things I noticed in the first couple of Pre-Season games

What were you thinking about when you wrote that?

Novak can really shoot and I liked that JVG started him tonight, but he really sucks at rebounding. I hope he can work on that so he can stay on the floor for long periods of time.

 

I think the thing with Alston is that he plays better when T-Mac is on the court where he has more options to pass the ball to as T-Mac creates this oppitunities.

And Alston will only get better when Yao gets on the court because it will create even more oppitunities for Alston, which can only improve his game and add Wells into the mix, we may see a good season from Alston this year.

I don't know if Head can play PG but he might be an option to play backup PG because it sounds like he was solid in tonight's game.

The things I'm hearing about Vspan and JL3 aren't as pormising as I was hoping, maybe they just lack the NBA experience to play aswell as we know they can, which I guess means that we can only wait until they gain the experience to get better.

Novak sounds like a good player, his shoot sounds fantastic and he might have a good rookie season.

As for the new ball, I heard their testing it and might not even use it when the regular season starts.

 

There is couple thing I picked up as well.

1. Alston really did worked at shooting the ball. He shot better and looks to have more confidence. And I stand with my opinion that he could be the PG on a championship team. Great passer and a GREAT rebounder.

2. Kirk Synder really impressed me. Athletic guy that actually tries hard. He works hard and can score the ball. He is quick and strong and can finish on anyone. Him and Bonzi Wells have a lot in common. Not great shooters but good scorers. Bonzi Wells having the edge on Synder as offensive weapon goes.

3. Luther Head can play back up PG minutes. Everyone loves Head. He's a great shooter. I see him in front of Lucas and V-Span in the rotation.

4. Lastly V-Span has been very dissappointing. I'm sure he'll do way better once adjusted to the game but as of now both Head and Lucas is in front of him in the rotation.

 

I don't know if he can keep it up, but Head looks better out there than Snyder. Actually, Head's three point shooting would match nicely at the backup PG with Bonzi and Snyder playing at SG.

 

I am a veteran of many pre-seasons...mostly Houston teams - Rockets, Astros, Texans, Oilers...then some Philly teams too.

And the one thing I can say with ABSOLUTE certainty is that you can NEVER know for certain if/how pre-season translates to the real season.

I am pretty sure it is useful for evaluating players further down the end of the bench, but I'm not going to get too excited about team overall or individual performances after two preseason games.

 

1. TMac does indeed look A LOT better, but it seems he is still trying to get back into the groove again. I don't know. Maybe I forgot how smooth his play is. Hell, maybe he is just holding a little back during the preseason.

2. I've always loved the trade for Alston and I never understood the distain towards him around these boards. He is one of the best PG's in the league but, unlike guys like Kidd or Nash, he needs good players around him to show off how good he is and take advantage of his strengths.

3. I've always liked Luther but, with all the additions this summer, I thought his role was pretty much cut out. He NEVER looked comfortable or capable of running the point which I thought reduced the role he might have had. But, after tonight's game againt Atlanta, he showed me a lot.

4. Again, I agreed with the trade but Battier is even surpassing any of my pre-conceved expectations of his play.

9. Going back to what I said above, if Luther can play like he did tonight, the Rockets have thier back-up PG.

10. Just like a guy like Yao, it's going to take a while for him to get adjusted to the league, JVG's system, his team mates and the culture around him. He looks like he is just over-thinking out there. I think he'll be fine given time. It says a alot that JVG has come out publicly and praised VSpan's potential to be a good player.

 

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I've been bashed by some on this board for defending Alston. Just from watching him play last year, I felt the Rox should feel lucky to have this guy. He is a "true" point guard and may end up being the most important role player on the team. With Lucas and VSpan being somewhat disappointing so far in the preseason (not that it matters so much yet) it is good to know we have a PG that can distribute the ball, not jack up stupid shots, and get are stars involved in the game. I don't think we've had a PG of his caliber since Sam Cassell and even then I wasn't really a Sam Cassell fan.

 

Don't be so hard on V-Span. It's a matter of expectations of him finally coming down to Earth. It may be a while before he's able to contribute. The guy I'm really disappointed with is JL3. He got a little floor time last year, worked on his game during the summer and excelled during summer league. I thought he would look a little more fluid and comfortable out there. In the 1/2 court, he did little good when playing the point. The last thing we need is a midget SG with an unreliable outside shot.

