A simple question, no?....but, we all expected certain play and performance from the Rockets before the season started. Are you getting it? Did you expect more? Less? or what we have gotten thus far? The more I think about it, the more it appears the Rockets are doing one thing for sure:.....underachieving. Yep, I hate to admit it, but it is apparently true...what does it mean to underachieve? Well, if one doesn't live up to perceived potential, that is an answer. Is Cuttino and Steve underachieving? I don't know. Some have said Steve's game isn't as explosive as when he first started...and he should be getting others the ball better (i.e. passing)..Some have said cat's performance is too eradic (including defense.) For example, Christie clearly had the better game the other night. Does this indicate Christie is a better off-guard? I personally think Doug is certainly an above average off-guard regarding defense. However, you know I vie for Cuttino...No matter your view, it could be said the performace of our backcourt has been up and down somewhat...Did we account for this in our idea of how the 2001 Rockets should perform? I would think, yes. We want, expect, and ....gosh dern it, demand our backcourt duo to get better regarding usual, steady production!!! How about our frontcourt? I think it's safe to say me, you and your friend expected what we get from the center position. It clearly has been our most crappoist position. No doubt, we almost expected the weakness....but what seems so disconcerting is that cato has apparently given up....I don't know if he prefers to sit down and be lazy, but unfortunately, there are people in our society who appeal to the easy way out. Hardwork is an unpleasant thing that must be avoided and nothing in life warrants hardwork...not even money. How hard is it to show up? The first game and a half, Cato showed some effort with minimal results......but you know what? I had no problem with it....if your best is 6 pts. 8.5 reb....you show up, sweat, show the people the effort, then I don't think me, you, or your friend cannot really justify mentioning him as being way overpaid.....then at least MsCato13, or Kelvinsmom or whoever the hell else can say but Look! Look at him busting his tail! Look at him trying demmit! I am sorry, but even Cato has abyssed more than I thought possible This leads us to KT and Rice...Out of the whole starting lineup, KT may be the only one on the better side of the achieving road... He lost weight for the better...while clearly hustling and doing his part. Is he perfect? No, not by a long shot. We can all think of several 4's we'd rather have....but, Heck, he really and truly isn't a starting power forward anyway. Rice? Well, probably the biggest disappointment is seeing this guy flounder....It clearly no longer is too early to warrant concern. and I wonder what excuse will be used when he will eventually aim to defend his lacking contribution to the team....as hard as it is to realize, Anderson had better performance to this date...I definitely don't like the trend of what he has shown. We all expected so, so much more....conveniently, that latter sentence summarizes what I feel.... but don't get me wrong. I believe we can turn it around..... {ROXRAN's strategy for turning the apparent stagnation into positive propagation!!!:} 1. Use better rotation turns...I know we are not the championship Pistons, but Chuck Daly used efficient turns in the rotation....The one bug-a-boo, I have with Rudy is...It seems he has a predetermined time to put in a moochie here.. a Willis there but why not increased intervals for resting our guards? Heck,.. no wonder they were walking the ball instead of running....Maybe they were tired? I'm not even saying to change the routine of who goes in, but let's keep the 2 little guys fresh, no? 2. Not only Moochie, but Torres as well, must realize their importance on making a positive impact .....In order for #1 to happen, you have to have back-ups at the 1 and 2 who can greatly benefit the team....Hopefully these two guys can deliver,...they don't have to be Cat, and Steve,...but they are important to get the rest the 2 little guys need to perform MORE CONSISTENTLY.....let me ask any of you: If Cat and Steve have more rest intervals, can they be more consistently? On defense as well as offense,....sure. And since this team is predicated on the perfomance and consistantcy of those two it really makes sense.
I completely disagree with one of your points; Rudy is taking out and putting in players at the wrong time because of his stubborness regarding the rotation. He feels, for reasons that elude my understanding, that Moochie HAS to come in the game within 3 minutes of the start of the 2nd quarter no matter how well Francis or Mobley is playing at the time. Distribution I also don't buy the argument that the guards aren't distributing the ball efficiently. Obviously, there's room for improvement, but the small forwards and centers on this team are getting too many good shots to elicit concern imo. We would have been tied up after the first quarter if flipper arms had caught the easy pass at the end of the period, and if Cato had put down that alleyhoop and easy pass that found his head on the baseline. I still wish Rudy would run more pick and rolls for Francis, and KEEP on going to him if it's working like he did in the Dallas game. It would also be nice to see Mobley get a few weakside picks so he could flash to the middle. He's great at creating space between himself and the defender; that play could be effective (sidenote: play= "Y-zip"... not just an inbounds play).
Great points. Your seem to have some of the frustration I have been having. From preseason, I came out with my suggested rotation and minute allocation. It was based on the need to fast break, play aggressive defence and routinely force the action. We are at our best when we do that. To do that we needed to have a broad rotation. In fact the preseason gave us, especially the youngsters, good momentum to go ahead have a long rotation, but Rudy overemphasized on Rice and William and now we lost everything. Anytime I see Francis walking up the ball I say we are in for a long night. When he is running we are unstoppable.
My expectations for individual players has been off in many cases (Willis - better, KT - better, Rice - worse, Moochie - worse, Cato - worse). But overall, the good and bad has evened out to a record and combined effort that I fully expected, more or less. I believe I predicted a 44-38 record for this season, and I am sticking with that.
I agree. Passing from the guards is one of the least of my concerns. What happens after the ball is out of their hands is my new measure of improvement. For instance, can we quickly get it back into their hands if the pass recipient has no play. I have a subtle difference that I look for now. I believe the defenses are taking the pnr away from us sometimes... and it is up to us to learn how to win, when the pnr is taken away. First, I look at whether Francis gets around the "corner" of the pick, whether that means beating a switch or beating a trap. If he gets to (or around) the corner, he can shoot, drive and/or dish much easier. If he can't get to the corner, how well is he using his picker. Now, on top of all this, I am now seeing defenses stop penetration even when he gets around the corner...this was impossible with the previous rules. Here is where I want to see more motion. I don't want to just see passes to the spotter, whose man left him to help the PF (switcher) stop Francis's progresses. Sac seemed to do this well. Here is were Francis needs help from weakside reads. I really like that Mobley reverse hand-off from Francis at the free throw line. I'd like to see some type of movement on cue when Francis's penetration is blocked by a defensive overplay. Timing is critical, though.
