I have had an uneasy premonition over the last couple of days. Looking forward to this year, the visions of exciting growth and development have begun to be clouded in my mind by nagging doubts and worries, and aside from the whole Will Yao Sign thing, my greatest concern is that I will go absolutely nuts if I have to sit through another year of watching mediocre 'veterans' play while our young guys sit and watch. We have the chore of an exciting and successfull team here, and young kids like Nachbar, Yao, Griffin, and possibly Morris are front and center in that picture, but are too often sitting in the back row while guys like Rice, Thomas, Walt, and even Taylor are on the floor. Justification for playing the vets instead of the kids usually follows a few basic parameters, so let's look at them one by one... Veteran Experience Helps The Kids Learn... The NBA isn't college, where a coach spends a lot of his time teaching in practice. The fact is that NBA teams spend very little practicing, and most of that is devoted to running specific sets or preparing for specific opponents, not teaching. For better or worse, most of the learning in the pro game takes place on the floor these days. Some times you gotta just run them out there, let them take their lumps, and grow into pros. Leadership... Let's get this straight...the leaders of this team when push comes to shove will be amongst the group of youngsters, and the guards. By the time we are in serious contention for anything, the 'veterans' will not be playing significant roles on the team, and if those are your leaders, you're in trouble. Steve and Cuttino qualify as veterans now, and if they can't lead the kiddie corps, we're in some trouble anyways. Besides, they have to learn to become leaders while the young guys learn to become pros. Winning... Yeah, playing Kenny over Boki, or Mo over Griff might win you a few more games this year...but in the end, so what? We are trying to build a serious contender, and the kids are the future. Every minute that RIce and Kenny and others take away from that future, no matter what it profits us in the short term, ultimately costs us in the long run. I would rather Griffin and others were out there learning what it's gonna take to lead us to the promised land than watch Kenny get his 13 and 7, or Mo get his 14 and 6, or Rice get his...er..anyways,you get my point. I'm not saying these guys can't fullfill valuable roles in reserve, but NOT at the cost of the development of the kids...for to quote Whitney Houston...oh, God, somebody put me out of my misery...The point I was making before that terrible lapse into schlockey 80's pop was that let's not pretend we're going to compete with the Lakers or Kings this year at the cost of lessening the growth of the guys who are gonna be leading us to champiopnship drive after championship drive down the road...Get the growing pains out of the way as soon as possible, and make way for the rivers of champagne... I know that some will contend that Mo is part of the future, or that Kenny works his butt off, or that we have to justify Rice's hefty contract...and there is merit to all those statements. But to me, that merit is negligable in the face of the pursuit of what we're really after here..not 5 more wins today, but 5 more rings tomorrow. We have to keep our eyes on the prize, pay the price in the short term, and reap the benefits down the road. If I can get any more cliches in here I promise to try, but in the meantime, here's to hoping that Rudy doesn't go the typical coach's route of Vets First, bites the bullet ( there you go!), and is brave enough to let the kids play.
Let's not give up on the playoffs before the season. The kids gotta contribute, not just be on the court. This is not the Houston Rocket Charity Orginization. News flash, this team will be good.
Very nice thread.....But if we do that then we just need to go ahead and trade Kenny and Rice for there future backups now and let the whole team gel on the run......
Kenny Thomas and Maurice Taylor are both 25yrs old....just like Steve Francis. I just wanted to point that out. Oh, and I also want to point out the if you have "Eyes on the Prize" it takes 7-9 guys with over 20mpg to get there. You must develop a team...not just the new kid on the block. And lastly, the problem with the team is not Eddie and Boki getting 25 mpg vs 35 mpg; the problem with the team is Steve and Cuttino have to get better at playing like a team. They need to play with veterans as much as the new kids need to play with them. And really, we only have one veteran on this team now. Kenny and Maurice are 25yrs old.
I know where you're coming from MacBeth, but this team has changed alot over the past two years. Walt is not coming back, nor is Willis. Dream and Bullard are two years removed. We don't have the "mediocre 'veterans'" sucking up court time, leaving our young nucleus to lead the charge. Yes, we will see time for Rice on the court, but I don't think it's such a given that he's the man at the 3 spot. He is going to have to earn PT just like EG, Thomas and even Mo-T, who I am very excited to see back, especially with Yao in the paint. I'm not necessarily worried about where the leadership will come from. I'm more concerned with whether Francis, Mo-T and even Rice can stay healthy for a good duration(or better yet the entire) season. At the very least, I think if Francis and Mo can stay on the court and Yao is signed we'll see 48-52 wins this season and another trip to the play offs.
I agree with Heypartner and RocketsPimp, Its not like we have a whole line-up of 30 plus yr olds. The whole team is young except for Rice.....I think they are all Kids, in contrast with some of the other teams in the league, This is going to be an exciting group to watch!
