What player improvements/regressions have you noticed?

very inconsistent team to say if players have straight up regressed or improved.

but i guess tjones against weaker opponents has defended okay, but i still worry against anyone who has a post game against him, his offence speaks for itself ATM, however perhaps playing dwight has allowed him to get alot more space and the oppositions have focused on boxing out dwight that tjones stats maybe are inflated.

 

DMo has shown flashes but he still has a looong way to go.

Jones is looking like a top 5 pick in the 2012 draft.

Howard is getting his beast mode on.

Asik jumped off a cliff.

 

Garcia is at the age where injuries and Father Time have a good chance of causing a significant regression.

 

Very good analysis, I can't find much to disagree with. Lin is inconsistent. Some games he looks really zoned in and others he seems like he is in a fog. Hard to explain. Other times he starts in a fog and then comes around. Goes from tentative to aggressive in the same game. I can't figure him out.

 

No Aaron Brooks? Hard to compare to last season since he didn't play much for the Rockets, but compare to his the past few seasons playing for other teams, he gain back his shooting touch, seems to be as fast as ever, same great handle, maybe a bit better defensively.

 

I agree with a lot of your post. I think that tjones has really been carrying this team, and he brings it night in and night out. Hes consistent, thats something to be prized. Overall the team is getting better i feel.

One huge regression: free throws

Those freethrow points stack up, and it makes you wonder how many games didnt have to be as close as they were.

 

Rep for you. Aaron is very underrated.

 

thanks for the analysis, helps for us people that don't have CSN and survive on just highlights.

 

one question though: Do they ever run plays strictly for Jones? Seen some great highlights of him making moves or nice passes, but sometimes hard to tell if the play was designed to get him a touch or he was a secondary option.

 

Stream?

 

He's usually a dump off for Jeremy Lin.

 

The whole team in three point shooting has regressed.

Defense as a whole is slightly above last year's.

Our record improved against the Spurs.

Record has regressed against other teams.

 

Occasionally. He'll sometimes get the ball in the paint on a dish from one of the guards(Lin had a great feed to him last night). He gets a ton of points in transition. And once in a while, he'll camp out on the perimeter and knock down an outside shot.

But they don't really run specific post-up plays for him since Dwight and even James now are getting those called for them. T-Jones is really more of a garbage points kind of player. He reminds me a little of Ced Ceballos in the way he can score 15-20 points so easily without ever needing a play drawn up for him.

 

I thought DMo's 1-on-1 defense was not bad at all, it's his help defense that's sub-par. His man defense particularly shines against bigger guys (despite the stigma that he's soft)

 

Sometimes it will look like they drew up the play for him. But usually it's because our offense is "read and react" and he just happens to get a mismatch alone on one side of the court after a handoff or pnr.

 

These players are too young to regress. Garcia is the exception. Still got to give him credit for sticking with the Rockets when he had better offers because he believed in the team.

 

Pretty accurate description.... Although I've never had a problem with an occasional mistake out of being aggressive. If Bevs can stay out of foul trouble, he'll be fine.

Harden's defense seems to have improved greatly in the past month.... I think Harden's problem late in games is the other players think he's going to ISO, and stop moving away from the ball.... I don't think it's a Harden thing as much as a "trust" thing..... He's gotten double digit assists, I don't think he's the "ball hog" some have accused him of being. (I think Harden always had a good midrange game... The coaches are now letting him utilize it.)

Parsons is the best on the team at finding seams in the defense. His regression on defense is very similar to Lin's regression on defense. I don't think the coaches are doing a good job in regard to handling screens. (Could be because we set so few of them.)

The guy has natural intelligence in regard to picking up the game. What amazes me with TJones is he's become a very versatile player. He's going to be a solid starter for years to come, and maybe make a few All-Star teams.

Dwight has been a pleasant surprise... I was opposed to acquiring him, mainly because I was big on Omer Asik, and thought it wouldn't be much of an upgrade.... But Dwight has returned to his Orlando form, and seems to have worked very hard on improving his FT shooting..... Unlike last season, where the Rox stole a game from the Lakers playing "Hack-a-Dwight", the tactic this season has not worked once. Not once. Bravo.

Several weeks ago, I thought Jeremy Lin's confidence was so shot, I thought he'd have a hard time getting another decent game with this team/coaches, and had to be traded as soon as possible. Jeremy has proven me wrong. His will should never be underestimated.

The most encouraging thing about Lin is McHale and company now seem to trust him late in games, even when he plays poorly earlier on. This could be huge. Lin's number one asset is making plays when it really matters.

The big negative with Lin is his defense has regressed. I don't know if he's getting bad advice from the coaches, but I once thought he was borderline elite as a defender.... It seems like Jeremy has been declawed as a defender. I'd personally rather see him try to create havoc and risking an open three by his jumping into the paint than play passive off the ball, often caught in no-man's land. Lin was once at the top of the league in steals.... But not anymore.

I think father time might be taking over.... Not everybody is Ray Allen, when it comes to conditioning.

When he was in Cleveland, he was mainly a rebounder and spot shooter.... With the Rox, his all-around game has surfaced. If he can get stronger physically, he could really become something special.

DMo's footwork has VASTLY improved.... I do think he might have a deadly midrange jumper, if only the system would let him use it.... That would just open up the pick-and-roll options with him. He has gotten a lot stronger physically, and it's making a world of difference.

I was once a HUGE Asik fan.... I just hope he hasn't become "Royce White Lite"............

 

Not really going to evaluate Harden until after the all-star break.

He has played with injuries the entire season so far, especially with his foot and ankle.

His 3 point percentage is steadily increasing however, along with his FG%, so that's a good sign.