that looks like a real good rotation, of course when yao is back, this would be the rotation I can imagine taking rox deep into playoffs
props to rafer for stepping up tonight. i rip on him as much as anyone on this board, but if he has a good night than i'm definitely happy for him. hopefully this will get him out of the funk he's been in for the past...2 months. please please please keep it up skip!
wohoo... good job rafer. and now you know that he is better than Tracy Spaniousllis (in his country) and Jl3...
the game before was soooo bad, that Rafer has to act under control for this and next several games. Well, I hope he does the same thing for playoff.
I'll feel that we should all praise Rafer for his performance tonight. The reason for this thread is bc haters like u keep talkin about how rafer sux in basketball and in life. His all around game was good tonight. He shot well, his passing was sharp, his court vision was great, he called a great game, and his defense was amazing. You shouldn't judge Rafer's game just on his shooting alone. His impact on this team goes alot further than his fg%. Rafer's contribution to this team is on defense, playcalling, tempo and flow of the game. He does alot of things you don't see, and choose not to see.
Rafer came up big tonight, hitting a runner and a 3 with the shot clock running down, and getting some nice steals. He might have bad shooting nights, but his defense, steals, and other things is what keeps him on the court. On a side note, I don't know why people think Head's handles aren't good enough...they aren't too bad. Not starting PG level, but they get the job done. Long live T-Mac.
In the words of Rick James CHARLIE MURPHY!!!!! Great post. Some of ya'll need to forget about players personal stats, playing time, and the coach, and focus more on the W column. Last time I checked, we are kicking ass in the toughest conference in the NBA.
This post is 100% accurate. It's fine to rip Rafer for his shooting. It's been poor this season, although his 3-point shooting is above average. But those who say Alston is talentless or who doesn't know how to play simply dont know what they are talking about. Yes, we don't know what we're gonna get from Alston from a shooting standpoint night in and night out. But what we DO know is he'll take care of the ball, make sound decisions, play good, solid defense, and get the ball where it needs to be. Those are in-bred qualities of a PG. You can't teach them. It's no convenience that our offense is efficiently run when he is on the floor. He has two weaknesses: his shooting is hardly consistent and for a high percentage, and his shot selection is questionable a great amount of the time, particularly from 2-point range. But for those two negatives, he makes up for in his decision-making, floor leadership, and just his overall play at the point position. He's been criticized on here, and rightly so. His shooting has been horrific most nights. But the harshness of that criticism is not so deserving, simply because he's one of the most consistent and passionate players on our squad. Unless a player of the calibre of Jason Kidd, Chauncey Billups or Steve Nash somehow becomes available, there's no reason to want Rafer gone because, aside from shooting percentage, he's one of the more reliable PGs in the league. He's always high in assist/TO ration, and you can count on him for at least 12 and 6 every night, along with a few steals. He's a solid NBA point guard. Not great or outstanding by any means. But definitely not poor or sorry as many seem to think.
The rockets should try to get Jose Calderon. We should demand they take back rafer in exchange for him.
LoL. I swear, Luffy must have a set list of sentences in a machine, a random time generator, and a synthesis tool The random time generator pops out a particular time, the synthesis tool picks out 3-5 sentences from the machine, and posts them. We just beat San Antonio. In San Antonio. Without Yao. For the 2nd straight time. And you're complaining.
We've beat them twice at half strength. And if they would have closed out a 19 point lead at home, they would have a 3-0 series lead on them.
You don't think calderon would be better than rafer? He's a very underrated backup pg right now and would be starting on some teams. He is a much better shooter than rafer, doesn't turn the ball over much and has already won a world championship with spain.
Bonzi, yeah I can see that....in a Barkley post up sort of way....they really didnt have an answer. That gives us something to look forward to when he gets into better shape. ....but I cant let go of 13 in 35 seconds. MAN.
I have to speak on behalf of the so called "Rafer Haters". I'll give Rafer credit when credit is due, but I'm not ready to jump on his bandwagon. He had a great game for the most part and actually played within himself last night, and within the flow of the offense. I have no problem with him taking shots with the shot clock winding down, because he's shown a knack for hitting some big one's. Although I'd still prefer McGrady/Yao to take those. He's also the best we have at bringing the ball up under pressure, and I've never doubted his handles. His effort on and off the court is something no one can question. He makes up for his lack of defensive skills with his effort, and the guy really does try to improve when he's slumping. Major props to him for that. However, to say that the offense flows efficiently when he's on the floor is inaccurate. To say that he makes good decisions yet takes bad shots is contradictory. While his effort is consistent, his decision making is suspect most nights. The offense usually flows efficiently when Rafer is on the floor with T-Mac or Yao. When they're both out it doesn't work so well. It did last night because JVG tried different things. First, using Head at the point and running him off pick n' rolls. Second, using Bonzi's post abilities to draw double teams. Third, there was just a lot of movement on offense overall. Fourth, great team defense. Finally, I don't remember any sensible Rafer critic say that they wanted him gone. I've always said that he's most efficient playing about 30MPG. Him logging massive minutes usually leads to his arrant shooting, bad decision making. Last night wasn't the case. I would just like the Rockets to find a reliable backup PG that doesn't mean playing Luther out of position. It would make our rotation deeper and allow JVG to create mismatches with our bench. Primarily I'd like a bigger guard off the bench who can take the ball to the basket. Oh, and Rafer critics are usually JVG critics. They go hand in hand. That's because JVG has refused to reign him in sometimes. If Popovich can tell Parker to shoot less then JVG can do the same to Alston. Great game though.