I'd rather have W's and have the "vets" make the rooks work their arses off to get minutes. I'm tired of not being in the playoffs, and every win is going to be vital this season, esp in the WC. I'm confident that if they have the talent, the coaching staff will develop them, whether they log big minutes this season or no.
re: winning part I completely agree!!! I remember back in the 84-85 Jordan would have the ball during crunch time and he would shoot an airball and/or make a turn-over. The coach would throw him to the wolves, per say. Jordan would make a lot of mistakes and look, more or less like a "rookie." Some might say that the coach should have kept him on the bench him so that he could "learn" on the sidelines. The Bulls would lose games because of Jordan's "rookie" mistakes. But, as you said. The "potential" of the skilled player, outweighs the negatives of the "rookie." I mean, if the guy has natural talent, play him! Jordan learned how to fail early in his career. He took his hard knocks. This helped him later. I also remember how boring the Bulls looked when Jordan wasn't in the game. The moment he entered the game the complexion changed. He was an immediate *threat* at every play. It's not something you can put your finger on. It was just the way he moved, the way he made things happen. And I'm not talking about just scoring. Eddie Griffin to me has the same "threat." Every time Rudy puts Eddie in the game, the game changes! PERIOD! Wether it's shot-blocking, rebounding, shooting, or dunks. Eddie just makes things happen. Does he make mistakes? Yes, but so what? The guys needs to fail now, so that 10 seconds left, game 7, NBA Finals, he will make that last second shot without even blinking an eye. Rudy keeps Eddie out the starting lineup because he doesn't want to put too much pressure on him. *sigh* Heaven forbid he we should lose a REGULAR season game because of a Eddie Griffin mistake...PLUEEEZZE! Spare me!. MoT and Kenny are good players. But they will never be great players. Eddie, if he keeps his head on straight will be a great player. Let him learn the hard knocks NOW. So, please Rudy, start Eddie now before he has to retire from the NBA. MacBeth. You are 100% right (on the "winning" part). Rudy is wasting our time playing MoT and Kenny before Eddie. The jury is still up on Boki. I have to see how he plays in the 82 game season. I also want to see how well he handles pressure. He might shoot seven for seven during the first three quarters, but what about the last 5 minutes of the 4th?
Having good enough young players to put pressure on the veterans is a good thing. Just goes to show you what a great job CD and the staff has done putting this team together in such a short period of time. I have know doubt the Rockets are going to be good, real good this season. The rest of the league beware!! Are whole problem the last year was defense. Now that we have a 7'5 guy clogging up the middle, I think your going to see a totally different team. Forget the playoffs, I'm talking NBA Championship contenders. Go Rockets!!!!
Gotta go w/ Sofne81, HP, and RP. Rice is the only "old" player on the entire roster. Everywhere else you look, you see players in their early to mud 20's. We don't even have any people in their late 20's yet minus Mobley. I truly believe that the Mo T should start for us this year. He does a great job of getting the team of to a good start offensively in the 1st Q (something we sorely missed last yr. w/o him). There will still be plenty of time to EG to get his min. and mature into the great player we all think he can be. The main reason the vets will start however, is b/c Rudy has to save his job this year. No NBA coach has ever survived 4yrs. and no playoffs and a healthy Mo and Rice will defintely help us make that push. So don't worry McB. We are going to be good, playoff good infact so sit back and enjoy the upcoming season.
The point wasn't that some of the vets are too old...some are, some aren't. The point was identifying which guys are gonna be the future, the ones who lead you there, and prioritizing them. I don't think that Mo, Kenny, or Rice, for example, are gonna be key players for us in a championship run, not when we're gonna have Griffin and Yao up front. Is Mo better than Griffin right now? If healthy, maybe..but that is partly as a result of the time he had to develop. Their learning time is more valuable than the others playing time. And, as a fan, I am sick of the losing, etc...but I'd be a lot happier with a few less wins this year and a whole lot more in the future than I would with a few more wins this year at the expense of the devlopment of the guys capable of making us champs. Think of playing time like currency...you can invest it in a short return/less profit way bu playing Mo, and Kenny, and RIce over Griff and Boki...or you can invest it in something which will probably yield a lot less immediate return, but will bring in major return on investment in the future. It's easy to always say, yeah...some other time we'll make that investment..but not now..now I just want to win a bit more...I'm sick of losing. Or to act like the learning will magically happen without the playing time, by virtue of basketball osmosis...But the formenr just puts off serious learning/winning for the sake of marginal immediate gratification, and the latter doesn't happen with the way the league is structured. Jermaine O'Neal, Tracy McGrady, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett, and coutless others all had to play to learn how to play at this level. So I guess it comes down to who you really think will be cornerstones of this franchise's glory years to come...IF you think that Mo will be as much as or more a part of that then Griffin, by all means advocate playing him over Eddie...but if you are just saying that because you are sick of losing, etc...you're just digging a hole to fill a hole.
