ClutchFans Game Thread: Rockets @ Spurs 10/27/2023

It took two games to call the careers of Jabari and Green for half this message board lol.

 

Pretty sure that won't end well for him. This is the NBA.

 

Who really cares bruv.......you move on to better players when they do not pan out.......we expected Wembanyama.

The lottery was actually a lot closer.

Also Jabari and Green might not even be the most compatible, they could do much more on other teams......ever thought about that?

 

Yeah, and half of this board doesn't know what they are talking about!

 

Udoka's audio sucked, and only FVV said anything worth listening to from what I could tell. Jabari sounds like he should be put on suicide watch. Jeez.

 

Some people just wanna watch the world burn… lol

 

Above all - it has been two games, and things can and will change but here are my early observations.

Really not impressed by Jalen Green so far. He hasn’t done anything positive through two games. He needed to up the efficiency and effort this season and so far he hasn’t.

Jabari Smith needs to talk to a sports psychiatrist. He is too down on himself and it impacts his game. Even if he does improve - the fact his confidence can be destroyed so easy is concerning.

Al Sengun still has flaws - but he is the one young player that makes things happen. He is a genuine rotation player on a playoff team. I don’t think he is a franchise player though.

Amen Thompson has been about what I expected. Very raw, makes mistakes but also at times really stands out on the floor.

The vets are good - they make the right plays and give effort.

Again - it’s two games but all of this highlights just how incredibly corrosive the last 2-3 years have been when it comes to player development. Stone thought it didn’t matter if the young players were not well coached or held accountable- it clearly did matter as all of the young players are vastly under developed. They are struggling at some very basic things - which has limited what Udoka can do while he tries to teach them what they should have known by the middle of their rookie season.

The coaching is fine so far. I don’t think Pop or Riley would be doing any better with this group.

On a side note, this team was very poorly put together and don’t really fit well.

The biggest challenge for Udoka this year isn’t winning games - it is changing the mentality and culture and holding players accountable.

 

That is very interesting what went down with Fred and Scottie Barnes if he was so willing to help.

 

Pretty sure that won't end well for him. This is the NBA.

If Jalen does not pick up his game, then that means we are probably in the doldrums another 2-3 years. If for some reason Jabari doesn't develop, now that is an additional 2-3 years. Fact is, it takes a long time for teams to overcome bad lottery picks.

We need one of these two to turn into a really good starter, at least a Mike Conley Jr or a Andre Iguodala. What we can't have are a bunch of Ben McClemores, Jordan Hills, and Doug McDermotts. Of course best case scenario would be a Harden, Curry or Thompson.

 

Good news yall



But yeah, gonna be a tough year. Thought we played well, but team can't shoot.

 

Love the leadership from alpi but jabari looks like a little boy here and not talking about height. Just looks completely shook

 

I don't think he was, he wasn't really a remarkable player at all, no one had any idea he'd turn into what he is right now. He was a defender that could not shoot, could not handle, these guys are out of the league during their first contract. He was shooting 150% from three lol. As bad as Bari's offense is now, Giannis at the time was magnitudes worse. If Giannis never improved his handling and shooting he would have remained a deep bench guy situational role player.

I do think though for Jalen it is a prove it year, he HAS to show some growth this year. It is his 3rd year. No one is asking him to be an all-star tier player (that would be nice) but at least have consistently good shooting nights.

But we do have to remember Bari has only played 2 games of his 2nd season and Green 2 of his 3rd. Green actually shot well today, just got too passive and the ball went away from him.

We should at least let these guys play half of a season before we condemn their entire seasons.

 

That's what sticks out to me as well, the players don't really fit together and they don't seem to have much chemistry with one another. No one seems to really know what their role is and there is a lot of miscommunication on the court.

 

LOL, sorry I had to laugh at "our young players" as if they are the future of this team. Face it, these players will never be a part of a Rockets playoff bound team.

 

Hey if by 3/4ths of the way of this season Jalen is still playing at this level of "meh" it's time to consider trade talks for the off-season. Hopefully his urgency picks up. Way too passive. Seems more indecisive than last year so far.

 

Not to mention tick tack offensive fouls they would never dare to call on Wemby.

 

I was at the game, drove home listening to the space. We should have won even though they got some home cooking smh..

Jalen need to man up if he wants to be that guy... he had a good game if we want to consider him as role player... Jalen gotta do better.

Bari is so frustrating. I know it's only 2 games in but I only see him being a role player for us..

 

Giannis is a rare player, that people foresaw how his body turned.

I think his body transformation and mental strength was paramount in transforming him into the player he is today.

I do not see another Giannis coming up in 10 years.

 

What needs to happen is when they post up Sengun to run some off ball screens on the other side of the court and have players cut. Instead we have 4 guys standing around watching Sengun get double teamed. Just cuz Jalen doesn't have the ball doesn't mean he can't move.