Asik and Howard to start next game (Updated w/ Blog Post)

Didn't say showcasing for a trade on October 22. Said it was a showcase for a trade. If we continue to play Dwight at 4 and Omer at 5 and have Dwight running around the perimeter defensively it will be because we are trying to make Omer look as good as possible. Because for the vast majority of 4's that play out on the floor, Asik is the best match up with them. Asik is the superior defender out on the floor in the pick-and-roll and pick-and-pop. Asik is BETTER than Dwight out there. And Asik is LONGER than Dwight to be able to better bother the shooters while giving space for the drive.

Once again...Dwight is better protecting the rim and helping than Asik is. And Asik is much better at defending outside the paint than Dwight is.

Asik is the guy that should be defending: Dirk, Griffin, Love, Aldridge, Bosh, Melo (when he is at the 4), Lebron (when he is at the 4), Marc Gasol (because he plays high while Zach's game is to bully down low), and any other 4's or 5's who play facing the basket from outside/in.

 

Even if Asik is capable of guarding stretch 4's ... You much rather play zone .. Having your Big guy go chasing bigs all over the floor is rather silly and WHEN teams play small ball and put the likes of Lebron and Melo at the 4 -- you play small with them ... at that time Parsons and Caspi play 4 for us ... You dont ask AO to guard 3's ... thats a bad defensive scheme.

 

Its funny to think back a few years we were starting Scola and Hayes.

 

It's funny, because Morey did many good calls, but the one he missed was amniestying Scola.

 

I don't believe this is any kind of showcase. McHale wants to see if twin towers will work and the preseason is the time you experiment with that kind of stuff. Why not try it against Dirk while the W/L doesn't matter? And it's Howard that slides to PF and guards Dirk instead of Asik, because he's more versatile.

Where it does matter for trades is that making the twin towers work is important for maintaining Asik's value. If it flops badly, we'll have to trade Asik at a discount. If it works well, we can make teams pay his full value. And, if it works very well, we might choose not to trade him.

 

It didn't work in LA with Dwight plus Gasol (who is a significantly better offensive player than Asik). Even accounting for scheme (which was probably terrible) and coaching, I doubt this lineup will merit more than 15 minutes a game.

 

It's the worst time to experiment because dirk is going to whichever is on him.

 

Would that be the amnesty that helped us land Dwight Howard?

 

Actually once Kobe & Nash were done for the year, D'Antoni finally played big man ball with Gasol in the high post and Dwight in the low post and it was pretty sensational even without virtually any outside shooting. Gasol absolutely destroyed the Rockets in one of the final games, and Dwight was very affective as well playing with him.

D'Antoni did not use Gasol as a traditional big in a high/low offensive system. He chose to either use Gasol as a spread big (didn't work cause he isn't a good 3 point shooter) or he brought Gasol off the bench. D'Antoni chose to keep the offense guard driven where there were lots of high screens with alot of pick and pop Kobe dominant basketball which made the bigs completely irrelevant.

This might happen this year to a lesser extent if McHale goes extremely guard attacking heavy off the pick and roll, and Dwight/Asik aren't the players finishing the plays. However I dont think that will be a huge problem because Harden and Lin are such willing passers, and they rarely take long 2's which helps keep the bigs involved in the play by rolling to the basket.

So long story short, Gasol/Dwight could have worked IMO IF the coach and the other players fit/bought into the system correctly. If the spacing works out then only way the Rockets fail here is if Harden/Lin get greedy offensively.

 

[A.Wexler CSN] [Rockets set to start Howard, Asik together]

http://www.csnhouston.com/basketbal...art-howard-asik-together?p=ya5nbcs&ocid=yahoo

 

WEXY IS BACK!!!!

good to see him working with the Rockets again

 

Don't think I've ever seen this kind of comradarie in a Rockets team before. Everyone's got a great attitude and is willing to make sacrifices--which is what you need if you are playing for a contender. Once the ball gets rolling Asik will start smiling too: winning is fun!

 

I imagine that D12 is a better perimeter defender than Rocky but I would rather have D12 inside and Rocky chasing the stretch four (when applicable).

I guess we will see tonight.

 

The Mavericks don't have any real penetrators though; meanwhile they have a lot of good shooters. Who besides Marion would try to attack the basket?

 

Championships here we come...!!!

Too early?

 

I do miss him on 790. Zierlein is good too though.

 

we have come a long way

 

can't wait to see this twin tower lol.. but on offense Lin makes everyone looks good as always.

 

Beverly>Lin

 

No need to compare Lin vs Bev... They are just different sides on the coin... Each will be utilized when appropriate, depending who we match up with...

It is gonna be nice watching the two towers experiment. I believe in Asik and DH, but them playing together? Just wait and see first.