http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/lopez/4310037.html Nov. 4, 2006, 12:45AM Alston all Rockets need at point guard By John P. Lopez The three qualities that should be valued most in an NBA point guard are, in order — handle, passing ability and shooting. So why were the Rockets so intent on finding someone other than Rafer Alston to hold the keys of a team so well-equipped in virtually every other way? Alston personifies those qualities in every way. He cannot be considered a premier NBA point guard, but a premier guard would command more shots. That is, take shots away from bigger, more important stars and shooters on this Rockets team. Alston is, instead, what the Rockets need, but apparently do not always want. He keeps the ball on a string, is equally adept at going left and right, drives, splits double teams and breaks pressure. His offensive mentality since his blacktop days, when he earned the nickname "Skip To My Lou," has been pass first. And though you could argue he has yet to become the shooter he should be, Alston has made dramatic steps, knocking down shots, as his second-half effort (15 points) in Wednesday's season-opening loss at Utah would attest. Besides, on a team that features Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady and added nice weapons in Bonzi Wells, Shane Battier and Kirk Snyder, along with shooters Steve Novak and Scott Padgett, what more would you want from the point? Something missing Apparently, something. This will be the most important season of Alston's career, if only because he's been the object of so much rumor and doubt. The Rockets tried desperately to get Mike James in the offseason, before the former Rockets guard signed with Minnesota. When that didn't work out, they signed Greek star Vassilis Spanoulis, announcing early they hoped he would become, "a rotation player" and praying he would. He hasn't. They signed John Lucas III and sent him to the Las Vegas Summer League in hopes of his developing into a rotation role at the point. They extended the contract of Luther Head, a natural off guard they have tried to fit into the point role in the past. They even released Ryan Bowen, a proven role player, to save a roster spot for point guard Bob Sura, 33, whose work toward recovery from knee surgery has been remarkable, but remains a long shot to return. And, of course, come crunch time, the Rockets always have taken the ball out of Alston's hands and run McGrady at the point. Over and over, the Rockets sent subtle and not-so-subtle messages to Alston that he was their man, but likely only until a better option came along. "They were trying to go in another direction, maybe not totally, but were looking for another one maybe to start," Alston said. "I looked at it all summer." With the home opener tonight, it has become clear Alston might not be the Rockets' one and only, but he is the starting one. Equally as clear: Despite the big additions and big stars, the key to it all for the Rockets this year is the immensely skilled, but often-doubted point guard whose status as the starter should be considered shaky. Alston must prove them wrong and somehow find a way to break free from entrenched perceptions and doubts about his game. That whole Skip To My Lou street-ball reputation has hindered Alston his entire career. In truth, on most NBA nights there is not a more deliberate, unspectacular player on the floor than Alston. He's in fact the anti-Skip To My Lou in demeanor and approach. Yet among the shortcomings often rattled off about his game — and he hears them all — are that he has yet to rein in the street ball. Nothing could be further from the truth. The more legitimate doubt might be Alston's abilities as an outside scorer, but he has made strides and scored all his 15 points in the second half in Wednesday's loss, helping spark the ill-fated Rockets comeback. The Rockets keep looking. Fans keep wondering: When's Spanoulis going to be ready? Why doesn't Lucas get some time? If only the Rockets had a better point guard. "People want shooters," Alston said. "People love the scoring point guards. That's the way of the league. You have your (Stephon) Marbury, you have Baron Davis, Allen Iverson. People aren't into the true, natural point guards. Natural point "That's my game. I've got so many weapons. I know how to get them the ball. But the general public might not like that." Here's Alston, who finished 10th in the NBA in assists and eighth in turnover ratio among point guards who averaged more than 34 minutes per game last season. He's still holding the keys. Still often doubted. "I've been among the leaders," Alston said. "Tenth in assists? And they still were trying to find someone else. If you're going to find another one, he'd better be in the first nine." If the Rockets are going to reach a higher level this season, it's not just fans and critics Alston must convince. It's his bosses.
