I think the question is when do you want to win? The most productive plays utilized as much as possible undersells the value of development for building a future consistent contender because it skews towards who has it "now". Personally I'm more interested in understanding our foundation and setting up our team for sustained success 3-4 years from now than I am for what they are capable of today. If I were the GM, my focus right now would be to get our coach building strong habits now that translate down the road and exploring the development of all of our best young players so we can figure out sooner rather than later how they would fit on a consistent contending team. We can't pay them all - so step 2 is build the value(or tease the potential) of everyone as much as you can so you have some flexibility in the next few years to trade out one of Green, Sengun, Jabari, Tari, Amen or Whitmore for a player who more suits the best version of our team with who is left. We may find that(as an example - not saying this is true) as good as Sengun is, he may be at odds stylistically with the rest of the players we want to keep so maybe we trade him for a more traditional up tempo athletic rim running big...or maybe we go small...conversely we may find Sengun is crucial to the future of this core and one of Green/Tari/Amen need to go to bring in a better half court player to suit a Sengun centric offense. I think we may be saying similar things differently because I strongly agree with your takes on Smith and Sengun. For Silas to take a historically elite 3pt shooter in Jabari and be so reluctant to involve him in the offense at all is borderline criminal - even if he bricked a lot of the opportunities early on. Something doesn't add up there and I'm much more inclined to believe it's historically bad Silas than Jabari getting very lucky in college for a whole season as a primary option. The Sengun point is great too but to add, whether he can play good enough defense to hold leads is another real concern and I think most talent evaluators I follow agree that the returns so far don't look great for Sengun although no one is willing to shut the door on him just yet because of how amazing he is offensively - if of course we plan to run offense through him consistently....
I can read. I guess I should have a caviat with "end of shot clock situations" The reality is again the change is going to be increased variety rather than 2 new people making all the initiating. Like the team will want to utilize Green's two man pnr ball handling abilities. They aren't just going to eliminate that from the offense. You are insane if you think so.
That is why it was not recommendable to uproot one's basketball life at 30.....anything can happen...... He got his touches in Toronto, albeit he got into some beef with Barnes...... Basically the Rockets can cut ties with him after 2 years....... From his career stand point, there is no guarantee anybody is guaranteeing him a starting role or a big role after those 2-3 years. There is no telling what he will look like after 2 and a half years. I think he knows that and that is why he is taking 40 millions a year, because he knows that he does not posssess one elite skill other than his brains and defensive effort. 19 points and 7 assists can be replicated/surpassed by any upcoming star PG prospects....it is nothing special when you are becoming a star quality player.
I can read. I guess I should have a caviat with "end of shot clock situations" The reality is again the change is going to be increased variety rather than 2 new people making all the initiating. Like the team will want to utilize Green's two man pnr ball handling abilities. They aren't just going to eliminate that from the offense. You are insane if you think so. you can say that Jabari needs to get more reps for development without saying he deserves more touches than Jalen Green of all people which is the claim he made. Look if Jalen Green his rookie year who was brought into the same situation as Jabari btw and barely creates any of his own shots and still had a 51% ts not a single sole would make these type of excuses for him. Green talented his way to a self creation role which Jabari couldn't do his rookie year. Plays weren't set up for Green. He was PJ Tuckering out there on offense for long stretches. But when he got the ball he attempted to put it down on the floor and do something and when he did it was significantly more successful than Jabari trying it. So no I don't think Jabari deserves "more touches" than Green. Let's put it this way, if Green was a less efficient scorer than Jabari, would a single soul say that Jalen deserves more reps? Like what's the fixation here? The archetype?
Learn the concept of moving goal posts. That was not your original claim. Hence why I'm saying you are making up narratives as you are forming opinions as you move along rather than doing observation and analysis. It's pure narrative hunting. I'm telling you new information and you are adjusting slightly because you understand subconsciously your argument is looking bad so you give a little.
