Rockets won't win many games playing this way. Your 40-minute PG is shooting 16.7 FGA per game at 32%with only 2.3 FTA per game. .... that is horrible no matter how you look at it.
With Landry emerging like he is, I really don't see Hayes starting for that much longer. The question is, who do you start?
Where the hell are you getting your stats from? Here is the ACTUAL stat line: GP: 39 MPG: 33:53 FG: 4.5-11.3 FG%: 39.6% 3PT: 1.7-5.2 3PT%: 33.5 FT: 1.1-1.7 FT%: 63.6% RPG: 3.2 APG: 5.3 TO: 2.1 STL: 1.3 BLK: 0.2 PPG: 11.7 So...you were wrong about every single stat. THAT is horrible no matter how you look at it.
dont you know it is more convenient to just make up things? rafer takes enough criticism (just and mostly unjust) without people having to flat out make up stats
I guess we could argue about the semantics of it all, but my point about Rafer was that he has been a consistent contributor to this team for over a month now. Individually, he's already "turned that corner." You're going to criticize his play in games that we WON? When you watch the game, he doesn't just hog the ball and shoot it. Adelman's system just has things open up to where he SHOULD shoot in certain situations. You can look solely at his FG% for these past 3 games, but what about the assist #'s? 6.7 APG is nothing to complain about. In that span, he's also made 15.3 PPG and 8 threes. Seriously, how can you complain? Not only did we win those games but he still played fine there. Rafer shouldn't and doesn't take the most shots on our team. He runs this offense well and takes the shots that he does need to take. What exactly are you blaming him for? Being a ball hog? Again, if you watch the games, it's clear that he's not shooting just to shoot it. They're situational. Believe me, it's not hard to find something wrong with any player if you really look for it. So what is it that you want? For Rafer to have a 50% FG% (including in the last 3 WINS), 10 APG, 3 SPG, 0.3 TO per game, make 3 threes per game, and shoot only 10 times? Be realistic. So many fans want their team to have the best center, SF, PG, PF, and maybe a good role player SG. Meanwhile, their owners want to stay under the luxury tax. Well that's not going to happen, and it doesn't need to happen. Rafer's making about $4.5 mil this year. His production is DAMN GOOD for that, but more than that, he's contributing to this team and facilitating the offense well. You can find flaws and point them out, but give credit where credit is due. He's had to deal with rumors of trades all offseason and season-long. He didn't think he was going to play on this team, much less be the starting PG, before the season started. The vast majority of members on this board hated him. Many still do. Yet, he's produced and proven to be the best PG for this team. He's not Steve Nash or Chris Paul. But give him some credit.
Good post, but Hayes is consistently undervalued imo. He is just huge for defense. Yao and TMac can make the game easier for others at the offensive end, Hayes does some of the same on defense. But when our shooting goes to sleep, we can't afford the luxury of Hayes on the court until RA finds some hot hands.
They are situational because HE SUCKS. Teams dare him to shoot because HE SUCKS. Opponents wants him to shot more and more because HE SUCKS. Except facilitating the offense well, HE SUCKS AT EVERYTHING ELSE. He's the best PG we have but still HE SUCKS. He does not exactly make plays for others because that's T-mac job. I feel hopeless every time he put up a shot. He has no business to pull up fast break jumpers. He has no business to try his floater. He has no business to play over 40 minutes a game. Over a 7 game series, he will be again and again exposed because he would only get hot (lucky) once for every 5 games. We are like 2 on 5 on offense with him, Hayes and Battier. Is it his fault? Not entirely considering his salaries. But he plays so much that he's the easy target. We invested 13M (Alston, James and Francis) on the PG position and their production have been horrible. That could be max money for a superstar. Brooks is our only hope now. We're going nowhere with Alston playing over 40 mins, that's for sure.
So far as creating his own shot Brooks is able to, by penetration and speed. And not only does he look good driving to the basket but he also uses that penetration to create opportunities for his teammates. Rafer is perfectly acceptable. He's mediocre. He's the best the Rockets have right now. But if they get a chance to move up, by a trade maybe, then they should seize that opportunity with both hands. If they want to get anywhere in the playoffs they probably want better than mediocre at the point.
Classic example of someone that goes based on preconceived opinions and emotions of a player, rather than looking at statistics and reality. There are people that will hate certain players regardless of their production and their contribution to the team. For people like this, the word "SUCKS" makes for evidence and argument than actual statistics and results...*sigh*
We should also go and get Tim Duncan to be our PF. I mean, Scola is a mediocre player and if we can, let's go and get one of the best PF's in the league. Maybe we'll just settle for David West? I think we could use Rip Hamilton at SG and put T-Mac at SF. That way, we won't have a mediocre SG. Actually, here's what we should do...we should try to get Lebron for T-Mac. He is younger, more upside, will get injured less, and can lead us past the first round of the playoffs. Then, as dragon617's pointed out, we can trade away the salaries of SF3, Mike James, and Rafer and maybe get a superstar PG like Steve Nash. He only makes between $11-$12 mil per year, so we'd be saving Phoenix some money. Let's keep Yao...he's pretty good...but if you really want to get better and improve that position for the future with a guy that will take no prisoners, we could get Dwight Howard for him. Problem solved.
Rafer played 40 minutes because Brooks was a defensive liability on those PnRs. Brooks came in early in the 4th and Adelman was hoping to let the rookies play but the Sonics started pulling away so he came back with Rafer after a single timeout.
I'd actually say that Scola is way above average. Yeah, he's had some shaky games but this is his first year and he's got to make adjustments. I think a lot of the problems the Rockets have had in the past at the PF spot will be addressed by Scola and Landry. Alston is no Scola. The glaring weakness in the Rockets' rotation is at the PG position. Alston is no Nash. That's fine, Nash is one of the elite. The problem is that he's not even a pretty good second tier PG. He's mediocre, and if the Rockets want to get anywhere they need to address the weak spots. Right now the glaring deficiency is at the PG position. I don't know if the Rockets can trade up before the end of the season. That's fine. But if you're stuck with Alston then you've got to make the most of a bad situation and make sure that he shares minutes at the PG spot. That means that Brooks has got to get playing time.
The only contribution to the team that Rafer provides is the ability to get the ball to Yao in the post. People dont hate players regardless of their production. People hate players because of what they fail to produce. I hate the fact that Hayes is an offensive liability. How often does the guy need to get blocked by the bottom of the rim before he gets benched? I hate the fact that our star sg/sf earning 20 million a year cant hit free throws. I hate the fact that luther head's only redeeming attributes are his wide open shooting and his cutting. Every other aspect of his game is far below average. Whether you like it or not, when a player is hated, he has generally earned that hate. Its not a result of preconceived opinions and emotions.
That's fine. In a perfect world Brooks would be able to play for entire quarters, even the fourth. Sometimes that's not going to be possible. What's essential though is that he sees at least 15 minutes a game, IMO. Adelman's impressed me with his commitment to developing the rookies. He's played Brooks for the entire fourth quarter in some close games. Here's hoping that happens again.
Oh, and one more thing. When Brooks sees his minutes it should be while T-Mac's on the bench. Let him get some practice at running the offense.
You clearly have not read my other posts...this is what I get for trying to argue with some logic. "Whether you like it or not, when a player is hated, he has generally earned that hate. Its not a result of preconceived opinions and emotions." <- If only that were true...
