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Williams-Bullard-KT frontline killed the Rockets in the 4th

Discussion in 'Houston Rockets: Game Action & Roster Moves' started by MManal, Dec 17, 2000.

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  1. MManal

    MManal Member

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    Rudy went with this frontline for a bit during the Golden State game but had to yank Bullard after he repeatedly was torched by Jamison. He went with this lineup once again in the 4th quarter tonight, and the Rockets had a pretty serious meltdown defensively. I understand this lineup is excellent in terms of spacing the floor for the penetrators and works well in the offense, but I feel good defense is what wins down the stretch.

    I refuse to place the blame fully on the guards for Van Exel's parade to the hoop during the 4th. It seems like the threads have already started placing the blame squarely on the guards. Pick and roll defense is not just the guard's job, the big man defender has to "flash" and get back to his man to slow down the ball handling guard just enough to allow his teammate to recover. The problem with a frontline of Williams-Bullard-KT is this phase of the defense is completely nonexistant and guards like Van Exel easily penetrate the lane. Putting Bullard and Williams together on the floor in the 4th is basically asking to get killed on defense. I was disappointed that the support defense on the penetrating Van Exel was completely non-existant and that no one was there in time to step in and make him give up the ball or draw the charge.

    Despite how much people in this forum love to bash Mo, his defense in the pick and roll set is good b/c he is quick enough laterally to flash and recover. He also does a good job of drawing charges in the lane and preventing people from going easily to the rim. If McDyess had not completely melted down in the 4th qtr, the game could have quickly gotten out of hand with this poor defensive unit on the floor. If Rudy goes with this lineup again versus the Spurs, the game will get ugly in a hurry. Can you imagine what Duncan or Robinson would do to Bullard?

    Also, games likes this make it pretty obvious why Rudy wanted Austin Croshere so badly. He would have been able to get the best of both worlds with Croshere. Croshere could have been used on the offensive end to open the floor for the guards and would be a better pick setter than Bullard and then would be able to perform solidly on defense and not allow guards like Van Exel to parade to the hoop. I hope there is somehow still some hope of getting this guy b/c he really fits this team well and would enable Rudy to not rely on this disastrous defensive frontline.

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    [This message has been edited by MManal (edited December 17, 2000).]
     
    #1 MManal, Dec 17, 2000
  2. alaskansnowman

    alaskansnowman Member

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    Yeah I agree with all your points Manal.

    And once Steve twisted his ankle, he just wasnt the same anymore. We needed another scoring option that could create on his own, if Mobley has any difficulties gettin the ball or something. That way we could always keep 2 viable options open. And as you've said before, it's always good to diversify your offense, and we could have used Taylor's scoring in the post.

    I gotta wonder what Mo's thinking. I mean, he played well, played like a true power forward, banged in the post... And what happens? He's benched in favor of Bullard + Walt. I mean, if Bullard was on fire and hittin his 3's, then maybe you should keep him in the game, but Bull was totally off. What does a guy have to do to get some pt in the 4th?

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    #2 alaskansnowman, Dec 17, 2000
  3. silent j

    silent j Member

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    In about 10 less minutes, Bull had 7 boards to Taylor's 5, but you don't have Bull on the floor in the 4th for his rebounding, he was in there to spread the floor and open up the lanes for Mobely and Francis to drive to the basket.
    j

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    #3 silent j, Dec 17, 2000
  4. MManal

    MManal Member

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    silent, Bullard's job of spreading the defense didnt happen too well last night, he shot 1-7 from behind the arc. In essence, Rudy brought in a player for his outside shot that wasnt hitting and ended up being a complete liability on the defensive end. Thats not the point in any case, the point is that the Rockets need a lineup that is not all offense and no defense. Good defense is what wins it down the stretch. Mo Taylor has been playing solid defense of late and was very productive last night; he deserved to be in the game during crunch time.

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    #4 MManal, Dec 17, 2000
  5. Rocket River

    Rocket River Member

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    I was confused by that myself
    WHY DID WALT AND BULL FINISH the frickin'
    game ..Nick would fade to the middle
    the slow weak help would come and BOOM
    someone on the nuggets got a slam

    I would much prefer
    Hakeem Mo and KT
    Was Hakeem and mo hurt?>?
    I mean Walt and Bull play almost all of
    the 4th ...we lost because of lack of
    D . .not lack of O

    Rocket River

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    #5 Rocket River, Dec 17, 2000
  6. Lil Francis

    Lil Francis Member

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    When can we trade Walt? What does Rudy see in him? I would trade Walt heads up for Langdon right now.

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    #6 Lil Francis, Dec 17, 2000
  7. ZRB

    ZRB Contributing Member

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    I think that Rudy is a hard working, excellent coach; however, he has got a very strange idea of what a winning lineup should be. The starters should play in the fourth, with maybe Mobley in for Walt. The Spurs must be licking their chops thinking about that fourth quarter coming up. Bullard at center? Kenny at PF? Come on now! Thats about 3 games that could have been won, but were lost due to these ugly lineups. The third string should not play in the fourth quarter of a close game.

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    #7 ZRB, Dec 17, 2000
  8. GATER

    GATER Contributing Member

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    I am probably in a minority opinion here, but I reviewed my tape of the game twice and just don't see that the lineup was that bad.

