A TMAC fan's perspective.

Well guess what? What the Rockets are doing is smart. They're not only developing their players, building chemistry, and winning games, but they're also collecting some big fat insurance checks from TMac's inability to keep his mouth shut for one day.

Here's the kicker, it probably makes the organization feel as if they "evened the scoreboard" by getting back at McGrady for what he did to them last year.

But hey, that's just the way I see it.

That's life.

 

His teams haven't been great though. Average might be a bit of an understatement, but Yao was only healthy for the Mavericks series. He just came back from injury for the 1st Utah series, and was gone the 2nd. Everyone outside of Yao, was...um...how do you say it. Average?

BUT...I do agree that him coming out and saying that was as I posted "******* move to say it."

 

I REALLY hope the organization is not that petty. Do it for money reasons, do it because you have moved past him as a cornerstone of your team. Don't do it to get back. That is just WHOREable.

 

you're right, I have this wrong, but he did go to Steven A Smith before consulting with the team, i thought he did it on Smith's show

 

I was willing to overlook Tracy McGrady's weaknesses during his first years here. I was willing to write off his last season in Orlando. He logged a lot of minutes for the Rockets, carried a lot of offense, and even took on the hard defensive assignment (Dirk in playoffs) when needed, so I didn't understand why people were so angry at him. Sure he was a p***y, but if he wasn't a p***y, the Rockets couldn't have traded for him. He carried one end of the bargain, at least.

But then his level of play got worse, his attitude did not improve. He coudln't carry the offense any more, and still does not hustle, still loafs too much.

Coupled with the performances like the the Toronto game (see Clutch's writeup), you have quotes like this:

That's why I believe the team needs to get rid of him.

 

I don't consider myself a t-mac hater. However, I do think his time here has come to an end. I'm ready to see him moved and move on. I'm definitely not a big Tracy fan anymore.

First, I recommend you read Clutch's article:

http://www.clutchfans.com/news/1545/the_day_t-mac_lost_houston/

It pretty well encapsulates the feelings a great deal of us share.

But for me, this is the breakdown of events that make it impossible for me to root for Tracy anymore.

1st: After we acquire him, he publicly flames the Orlando Magic organization. I thought it classless and unnecessary at the time - but I was so enamored with him that I was willing to overlook it.
2nd: He goes on record as admitting that he quit on the Magic and hadn't been giving it his all for quite some time. This was worrisome, but I was able to convince myself he was on a better team and in a better situation and he wasn't just a quitter. He wouldn't quit on the Rockets.
3rd: Mystery injuries became regular. He was always in and out of the line up.
4th: His defense was atrocious some games and spectacular in others. His level of effort was just inconsistent and bothersome.
5th: He goes into the playoffs and announces that if the Rocket's lose it's on him. The Rockets lose. He then tells the media it wasn't on him and proceeds to blame his teammates. Very classless and immature.
6th: His mystery injuries become more and more the norm. He's in and out of the line up constantly. I can't even tell if he's legitimately injured or of he's just out of shape. And considering how he has previously acknowledged that he quit on the Magic, you can't help but start to wonder "Is he quitting on us now?"
7th: He goes to the media and announces he is having season ending surgery before he even consults the Rockets organization about it. Coincidentally, this is right before the trade deadline and there are numerous rumors that a trade involving him is on the verge of being completed.
8th: We beat the Trailblazers in the playoffs and move on to the Lakers. The media asks Tracy who he thinks will win. He says the Lakers. First, how must his teammates have felt that he had no faith in them? Second, it seemed a little bit like he was just bitter that we finally made it to the second round and we did it without him. This was the turning point for me.
9th: All of this mess this season with him going to the media and whining about everything that is happening - announcing his return when the Rockets had other plans. Etc. Meanwhile, I defy you to find a quote from Morey or Adelman that is anything less than professional. But McGrady continues to sabotage the Rockets and their efforts to move on by hurting his trade value by making their issues public.

All of that without getting into instances like the video clip Clutch shows of his pathetic defensive efforts.

And you know what? I'd still love to see the guy succeed. I have been hoping for years that he would earn his way into a jersey hanging from the rafters. It hasn't happened. And I just don't think it's going to happen. But if he gets traded to an Eastern Conference contender and they win a title - I'll be thrilled for McGrady. I really will. I still want to root for the guy. I just can't anymore. Not on my Rockets.

 

I'm not a T-mac basher. Hell he is the reason I became a Houston Rockets fan.

But you can't blame people for being tired of his act and also being let down from not having any team success. Now I don't blame Tracy for the lack of team success. He is some of the reason but obviously not the whole reason.

Most of the people turned their back on him after last year. T-mac does not help himself with some of the statements he makes about lack of help nor did he help himself with the in and out of the lineup thing. People got fed up with it. Also the surgery thing on his knee. He kept seeing doctor after doctor after doctor. I don't blame him for getting another knee surgery if he didn't feel comfortable about it he probably should have told Adelman and Morey about the surgery before going to Stephen A. Smith.

And then you have the Toronto Game. That seemed to really be the last straw for a lot of folks. I thought the fact that he didn't contest Jamario Moon's dunk was overblown. That stuff happens in just about every game if you really watch the NBA. The stuff after that spoke volume's about T-mac though. He mailed it in. I mean he was just standing at the half court line while the team proceeded to play 4 on 5.

I grew up liking T-mac so I don't hate/dislike him like some do but I can understand the frustration of Rocket fans with him. I do think some of the stuff he says gets overblown but he also has brought a lot of this on himself.

 

Did Dream ever say "Switch me out with Kareem?"
Did Dream ever say "not fortunate to play with Magic Johnson"?

