Rockets Get the Point By: Dennis Silva Well, if there is one sure thing on the Rockets roster, it is their point guard slot. Last season, Steve Francis continued to make a statement upon the league as he earned the starting point guard spot on the Western Conference All-Star team. This is no easy job, considering the West claims the likes of Gary Payton, Mike Bibby, Steve Nash, Damon Stoudamire and Stephon Marbury. So, in this article I will review the point guard spot for the Rockets. STEVE FRANCIS 2001-02 Season Averages: 21.6 points/game, 6.4 assists/game, 7 rebounds/game Height: 6’3” Weight: 195 Projected 2002-03 Averages: 20 points/game, 7 assists/game, 6.5 rebounds/game This is where the Rockets are a stud. Few can compete with the Rockets when it comes to the point guard position, and a big reason for that is Steve Francis. With his mind-numbing athleticism and his ability to score at will, Francis has shown marked improvements in his game the past few years. He has improved his 3-point shot dramatically, and this is a big help since it keeps opposing defenses off-balance. Francis has also shown the ability to take over games, and he hit two game-winners (versus Detroit and Utah) last season. He has proved to be the leader that not everyone thought he would be, and he continues to make a conscious effort to get his teammates involved, which is something that cannot be said for a lot of All-Stars. Francis will only get better since he has a pure love for the game and plays every chance that he can. With his new extended contract, he will be a Rockets icon for years to come. MOOCHIE NORRIS 2001-02 Season Averages: 8.1 points/game, 4.9 assists.game, 3 rebounds/game Height: 6’1” Weight: 175 Projected 2002-03 Averages: 7.6 points/game, 6 assists/game, 3.5 rebounds/game As much as I tend to complain about Moochie, he is among the top five backup point guards in the league. There are few who are better at penetrating and finding the open man. He runs the break very well and runs a pretty efficient floor game. The one major problem with Moochie, however, is his tendency to dribble and dribble and dribble until the shot clock runs down. Moochie is far less efficient in a half-court set than a full-court break. As a backup, he needs to learn to work both ways, because when he is in and the Rockets are in a half-court set, it is painful to watch. He sometimes seems lost when it comes to running a set play and he is great at improvising and making up plays, but that will come to haunt him when he plays experienced teams such as the Lakers or Kings. This season he will have a lot more scorers around him so it shouldn’t be so hard to find someone open when it comes to a half-court game. But Rudy knows when to use Moochie and he utilizes him very well to where his weaknesses are at a limit. But if Moochie ever learns to adapt to the half-court game that the Rockets will be seeing a lot of this year, he will be as dangerous a backup as there is in the league. TITO MADDOX Rookie Height: 6’4” Weight: 190 Projected 2002-03 Averages: 5.9 points/game, 3.7 assists/game, 2.3 rebounds/game I’ve read very little on Tito so it’s hard to make a judgment on his game, but it’s not hard to figure out why the Rockets selected him the second round: he has great size for a point guard and plays good defense. He is quick and has limitless potential, and if Carroll Dawson and Rudy T liked what they saw in the kid, who am I to disagree? They have a superb history when it comes to the NBA draft so I have faith in them. However, with Tito, this likely means that last year’s third-string point guard, Tierre Brown, is out. Tierre doesn’t have nearly the size or potential that Maddox does. What Maddox will benefit from is that he can learn from one of the best, if not the best, point guards in Steve Francis. This season will likely be a slow one for Tito in that he will just spend time learning and getting used to the NBA game, but the Rockets can afford to have Tito learn a few years before he gets thrown into the fire. http://www.hoopsavenue.com/nba/team_reports.php?report_id=201
Great article. Not sure if Tito will get anough playing time to average those projected numbers but over all it sounds about right. I'd like to see Stevie's apg alittle higher but just to have him back and healthy again is good for me.
So Tito means Brown is gone! I don't think so. In fact CD made it a point to mention Tito could play at the 2 spot. If Brown is available I do not see the Rockets passing on him. I do not think they would stand in his way if another team wanted him because he is due for some more minutes more than the rockets can probably give barring any injuries. But that is a far cry from saying that Brown is history because of Tito. In addition Brown's ability to score means it will be a long while before Tito upside can catch Brown.
Moochie as one ot the Top 5 backups PGs in the NBA? Kenny Anderson SEA - Anderson Bobby Jackson SAC - Jackson Jeff McInnis POR - slight edge McInnis Antonio Daniels POR - Daniels Randy Brown PHX - Moochie Brian Shaw LAL - slight edge Shaw Marko Jaric LAC - slight experience edge Moochie Rafer Alston GSW - Moochie It appears Mooch is barely Top 5 in the Pacific Division let alone the entire NBA. Heck, I never even got to Van Exel, Avery Johnson, Kenny Satterfield, Jamaal Crawford, Lindsey Hunter, Chucky Atkins, Anthony Carter, Chris Childs.... Is this writer being too nice or am I being too tough?
Kenny Anderson SEA - Anderson Bobby Jackson SAC - I'll call it a tie, even though Jackson is more of a SG. Jeff McInnis POR - Moochie Antonio Daniels POR - Isn't he an SG? As a PG, I'll take Mooch Randy Brown PHX - Moochie Brian Shaw LAL - Moochie Marko Jaric LAC - Hasn't played a single game. Moochie Rafer Alston GSW - Who? Moochie Van Exel - Van Exel (but will he still be a backup when the season starts?) Avery Johnson - Used to be quite good, but he's 37 now. Moochie Kenny Satterfield - Moochie Jamaal Crawford - I don't think he's played a single game either. Lot of hype but a walking injury. Moochie. Lindsey Hunter - I thought he was a SG too. As a PG, I'll take Moochie. Chucky Atkins - Moochie Anthony Carter - Moochie Chris Childs - Childs By my count, he's tied for 4th. Are there other significant backups to consider?
No way...you think that Mooch is better than Bobby Jackson or Jeff Mcinnis? If we had one of those 2 on our team, Mooch wouldnt even be in a rockets uniform. Id put Kenny A, Mcinnis, Damiels and Jackson ahead of Mooch easily....Shaw could go either way, Alston is better than you might think but its s toss up.
In Steve and Mooch's defense they didn't have Ming, Nachbar, Taylor and Rice all year to playmake and take the pressure off the guard play. This alone should make them much better than last year. In practice they will both have to go up against 6' 4" Tito who is supposedly a good defender. This should help them improve as well.
JV - Now I see why you broke off your relationship with RealGM....I took my entire list of PGs from their Depth Charts...they included some SGs...
Isn't a point guard supposed to have a high number of assists? Doesn't a point run the offense, make it work? The description of Frances sounds more like a shooting guard.
I'm going to have to agree with you on that one. I don't even know why Shaw is still in the league...there is no other team in the league that would sign him if the Lakers cut him. He's like Ron Harper was late in his career, only still in the NBA because he's respected and has won championships. Shaw doesn't have a whole lot of anything to contribute anymore, just a verteran presence I guess. I agree that Moochie is probably a top 5 backup PG...Bobby Jackson is clear-cut #1, then Anderson, Childs, and Van Exel are in there somewhere after that.
I'll give you Mcinnis but Bobby Jackson and Daniels don't get enough assists to be considered good PG's. Daniels got less than 3 assists a game last year and Jackson only got 2 assist a game. Mobley puts up those kind of assist numbers and he doesn't even pass the ball.
