Rookie Rankings Mailbag - Carl Landry Edition

Pest_Ctrl · Feb 29, 2008

Didn't see this posted yet. Admin please merge or delete if it's already been posted.

Carl Landry!! is getting more love from the media.

http://my.nba.com/thread.jspa?threadID=300026744

Rookie Rankings Notes and Mail -- All About Carl
Feb 29, 2008
Posted by: Dave McMenamin

Heeeeeeeerrrrrreeeeee's Landry!
Fernando Medina/NBAE/Getty Images

SECAUCUS, NJ, Feb. 29, 2008 -- My delusioned male ego rarely permits me to announce that I was wrong about anything without putting up a fight first. I could be driving with my girlfriend in the car headed for Manhattan, New York and end up in Manhattan, Kansas and rather admitting my poor sense of direction, I would probably say that I was just jonesing to make a pit stop at the American Institute of Baking.

(This in fact, has never happened. But I have spilled barbeque sauce on her eggshell-colored rug and tried to blame it on the static that built up between my socks and the rug. Pathetic, really.)

With that said, I'll openly apologize for the fact that I haven't given the Rockets' Carl Landry enough electronic ink.

That is up until now.

If Landry could see my e-mail inbox he'd probably feel like George Bailey when he comes back to his house at the end of It's A Wonderful Life -- there's no way he knows that he has so, so, so many friends.

Landry is a 6-9, 248-pound bruising power forward who went from two years at Vincennes Junior College, to Junior College All-American, to Purdue University, to First-Team All-Big Ten, to gettting scouts' eyes by scoring 24 points against Greg Oden in the Big Ten Tourney, to being drafted with the first pick in the second round by Seattle, to being traded to Houston, to only playing in three of the Rockets' first 37 games this year, to finally arriving on the NBA scene in a big way over the last month and a half.

The Milwaukee native started off the season on the bench and hadn't seen court time in over a month when Rick Adelman inserted him into the lineup on January 11 vs. the Timberwolves. Landry seized the opportunity like an American Idol participant belting out a power ballad, and went 7-of-7 from the floor, grabbed 11 rebounds and the rest, as they say, is history.

Landry went on to average 8.0 points and 3.8 rebounds for the month of January and upped his production to 8.7 and 5.7 in February as the Rockets mounted a 13-game win streak and revitalized their playoff plans.

Time to address some of your Carl questions:

Mike, Houston, TX - Still don't show love for Carl Landry? What does he have to do to get on the top 10 list?

Simple answer, to make the leap from The Next 10, he has to beat out one of the guys in the top 10. Let's look how he matches up with each of the players ranked 1-10 as of today, and Landry's chances of stealing their spot:

1. Al Horford - No chance. Horford has been getting it done all season, Landry is a Johnny Come Lately.
2. Kevin Durant - Arguing Durant vs. Landry is like pitting Angelina Jolie vs. Dame Judy Dench. Come on.
3. Al Thornton - AT has also made a late push to enter into the ROY race, but his numbers are more consistent and his game more inspiring.

"Let's switch places in the Rookie Rankings."
Bill Baptist/NBAE/Getty Images
4. Luis Scola - Kevin in Texas writes, "As good as Scola is, I think either he is overrated or Landry is underrated. Landry should be in the top 10. Also, check out Landry's field goal percentage." There could be a teammate swap. Maybe Scola will tank it just so he can give Landry a taste of the glory that is associated with being in the top 10 of Dave McMenamin's Rookie Rankings on NBA.com.
5. Jamario Moon - No way Moon slips out of the top 10. Not happening.
6. Juan Carlos Navarro - JCN has had some huge games this year, but has also been more off than the red button on my cell phone at times (... give it a second ... there, now you're with me). Another target for Landry.
7. Mike Conley - If Conley stays healthy, his stock will only be rising. Doubt Landry can overcome him.
8. Thaddeus Young - Young has been just as impressive in 2008 as Landry, if not more. But since his resume was pretty thin from October- December, he's another target for Carl.
9. Jeff Green - Green was a top 10 regular, dropped into The Next 10, then rallied back in last week. Consider him on Landry's radar.
10. Sean Williams - Take it away, Colbster in Greece: "As a Rockets fan from Greece, I think you are not fair to Carl Landry. Sean Williams is putting up the same numbers as Carl, but in more playing time." Colbster, you're right. If things hold up as they are now, Landry will be taking Williams' spot on Wednesday.

