Even if we go on to lose this game... can we please finally put the Mike James crap to rest? I loved Mike James and don't think he deserves the wrath of the other extreme on this board, but just from watching these past few games we can clearly see how great a trade this was. Alston was the difference in Washington and has been the difference thus far in Cleveland. It may not show up in the stat sheet, but he takes great care of the ball, controls tempo, gets the team running, and most importantly, takes pressure off of McGrady. What a difference having a real point guard out there makes. I think he will solidify the position for this team for the next four years, regardless of what Mike James is doing in Toronto.
i wonder how mike james will be after he signs a decent/fat contract... everyone knows he's playing harder because its a contract year
People won't be ready to put Mike James to rest until Rafer plays like he is capable and shows some consistency. If this happens, Mike James will be a forgotten man.
i feel that he's just starting to have the feel of playing with the team and there's so much more that he can give. i think he's done his homework while on IL
agreed. the mike james/skip trade talk needs to stop after tomorrow's game. i hope rafer has a stellar game tomorrow against his old team.
I was thinking the same thing. Maybe the layoff was good for Rafer because it allowed him to step back and observe what JVG was looking for and what the team needed. The way he's playing now is the reason I whined so much over the summer about how much a real PG could help our offense. When Yao comes back, hopefully everyone will see Rafer is the key to Yao taking the next step instead of Stro. If Rafer and Yao develop chemistry, Yao's shooting % will go back up into the stratosphere when he gets his legs back. He'll have both Tracy and Rafer feeding him the ball in the right spots.
I saw it in preseason...I think those first few games of the season he tightened up though. I really think he can be a difference maker on this team. So, he's better for this team than James...James is wanting a fat contract after this season, and rumors swirled that Mcgrady didn't like James. I'd rather have Alston than an overpayed guy that hurts team chemistry.
18/6/4/4 and even 1 block to boot with ZERO turnovers. That's friggin awesome from a point guard. Having him and Sura as our 2 point guards would've made a HUGE difference this year if they were healthy.
maybe Alston's poor play had something to do with his stress fracture in his leg... was he trying to play through it the first 8 games?
i have carried my current sig for two years now. skip just might be the answer to my wish. yeah, i am definitely happy with that trade.
and so... even if we lose the next game to the raptors... we should really put a lid on the mike james trade even if mike james be the one who'll kill us again
i've always said the same. People shouldn't have bashed the trade when rafer had barely played with the team yet.. Honestly, I think it'll take until next year, when some team overpays Mike James.. for the national media to say "well maybe the trade wasn't so bad". Even though I believe Rafer will be good this year
that host from the "fantasy hoops" show on nbatv said thats what he's used to seeing from rafer. he said he was wondering what the hell was going on with him at the beginning of the season. if he expects this from rafer all the time, that's good news.
The rule of thumb is: never keep a player with two first names. On second thought, that would include: LeBron James Mike Scott Tim Duncan Never mind.