    No disrespect intended, but Dream doesn't play a high pick and roll much better than Bullard. Dream and Bull had comparable numbers for the game. Van Excel torched the Rockets because the Rockets as a TEAM defend the high pick and roll poorly. Bull's 3's weren't there but he did a decent job on La Fraentz and had some rebs and a steal.

    I always say it's a team game and I am reluctant to use this line of logic, but if a guilty finger is pointed Cuttino is in the direct line of fire. Van Excel was being guarded by Cuttino most of the 4thQ and Nick was the difference. Also, not including the desperation heave Cat was 1-6 for the quarter. Cat played 38 minutes and avoiding picking up ONE PERSONAL FOUL. I'm not saying Cat should not have been in the game. You expect him to make offensive plays and he didn't. He didn't play D either.

    To blame KT, Bull and Walt for the Denver loss just does not hold up when you review the video tape.

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    GATER


    [This message has been edited by GATER (edited December 17, 2000).]
     
    #8 GATER, Dec 17, 2000
  9. MManal

    MManal Member

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    GATER, compare the pick and roll defense in the fourth quarter to the other quarters. Didnt you think that when Mo Taylor was playing, he did a solid job of flashing to the guard and then switching back to the big man? The problem isnt KT, the issue was having Matt Bullard over Mo Taylor. Taylor was having a solid game at both ends of the floor and deserved to finish it last night.

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    #9 MManal, Dec 17, 2000
  10. ZRB

    ZRB Contributing Member

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    Bullard is a nice weapon if you're trying to come back from a big defecit, or if you're trying to stick a dagger in a team when there is a relatively safe lead. However, Bullard should NOT play when the Rockets are in a tight game and need defensive stops. Neither should Kenny. I like Kenny, but he should not be playing that much.

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    "Rarely is the question asked: Is our children learning how to put food on their family while being put to death."
     
    #10 ZRB, Dec 18, 2000
  11. tycoonchip

    tycoonchip Member
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    We need Anderson in clutch read the board with the subject Anderson in clutch?... oh yeah and i say we have Webber play Pf... oh yeah we don't have him ... or maybe we can throw Mcdeyss oh wait i forgot we took pippen instead of him..... Well our Pf spot is up for grabs I still don't know who i'd rather have up there during clutch time.. i sure as heck miss barkley up there... maybe we can find some magic youth juice that'll bring him back a few years and then put him back at the Pf spot for us... hakeem should be there during clutch because although he's not all that great offensively right now he's sure as heck a defensive threat. I don't wanna hear all that he's old and blah blah blah crap the man is tall and can still move... unless we get another 7' giant who can block and play some great d like the dream i say we still need him in clutch... u think not signing him is disrespecting him what about signing the big fella and leaving him on the bench to rot... i think that's worse!!! he's keeping up with the youth movement he's in love with the game again let him do his thing...

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    #11 tycoonchip, Dec 18, 2000
  12. GATER

    GATER Contributing Member

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    MManal -
    Generally, I agree with Mo in that situation except for one comment. Mo had 27 minutes logged when Bull replaced him about 1 minute into Q4. Bull finished with only 21. As far as inside presence, Mo has only 4 more blocks than Bull in 200 more minutes. Mo has more rebounding potential, but Bull has better rebounding fundamentals (hopefully this will change in the future). Objectively, Mo looked a little winded as he went to the bench.

    ZRB -
    Please read my comment about Mo's minutes above. KT finished with 28 even though he played the entire 4thQ. I can/will give specifics if needed, but KT was solid in Q4 against Denver/McDyess (admittedly, this is not always true of KT'S 4thQ). I agree with your comment about the use of Bull, but in this situation the Rockets had been down by 15 and had expended alot of energy to tie at the end of Q3.

    IMHO, Rudy's flaw is not the specific players used but that (IMO) he tends to stay with them too long. In other words, it's not WHO is used but HOW they are used. Ever watch another game and the coach will use one player for the offensive set and another for D? Rudy just doesn't do this that often. How about something creative like Bull on La Fraentz (Raef was the high screen and roll guy most of the time), Dream on McDyess, and Shandon on VanExcel (SA has a 5" height advantage)? This type of substitution also keeps more players involved mentally.


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    GATER



    [This message has been edited by GATER (edited December 18, 2000).]
     
    #12 GATER, Dec 18, 2000
  13. MManal

    MManal Member

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    GATER,

    Im not talking about the blocks. The main issue I had was that there was no one to help over and step into the lane to even make Van Exel give up the ball. Thoroughout the season, Mo Taylor has shown a tendency to step into the lane and draw charges. On several occassions, I have seen him take the hit and draw a charge in the lane ending an offensive teams play to the hoop. I wish someone, anyone would have stepped into the lane and prevented Van Exel in some fashion from getting so many easy scores.

    I agree 100% with your comment about Rudy keeping in guys too long. I would have had no problem if he had given Mo Taylor a 3 min breather and brought him back in like in the GSW game. Ofcourse, in that game, his hand was completely forced since Bullard was getting torched. If the Rockets had gone with KT and Taylor up front, I wouldve had no problem whether they had won or lost b/c I felt those were the two players that deserved to be in the game. The problem with having Bullard and Williams together is that neither is a good help defender and both have very questionable lateral movement. Thus, if a guard like Van Exel gets by his man off the screen, its easy pickings. The only reason the game didnt get ugly was b/c McDyess was unable to deliver offensively in the clutch.

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    #13 MManal, Dec 18, 2000
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