It might come as a surprise to all Rockets fans that Shaun Livingston is actually the highest NBA draft in our current roster, 4th overall and straight from high school as a top prospect. This alone tells you about his physical talents and athleticism. Lost among the hypes of all our rookies this offseason, he is rarely mentioned and always left out of fans roster lists. The way I see it, our backup PG is his job to lose and Livingston deserves a thread! In 2007, Shaun Livingston suffered, as the Clips team physician called, " probably the most serious injury you can have to the knee." His 2007 injury was career ending for most athletes. Yet here he is, playing basketball again and his story holds as much inspiration as Royce White. One of the most pleasantly surprising developments last season was that his athleticism seems to making a comeback as well. He's flashed plenty of quickness and explosiveness, throwing down assertive two hand slams. Here is the 2011 scouting report on him: He is only 26 years old, 6'7" Livingston could continue to improve. It's too early to say what Shaun Livingston is capable of in the future, but what he has overcome in the past, it speaks volume about him as a player and possible a great team leader with his 7-year NBA experiece.
Nice piece. It's just shows that if we dig deeper, there is a wonderful story behind. Whether he makes it or not, depends on what Shaun will show in Training camp.
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Why? Really? He's younger and plays better defense than Livingston. If the goal is growing a young core Tony is the better fit
douglas is 26...so is livingston right?? and obv livingston with his height and athleticism has better potential. who knows, he may bloom late and really find his niche. i'd take livingston over douglas in a heartbeat
Livingston's been in the NBA 4 more years than Tony. I didn't mention his $3 million dollar salary this year. **** that. He has no upside. He's a veteran without quickness and on a joke of a knee, sorry
Not according to his scouting report (see above). His 6'7" frame and 6'11" wingspan can cause problems for an average PG. Offensively, Toney is a better ouside shooter but Livingston is a better penetrator. Neither are good passer. He has been injury-free for the last 2 seasons, 9 games with a bruised tailbone 2010-2011 and played 58/62 games last season (started 27 of those). That was why I didn't post the link. The worst knee injury any athlete couldve suffered.
His salary is only guaranteed for 1 million. Not fully sure how it works if he is officially on the roster. Maybe someone can explain if Rockets HAVE to pay the full 3 mils or just the guaranteed amount. Read the scouting report for his quickness.
Livingston a better allround player then Toney Douglas. Much better playmaker, rebounder, lot more size which helps him see the court better. List goes on. Douglas is a better shooter ad streaky scorer. Livingston is going to be on the roster for sure and brings more to the table.
Why is there no video of Livingston passing? Seriously, when he came out of high school, I liked his potential. He was supposed to be the next Magic Johnson because of the combination of his height, his handle, and his court vision. The only question mark on him was that he's too skinny and couldn't shoot. Well, the former was probably the major cause of his injury. That injury was the most terrible sight I've ever seen on a basketball court.
Some of you people haven't seen Toney Douglas play. A chucker with a poor shooting percentage and a terrible handle. Ick.
yes.knicks fans hate him last year.clueless too.although u can argue that he lost his shooting due to shoulder injury.
The uploader probably wanted to show if Livingston was still physically able to hang with NBA competition, which really probably still a question from most people who see him still playing. Clips of him passing is still out there: <iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/pC1v3ubWyyY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> <iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/N9YEgJwcQYo" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
If Douglas gets his shot back I think he can contribute to the team since his defense is pretty solid as well. You definitely don't want him running the offense though. He made some of the dumbest decisions I've ever seen a professional basketball player make.