I agree with Cat that writing Mo' off is premature, but we can't argue with his track record. He never has been an outstanding rebounder or a great defender. The point is that Mo' is only 7 games into his Rockets career and has some adjustments to be made if he is going to demand the maximum when contract time comes around. Personally if he doesn't consistently hit around 17-20 ppg and pull down at least 9-10 rpg, I don't believe he deserves the max and pray the Rockets don't pull a Cato. ------------------ Only in America....do we use the word 'politics' to describe the process so well: 'Poli' in Latin meaning 'many' and 'tics' meaning 'bloodsucking creatures'.
I have seen a good amount of effort from Mo thus far so I am willing to use the wait and see approach. I dont really think that the barely missing rebounds is a "bad luck" syndrome but more than Mo has just started dedicating himself to it. Taylor talked about how he worked on his rebounding and defense this offseason and translating that into an NBA game after years of no dedication to those areas takes time. I am not of the mindset of rationalizing players and saying well this player could become a superstar with the Rockets. However, if one is showing hard work and determination, I am willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. I have been one of Taylor's harshest critics from the day the rumor surfaced b/c I am a firm believer that a contendor needs to be built around rebounding and defense, and Taylor showed none of that as a Clipper. Taylor still needs to improve in those areas, but he is showing the effort and desire to do so. Another reason I am willing to be patient with Taylor is b/c of how talented his offensive game is. There are few PFs or Cs that have the kind of complete offensive game Taylor has. A common misconception is that Taylor is incapable of posting up. Anyone who still feels he cant needs to start watching some games. His jump hook (did you see that last night?) has excellent footwork, his turnaround to the baseline is smooth and ofcourse his face up game and ability to shoot from the perimeter make him a very complete offensive player. I figured fans would learn about jumping the gun too fast esp watching how quickly Collier is developing. I suppose that is the nature of highly emotional basketball fans; Rockets need to call a press conference to admit they were stupid in drafting Collier? Rockets re-building has been set back 3 yrs b/c they made such an incredibly dumb draft? Steve Francis needs to be dealt for Michael Dickerson even though many great PGs like Stockton and Payton took time to develop? First Cuttino Mobley is a shot jacker who deserves to be in the CBA, then Cuttino Mobley is the next coming of Air Jordan? Folks, I urge you to be patient and wait this out; make informed opinions by watching a player develop over time instead of jumping the gun after a few games. ------------------ Check out the Best Source for Draft Info Draftsource.net
Cat, Suppose you are the guy negotiating contracts next summer for the Rockets and Mo has finished the season with averages of 16 ppg and 7 rpg. His agent says, "Show us MAX money". What do you tell him? If somebody else wants to chime in with a response, feel free to do so. Mango ------------------ Test Your NBA Trade Ideas 1. Put new topics in the proper forum. Things happening in the rest of the NBA 2. Use clear wording for new threads. 3. No duplicate threads 4. Conduct yourself as an adult. The Serious Police are watching. Donate Blood or be assimilated!
Man o Man. Collier better than Mo??? Are you kidding me? Mo is soooo much better than Jason Collier. Did anyone see how he took the ball down low on KG and crossed his ass over for an easy layup? Why doesnt Rudy use Mo's offensive talents more. USE WHAT HES GOOD AT!!! Let him go one on one w/ the other team's PFs. I bet he would average 25ppg easy. As for rebounding, his points, rebounding, and assists have all gone up each year hes been in the league. With his athleticism, i wouldnt be surprised if he could end up this season grabbing 10 boards a game. Also, Keep in mind that MoT is the same age as Francis, Mobes, Shandon, Cato, and is a young building block for this team. He wasnt brought in to be the ultimate quick fix at PF. ------------------ The next time I have meat and mashed potatoes, I think I'll put a very large blob of potatoes on my plate with just a little piece of meat. And if someone asks me why i didn't get more meat, ill just say, "Oh, you mean this?" and pull out a big piece of meat from inside the blob of potatoes, where ive hidden it. Good magic trick, huh?
At this point in the season, I would have preferred that the Rockets had somehow acquired Fortson instead of Mo. Rockets could use defense, rebounding, and a little o compared to another iso jump shooting threat. Of course, my mind can change, but thusfar, MO has dissappointed. as has Cato. ------------------ There are 3 kinds of lies: lies, lies, and heypeeisms. -DrofDunkingDonuts [This message has been edited by CriscoKidd (edited November 12, 2000).]
