You're right, you can improve in practice. But you won't go from a below-average 3pt shooter to a Dale Ellis spot up shooter no matter how many 3's you take in practice. I believe Billy could become a little over 30% 3pt shooter, but never a spot up shooter. As far as other aspects of the game he can improve on in practice, but I'm not sure how many full practices the Rockets actually get once the season gets started. As for the tempo and ref's, that's a different story, and something only a full-court game against an opposing team can help. I still don't understand why people think we need another spot up shooter on this team. We have Battier/Head/Novak/Padgett as true spot up shooter's, with McGrady and Alston able to hit the 3 with a decent %. With no McGrady on the floor to create those open 3's we don't need another spot up shooter. That's when the offense becomes stagnant and either Rafer/Lucas takes a bad shot or passes to late in the shot clock for a teammate to take one. With Wells on the floor this team needs a slasher and creator to open up the lane, not a shooter. It's baffling how people think that this team can be successful running the same offensive sets when McGrady/Yao are not on the floor. When you have different personnel on the floor you should have some different sets to run. Otherwise, we end up with teams sitting on our 3 pt shooters and Rafer taking a "teardrop". I don't think Rafer is good, he is decent. But you won't maximize his production by playing him over 30 MPG. JLIII in my opinion is too small to be a consistent answer at the point, especially come playoff time. V-Span needs to shup up and work hard, but I'd still like to see him get some more minutes. All in all, I'd package the three of them for Air-Bud.
after the first few games vspan corrected the palming problem, and i dont think he was called for it again, or at least not as frequently, showing that he learns quickly. same goes with the traveling calls. i understand that turnovers kill an offensive possession, but other than that, i think vspan provides exactly what this team needs when tmac is out of the game. someone that can create. if creating shots and keeping the defense on their heels rather than letting them sit while we launch 3's means giving up 4 or 5 possessions from turnovers, im willing to live with that, because i believe that the game of basketball is won in so many more ways than just one statistical category. i think people here respect battier for his intangibles, but somehow they haven't been able to pick up on the intensity and energy and confidence that vspan exudes when he is on the court. sometimes that is worth so much than the mistakes that come with it, especially in professional sports. ask vince young about that. as for the ability to shoot; that doesn't seem to be a criteria for earning playing time with jeff van gundy, nor has it ever, so why is that hampering vspan? and as i said before, is it possible that vspan can bring more to this team apart from shooting, in the form of creation on the offensive end and disruption on defense? i understand there is a lot of skepticism, and warranted uncertainty or doubt about vspan's contributions to this team. ultimately, i am just saying that vspan has NOT been given enough of a chance to demonstrate whether he can or can not do the things we are debating, and that the rockets so desperately need something more from the point position that i still have not heard one good reason why that chance continues to evade vspan.
i agree with absolutely everything you said, including the air-bud comment. he would put this team over the top.
All I want is for JVG to be consistent. I don't care if you are a rookie or a veteran, if you are stinking up the joint (Rafer Alston).....try someone else. DD
Rafer may not be shooting lights out and has his bad game here and there, but people forget he is a guy that brings the ball up with no problems at all no matter the pressure, gets the ball to who it is supposed to go to 90% of the time, (though not a great one-on-one defender) he grasps and understands the team defensive philosophy and is a veteran who has proven he can play at this level. Plus, for all his "bad" games, he has just as many or more really good games - hitting important 3's down the stretch, getting a few steals, assisting on 8+ shots and scoring in double figures. John Lucas is only playing out of necessity and is has actually been somewhat productive in his minutes. He has brought a little fire when he has been there, pushes the ball up very well and has been able to put the ball in the basket. Bowen is a bad examle. He was not a young guy trying to improve into a key part of the rotation. He was strictly a role player only out there for one thing (hustle), which he did well.
billy should prove how silly we all are by putting his head down and going to work!! i'd love nothing more than for all this to fuel him and make him play better. the guy has talent and i love his confidence. but he DOES need to EARN his PT by playing well in the short minutes he gets.
