I get what you're saying, but im wondering if you can really change that. You see guys like Lee and Lowry, who always seem to be going 100 mph. I can't see them not being close to that in practice and i think that's just the way they are. I think Ginobili is another example of someone like that. Scola is technically like that too, but his lack of athleticism limits what he can do, so it's not as apparent....but the guy will run his butt off from baseline to baseline every time. Maybe you can attribute that to their competitive nature. I'm very competitive, even when playing with friends and they sometimes take certain games as slow motion or something. Even with the "real" games they'll sort of turn it on or off based on whether they're in the play or not. I choose to make myself part of plays somehow instead, rather than waiting. Lowry is a perfect example of this. If he's not shooting he's going for the offensive board. If he's not defending the ball handler he'll look for the opening to come over and help and/or steal the ball. Of course sometimes you have to stay on your man or your "spot" on the floor, but guys like that are always looking for the opportunity to make an impact.
I think it varies, basically practicing when their schedule allows. Plus, there's different variations of what "practice" can be. Sometimes it can be a full practice, where they scrimmage, run drills, run, etc...other times it can be simply walking over their game plan or watching film.
You can add Iverson and Shaq to that list. Shaq was lucky to have great talents on his team to chalk up a few rings. If Shaq in his prime had Iverson's or McGrady's teams, he would have been remembered very differently.
Barkley led his team to the Finals and won a MVP award. He made the all-NBA team 11 times. I don't think they're comparable when it comes to stats and achievement. Mcgrady seems to have been a big slacker. I would imagine that building team chemistry though practice would be an important thing.
He also spearheaded the back to back choke jobs against the Rockets, tossing in the "butt-kicking business" lines that came back to haunt him. As a Rocket, he was laughing it up after our sweep of the T-Wolves and going up big (3-1) to the Sonics...but that overconfidence led to that series going the distance and our ill-fated Jazz Western Finals where he publicly whined about Dream and Drexler not playing hard enough for him (and guess who didn't switch on the screen for the Stockton shot). Barkley was needled in Phoenix for practicing from the hot tub. Drexler quit basketball because he was so peeved with Barkley talking so much but working so much less than he and Dream did. Jordan even through in the major zinger that Barkley would never get a ring because he wasn't dedicated enough. I still enjoyed him. I still regard him as being a tremendous player. But he held himself back, and championships don't come easy. Teams have to be consumed with passion to take it all. Or have David Stern rig the officiating. I'd say that Tracy and Barkley, at their peaks, reached similar levels as individual players. Barkley obviously went to the Finals, but that was a far deeper team that any Tracy got to play for. McGrady finished 4th in MVP voting twice in Orlando. I'm not saying they are perfect equals, but I think the comparison is fairly on the nose.
Barkley wasn't as fragile as McGrady, plus Barkley was a great rebounder. Maybe they had similar practice habits, but Barkley was selfless, unlike McGrady. Charles Barkley took the league minimum so that the Rockets could sign a big time free agent to help them win a ring. Unfortunately that was Scottie Pippen. No way McGrady would do that for the Rockets.
Barkley, May 1997, 2-2 with the Jazz in the West Finals: He then went ballistic on NBA, claiming they misconstrued the quotes (really, because it went over like a lead balloon in the locker room - this was the end of Barkley and Drexler as functional teammates) Really hard to find a good link from 14 years ago, but: http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1997-06-08/sports/9706070733_1_barkley-vicarious-thrills-ainge http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we...page=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM
McGrady's biggest mistake, playing through the knee injury in the 2007-2008 injury which caused it to get even more worse.
This article is pointless. Who cares if he did or didn't go hard in practice....what's done is done and can't be undone. I'd rather Morey talk about the CURRENT Rocket players and developing them than a guy who has been traded away 2 + years ago.
No wonder T-mac can't play defense. He has been practicing against himself isntead of with his teammates. Defense is easy in practice, if you aren't guarding anybody. Jordan and Kobe were fierce competitors and practiced hard. They even got into fights with teammates for poor practice habits. Their play and defense was miles ahead of T-Mac. This is why T-Mac was never able to improve his defense. It actually got worse. He was a better defender, when he was in Toronto. Jeff Van Gundy was right about T-Mac. http://www.mlive.com/pistons/index.ssf/2011/03/tracy_mcgrady_has_no_hard_feel.html
I really wonder if that is the case to be honest. If we never did the 22 streak business would his knee have sufferred as much
