Swift > Howard

Way to lead the witness!

 

JVG will let it happen.

 

I agree. Its time for the youth movement to take over. The only way Swift is going to fully develop is with consistent starters minutes. Swift needs to grow with this team and I think JVG has been very patient with Stromile. JVG knows his potential and I think he can be what Kelvin Cato was when he played next to Yao when they made the playoffs 2 years ago. Granted Swift isn't the sharpest card in the deck but I think he has the right coach to instill the philosophy that he can and should be a definite force on the defensive end.

 

ooooops sorry thhe previous post was made by me not FLAGRANT1....I'm at Bubbles Car Wash right now and somehow his login was saved.

 

Stro plays PF and backs up Yao at the C spot for some minutes; Hayes picks up 15-20 mpg, give Deke a few minutes here and there, cut JHo down to about 18-24. We play better in the 4th qtr and maybe Juwan will have some juice left for the playoffs.

Now how do we platoon the guards so they are not all exhausted?

.

 

I say start Chuck Hayes, and let Juwan and Stro share time off the bench. Of course, that's the least likely scenario.

Swift makes more bad decisions on the court, and when he's bad he's REALLY bad. Over the long run, I think Swift will be better for us than Juwan, but it's hard to decisively say one should start over the other. Both are dissapointing, in my opinion.

 

1st, let me say that i always enjoy our discussions, DaDa. seriously.


i honestly agree with you that stro should start. here's something that may sound strange to you: i think JVG thinks stro should start, too! we are, imo, a better team with him at power forward as opposed to juwan.

here's the problem, though: you can't reward a lack of consistent effort with a promotion to the starting lineup. JVG has said, time and time again, that he will only give players what they earn...unless forced by injuries, etc. stro, for all of the energy he can provide, is just as likely to put forth a lackluster, boneheaded effort. if he were ever consistent in his efforts, he'd probably be in the starting lineup.

it brings up an interesting thought though: what's more important? principles or victories? we get more victories with stro starting, imo. but you invalidate your own principle of not rewarding poor behavior, which will ultimately cost you in the long haul. or do you stick to your guns - forcing stro to be consistent to get the minutes which, ultimately, will make him a better player?

 

Maybe Stromile would be a more effective starter. But he's already reasonably productive off the bench, and Juwan showed last year that he ISN'T effective coming off the bench.

Though it might not be best for Stro, starting Juwan is, IMO, better for the team. Now's not the time to start experimenting.

 

Whichever guy is playing better will get the minutes. Simple as that. We need to give up the fantasy that starting Stro will make him a better player. If he puts up 13/7 every game he will push JH aside and get meaningful minutes, but we can't count on that. Besides, he just came off the injured list again and was hurting yesterday. He may not be able to play big minutes right away. Give it at least a couple of games.

richirich, you make a good point. If we do make the playoffs, I'm afraid JH will be completely out of gas because he's logged so many minutes this year while Stro was injured. Plus JH may be running out of gas anyway.

verse, I disagree with you. #1: I don't believe JVG would sacrifice games this way. #2: The starting PF isn't the issue. It's the playing time between JH & Stro that matters most, and after that, who finishes. Here's to Stro finally putting together a long string of solid games without getting injured. We need it. Maybe he's saving the best for last.

 

re #1: you may be right. he has recently said that every coaches job is directly attached to "wins". survival mode, ya know. but i can't help but contemplate what i see in front of me: stro is a higher energy player than juwan! i know JVG has to see that. but juwan is more consistent with his effort. the "known quantity" so to speak.

re #2: i should have been clearer. that's my fault. i wasn't just speaking about starting. i was also speaking about pecking order, depth chart, amt of minutes, ya know...

 

Yao+Stro > Yao+Howard.

Stro covers up most of Yao's weaknesses, Howard magnifies them.

On offense Stro can cut to the rim aggressively and finish. Howard is more apt to hang out at the high post and wait to shoot a jumper. Now shooting jumpers is all well and good, but when Yao gets doubled the passing angle closes up, and that makes it a difficult pass to make, whereas hitting a cutter in the lane is an easy pass for him.

On defense Stro's quickness makes up for a lot of Yao's limitations. If you put a quick guy next to a relatively slow guy, the defensive rotations have a chance to be adequate. But you put a slow guy next to a slow guy, and that's just playing with fire.

Of course Chuck Hayes does some of this stuff better than both of these guys, but he can't get any consistent minutes. When is JVG going to realise that regardless of size, Chuck Hayes can get it done and needs some more PT.

 

I could not agree more, Stro was a man yesterday, and we need everything that we can get in order to keep the attention away from Yao and TMac. With the way that Yao has been shooting lately, I think that Stro can help a lot if he keeps it up. Even since before the injury, it really has looked like Stro may be getting better acclimated to his role on the team.

 

Easy there folks. Stromile Swift was the matchup du jour yesterday. Denver has athleticism up front in Martin/Camby so it would stand to reason that he play a big role in the outcome, not to mention the frenetic pace they play at. Just like it was no shock that Bogans should have started(as the game proved) to matchup with Anthony. Wesley is too small to cover Melo.

I want to see Swift do this in games where the matchups aren't in his favor before proclaming him a starter. And I was at last night's game.

 

Commmon Sense > Gumby

 

Am I the only one who thinks we shouldn't judge Swift's or Howard's performance stat-wise when we're comparing their effectiveness?

Obviously, the better you play, the more stats will come. I'm sure Swift didn't do anything differently than he normally would have (except for try?) in the game against Denver, but he ended up with 15 n 6. I think they should be judged more on intangibles.

All in all, I think Swift is better than Howard. I just think JVG wants Swift to earn his playing time, and will eventually give him the starting spot. I think if Swift keeps up what he did last night, the energy, not necessarily the stats, he will get much, much, much more playing time.

Hayes and Swift look good for our future PFs.

 

If the matchup isn't in his favor, then bring in Juwan. But if the matchups are in his favor, and they are more often than they are in Juwan's, then give him minutes.

 

This guy is smart. Who is he? What's he doing wasting his time posting on BBS?

Go out there and change the world!

 

There is no way you can make any judgements after just one game.

Howard is a much smarter player the Stro IMO

Now if Stro continues to play like last night against Denver for the remainder of the season then we can revisit this

 

you got to give Stromile some time. remember it took Horry sometime to get into the groove with the Rockets.