To me, Alston is perfectly fine. We don't need a high profile point guard like Nash, Iverson, Bibby, Paul, or Arenas. All we need is a role player as a point guard, who would distrubute regularly, not wow us with amazing tricks and making jumpers that should've been passes to Yao or T-Mac. On the defensive end, he's actually ok, getting some steals here and there, and as conducter to the Rockets' offense, I feel he can do better at shooting the ball, but otherwise he's fine by me.
What Lopez fails to comment on is, how many of those PGs ranked in front of Alston have the opportunity of playing with one of the most, if not the most yet, dominating center in this league? "The Rockets keep looking. Fans keep wondering: ... Why doesn't Lucas get some time?" Please don't mention JLIII's name along with legitimate PGs. Thank you Lopez. BTW, how exactly does Alston penetrate and break down opponents' defense? Then there is Alston's own defense deficiency ... oh never mind.
We don't need a traditional point. But we do need a guy that will D up,drain the J,and penetrate some creating for his teammates...A hardnosed guy with substance to his game ala Mad Max or Antonio Daniels. Natural point guards are fantastic,but in Rafer's case it's a euphenism for not really doing anything well out there.This is a guy that has mad streetball game,but doesn't translate well to an NBA contender.Don't get me wrong as I admire his hard work in TRYING to improve his shooting. The thing is he just doesn't have the talent level this team needs. The Rockets need a hybrid 1/2 out there...and we have one in Billy,sitting on the bench. Play KB,if he's not ready ship Skippy and get someone here who can do the job on a consistent basis! OMT...I'm not just looking at one game.I've seen this guy throughout his career and he's not it.
Alston is fine at the point. He can bring the ball down the floor quickly and distribute to our guns. He does not turn the ball over. He was 10th in assists last year as poor as our shooting overall was. With a healthy team he can average over 7 assists per game. He is a good playmaker and can break down a defense. He is an efficient p;oint guard. My expectations are lower than the board...
Alton has two deficiencies: Defense and shooting. I don't think he will ever be a good defender. But if his shooting comes around, it will be enough for him to be THE PG we need.
I really like Alston and feel like he fits our team. I think he is a much better shooter than he is given credit for and he will prove that this season. And he is really a great handle. When he is in the game, getting the ball up the floor is automatic. We don't even think about it, and teams don't even try to press us. He's that good with the ball. There are 2 things about Alston that disappoint and cause a lot of us to wonder when VSpan is going to be ready........because VSpan possesses these 2 things. 1. Defense-Alston's D is terrible, one of the 10 worst defensive points in the whole league. He cannot stop anyone out there, they get off the jumper and they penetrate at will against us. This is why a lot of us are interested in VSpan. We see the toughness, we see the quick hands defensively and the quick feet. VSpan has very good potential to be a top 10 defensive point guard. 2. The magical "it". This is the thing that is very hard to describe but it is that magical something (probably some mixture of leadership, creativity, and excitability, to go along with established skills) that provides a spark for an entire team. Something has happened to Rafer's "it". Not that he has ever had a lot to begin with.....but, when he was in Miami, he played with some fire. There was something about his play that was a spark. A little more lip, little more talking, screaming on the floor, after a great play. It seemed like he possessed a greater ability to influence his teammates to play better. I don't see that in his game now. His game just seems to be so mechanical and fulfilling JVG's every request. Maybe he got burnt in Toronto with the confrontations with Mitchell and now he is trying to establish himself as a guy that will do what the coach says and keep his mouth shut, I don't know. But all that fire that he had even in Toronto seems to have seeped out of him. He just seems too passive out there. His play seems to be effortless. I'm sure some of this has to to with his great ball handling ability. When an individual has a great skill, a lot of times, they look like they aren't trying as hard. McGrady went through that. But I think we have all seen enough of McGrady to know when he is putting his heart into it and when he isn't. When McGrady is into it, he gets more animated (eg 13n35 and Shawn retirement party). When Rafer was playing in Miami, he was much more animated than he is now. That is what we see in VSpan's game. We see him dogging it out defensively, scraping the floor, taking charges, not giving a single inch, with a ton of grit. It inspires us watching, not to mention the guys out there playing. If you have played this game, you know what it is like to line up with a point like that that digs defensively and plays that uptempo style. Leadership man. There's just something about it. Can't really be described. But VSpan has it. He is horribly inefficient but his attitude is awesome. And he has that ability to spark an entire team. At some point in the season, when we are down big in a game, I would expect JVG to insert him in an act of desparation and I suspect that he will change the whole momentum of the game......and then JVG will be forced to put him into the rotation. I still want Rafer on our team. And I still don't think we are seeing the best Rafer. I think he has a lot more to give. Hopefully, some of VSpan will rub off on him. And hopefully some of him rubs off on VSpan and we are set at the PG position for the next 6-8 years.
