Assumption: Sura survives the offseason without injury or being traded/cut. Sura should be the starting SG. Mike James had a great season/postseason for the Rockets and could easily take over as the starting PG if the Rockets have depth behind him. Head and Spanoulis(sp?)(if he makes team) should provide backup at PG with Sura being an emergency option. Against the Mavericks, Stackhouse and Terry ate up the Rockets for a lot of the games. James contained Terry much better than Sura. James for the season had an effective fg% of 35% against him (via www.82games.com). Sura may not be able to stop Stackhouse, but (when the Rockets have a PF healthy and/or who does not suck) Stackhouse will have to be cordially introduced to Mr. Bowen. With Sura being a former SG and James a shoot first PG, Head's SG background shouldn't hurt him too bad as a PG with the Rocks as long as he can bring the ball up the court effectively. Sura averaged only 5 assists a game and James less than that. There will be a logjam at the SG spot under this scenario. Sura and James in together would definitely allow McGrady to do less work ballhandling so he can expend his energy on defense and on getting around screens. Wesley or Barry will be the odd man out if Sura moves to the SG spot.
I like Mike James coming off the bench. I hate watching him run our offense with Yao and McGrady on the floor though. His "I'm gonna get mine" mentality is great for a spark off the bench, but it doesn't make much sense in our first unit.
With Wesley as good as gone, I think the OP is correct. The current roster is shaping up where Mike James and Sura start together. The reality is that they'd probably share point duties, with James bringing up the ball while taking on much of the scoring responsibility of the 2 spot, and Sura setting up a lot of the offense but guarding 2s on defense . This all assumes that Head can become a pace-changing sixth man. The guy helped carry a great Illinois team, so hopefully this is the least he is capable of. Of course, with the talk of trades, all bets are off.
Let's see who else comes through free agency and trades. I expect there will be better options than starting Sura and James together.
One thing I know for sure, Mike James is not a point guard. Our offense just doesn't work all that well, when he is running the point. As a 2 guard, I think he fits in nicely, but he should definately not be our starting pg. Personally, I think James is gone (because he has value). I think Sura will run our point with The Greek and Head picking up the slack. When Sura was just 50% healthy last year, he looked decent running the point. Towards the end of the season, he looked really bad, but that was becuase he was in an insane amount of pain. If he can recover, and stay a little healthy, we keep him and play him 20 minutes at the point. Personally, I am interested in seeing what The Greek and Head can do. We already know what James can do. It's time to play point guards who are point guards. (The Greek is supposed to be a pure pg) Wesley and James are 1/2s with value and age. I hope that they will be traded for a nasty 2/3, and that we can bring back Barry for a nominal amount. 2/3 (hopefully a player of impact) Barry Head Sura The Greek Head
I think Aruba might be right. I'm not a MJ hater but I still can't get the image of Tmac being forced to play point against the Mavs out of my head. MJ can bring the ball up and all but the offense stalls. He'll do crossovers for a good 10 seconds or so after bringing the ball up before he decides to pass it. It's like James is playing for the final shot of the quarter on EVERY possession where he's the PG.
PG: James/Spannoulis SG: Free Agent/Sura/Head I wouldn't mind running with 5 guards, I wouldn't be opposed to trading James for PG who can shoot 3's and play defense and won't look for his shot as much. But the overall guard play must improve.
i think all 3 are gone. JB and head are going to be the backup guards. head is our replacement for james. a defensive frist shooter, but head is more under control. james said he will go after the biggest contract next summer, time to move him.
I think Sura is best suited for a role off the bench backing up both guard spots. With the condition that his body is in, his minutes should be limited to 20-25 minutes a game next season. If Head is this top-notch defender that the Rockets say he is, I say go ahead and start him at the 2. Then sign a tall shooting guard like Allan Houston for the vet min and a tall point guard like Antonio Daniels for the MLE to compensate for the lack of height. Mcgrady/Houston Head/Sura/Houston Daniels/Sura Package James and Wesley for a backup 4. A much more balanced, versatile, and athletic backcourt than the one we currently have.
Yep, James is definately gone. I think we'd have a hard time moving Sura, so we might want to keep him. Besides, we need his toughness. Also, if James is gone, we have to have someone who can handel a little of the pg duties. I doubt JVG will leave that up to two rookies. Rembember, before the injuries really caught up with Sura, he did a good job at the point for us last year.
Who the hell is talking about starting a rookie at PG? He's talking about Mike James - You know? The 29 year old veteran back up point guard?
Sura isn't what we need defensively at SG, so it's not going to happen. The whole reason we traded Jim Jackson was because he wasn't a very good defender at the 2, and neither would Sura be. Not that Bob is necessarily a bad defender in general, but with him at the 2 he'll be outmatched by most 2's in the league...and Tracy will end up guarding the best player all the time.
Agreed. One thing is known, whoever our starting SG is next year, they will have to be able to guard the opponents best perimeter player. JVG doesn't want TMac running around w/ Allen, Kobe, Etc...that's exactly why JJ isn't here. Sura has good intangibles to be a SG, but he isn't quick enough to guard other SGs, he has health issues, and isn't the best shooter. I still think Sura and Wesley will be gone, Wesley more likely if I had to pick one. I wonder if there is anyway to deal these guys to get a player like Mobley or Posey back here.
Our problem, Mike James, Bob Sura, and Head are all natural 2 guards. Only the Vaspoullis seems to be a natural PG...and he's never been in the NBA before. I suspect we aren't done adjusting the PG position yet.
he may be a veteran but he has the immaturity of a rookie. he has that me first mentallity. point is supposed to set up plays. i think hes only playing for future money instead of helping the team. and i certainly hope they drop wesley. hes a decent player but under pressure he choked not just for a game but for the series.
