Not surprised at all. I knew him as a great iso defender and rebounder when he was playing for the Bulls, and that's what he is doing right now. His FT% has definitely gotten better though.
Asik is the most dependable and predictable player on the team thus far. He just needs to improve his offensive game a bit....catch and dunk!
really bogus calls on him down the stretch of game last night...i was super iriked that LeMarcus got a superstar call on that play where he was given 2 FTs.. terrible call... its bc of this guy...
That may also have something to do with the fact that we got rid of the bulk of our previous team. Lowry and Lee in particular are really great defenders. Lin has been playing solid defense - but he isn't replacing those guys. And even Dragic was a pretty solid defender. Our backcourt defense has definitely been drastically downgraded.
The only one after the Yao Ming era, unless you count things like Chuck Hayes playing out of position or a one-year Dalembert rental.
I think Daryl Morey might be too good for his own good. The Rockets are 4-5 right now, but almost every game has looked winnable. We could easily have been 6-3 or even 7-2 with some luck. That's with a team still figuring out its offensive structure and building chemistry, a team that's also the youngest team in the NBA right now. Now add a max contract post player to this squad in the off season. You can be guaranteed that the Houston Rockets would be tearing up the NBA. But here's the catch. What happens in 3 years or really two years when it comes time to renegotiate and resign? Asik is already an absolute monster on defense and I think over the course of the season his offense will improve. After the off season, he could look like a serious weapon on both ends of the court, potentially All-star calibre. Will he still be context taking $8 Million a year? What about Lin. He's started slowly, but as he gets more freedom and integrates more into the offensive I don't see Linsanity level being too far away, in play and influence if not necessarily production. Will he be content to stay at $8 Million. What if there are teams out there willing to offer these guys more? Success for this young team could very well create some interesting dilemmas going forward. That said. Wouldn't that a fun place to be in?
I love Asik. Easily the most hard working player on the team. Lets his action do the talking. And he looks like Patrick Jane in The Mentalist.
Asik is on his third year, at about 41% FG%. Tyson Chandler in his third year was at 42%, and in his Grantland article says it took him time to reconcile with himself his offensive weaknesses and figure out how to best use his strengths. I think last year Chandler was at about 68% FG%. So, give it time; Asik's a really hard worker, I wouldn't be surprised if he gets to Chandler's level.
This is why I hope that Morey only picks up a short contracts for the PF or backup PG positions, therefore more cap space is available when they need to sign extensions. Meanwhile, hopefully, Machado and Motiejunas and TJones would have developed enough to fill in the PG and PF positions.