I've said in the past that a major key to this season is Alston's improved shooting. If he was able to be consistent it could really open up the middle. Last season he was a MAJOR detriment to the offense. If we want to beat the best teams in this league, we can't field one-dimensional players. I have to say, that article is really bad. Almost delusional. It sounds like political propaganda rather than an evaluation of Alston. It is a total denial of reality and most of his arguments are completely irrelevant. Alston is a below average defender, extremely bad shooter (to be determined this year), and is another follower on a team desperate for an alpha dog. Unfortunately for Alston, the only player on the team that I believe has a good chance of being an emotional court leader is Spanoulis, who plays his position.
Lopez is implying that Rafer doesn't have the total confidence of the Rockets Mgmt. Personally as I've watched Rafer I've been disappointed. His distribution abiliyt is way overrated. Dean Oliver has broken down the 4 factors to basketball success (on a scale of 1-10 with on how important a factor is on winning a game): (1) Scoring (10) (2) Turnovers per possession (5-6) (3) Offensive Rebounds (3-4) (4) Free Throws (2-3) Passing and assists are important if they result in points. Unfortunately with a dominant center like Yao where we have an inside-out game the passing is even more diluted when the defense doesn't respect your shooting. The inside-out is predicated on not only getting a good entry-pass but also nailing the J when the ball comes back out. As others have stated Rafer is a shooting and defensive liability. This more than offsets any pluses he has from a distribution standpoint.
because it does not help the writers point. Skips defense sucks. I am looking forward to the day when V-Span takes over the point.
I'm actually a big supporter of Alston but this article is complete garbage. Typical from the Chronicle.
I never heard such rubbish in all my life!!!! If Alston is a true Point Guard then he would be getting the ball to Yao Ming. In the last game he made three attempts at passing to Yao when he was in a scoring position. One was successful but the other two were blocked. He isn't a pass first Point Guard and he isn't a good playmaker. His shooting has left something to be desired but with all the offseason prep. he has made we are expecting a much better performance from him, this season. He may be one of the top passing Point Guards in the League but he is only good at passing to other guards or Guard/Small Forwards. As he is so poor at getting the ball to Yao then we should do as Rudy did and have a Robert Hory type player make the assist to Yao from each wing position. Possibly Novak when JVG realizes that he should be in the regular rotation.
it was head who was burned for three straight scores by williams from the end of the third quarter to the beginning of the 4th. not rafer how many give me layups did he have in the game that he blew? and what happened in this instances afterwards? who do you want as the point guard of this team?
If they ever turned rafer loose when Ming goes out, he could avg 8-9 asst easy. Nash is the worst defensive player in the league and has been but no one says anything about his defense in the run and shoot version of nba hoops. Its a reason why phoenix is terrible in defense.
Agreed on the delusional/ propaganda part. Alston's manager could have writen this and it wouldn't be too different. And we only have one game in the season. Also wtf with Spanoulis not being a rotation player? How does he know that? Seem to me he's trying to diss everyone else in favor of Alston. now, for the time being, Alston is what Houston has, and you have to try to utilize your arsenal, but that's a bit too much. There ARE other options and I'm sure VG will realise this, especially if they'll turn out to work well in the court. The game is about who can prevail I'm afraid. It's what the rules of the game are about. The team is more than the units and none is irreplaceable. That said, for all I know Alston might play better next games, but if he doesn't, it's the coaches job(not mine) to see what works for the team.