- Usage rate is the percentage of plays you made the final action(turnovers, shots, free throws) in a possession. - Green's usage will probably go slightly down, but more certainly Jabari will have higher usage. Green's usage will depend heavily on how many shots FVV and Dillan Brooks will be taking. But one thing is for sure. Green will have to give the ball back to the guards or Sengun much quicker than last year if he can't create something right away. That doesn't necessarily mean he'll have less opportunities because he will also have more chances to get the ball back. - Sengun's on/off offensive number is better than green's, despite the fact that he can't space the floor. These on/off numbers are rather meaningless on a bottom team, with one-dimensional coaching and with a bad second unit. It basically shows Green and Sengun are talented offensively.
This is the post I originally responded to. No the two man game between Jalen and Sengun will not be the focus of the team, it will be the two man game of Fvv and Sengun. That does not mean we will NEVER run a Jalen and Sengun two man game, I never said that and expressly said that we WILL, just that it will not be an emphasis.
Yup, like I said Jalen may not even take less shots, just that the shots will come differently, off of movement and created by Fred and Sengun.
Oh trust me this team will utilize a lot of two ma. Game between Sengun and Green and it will be a higher volume than last season. I will even do a tip jar bet and record the data myself.
This is the weirdest sht I keep reading on here being pushed over and over by only one person, @daywalker02. Anyone with a brain knows nba players are in the prime of their careers at 30, vast majority of stars in the playoffs are over 30. Just one of the dumbest talking points that I didn’t even want to dignify with a response until someone else also noticed it.
Ime is going to run what works and what results in winning, so if you are right then that means Jalen is taking a leap in playmaking which I will be ecstatic about.
Been watching training camp for 4 days now, Brooks bricks everything. It's crazy. He may provide that defense but we're really going to hate him if he shoots 30% this year.
I don't think this team will have a heavy PnR game if Udoka's Boston team is any measure - they were 19th in the league running traditional PnR with Tatum and Brown as creators and I don't see much reason to believe Jalen offers a better PnR package that would make Udoka rethink what he implemented in Boston...also I have seen little PnR in the practice session videos so far. I still think Green will be a focus in the offense, but he is getting it off screens off ball more so than possessions where he starts as the ball handler and that will have a net effect of lowering his usage rates because it removes the time Jalen spends pounding the ball into the floor waiting to make his move. ...and I agree that Jabari will see more touches this year but again not Silas types of touches. I would imagine Jabari will be used one of three ways - either from the 3pt line to feed Jalen or whomever is screening for him off ball, as a secondary option setting screens for Jalen(or FVV) off ball, or as a 3rd or fourth option depending on how the defense chooses to play the off ball screening motion. Again, based on what Udoka has demonstrated in Boston and practices so far in Houston it appears you fall into 4 categories in Udoka's offensive system: - High post or 3pt line facilitator at the top feeding some 2 or 3 way off ball screening play - think either guys with passing skills, floor stretchers, or a guy who can take advantage of size mismatches in isolation (ex: FVV, Amen, Sengun, Jabari) - a primary off ball recipient of a screen - guys who are either dangerous playing downhill or who can stretch defenses who play under (ex: Jalen, Amen, Cam, FVV) - secondary off ball screen setting 'read and react' player - it can be a set play but also guys who have to read the defense and exhibit awareness to how teams are defending either the facilitator or the primary and make the right play based on that. (ex: Eason, Jabari, Brooks, maybe Sengun/Jock/Tate) - the lower skilled strong side 'Dunker spot'/PJ Tucker corner shooter who either takes the 3 or makes a cut to the basket if their man abandons them to help. This is also going to be a screen and roll partner with the facilitator if the defense blows up the off ball weak side action. This would be a Tate/Jock/maybe a Brooks/Eason/Jabari role occasionally depending on who would be a more suitable pick partner with the facilitator as a last result. I already saw in practice where Sengun did that and got a favorable matchup with Cam guarding him and he immediately took him into the post(and Cam's athleticism allowed him to block Sengun at the rim but he was otherwise very obviously overmatched)
