I haven't seen this posted in the thread... it's from Solomon's Chron blog: http://blogs.chron.com/jeromesolomon/2009/02/post_85.html I wasn't terribly pleased when Rafer was traded. I never loved the guy or anything, but he could be counted on to be a vocal leader and he didn't turn the ball over. I felt the trade was a sign that management had given up on the season. Maybe they did, but Lowry appears to be a pretty decent pickup. We'll know soon enough if the Rockets are overachieving with this homestand or if they've really learned to play together.
His pick n roll with Scola will be one of the best in the league once they start to get along with each other, the guy is very strong and a very good passer. Brooks has little time as starter.
If Lowry hasn't worked on his jumper so far, what makes y'all think he will now? Not trying to be debbie downer...just saying plenty of dudes go through their career and never learn how to shoot. All young players don't work on their game, ala Landry....
There is another silver lining. He was available for trade. I can assure you he would not have been available had he shot a decent 3 %. On the bright side the one thing that most coaches and players agree is easiest to improve on in the NBA is shooting %. You only need repetition. Lowry better live in the gym shooting this summer.
"ala Landry"??? Just because the guy doesn't work on a post game in the offseason doesn't mean he doesn't work. He isn't a big 4. He has worked on extending his range which is more useful than working on post moves for someone of his stature especially when Yao/Scola will get the post opportunities.
I dont hate Rafer. When he missed those wide open 3s, I was like wtf*&$%(, but when he got hot like putting 8 3's to beat the fakers, I would temporarily believe he is the one of the top pgs. Anyway, he is a good but will never be labeled as a contender caliber player because he doesn't have enuf talent.
The lob pass for the dunk was excellent. That's a Chris Paul type play--something we were missing in Rafer and Brooks. His physicality was great too. It's always good to have players who can bruise the opposition. Great pick-up by Morey once again. If you look at Morey's acquisitions, they're amazing (cheap, effective, and work well together): Artest, Scola, Wafer, Brooks, Landry, and Lowry
When will people learn to never doubt Morey. Happens every offseason and every trade because it's not what the general public thinks. In Morey we trust.
I've always advocated for, and am still trying to get the message out there: PLACE KYLE AS A STARTER! Just like how Battier started over Artest, Lowry needs to start over Brooks. I hate how AB just chucks up shots as if he is Chris Paul.
I don't think this will happen until next year, hopefully. I think he has the potential to be better at running the point than Brooks bc his strength, playmaking abilities and seems to run the offense just as good without knowing much of our plays. Also I think I am seeing a little chemisty between him and Yao, hopefully that develops more than anything. But he can't be a starter this late in the season and have hopes for the playoffs. He needs more time to learn the players and RA's offense.
Lowry is a great fit for this team. Smart, tough, unselfish player who can beat his man off the dribble and prevent his man from getting in the lane on defense. He does a little bit of everything. Only problem I have with him being a starter is I think we need players who can knock down the open three to play alongside Yao. Brooks is still learning on the fly how to be a starting point guard in this league, but his shooting gives us the lift we need on offense. Lowry is a good floor general to run out there with the second unit. I like what I see so far. No reason to adjust anything just yet.
It is manufactured. It drove me crazy for years as I watched pretty much his whole career and never heard that he had any nickname. A good poster here(forgot who) told me when I was asking that it was just a thing from TNT to give him a little "street cred". It's not like he was ever a really big name outside of the Houston area.
Who do you like for our starter in next year or later? Brooks or Lowry. I like Lowry. Brooks seems to a shooting first guard.
I hope Lowry develops more bc he is more of a true pg, luckily for Brooks RA offense is easier on pgs.
It would help but it is not needed like everyone thinks. Rafer could not shoot from anywhere nor finish around the basket and sometimes our offense looked good. Rafer was good at running the offensive plays and thats it. Lowry can be just as good at running the point while shooting at a higher fg%, hotzones proves he has a decent midrange game and his a great finisher. Also he played a lot less minutes than Rafer and still had way more ft attempts. I think is overall game makes up for it but yeah he would be deadly with a spot up three in his arsenal.
