CD on Kirk Snyder: "It's a great opportunity for this guy," Rockets general manager Carroll Dawson said. "He doesn't have a whole lot of competition. http://bbs.clutchfans.net/showthread.php?t=115375&page=19&pp=20&highlight=Kirk+Snyder Mcgrady is not starting at the 2. JVG has said in the past that Mcgrady's natural position is at the 3. You have that and then the quote above from CD and it's not difficult to reach the conclusion that Mcgrady is not going to be starting at the 2 for us this season.
I honestly dont think Vspan or KillBill or whatever you call him is a better player than Head right now. From what I've seen (and I know it isnt much) he has a very mediocre 1st step and Head was one of the better rookie defenders last year.
Vspan is better than L.Head??? you ppl are crazy.....Head made all rookies 2nd team last season, he's proven, he's clutch....Vspan? a 2nd rounder....we don't even know how his game will translate into nba... it will be mainly a 3 ppl rotation on the backcourt: Alston/Snyder/Head Vspan and JL3 will get some minutes but won't be much...
Totally true. There is like a 33% chance Spanoulis is a servicable NBA player next year (like Head was), 33% chance VS isn't next but becomes one later and 33% he never does jack in the NBA, ever. He still is a 2nd round pick who has never come close to playing with NBA level comp. Head right now is the much better player, and VS would have to play really well to cut into his minutes. JL3 will probably be signed for the min or close to it. He comes in even further down than VS (3rd string). I agree Sura is by all respects out of the picture. Not by choice, but do to his body breaken down due to age and injuries. Time to face it folks, it would be a big surprise if he came back and gave us anything. And this says at least as much about Alston as it does the expectations for two non-first round picks who have proven nothing in the NBA. I agree. We don't ever want to have to play Tmac or Battier in the guard spots because our other guards are too erratic or too sucky. Both Tmac and Battier are better suited as forwards and we have weaknesses in the forward spots if we don't play them there. We need more options at guard, not fewer. Right now Head is the most solid we got in terms of belonging in the NBA and not being erratic (remember Synder & Alston have both not been wanted from their two previous teams). In fact I'd like to see Fred Jones come in for competition for our guard spots because I am less than fully confident Head will have a better year 2 season than year 1, Snyder will stay out of the dog house, Alston won't throw up bricks and bricks, or that JL3 or VS can be counted on over their rookie years.
Desert Scar, All I am hoping from Sura is one more season to help get our young guns at the point ready. I don't know if he has it in him but if he does then this could at least be a good sign for the coming season. I don't expect Luther to get as many minutes as he did last year but I expect his minutes to more efficient minutes. I like Luther a lot and think he could be the perfect combo guard that can play both spots if need be. I hope we don't have to include him in any deal. But if we do...we do.
I believe you keep Head unless you package him with Howard for a good player or players in return. I believe that Head can contribute more to the team this year with his play than last year. He has one season under his belt and will be more confident and a better all around player. Sura is done and if he is not, he can't help us except as the team cheerleader in the locker room. I am all for improving our team if we get the chance through a trade but unless its for a good proven role player, I say keep him. You could always keep him and maybe make a better deal at mid season. Let's keep him for now in the SG rotation for a fast rotation when needed. What's the hurry in getting rid of him. It's not like he is a scrub or something. Give the guy a chance. If after this year, he has not improved, then lets move him or ride out his rookie contract.
Wow, for a poster insulting others who have different opinions, you sure don't pay much attention to things. Van Gundy has said outright that Head is not ready to play the one and will be a rotational player at the two. McGrady has also repeatedly said he does not want to play the two, while management knows any significant minutes there for him will cause undue strain on his back by forcing him to chase around smaller, quicker defenders. And it has also become public knowledge that Novak is not ready to play the four yet because of his lack of size/strength, so he will start out at the thre. Now, I tend to think Battier will start out at the four, but there are equally as convincing arguments on the other side suggesting he may get most of his minutes at the three with McGrady at the two. If that indeed does happen, then I can see Head getting dealt provided one of two other things happens: Sura is able to contribute next year or we obtain another veteran combo guard to spell Alston. The fact is, I am not very optimistic about Spanoulis or Lucas contributing much this year. Spanoulis is a slasher who uses his athletic ability and strength to overcome a fairly average jumpshot, but he wil find that increasingly hard to do against bigger, more athletic, and more physical professionals in the American game. He needs at least a year to get into a rythmn and contribute. Heck, Ginonbli was far more widely touted coming to this league, was a year older, and a much more natural two than Spanoulis is at either guard position, and his contributions were not eye-popping that year (they were actually almost identical to Head's as a rookie, though I would take 8 ppg over 20 mpg in a heartbeat from Spanoulis). Similarly, Lucas can hit his jumpers, but didn't show anything in his stints last year, got glowing reviews from a short run in the summer league against mostly non-rostered players, and will not be able to get away with the pick-and-roll that he used so well against better defenders in this league. Again, he needs another year to diversify his skills and mentally adjust to the game before he can become a rotational player.
I can see how CD's comment on Snyder having no competition at the 2 spot could be a firm indicator Tmac will be at the three next season BUT that all assumes we have the roster we have now. If CD is working on a trade and we get something better(like I don't know - Brian Cook & Chris Mihm ) than that's all subject to change. If we have a guy who can play a better "4" than Battier or Howard, then they might consider Tmac at the 2 and Battier at the three. In that scenario Snyder is the first to come off the bench. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that next year we mix our lineup a lot depending on matchups. Battier is starter material but we shouldn't start him out of position just to have him on the court. A more realistic scenario has Battier as the 6th man sliding between the 3 or 4 depending on matchup or who needs rest. He would probably still get 32-35 minutes that way but he probably wouldn't start. I know this goes against conventional thinking(at least according to everyone's depth charts) but I think it's a pretty viable solution. Battier would probably start against teams with smaller PFs or perimeter type PFs like Phoenix, Dallas, etc - but mostly Battier would play heavy rotation minutes from the bench...
"Well we know that the Rockets offered Head in an attempt to move up in the draft." I like the sound of that.
Possible lineup sometime during the season... PG: Kirk Snyder SG: Tracy McGrady SF: Shane Battier PF: Chuck Hayes C: Yao Ming. Snyder has pretty good handles, Tracy can run the offense, too, if there are enough fire power around him...
Unless a deal comes along that is a can't pass type of situation (like the TMac deal), I would not trade Head. The guy shot 50% from three point land last year until he hit the rookie wall around 35 games in. Even after a nasty stretch there in the middle of the season, he averaged .361 from distance, over a steal a game, and a 1.8 to 1 assist to turnover ratio. That along with 8.8 points per game and an extremely small contract equal a player that will not be traded. I would be willing to bet that the Rox coaching staff told Luther to shoot 50,000 or more three point shots over the summer to get his stroke down. He will be money from the arc this year and will be exactly what we need when teams sag on TMac and Yao. If Head gets traded, I will be very disappointed as he was one of the bright spots to the '05-'06 season.
