A One-Man Show No Longer

Looking to Win His First Playoff Series, Rockets' McGrady Puts Trust in Supporting Cast

Tracy McGrady entered the playoffs last season with a defiant, three-word pledge: "It's on me!"

After the Houston Rockets lost the series to the Utah Jazz in seven games and his record dropped to 0-6 in career playoff series, McGrady exited with a tearful, three-word whimper: "I tried, man."

McGrady won't make any bold declarations this time around, he said recently, because his teammates have proven to him -- through an improbable 22-game win streak and continued success with all-star center Yao Ming sidelined with a broken foot -- that he doesn't have to carry the load alone.

The Rockets open the first round of the playoffs this weekend and will again face the Jazz.

"I think last year, I really tried to do too much," McGrady said. "This year was just understanding you can't do it by yourself. I don't [care] how good you are. I kind of took a couple of steps back and allowed these guys to do a little more. They came through, with me not really going out there trying to score every time I get the ball. That wears you out."

But while his teammates have freed him of that burden in the regular season, the Rockets need to win their first playoff series since 1997 for McGrady to escape another burden: a reputation that the seven-time all-star can't get the job done in the postseason.

Rockets Coach Rick Adelman said that label is unfair and off-base. "People that say that are just wrong. This is supposed to be a team game," Adelman said. "In this league, they talk about really good teams, like Detroit or the Spurs. Yet when someone doesn't succeed, they talk about individuals. C'mon. I don't buy that."

Adelman pointed out that people often overlook how McGrady actually raises his game in the playoffs. McGrady averaged 28.8 points, 6.6 rebounds and 6.1 assists in 32 playoff games, which is better than his regular season averages in the six seasons he made the playoffs (25 points, 6.6 rebounds and 5.1 assists).

The only season McGrady made the playoffs and didn't see an increase in his scoring average was 2002-03, when he led the league in scoring at 32.1 points in the regular season and averaged 31.7 points in seven playoff games. "That means you stepped it up to me," Adelman said.

Among players with at least 30 postseason games, McGrady ranks fourth all-time in scoring average behind Michael Jordan (33.4 points), Allen Iverson (30) and Jerry West (29.1). "That's why every time somebody asks me about the first round, I'm like, 'You look at my numbers, it's not like I'm having a bad playoff experience,' " McGrady said. "Look deeper than that. We're not playing tennis out there. I'm not out here by myself. I wasn't blessed to play with Shaq. I wasn't blessed to play with Tim Duncan. People forget about that."

McGrady reached the postseason three times in Orlando, even as Grant Hill was sidelined each time with injuries. He arguably had his best opportunity to win in 2003, when the eighth-seeded Magic took a 3-1 lead over the top-seeded Detroit Pistons. He made his infamous statement that it was "nice to finally be in the second round" -- and the Pistons won the next three games.

Boston Celtics Coach Doc Rivers, who coached McGrady for more than three seasons in Orlando, said pushing the Pistons to seven games that season was an accomplishment in itself, considering that the Magic started McGrady at small forward, rookie Drew Gooden at power forward, Andrew DeClercq at center, Darrell Armstrong at point guard and Gordan Giricek at shooting guard.

"Tracy got killed because we lost to a team that ended up going to the Eastern Conference finals?" Rivers said. "He's had no playoff shortcomings. His team has had playoff shortcomings. I'm pretty passionate about that with Tracy. Tracy McGrady has not been on teams that have been better than the other teams."

McGrady has never entered the playoffs higher than a fifth seed, including last season, when his team had home-court advantage for the first time in his career. (The Rockets had a better record than the Northwest Division champion Jazz.) "That was his one opportunity," said Rivers, whose current star player, Kevin Garnett, lost seven playoff series before finally getting a win. "Other than that, his team has not been the favorite. They may not be this year, but he's going to get it done one day."

In each of McGrady's two playoff appearances with the Rockets, the team led 2-0 before losing in seven games. "You get to Game 7 and it's all about who wants it the most," McGrady said. "Every time, my team came up short."

Although he is teamed with another all-star in Yao, McGrady said he still felt pressure to create shots for his teammates and himself, which led to his "it's on me" comment last season. "I meant that," McGrady said. "If you looked at our team last year and how it was structured, who was out there to create shots for our team? I don't even know who we had. I had to put it on my shoulders to make those guys better."

But the Rockets have won more with McGrady doing less this season -- his scoring average is its lowest in eight seasons -- and his teammates realize that it may have to be more of the same in the postseason. "He has to have a supporting cast that's willing step up and play and match his intensity," Rockets reserve guard Bobby Jackson said. "You know what he's going to do when the playoffs come. We have to have his back."