Quit talking down on Stevie and Cat, cuz without them the rockets will fall flat.

syd, if you've been milling around here for a while, why haven't you noticed the hundreds of posts (and threads) singing their praises? They are well loved here... they may drive us a little crazy on occasion, and there are some who would open the door for them if they were traded, but the vast majority are fans. They just want them to improve and be healthy. If this was a love fest here, it would get pretty boring!

 

" Quit talking down on Stevie and Cat, cuz without them the rockets will fall flat. "

humm..... with them rockets fell flat.

 

i completely agree with u syd. i dont understand why anyone would even suggest trading francis or mobley. these are the two guys we need to be building our team around not trading. while there is a lot of peeps who praise them there are also peeps who dont seem to care about them.

 

Mobley is no better than Ron Mercer. All Mobley does is take 25 shots a game, plays no defense, and can't really rebound. Mobley is too one dimensional of a player.

Cat really shouldn't be a starter, but rather someone who can play around 25 minutes minutes per game and come off the bench as the 6th man for instant offense.

 

i think most of the bashing is just some friendly ribbing. some are for real, but they just dont know what we really have here.

 

Let's go through this for about the thousandth time... Cuttino shot 18 shots per game last season. That's nowhere in the neighborhood of 25. Even if you think 18 is too much, consider that those around and above Cat's level of points per game had approximately the same or more shots per game. So the argument that Cat has to shoot too much to get his points really doesn't hold water, since his points per shot attempt are right in the neighborhood of other 21-23 ppg scorers.

On Mercer: want to tell me when Ron Mercer averaged 22 points per game, thirteenth in the entire NBA, as a second option? Want to tell me when Ron Mercer exhibited on court leadership? Mobley also rebounds more than Mercer, and since when is rebounding a crucial part of a guard's game? Mobley is an average to above average rebounder for a SG. If Mobley shouldn't be a starter, then neither should Allan Houston, Ray Allen, Jerry Stackhouse, and a few others.

 

That would be completely wasting his talent. He plays tough the whole game, and we need him out there to score. That's his talent, and he can do it better than anyone else on the team except Steve Francis.

 

Top 4/5 SG?

No way.

He's a great SG that would be best utilized, IMHO, as a 6th man like Vinnie Johnson.


You guys could call him the toaster or hot pocket or something.

 

He could be, depending on who you call shooting guards. There are some people that call Tracy McGrady and Vince Carter small forwards and leave them out of this argument. If you take those two out, you have Kobe, Pierce, Iverson, Ray Allen, and after that it's open for debate. I can't think of another one (if you exclude Tmac and Vince) that is clearly better than Mobley...

 

I like the way Brent Barry plays more than Mobley. I think he is more of a team player.

 

lol mobley is way better than barry

 

And why is that?

Barry is better shooter, rebounder, has more assists and he is a team player. What is your argument for Mobley.

 

Because he is a rocket? ...

 

We dont' know about Steve's migraines. I'd trade Francis to the Bulls and pick Jay Williams.

 

My vote for the best thread title all summer..

 

yeah i agree. i always liked brent barry.

 

No way I would trade Francis he is my hero! As for the ball-hogging, would rather drink rat piss than pass, no defense playing Cat: as the one guy said I would hold the door open for him.

 

You're complaining about Cuttino's defense while you defend Francis? Cuttino may not be a great defender, but he's worked hard on that aspect of his game, and he's significantly greater than a year ago in that area. Furthermore, he's miles and miles ahead of Francis on that end, who appears to show little effort at all... And Cuttino shot just 18 shots per game, which is right around what every other player averaging 21-23 ppg shot. So if Cuttino is a ballhog, then so is almost every high scorer in the NBA. Edit: wonderboy Steve Francis averaged 18 shots per game too... ballhog! He has to shoot 25 shots a game to be worth anything! (Many on the BBS have said that exaggeration about Cuttino, so thus the use here... I know it's not true) I know the first thing you'll say is that he averages more assists per game, but he has to! That's kind of the point guard's responsibility... it's not for the shooting guard. Also, with Steve's assists/turnover ratio, he might be better off passing less...

Barry is better shooter, rebounder, has more assists and he is a team player. What is your argument for Mobley.

My goodness... if this doesn't prove that Cat's about the most underrated player in the history of the world, I'm not sure what will. Brent Barry? Are you kidding me? Brent Barry is a spot up shooter. The first step towards being a star player is the ability to create, either for yourself, others, or both. I challenge you to name a star player that can't do either. The best example I can think of is the San Antonio Spurs in the playoffs against the Lakers. Close in the fourth quarter every game... what's the difference? LA has two creators, and SA has Duncan and a bunch of Brent Barry's (Steve Smith, Antonio Daniels, Bruce Bowen). In other words, they're perimeter shooters.

Defenses have to line up and stop Cuttino Mobley. Not one player, but the whole defense. That's the kind of attention you draw when you are in the top 15 in the league in scoring and score about 22 ppg. Outside of the points he gets, it helps his teammates as well. Assists don't measure the pass before the pass. A lot of times what you'll see from Cuttino is a drive into the lane from the right wing, a pass to the top of the key, a defender rushing at that player, and then another pass to the left corner for a wide open shot. Dynamic scorers are hard to find, and Cat is already that, as he's 13th in the league in scoring. Furthermore, he's probably the one player on this team that is continually striving for improvement, working his ass off every summer to get better in every aspect of the game. For about a 40 game stretch this season (more than just a "hot" stretch), after Mobley's early season ankle injury had healed, Mobley averaged about 25.5 ppg, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists per game on about 46% shooting from the field. Those numbers are absolutely fabulous... on the level of the elite shooting guards.

Is Cat there yet? Not quite. But he can be very soon... he is a fabulous, fabulous player who is a top scoring option and working every offseason to keep getting better. And you'd trade all of that for a more consistent Walt Williams who averages 1 more rebound per game and 2 more assists per game than Cuttino?

 

Some of you guys make me sick with the complaining that goes around here. I read some of the garbage about trading our best players because they don't do this and that, knitpicking like old women! I find it funny that the majority of the fans around the league don't share YOUR opinions of our stars. Not all of you, just some of you.