Who has to go beyond expectations/ ceilings to win it a championship

1) Lin - if he can be consistently at least slightly above average (with good 3pt % / low turnovers) with limited touches - we'll dominate...

2) Asik trade value (ie Morey) - dependent on what we pull for the 4 position (LMA?) and who DM then gets on the cheap to backup D12 (Camby) will prob be the difference in a championship - and first runner up.

 

I agree Lin is generally better at creating his own shot than Parsons, but I got to correct one thing you said. This is not true, Lin was horrible at isos last year.

 

Well... kind of a silly question... if everyone plays up to expectations and any one exceeds expectations, we look pretty good. If Moti becomes a dead eye shooter, good rebounder and defender, well that would really help us. Same thing goes for TJones or Lin. If Parsons can take the next step again and play like Paul George, well we`d look pretty good... and if Canaan all of the sudden looks like Lillard or Curry, well that couldn`t hurt.

If you ask me, what`s most likely - I guess I´d say either Lin or one of our PFs could take a real big forward with Parsons building a little bit on his already stellar game.

 

someone posted some very relevant stats a while back comparing the highs and lows of every player on the team to gauge consistency, and lin isn't any more inconsistent than anyone else. the most inconsistent player in terms of production is beverley, then parsons. so this whole inconsistency thing is a bit of a myth.

you can't limit someone touches and expect him to maximize his touches every single time. that's not how it works. not even superstars do that. and if he can play like a superstar more often then he would and should be the third star on the team, but he's not.

my point in all of this is... it's not fair and realistic to pin your hopes on the fourth best player on the team to go beyond expectations in order to win a championship. The players that need to go above and beyond expectations are your franchise players - howard and harden. they get all the glory if we win, and all the blame if we don't. that's the way it should be.

 

i would say 1, because defense wins championships.

i would also say 3, which is, more consistent in getting his shots. no more 7 shots a game to 15 shots the next game. find your spots and how you can score on this team, and do that consistently.

based on what he's shown after full recovery from his injury, i think his 3 ball is fine.

 

Lin is already a reasonable defender. He'll never be as fast as a Westbrook or Parker, so iso situations will always be difficult. Having Howard behind is a tremendous help, as Lin is pretty crafty. He has good court sense, and I think he will do well in funneling his man toward Dwight. I think he should model his defense after a late-career Jason Kidd. Not the greatest foot speed, but good size and hyper-aware of what's going on around him. But awareness takes a lot of experience to build up.

So I think a bump in 3pt shooting is more plausible. It's also a skill that can get better with practice, as many players, e.g. Jason Kidd, Manute Bol (!), have significantly improved their 3pt shooting over time. He needs to be above 35% to stay on the court. If he can get to 40% our offense is going to be extremely nasty.

 

Great, this turned into another Lin thread

 

absolutely agree regarding jason kidd. kidd has incredibly fast and strong hands, and jeremy does too. he comes away with steals more times than not when he helps out down low. i think experience will add to his craftiness which he is lacking right now. i also think he can be a little dirtier on D and try to get into his opponents heads a little. he's too "nice" of a defensive player if that makes sense.

 

For a championship it is obvious that the whole roster needs to step it up a notch. There is absolutely no single answer. This just shows that the OP has no understanding of the game. But do carry on in your ignorance.

 

Superstar is the most responsible for a championship.

In this case, it is Harden.

 

I would say Parsons but I guess there are high expectations for him now.

We need someone that can step up relatively consistently on those nights Harden, Howard, and I guess Parsons don't have it going. Whether that be Lin, or whoever plays at the PF. Similar to how Kawhi has put up big games when Parker, Duncan, and Manu don't have it going.

 

I answered Harden because your question was "Who has to go beyond expectations?" Harden is expected to be the best SG in the NBA and a top 5 player next season. If he goes beyond that with a healthy Howard and the rest of the team we have, that's a championship for sure.

 

what about Howard?

also, I wonder what's the percentage of people outside of CF and Houston who believe Harden to be a top tier superstar that trumps Howard. It can't be very high.. The guy is good and will get even better, which is scary as ****; but for now, when it comes down to it, if the Rockets fail to get into at least the WCF, I'm blaming Howard first, then Harden.

 

Literally everybody on the team has something to prove.

1) Lin has to prove he can bring back Linsanity
2) Harden has to prove he can coexist with Dwight while maintaining his scoring dominance
3) Parsons has to prove that he can continue to contribute and improve his skills while shooting at a consistent rate. He also has to pick up the intensity and swagger Delfino had last year
4) Terrence Jones needs to prove that he can do what he did in the summer league during actual games, Donatas Motiejunas needs to prove that he can live up to his words and be a consistent role player/starter
5) Dwight Howard needs to prove that he can leave all the mess he's caused behind, coexist with the team without being a cancer as well as bring back his old dominating form. Omer Asik needs to show that he's willing to play behind Dwight at the same level or even more than what he did for us last year.

That's just to name a few players who have something to prove.

 

lin > cf






Kekeke, im jp

 

If Lin can shoot 40% from the 3 point line - we'll be golden.

From the 4 - if Dmo & Jones can combine for 35% 3 pt shooting, 10 boards a game, and 14 points - we'll be very happy.

Those two things happen, and yes, we have a chance of making a lot of noise.

 

touche, good sir, touche.

 

I gave a more detailed break-out a few weeks back: http://bbs.clutchfans.net/showpost.php?p=8126212&postcount=1