There are some things about this team that really get to me. I'm not really concerned really w/ our inability to hold leads, I'm not worried about that, cause if we're getting these leads we must be doin something right. Also not really worried about TMAC, if he's healthy he'll be fine. And I still believe we'll win 50 games, BUT..........this team has a chance to be special, and I believe there are some things really holding us back: JVG inability to make adjustments during a game: Seems like he's a good coach for the initial preparation of a game, seems like we've done our HW fine, thus the leads....but then comes the 2nd half, and when the other coach makes adjustments (ex. SA went small ball on us), we can't come back w/ adjustments of our own. We keep doing the same thing, or worse, completely get out of rythm. Players are almost afraid to shoot the ball seems like early in the shot clock (maybe scared of being yelled at??). I dont know, but the same thing happend vs. Dallas 2 years ago, up 2-0, Avery Johnson made adjustments and we didnt, and promptly lost the series...... Steve Novak and Spounolis: These guys can play ball, we know that. I'm not saying give these dudes starter minutes. But please, I know Scotty the body is a hustler, but w/ Scott hayes out, i'm sure we could find at least 10 mins for Novakaine??? this guy's a stud, one of the main reasons for us to be optimistic in the preseason.....As for Billy, he's a mini Sura, I'm sure he'd bring something to the table to help us avoid blowing these incredible leads? Maybe 10 mins for him? Wells. Come on JVG, u knew he was a knucklehead and knew he'd act like on probably. So if you werent going to play him for being one, then y did u guys even bring him in? Wells needs to stop acting like a kid and JVG needs to stop treating him like one. Play ball man!!! this team has potential! The reason for us to really believe in this team in the offseason was the rookies, Battier, and Wells. Seems like JVG is in love w/ Battier, and rightfully so, but come on, give these other dudes a chance. Its still early, and i know regarldless of who plays, we'll win our 50 games. But perhaps i just have higher expectatioins than just the 4th seed and the second round.....
I agree i question JVG's coaching. I also question TMac's heart and passion. There's a lot of things I question. If we make it to the second round this year then i'll be satisfied.
i agree 100% about bonzi he is a pro. he is a very good player. forget about him being in shape. tell him i'm gonna give you as many minutes as you earn. go out there and score, rebound and defend, and i won't take you out. i bet he gets his fat ass in shape then. and during the mean time before he's in shape tell him you're losing minutes because you got tired out there or that guy beat out off the dribble. i bet he gets in shape then.
I love this team.. but JVG doesn't know rookies exist I love this team.. but our rookies will never improve ^^ I love this team.. but Padgette gets too many minutes I love this team.. but Yao will never dominate (jk ) I love this team.. but Scotty Quitten is a loser
The Rockets have the worse PFs in the league. The Rockets PF situation is Scott Padgett, a guy who every other team cut, and Juwan Howard, who still thinks he can score on the low block. Why is Padgett in the game if he's afraid to shoot? Last night, he got the ball wide open at the 3 and decided to swing it to a covered Luther Head or try to force it into Yao. Isn't his job to make open 3's? That's the only thing he's good at, and he wasn't even trying. How come Juwan is such a black hole when he gets the ball in the post? He has no moves, his hook shot is flat as hell, and he never gets an offensive rebound. Makes you wonder why the Rockets can't get even a Wayne Simien or something via trade.
I think the 4th quater is simple... JVG just says NO one shoots a ball farther then 15 feet out.. better yet... drive the ball in even if u get a charge... for the guys shooting 3 balls.. easy way to get your defender in the air... is to fake a 3 pointer and the drive to the net... after 3 quarters of shooting.. hell id rather see 8 charges in a row... then 8 jump shots...
that's the one thing missing from our team. a great slasher. yao can score from th epost. tmac can score from the outside. we need someone who can get into the paint and either finish or draw fouls. tony parker is the best in the league at it. we need someone like him.
tmac can be a great slasher at times.. i see vspan be a decent slasher. synder can go to the hole strong too.
yes but besides tmac, those other guys don't do it enough (obviously vspan never plays) to be considered a 3rd option. i didn't mean we need a role palyer who can slash. we need a player who can get 15-20 ppg by slashing. a third player who averages like 8 free throws a game. someone who can get the defense in the penalty early.
