ClutchFans Rockets Draft Thread (Rockets select Luther Head at 24)

Does anyone know if they are going to televise the summer league games?

 

This was a solid yet unspectacular pick. Head does have solid skillz but his future will have to be at the point. If he can successfully morph into a solid PG, then this pick will go down as a great pick. In spite of what many are saying, he will be too much of a liability at SG. I don't put much stock into that long arms and leaping ability stuff because that won't scale upward in the NBA when he's facing bigger and stronger SGs. With him in the game it will be too easy to simply post him up like Stackhouse was doing to our guards in the Dallas series. His height will always be an issue but the kid does have game unlike Reece Gaines who had the physical attributes you'd want from a 1/2 guard but did not have an NBA caliber game.

We both agree here. Simien was the most NBA ready but his injury history gave me pause (Sam Bowie redux?). With Taft, there's the Kwame Brown factor of a guy getting the NBA contract and then not working hard. However, I am getting a bit weary with that JVG philosophy of valuing heart & desire over ability. All the hustle in the world can't help you if your team is old, slow and non-athletic. They can hustle and scrap all they want but the end result is that they are still a first round and out playoff team because they still don't match up well with their competition.

Better off, yes. How much better off is the big question. This is a pick to replace David Wesley. If I look at why Dallas blew them out, David Wesley's play does not come to mind as a prime reason. I felt that no matter where they were picking, they needed to come out of this draft with a player who was ready to play NOW in a position of need. Because of past sins on draft day, they had essentially painted themselves into a corner. Instead they got a slight upgrade over what they already have on the roster which means that come next season, they will still start older less athletic guards who possess streaky offensive games. That's why I am so lukewarm on this pick. I think that the guy who characterized this pick as "Cuttino Francis" was dead on the mark.

 

Nice Pickup

 

I was happy as hell on draft day since two of my Illini went first round, and the more exciting news is that one of them joined my team, the Rockets! Life couldn't be any better than this

I probably have watched more Luther's game than anyone on this board due to my connection to Illini, here is my take on him.

Head's strength and weakness are obvious, as mentioned by many here already. He is a very good athlete, great on-ball defender, solid 3pt shooter from NBA-distance, has some good PG skill, but it's more potential than promise there. Of course, his height is a concern for playing SG at <6'3".

One thing many overlooked is his physical body and energy. When he was at Illinois, most of his fellow Illini usually need to take breaks during games, but not Head. He could easily play two 40 minutes games, and with full energy, I guess he is just a nature freak in that respect. I think this is a very important fact for the Rockets, given the average age of our back court. Another thing is that Head has a strong body, make it very hard for taller people to post up, which can helps him to make up for his height disadvantage.

One bad knock on Head during his college days is his character, he was almost charged by the district attoney, got kicked out the program. I'm sure the Rockets have done a thorough job in evaluating him, on and off the court, but what I heard was that he was not your model citizen off the court.

 

Thanks for the insight Daoshi.

Houston Native

 

It will be funny to hear the stuff people will say with his name. Gimme some Head! Hopefully we will look back and say Im happy we got Head!

 

i see more fast breaks in our future.

 

Head is one strong guy. At the draft camp, he benched press more times than Sean May, Charlie Villanueva, Wayne Simien, Danny Granger, and Marvin Williams. He has a 38.5 verticle leap which was second to Gereld Green. I think he will be kinda like Jason Terry.

 

I think he's a good gamble. We couldn't solve our PF issue in the draft, no one there that's going to do better then Juwon.

But we needed an athletic defender at the guard spot who can hit the trey and penetrate. Mike James was a bit too wild.

We don't need a 7+ assist man when you have T-mac and Yao. The offense is going to run through them...we're not trying to be Phoenix here. We need someone who can contribute in a solid way and shut down opposing pt guards, and this is something this guy can potentially do. Good pick at 24.

 

Hehehe, I was bored.

 

From the ESPN awards...

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/columns/story?columnist=forde_pat&id=2001536


"Player of the Year: Luther Head has risen a head above teammates Williams and Brown to win this award. He's the leading scorer of the three and has established himself as the Illini's best wing defender."

 

Now imagine if one of them was the number one pick and his name was Akeem.

 

dude, terry is a p***y. he's weak, can't jump and can't defend.

 

That p***y torched us and was a definite reason we got beat four of five games and sent packing from the playoffs.

 

terry's a great scorer he's just not:

from rikesh316
one strong guy. At the draft camp, he benched press more times than Sean May, Charlie Villanueva, Wayne Simien, Danny Granger, and Marvin Williams. He has a 38.5 verticle leap which was second to Gereld Green.