What was really great about the game is that his defensive intensity seemed to rub off on everyone. The whole team was playing great defense. I hope that can continue as well. Maybe we should give Scotty Brooks a scouting job?
Is it me, or did our rotation just got longer? How on earth are we going to have a 7-8 man rotation, HP, with talented players like that? I am still spellbound about his play last night. I cannot wait to see this game again just to see the play of the Hawk. Allow me to caution all those who are doing him an injustice by calling him a defensive specialist. While the label is respectful of his ability on defense, it hardly reflects the fact that he handles the ball very well, can pass the rock, and shoot the ball. At the start of the season, I recommended that Mobes play no more than 32 minutes and Hawk is probably going to make that happen. Hawk should command at least 16 mins per and that should come mostly at the 2, since we are really crowded at the 3.
Rudy needs to rethink Cat and Hawk in their rotation... I think Cat would be better coming off the bench for Hawk to focus on scoring, since Cat is allergic to passing the ball. Hawk is an amazingly quick defender and should be in the game to take out the opposing teams' highest scorer at the 1,2, or 3 spots.
The Elie comparison is a bullseye. Having offensive stars is the foundation, but if you look back at the championship years, Elie was the guy who gave us the extra juice that put us over the top.
from http://www.nba.com/milk_rookie/longshots_021029.html Former Globetrotter now in the NBA The 29-year-old Hawkins, a Long Beach State product who was a defensive specialist even in college, is a classic late bloomer who kept improving steadily. He has played in Taiwan and Japan, has performed in the CBA, ABA and USBL. He even toured the world as a member of the Harlem Globetrotters during the 1998-99 season. Hawkins had been close to breaking into the NBA before, suffering mightily as the final cut of the Los Angeles Lakers in 1996 and the Los Angeles Clippers in 1998. The third time became the charm for Hawkins due to the persuasive powers of former NBA players Scott Brooks and Earl Cureton, who coached Hawkins last year when he played for the Southern California Surf. Brooks and Cureton recommended Hawkins for a spot in the Rockets’ veteran camp. “His biggest strength is that he can defend,” Cureton told the Houston Chronicle. “He's like Dennis Rodman. Hawk -- his hair is not going to be green, he's not going to have tattoos or earrings, but he'll defend like him. He's been through his wars.” Hawkins, who possesses long arms and quick feet, can defend both guard spots as well as his more familiar small forward position. On a team flush with scorers like Steve Francis, Cuttino Mobley and Maurice Taylor, not to mention rookie center Yao Ming, Hawkins knows he won’t be asked to provide offense. But his relentless energy will give Rudy Tomjanovich another option off the bench. “It feels a lot better being on this end of [the final cut],” Hawkins said. “I've been so close but just couldn't get through. This is my third time around -- I've been to two other camps and both times I was the last cut. Me being 29 years old, I was like I've had my chances, it's not in the cards for me. But this is truly a blessing.”
that was my thought during the rotation # arguments...how da hell do you go with a 7 or 8 man rotation with the sheer amount of good players we have? lets count them... the guys that are definitely playin good: SF, CM, EG, MoT, Hawk, KT, Cato (how weird this is to be able to say Cato is playin good?) the guys that can play good on any given night: Rice, Mooch, TMo(if he can keep up the offseason heroics) thats 10 players right there... go ahead and add Yao in since he is showing signs of gettin comfortable with the team..and you have 11. If I was RT, I would go with a 9 or 10 man rotation SF/Mooch CM/ Hawk KT/Rice/Hawk MoT/EG/KT Cato/Yao/MoT/EG thats 10..bring in TMo at third position at the 3 and use Hawk as a backup to Mobes..and you get 11.. I can see the argument about starting Hawk over Mobes. Anyone remember the impact Cat used to have coming off the bench for instant offense two seasons back? It would be really nice to have Hawk's defensive prowess from the beginning of the game..besides the fact that when he's in, the team seems to pick up on the defense..
Someone who impacts the game like he did last night deserves more than 16 minutes. And I don't think Rudy will be able to keep him off the bench with his ability to defend top scorers. I can't wait to see how he does against Kobe. And I liked the inside dish to Kenny. Sweet pass in the paint. As far as taking Cat's minutes--if Cuttino doesn't adjust to the new offense and keep pace with Francis and the rest, he just might lose more minutes.
Even though the answer to your question should be YES, unfortunately it is probably NO. It seems like today rookies that score and have high flying ability seem to get most of the respect and, unfortunately, votes when it comes to the ROY. I think we'll be lucky to see him on the All-Rookie second team, mostly because nobody knows about him. Pugs
