IMO, yes. We finally have height, skill, athleticism and strength at the 5 now. We even have Patterson who can sub as a five in some situations. All of these things pale in comparison to the most important factor of all. Youth.
I was really impressed with their development. Hill's performance was exceptional compared to last year. However, the jury is still out on his ability to disappear every other game. As for Thabeet, he's developing and I hope that his display in this game was just a start to his potential. I've watched Smith during his Fresno State days and he's an active, strong player. Only time will tell for these guys. Can't make a decision until after a few games
I like what Hill did tonight but I need to see him do it consistantly and I need more defensive rebounds from the guy. I love that he got 8 offensive rebounds but 5 defensive rebounds is not going to cut it when we are trying to prevent second chance points. Having said that I'm still happy with what he did tonight. I just need more before I am ready to start drinking the kool aid. Thabeet.... he didn not impress me at all.
I would also like to say that i expect them all to make mistakes. Maybe even lots of them early. Tonights game was a combination of nerves and excitement to get back to playing. I even expect them to lose Wednesday. So i am not saying that they will be without fault. I am saying that we do not need to go out and get anyone when we have what we need here.
Hold down for what? If you mean hold down so we can get two lotto picks in next year's draft probably yes. Smith might surprise people though, he seems raw but the potential is there.
San Antonio probably forgot we don't have a 6 ft 6 center anymore, and adjusted to it later on. Thabeet was racking up the fouls.
Well Thabeet looked better than usual. I will give him that. I wont read much into that yet. As for Hill? Yeah Hill always had potential to unlock his skills as he mature given more playing time. All he had to do was cut down on his mistakes through experience.
I expect that to change with the promise of playing time. This season will be a perfect opportunity for him to first adjust to the NBA then improve towards the tailend of the season. Same for Thabeet. Especially Thabeet!!
My goodness it is so easy to impress people on this board. Thabeet looked good for a 2 minute stretch early on. He scored, he had an assist then he scored again. But after that he was invisible, had no impact on the game what so ever. Hill put up numbers but so did Blair, Bonner and Splitter. Jordan looked like a different player but he hasnt proved anything yet. Not a thing. Absolutely nothing. Zero. Its just one one pre-season game. Blair, Bonner and Splitter in a PREASEASON game? Are you kidding me? What are you talking about holding down the 5? SammyD holds down the 5.
Well I have been calling for more minutes for Hill over the last year. Thats even over Chuck Hayes when he was here. I feel Hill was only delayed in his progress so we could win a few meaningless games last year. Jordan Hill needs to play. I think people will be quietly surprised once he comes around to having full NBA minutes night in and night out on how he progresses to be consistent. Twills progress was delayed by Adelmans stubborness too. All so he could win a few more games like a buffoon and not get into the playoffs anyways.
Pattersons progress was held back too. He also should have had more minutes. Now this new coach is here probably for that reason.
Me impressed? Sorry, wrong guy. I have been predicting all offseason that these guys(outside of Smith)would do what they did tonight. I always felt that they would be enough. None of what happened tonight surprises me. Like i mentioned before, they are going to stumble, but they will be alright.
Of course not. Its basically the reason Adelman got fired. Besides not leading us to the playoffs. He didnt use any of Moreys young guys to develop them. Many of us where talking about it last year. So it wont surprise any of us when Patterson, Hill, and Twill get on that court and produce. Thats what many of us have been asking for since last year and already expected a year ago.
What were we arguing about last year as our team also did not reach the playoffs? It was some of us asking for guys like Hill, Twill, Patterson, Budinger to get their minutes. While others kept asking for Battier, Chuck Hayes, and veterans to soak up their meaningless playoffless minutes. So Adelman could achieve 5 more wins. This would have happened last year if he had done it then. We would already know what we have in these guys instead of finding out this year.
Hey, if blocking a couple of shots, altering many more while helping his team in a short period of time equal sucking, then suck on big man. Face it guys. Thabeet is not going to be what you want him to be. He is going to be just enough to get this team where it needs to be.
There is no way the Rockets can seriously expect to compete with the big boys - literally - with Smith and Hill holding down the 5. Not gonna happen. Both are still limited offensively and mostly energy/hustle guys. I like what Smith can bring. I think he has a pretty high ceiling and he showed some things in his limited minutes. I think Hill has progressed a lot, but again, it's only preseason. I still think he's best at the 4. I don't see him thriving too much against the Mavs, Thunder, Lakers and Grizzlies of the world. This team needs size. Period. I don't care what the game showed or what the stats say. Even if it means getting Dalembert and Fesenko on one-year trials, so be it.