Kirk, Houston, TX - The fact that Carl Landry is not one of the so-called top 10 rookies tells me that you guys obviously haven't been watching the hottest team in the NBA - the Houston Rockets! It also tells me that your list is bogus. Do your homework before the next so-called "Rookie Rankings" come out and watch a Rockets game.

You're so cold with your "so-called"s.

Juan, Houston, TX - I can't believe the way Carl Landry has been playing of late and you didn't finally put him in the top 10. I'm sure you'll rectify your mistake next week. Keep trying man you'll get it right soon enough.

Thanks for the encouragement, I needed it after what Kirk said.

Hamza, Houston, TX - One name: Carl Landry. You can't ignore the impact he's had on the Rockets over the past two months.

I actually could ignore it. I did ignore it up until today. But I hope this mailbag makes up for it.

Diego, Houston, TX - Carl Landry!!!

OK, I get it.

Now for the rest of the mail …

Yuji, Salt Lake City, UT- I think Yi should be traded to some other team. His teammates are ball hoggers.

I've heard of short shorts being called "ball huggers," but I've never heard anybody called a "ball hogger" before.

Kevin, Toronto - Jamario should get some love for leading the rookies in +/- at +190. That's also good enough for 42nd in the league as of today (Feb. 26th).

Great point, Kevin. Moon is actually up to +207 since you sent your e-mail, which puts him at 40th in the NBA. The Lenovo Stat (what we call the +/- around here) is tough to apply to rookies however, because usually the rookies getting big minutes are on teams that missed the playoffs last year and thus drafted the rooks in the lottery. Moon and Scola are the only two rookies in the top 10 on teams with winning records. The Lenovo Stat is based on how the team does while a certain player or player combination is on the court. So if you're a rookie on a lousy team, like Durant for instance, it's hard to accrue a positive Lenovo Stat.

Bad News Steve, Winnipeg - Hey, I read the rankings every week and I think you're usually bang on. But I have a question. You say with Al Thornton that he's averaging 18 points and six rebounds in his last five, and that those numbers officially make him in the hunt. Are you saying that having a little five-game hot streak automatically makes you a contender? I know Thornton's a good player, but I think we're moving him up too high, and too quickly.

Thornton has been on a mission since the night he heard he got snubbed from the T-Mobile Rookie Challenge and dropped a career-high 33 points on the Hawks. Since then he's reached double-digit scoring in 12 out of the 13 games he's played and become a steady rebounder as well. How many other rookies have elevated their games like that?

Kirk, Mitchellville, MD - FYI ... Kevin Durant is from the DC metro area, so too is Michael Beasley. Not BALTIMORE.

I stand corrected. I really need to start watching The Wire and I'd know how big of a difference that it is.

Victor, Brazil - Why isn't Greg Oden in the top 10?? He even got a new haircut! Haha, just kidding, Oden is a lock for next year's ROY... If he's healthy...

If he keeps that 'do, he'll have the worst haircut of any Rookie of the Year winner since Larry Bird in 1979-80.

Equally horrible.
Forencich/Raphael/NBAE/Getty Images

Bobz, Brockton, MA- I think Glen Davis should be in the top 10 at least because he can be, and is, a spark off the bench for the Celtics. He has proved that he can play with potential playoff teams because he dropped 20 points against the Pistons. Glen Davis has stepped up and proved that he can fit in as a rookie with this team.

I swear that I received this e-mail after writing this on Wednesday: "Glen Davis (BOS) has not taken more than two field goal attempts or grabbed more than four rebounds in any of his last six games, a far cry from the player who dropped 20 on the Pistons. The good news is, the "Why isn't Big Baby in the top 10?" e-mails sent from places like Somerville and Worcester have quieted down."

Forgot to mention Brockton, darn.

Mark, Naperville, IL- My big suprise rookies this year personally were Jamario Moon, Sean Williams, Luis Scola, Juan Carlos Navarro, Thaddeus Young and Al Thornton. My disappointments belong to Acie Law and Julian Wright. That's just me. So, who's your big suprise players and your disappointment players?

