[Houston Chronicle] McGrady's 30 help Rockets blast off

I guess its Tmacs team now....not yaos.

 

Careful, this might go to T-MAC's head and JVG's ears.

 

nobody on the team (pg\sf\pf) can feed yao at the right place at the right time and coach made the right adjustment in the 3rd game to play t-mac and we won. simple as that.

 

i don't get that either, i thought it was just steve and cuttino that couldn't get the ball to yao when he has great position but i guess its the rockets in general. there must have been about 5-6 times yao got good post position but the rockets opted to go else where. why is that?

 

Yao gets good position, but can't seem to hold it too long. We usually miss this moment and then after it has passed go elsewhere or all too often force it in anyway for the turnover.

 

Yao got the ball in good position a number of times last night. The guy getting it to him was TMac. Watching TMac collapse the defense on penetrations and make no-look passes to the big man was beautiful to watch. The problem is that Yao was blocked on one or two occasions and had the ball stripped at least another one or two times when he had it in the paint area for a turnaround jumper or dunk.

TMac can get the ball to Yao and tried several times last night to do so. A few times Yao got easy buckets because of it, a few other times nothing good came of it.

What glynch says is right to an extent. Yao can get position but has problems holding it. Watch in any game. Once he has his man pinned, he starts to go into spins and moving around to the point he's a moving target that stands still (huh?). Now watch someone like Shaq. When Shaq occupies space, he's there until he wants to move.

Now combine the two points I made above - Yao got his easiest buckets when he didn't have to really establish position and when TMac collapsed or attracted the defense leaving Yao for an easy 2. And TMac is the ultimate threat at this because he can score if you don't collapse on him, he pass if you do collapse on him, and he has the height and athleticism to pass over you.

 

I guess we should expect more of the same.

For those that said JVG was stubborn and not inclined to change,
you were wrong.

Did anyone notice how completely different last nights offense was? not once did T-Mac post up. rarely did T-Mac play off the ball. Whereas the previous two games he played off the ball and posted up the majority of the time. That didn't work. So coach tells Mcgrady to initate the offense. Now all systems go and this teams offense is ready to takeoff. I believe it was the poster JayZ who was right on when he said he would like to see JVG stop micromanaging the offense so much and loosen the reigns a bit and simplify things out there for the guys, and in particular Mcgrady. Thats just what he did. So far it looks like its going to be a success because Mcgrady is as verasitle and smart as the creator can make a basketball player and and its seems the guy has just a lil bit of talent.. a wee bit.. a tiny lil bit.. eh?

 

as for yao holding his position. i do think he needs to do a better job of sealing off his man. he can't do it forever though. i think JVG addressed in a recent interview that there is about a 1 second window to get the ball into the post. we, the team, need to do a better job of executing those passes.

 

You're lucky Clutch hasn't noticed this yet. He's been locking "stories without links" like crazy lately.

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/sports/bk/bkn/2887229

 

You must have been watching a different game then us because the Rockets were getting the ball to Yao. Foul trouble and misplays on Yao's behalf hurt them. Heck, Yao was in position for several dunks in the game.

 

While Tmac hasn't mastered the entrance pass yet, he is already infinitely better at involving the big man in the pick and roll. Set up Yao like 5 times, and Taylor once, not to mention countless open 3's from penetration.

 

I think Yao gets the ball stripped from him because his elbow injury prevents him from holding the ball tightly. The injury might also make it harder for him to jerk the ball upwards, out of a defender's reach.

 

Yao was getting the ball stripped from him towards the end of the season last year, too when smaller guards came around him when he wasn't looking to swipe the ball.

As for the injury making things worse, towards the end of the game when Yao was being handed his elbow brace, he waved it off as if he didn't want to use it. I don't think it's as bad as we make it out to be.

 

Not to mention the first half of the post is nothing having to really do with the article. If you cut and paste, at least take some of the crap out of it.

 

Yao getting stripped is more because he plays small. He brings the ball down to a level that others can come real quick and swipe at the ball. Even when he gets the ball under the basket for a dunk he brings the ball down giving players a chance to knock it down or keep him from dunking it.

He really has to learn how to keep the ball above his waist up high that way no little guard can come by and swipe the ball. That is one of his biggest weaknesses..he tends to just play smaller than he really is.