I keep hearing people say that we need improvement at the 4 spot in the offseason. I disagree and think that we need better shooters and that such improvement would benefit us much more than splitting our efforts. If we used the draft (pick or trade) along with the MLE, we could add two good shooters to our team without even considering trades. Given that our shooting was what kept us out of the playoffs this year, I think that our PF spot is set. PF Stats (Howard and Swift): PPG RPG APG SPG BPG 20.1 11.1 1.9 1.18 .88 The only weakness there is blocks and I don't hear anyone clamoring for a defensive PF, everyone seems to think that we need some kind of offensive and rebounding beast. However, I believe that 20/11 is pretty good production from the 4 spot and further believe that Howard and Swift can do it again, if not better, next year if TMac comes back healthy. We need shooters, not a PF. Discuss.
I think those stats are a bit misleading, andy. If you go by the impact those two have on a game, night in and night out, it's pretty patheic. I'm not disagreeing with you about needing shooters, because we clearly need them and better perimeter play overall. With Tracy healthy, obviously, he cures a lot of that, but we don't know what we'll get from him next year. I just think we have a big hole at the 4, as well. Damn, we need a lot, don't we?
We are averaging 17 points and 10 boards from our PF slot. Some of those numbers for Swift and Howard are garnered when they are playing together, a more common scenario than Swift playing with Yao. All the same, I'd rather have Ming and Swift or Ming and Howard than Swift and Howard playing together. Anyways our total production from the PF slot is 17 points and 10 boards, very mediocre at best.
It's not as glaring as SG situation, but it's negative nevertheless. If you can rebound better, I will be a lot more satisfied. Net Production by Position FGA eFG% FTA iFG Reb Ast T/O Blk PF Pts PER* PG -2.5 -.016 2.3 0% 0.2 -0.6 -0.3 0.0 -1.1 -4.8 -5.0 SG -4.8 +.002 -1.4 -1% -1.4 -0.7 0.2 -0.2 -0.9 -5.8 -5.1 SF 3.0 -.027 1.2 1% 0.1 1.6 -0.3 0.2 0.1 2.6 +1.8 PF -0.9 +.009 -1.3 7% -1.0 -0.9 0.1 -0.5 -0.5 -1.1 -1.4 C 4.2 +.039 2.1 10% 2.8 -0.2 -0.9 0.1 1.0 7.6 +6.8
our guards are EFFIN Weak. Poor shooters, and not all world defenders. Atleast with Bruce Bowen, u get a 3pt shot and hella tight defense. I'd like a pf as our 2nd priority of the offseason for sure though. We gotta have someone watching Yao's back and keep him from gettin easy fouls at the same time watching the paint. We need atleast another offensive threat to open up our offensive scheme, because god knows we can only play 1 post and kick out to 3 point shooters. It's not like we couldn't open up the lane a bit and have cutters to the hoop.
The thing is, Howards pretty much unmovable. His contracts pretty bad for a few more years and he's not getting any more spry. Swift is movable but we'd be more likely to move him for a 2 or in a package deal. Then youre basically asking who's Howards new backup or who can we get to start. Either way, I think we're stuck with Howard.
I disagree. Howard had a BIG impact on games where Yao and TMac both played. When defenses sagged off of those guys, he was able to hit the 15-18 foot jumpers consistently. Even the stats where he claimed that SS and JH got 17 and 10 look pretty good to me. I would venture a guess that the entire PF rotation in '95 was nowhere close to those numbers, but with a center that defenses had to double and great outside shooting, Chucky Brown was an effective starter. I'm not saying that I wouldn't take an upgrade over SS or JH. I am just saying that those two guys can hold down that spot if we have some good shooters to surround them with.
I completely agree with you that we need to focus on getting consistent shooters (JJ Redick hopefully).. but you cant ignore the huge hole in the 4 position .. I mean, Howard ?? do u consider him a player ?? Howard cant play worth a **** .. he cant rebound, he cant block, he cant pass quickly (I always go crazy because he fakes 4 times before he passes even if he doesn't have a defender on him).. howard is a descent Euro League bench warmer.. I dont know why we are keeping him.. I know that Swift is not that much better, but I'd rather see Swift messing up instead of Jho.. at least Swift can give u a couple of crazy dunks every game... I said that on the other board and I'll say it again, Swift needs minutes to improve.. he has good basic structure of a PF (athleticism, crazy hops..) all he needs is some experience ( I know he has been in the league for 5 years but well..) and a starting role.. I think we should try to start him now in the end of the season to see how he plays .. if he plays well and he puts effort, we should keep him..if he stays like a dumb a**.. lets trade him.. I've seen him start a couple of times and He did pretty good..he had fire in his eyes and he was actually putting effort...and when he does put effort, you better watch out and get outta his way..
