Without a dobut this is best chance for victory with Kenny and Griffin at the 3 and 4 down the stretch with Steve and Cat. The 5th person should be based on how well they are playing, which could be Rice, Taylor, Hawkins, Cato, Ming or whoever depending on the match ups. I really like the minutes Moochie is geeting. 12 to 20 minutes per game is enough, I'm glad to see Rudy is killing the small guard lineup for the larger lineup, which allows the Rockets to rebound and play better D. Great defense by the Rockects, which produced the back to back titles. By the way, Glen and Maurice Taylor are robbing the Rockets blind. Rice will never be the same and will never get the opportunity with Steve and Cat leading/shooting for the team. How can Maurice Taylor not be in shape, he's had over 2 months of running, give me a break.
It is harsh to say they are robbing the team. They both will produce more but may never match the salary level, partly, because of the depth of the team.
I agree with man532...I think KT/EG at the 3 and 4 gives us our most talented 3-4 combo and thus gives us the best chance to win. Eddie seems to be gaining more and more confidence in his shot with each game and KT seems to be picking up where he left off last season.
I also love the way that Eddie is no longer content to just jack up threes, and even though he makes bad decisions sometimes you can always see that he is trying to make plays. He doesn't play selfishly, and can anyone question what his D brings to the table? I think not.
I questioned EG's hands yesterday because of fumbled passes. He was much better in the 2nd half. He is going to be so special. As far as I can see he is our starting 4 unless MoT can move him out. Barring injury that is going to be real hard. As far as who should play, I think our collection of players are so good across the board that it is useless trying to legislate who should play at the end.
After watching the old games on ESPN2 Sunday, and watching the game last night, it struck me that KT is this teams Mario. Only Rocket fans will give this guy any respect but he invariably becomes the biggest pain in the A$$ for the other team. I love KT. I don't want to marry him, but I love him all the same. I like the way Moochie was pushing the ball up the court last night. Normally he makes me crazy but last night I was really impressed with his role.
I really think Kenny starting at the 3 and Griffin at the 4 is what we will see the rest of the season. I don't see anyone moving them out of their starting spots. They are the forwards that are playing the best right now and they need to be out there from the start. I just dont see Rice or Taylor moving them out of their spots. Chris
Yes. I've said before that Eddie and Kenny are complimentary players. They give you the best distribution of skills. Whatever one of them can't do, the other can.
Absolutely. It amazes me when people talk about wanting to trade Kenny. If this team is serious about wanting to eventually contend, they're going to need a scrapper like that who works his ass off and takes care of the little things. Kenny provides that. Of course, when you consider how well Hawkins is playing, the team might potentially have TWO Marios, which is even better
Yep, old Eddie is coming along VERY nicely. There was one move where Eddie was in the block being defended by Wallace. He brought it to the middle, turned, pump faked, and then went up with the nice turnaround. Just a beautiful, patient move. Last year, he would have just turned, fired, and had the shot blocked since a player of Wallace's caliber would have seen the shot coming the whole time. And the Kid hasn't even begun to shoot his jump hook, yet, nor develop a drop step! Yep, old Eddie is coming along VERY nicely!
Hell they were killing me last night when i saw KT playing center with Griff in there at the 4 and KT PLAYED IT WELL!! Rocket River
This is a good thread, because this point deserves to stand out. KT is working out very well at the 3. As Will pointed out, EG and KT have complimentary skills. EG is the 4, sometimes the 5, but has the 3 point shot. He can block shots. He's developing the rest of his game. His handles suck... ..but KT at the 3 can handle the ball (in the half-court set), can pass, can take it to the rim. He can't really shoot the 3, but that's what EG's doing. Kenny Thomas has really evolved...overlooked in the draft, a poor man's Elton Brand (so it was thought), who has developed his game, has developed his body (Rudy: "you're gonna be a 3, lose more weight, get even stronger"; KT: "OK"). I say get the man his contract. He wants to be a Rocket, he deserves to stay a Rocket. At the moment this could be our winning-est rotation: 1) Steve, Mooch 2) Cat, Hawk 3) KT, T-Mo 4) EG, Mo-T 5) Cato, Yao Ming Right now I could give a you-know-what about Rice's playing time. I do wonder how much of a role Nachbar will have on the team (nothing against him at all, he's trying to get 100%, but I like T-Mo and what he brings, if he can continue his pre-season play, and be our glue guy [with improved offense]).
EG needs to get more touches on the ball offensively, especially in the low post, should not rely on 3-points shot that much. He needs to ask the ball from the guards. Mobley often waves him off often in the past. He should not be too passive in that regard.
I hope we can do that as well. I haven't run the numbers, but intuitively it seems like we will run into some serious cap issues in two or three years.
That is why I am not taking anything for granted and is expecting more rather than less. Top 4 in the west this year. Although this combo is great do not be surprised if within the next two weeks, another combo shows up.
he looked great to me. so slim. as for mot, i never heard anything from him from last night. i heard he was out of shape? this true? i thought he was ready and was in great shape like Kenny.
Collier actually started well. He didn't score but had some hustle plays that helped his team. Yao was great for the time he was on the floor. MoT did look rusty out there. Did he even get 1 rebound? Definitely, KT and EG did a masterful job in the C and PF rotation.
Mo Taylor didn't look out of physical shape to me. Maybe a little out of basketball shape, but I bet he shakes that off soon. If you think KT & EG make a good forward combo, wait just a little while longer and see what Mo T & EG can do. I think we're fine with either of those combos. I think a forward combo of Mo T & KT wouldn't work so well. I also think Mo T & Rice wouldn't work too well, so I expect to see KT & Rice together at some points in the season too. Looks like Rudy T's blurring the line between the SF and PF. And I think we're pretty solid in the forwards department.
