Battier can be the Sensei, but Budinger is clearly the starter.

What you say would be true only if you just looked at offense. Of course in a perfect world you want super talent at every position at all time and everyone of them is super happy sharing the ball. But that's not reality.

Three problems. First, you have diminished return when you have surplus talent on the floor. If you have a 9-man rotation in which 5 players are good scorers and 4 are not. You don't want to put all 5 of them on the floor at the same time and when you sub in the bench your scoring drops steeply. 3 to 4 good scorers is usually good enough to run a good offense, as long as the other one or two guys aren't a liability (e.g. Ryan Bowen). Battier is definitely NOT a liability.

Second, you have to look at th defensive end too. In other words, you want to have a balanced lineup on the floor at all time. Unless you have 9 guys who are all great scorers AND defenders, you have to consider balance.

Third, sharing is always a delicate thing. You have to have all the right guys with the right attitude, giving up parts of their games to fit into a better team game. That's pretty rare in the NBA.

 

My vote for Post of the Week.

 

Deckard, my whole point of view in this shane starting thing is the same as it was in the rafer starting thing. I was looking beyond that season just as I'm looking beyond this season. The rockets will never be close to winning a championship with rafer starting same goes for shane starting. Just as i said the rockets shouldve traded rafer in the summer after brooks first yr, I'm saying the same about battier. It would be better served to develop chase starting and see what we got vs holding on this imaginary ideal about the rockets competing for something. Saying the rockets need chase scoring off the bench is not a good enough reason to keep shane starting. If the rockets make the playoffs, the benches bet very,very short as each possession get crucial by the seconds and minutes. Depth is great for the regular season to pull you through the back to backs and stuff like that,but in the playoffs, its not the same. Adelman in sacramento used to play everyone but gerald wallace, but came playoff time, it was tight 8 man. What I'm saying is the reason for battier starting and even being on the roster isnt strong enough to justify chase only playing 20mins. Develop the young guys and move forward. Basically, they shouldve done it last year and shipped battier out with tracy to give chase 30 mins a night,imo.

 

My challenge to Leeb:
Say ten good things about the 2010 Rockets.

A simple task any "real fan" could do.

 

No such thing as overkill. Budinger adding to a already scary three point barrage and fastbreak of potentially Brooks, Martin, Budinger, Scola, Yao kills defenses. Thats what you want. You want more than other teams can handle in your lineup. Open looks by any one of them makes spacing more possible. Makes running the break easier and with Budinger running cuts and Martin? More open passes by cuts and more easy layups. More screens mean more energy used up by the starting lineup of the other team which means? Better defense at the end when they are tired of chasing AB, Martin, and Budinge around screens and through the lanes.

 

He might take a physical challenge on this one...

 

doesnt get the suns deep into the playoffs, why would it work for the rockets? you need good defenders and until chase gets bettr defensivley- yada, yada, yada

 

I think the Suns could have went deep into the playoffs a call here or two. A few bad luck things here and there. If they had good luck they would have went to the Finals over the Lakers and others. As usual? Odd things and bad luck always seems to spring up in favor of the Lakers teams and never against.

 

The idea of having a Buddier or Battinger brings back fond memories of Scolandry. They each contribute nicely in their own way, but when to use them is the key to good coaching.

 

Ha! I knew you'd react that way. Had to be sure someone who didn't know you all that well didn't misunderstand your intent with the post.

Gotcha!

 

I will take on that challenge! :grin:

1. Yao is back, which is much better than having him on the bench permanently.
2. Aaron Brooks have been driving more to the basketball
3. Kevin Martin is hitting his shots much more consistently now
4. Budinger continues to improve
5. Chuck Hayes now has some resemblance of an offensive game
6. We have a real backup center, meaning Hayes can go back to his more natural defensive position at the 3 and 4
7. Kobe and Bynum will both be out in our opener
8. Lee provides depth at the 2 spot and fits so much better
9. Battier looks like he will be more aggressive this year
10. As our team has played together a lot and stayed relatively the same (just deeper), gelling should go a lot faster

I can go on and on. Does this make me a real fan?

 

Bud starting at the 3 will only get us deep into the playoffs if that squad can play real good D. No matter what arguments are made concerning offensive production canceling out the need for defense are going to be wrong come playoff time.

 

I dont have to prove myself as a real fan. The ticket stubs, sports illustrated,the houston post playoff preview at my dads house says that. My daughter was born in 91 and your sig says bleeding red since 92. I'm old school like chuck taylor and i see what i see. Nothing personal towards every player i criticique, but the fandom of the players take as such. The sheer mention of why shane shouldnt be on the team or starting brings out you,rv6, and a slew of others to come to his side. Just as i lumped them together 4 yrs ago, if shane,hayes,and alston are playing more than 20 minutes a night, your team is going nowhere.

Your proposal to me was crazy to say the least. Nothing i can say will determine my fan-hood. Just because i think the rockets organization need to stop trying to convince the paying public this is all in doesnt mean i'm not going to support the rockets. I like the young guys and want to see how good they can be. Shane starting and playing is a waste of everyones time.

 

vato loco forever homes

 

I really do not care who starts, I want to see them both play a good amount. However, I have no problem with Bud taking the JR Smith role, coming off the bench and scoring 15 ppg. He is capable of it and with Carl gone, they need a high scoring guy off the bench. Kyle and Lee are nice players, but they do not bring the offensive spark that Bud does. This is the first time in a while that the staring lineup actually has enough offense for it to be okay to have a guy like Battier in there. I expect Bud to start next season, possibly even by the end of this season, but I dont mind him not starting now. He has the smarts and athleticism to be a good defender in this league, in fact I would say he is already a much better defender than many give him credit for. By next season, I think he will be a legit two way player.

 

i think shane starting could work as long as he hits that open shot at a high rate. but in my opinion at some point this year buddinger will be put in the starting lineup permanently.

 

I am calling out your fan hood.

You may have followed the team for a while, but you're constant negativity leads me to believe you use the team as something other than an object to be "fanatical" about.

We never see you celebrating wins, only showing up to preach in losses.

 

You're being too negative towards leeb. I'm questioning your Clutchfanhood.

 

I'm happy when they win, but it doesnt dictate the kind of day I'm having. When they do something, i'm cool. Making it to the 2nd rd 1 time since 97 is not something to jump for joy about.

Maybe I'm not a fanantic and I'm more student. If thats the case, so be it. When players play well, i say so, but when they dont, I dont sugar coat it either. I know you think shane is a rare player and you've said it before. I think he's a dime a dozen that hasnt been worth his weight in pennies. Being a no show on the road in the playoffs continues to be overlooked. Of course you will gloss over and question my fan-hood.