it's not the PF's job to hit 15-18 foot J's.. I can hit them if you want but I am 5'6... his name is Power Forward, that means he rebounds, he dunks, he blocks, he sets good screens... I think the best PF we have in this team is Chuck Hayes.. he is the only one who matches the PF qualities except that he is too short...you can consider Swift but he needs to work on his attitude and effort in the game of basketball... but Jho is nothing .. he has absolutely on role with the rockets and I believe that if we had him last year we wouldn't have gone to the playoffs.. yes, I think Padgett did a better job..
Howard big impact? His jump shots are as inconsistent as you can get. On a good day you see 8/14, on a bad day you see 3/13. Last night, 20 points on 19 shots. Over 50%, but not effcient. 51% TS percentage is below league average. Maybe rest of Rox players shot even worse make you feel Howard is a good shooter. Don't want to start talking about his D, because there is none. That being said, I agree peremeter defense and perementer shooters are even worse.
Not to be Pessimistic, but the Rockets could use an overhaul at every position besides Small Forward and Center. A young, healthy backcourt are needs that should be addressed as well as the PF position. Howard was a serviceable PF, but he'll only be a year older next year. As for Stro, he gots to go. If there is any type of market for him, package him with maybe head to get another player of quality value. I wouldn't mind seeing a complete roster overhaul (outside of Yao and McGrady) come next season.
Statistical production, by position, for Rockets and opponents: http://www.82games.com/0506/0506HOU5.HTM Like others have said, PF production is weak (neither Juwan or Stromile can be considered solid starter-quality PFs), but our biggest problems lie elsewhere. Yeah, we're not a good shooting team, but more importantly we're an unathletic team on the perimeter without good size and passing ability. Aquiring some good shooters that are undersized and can't defend well won't really help us that much. And Juwan Howard is, by far, the most overrated Rocket by the Rockets organization and Houston media. It makes me sick whenever Drexler or Bullard go on about his "professionalism" and how he's be "great" all season. Juwan Howard is a substandard PF by any measure. He's a great guy with a good work ethic, I'm sure. But he's also overpaid and probably doing more harm than good for the Rockets overall. Stromile Swift had a terrible season (his worst in a while), but he probably can only get better next season. Juwan Howard, on the other hand, is on a steep downward trajectory. It's unfortunate that Howard is the least movable player we have on our roster.
The Rockets will never win a championship with Juwan starting at the 4, or with Juwan as a key member off the bench. That, andymoon, is why the Rockets need improvement at the 4.
why can't all Rockets fans see what RocketMac sees? Juwan doesn't rebound well, doesn't block shots, doesn't move like he used to. If his best asset is that he can hit the 15-18 footer consistently, then that shows how bad a shape the Rockets are at the 4. If Juwan had any value whatsoever, the Rockets would still in the playoff hunt. He may throw up a 20+ point game every once in a while, but they are the most ineffective 20+ points. We lose everytime he is the leading scorer.
I saw three plays last night where Juwan threw up the 18 footer while Yao was trapsing across the low block side open at the lip. If Juwan wasn't in there taking that shot, we would be going down low.
Hayes isn't too short, if he's able to do all the things you mention better than Juwan. In what area does Hayes' height make him worse than Juwan? He doesn't shoot the jumper as well, and maybe he's not quite the ball-handler. That's about it, and they don't have anything to do with his height. He rebounds, blocks shots, and post defends significantly better -- and that should be enough for him to get more minutes.
I personally don’t think we need that “ long term solution at the 4 “ that everyone is clamoring for. In this system, it’s just not what I consider particularly crucial to our success. Production-wise, Howard and Swift are giving us about the same production at the 4 as the power forwards on all of Van Gundy’s teams. 10 points and 6 rebounds is the norm. It would be a waste of resources if the Rockets concentrated too much on upgrading at the 4 when no matter who we get, the production is not going to be much more than what we’re getting from Howard and Swift. We don’t need a power forward that really talented and has a lot of skills. Maybe someone a little more athletic than Howard and a little more skilled than Swift, but a huge upgrade is not needed. The same can’t be said about the backcourt. We need a huge upgrade in talent in the backcourt. We need to get taller, more athletic, more playmaking, more ballhandling, more shooting, and more slashers. Plus, it’s much easier to hide weaknesses at the 4 than it is to hide weaknesses in the backcourt. The Rockets should just stockpile as much young backcourt talent as possible this summer.
