If the Rockets somehow win the championship this year, part of it would be Dekker giving us good minutes in the playoffs. Neither scenario seems likely, though.
I never understood why people take glee in seeing a player hit a slump . When Sam was hot in December he was looking like a steal of a pick and a future all-star. He doesn't have to get that hot to be important for us . Maybe we will play him , maybe we won't . But in my opinion it would be a mistake not to give him an opportunity in the playoffs. He's got size , he's got athleticism , he's got smarts , he's got hustle . He can play very good defense and can go up and get rebounds . He's looked shaky and he's looked unsure of himself . And those are big no-no's ... But he's young , and confidence can start to build from something small . I voted yes , but truthfully it will depend on how he plays the rest of the season and the situation in the postseason . If Sam is aggressive and shoots with confidence he can be an X- factor off the bench . In some ways Sam reminds me of D-mo. Dmo showed plenty Of flashes in 13-14 , but just wasn't consistent on the offensive end . I thought McHale made a mistake not giving him an opportunity vs Portland to use his defense to impact the game . Even in 14-15 , before he was thrust into a pressure situation he didn't play great . The need for him to play guaranteed him minutes , helped him relax , and he started to play well and soon had confidence that an off-game was just that , an off-game and that he would play better next time . It's hard to say for certain without being in a players head , but I will assume that these guys think (mostly) rationally . It's gotta be difficult for Sam to play with confidence if he knows his minutes are riding on making shots , and that he doesn't have a good track record of making shots .... Confidence isn't purely emotional , you have to be able to rationalize it just a bit . To me , sam just needs that confidence . Because he's got the tools ( even with the shot not being great) I think we shluld let Sam play and see if he can rise to the occasion , sometimes that playoff atmosphere can forge excellence.
Absolutely not, he had one good game on Sunday, when Ryno comes back I think Sam gets pushed out of the rotation
Sams my dude but I would say probably not if health wasn't a factor. I'm just saying if I could run and jump like that kid I'd beat the rim up like it cracked wise about my momma. I hate seeing him go for layups almost as much as I hate seeing birds walking. YOU CAN FLY. They also don't really run plays for him so he ends up in some tough spots which won't help the mental side of his slump but it is what it is. I believe in his future and upside, not that it helps much right now but he's got legit talent.
I think that y'all forget that he's essentially a rookie, and it's not like was a lottery pick with some amazing potential either I'm hoping that he can develop into an above average role player. In order for him to do that, he's gonna have to improve his jumper tremendously. He probably shouldn't play in the playoffs. The moment might be too big for him, and his lack of shooting would be an even bigger issue in a playoff series.
Sam Dekker never had a shot. Can he be a decent player? Yessss. Not in this system. Use him correctly. But this year he's a waste of time. Give Harrell time. Dekker shoots the same % as him. He guards 4s. I don't want any Dekker minutes going forward.
Dekker is gonna be a huge part of this team in the post season. Dekker is technically playing his first year with the Rockets.. cut him some slack...
This won't be as long as my gargantuan post. Traditional wisdom is play the vets and sit the young guys . I don't like it for our situation. I swear to God, I'll punch Mike in the face if he starts playing Nene more over Clint ( as I think he will ) and drops Sam from the playoff rotation . We HAVE to give our young players confidence and let hem work through their mistakes . If we're gonna lose a game it's not going to be because Sam or Clint dragged us down . Frankly , Clint plays better with James than Nene due to providing the Alley oop option . Sam hasn't been great lately , but it's worth a shot given his upside .
In due time. Right about now it's cringe worthy. His shot is so far off they're leaving him open in the corner alas Brewer treatment.
