Might as well just rest Tracy (knee... or whatever it is), Battier (foot), Artest (ankle), Rafer (groin), Barry (Calve), Dorsey (foot), and whoever. And I doubt Artest gets better quickly because he is the only one that is consistently playing hard out of our big 3.
This should be the new rotation even after Battier gets back: Brooks / Alston McGrady / Barry / Wafer Artest / Battier Scola / Landry / Hayes Yao / Mutombo I don't care about the lack of scoring off the bench when our starting lineup sucks this much. Fix the starters before worrying about the reserves. You don't have to play all the reserves at the same time. After Morey trades McGrady for Salmons and Miller, this will be our rotation: Brooks / Alston Salmons / Barry / Wafer Artest / Salmons Scola / Landry / Miller Yao / Miller / Mutombo Sub Salmons with Barry or Wafer halfway through the 1st. When Artest goes to the bench at the end of the 1st, bring Salmons back in at SF and keep Barry or Wafer at SG. When Artest comes back in 4 or 5 minutes into the 2nd quarter, slide Salmons back to SG so we can finish the half at the 2 and 3 the way we started it while giving both Salmons and Artest plenty of rest. Repeat this SG/SF rotation in the 2nd half. If we are playiing a bigger frontcourt, start Miller alongside Yao then slid him to C and put Landry or Scola at the 4 when Yao is resting.
I doubt Battier, McGrady, and Artest will ever get healthy this season. Next season might be our last chance...
Actually,I'm not. His trade value has been postponed another week which sux. I'm with DD, I wish Wafer gets time. Now all they have to do is install Brooks and we'd be rolling.
tracy will eventually play well on that knee. it's only a matter of time b/c it only requires strength (it's not an injury). artest simply needs rest so i wish he would choose this week b/c we're playing the bucks, raps, and hawks (only tough game). so rest these next 5-6 days. battier is choosing the same. so i rest artest does the same.
Letting Mcgrady's contract expire and hoping for a good young player in 2010 or trading him next year when he has higher trade value as an expiring contract are both much better ideas than what you propose. John Salmons won't get us deep in the playoffs.
they're not gettin better cuz none of them have taken off enough time to get completely healthy in the first place. they all need to rest and get healthy before it's too late
Yeah, regardless of the situation, Wafer should ALWAYS get playing time ahead of Luther Head (equal shooting threat, Wafer with much better D, hussle, and play-making), and against more athletic teams Wafer should play ahead of Brent Barry (I would have liked to see Wafer on Nick Young last night). My only guess to why Adelman plays Head and not Wafer is that Morey's not done dealing yet, and they are trying to boost Head's trading value. I hope that's what it is...
The good thing about doing the Salmons/Miller for McGrady now is that it won't have much of an impact if we want to get involved in 2010. If we wait until next season, anybody that wants McGrady will undoubtedly ask us to take back big, longer term contracts. If we resign Artest this offseason, we will be left with 3 or 4 big contracts and won't be players in 2010. Dumping McGrady now for something like Salmons/Miller would make this team better this season as well as keep us in position to do something in 2010. If we wait until next season to unload McGrady or for his contract to expire, we will suffer the rest of this season and most, or all, of next season as well as potentially lose our ability to be players in 2010 if we wait too long to trade him. You may say we can just let his contract expire next season if he's still underperforming. Well, if we do that and can't get one the top FAs, then we will have gotten nothing for McGrady and be left with Yao and Artest (possibly) as the core of our team. I say try to get something for McGrady that doesn't leave us empty handed. Salmons and Miller seems like just that. Salmons has been playing better basketball than McGrady for the last 32 games. He's averaging a career high in ppg while shooting 50% from the field and 40% from behind the arc! This is all assuming McGrady continues to underperform and gimp around the court for the rest of this season and the next. I don't want that to happen but I believe it will (to some extent or another) and I hope management believes the same and can find something to do about it now that will make us more competitive this season while looking toward 2010 free agency.
I think Yao would take less money if Rockets will sign another star player but theres gotta be a kickback. billionaire Les will probably need to make sizable donations to Yao's charity.
You are going to end up like those loyal-to-the-end Francis fans. You won't accept what is obvious until it's stone cold fact. You will continue to put your love for McGrady and his broken down body above what is best for the team. Will you even be a Rockets fan after he's gone, which is at the most another season from now?
battier is of no use when he's hurt. he tries hard and you gotta love him for that, but he's one guy that you can sit for at least a month or so and get him ready for the playoffs. he blends in well and doesn't demand a lot of touches in the offense so it doesn't take him long to get re acclimated no matter how long he's out. we need his defensive leadership if we're gonna make some playoff noise.
I told ya all before the season begin that Yao needs to take these mfkers to a Chinese temple to pray so that they will be free of injuries. Well, guess you don't listen to my message and look what happened now?? The Rockets continue to be plagued by injury. This is not going away because IT IS A CURSE!!
I mean how else would you justify for someone as tough as Artest and Battier to have injury other than the injury-curse of this team?? I mean Artest was injured-free before the season start and bammm he's injured!! WHY?? Oh because he's in the ROCKETS' TEAM, a team that is curse by injury. So far, victims include: Tmac, Battier, Yao, Artest, Rafer and even BROOKS. All starters.