No.

Vice Versa.

Has Yao ever said "Switch me out with Andrew Bynum?"

 

If the Rockets were being petty, they wouldn't play him any minutes at all. After all, it benefits no one except McGrady. His trade value lies entirely in his expiring contract. Whether or not he plays well right now will only affect his next contract.

 

Tmac shouldn't have said the thing about never being with a great team or players. That I agree with most people. Unnecessary and unprofessional. But I'm not sure he was wrong in thinking it. Even coming off MFS, he's still probably more talently gifted than 3/4 of the players in this league.

 

I agree with the first 7.....but as for 8 that isn't exactly true.

I actually listened to the Jim Rome interview you are referring to. And it went something like this.

Rome: So Tracy, who do you have winning it all?

McGrady: Assuming that they can get by my boys, the Lakers.



Most people looked over the first part b/c of the growing legion of TOHs.

That being said, all other points are valid.

 

Agree with you, but another bottom line is McGrady isn't a team-first kind of guy, as last year's personal "announcement" verified. The last thing the team needs is Mr. Prima Donna on the court with a group of guys who play the game of basketball with a completely different mentality than he does. McGrady is the antithesis of the work ethic, on-court toughness, hustle and intensity the Rockets are displaying this season. The extent of how the team came together after he finally disappeared last season that has continued into this season probably stunned the organization. I had no idea the team could remake it's mentality so quickly.

Think about how the Rockets could have taken game 2 from the Lakers if Ron Ron hadn't lost his mind. That's what can happen when guys maximize their ability and play as a unit, which cannot happen with McGrady on the court. That isn't who he is or was. When you factor in his dimished athleticism for the the last 2 whole years and his age (30), the Rockets don't have anything to gain by putting him out there. He needs to play himself into shape and test his limits somewhere else.

 

which justifies him going public with that statement?

your asking people to justify the tmac hate. that quote alone justifies it.

 

Most people on the board from the time he got here know i was a skeptic. they know my thoughts were jaded because I was a huge francis fan it was more about the way that fans acted like francis was the devil on his way out.

that being said I'm more sympathetic to mcgrady because fans are treating him the way they treated francis. you had fans who hated francis for actually wanting to stay in houston. you have fans that are hating mcgrady for actually wanting to play. but in the long run, its the history, its the culmination of events.

I think its sad that things turned around so fast. the guy was a huge part of the 22 game winning streak, a historic period for this organization. he still had a lot of goodwill. i wish people would cut him slack, after all, the bottom line is that he is injured.

but the ultimate bottom line for me is that I have more trust in adelman and morey than mcgrady, these guys have proven themselves more than mcgrady has. if this organization was incompetent, I would give more leeway to mcgrady, but after what this organization has done in player evaluation over the last three years, I'm rolling with them.

 

For the most part I don't have much of an incentive to hate Tracy. Before this year and last year, he only helped the team win games. As the OP stated, we won 22 games in a row, mostly due to McGrady. And in JVG's system, he was a great player, and IMO a more complete player than when at Orlando because of his developed passing ability. There is only one big reason why Tracy couldn't accomplish much in Houston: Injuries, whether it was him or someone else like Yao.

But to answer the OP's question...

A specific event would be last year when he told the media about his surgery that would force him to miss the rest of the season, instead of first telling the coach or the Rockets management. Doing that, he insured that his trade value would plummet and is a big reason he has remained on the Rockets until he recovered.

And in general, his effort on the basketball court has always been suspect, particularly on the defensive end. He always turned it on in the playoffs, but for certain, there were some regular season games in which he didn't give 100%. Most superstars show this behavior because they are that good and can get away with it... so Tracy's lack of effort on defense was somewhat tolerable, as long we were winning games.

But now, it would be best for Tracy and the Rockets for him to be traded, primarily because he's not the type of player that the Rockets need, a "ball-stopper" and poor team defender. Any move to trade Tmac would only be for the benefit of the current team. The current Rockets team has already established a good rhythm and will continue to grow and develop. To try and incorporate a superstar player who requires lots of touches and shots to be effective, that would be risking the good chemistry of the rest of the team. Trading Tmac shouldn't be anything personal... it's just for the good of the team.

If given a good opportunity on another team, Tracy will have the chance to show his ability. I wouldn't be surprised if he averaged close to his previous numbers playing for another team... he's just not the type of player the Rockets need.

 

Wait? What's your point?

Let's see what I said.

1.) Stupid of him to say what he did.
2.) What he says, is that if he were with one of those great #1 go to guy players, he'd have more postseason success. It's hard to argue that he thinks he'd be able to assist those top tier guys in their wins. Not that HE would be the #1 option.
3.) What he said is not really far from the truth. I mentioned when Yao was present and when he wasn't. Outside of Yao, his teammates have been exactly that...average...slightly above average at best. Of the guys that are currently on the squad and are more than just above average, they are just now becoming that since they have some NBA experience under their belts.

So what does Dream or Yao saying or not saying things have to do with my comments about Tracy's quote?

Edit: Another funny thing. This BBS is the only place that seems to have had a huge problem with what he said. Well, at least I haven't come across anything else saying his teammates or even the media in general dogging him for saying that. You'd think the media would love to rip him a new one about it.

 

Tmac had a chance to cemment his status in Houston hearts in the Mavericks series, when we went up 2-0 on Dallas's court. All we need was a Kobe, Jordan, Wade, AI, 40/50 point type game.

He's never been the just do it type of guy.

The 13 points in 35 seconds was flat out awesome along with the 22 game wining streak.

Thank you Tmac and enjoy your career in another city. This team and chemistry has moved beyond you.