This is too good of a question just to bury in a mailbag. Look for the answer at the start of a future Rookie Rankings.

Elliott, Australia- With the Bulls finally getting rid of Ben Wallace (and what was left on his huge and unwarranted contract), do you see Chicago giving most of the center minutes to rook Aaron Gray or let Joakim Noah/Drew Gooden do most of the dirty work in the middle? Living in Australia means that I don't see much of the college game, so I don't really know what Gray can give to the Bulls. Being the only one on the roster with any size (which everybody knows is a huge advantage in the East) should give Gray the driving seat ... Shouldn't it?

You might think so, but looks can be deceiving. Even though Noah looks more like Travis McCoy from Gym Class Heroes than an NBA center, he can get it done. In late January he had 14 points and 15 rebounds against Indiana and 10 and 13 a few nights later against Minnesota. While Gray might have an inch and 40 pounds on Noah, he's only had one double-digit rebounding game this year as opposed to five for Noah who also has 29 blocks to Gray's six.

JC, East Brunswick, NJ - Yo Dave, what is going on with Yi Jianlian? I remember when he was 3rd in the rankings earlier in the season, now he's like 19th. I'm not questioning where you have him, I'm questioning what's up with the guy in the first place. He's getting less and less burn from the Bucks, with them going to Charlie V, getting only 15 minutes the other night. Is he gonna rebound, or is this how it's gonna be for the rest of the season?

I talked to Milwaukee coach Larry Krsytkowiak about his team's defense a few weeks ago when the Bucks were in New Jersey and he said, "You need five guys for our schemes to work on defense. A lot of times we get four guys who are working really hard, but you know the old saying, you're only as strong as your weakest link." Krystkowiak didn't directly and say that the guy not bringing the D is Yi, but his comment came on a follow-up to a question about the Chinese rookie, so I'm connecting the dots.

Either that, or it's just those darn ball hoggers.
Click to expand...

levintblack · Feb 29, 2008

Haven't read it all yet but wanted to say Landry averaged 4.9 rebounds in Jan. not the 3.8 he lists.

meh · Feb 29, 2008

Landry's just suffering from the case of "not enough minutes played" problem. The first thing people bother to check are the stats, which Landry's not yet qualified for.

Hopefully, that changes now with more playing time.

pirc1 · Feb 29, 2008

It is a joke Landry is not in the top 10, just ask any GM the top ten rookies they would want.

liangqj · Feb 29, 2008

Don't worry about the ranking.
In this shape of Landry, he will be up as Scola.

saleem · Mar 3, 2008

Scola is not overrated,it's Landry who is underrated. Carl should be in the top 10 by now. We are lucky to have both of them on the team.

Pizza_Da_Hut · Mar 3, 2008

No Landry love form anyone but Rox fans, that makes me sick. FU Durant and Horton, Landry is where it's at.

YallMean · Mar 3, 2008

If Larry K said Yi plays less D than Charlie V, he is an idiot. That Bucks team is a sorry loser team.

Oh, well, back to Landry's love fest.

poprocks · Mar 3, 2008

YallMean said:

If Larry K said Yi plays less D than Charlie V, he is an idiot. That Bucks team is a sorry loser team.

Oh, well, back to Landry's love fest.
Click to expand...

Who is Larry K and what kind of coaching credentials did he bring to the Bucks? I never even heard of this guy before. I think the Bucks organization is suffering from top to bottom from bad front office moves including choice of coaches and in players. If the Bucks want to win, they should just fire the guy and hire Larry Brown.

pirc1 · Mar 3, 2008

poprocks said:

Who is Larry K and what kind of coaching credentials did he bring to the Bucks? I never even heard of this guy before. I think the Bucks organization is suffering from top to bottom from bad front office moves including choice of coaches and in players. If the Bucks want to win, they should just fire the guy and hire Larry Brown.
Click to expand...

JVG could do wonders to the Bucks team.

poprocks · Mar 3, 2008

pirc1 said:

JVG could do wonders to the Bucks team.
Click to expand...