I agree that that will be the main reason it will happen, if ti should come to pass. While I can empathize with Rudy's survival instinct, I am hoping that he will have enough courage and foresight, and the organization will have enough faith and patience to do what is right for the team's future, rather than playing CYA this year.
funny how you bring up these guys, and yes there are countless others. Lots of rooks and young players(including the majority of the players on your list) learned from their first year or two being a sub, and who's to say that didn't make them the players they are today? Being thrown to the wolves isn't always a good thing. I'll trust Rudy's judgement over yours, thank you very much. And not getting 30 mpg does not mean they are not being developed btw. If Griff, Boki, and even Ming can't establish themselves as better than the incumbent starters, then they DESERVE to come off the bench. That just means they'd have to work that much harder in training and practice to get more time, which is a good thing.
While in general I'd agree with you, there are two points I'd like to make... 1) I am not under any constraint to prioritize winning this year over what is best for the franchise's long term benefit, as others have suggested Rudy might be. 2) That statement implies that we are never to question the judgement of those in position, as they are always more qualified than we are. In which case, when I was against us trading for Rice, or many were against not drafting Lewis, or other examples, well, we were all wrong.
Sports History is littered with young phenoms thrown on the field in bad situations and promptly dissapearing from sight. The first one I remember is David Clyde and the Texas Rangers baseball team. He was straight out of high school and the greatest potential of all time (don't they all) and the Rangers were a sad sack team in desperate need of both pitching help and a draw. If you remember David Clyde, then you know the story. If you don't remember him, well, then you can guess the outcome. And the Rangers are still looking for pitching help. I trust Rudy to make the right decisions at the right time. I can't believe that he has anything but a long term prospective after what, 30 years? I clearly understand the harsh sports reality of "what have you done for me lately", but I don't think that is Rudy. I don't think that is Les. I think it it the vocal few who are impressed by their own opinions.
MacBeth, You know, I'm pretty sure that not only does Rudy categorically deny your extreme "throw them to the wolves" theory, but I'm pretty sure Francis has already categorically denied his willingness to develop for the future vs winning now. Developing for the future has everything (e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g.) to do with experiencing the playoffs. You sound like a Memphis/Golden State fan. Besides, it is only a theory to say "throwing them to the wolves" is better for a player in shortterm or longterm. I have never subscribed to that theory, for several points Pat made. That is an NFL Quarterback theory, anyhow. The difference between 25 and 35 minutes for Griff and 20 and 30 minutes for Boki is just a theory. People say every minute KT, Rice and MoT play is a minute wasted...is just a theory. That theory ignores how Francis and Mobley need to learn to win, as well, and they need to learn to win in playoff games. Every year we go without a playoff appearance for Francis/Mobley is a year wasted. Every year we go vastly changing the lineups underneath Francis's development is another yr wasted, imo. What is proven (and not theory) is that we need stability on this team, because Francis can't just will us to the playoffs. What is proven is winners have 7-9 quality guys. What is proven (and not theory) is that it takes several playoffs under their belt before perennial bad teams can advance far. We can win now and not hurt Boki and Griffin's development. Francis is furious with no playoffs. You cannot say to no to Francis and worry more about Griffin. I'm sorry...you are taking too much for granted to not field the best team now...which is Boki at 18-22mpg and Griffin at 25-28mpg.
Griffin is only 20 years old. He has at least 15 years to go in this league. He doesn't have to be hurried this year. Why put a ton of pressure on him now? The guy is already good... EG should back up MT and Yao/Cato for now. He'll get plenty of minutes. If anything KT is going to be traded (maybe in February when his value to a playoff chacing team will be higher) to make more room for EG. That may or may not be necessary if KT gets some 3 time. MT should also play some 5 against smaller centers. It's a hell of a rotation. What team has a better overall front line than us (MT, EG, Yao, KT, Cato, Rice, Nachbar, TMo)?
Yao Za! I think all the posters in this Forum are trying to tell Rudy T how to do his job! In another SEVEN days the Rox Training Camp begins and Rudy T and his staff will evaluate each player in all aspects of the game. From these evaluations and their(Coaches) experience they will put together the 02/03 version of the Houston Rockets. IMHO although this season is a must for them to be Playoff bound,its impotant also that our Team of the future should be welded together and given as much playing time as they require!I feel sure that the second season version of E.Griffin will be vastly improved from the first.Even so I agree that he must be brought along with Yao Ming and Nachbar at a pace that befits theirs and the Rox requirements of them.
