[RealGM.com] The Atlanta Celtics Make Their Long-Awaited Return In Houston

Look, I don't doubt that S. Van Gundy is a good coach, but just like with P.J. Carlesimo, good basketball minds but with abrasive personalities, that doesn't always work. I think if you're McHale, you let Smith know immediately that he's an extremely valuable addition, that you'll run plays for him as well as having him being a facilitator due to his passing skills. You certainly don't tell him not to shoot 3s and long 2s, but you encourage him to play a more inside game and focus on the defense as it is the team's strong suit. And you let certain things go- if he acts out, you don't make a huge deal out of it... the same approach they used with Rodman (who posed much more of a risk to team chemistry).

 

What most forget is that rox is a veteran team now. Gone are the days when half the team barely exceeded 2 seasons. And for all the grief of McHale lack of coaching, people management is actually his strong point. Go rox!!

 

Maybe Smith will get some work with Hakeem and really enjoy it.

 

This. Look at Rasheed on Detroit. Rodman on Bulls. Jackson on Spurs. Even Artest here. A winning team heals all. And this team could always use a little bit of toughness.

 

I don't really watch Eastern Conference games, except when the Rockets are on the court, but this...

 

He is riding Marbury's coattails tho....jk

He doing fine

 

They overlooked Dmo's improvement on the defensive end but yup pretty much nailed it otherwise.

 

Brandon rush

 

We needed what Smith provides. We no longer have such a weakness on the defensive side at the 4

 

If this same exact team, GM and all, played in LA or NYC we would be deemed the next great dynasty before having won anything. The media would be all over our jock strap. Gotta love JVG who is the only media member who sings our praises.

 

I wouldn't call it "holding out", that's a bit far fetched considering he chose Houston in two days. He clearly knew he wanted to come here. After the reports of the whole best man thing we all knew he was coming here too. It's a business though and he wants to prove that he deserves to start. You don't always have to assume negative things, you have no idea what's going on in his mind.

 

sorry to jump in late on this but i liked this post as a launchpad for a discussion on Smith. from what i have heard, most of this is very true.

However, a couple of things to mention (didn't read the entire thread so i may be late on this too, if so, i apologize).

1) Tracy was being paid to be a leader here. Most expensive guy on the roster, all-star, one of the two faces of the team, supposed to lead in word and by example. Smith does not have that responsibility. In fact he is paid next to nothing by us, and his responsibility is to be a "follower" not a "leader". we want him to fall in line, play a role, and excel in large part because he won't have much responsibility at all.

2) Smith being cut may not be as big a deal from a "cancer" perspective as we may think. It does speak to his relationship with Detroit but I see what happened there as being very similar to what happened with Ariza here the first time around. they were both brought in and paid to play a role that they were not suited for. however, as we have seen with Ariza v2.0 the same player with the same skillset can excel when put in the right context. i am hoping for the same with Smith.

3) there are very few players with smith's skillset (which is ideally suited for this rockets team) that can be had, let alone at such a modest price. we have all been looking for a stretch 4 that's good defensively for a long time. as we all know they are rare, and because of the rarity, are usually highly compensated and unavailable. to be able to get a player like him is a huge coup. the risk/reward is almost unprecedented here.

4) the NBA is like boxing. its all about matchups. until recently the rockets had a terrible time against LAC/MEM because of their size and strength. having an athletic 4 give us a much more flexible big man rotation, which will help with those matchups. also the cuts we had to make to accomodate smith do not weaken us against SAS/DAL, so in terms of matchup versatility its a huge step forward (based on historical precedent, in other words not accounting for organic improvement in Montejunas' game etc).

 

I think he already has a couple of times

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