Tracy McGrady and his play at the end of close games...

It seemed like Turnovers cost us the game down the stretch. Same old ****. That damn Francis! Oh, I'm sorry we don't have him to blame anymore. Who are people going to point the finger at now?

 

Great mind think alike.

 

Exactly. When T-Mac slashed to the basket, it was great. Last night, he got two clean dunks off of his slashing to the basket. Kobe does this non-stop. He usually starts off nailing a couple jumpers so his defender plays him tight. Then he drives. At that point, he can do a million things. Without any help on D, Kobe can score. Even with help, he can probably get to the line or he can dish to open outside shooters. If the opposing center slides over to block his shot, he can underhand the ball to the center for a quick dunk. T-Mac needs to be aggressive. The good things that can happen when he drives to the basket far outweigh the bad things.

 

I can't help but think of Kobe was on our team last night instead of Tmac, Kobe would have made the same drive but would have tried to intiate contact to get himself at the line (and perhaps even an And 1). The Knicks defense stinks. Chances are they would have fouled Tmac. AND if Tmac had been driving like that ALL NIGHT then the chances go up even more that the officials would make that call. They tend to reward (give the benefit of the doubt) to the aggressive player. If Tmac shows a pattern of being able to get to the FT line, then the officials will continue that pattern.

 

You can't rely on your center to make the last shot. The paint area will be too crowded.

Yao is clutch though if he is not tired. In the fourth quarter, Yao missed 3 fadeaways. On the 4th attempt, instead of shooting another fadeaway, he attacked the basket and got two foul shots which he made both.

The main weakness of Yao is that he jumps too slow. At his height, he does not need to jump high. But if he can jump a little bit faster, he will get 10 rebounds easily a game and receive entry pass easily.

 

You're a leaner edc and a younger OldmanRock.

 

I disagree ... If T-Mac shoots a long 3 pointer with 3 secs left, the time it takes the ball to get to the rim, bounce off (probably a long rebound since it is a long shot), and the Knicks get possesion ... There is no way even a second would have been left.

 

Seriously, what does a post like this accomplish?

Stuart

 

I think this is hurting us as a team.

 

The irony of this thread is that all summer we all thought Weisbrod was being a jerk in his comments on McGrady, but this thread represents why Weisbrod was willing to trade a talent like McGrady. Weisbrod never questioned McGrady’s ability, he only questioned his level of energy during games and his willings to give that extra burst it takes to close out tough games.

Think about it like this, the Rockets Organization has been very gracious towards the players they shipped to Orlando and have only had good things to say about them. But lets say the Rockets said that Francis just couldn’t get on the same page with Ming and he couldn’t run JVG’s offense and that Mobley took to many ill-advised shots and that Cato just never lived up to expectations. Would the Rockets management be jerks, or would it just be honesty. Weisbrod may have been a jerk, but was he being honest of his personal assessment of McGrady as a player.

Weisbrod is a general manager, which entails scouting. He gets paid a lot of money to evaluate players. Evaluating players involves more than assessing their talent, it involves assessing their attitude, their maturity, their level of energy, their off the court behavior. Weisbrod, while maybe being a jerk, has experience in this. He may not have basketball experience but he has been in the business of evaluating sports talent, and maybe we should have listened to what he had to say.

All that being said, I don’t think this will be a big problem for the Rockets. We have another star on this team, who has already proven that he can close out games. He closed out the Sacramento game when McGrady wasn’t playing, and he has performed well down the stretch in some other past games, particularly last season’s home game against Atlanta. So maybe that is just how the team has to adjust, McGrady getting us through the first three quarters and Yao closing games out.

 

u know i haven't seen that many games, only three so far i think.....but i remember the game against the grizzlies before his injury he got to the line a lot...i remember for a stretch there it was deke blocking a shot then tmac going to line, deke block, then tmac FTs....he scored like 30 in that game....could it be that the injury is causing not to be as aggressive?...just some thoughts

 

u know i haven't seen that many games, only three so far i think.....but i remember the game against the grizzlies before his injury he got to the line a lot...i remember for a stretch there it was deke blocking a shot then tmac going to line, deke block, then tmac FTs....he scored like 30 in that game....could it be that the injury is causing him not to be as aggressive?...just some thoughts

 

Kobe does have more mental toughness as well as more intensity, but one thing that Kobe and Vince for that matter have over Mc Grady is what it takes to LEAD a team to victory in a close game.

However Mc Grady has the talent and now all he needs is the experience. Just be patient.

 

Redhova, you think Vince has what it takes to lead a team to victory? If you think that, you must be out of your mind.

What has Vince done in the past 3 years to make you belive that? Lead the raptors to the lottery 3 years in a row? Oh, what a winner.

And you think Kobe has what it takes? What has Kobe done without Shaq? Gone 2-10 two years ago? If the lakers do not make the playoffs this year, will Kobe still have what it takes to lead a team to victory?

 

This work for you??

 

I think today T-Mac absolutely degrades this thread and everyone who supported it! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

I mean we are 10 games into this season and doubt shrouds over you like the humidity in Houston.

Let me tell you... I went to the Clipper game today and T-Mac flat out won that game. Those two clutch free throws at the end of regulation were directed towards this thread.

You have now passed T-Mac 101.

 

I think T-Mac just answered anyone doubting him today. He might not be MJ or even Kobe but I think as the season goes on he will impose his will more and more at the end of games and in the clutch.

 

Man, that Tracy McGrady is one bad mother... Shut your mouth. What? I'm just taking about McGrady.

 

I hope so
I think I prefer TMAC driving in the fourth than Yao
Mainly because of Yao's Stamina
I think Yao is more dominant. . but he maybe too tired

Let yao dominate the 1st and 3rd
T-mac the 2nd and 4th

Let's hope Tmac can build on this

Rocket River
disappointed we had to goto Overtime to beat the Clippers