Kelvin Cato is finally producing. He'll never be what I thought he'd become, but that is due to the fact that I initially never realized he had such little talent and such bad hands. However. he is playing hard and hustling. If this resurgence is due to being coupled with Eddie Griffin, will Cato continue this play for the remainder of his contract? Is it worth the risk? With his recent solid play, the Rockets could surely trade him for a combination of scrubs. So, if the opportunity presented itself, would you deal Cato just for the sake of unloading his contract (ie: a trade with cheap, crappy players with no value) or do you have faith that he can continue this level of play? Do you jump at this opportunity? It could never come again.
Hmmmm, I was contemplating this earlier. Cato's numbers are looking better, and he is still young. But I think that we would even be able to pick up a couple solid parts for him. So yes, I would get rid of him. I think we could sell him high because of the lack of centers.
I wonder if New York would trade their unprotected #1 for 2002 and Othella Harrington for Cato? Who would gamble that the Rockets could package the picks and Thomas to get Ming?
<I>and</I> Othella? Would you trade the Rockets #1 for Cato? New York's is about as bad. I wish the Knicks were that stupid (then again, there were those signings of Shandon Anderson, Howard Eisley and Clarence Weatherspoon for about $100 million)
Cato doin that reverse Griffin-esque jam... sweet. I reallly really wanna think that Cato can keep up his performance, but just like before, everytime it seems like he has turned the corner, he falls back into his shell. Hopefully he has truly turned the corner, but I don't know. My opinion is to keep him - if he continues his play he will be just the type of center this team needs. I also believe as some have suggested that his play has elevated b/c he is finally in shape and maybe lost some of the weight he put on when he was trying to bulk up. Hence, his blocks have gone up and he is looking very agile on those dunks too.
New York is desperate for a center so they can move Camby to PF, and teams like Golden State are asking for the moon so why shouldn't we?
I really would like to believe that Cato is starting to play up to his potential & will continue it throughout his career, but I can't help being skeptical. It's amazing how his game has elevated shortly before the trading deadline. The fact that he recently made a public statement on how much he wants to stay in Houston & his recent elevated play, make me think that he's just doing it to keep from being traded.
Around my game night haunt last night, this Cato discussion occupied most of the talk. My input went something like this: 1. I think Cato has had a resurgence because he feels better about himself and his role on the team is more defined. He has a very tender, sensitive side and that translates to "fragile ego" in sports parlance. However, IMHO each time he plays with the vigor and continues to get feeds by the guards, and compliments from the staff and media he will continue to show the side you saw last night. 2. The question is, will he continue to treated that way? My guess is that he will have a few more games like last night, but despite some off nights, he will still continue to be fed the ball, still get involved and perform above this year's pessimistiuc predictions (and yet lower than the optimistic expectations we wished for when he signed the big contract). 3. Do we showcase him now and trade him at the earliest opportunity? I say No. Let him play his game. If that unrealistic suggestion of a Number#1 unprotected PLUS a proven contributor (Othella) came along and got dropped in our lap, well pull the trigger of course. But let's face it, that is unlikely. The same teams who have turned down Cato in the past, are not going to jump all over him on the performance of one or two games - and start offering the moon to get him. Well, that's not really correct is it? I mean we gave the guy millions based on two preseason games and six strong practice sessions. Dang, there goes my theory! Barring any miraculous trades that offer us ridiculous upside, I say keep him. This summer is Draft heavy on little guys, Free Agent heavy on little and midsized guys, and sparse on experienced behemoth 7 footers. He will be more saleable this summer than last if we have to unload him then. 4. Now, if this new found attitude continues to translate to - "Cato the Aggressor", "Cato the Involved", "Cato the Ultimate Team Player" - then our questions may be answered for us. That is, we got to keep the pluggy b*stard beacuse we won't be able to replace him for $6 million a year.
