Adelman promised Ariza the Rockets would feature him offensively

"How many role players suddenly turn into feature guys?
Can anyone name ONE slashing wing player that has developed into a creative star player?
Just one?
Ariza can not dribble, if you can't dribble by 24, you are not suddenly going to be able to by 27....
I seriously can not recall a single player that has developed from a slasher to a creator...in more than 37 years of following the Rockets and the NBA...not one."
DD

Caron Butler, look at his early years they compare to Ariza and he improved dramatically after he left the Lakers. I could easily see Ariza improving with more minutes and a bigger role, you guys are all just too pessimistic and are going to bash this kid before he even gets a chance here.

 

Caron used to be a role player btw, he was known as a defensive stud just like...you guessed it.. Ariza!

 

Scottie Pippen.

 

I feel that if Ariza works at it he can be kind of like a Vince Carter an explosive dunker who can hit the outside shot.

 

My theory is these guys learned how to shoot practicing around Kobe, (Caron's 3pt percentage was .302 while with the Lakers and the year he left for the Wizards he averaged 17 ppg and shot .342 from deep, the next year he averaged 19 ppg and better each year after) everyone noticed an improved shot for Ariza this year and it will only get better with more shots and his handle can only improve with more handles. He is going to be a complete player, a defensive stud who can score....I like this a lot better than most of you and Artest was horrible last year look at his fg%, yeah I'm sure Ariza could average the same points but do it more efficiently.

 

Butler averaged 15 in 36 mpg, the next year he averaged 9 ppg in 29mpg, which is almost exactly the same as what Trevor has averaged considering MINUTES.

 

his 3pt percentage wasn't admirable his first 3 years either...Butler's that is.

 

What does lottery pick have to do with it, do you know how many have been busts, and look at Gilbert Arenas....please do not use that as an argument.

 

I agree with the Christie comparison, but why "Bye bye Battier". If Ariza is playing the 2, like Christie did, then Battier would be at the 3. The Rockets would have to acquire or develop another swing man before you can "Bye Bye Battier"

 

Ariza is not a 2. He barely has adequate handles for a 3. Battier and Ariza on the floor we will have the worst dribbling team in the league. Plus even if you like Ariza why would Rockets sign him after drafting 2 2's. Wafer is probably a better 2 than Ariza. The only reason you sign Ariza is because you see him as a great role player on your team for a long time. Battier is history mark my words.

 

Exactly how I feel.

DD

 

Why does a 2 have to have great handles? Youre completely ignoring the other half of the court. If a two can guard lock up the other teams best player, rebound, shoot and pass, he can start in the NBA without having handles.

Wafer had below average ball handling skills, he couldn't pass or defend. Thats why Battier probably recieved more minutes at the two than Wafer did.

 

I'm not a big fan of the Christie comparison. Christie had really good handles. I'd say Ariza is a better shooter and scorer, but doesn't have the all-around game of Christie, at least not yet.

 

It is rare when I agree with something you say but you are dead on with this one.

Ariza is the intangibles guy that also rebounds, steals, and scores on a high percentage.

 

All the "We got no 2" talk reminds me of our old friends Van Gundy and Turkcan.

http://www.nytimes.com/1999/10/07/s...ll-why-stars-require-kid-glove-treatment.html

Perhaps Battier and Ariza are "natural 3s," but if they are two of your best guys, you put them both on the floor and call one of them the 2 during player intro. It really don't matter if "Larry Johnson not 3" or "Ariza not 2," if a guy has talent and plays hard, you can generally make it work (unless we are talking about obvious cases like trying to make Yao Ming a point guard).

 

SG and SF are interchangeable in the NBA.

There are only three real positions:

The Bigs (4, 5)
The Wings (2, 3)
The Point (1)

 

I agree. It's not so much that we're missing a "SG". You'd like one your wings to be a good ball-handler and playmaker, and that's what is missing. I mean, having LeBron+Battier or LeBron+Ariza would work just fine too, though LeBron is usually considered a "SF" instead of a "SG".

 

I like the acquisition of Ariza, but totally disagree with some of the 'counter-examples' some people are mentioning.

The question shouldn't be about role players becoming featured players. There is a long list of guys who did that.

The question should be about unskilled players becoming featured players. I have said this before, but I honestly can't think of a single perimeter player ever that came into the NBA without the ability to create his own shot off the dribble and then developed it while in the NBA. The only counterexample that I can think of that even comes close is Andre Iguodala.

All of these guys that people are mentioning as their 'counterexamples' were role players for other reasons - being young and not being given an opportunity, being young and being too skinny to get playing time, being too deficient in other areas of their game (ie: defense, shooting etc.) etc, etc, but all of these guys being mentioned could still dribble a basketball.

Tracy McGrady came into the league with ball handling as one of his greatest strengths. The Toronto Raptors didn't have a point guard in his 3rd year (with Alvin Williams banged up). T-Mac and Doug Christie started in the backcourt together and took turns bringing the ball down the court. Unless you learn how to dribble a basktball at an early age while your motor skills are still developing, you won't be able to dribble it fluidly later in life no matter how much you practice. You can become an adequate ball handler, but not good enough to create a shot off the dribble at the NBA level. It just doesn't happen.

This is why I really scratch my head every year around the time of the draft when various raw, athletic wings are discussed. Most of these clowns just have great physical attributes yet analysts just assume 'oh with some seasoning he can become the next T-Mac, he just needs to work on his game.' It happens every single year and none of the guys take it to the next level. People really underestimate just how important ball-handling is in basketball and how fine a skill it is.

(note: I'm not talking about big men developing post games. that can and is done regularly. i'm also not talking about players that already have the handles but take it to the next level such as kobe/mj/mcgrady adding the mid range pull up game etc. that can also be done. the point is that the handles are the prerequisite.)

Trevor Ariza will never be able to score off the dribble.

With that said, why does any of this even matter? Regardless of the fact that his lack of handles preclude him from ever truly being "featured" offensively, I still think the other things he does on the court can make him a great asset to this team going forward.