 

I agree. Everyone talked about how V-Span was outta control today, but Lucas didn't play much better. Half the time he had the ball, I was hoping he didn't lose it running so fast. Yeah, it's true he made some amazing floaters, but i don't think he really focused on playmaking in this game.

 

Every rookie is gonna have major problems. Roleplayers seem to struggle more initially because they aren't as gifted. It's part of the process. Popovich was going crazy with Ginobili and Parker in their rookie seasons.

 

JL3's roster spot mightn't be so secure. Supposedly, only his first year is guaranteed.

Casey is guaranteed 100k even if he gets cut, JL3 is getting either 412k or 664k. If it's 412k there could be the possibility that waiving Lucas in favour of Casey or even Padgett mighn't be so unpalatable. What was Zendon Hamilton's salary when he got waived by the Rocks?

IMO, Billy pushing Head into the two position permanently, would seal the deal for JL3.

 

The things I have taken away from the first couple of games are...

- Tracy looks better for sure, but there's still something about him that gives me pause. Maybe it's just my gut telling me that I shouldn't assume he's 100% healthy until he gets a good amount of real games under his belt, but he seems a half step slow. Then again he may just be getting back into game shape, or he may just be holding himself back voluntarily. Regardless, it's soooo nice to see him back on the court without the winces and the grabbing of the back.

- Alston looks extremely confident and he's doing a great job of picking his spots. He distributes when he needs to distribute and he goes to the hole when he needs to go to the hole. Can't ask for much else out of your PGs. Once the lineup is fully loaded with all the ammo (Yao, Bonzi, Tracy, Shane) I think Rafer is going to start looking mighty smooth out there.

- Spanoulis has disappointed me, but not horribly. The mistakes he's making aren't because he's a bad player, but more because he's only played 2 games. For example, he's been called for some travels which EVERYONE has been getting called for this preseason. He also doesn't know the other teams that well, so I imagine he'll be a little more careful next time he tries to lay it up on Josh Smith, for example. Regardless of whether or not people are fielding them successfully, he's got some sweet passes going on out of the pick n' roll.

- Novak appears to be a perfect 2nd round pick, because at that point in the draft you just want to find a player that is really good at something...anything. Well I think we all know what that is. The thing I've noticed though, is that his defense is not that bad. Certainly not bad enough to outweigh his positive effect on the offensive end.

- Kirk Snyder looks like he can be exactly the type of player I expected/wanted him to be. A solid role player that will player with energy, athleticism, and attitude every night, and every 2nd or 3rd game he'll show up for like 16 or 17 points. Can't believe we got him basically for free.

- This team scored 107 points, 65 in the first half (and very efficiently I might add) with ABSOLUTELY NO LOW POST THREAT. Imagine how powerful the offense is going to be and how many more things are going to open up with we've got the 7'6" communist going to work down there, and when he's out we've got Bonzi.

All in all I'm impressed, but I realize it's only preseason and on top of that it's only 2 games. Either way, I've been waiting 4 months+ to evaluate these guys so there's no way I can resist.

 

for the people that are judging Vspan this early, he has good basketball IQ and just needs time to adjust to the rules and team. if you have played before at all, playing with a team you know then all of the sudden be put on another team. Let us see if you dont feel lost too. You have to learn how your team plays and reacts. Give the guy some time.

 

May I also add that on yesterday's interview with Shane Battier, Shane mentioned that he felt lost in his first preseason game. Of course the night crew were shocked to hear this since he played so well. Now can you imagine an international player adjusting to a new culture and a harder league trying to learn a complicated system like Van Gundy's? If Shane with nba experience still hasn't grasped the system you can bet Spanoulis hasn't either. Patience is needed with VSpan, fans shouldn't be so quick to write him off.

 

Rafer has looked solid, but the key will be how he looks once Yao returns. He's already proven he can play well in a small ball oriented offense. The question is, can he learn to play well in an offense with a big man (Yao) as the focal point. That was the main issue last year. He sure wasn't able to do that last season.