Actually, it started with the Rockets not taking Rashard Lewis. Other than the Astros and the Texans' 19-10 over the Cowboys, we have had absolutely squat to cheer for.
Right now I am not sure what to feel - I am guarding my heart very carefully - I cannot take two heart breaks in 10 days span. I must shamefully confess that I want Rudy Gay to be Eddie Griffin bust [I know I am not alone]. Well if Shane "leads" [sic] us to a championship, it will nullify anything Rudy does in his NBA career. I am not sure I can be able to deal with him being a star in this league and in our division and us not having anything to show (NJ and Jefferson has gotten farther in the playoffs than....). For now, I am waiting for the next shoe to drop - what is the worst than can happen to us Houstonians now? Hopefully, the devil will be kind to give us our sould back.
I wonder why the Rockets aren't going after Kelvin Cato. He seemed to work well with Yao, happy to be his backup or helper when pressed into the job at power forward. That seems like a guy we could get sign and trade with the small exception from Detroit. I'd think we have the full MLE offered to James. If not, I don't know who else we'd spend money on, or how we'd use the TE. Is that enough? Not really. If we get James, our roster is : Yao/Mutumbo Howard/Hayes Battier/Bowen Tmac/James Alston/James/JLIII Howard/Alston are still huge disadvantages. We get smoked by the opponent at those positions, we can't defend. We can't run our offense for Yao/Tmac when Howard and Alston's guys collapse on our stars. That leaves Shane Battier to make everything better. I think that's asking a little much of Shane. If James can be the starter at PG, that makes things a little better. If there's any way to get another guy that can defend and play respectably at power forward, that has to be done. It really hamstrings Yao not to have a partner in the front court that can help him.
This is a great post....welcome aboard! On another note....I've read a couple of times on here about us starting Rafer at the 1 and James at the 2. I don't know about you, but I'm not a big fan of this. We all know how James feels about coming off the bench...do we start James and bring Rafer off the bench to do some running with our younger guys? Or do we start the shortest backcourt in the NBA after constant talk of us needing to get bigger in the backcourt? Pugs
We should do like that guy who bartered his way from a paper clip to an 11,000 sq.ft.house: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060710/ap_on_hi_te/paper_clip_to_house_2 We trade a team one of our guys for a slightly better player, then trade that player for a slightly better one, etc., etc., etc. Next thing you know, BOOM! LeBron James is a Rocket.
I bet right now Mike James is feeling good. If Mavs offer the same as Houston does, James is going to Dallas. It never hurts to have a sweet little revenge. Trade Mike James for Rafer Alston? What a joke.
They haven't re-upped Stackhouse yet. I, and this is just a feeling on my part nothing more, think that Avery wants James to be their new 6th man. Stack's very good but he was hurt a lot during the last season and he won't drive inside and score like MJ (which is something they desperately need on the Mavericks). James would represent a big upgrade over Stack and would give the Mavs the same "edge" that Nick Van Exel once gave them. Just my 2 cents...
Not sure if it will make you feel better or not, but I see Rudy Gay being more towards the Griffin side than the Jefferson side. I watch a ton of college basketball, and you can tell when someone has that certain 'fire' about the way they play. Foye had it , Reddick had it, Morrison had it......it's like that fire and desire to not let his team lose (granted, they all lost in the tournament, but that's beside the point). When watching Gay, you just don't see that fire. You don't see that aura about them that makes you think they will take over a game. So, I certainly don't see him doing it in the NBA, especially once he gets those first couple of paychecks. I see him being good at times, but mediocre most of the time (a la Stromile Swift). As far as Houston sports....don't fret. We always have the Dynamo.
Nick Van Exel hasn't driven inside in 10 years. He is a pull up jump shooter. Dallas wants to add James for one reason and one reason only. That is to keep him away from the Rockets. They know we are coming. And they have NO answer for Yao.
What Van Exel gave the Mavs when he was there (and could still play) was mental toughness. His play sparked their run to the Western Conference Finals that year. That's been one of Avery's biggest issues with his team - witness what happened to them when the Heat started bopping them around and the refs let it happen (they started settling for jumpshots). MJ is exactly the kind of player that Avery would want because he's a perfect compliment to Terry at the 2. As Clutch posted earlier, he has that attitude that's missing on both the Mavericks and the Rockets. BTW, they (and everyone else) have already shown how to play Yao: smother him with bodies and force the other Rockets to beat you.
Mike James is one of the quicker guards in the league and is in great shape. He is 31 years old. 31. If 31 is "the wrong side of thirty" can someone tell me what the "right side of thiry is"?
I hope people don't get the wrong idea, I want mike james, but this guy isn't going to save this offseason. and yes I meant he is getting older.
Stack isn't mentally tough??? Jerry Stackhouse gives the Mavs the same mental toughness that James brings to the table. There is only one reason the Mavs are going after Mike James and that is to prevent the Rockets from getting him. They have NO answer for Yao and they can hear our footsteps crawling up their necks. All other trades of Harris and Stackhouse et al. for KMart or whoever are purely reactionary to the possibility of James landing there. They'd rather sign James and move guys with duplicative skill sets to other weaker contenders in a different division in exchange for other skill sets that would better enhance their matchups with the Rockets and the Spurs. They have NO answer for Yao and they know it. This is all going down because Cuban and company know we are coming.
Sorry I had to quote that in bold for the ones that still don't have a clue as to why the Mavericks are trying to get James.
