By JOHN HOLLINGER September 21, 2006 HOUSTON ROCKETS: Houston's draft-day deal for Shane Battier may benefit Memphis in the long term, because Rudy Gay is a potential stud and Stromile Swift is a productive reserve. But in the present? Fuggedaboutit. Battier is one of the league's elite defenders, and his ability to space the floor and play both forward spots makes him a perfect complement to T-Mac and Yao. A less-discussed but nearly as important move was the theft of Kirk Snyder from the Hornets for a conditional second-round draft pick and cash; the wingman should give a big boost to what was a horrid backcourt last season. Greek guard Vasilis Spanoulis should also fortify the attack, and keep an eye on second-round pick Steve Novak — the dude can shoot the lights out. Houston may not be done either, as the still-unsigned Bonzi Wells has been sniffing around the Toyota Center lately.
how quickly the tables turn. just a month ago everyone was pissed, and the rockets could turn chicken****, into chicken salad. On another note, everybody has been talking for month's about our starters. My question is, is Novak a closer. He has the potential to possibly break Murphy's record. What was MUrphy's carrer College free throw%. What about Hornacek's. Just being a 90% shooter i would assume he would close out every close game. THoughts.
Novak could be a solid 3 for us. He could hit some crucial 3s off the bench! I think he can develop to a Murphy-type player with less rebound ability. He has to be stronger for the competitions on NBA level.
I really don't like the trade for Battier, I'd hate to see Rudy Gay turn into a star and we get one of those "worst trades in NBA history" threads going.
you dig out some wicked good stuff Champ06! go the aussie. Novak playing well for us will be a bonus.
Shane battier no doubt an outstanding individual and a great defender ( role player). I have no issues if the search was for a defensive player who is not worried about scoring- but I am not convinced that a bunch of new comers will suddenly shore up the offense. The big assumption is that Rockets will still have a defensive mind set- whether JVG is here or not. Most coaches have moved away from just stressing defense- and there is too much temptation from a business stand point to play athletic players with focus on the individuals. We basically are betting that the junior guards will hold up- from a basketball perspective alone, this is a gamble- if it works it will pay off big, else we will hit the lottery again- so why did we pass on Rudy Gay? Maybe we are thinking Mayo or Oden!
Most coaches have moved away from just stressing defense true. but the coaches winning titles the last few years are still considered defensive minds, LB, riley, pop
The last rook that Pop had to worry about was a French dude named Tony Parker. Look how well that turned out. I don't think I'd trade Tony Parker for Shane Battier, but having a versatile sf/pf like Robert Horry, who could also stroke it from the 3 really does make a difference when it comes to the post season. I'm still good with the Battier trade though, until the word "tank" becomes popular around here again.
