The Rockets are a team in transition, and they are very up front about that. If they had corner-stone star pieces, things would come together much faster, but they have failed thus far to acquire them. So, they've taken a flyer on a number of players from the 09 draft, hoping one or two of them turn into something nice. Its looking like that won't pan out, but I really don't think its because those players weren't given enough opportunities here. If a player can't make an impression under multiple coaches over multiple season, then the problem lies with them. I would like to just give my perspective on the roster, by position. At PG, there is a clear hierarchy. Its Lowry, Dragic, and Flynn is a third-stringer who's this close to being out of the league. I don't see any controversy there. At SG, its Martin and Lee is his backup. That's pretty set. If Martin or Lee get injured, then Williams or Dragic will fill in. I don't view this as a logjam. At SF, its open. Budinger is the starter in name, but hasn't yet proven himself to be a "starter-quality" player. That position is up for grabs, if Terrence Williams can prove himself in the minutes he gets. So far he hasn't, and he has no one to blame but himself. Morris and Parsons also warrant some consideration here. I think an argument could be made that 1 or 2 of those 4 players need to be moved. If there is a serious logjam issue on the roster, its here. At PF, its Luis Scola and Patrick Patterson. When the team decides to play small ball, Parsons looks to be the favored option. At C, its a toss up between Hill and Dalembert. Thabeet is like that tall 7'3 Korean player who used to play in garbage time in Portland. He's just a really big person that looks impressive walking in the hotel lobby. He's not an NBA-caliber player. He hasn't demonstrated he has any skill to contribute, so I'm not in favor of the Rockets clearing roster space just to give him minutes. If the opportunity arises due to injury and he miraculously takes advantage, then good for him.
Ok I respect your take but you are entirely missing my point, it does not matter what you and I think it matters what the players that are sitting on the bench think.... DD
Yes. I totally agree. You could see them BUST their butts off. It was fun to watch. Even when we lost, before the last minute buzzer went off, there was inspired basketball being played. There's NO sense of that this year. I used to favor Aaron Brooks over Kyle Lowry, but I like Kyle more and more. He is such a leader. Outside of him and Luis (which I don't see as much now as last year), there isn't inspired basketball. It is such a waste to see talent like Kyle, Luis, and Courtney go to waste because they would be terrific role players on a better team. Terrance Williams has all the talent in the world, but I don't think his personality and leadership would ever allow him to be great. But I won't put too much blame on him, because how the heck can anyone keep their head up and play positive on a team like this year?
Since we all seem to be convinced that tanking is taking place discretely, let's look at these two failed top-5 draft picks. Thabeet was picked 2nd overall and was Natonal defensive player of the year. WTH happened to him on the way to a supposedly promising NBA career?
OK, then we have a disagreement here. I don't think it matters what Flynn, Williams, and Thabeet think, so long as the players ahead of them in the rotation are winning games. All 3 of them were lottery picks on really bad teams. They had their chances, and couldn't capitalize.
Awful, awful game but still its too early to judge this team 7 games in especially considering that we were playing arguably the best West team on the road and were short one Kyle Lowry and Courtney Lee.
For all of Thabeet's faults as a basketball player, its not in his nature to complain or be a "chemistry-killer". As for Terrence Williams, he was sulking most of last year. We went on a nice little run towards the end of the season which he pretty much wasn't apart of. So in that instance, I don't see evidence that he killed chemistry. I see all the time championship-level teams with rotation-quality players who don't play regularly because the coach has settled on a tight rotation that works which they aren't a part of. Rotations are often pared down even further as the playoffs approach, when chemistry is the most important. I just don't find any cases where this matters all that much. Maybe you can give some convincing examples which I've overlooked. The reason this team is struggling is because their top 9 guys just aren't good enough to compete against the schedule we've faced thus far. I think you're digging for deeper issues, while overlooking the simpler explanation.
This team has the talent to be better than their record thus far. What they lack is the will to make it happen. Something is messing with the chemistry in that locker room. On the flip side, we can't necessarily that Minny got the better deal in the coaching trade just yet. Their record is no better than ours. If we could just steal Kevin Love away, then we'd have a chance.
Whoa! Hold the phone...that was Jonny Flynn? Where the hell is that Flynn? He isn't anything like that out there for us. If it's due to injury, how the heck does an injury turn you into an idiot?
From what I understand, Thabeet was a project drafted on a team whose coach was on the hot seat. Since the coach badly needed wins, he gave the time and coaching attention to Gasol, who was more NBA ready. The result was that Thabeet basically received no coaching during his tenure with the Grizz and little PT. His confidence is shot. Heard Bill run this down during a game last season. The Chron had a piece on it too, I think. Carol Dawson even commented on how Thabeet wants to learn but wasn't really coached.
have ya'll talked about adrien yet? Didn't see all of his minutes, but i liked that he looked decisive out there. You play much more smoothly when you're decisive. His short jumpr looked nice also.
The team played full 48 minutes. The team played lots of players. The team is closer to a high draft pick.
