I have said this for over a year now and that is Eddie Griffin is not our solution at PF. Granted, he has a lot of potential but at this juncture, we need to get our best players TODAY on the court in order to win. Eddie can not shoot, can not pass, can not dribble, has no post moves, and is an over rated defender. I think he will one day become decent but that day is not near. I would love seeing Cato as our starting 4. He is exactly the tough PF we need and he and Yao will be able to go up against ANY c/pf combo in the league. He knows his role, plays tough, and clogs the paint. I really hope Van Gundy starts Cato at PF. He played like a mini Ben Wallace today. What do you guys think? Could Cato be our solution at PF?
If you could combine Cato's intangibles with Taylor's 18 ft jumpshot, that would be our solution. That being said, I believe we will see a lot of the Yaoto(Yao/Cato) Twin Towers. It creates so many matchup nightmares for teams, especially vs. smaller eastern conference teams. I wouldnt be surprised to see an even bigger lineup in Francis, J.Jackson, Eddie Griffin, Cato, and Yao. That would be a nasty defensive line-up.
A mini- Ben Wallace? that's an odd description considering how much bigger Cato is than Wallace. I've always feared that Cato is too slow to guard alot of the power forwards in the west and I still believe that is the case against some teams but he's definitely proving he can play the 4 vs. some teams. I just can't imagine him keeping up with guys like Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan. Not that Eddie or Mo can guard them either.......
Cato should definitely not start at PF. He's a great backup & role player, especially in this center-deprived era. He has no real offense, unless you count the occasional offensive rebound, so he'd be a huge liability for us in that area. On defense, he's been trying hard lately, but he just doesn't have the lateral footwork to keep up with skilled players with post moves like Duncan. If a PF with any sort of quickness matched up with him in the high post, they could blow by him easily or get an easy shot off of a high pick and roll. I appreciate his recent effort, but I don't think he should start. Also, he works harder when he DOESN'T start. I think he gets way too comfortable/laid back with his game when he starts, but when he's coming off the bench it motivates him to prove himself.
Forget Cato for offense (Although he has been working on that), that's what Mobley, Yao, Steve, and the rest of the guys are for. I think Cato would make a great rebounding PF along side Yao, Going after rebounds that Yao can't get to (If these preseason games are any indication, that's alot of rebounds), he can also block shots. His defense isn't too bad either. I think Cato would be a Ben Wallace type PF. Let's say, 6 points and 11 rebounds per game in 30 mins.
The team is crap enough on the offensive end without starting a brick-layer like Kelvin. Don't get me wrong- I really like what he brings to the team off the bench, or as an emergency starter- but he is not the PF solution. We need Taylor back, and Eddie to get it together.
I would take my chances on Cato than on Eddie "getting it together". At least with Cato, you get good defense, rebounding and a "brick-layer" that at least knows his offensive limits. With Eddie, you get a brick layer who thinks he's Larry Bird camping out at the 3 pt line..
We do not have a problem at the PF spot so no need for a solution; and if we did Cato certainly would not be a solution. I like Cato playing at the PF as there is a need to get him more minutes. I also like MoT and EG and they should only get help from Cato when the situation calls for it. The five players expected to play at 4 & 5 spots for us are a top 5 rotation in this league. I cannot think of many teams that can bring a better 5 man 4-5 rotation than ours. Height, length, size, talent, low post, outside shots, rebounding, shot blocking and passing are all strengths this rotation gives you.
Whatever you saw last year, Cato cannot solve it. You can at least see that one. Regarding our PF spot, we have a better than average PF coming back from injury. We know he is an asset offensively. EG is developing, albeit slower than hoped. To improve on our current PF spot you have to be getting Brand or Duncan and that ain't gonna happen. We have positions on this team that teams would die for so we cannot have everything. Put it another way, if the Lakers had MoT and EG, they would not go and get 40 something year old Malone and Horace Grant. The easiest thing to do is criticize but taking another second or two would make it clearer.
From Chron.com: I think one of the reasons that Cato and Yao were able to play together for extended stretches last night was because they were playing Divac and Miller, who are both centers. On the defensive side, Cato did well last night. Although, he certainly wasn't challenged by a PF who can adequately put the ball on the floor and drive to the hoop. In addition, it seemed that a couple of his fouls were due to him being out of position on defense, which should be expected with a C playing PF for one of the few times in his NBA career. On offense, there were a couple of time where Brad Miller dropped off Cato via zone and doubled Yao before he touched the ball, thus preventing an entry pass. This has always been a concern with me. I think its important to have EG or Mo in there who can keep their man honest with their outside shooting (yeah yeah yeah, Eggie isnt exactly Larry Bird, but you cant argue that he is a thread and is a much better shooter than Cato). Overall, the combo works for short stretches. With Cato looking to be a lil lighter than he has in the past, and in better shape, I think he is in a better position to be able to play PF for short stretches than he was last year.
What does our team [MAINLY DEFENSIVELY] look like when Cato and Yao sit? Amechi, Griff Amechi, MoT Griff, Mot Which of these front courts will stem the tide of scoring? Rocket River
What I liked about last night win is that Cato did the things at PF that we really need badly. He played physical, rebounded and played good down low. There was chemistry between Yao and Cato because Yao can hit the turn around jumper and Cato can crash the boards and block shots also. With MoT and Eddie (if he is around) coming off the bench I like having the 2 shot blockers in there on defense. Plus Cato doesn't demand or need offensive touches. This helps with the chemistry. Both Eddie and MoT need touches to get them going. We already have 4 other offensive options in the starting line up. And we need to get Yao and Steve the ball where they are most effective. I love the Yao- Cato tandem. At least as long as Cato is busting tail. If he wears down or cannot run the floor with the Dirks and KG's then obviously we are hurt. The biggest draw back I see is we lose alot of speed that can be exploited by the better PF in the game. But if we could compensate for that defensively, I love the chemistry I saw at Sac.
I always thought putting Cato at the 4 was a good idea. With Cato at the 4, we have a tough inside rebounder. Yeah, he's not much of an offensive powerhouse, but as others have said, we have plenty of those elsewhere. What we need is just a big, mean inside presence. Plus, I think it would be cool is JVG would use Cato in the middle during offensive sequences and let Yao play a little outside sometimes. I think this could make for real problems for opposing defenses. Yao has a great outside shot, but teams would be reluctant to take their big men out of the middle with Francis and Mobley so good on taking the ball inside. Additionaly, if Yao can pull other team's big men outside, even Cato can't miss dunks over smaller guys.... Just a thought.
Eddie Griffin is horrible. He should be traded. Start Cato and roll the dice with him and MoT at the 4. Amechi can sub in for Yao some. Purple monkey dishwasher (just seeing if anyone is paying attention)
Lets keep in mind that this is going to be a different Rockets team than last year. A whole new philosophy on both offense and defense That said, I have always been a big proponent of Cato at the 4. We have Mobley and Francis and Yao taking up the offensive burden, I think it would be great to have Cato assisting Yao defensively and on the boards. Cleaning up on offense. In many ways, Cato is a poor man's Ben Wallace, a super role player. Role players are what is needed on this team and i believe Cato fits the bill. And if he doesn't work out, JVG will move him to the bench. Stuart
Don't you have a plane to catch? I'm starting to believe that Yao and Cato in the lineup can be a good thing at times. But I still like Cato coming off the bench.
