Battier for Rudy Gay/Stromile is not paying dividends

It's been posted. I don't think there's much to that article, to be honest. It's so early in the season, and his formula ("Win Score") has questionable relevance. Battier's box score stats don't look good right now. He's not hitting his shots efficiently, and he's never been a big time defensive rebounder. That's all you can glean from his numbers.

Berri's formula doesn't distinguish between offensive and defensive boards, even though offensive boards are 2-3 times more valuable at the individual level. Battier is averaging close to 2 offensive rebounds a game. Moreover, there are many ways that Battier contributes that don't even show up in the box score. His best attribute is his team defense, and that isn't considered in any way by Win Score.

 

We traded a whole lotta talent for marginal talent, spin that however you want it doesn't matter, we got burned on the deal.

We should have won that series against the Jazz but this board is full of excuses as to why we didn't, great teams win and leave fans thinking what happened when they don't; that's not the case here, we don't win in Houston and it's always some excuse.

Just admit that Memphis got the better of us in the trade, and stop with the excuses.

 

First of all, Battier had to chase Baron Davis all night which I thought was a bad matchup with footspeed to begin with. There's not that many players that can keep up with Davis so I don't think it had alot to do with Battier's defense. Secondly, IF we had Rudy Gay where would you play him? Because he is basically in the same mold of a Tracy McGrady. Are you going to plug him in the starting line up to be a defensive stopper? Nope. Would Rudy Gay be as good as he is now if he came off the bench for a T-mac that plays 35+ mins? Probably not. I like Rudy Gay and I thought we should of gotten more out of the deal but I don't think he would fit in well with the current team that is trying to win now.

 

And the numbers YOU look at tell us Chuck Hayes is the NBA MVP. I've given up on trying to get you to put down the math book and actually WATCH a game.

Do us all a favor...next time the Rockets are in transition...watch how the slow-footed Battier turns a 3 on 2 break into a far less effective 2 on 2 by running to the short corner arc...the only place he shoots from with success. Then, watch the fact that he can't post up ANYONE over 6'6".

Of course, those two acts will require you actually WATCH some basketball.

 

What does Battier bring to the table besides a few 3-pointers and the ability to put the other team's top scorer on the foul line?

 

find it funny that you knock the trade by pointing out how "average" of a defender battier is, yet rudy does have supreme athleticism however he is a TERRIBLE defender!

 

rudy is not a horrible defender. he blocks shots, he gets steals, just as valuable as taking chargers. and he does everything just as well. if battier isn't shooting the three very well, there is nothing he does better gay.

 

I'm not really sure what people expect from Shane considering he is assigned the top opposing perimeter scorer every night. These guys light EVERYONE up, so a player getting his average points wise isn't something you hold against the defender. The thing you look at is how much did they have to work? Did they shoot a high percentage? What about help defense? Shane takes charges on a regular basis, and that is almost always on some one else's man.

All that being said, I personally would have kept Rudy Gay too because the rockets especially at that time lacked any other player besides Tmac that could create their own shot, and didn't have close to the atheletic level of the teams ahead of us. But even if we had 100% agreement on a fan level I don't really know what the point of the thread is beyond venting. The Rockets making poor draft choices over the last 10 years is a big part of the reason we haven't advanced past the first round since 1997.

 

I would take Swift and Gay back in a second. Swift may not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but he is very athletic. Gay can score, and we desperately need someone who can score consistently. This was a JVG "frustration" trade.

 

Too bad defense isn't claimed to be Gay's strength whereas it is Battier's supposed calling card.

 

This is such a tired-ass argument and its continual use makes a complete mockery of the entire situation.

That we weren't even considering keeping the top-rated remaining prospect on the board for ourselves in no way serves to make management look any better in this embarrassment.

 

I wouldn't. I like those buys, but talent and athleticism doesn't always translate if you're not a smart and focused basketball player. Bonzi's a good example.

Both Gay and Swift are wildly inconsistent and make just as many boneheaded plays as they do good ones. The Rockets need consistency. It was a good trade at the time, IMO, but then again we probably weren't counting on dumping JVG after that season when the trade went down. Now Shane doesn't look like a good fit for this team, especially if he's not hitting the 3.

 

I dont know how many times I have come across this.

I call it the "seeking the Insanity Plea for the Rockets for the Draft Day Mishap."

The logic is mind boggling. Defend the Rockets management by making them look like a bunch of r****ds.

 

JVG would kill to have Battier.

 

actually, its battiers all around game and thats his strength

 

that's why he's on espn

 

I hated the trade on draft day, hated it last year, hate it now, and I'll hate it even more 5 years from now, when Battier is retiring and Gay makes his annual trip to the All-Star game.

The whole "Win Now" approach makes sense for a Rockets team circa 1997, when Dream, Clyde, and Barkley truly were on their last legs...now that's a rapidly closing window, and that's when you compromise the future for an immediate impact.

This squad? Sorry. Yao and T-Mac have another 3 or 4 years together in their prime (minimum), and the beauty would have been...as T-Mac ages, slows down, and loses his ups...Gay could step right in and fill his shoes, adding another 3+ years to Yao's window.

It still gives me heartburn. Ugh.

 

The Rockets could have used Gay and Mcgrady similarly to the way Boston uses Pierce and Allen, with Mcgrady being more of the outside threat (like Allen) and Gay being more of a slasher (like Pierce).

 

BURN!!!!!!!

 

Wouldn't a great all-around game require a player to be able to dribble the ball more than 2 dribbles?

Offensively, he really does not offer much more than Luther Head.