I agree with the premise of this post. This team with a healthy Yao and T-Mac can win 50 games even if Bonzi does not play 1 minute the rest of the year, Spanoulis and Novak are permanently glued to the bench all season and Alston is still playing nearly 40 MPG at the point. Problem is, in that scenario, this team will be the 5th seed in the West as it was 2 years ago and will likely face another first round exit as it did 2 years ago to the Mavericks. As great as Yao has been this year, this team simply does not have the weapons to advance past round 1, (even if T-Mac is the same player he was two years ago), without Bonzi becoming the legit third scorer. The only other way around this is if Luther Head develops into a combo guard that averages 15-18 PPG and can move into that third scorer role. Imo, the odds of that happening are about the same as the odds Reggie Bush ever becoming a Pro Bowler. I dont disagree with JVG's benching of Bonzi for being out of shape, but the reality is that this team is nothing more than first round fodder without him performing at a comparable level to last year with the Kings.
that is exactly what I was thinkning. Rockets need to go inside in the fourth quarter. they take too many outside shots in the fourth. I would also like to see Novak get some minutes, I really think this kid is more expereinced.
well said. this team needs a 3rd scorer. the best fit would be someone who could really lead the second unit. someone who could be a slasher to take advantages of the rule changes. someone who can hopefully keep quick guards out fo the paint.
Does anyone else think we're a couple of years behind where we should be? We should've been 50 wins and 2nd round 2 years ago (loss to Dallas)......and last year we should've built from that, but hey, **** happens.....but this year should be the year we make a leap, go from pretender to contender, and w/ the talent we have, it could happen easily.......even JVG cant hold us back from 50 wins and 2nd round, but I think he has almost as many issues as TMAC does right now, and if he solves them, and trusts his players more, we could go much much further
I agree: We do need someone IN the game to do our slashing. Having VSpan on the bench is not helping him or the Rox. Bonzi is a slasher. How long does it take to get in shape enough to play 10 minutes at a time, unless you are seriously injured. This is a coaching problem, not a player problem. Someone's hard head need to get knuckled.
bonzi is a knuckle head anyway. i wouldn't mind trading him and juwon for something. bonzi's bargain basement salary will help move juwon's contract. we could probably get a solid bench contributor for the two of them. i would like to get a F/C that can sub for hayes and replace deke when he retires. someone like etan thomas would be perfect. the guy gest 2 blocks a game in 22 minutes. adds 6 rebounds. hustles and defends. he has a terrible contract but you know what? we're in win now mode right? as far as a 3rd scorer/slasher...i think that has to be a PG. we need someone who can get into the paint at will and also keep other guards out.
What I observed was a combination of things that lead to our collapse. 1. Guards' inability to control the tempo 2. Horrible primeter defense 3. Some bone headed plays 4. Yao's stamina problem 5. Panic mode once big lead dwindle by half, and down hill ever 6. Tmac's fading impact to take over game I am not too worried about 3,4,5 because those can be corrected fairly easily, like rest Yao a little more in the game. Tmac is tamc, so he will be back in no time. We do need to address 1,2. I dont like Alston play making decision at critical streches. The guy tends to lose his cool when things start to overwhelm him. I am not saying he is not a good, I am just telling what I saw on the court. This is a mental weakness thing. We could use VSPAN at these times, because he seems to be everything opposite to Alston in those times.
I didn't realize losing Hayes would hurt us as much as it has. He can't hit a jumper to save his life (actually I've never seen him shoot one), but he gets all those easy layups by moving without the ball so well. Add his defense, bb-IQ, and rebounding, and you can see a player that is basically a Battier w/out the shooting. Also, looking at the alternative, Howard, makes him that much better. I bring all this up because I think with one less player, everyone is assuming that we would start seeing some of our rookies on the floor more (or at all). The only reason I can think that we haven't seen V-Span is that he doesn't quite fit the team's mold right now. He's a slasher/scorer and not a shooter. We already have one of those in a bigger version in Snyder, and with Tmac and/or Yao on the floor, we need shooters (hence the Padget sighting, and seeing Head on the floor even though he can't handle the ball very well at pg). Until V-Span can show JVG that he has the range in practice or maybe by kidnapping JVG and forcing him to watch him hit 3 after 3, will we see him get signifigant minutes anytime soon. Novak on the otherhand makes little to no sense at all. He has a shot that few can match. I can only assume that Boozer abusing him in the first game is the reason we haven't seen him lately.
Remember JVG said offseason Vspan is just a second round pick like everybody else. He will get his PT like everybody else. It's up to Vspan now to impress JVG in the practice now, because that little head is one conservative one and not necessarily bad.
HeyDude, I agree with most of your observations, I feel the same way. I see enormous potential, but there are missing pieces. Hayes for one, hopefully he comes back at full force. Wells could make a HUGE difference. Two things we need are sitting on the bench: heart (VSpan) and shooting (Novak). Novak's rebounding and defense looked no worse than Howards in the preseason. VSpan showed me more aggressiveness and effectiveness defensively than Alston. Alston is shooting better, but he still fades in the clutch. He is too small and frail to bang with the bigger guards. I see him as a bench player, always have. JVG's neuroticism really buggs me. He appears very rigid, inflexible, stubborn. I don't know him so, I am not sure this is correct. This team is not far away from being very, very tough. Considering the schedule, 6-3, pret......ty good.
