DD, you do realize when you title a thread "FIFTEEN games- FIVE back", it's not exactly going to come across like a decision that's a no brainer.. It's not likely we'll make the playoffs, but there's a solid shot we can get close and possibly steal the 9th spot. It's too early to tank and even if you don't see it as tanking that's what it is. Just because the young guys will be trying to to still win games doesnt make it something else besides tanking. Any team that goes to their young guys is tanking to some extent and still trying to win automatically. The only time there's no tanking involved is when you put the players who give you the best shot at winning out there and give them some direction. The moment you stop that when there's still a shot to play for something is when the tanking begins. Bud can play, but the guy can't defend well enough and neither can martin and brooks. I'm sure he's making other mistakes as well that we havent caught.
We're not going to lose out on a Brandon Roy just because we play out the season. We're talking about jumping from 13th or 14th to the late teens. Morey can find a productive player in either spot, and we could use the playoff experience.
So how many times can we look at the future before we are actually in that future? As far as I'm concerned, our future is already here. Aaron Brooks has developed, Ariza has gelled, Hill is fitting in, Kevin Martin is comfortable. I don't see anything wrong.
Not even that. Considering how badly Nola and Chicago have been tanking lately, there's almost no chance to catch them. Unless we go on a big streak (winning or losing), we're almost guaranteed the 13th or 14th pick. Developing the young guys in spite of putting the best team on the floor is narrow thinking. This is still a new group that's trying to gel and understand their evolving roles on the team. The rockets owe it to themselves to play out the season as best that it can. Whether we make the playoffs or not, playing meaningful games down the stretch and learning how to win together can only help this team moving forward.
I can't help but feel this way. As long as there is a chance, you have to try. The Rockets have a history of proving the pundits wrong and while the odds are slim, you don't quit just because you lost to one of the best teams in the league, which has one of the best road records in the NBA. No shame in losing to the fellows in green. We won 4 in a row and had a loss. So what? It's one loss. If we lose the next game, grab the coffin and bury this sucker, but if we keep winning we're supposed to quit? If we win another 4 more in a row, DD, are you going to start a thread about how we still have a chance? Look, the guys are developing now. Not just Hill and Budinger, but the team. We're developing a new identity that will carry over into next season, when we have Yao and maybe another piece or two. There is no better way I can think of to develop young players than to be fighting for a playoff berth and see how the veterans respond. This is invaluable for Morey and the coaching staff to evaluate just what we have. Who's just a cheerleader and who's producing when the pressure builds. Quit now? I think it's crazy.
If you want to play Chase, you have to limit Martin not Ariza nor Shane. Neither him nor Martin can move to SF if they play together.
Develop promising young players in the remaining games when the playoff hope is slim = Good idea. Suggest GM to intervene Head Coach's decision on team rotation = Bad idea.
You said on another thread that a team should never give up on the season. Now you're implying they should give up because it's unlikely they'll make the palyoffs.
When we are eliminated from the playoffs for sure, then you rest hayes, battier, lowry (ankle) and ariza etc. Before that, no way. I'm always amazed how so many want to instill this loser mentality to a team and then expect them to turn on the winner mode next year. It's not like the players don't get what's going on when suddenly hayes won't start, scola plays 20 minutes and battier watches the games for the bench. You see it as developing the youngsters, they most likely see it as giving up. There is a reason why some teams are nearly always in the lottery. It's not all about bad luck and about bad management either. It's a culture of losing.
Saying Bud is the future is way over the top, but its no suprise that DD thinks so because hes always drooling over good shooters with speed and hops. IMO Bud will be a solid player off the bench for us, but I cant see him developing a role that has him playing more than 20 mins a game. You just can't match him up with opposing starting 2 guards for very long. He's not strong enough nor quick enough to defend that position well. It takes alot of talent and savy to be a good defender at the two position. Maybe it is possible that Bud develops into an adequate defender, but I doubt it. It's crazy how people have forgoten that the foundation of this team is solid defense. You've seen it this year: when our defense slips, we lose games. IMO our young players can learn alot just by sitting and watching veteran players like Ariza, Battier, and Chuck defend their position. Speaking of young players, I am very impressed by Jordan Hill so far. His size and athleticism are obvious strengths you notice right away. Also, for a rookie big man, he has some polish to his offensive game. Hill has a chance to be really special if he keeps working at his game, and IMO most of the work needs to be done in the offseason. I don't think that playing him heavy minutes now is going to make him a better player. He needs to sit and watch too. Before becoming a regular rotational player, he needs to show the coaches that he can improve defensivly. He could learn alot from the bench by watching Chuck Hayes. I think it will help him understand that he needs to get smarter and stronger if he ever wants to be a starter for us. Jermaine Taylor is another guy with a ton of potential who needs to have a big offseason. Hill and Taylor remind me a lot of Brooks and Landry back when they were rookies. You could see their potential in just limited playing time, but before they could become key rotational players, they had to observe and learn the roaps from the veteran leaders on the team. By doing this, those guys got better and better each year. People forget that Brooks is only 25 years old. Believe it or not, this guy has already developed in to an allstar calibur PG , but he's still learning how to lead a team to victory, and that is something you develop by being out there in big situations. I think he should continue to see big minutes these last couple games. Lowry is a good, young PG too, but IMO he has the mental aspect of the game down on both ends of the court. He just needs to work on his jumper and thats not something he will learn with more minutes. Morey has done an excellent job of building up the young talent base of this team, but I dont think we are commiting to a youth movement just yet. Bud, Hill, and Taylor can benefit alot from watching our vets go to work even if its in meaningless games. Those young guys are going to have to earn their minutes the same way Chuck, Aaron, Carl, and Luis did when they were rookies.
Wow, a DaDa thread I have to endorse. You are very correct, I offer up verily. I might add that 10 or more mpg for that taylor kid might be nice, as well.
I still hold out hope that we may go on a 10 or 12 game winning streak. I think our guys are starting to come together as a unit. Hill and Buddinger are already part of the rotation and are getting minutes. I think we have seen enough at this point to know what they are capable of.
