I am surprised this hasn't been posted yet. I could not find it. Please lock if already posted. http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/6195787.html PHILADELPHIA — The criticism, Tracy McGrady said, never bothered him. This was different. He heard he did not play hard against the Raptors, with far less effort than he thought. He was censured for playing badly all season, for falling far from his previous level of play. He had heard it before, but this time, he could not ignore the critic. This time, he was the one talking. “I criticize myself,” McGrady said Monday. “I can take it from anybody, from everybody. I know my ability. And when I do get right, all that … is put to rest. So kick me when I’m down, because I swear to you, I’ll be back up. And when I get back up, I’m going to sit back, and I’m going to laugh, man, because I’m going to have the last laugh. “Right now, I’m down. I’m physically down.” Sometimes contrite, other times defiant, McGrady, 29, said he has been shaken by poor play he believes to be brought on by his struggles to get over knee surgery eight months ago today. He said he thought he had played harder against the Raptors than what he saw when he reviewed video of the game and that he did not realize the scoring opportunities he ignored. Though McGrady said “I haven’t played well all year” and that it was “crazy” that he is second among Western Conference guards in the All-Star voting, he said his particularly poor play in a 94-73 loss to Toronto on Friday came from the frustration over his physical limitations. “Without a doubt,” McGrady said. “It’s a matter of trying to come out and trying to compete physically. I look back at some of the tapes of some of my games, and in those games, I feel like I’m trying to go hard, but I look, and I’m not. I don’t have it. In my mind, I think I’m going hard. But physically, I don’t have it.” McGrady said that when he watched the video, he saw he was not moving on either end of the court the way he thought he had and that he had passed up shots and scoring opportunities that he had not realized were there. Tales of the tape “I always watch film,” McGrady said. “That’s just being a student of the game, but especially now because I want to see how I’m moving. I want to see what kind of shots I can get. I’m limited in some of the things I can do on the court now. It’s really frustrating. “There are all sorts of things I see out there. It’s tough, man. You think about pretty much seven, eight years being on top, being one of the elites, and then you have a big letdown, a big drop-off, from being one of the elites to being just average now and people writing you off, that’s frustrating.” Coach Rick Adelman spoke with him Monday about McGrady’s determination to play through his limitations. “That’s what he has to do,” Adelman said. “He has to be aggressive no matter what. The other night, we were playing poorly as a team, and he became very unaggressive. He can’t play that way, (or) he’s not going to get through it or out of it, and we aren’t going to be any good. “We have to find more ways to make sure we have room to operate, but it’s got to be an aggressive approach every time he plays. “I spoke to him about it because he’s not going to get anywhere unless he keeps pushing himself. It’s in practice, too. It’s a mindset. Sometimes when things don’t go well, that’s when you have to work even harder. “Like I told him today, ‘There’s going to be times you’re going to succeed and times you’re going to fail, but that shouldn’t have an effect on how hard you play. You have to play through the good times and the bad times.’ ” McGrady, a 6-8 guard, is averaging 15 points per game, his lowest average since his second NBA season. He is making 39 percent of his shots overall and 39 percent of his 3s while averaging 4.6 rebounds and 4.9 assists. But he said his impact is not entirely shown in assists. “Regardless of if I’m out there hobbling around, I make guys better,” he said. “There are other things I can do. It’s a proven fact.” The Rockets agree. Positive influence In the 26 games McGrady has played this season, the Rockets have averaged six points per game more when McGrady is on the court than we he is off, slightly behind team leader Shane Battier and roughly tied with Yao Ming, though at a level similar to past seasons. The Rockets find that even this season, the number of McGrady passes that lead directly to points, if not always assists, is among the NBA leaders. Even when talking about the need for more, Rockets management has pointed out those successes. But friends have kept McGrady informed about criticism from fans and media. “People tell me,” he said, with emotion filling his voice. “They know how I eat that up. They know how I take that all in and use it as motivation. I’ve never been a guy to be criticized and go home and go in my closet and boo-hoo cry. I was criticized when I was a young fella coming into this league, criticized by my own coach (Butch Carter), saying I wouldn’t last three years in this league. “Here I am, 12 years, seven-time All-Star, two-time scoring champ. I don’t worry about that. “I’m not going to go in the closet and hide from it. I’m going to stand there and face it. I’m 29 years old. I’m young. It ain’t over for me. “Right now, it’s a real hard time for me. I know it’s going to come back. I’ve got to be patient. I’ve got to take everything that’s thrown at me. I’m taking that. I just keep going.”
He has to say something when the reporters ask him questions about it. But he's not going to change anyone's mind unless he shows a different attitude on the court. And it can't just be for a couple games either. It has to be starting today and for the rest of the season.
I don't know, I don't like his tone too much. It seems like he is admitting that objectively, he mailed it in against Toronto, but at the same time, he is talking like he is offended that he is getting criticized - instead of being offended by his own effort.
Great find. Exactly what I've been doing. Being patient. Curse our fans and our reporters for having the "sky is falling" mentality. I look up and the sky is still there. Silly reporters, some silly fans. McGrac will be bac.
I'm glad to see Tmac realizing how terribly and embarrassingly he played against the Raptors the other night. It seems his struggles lately have just been mental.
lol. how did you catch that? i caught that he realized that after watching the film, he ACTUALLY did look like he was mailing it in...but didn't feel like he did mentally. where's the offense from criticism? he EXPECTS the criticism. what nba player doesn't?
Im still out on the verdict with McGrady. I honestly think he is frustrated but at the same time doesnt know how to deal with the pressure. What bothers me is that last season in the playoffs, he played on a bad knee and shoulder and was better than this season. Isnt the surgery design to improve his performance compared to last season?
not that i don't want to believe him, but man, talk is cheap. and in his mind, it's still all due to physical limitation; adelman thinks it's mental. i just don't know what to think or say after reading what mcgrady had to say. we shall see what happens for the rest of the season...
trust me, tracy is def. down. nobody who has played a high level like he had is gonna be satisfied with his level of play. and tracy is right. in his mind, he thought he tried hard, but when he watched the tapes, he didn't. i'm sure he'll make a more concerted effort to go beyond his physical abilities the next game and that's what he has to do. there's no doubt in another month or so, he'll be back in all-star form. whether he stays here or traded, he'll regain his all-star form. he is just a guy who lives and dies by his athleticism MENTALLY. right now, it's a big mental block. when he gets over that hurdle, he'll be great again. hopefully he'll do that in houston. but it's good that tracy knows he's sucking right now. and it's also good he knows everybody is counting him out. i haven't
it's clear that tracy and adelman are at odds. and it's clear that tracy could be traded due to this. but it is mental. it's like the knee injury last yr (where he sucked for a long stretch) or the back the year before before he saw dr. patterson. once he gets those problems physically straighten out in his head, he plays well again.
Yeah, that last laugh stuff is uncalled for. I hope he can deliver on it though, because that is the worst thing he's walked into since "it's on me."
