From these past few games I'm really encouraged with last year's picks, Dekker and Harrell. Dekker's been solid since game 1 and started branching slowly showing all his tools, whereas Harrell played like trash on game 1 but started playing better with every succeeding game, this time finishing with a pretty decent 18 pts and 8 rebs while taking a total of 11 ft attempts. Harrell and Dekker look extremely aggressive out there which is great, right now since they are being forced to play as the main cogs they don't look as good, but in real games with guys like Harden taking all the heat away from them I'm sure these two will start to shine. Nanu still looks a bit lost but Harrell looked the same last year so maybe he'll only start looking decent next year. KJ....smh can we get a refund on that 9M 3 year contract? I'd rather free up more capspace for DMO or whoever this dude looks like an undrafted rookie.
LOL, I think this has more to do with poor drafting than it does poor coaching. Interesting thought, after drafting Olajuwon, the only players since that could ever be regarded as top 20 players in team history are Horry, Cassell, and Yao. That's only three players in over 30 years. Some have gone elsewhere to some success or to be grossly overpaid but even Rick Smith thinks we draft poorly.
Why so many stupid shots? Why are these players taking the TYPE of shots they are least likely to take if they get on an NBA court? When are we ever going to need Harrell to dominate possession for example? They need to understand their chances of playing with the main team depends on their ability to play THEIR game WITHIN the Rockets offense where they will barely ever create plays for themselves. I don't need to see Harrell or McDaniels taking it to the hole, no matter how much they may have worked on that. I want to see these guys play defense, move without the ball on offense, be in the right place at the right time, and hit wide open shots. That's it. If they can do more, let's see it in practice over the course of a season. Leave it out of SL.
Uh....the season before he was hired we went 2/14....the next season we improved to 9/7 and last season we went 9/7 and made playoffs with 3 backup QBs and an injury prone RB....I think he did alright with what we got..
Offensively, Dekker is nice. Looks like a first round talent for sure. Respectable 3 ball, doesn't really force his jumper, can make plays in transition, and moves well off the ball and cuts. Not going to break a guy down off the dribble, but give him the ball when hes coming around the screen and he'll make something happen. The team looked a lot smoother with him on the floor, not always as a playmaker, but just moving the ball around. Defensively, he's meh. Couldn't stay in front of his cover, and had some slow rotations at times. Not counting on him becoming a stopper or particularly good defender anytime soon, but the future is bright. Harrell played better, but you gotta worry about his control and consistency. His shot looks decent, but the arc is inconsistent. After he hit that nice looking three, he became a black hole on offense for a bit. His touch around the hoop looked better. Some nice drives and finishes, but he really needs that jumper. McDaniels also played better. Some highlight blocks as we've seen in the past. His jumper had some success today, but you still get the feeling hes gonna miss every time he launches one. Mixed bag defensively. Got beat a couple times. Didn't seem to be forcing things as much today, but could still reign it in a little. Still hoping he could be like a...poor mans Gerald Wallace. Onuaku needs D-League time. Looked like things were moving way too fast for him. One possession, he made a high-post touch pass to an open shooter for 3 (shot missed) that really impressed me. A bit of that big man court-vision scouts talked about before the draft. If he can do stuff like that more often he could be a contributor. Wiltjer..tough game. Got targeted on defense. Shot wasn't falling. Couldn't rebound. Got bodied up by 6'2 Quinn Cook in the high post, spun around a bunch of times, couldn't do anything, traveled. Pretty much sums up his performance tonight. Freeman looks intriguing. Good handles. Nice jumper. Doesn't seem to have notable court vision or passing. More of a combo guard? But at his height, it'll be hard for him. I could see him tearing up the D-League and maybe getting called up on a 10-day contract, or just playing overseas. Isaiah Taylor desperately needs a better floater. Looked Rafer-esque at times.
Agree with all of these evaluations. To your point about KJ, he reminds me of Gerald Wallace so much it is crazy. He is a really good rebounder but is fineing his way in other ascts of the game. Gerald was in his 4th year before he started getting minutes and work out all of the kinks. KJ doesn't have as much wreckless abandon in him but that is what made Gerald Wallace so good on both ends. KJ tends to dissapear or watch on offense and defense which is unfortunate. He needs to have his motor on at all times ready to make whatever play is needed. That is what Gerald was so great at. The guys down on KJ for his lack of shooting I just don't get. I think he has layed pretty well and finished better today with contact. I am however dissapointed in his perimeter defense. Just doesn't seem to have the instincts hic is unfortunate as I thought he could devoop into a stopper. He still has time but I am not writing him off yet. His work ethic is off the charts apparently so I can see big improvement over the next couple of years just like Gerald Wallace when he worked on shooting, ball handling and finishing to become an all star.
Terrible, how can some of these guys just not understand the concept of passing? I hope Roy Rogers tears them a new one. Guys trying to be selfish to make the team and showcase themselves, so weird..
SL is not for you to see anything. Second year players and older use it to practice skills they have been working on in the summer. Stanley Johnson has been driving ONLY left because he couldn't before and that's what he has been working on in the summer. So he only drived left. If someone ha been working on his shot, where better to try it on SL? Big men dribble take the ball down and shoot 3s in SL all the time but when real season begins they do not. They will show if they deserve to break in the rotation not during SL , not to us the fans, but during practices and training camp to their coach.
Depending on how you rate players, think Steve and maybe Cat would be in the convo. But don't think this is that much different from most franchises outside of SA, GSW, Cleveland, and OKC. Even teams that have won championships as of late, the Celtics, Lakers, and Miami haven't drafted top players outside of Pierce, Kobe, and Wade respectively.
There were 12-4 the season before the 2-14 season. Also it didn't help your QB completely went into a downward spiral, and your RB got hurt and had a bunch of unlucky bounces.