Agree, JVG would be great for a young team without direction. He's perfect for this type of team. Maybe not for a veteran team with proven players but for a young team that requires some discipline, teaching and direction yah, he'd be good.

playlife · Mar 3, 2008

4.Luis Scola, Houston Rockets
Scola has been a big reason why the Rockets have continued to roll even after Yao Ming went down with a season-ending stress fracture in his left foot. On the same day that Houston revealed the extent of Yao's injury, Scola scored 14 points on 7-for-7 shooting in a blowout of Washington. Scola capped his week with an 18-point, 14-board performance as the Rockets beat Denver on Sunday for their franchise-record-tying 15th consecutive victory.

8.Carl Landry, Houston Rockets
No player has been a bigger surprise to the Rockets' success than the second-round pick out of Purdue. Like Scola, Landry gave the Rockets a lift after they lost Yao, averaging 13.0 points and 5.3 rebounds in last week's three victories. "They've proved time in and time out they step up," coach Rick Adelman told the Houston Chronicle, referring to the two rookies. "They've stepped up in the fourth quarter of games. They've stepped up when we've needed them. I think those guys really, when you look at their production together over this month, it's pretty impressive."

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/drew_packham/03/03/rookie.rankings/index.html

pirc1 · Mar 3, 2008

playlife said:

4.Luis Scola, Houston Rockets
Scola has been a big reason why the Rockets have continued to roll even after Yao Ming went down with a season-ending stress fracture in his left foot. On the same day that Houston revealed the extent of Yao's injury, Scola scored 14 points on 7-for-7 shooting in a blowout of Washington. Scola capped his week with an 18-point, 14-board performance as the Rockets beat Denver on Sunday for their franchise-record-tying 15th consecutive victory.

8.Carl Landry, Houston Rockets
No player has been a bigger surprise to the Rockets' success than the second-round pick out of Purdue. Like Scola, Landry gave the Rockets a lift after they lost Yao, averaging 13.0 points and 5.3 rebounds in last week's three victories. "They've proved time in and time out they step up," coach Rick Adelman told the Houston Chronicle, referring to the two rookies. "They've stepped up in the fourth quarter of games. They've stepped up when we've needed them. I think those guys really, when you look at their production together over this month, it's pretty impressive."

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/drew_packham/03/03/rookie.rankings/index.html
Click to expand...

Well, at least this write knows Landry is a top 10 rookie. He will be a top five rookie by season end, count on it.

diegot143 · Mar 3, 2008

im actually in this article.. diego in houston TX that said Carl Landry!! lol!!

WNBA · Mar 3, 2008

pirc1 said:

JVG could do wonders to the Bucks team.
Click to expand...

hmm, JVG might do the following trades:

Yi+MoWilliams+1st pick(2008)+1st(2010) for Rafer and Battier,

CV + 2nd pick for Mike James + Ryan Bowen.

cut Redd and pick up Scott Padgett.

pirc1 · Mar 3, 2008

WNBA said:

hmm, JVG might do the following trades:

Yi+MoWilliams+1st pick(2008)+1st(2010) for Rafer and Battier,

CV + 2nd pick for Mike James + Ryan Bowen.

cut Redd and pick up Scott Padgett.
Click to expand...

LOL!

Rocket_Boy_34 · Mar 3, 2008

diegot143 said:

im actually in this article.. diego in houston TX that said Carl Landry!! lol!!
Click to expand...

Nice. But next time maybe you could think of a little more to say.

diegot143 · Mar 3, 2008

only two words got my mesage across like i needed to.. and that was .. Carl Landry!!.. plain in simple bro

Rocket_Boy_34 · Mar 3, 2008

diegot143 said:

only two words got my mesage across like i needed to.. and that was .. Carl Landry!!.. plain in simple bro
Click to expand...

Ha. Fair enough.

Forums

Rookie Rankings Mailbag - Carl Landry Edition

Pest_Ctrl Member

levintblack Member

meh Member

pirc1 Member

liangqj Member

saleem Member

Pizza_Da_Hut I put on pants for this?

YallMean Member

poprocks Member

pirc1 Member

poprocks Member

playlife Member

pirc1 Member

diegot143 Member

WNBA Member

pirc1 Member

Rocket_Boy_34 Member

diegot143 Member

Rocket_Boy_34 Member

Share This Page

About ClutchFans

Rockets Content

Support ClutchFans!