What is your opinion on the Rockets depth/bench right now? I've seen a lot of people on message boards around the internet that have criticized our depth and even gone as far to say that we have the worst bench in the entire Western Conference. Personally, I don't think it is quite as bad as some think. You've got tremendous depth at the four (even though people will say we have the same type of players at the 4), Mutombo, who as a backup is great, Sura, Lue, Padget...I really don't think that is too shabby. While we certainly have holes, I think our bench is fine.
it's pretty thin when you compare it to say dallas and sactown and memphis. it's 'doable' i guess over the span of 82 games.
I actually like our depth. I think that it's much better than last year. backup positions: C Mumtombo -- Deke can give us everything that Cato did last year, and that ugly hook shot of his still works from time to time. PF Taylor, Padget, Spoon -- same as last year. Mo's one of the better bench scorers in the league. Padget makes open threes with the best of 'em. SF Bowen, Nachbar -- Bowen's going to have a good year for us. The guy is a perfect role player for this team. Boki's days on the team may be numbered. SG (as of now) Gaines -- this is our weakest bench position, but we really don't need many minutes from backup SG as TMac will play 40+ minutes every night. When Sura comes back, this position would look better. PG Lue -- Lue may not be a starter-caliber player, but people will find out that as a backup PG, he's with the best of 'em. Definitely a big upgrade over what we had last year (MJax and Moochie ) Overall, I like our depth. As you said, a lot of people around the league have underestimated our bench. That IMO is a very good thing.
Mo taylor is all I have to say. Yes he has his defiencies but, at the end of the season, he's going to be considered for six man of the year with his scoring talent. I expect more from him since he will be almost splitting time with howard (50/50) for pt and he will also be facing second tier players.
I think Mo and Sura as your 6th and 7th men is pretty solid. They can give you the points. Mutombo and Bowen are solid defensive role players that will mesh well with the starters. And Lue is a nice change of pace PG to push the tempo. The bench isn't too bad really. Our bench actually would probably look even better if we had a more solid STARTING PG and PF. (I like Howard over Taylor but they are redundant). P.S. Sad to say, but I didnt include Nachbar up there.
Even though it's good to have depth, I think it depends on what type of game you play. If you look at the Grizzlies of last year, they had 10 guys who played every day. If your going to have an 8 man rotation then how deep does your bench really need to be? Like I said, it's good to have depth, but the question is are you really going to use it? People would probably say, well at least you have it if you have injuries and you know that's true, but we don't have that problem right now and shouldn't worry about it. If they're saying we CURRENTLY have the worst bench then I'll tell them to shove it. How many of our guys are we really going to be using consistently? Starters: Yao TMac JJ Howard Ward For sures: Lue Mutombo Taylor Likely: Bowen (should probably be on the "for sure" list) Padgett Garbage time, special occasions (shaq), or foul trouble: Spoon Gaines Boki (supposed to get time, but hasn't earned it) It looks to me like we'll likely have an 8, or possibly 9, man rotation. I'd say our bench is well stocked for that. Comparing one teams bench to another isn't right unless your including what each team really needs and uses. Pugs
yao-deke JH-mo-spoon-pad jj-bowen-boki tmac-sura-hawkins ward-lue-gaines when healthy our bench is pretty solid. the only thing i would change for this year is mo and spoon for a F/C who can rebound, block, and SHOOT.
You only need to be three deep. Mutombo, Taylor, and Nachbar give that to us. They each bring a skill. I like the depth too.
I think our depth is very good. I wish we could add a better PG and a taller SF/PF with shot-blocking skills next year, though.
Most of the fans of other teams that say our bench sucks just realize that their teams don't have, arguably, the best one-two punch in the NBA. This team will live and die with what T-Mac and Yao do. That is just the reality. Our depth isn't what it could be - probably not what it will be in the next couple seasons - but I don't think we can say we are terribly deficient compared to anyone else when you factor in our two best players.
I would say the Rockets depth is bad due to the weakness at PG and not having a well rounded backup at the 2 or 3. PF and C are good as far as depth goes.
I agree. This team is simply built around T-Mac and Yao. If they play well within the JVG system, our role players will flourish and put up unexpectedly nice numbers. If Yao and/or T-Mac has trouble or get injured, our bench is hardly capable of stepping up. We certainly don't have potential stars-in-waiting on the bench like a Bobby Jackson, a Marquis Daniels, or a Micheal Redd(back when he backed up Ray Allen). It's just decent players who could fit our system.
I won't say a "terrible" bench, but We do have a below average bench. That doesn't matter though, the Rockets will do or die with their two main horses. As long as one of those guys are on the court, the team will function just fine.
Overall - I think our bench - while not the strongest - is significantly stronger than last year - and that other teams and their fans - as well as some Rockets fans - will be surprised. Out: Wilkes, M.Jackson, Paitkowski, Griffin In: Mutumbo, Lue, Sura, Gaines, Bowen Position by Position analysis: Front Court: - C - We improved at back-up C with Mutumbo from Cato. - SF - Back up SF is a hole - Boki is not the answer (yet?) - but he's no worse than last year and Bowen is a new option we didn't have last year and Sura may be used here also. - PF - Back up PF should be a strength (assuming J.Howard starts Mo T. backup) - but it's not as good as it looks on paper because Mo T. is a clone of Howard. we really only get freshness - not another dimension - like defense - rebounding or intimidation - which limits the teams ability to adjust. Back Court: - PG - We improved at back-up PG with Lue and/or Sura from M.Jackson and Wilkes. - SG - We improved at backup SG also - if you accept that Sura fills in here too - when healthy. Summary: Rockets have a deeper bench - more or equal options at all positions - than last year.
I would say that the Rockets bench is pretty horrible (bottom 5-10) ... That does however not mean that you have a bad team by any means. In fact in some way its a bit scary since it should be easy to improve this team through free agency. Only thing I would worry about if I was a Rocket fan would be if the ownership is willing to invest in solid roleplayers ... besides that I would just sit back, relax and enjoy.
our bench, when healthy, is just as good as any other team. deke is one of the best backup centers in the league. mo is one of the best back-up pf's. lue is better than most backup PG's. that is a strong 8 man rotation right there. when sura gets back he will be a very good addition, no doubt about that. then add bowen's hustle. we are 10 strong when healthy. even have extra guys like spoon, pad, boki, even gaines and hawkins can produce in limited time. i would expect that by the deadline we will see a 2 for one trade involving the fowards on the team.
Our bench is servicable right now, will be better when Sura gets back, and will probably be upgraded before the trading deadline. Sura hurts us temporarily because of his injury, however it may be a silver lining by allowing Rece to get playing time and subsequently, develop while Sura is rehabbing. Boki and Bowen also will be playing more while JJ is playing the 2. It's ironic that an injury to Sura will make us more versatile. I believe that Boki could be getting significant time especially considering he played good minutes at the most crucial time of the year for us last year in the playoffs. JVG will also be tinkering to find the optimum chemistry. It'll be fun to see how things play out.
