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[ESPN.com] 2008-09 prediction: Artest for Defensive Player of the Year

Discussion in 'Houston Rockets: Game Action & Roster Moves' started by jsmee2000, Oct 28, 2008.

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  1. jsmee2000

    jsmee2000 Contributing Member

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    2008-09 prediction: Artest for Defensive Player of the Year

    [​IMG]
    New Rocket Ron Artest won the Defensive Player of the Year award with Indiana in 2003-04.

    Editor's note: We asked our panel of NBA experts, "Who will win Defensive Player of the Year?"


    1. Ron Artest: 7 votes

    J.A. Adande, ESPN.com: Imagine how aggressive he can be with Yao behind him to block shots and Shane Battier to take charges.

    Chris Broussard, ESPN Mag Ron Artest will lead a great defensive team, and in a contract year, should be on best behavior.

    Chad Ford, ESPN.com: Artest is finally playing for an important team again, and his defense could be what puts them over the top.

    Tim Legler, ESPN: Artest doesn't really deserve the benefit of the doubt, but this is the best team he has played on and they will put up top-five defensive numbers, highlighting his impact.

    Keith Lipscomb, ESPN.com Fantasy: Just imagine how tough it will be for opponents to get clean looks with Battier and Artest locking them down.

    Chris Sheridan, ESPN.com: Just watch how important his D will be in the playoffs. If there is a God, there will be a Kobe-Artest best-of-seven series.

    2. Kevin Garnett: 5 votes
    ...

    3. Shane Battier: 2 votes

    Henry Abbott, ESPN.com's TrueHoop: If you need to stop an elite wing scorer, this is the man you want to call. Tough, crafty, smart and relentless.

    David Thorpe, Scouts Inc.: Houston's D should be suffocating again, and the league will recognize that Battier is "the new Artest," defending multiple positions while being the best help defender in the league.

    T-4. Caron Butler: 1 vote
    ...
    T-4. Marcus Camby: 1 vote
    ...
    T-4. Greg Oden: 1 vote
    ...
    T-4. James Posey: 1 vote
     
    #1 jsmee2000, Oct 28, 2008
  2. ClutchCityReturns

    ClutchCityReturns Contributing Member

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    Yeah, our defense is pretty ridiculous.
     
    #2 ClutchCityReturns, Oct 28, 2008
  3. hokage5

    hokage5 Member

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    Ron first and Shane third. If one of them comes off the bench, we will have a 100% Artest or Battier covering the Kobe Bryants. I can't wait for the season!!!
     
    #3 hokage5, Oct 28, 2008
  4. rajc17

    rajc17 Member

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    why is greg oden even being mentioned on this list, why is ESPN jocking him so much, he hasnt even played a minute of professional basketball yet
     
    #4 rajc17, Oct 28, 2008
  5. J.Will.Xu

    J.Will.Xu Member

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    I didn't see a lot of defense throughout the all preseason games,we gave up almost 94 pts per game if my memory serves me right.

    I know that Shane's been sidelined due to his inflammation on his surgical foot,but come on,our defense sucks during the preseason,I don't think it's gonna be better until Shane's back in the lineup. :(
     
    #5 J.Will.Xu, Oct 28, 2008
  6. abita

    abita Member

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    i vote for shane!
     
    #6 abita, Oct 28, 2008
  7. v3.0

    v3.0 Contributing Member

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    I'm curious to see how Artest will play in a contract year. Will he concentrate more on the offense side to pad stats and kinda coast on D?

    Even though it was preseason and we had Battier out, I still didn't have a good feeling about the D, like our defensive principles from JVG has been slowly forgotten.
     
    #7 v3.0, Oct 28, 2008
  8. abc2007

    abc2007 Member

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    Should be Battier!
     
    #8 abc2007, Oct 28, 2008
  9. GMAC

    GMAC Member

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    Marc Jackson voted for Greg Oden? Are you f-ing kidding me? The guy hasn't even played a real NBA game yet and already, he's considered a DPOY candidate?? Unbelieveable.
     
    #9 GMAC, Oct 28, 2008
  10. Ikorose

    Ikorose Member

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    Battier starts, and gets DPOY.

    Artest gets 6th man.
     
    #10 Ikorose, Oct 28, 2008
  11. Spacemoth

    Spacemoth Contributing Member

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    Look at Ron Artest's steals numbers in the preseason. A lot of that was done without a lot of our starting lineup on the floor. Even in the preseason he showed he was an elite man-on-man defender. Now we'll see how it all translates when he plays significant minutes with our starters.

    I'm optimistic.
     
    #11 Spacemoth, Oct 28, 2008
  12. thacabbage

    thacabbage Contributing Member

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    Steals numbers are not indicative of good defense. He's been gambling alot and gambling correctly. I would rather him just stay at home and suffocate his man rather than try to play the passing lanes.
     
    #12 thacabbage, Oct 28, 2008
  13. ParaSolid

    ParaSolid Member

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    It's his instincts that make him such a good defender. He plays the passing lanes extremely well, and that's something we haven't had in previous years. Battier will play the good position D, Artest can gamble. We need him to create havoc on defense and get us some turnovers because God knows how much we need easy buckets.
     
    #13 ParaSolid, Oct 28, 2008
  14. huflungpu

    huflungpu Member

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    A more general question:

    A lot of credit has been given to Jeff Van Gundy for installing the defensive system of the Rockets, but how long can that continue to last? He hasn't been coaching us for at least a season already.

    Or maybe Adelman isn't being given enough credit just because everyone sees him as an offensive "specialist?"
     
    #14 huflungpu, Oct 28, 2008
  15. rox4lyf

    rox4lyf Member

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    very true, HOWEVER, this team needs easy buckets. With how good our total defense is statistically, we were one of the lowest ranked teams in getting steals. How many times have we seen artest gamble, get a steal, and score in the preseason? At least once every two games. More than I can say I've saw all of last year.
     
    #15 rox4lyf, Oct 28, 2008
  16. Ziggy

    Ziggy QUEEN ANON

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    Marcus Camby
    Ric Bucher, ESPN Mag: As long as Camby's contract hinges on stats and stats drive this award, he'll be a favorite.

    Smartest thing I have heard in 16 years.
     
    #16 Ziggy, Oct 28, 2008
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