I think Rudy laid down the law and told the players that all possesions have to start in the low post. It was wonderful to see the offense run from the inside out, and low and behold we won. Rudy should have done this about 3 weeks ago...he is too passive. The funny thing is that Rudy and his number 1 assistant Larry Smith were both warriors when they played, now they are as soft as a babies A$$. The Rockets are a reflection of their softness. Sometimes people need tough love and if ever a team needed it, this one is it. Yao will lead the team and as long as they stick to the inside out formula, the sky is the limit. Only one small complaint....with about 2:40 left on the clock Yao set a pick for Steve on the top left side of the lane, and then rolled to the hole WIDE OPEN, and Steve ignored him and threw up a wild A$$ shot. This is a microcosim of what is wrong with the season. Pass the ROCK Steve it is a dunk. DD
LOL. Rudy is passive. Yao is passive. Sounds like we need some reverse anger management. Bring on Ron Artest. Bring on Charles Oakley. Bring on P.J. Brown. Hackers wanted.
the guards'll use the pick, and it's as if it is a personal challenge for THEM to score every time. They probably think passing to the safety valve (a wide open Yao 10 feet from the bucket) is a sign of weakness. The play you're talking about was by far the worst. Yao was wide open, Steve had nothing, and he forced one of the worst shots i have EVER seen. Yao stood there in disbelief. I'm convinced that this team could get Yao a quality shot on every possession, off the pick and roll. Our guards are such big threats coming off the pick that the other team is forced to help every time. Yao could rain in jumpers from the outside all game long. If the other team stops helping so aggressively on the pick to guard Yao, then our guards can pick them apart. Oh by the way, Yao is probably our best midrange shooter, cause i've only seen him miss about 3 of those jumpers all season. However, i do have to give some props to cat for passing to Yao for the dunk that one time. Looked a little too easy though.
KeepKenny, The only sign of weakness is being stubborn. It is a big mans game, always has been, always will be, the sooner the Rocks realize that the better. DD
People shouldn't think that going to Yao everytime means Francis' production will go down. He'll get his points, reb, and some more assists, but on easier shots. Yao/MoT did a great job last night, and I'd love to see us going to them tons of times. I'd also like to see us make Cat the 6th man, because with Mo being the 3rd scorer, we don't need him taking shots from the starting line-up anymore. Start Posey at the 2, he won't be any worse than he is at the 3. Yao MoT Rice (or T-Mo, but we need 3-pt range) Posey Francis Mobley, Cato and Griffin on the bench. With that starting line-up, we'll go inside a lot more often, and Steve will get easier looks, while not having to worry about Cat ISO'ing all the time. I honestly think that Cat doesn't fit in with this team's grand scheme of things, and 32 minutes off the bench from him makes us a great team. Thoguhts?
That play or the no play to Yao at 2:40 was so bad...but this happens more than one time per game...It happened at least 3-4 times in this game and has been happening all year. Both Cat and Francis think instinctively that the play is strictly designed for them to get an open jumper. I am not bashing these guys saying Yao should get the touch everytime, but 50% for sure....he is a big target. I have seen it passed to him out of a screen one or two times all year.... i hope our assistant s are schooling this
The reality is Steve Francis with his 90 million dollar contract probably has more influence than Rudy T. Rudy would most likely have to convince Steve of what he wants to do not force it upon him. Rudy's biggest task this year would be managing the ego's in the team and to try to keep them together. If most of the players stay on for next season then you'd have Rudy T has done exceptionally well. One thing you have to give credit for is how he doesn't let much out of the bag. The Rocket ship mightn't be going anywhere at the moment but it won't sink i.e no holes.
So, ummm...did anybody see that sweet bounce pass by Steve to Yao on the fast break? Bill Worrell said that it was a risky pass and that a lob would have been a better pass... I know that I hate it when a player makes a perfect pass on a fast break...
Francis's and Mobley's idea of getting Yao the ball is to pass to him in the low block and let him go 1-on-1. Passing to him when he's open off pick and roll is simply out of their playbook. They still don't understand that there's no better way of padding stats (i.e. assists total) than passing to a wide open 7-5 center for an open dunk/layup/jumper.
Of course Da Dakota didn't see that, what are you thinking, I bet his only memory of that game is Steve not passing to Yao on the pick and roll, I guess none of these people saw Steve give up his body on that alley oop pass either for a three point play during the crucial third quarter, come on A-Train, I wasn't even going to come in this thread but I had to back you up. I bet they didn't see Yao start the game one for six but the guards continued to pass to him either.
Hey, A-Train, what are you doing propping Steve? What's the matter with you? . I think it was Calvin going no no no on that one and Bill that said hey - 2 points!
The guards still don't understand that one of the main purposes of the pick and roll is to get a good shot for the roller. you'd think watching stockton/malone school them regularly would drive that point home. This is exactly the lineup i'd like to see, although i'd put Rice out to pasture, start T-Mo and try and work in Boki for offense, or move posey to the three when mobley comes in.
It was a great pass, but technically it was the wrong pass. In general, you don't deliver a low bounce pass yo a big man because most big men can't handle reaching down for the ball while on the move that well. But Yao is exceptional in that he can handle that kind of deliver. That is all Worrell and the Toronto commentators (who were really good) were pointint out on that play.
Personally...I thought the 2 on 1 with Moochie and Cuttino was pathetic. Moochie dribble about 3 times too many before he finally passed to Cuttino who was practically under the basket. Terrible fast break... But we won, so I can't be too angry. Good win, Rocks. Keep it up!!!
Oh, I Saw that pass, and I loved it. The pass is NOT the wrong pass if it is succesful, and it was a thing of beauty. Steve has made great strides on running the fast break, he is light years ahead of where he used to be. Now we need him to work on his passing within the offense....mostly on the pick and roll. As for the alley oop that Pgabrial is talking about, it was fantastic....Steve certainly has a flare for scoring.....now if we can just get a bit of that for passing we will be all set. DD
It was a pass that was executed well and ended up well, but SF could have made it easier for himself and Yao by lobbing it instead. Yao is 7'6 for goodness sakes. SF is a fabulous player who we can build a dominant team around with Yao. He is just not a point guard who loves to and can make incisive passes and good decisions for other players. Get Kidd and we'll be easily playoff bound for the next several seasons! OK OK beaten to death... But get Kidd!!!
Couldn't disagree with you more, DD. Steve still has a ways to go in running a good fast break. I'm not ready to pat him on the back after one nice (albeit risky) pass.
Remember that the next time you're complaining about a bad shot by one of the guards. Its not a bad shot if it goes in...
