I can see it either way. Tari adds an irritating edge that is missing from the starting lineup and helps the Rockets get off to better starts. On the other hand, if Tari knows he will come in at the 6 min mark with Reed (and eventually DFS), I'm fine with that too. The most important thing is giving him 25-35 mins each time and having him close when appropriate.
He played with extra hustle and passion tonight compared to other times this year. And it seemed to be due to the fact he was starting. So if him starting makes a big difference for him and will get him to play harder and lock up like tonight, then I’m all for that. He clearly feels some type of way about starting so let’s try to make that a win-win for him and the team. We can have DFS come in with Reed at 6 minute mark.
Rockets lost to even statistically worse defenses Jazz, Pelicans, Kings, & Clippers. All in December. They have not been "feasting" on bad defenses. So can't dismiss the lineup change as a legit result
Tari can get, minimally, what Jabari got if he hits FA. Stone did his job and tried to get a good value contract. But Tari is worth a lot more than DFS and his value is in the 20 millions
The next 5 games after that against good teams, Rockets finally play home games. So that can help things even more
…..should also add that the Lakers are old and unathletic. They’ll be fighting for a play-in bid by end of season.
I'd love for him to start, but you can't trust him to stay healthy. What coach would want to build a lineup around something you know won't be available? He's unreliable like my old Jeep was. Fun to drive when it ran, but you knew it was going to leave you stranded somewhere...
Im a Bari fan but maybe there needs to be a few games soon where Reed and Tari both start and Bari comes off the bench. Especially if Bari starts slipping again.
Tari supposed to replace Dillon's "dog mentality" maybe he'll turn into a villain. Hard to say though because he's a likeable person
It would've been Reed starting, but he tends to pick up his dribble early and gets hunt on defense too often...example: Reed shoots 3 and misses - opponent gets the ball and hunts Reed on defense -> bucket and 1 = 3pt swing Next possession: Reed calls for pick, doesn’t like the switch or gets trapped and he picks up the dribble (holds ball for 3 seconds) passes ball to KD up top with 12 seconds left in shot clock for him to ISO while everyone spaces out....KD misses - opponent gets the ball and hunts Reed on defense -> bucket and 1 which now is a 6-0 run. Long story short: Reed is a net negative if he's not hitting his 3s. Until he learns to attack the defense with his shooting capability meaning keep the defense honest with driving to the basket, he'll be a net negative
Agreed, if healthy (big if), he would get $25-30M on the open market and a guaranteed starting job. If he was a free agent today, the offer would likely be less than what Stone offered 2 months ago. It was reported it was in excess of $100M but a chunk of non-guaranteed money. Probably $15-18M as of now, with plenty of time for him to earn it back and then some.
I don’t think it will work against certain lineups. Tari got 3 quick fouls against the Laker’s slow ass guards. As long as Ime keeps Amen initiating the offense and we have 3 guys that can shoot on the outside our offense will be fine. Sengun should mostly operate from the low block. If Okogie struggles with his 3 pt shot, then Amen and Reed will have to have more time on the floor together, but that is going to depend on Reed progressing his defense. Ime still put the double bigs in last game, which made no sense whatsoever. Durant is going to have to do his iso thing several times to keep him happy and to bail us out when the shooters or Amen/Reed are struggling. Tari’s outside shooting is critical to this team, so we should still pursue a backup guard that shoot wells in case he goes down yet again. Not sure that there is a reasonable trade to be had, but they still need to pursue one. I would continue to start Tari to see if he can overcome his penchant for foul trouble and see how he does when facing quicker guards.
Yeah but Lakers have played 29 games and have won 19 of them. We haven't played well enough on defense as well. The improvement on defense helps us win more games too.
All those losses except the Clipper loss, came down to Ime’s poor rotations and trying to force Durant as the initiator on offense. We were up in all those games. If Amen continues to make his bunnies his ability to get to the rim opens up the offense for everyone, including Reed when they are playing together. Reed needs to initiate when Amen is off the floor, but he needs lots of help from screens and off ball movement. When Durant is initiating, Reed and Amen are stuck in the corners waiting for passes that rarely come and it also puts them out of defensive position when Durant misses. I’d like to see Durant and Amen in some PnR action, but I’m not sure Durant would agree. This team will live and die with how well Amen and Reed perform as initiators and Ime manages his rotations. There is no magic bullet PG that’s going to solve this team’s offensive woes. It is up to Ime and to lesser extent Amen and/or Reed.
So likeable. Someone easy to root for as a fan. He has great defensive instincts and great physical tools, just need to get better about making smarter decisions - some ill advised fouls at the end of games last season comes to mind. That GSW game last season also comes to mind where he brought the Rockets all the way back single handedly. As a fan, would like to see him succeed him whatever situation he's in. For Rockets, him starting makes a lot of sense especially if he's shooting freaking 50% from 3s lol and playing great defense, getting offensive rebounds, and not making silly mistakes that offset his great plays.
Last season, Tari was out for a month early in the season, but once he returned, he was available the rest of the year aside from B2Bs. Hopefully it plays out no worse this season. As for Reed, I don't think he's quite ready to move into the starting lineup yet. And one upside to him coming off the bench alongside Okogie, DFS, and Steven is that he can look for his offense and won't have to defer to anyone.
This upcoming offseason the front office need to hire "The Professor" and Rafer Alston to train Reed on ball handling and dribbling