Rockets break camp and hear positive words from Ime Udoka LAKE CHARLES, La. — Given Rockets coach Ime Udoka’s reputation for directness, with a willingness to share publicly whatever critiques he offers in private, his assessment of his first training camp as Rockets coach could be taken as a good sign. He does not do sugar coating and apparently did not need to. “It went well,” Udoka said before repeating his message from the final huddle at McNeese State before heading home. “What I said to the guys right there at the end was the effort was great, to be honest. The focus was great. “I talked about a few things in the first film session, and they had good carryover as far as that. We were more so pleased that they were mostly policing themselves, holding each other accountable, a lot of communication out there. The veterans are paying off, the young guys are working hard. They came in great shape.” That might sound like happy talk on a getaway day, but Udoka is not known for looking at the bright side at the expense of calling out areas in need of repairs. Still, four days of practices are at best just a start. Relatively few schemes have been installed. The defense, the primary focus of the Rockets’ hopes for a revival, has had the Rockets switching at every position, though that is just one of the schemes Udoka plans to employ. That allowed the Rockets to work against an aggressive, switching defense, the sort that has become prevalent around the NBA. But it also begins hammering home the message that in many schemes, the Rockets expect to be more forceful on the ball and against off-ball screens. “We’re starting from the ground up so we’re keeping it pretty simple,” Udoka said of the schemes installed so far. “We’re overdosing on the switching right now. We want everybody aggressive on switching and we’ll kind of scale it back as we go, preparing for the games. “I think guys that are naturally uncomfortable with that are getting better. Some guys do it really well.” The second unit in Thursday’s practice, ranging from the Rockets’ youngest players to their oldest — Amen Thompson, Cam Whitmore, Tari Eason, Jae’Sean Tate and Jeff Green — in particular exceled in the switching defense. The final camp practice ended with a fast break defensive drill. It is a common NBA drill, but there was no mystery about why Udoka would make it the last word of the training camp workouts. He began camp with video of shortcomings of the past seasons. He ended it with a drill to improve one of the most conspicuous. “An area where we really struggled last year was opponent fast break points, opponent points off turnovers,” Udoka said. “So, we really want to take care of the ball. And when we do make a basket, transfer from offense to defense.” The Rockets last season allowed the most fastbreak points and the most points off turnovers in the NBA. When it came to running a break, after days of praise for the play and influence of the veteran additions, Udoka cited a rookie. “The guy who stood out to a lot of people was Amen,” Udoka said. “His pace is real, his size and athleticism, and he has that burst. He really ignites the fast break on his own. He’s been great. “He’s just scratching the surface. He’s getting up to speed. He’s learning on the fly. He already has some natural ability and instincts that you can’t teach, and the IQ and the passing ability that stands out immediately. But he’ll learn as he goes. He’s done a great job.” Udoka emphasized that Thompson had played fewer games with Overtime Elite than most players coming from colleges and played just one summer league game. But Thompson was happy with his first taste of NBA practices. “I thought it was fun. I thought it was informative,” he said. “Coach had us doing new things. I loved it.” Whitmore similarly stood out. He also has adjustments to make, playing off the ball more often than he did in Villanova where he could look for his own shots. “He’s another guy that has the physical attributes,” Udoka said. “For him, it’s just learning the NBA game. He’s been good as well. For him, it’s learning to play a different way. We want them to play off the ball and play with your teammates.” Whitmore said the role was the same as in summer league, where he was the MVP in Las Vegas. “It translated to here with the vets, showing me where I’m at on the court, giving me advice day-by day,” Whitmore said. Corrections did nothing to dampen his confidence. “I’m just a confident person overall,” Whitmore said. “That translates to the NBA. I’m more than capable of being on the NBA floor. Everyone was competitive. I was competitive. “I would say the culture definitely changed from what I heard about last year to this year. Everybody is all in together.” It was that sort of camp. Even Udoka had to admit that the first out of town training camp in his career as an NBA player, assistant or head coach was at least a good start. For now, that was enough.
Followed by a long-ass article without a single negative critique of an individual player. Ime must have been exposed to some toxic Silas germs in that gym.
