[CHRON] To Van Gundy, lack of praise beats feint praise

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/sports/bk/bkn/2928137

To Van Gundy, lack of praise beats feint praise
By JONATHAN FEIGEN
Copyright 2004 Houston Chronicle

Leslie Alexander did not sing along. He sat in his usual seat Tuesday night, not appearing terribly amused or upset. But as Jeff Van Gundy heard the chant — "Fire Gundy" — he would have understood, he said, had the Rockets' owner crossed the court to make it three-part harmony.

A day later, after a usual round of blaming himself for things that might seem beyond his control, Van Gundy went even further.

Alexander might not have sung about canning a coach, but the coach said the owner also doesn't have to say he believes in him, either.

Alexander did neither Wednesday, opting not to returning phone messages. But with the Rockets slumping to a four-game losing streak and a five-game skid at home marked with boos and even calls for his dismissal, Van Gundy said he doesn't want to hear that the owner is on his side.

"Support? I don't need my owner to come and say, 'You've got my support,' " Van Gundy said. "I don't need it. I don't want it. I want his support when I do a good job for him. I did a great job last year. I did. I know that.

"This year, what is he going to say? 'Great job for losing five in a row at home. You had those guys hopping out there last night.' I don't want that false (stuff). I don't need it."

This year, the Rockets have been wildly disappointing, with Van Gundy repeatedly blaming himself. He has not, however, said what he could do differently besides the nebulous task of more effectively motivating his players.

Asked for greater specifics about what he could do, Van Gundy first said he has not decided, then said some of his ideas "would ignite a firestorm."

Little difference
But a week after Van Gundy said changes would come to the roster or rotation if the Rockets' play did not improve, little has changed. Scott Padgett has replaced Juwan Howard as a backup power forward. The next change will come tonight against the Mavericks, though Van Gundy would not say what that change would be.

"We're making changes, but it's not because those individuals are the problem," he said. "Everyone on our team on the active roster has had a legitimate chance except for Clarence (Weatherspoon)."

Rockets general manager Carroll Dawson said the current skid does not make him more likely to make a deal he wouldn't have made before the streak. But he will perhaps push harder for deals he has already tried to put together.

"You keep trying to figure a way to do things you wanted to do all along," Dawson said. "It's hard to settle. You keep looking, keep trying.

"I hate to just settle. That's what I say. Don't settle."

The latest theory to explain the Rockets' poor and often lethargic play is that they have been hesitant because they are afraid to make mistakes.

"Oh, absolutely," Tracy McGrady said. "I was in a stage like this before back in Toronto. I was so worried about making a mistake that every time I did make a mistake, I looked over my shoulder to see if someone was subbing in for me. It's the same situation here. It takes awhile to get comfortable with Coach's coaching style. But I think guys understand they are going to make mistakes. It's whether you will work hard and give the effort he wants. You can't argue with that."

Team 'overthinking'
With the Rockets coming off a 93-72 loss to the Pistons on Tuesday night, Yao Ming acknowledged that concern about making mistakes has become a problem.

"Coach Van Gundy's game is about mistakes; who can make less mistakes," Yao said. "In a game, nobody wants to make a mistake. A mistake would kill us. Right now, I talk to you. It's very easy to say, 'Don't worry. Do whatever you think is right.' In a game, it's different. In life, you have to make a decision. You have to pick one. It's the same in a game. People outside the team say, 'Make your decision. Make your choice.' We've been losing, so it's harder. What we really need is to win."

Said Jim Jackson: "We're overthinking."

But Van Gundy, with a list of "probably 50" areas that need improvement, said fear of making mistakes is not the primary problem.

"I am so sick of that cliché," Van Gundy said. "Is someone afraid to get a rebound, too? Is someone afraid to guard somebody? No. That's a copout. That's, 'Let's come up with something you writers will buy or a fan will buy.' No one buys last night was a game of hesitation. That was not a game of, 'I'm frightful of making a mistake.' There may be a little bit of that at times in other games. I'm not discounting that. Last night, that game had zero to do with hesitation.

"If you're going to talk about (Yao Ming) offensively at times, that would be correct, no doubt. He would be a legitimate guy that at times overthinks on his catch what to do. That has nothing to do with him not getting a defensive rebound in the first half."


But as the Rockets continue to agree with Van Gundy about their shortcomings, they seem to be singing along without really meaning it.

"I don't have a time frame for when we're going to trust him and do what he wants to do," McGrady said. "But I'm a firm believer in his system. I really believe it's going to work. We just need to buy into it."

jonathan.feigen@chron.com
Rockets Summary

Agent pays a visit
David Falk, the agent representing Juwan Howard and several Rockets players, attended Tuesday's game and met with Rockets general manager Carroll Dawson. The visit was scheduled before Howard was removed from the Rockets' rotation and was part of a larger trip in which Falk planned to visit many of his clients.

"He said he was going to come after the Thanksgiving holiday," Howard said. "It so happened he came during all this. I didn't want anyone to get the bad impression he came to my defense. He came to see Patrick (Ewing), Dikembe (Mutombo) and myself. It so happened we're on this bad streak. With me not playing, I didn't want anyone to get the impression he came here to lend defense of me or come here and talk to the coaches or management, nothing crazy like that."

Dawson said he visited with Falk on Tuesday, but that Falk made no trade demands and did not ask for an explanation for Howard's diminished role in recent games.

Howard played just six minutes last week against the Jazz and not at all against the Nuggets and Pistons. Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy said that Howard was not playing so that he could give greater playing time to Scott Padgett. Howard said his reaction to falling out of the rotation was to "look in the mirror" and work to earn playing time.

"It's always good to have family to come to your defense, lend a hand, show their support and show their love," Howard said. "David is family to me. I respect him and admire him, and I appreciate everything he's worked for on my behalf."

Sleepless night
Rockets guard Jim Jackson said he was unable to sleep Tuesday night after the Rockets' loss to the Pistons.

"It was disappointing, tossing and turning all night," Jackson said. "If anything, I've gotten stronger on how hard we have to work. I went through my mind, what went wrong, why. If I didn't care, maybe I wouldn't have those thoughts."

Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy said he understood.

"Let's face it, everybody knows we quit last night," Van Gundy said. "What we quit on, only that game, me, who knows. But hey, look, you can't fool anybody. No one in that building was fooled. We quit. I know one thing, you quit once, it's easier to quit again.

"Our group last night quit."

JONATHAN FEIGEN

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Sounds like a happy family.