were privy to last night's broadcast of a game featuring two of the Eastern Hemisphere's most beloved players, but it was a Florida native who gave observers something to remember.
The oft-injured and occasionally maligned swingman absolutely went off on the Bucks, to the tune of 14-for-27 shooting, 33 points, 11 rebounds and 6 assists. That, folks, is a game well played.
It's worth noting that Yao Ming wasn't exactly terrible either, although he went light on the scoring load: 5-for-11 shooting, 12 points, 12 boards, 3 blocks. Not terrible.
Yi Jianlian, on the other hand, may need some more seasoning on the super-duper-international stage: 1-for-10 shooting, 6 points, 7 boards.
Don't look now, but the Rockets have won 12 of 15 and are starting to absolutely torch folks out West. Meanwhile, the Bucks have won just thrice in 13 games. So the featured players of two teams going in opposite directions paralleled those respective trends perfectly. Funny how that works sometimes.