Its no secret that the Houston Rockets are on one of the biggest winning streaks in NBA history. They are now up to a 19 game winning streak. They are currently tied for the 3rd biggest streak. Tomorrow they face the Atlanta Hawks to try and add another win putting them in a tie for second with 20 wins in a row. This is a game they should win very easily. They also then play Charlotte on Friday which should be another easy win for them. Giving them a 21 game winning streak going into Sunday`s game against the Lakers. Starting on Sunday the Rockets face a tough 5 game schedule. They face off against the Lakers, Celtics, Hornets (who they recently beat), Warriors and Suns. This should be a true test of how good they really are. Im actually getting tired of people saying how during their streak they have beaten bad teams. True they may not have the best records, but the fact is they have been blowing teams out of the water. What is it now 10 games in a row they have beaten teams by atleast 10 points. Three of which were the Nuggets, Hornets and Mavs. The fact is they have still won 19 in a row which a great feat no matter who you play. I`m tired of people saying the only reason we beat the Mavs is because Dirk was suspended. Guess what so was Yao, but the Rockets still found a way to win and keep winning. I`m sorry but the Rockets are the real deal. They have guys who are stepping up big time. They are playing great defense under Adelman. They are also pushing the ball up and down the court which is something the Rockets haven`t done consistently in a long time. Which is two great qualities for a team to have going into the last stretch before the playoffs. They have great depth coming off the bench which is another quality you must have in a championship type caliber team. For a while they were lacking 3-point shooting, but Bobby Jackson and Steve Novak, have stepped up to drill a lot of threes. Just look at the Hornets game where they had 7 or 8 3`s in the second quarter alone. T-Mac is T-Mac and will continue to play at a high level. They have also been getting great production from Luis Scola and Shane Battier. Dont fortget about the deadly elbow in Dikembe Mutombo, who will help the Rockets defensively during the playoffs. Chuck Hayes and Carl Landry provide great defense for them off the bench. What is alos great to see is Rafer Alston playing at the level of an all-star type player. If you haven`t gotten a chance to watch a Rockets game I suggest you do, Alston is looking great right now. Now am i saying they are a lock to win the NBA Finals, no. The West is very tough. The number 9 team in the West is better than the number 4 team in the East. Anyone of the 8 teams that make the playoffs in the West has a great chance to make a strong push for the Finals. Its not only going to be tough for the Rockets but for every team. Everybody wrote them off as soon as Yao went out, but guess what they are still winning and will continue to win. I can wait till the Rockets play that tough 5 game schedule. Just imagine if they happened to sweep through all those teams keeping their winning streak alive. To me sweeping through them isnt whats going to determine if they are a good team or not. Its going to be one of two thigns. The first being, if they do happen to loose a game and have their winning streak snapped, how are they going to bounce back the next game. To me, the next time they loose, they will bounce back strong as if nothing happened and still compete at a high level. The second determination will be their win percentage during that 5 game streatch. Even if they happen to loose a game during tht time, if they can come away with a winning record, it will say alot about the team. The Rockets may not reach the Finals, but T-Mac will win his first playoff series during his career; and the Rockets will definitely atleast contend for the championship.