i agree rafer handles the ball excellently, and knocks down shots in the 4th quarter. however, i dont think he makes good decisions, plays horrible defense (though he does have quick hands and manages some steals), and has terrible shot selection. i dont agree that he has more good games than bad. if anything, its the other way around. i dont agree that he gets the ball to the people it should go to 90% of the time, though that was true at the start of the season when we had yao. at this point, judging from his insane shot attempts relative to fg%, i think he has either been told by jvg or has mistakenly assumed that he is the 2nd best option behind tmac. he is most clearly not. and saying he isn't a lights out shooter is the understatement of the century. he is the WORST shooter in the nba. let that settle in, and then let's never discuss his shooting or vspan's shooting again. shooting cannot be a factor in deciding who should get minutes, since they both suck at it. vspan has not struggled in bringing the ball up the court against pressure. he is a strong 1 on 1 defender. i think he hasn't shown his team skills yet because the few minutes he's gotten, he probably felt like he needed to take his shots now because he wouldn't ever get them again. i dont think there is a problem with him playing backup pg minutes, with tmac on the bench. when tmac is sitting down, and yao is out, is there honestly one player you can say is the player 'who the ball is supposed to go to?' everything we have seen from vspan demonstrates he will, barring his turnover problem: attack the rim and either be fouled, or dish off to a wide open teammate. contrast that to the only other options at point. rafer takes jumpshots or floaters, which rarely go in. on the rare occassion that he does attack the rim, something good happens. the problem is he almost never does this. lucas attacks the rim more frequently, and his floater is much better than rafer's, but his % has dropped with increased minutes. neither of these guys are doing a GOOD job, and often are doing a horrible job. i want to see vspan play 1 game with as many minutes as rafer. if he flops, fine. we lose 1 game, probably don't hurt our standing much, and we have some definitive proof that, in significant minutes, vspan can't produce. until then, nobody here can say whether vspan helps or hurts this team. we have no evidence.
I honestly cannot believe the amount of people crying about how V-Span doesn't get PT. Seriously, think about it for a second and consider what you're saying. Would JVG really out of spite or god knows whatever reason you can come up with jeopardize this team's success by not playing this Greece's gift to the NBA All-Star? I really can't believe I'm reading all this crap about V-Span and Novak every time we rack up a few losses. The coach is not out to get you and ruin your career! The reality of the situation is, there's a system of play in place and judging by our record it's done very well so far DESPITE injuries. V-Span either a) does not fit the system b) does not comprehend how to play within this system. If this guy is seriously lighting it up in practice nailing jumpshots and taking it to hole on Mutombo or something while knowing his defensive assignments he'd be playing. There's no grand conspiracy that involves paying a second round pick guaranteed money and then trying to destroy his career. Get over it.
Agree, i love him. He simply has not been used on his strength or JVG ignores that He deserves more chances to be tested
"First of all, I don't have to prove anything here." And that's why your sorry little heinie will ride the pine for a long, long time. Until he gets it out of his head that this ain't Greece and he is no Tracy McGrady -- he is just a borderline NBA-caliber rookie with zero credentials in this league -- he doesn't deserve any playing time. If this is truly Spanoulis' attitude, I hope JVG keeps him glued to the bench. It's one thing to have talent on your team, it's another thing to have knuckleheads. Confidence is nice, but we've already had to deal with one knucklehead on this team this season (Bonzi) and we can see how far that has taken us. If old, seasoned veteran starters like Juwan and Deke can check their egos at the door, not caring if they get DNPs, show up for work, shut up and give it their all, I don't see why he can't. His success in Europe has gotten far into his head, and he needs a heavy dose of Reality Check syrup. This team isn't about who can be McGrady or who can't. That has already been established. This team is about knowing your role, showing up to work every day, hustling hard and winning. Individual egos are irrelevant -- especially when it comes to second round rookies with basically zero track record.
we have no evidence, we have no evidence, no one can prove me wrong. what proves all of your assumptions? you are right about one thing noone can prove anything yet, but it hasn't stopped you, and if anyone disagrees with your opinions, then it is bad journalism. so which way is it, seems more like your way or the highway? the problem here is that you seem pretty upset the ROX aren't listening to YOUR ideas or rather there are those who don't hold your opinion. all of your ideas are ALSO assumptions. even more so because how much have you seen of vspan? i am afraid that if the rox do put in vspan for one game and play him rafer minutes, YOU will call for more proof. i can also disagree with your assumptions, i don't believe that he will be the PG savior this year. let's just call it intuition.
Where does the delusion that Spanoulis is an above average playmaker for an NBA point guard come from? His highlight reels in Greece? Honestly. Look at the seasoned player that was better than him in Europe and also came to play in the NBA this season, Anthiny Parker. Parker is starting fro Toronto (a scrub team) and still is producing very pedestrian numbers. What makes you think Spanoulis is any better?
I have said it since I first saw him play: He will be a non-factor this year, and will make light-years' worth of progress next year. I personally don't mind that he's cocky, and that he desperately wants to play. Those attributes will serve him, and the Rox, well when his time comes. He just needs to get a grip and not let this frustration and disappointment poison and ruin his career.
I love the part when Jonathan"I'm the company tool" Feigen said to Span " want more playing time, just play better" HAHAHA! This hack obviously never played any meaningful organized sports and his article reeked of Gundy's regurgitations which all of us already know(whether we agree or disagree, it's another issue). Nowhere in the article had he mentioned what is the appropriate position (1or2) in order for VSpan to play better. Didn't Feigen write up some ridiculous stats about our winning records when TMac is playing and immediately got exposed by our posters? I'm willing to bet money that a few of our posters around here know much more about basketball and can write more eloquently than Feigen does!
HOLY CRAP I cannot believe this thread has produced so many LONG WINDED responses. All this reading is giving me a migraine.
