Did anybody hear Les on the season ticket holder conference call?

Well, Chad Ford (I think it was him) said he thought Brandon Roy was the most NBA-ready guard in the draft. I have to agree. Can JJ Redick do what he did in college against NBA competition? His game against LSU doesn't give you doubts?

Players rarely shoot at a high clip from the behind the arc in their first year, even if they were outstanding shooters in college. It's likely that Redick won't be a great shooter until his second or third season (if that). That would essentially make him useless as a rookie, since he doesn't do anything else well.

My point in that comparison was more about stressing the importance of versatility, not athleticism. I think people tend to put too much emphasis on shooting ability (or lack thereof) with guards. Historically, I believe versatility has been a better indicator of NBA success. Of course, Bird is shining example of that -- being one of the most versatile players in the history of the league.

 

This post is so wrong I don't know where to start to dissect it.

First, you've equated Josh Childress' ATL playing time with his lack of BB IQ. He plays 30 mpg coming off of the bench. And he's sharing time with Joe Johnson and the more highly rated Josh Smith...who gets 31.7 mpg.

Further, you want to make some vague connection to athletic basketball players by inferring that they are all potentially Stromile Swifts. After admitting you hadn't watched Childress play, your exact wording was "clearly, Childress has no brain either". He attended Stanford for cryin' out loud. Being athletic and having a high BB IQ are not mutually exclusive conditions. End of discussion.

You "wouldn't mind getting Brandon Roy"...but he's not all that quick?

There is no draft website higher on JJ Redick than draftexpress. The guy running that site is (like you) inexplicably in love with Redick's game. He has Redick as the 10th best player in the draft. But he also has Roy as the 5th best in this draft.

His (not my) description of Brandon...."Roy's main weapon, and the aspect of his game that has kept scouts intruiged over the years, is his ability to create off the dribble".

That must be a pretty amazing feat. The ability to create off of the dribble without being "all that quick". But you're right. I "wouldn't mind" having Brandon Roy either.

The 7th, 8th or 9th best available player on this planet and we are going to settle for one aspect that may be questionable whether it can be delivered at the next level? That is an absolute recipe for disaster.

At least with tall, athletic players you are going to get some semblance of defense, the ability to finish strong at the basket and enough speed to get easier baskets in transition.

A one-dimensional undersized player like JJ Redick as a Rocket will not get enough half-court touches to make up for how badly the Jason Richardsons of the world will torch him in a low block post up. David Wesley is much stronger than Redick and I still have nightmares (figuratively) about what Ricky Davis does to DWes. OMG...the thought of Redick guarding Manu just flashed into my mind....ouch!!!!!!!!!

You're not the first poster to use Ben Wallace's one dimensionality to attempt proving a point. The problem with the logic is that it doesn't fully acknowledge that Wallace's "dimension" earns him 1st Team All Defense. Luther Head has been a pleasant surprise and is multi-dimensional. I surely don't consider Luther a lock for for this years' All Rookie Team. In fact, there isn't a lot of one dimensionality dominating any all Rookie Team.

So after equating all athletic BB players as dumb, Brandon Roy as a potential bust, and all one dimensional players to Ben Wallace....we're down to this.

I couldn't disagree more unless you made derogatory remarks about my family. Let's list the +/-'s.....

A taller athletic wing player can....

* take the tougher defensive assignment conserving McGrady.
* provide more on the ball defense allowing fewer guard penetrations where Yao picks up cheap fouls.
* use longer arm length to cut down interior passing lanes.
* make quicker rotations and provide a hand in the face of perimeter shooters (particuarly back to the weakside) because the Rockets' defensive scheme is to protect the paint first.
* use their height and quickness to the ball for long rebounds, especially vs teams like SEA and PHX that shoot a lot off 3's.
* participate better in transition offense by being able to finish at the basket. Something we are horrible at presently.
* matchup better in transition defense vs teams that force tempo. (The current trend).
* compensate for average at best overall team footspeed.
* set better screens in the half court because of their superior size and strength. (DWes does this very well).

While (given the shot breakout below) the one dimensional shooter gives us exactly what when there are so few shots? And the only way to increase the shot attempts is to increase tempo which is where the athletic players excel...

Rockets' FGA's/game 2005-06
- TMac @ 21.5
- Yao @ 15.8
- Alston @ 11.5
- Juwan @ 10.5
- DWes @ 8.0
- Luther Head @ 7.8
- Bogans @ 7.5
- Swift @ 6.9

Bottomline...JJ Redick is among the worst and least impacting draft choices the Rockets could possibly make.

 

Watching both JJ and Roy in this year's tournament, I can't see how JJ is light years ahead of Roy. Roy is a better ball handler, defender, and passer. After watching him in the UConn game, he seems like a good (not great) shooter. Reddick is a one-dimensional player who would get abused on the defensive end.

 

JJ's game against LSU tells me that he won't be able to create his own shot in the NBA. But that will not be a problem on the Rockets. I will be happy if he averages 15 points a game for us for the next 10 years. That will be enough, when combined with T-Mac and Yao, to bring us several championships.

The really good shooters like Kerr, Petrovic, B.J. Armstrong, and Nash started hot and stayed hot. I think JJ will do the same.

Juwan is versatile too, but we can hardly wait to replace him, right?

I don't think anyone is expecting to find another Magic or Bird in this draft. Most of the draftees this year will be busts, and the rest will probably be only average in the NBA. The one exception is JJ, who is so good at what he does (shoot) that he just might stand out. No guarantees that he will, of course, especially since he needs to land in the right situation (our team).

 

You should have stopped there, while you were ahead.

Childress was just a throwaway comparison. I didn't want to belabor the point, so I just mentioned his playing time in Atlanta. But if you want to talk about his alleged brain, fine. Let's start with his 1.8 assists in 30 minutes per game. Then there's his 1.26 assist/turnover ratio, which is not at all good for someone who is supposed to have a brain. And finally, according to <a href="http://www.82games.com/0506/05ATL8C.HTM">82games</a>, he takes 61% of his shots inside. To me, all this adds up to a black hole who is looking to drive every time.

I'm going by what I see, and what I see is that Brandon's quickness is only average in the NBA. As I said, he's a lot like Juwan: pretty good at everything, but not really great at anything.

It could be. I have never pretended that JJ wasn't a risk. If you want to minimize your risk and are happy with a Brandon Roy (essentially a mini Juwan Howard), that's fine. I want us to try for a home run.

Don't worry, JJ will get plenty of shots because of the way our team works. He would be in trouble almost anywhere else, but he's almost perfect for our offence.

And you are exaggerating JJ's defensive problems. As I wrote <a href=http://bbs.clutchfans.net/showpost.php?p=2280928&postcount=107>elsewhere</a>, his effort and intensity will make up for a lot of physical deficiencies.

And besides, your boy Childress won't be any better. He's a -6.1 this year (per 48 minutes) against other SGs -- and that's in the East, remember.

Sigh. Do you realize that you are just repeating what I said? Big Ben's one dimension is so strong that it overwhelms his many deficiencies. There is a reasonable chance that JJ will be the same.

[remaining blather snipped]