Will the rockets implement the three guard lineup more or less than last year? I think they will play it more. I don't see it used early in the game. I see it put in the 2nd and 3rd a lot to test its effectiveness. I don't see the rockets using it when it gives the opponent a mismatch, but I see the rockets milking any mismatchs they can make. I see Portland as a good time for three guard. LAL might be a good option if they are playing Kobe and Rider at the 2 and 3. Vince Carter will probably be need to be guarded by SA. ------------------ "You've got 6 fouls, use them well" -Derrick Coleman
Will we play 3-guards? Look no further than Shandon's minutes last April for your answer: 39.1 mpg. Shandon has tremendous stamina, and in my opinion, can, must and will play 40 mins in big games. Francis also will have increased stamina this year. He will approach 38-40 mpg, just like he did in April as well. And considering Mobley does not play point gaurd anymore, mathematically all his minutes (minus Shandon's bench time) represent a 3 guard set. But, math aside: I could definitely see Walt/Langhi and Mo/KT demanding so much time, Rudy will begin evolving out of the 3-guard sets. I disagree that the mismatches are based on SA/Mobley, (not to say Joe Joe made this argument). I just did not see anything from Rudy last year to back up the claim that minutes are determined by guard mismatches. On the contrary, Rudy did more guard sets based on the performance of the starting SF. I suspect Rudy will do the same thing he did last year, get a feel for how well the SF (Walt/Langhi) is shooting each night to determine their minutes. It is the effectiveness of the small forward that will determine the 3 guard minutes. And Rudy won't have a set formula for this. So, how do the 3 guards get minutes if Rudy evolves out of the 3 guard sets based on Walt/Langhi and Mo/KT performing well. I don't think Bob Finn* and DoD are ready for this: Give Mobley point guard minutes again!!! [This message has been edited by heypartner (edited August 28, 2000).]
Good observation HP. You're right on the money. Another thing, Rudy only used the 3 guard lineup when teams like Phoenix and Dallas started running on us and we could't keep up(ie. Walt wasn't effective). Hopefully with the addition of Langhi, our SF spot will be a strong point this season and teams will have to adjust to us. Also, it looks as though Mobes just might be getting some point minutes. Shandon will get some minutes at the 3, all when we run the 3 guard lineup. The rest of his time will be at the 2. Mobley will probably start the season coming off the bench at the 2. The only other spot for him to get time is at the 1. It's going to come down to him and Moochie battling for the few leftover minutes when Francis is resting. ------------------ Don't you have anything better to do?
I would love to see Cat get some back up point guard minutes. ------------------ "There is no controlling legal authority", - Al Gore, upon discovery that he clearly broke campaign fundraising laws.
sane, I'm talking about Mobley and Shandon getting minutes as the only guards on the floor. I think if Rudy gets his wish and Walt/Langhi and Mo/KT play to their potential, Rudy will not allow the guard minutes to go down much. This means Moochie gets garbage minutes only, and Mobley and Shandon play 1/2 whenever Francis sits. The plays for Mobley won't change any, but we won't bring in Moochie for Francis if Walt and Mo demand quality minutes. Moochie losing minutes in our best case scenarios...not Francis....not Mobley...and hopefully, not Shandon.
heypartner, I don't think that Anderson will play 39-40 minutes a night this year. I know he has GREAT stamina and all, but this team IS pretty deep now. I guess Anderson played tons of minutes last year because we played more guard oriented lineups because we had no big men. But this season it looks like we'll have a reasonable coverage of good big men to use. Anderson will probably get about 30-35 mpg, spending about 20 of those at SG and the rest at SF. Walt will only get about 20 a night - but that's plenty for him to heat it up There's no need to force our guys to play tons of minutes when we have reasonable bench coverage for all positions! Maybe we don't have the "big 3" this year, but I think the team has great depth and I can't wait to see how we go in the regular season!! ------------------
I just don't see Cat getting any significant minutes as PG, unless Steve or Mooch get hurt or are otherwise unavailable. HE IS NOT A POINT GUARD! The primary function of a PG is to set the offense and distribute the ball (scoring when appropriate), and Cat just does not do that well. Moochie is (in my opinion) far better at that - in fact, that is about the only thing that he is really good at; besides hustling and 'generaling', he's really just a mediocre scorer and defender (not meant as a knock against Mooch - I think he's a good backup). But Cat is in no way a good 'general'. Good PGs don't dribble for 10-15 seconds, hold the ball another 5 seconds, and then lob one up from the 3pt line. They pass the rock to the open man before trying to create their own shot (although it's nice if he can also create his own shot when necessary - like Steve can). Steve and Mooch do that, which is why they're good PGs. Cat is not good at initiating ball movement. Cat is a pure SG, and an awesome one at that, but he is not a PG. He should only get PG minutes if we are limited in our options (again, if one of our true PGs are unavailable for one reason or another). ------------------
dribble for 10-15 seconds, hold the ball another 5 seconds, and then lob one up from the 3pt line I thought you were talking about Charles there for a moment. Maybe if Mobley would put on another 75 pounds or so, we could move him over to the 4 spot. ------------------
treeman, didn't say he would be a floor general. Let me ask you this, exactly what does the PG do when we are running the ISO for Mobley. The PG is largely unneeded, so why not rest him for 4 minutes in both halves! I'm not advocating doing this unless Walt and Mo play so well, minutes become a problem for keeping you best players on the court.
HP, When Mobley is running his iso, the Moochie is needed to bring the ball up the court. Cat can do this, but it would cause him to expend energy that could be put to better use in "two Shakes". I wonder if SA could bring the ball upcourt? He would defend the two and Mobley is good at defending the one. It's always been my personal experience that players that are rested, generaly play the iso better, but we don't play NBA level ball. ------------------ "You've got 6 fouls, use them well" -Derrick Coleman
