I don't remember too much ugly ball when Hayes was on the floor during the stretch Tmac was out. In fact, when Scola is not his jump shots, having Hayes on the court is much better.
Rox gave up 37 points in 4th quarter which almost cost the game. I don't think it would happen if Hayes and Battier were both on the floor.
That is because Yao was not on the floor. Like I said, during the stretch Tmac missed 11 games, Rocket's offense was fine with Hayes on the floor.
It was one game, against a weak interior defense. Maybe you're right, but I haven't noticed any sustained pattern of Yao scoring more easily with Scola in the game (it didn't happen last time we faced this team). There have been games where Yao gets off to fast start at the beginning of the halves with Chuck, and does very little after Chuck gets subbed out (e.g. a game against Dallas back in November comes to mind). I think we all tend to remember the stuff that reinforces our preconceived notions.
With Hayes on the court the opposing defense dont work as hard. With Scola on the court the opposing defense must work harder. Just because Hayes dont shoot much dont mean your team will shoot a higher % without him shooting. On top of it being 5 on 4 on offense this is a extra guy to double Yao/Tracy and force other guys like Alston to jack up something. The point im trying to make is, Tracy and Yao must work that much harder on offense to score now do to Hayes not even being a threat. Scola made nice passes into Yao from the high-post for easy baskets tonight, something Hayes cant do.
There is no question Scola does a lot more than Hayes on offensive end. But there should also be no question Hayes does a lot more than Scola on defensive end. But which one weighs more really depends on matchups. Fans tend to notice offense but ignore defense.
In general defensive specialists (with almost no offensive game) can work, but it is rare. Usually, they must be *outstanding* defensively. Some example come to mind such as: Ben Wallace Dennis Rodman But you have to admit that these guys were amazing defensively (shot blocking, rebounding, post defense). Furthermore, they had *some* offensive game although limited. Hayes is not anywhere close to the elite when it comes to defense. His offense is also agrueably worse than Wallace or Rodman. I would rank his post defense as above average and his offense as near the worst in the league. (Kinda like Rafer's shooting ... but don't get me started on that.) That's why I'm not very high on Hayes.
If you can score then you can get back on defense? That is commen sense. Remember transition starts with great defense, but if you cant put points on the board then your not helping out the defense. With Hayes, the team must work harder on both ends of the court because if you cant score then you will have a tough time getting back on defense. With Scola, He makes the game much easier on both sides of the court. I truly dont think Hayes is a superior defender over Scola. Hayes is a good defender but he is not great enough to start i dont think.
Basketball is a team game. Without Hayes the Rockets still play team defense easily, with Hayes the Rockets have a hard time playing team offense going 4-5. We consistently lose on one end big and gain on the other end small. Overall, overplaying Hayes is the way to mediocrity. Hayes is not a defensive player of the year or anything close to it. To let Hayes drag down your superstars on offense for his marginal extra defensive impact is not worth it overall. He should be used as a situational player decided by matchups. You don't regularly make your superstars adjust to a defensive player unless that player is so special as to make your team play 6-5 on defense, those defensive players are so special that their names are far and few between, Dennis Rodman, Dikembe Mutombo, and Ben Wallace to name a few. Oh, sorry, I forgot to mention Chuck Hayes.
He could be on the block like i been saying. Who knows i think if another team actually wanted Hayes, Morey would unload him too. I mean even Mike James played tonight but most of us know he is on the block too. I would give Chuck Hayes with Mike James just to get rid of Mike's contract is probably one way to unload him.
I think Adelmen Hayes because he wanted to outgun GSW. This also probably a warning to Hayes that laying egg in consecutive games is not acceptable in NBA.