And how many straight years of broken fingers has he had? Should we put this in there with the "broken mirrors" excuse? ------------------ A friend of mine graduated from law school in May, and he's had a heck of a time finding work....He might be a moron, though. (I don't think he is, but one never knows. He was a moron when we were five years-old.) -- mrpaige reflects on his friends
There were only 9 guys last year who played in over 40 games that pulled off what you're requesting, Pimp (over 17 ppg and over 9 reb/g). If you're willing to pay him Shag/KG/Duncan money, he'll need to produce those numbers. I'd just be happy with 15-16 ppg and 8 rebs/g (and there were only 14 that did that). But it's not like anyone should be surprised at his rebounding. I'm willing to accept the "broken finger" apologists easier than the "bad luck" ones. ------------------ A friend of mine graduated from law school in May, and he's had a heck of a time finding work....He might be a moron, though. (I don't think he is, but one never knows. He was a moron when we were five years-old.) -- mrpaige reflects on his friends
This is getting worse. Tonight against the Lakers Mo scored 8 points grabbed 2 rebounds and 0 assists and had 5 fouls early. Collier had 10 pts. 3 boards and an assist. Oh wow Mo is showing great consistency it has been how many games out of our 8 games played did he score 8-9 and grabbed 3 0r less rebounds? I think it has been 5 games out of the 8 played. Yeah right he had a great move against Garnett and scored an easy deuce but that doesn't make him a good player. He sucked tonight against the Lakers. I remember seeing in one play against Ho Grant when he posted up and Grant fouled him and lost his balance. Mo had a great move towards the hoop and when he heard the whistle blow he didn't attempt the ball so he didn't get the free throws. That's stupid of him. Dream looked and played like a man in his early 20's tonight while Mo played like a 45 yr. old player. I bet you play him one on one against an out of shape, injury prone Charles Barkley wearing his suit and designer shoes and he won't have a chance to win. Because let's put it simple Mo is not a winner. He doesn't want to win because all he cares about is getting a fat contract next summer which he won't get because he has not proven anything yet. I don't see his value on the team now. He cant score needed points, he can't rebound and he plays a little D which in my opinion Dream, Collier, Los and Kenny can provide. I think he'll be better and more productive if he will come from the bench. If Kenny or Los starts, and Mo comes from the bench we'll win more games. Unless Mo changes his attitude towards the game he will not be a worthy starter for us. Maybe the 2.5 Million the Rocks paid him is equivalent to his average rebs per game. Does this mean if we give him the Max he'll get more rebounds? I'd rather have Danny Fortson or Tony Battie. C'mon Mo, Give us some rebounds. ------------------ President of the Sir Charles Barkley Fan Club
I would hardly call Mo Taylor a big time FA acquisition loaded with talent. If that were really the case why couldn't he get anything more than a $2 million exception? He slipped to the Rockets by default. These are some stats on Mo Taylor. Career averages: 14.7 pts 5.2 rebs 46.7 fg% Obviously you cannot compare a rookie like Collier who's had limited playing time to a player like Mo who's starting his 4th season in the league. Look at Mo's career numbers. He's never shot 50% from the field. There are guards who rebound better and with all the offensive opportunities with the Clips he could only put up 14.7? Another important statistic on Mo is that he's never played a full 82 game season, surprise, he's already been hurt this season. I think Mo would be a great complimentary player to come off the bench like Mobley or Chris Gatling but I really don't think you can win anything in the West with a power forward like Mo Taylor in the starting lineup. In fact it's kind of an insult to play the way he does and still be called a power forward. He's more of a jump shooting, no rebounding, weak defense playing forward... but he can pass pretty well, I'll give him that much. ------------------ "Somebody DO something out there." -Bill Walton
He was offered over 6 million per season by the Raptors. He and Falk just chose not to accept it, because they feel long term Mo can get more money by signing for cheap this year, proving his worth, and then getting a contract bigger than 6 million a season. Now that should tell you something. Also, Mo played about 20 minutes a game his rookie year, so that did lower his averages quite a bit. The Clips did have options. For example, last year, his best year, they had Derek Anderson, Lamar Odom, Tyrone Nesby, and a number of other players to shoot the ball. ------------------ REVOTE! REVOTE! REVOTE! Looking for next year's Dan Langhi? Draftsource.net ClutchTown.com
I have to say, if you are saying we would get defense out of Fortson, you are mistaken. Yes, he is a ferocious rebounder on both ends of the floor. But he gets beat often, especially when the opposition is facing up to the basket. Oh, and how many blocks does he have so far this year? BAGEL! I like Fortson, and would love to have a glass cleaner on the roster in Houston. But if you want a good defender, Fortson is not your man. ------------------ There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."
The main reason Mo had a bad game tonight and has had some poor performances so far is b/c he gets into FOUL TROUBLE. This is very common among a player learning to play defense in the NBA. Mo Taylor is definitely making the effort to play defense, but he is making a lot of defensive errors b/c he is getting used to it. Remember when Walt Williams started committing himself to defense at the beginning of last season? Remember how much foul trouble he got into? Following the foul trouble stage what happened? Walt has become an adequate defensive player. Playing defense is a learning process and does not just happen overnight. Give Mo some time before labelling him a dud, he is making the effort. ------------------ Check out the Best Source for Draft Info Draftsource.net
