CD Built it - JVG ignored it.

Ok.. So we aren't competitive on a championship level due to our roster, but we want to fire the coach because he isn't competing for championships? Lets put it this way. We didn't even challenge in the games in Utah, so if we DIDN'T have homecourt due to playing rookies more, there is a good chance the series wouldn't have even gone 7 games and you would still be calling for a different coach.

 

true. rational arguments are not what he is interested in.

 

Teams that have homecourt advantage in the tough Western Conference don't write off the season before they play the games. No matter if you predicted that the Rox were not winning the title this season, they were going to take their shot. Otherwise, every team but 1 or 2 would be tanking the season trying to get the best draft picks, because if you are not going to win the title anyway, you are wasting your opportunity if you don't try to get Oden/Durant. JVG did what he thought gave the Rockets the best chance to win this year, which is exactly what a coach is supposed to do.

 

After watching them they are not an immediate part of the solution- nada...
Maybe this coming season, they will be there.

VSpan- Is a slasher and a good passer who needs a more consistent shot and a year to learn the NBA game from practice and some minutes. He is fast but not quick. He is a defensive liability at this time just because he needs to adjust to NBA speed and quickness. He should have gotten more minutes but it hasn't crushed his progress as some believe. He had the ability to be a rotation player with 5-7 minutes a game but Van Gundy blew that one. Part of the problem seems personal with the beef VSpan took public but I don't blame Van Gundy for sitting him over it. Some coaches don't take **** and some do.


Novak- Good shooter who you could see was going to struggle guarding anyone and who needed some confidence because he struggled with the NBA defenses running at him even when he was open. I think he should have got more minutes but still needed a season of practice and adjustment which he got this year. Van Gundy should have played him more in blow outs, but I don't remember how many we had so I am not that sure. I would have preferred him if Yao had not gone out and J Howard add not stepped up at the time. Considering we needed wins I am not dogging Van Gundy for not giving Novak minutes even though it was a mistake... but not a fatal one.

JL3- developmental league- nuff said

Snyder- I think he should have played more if healthy and he should have been totally a one on one slasher to the basket, for all his athleticism he is a poor defender. I am not surprised he was not on the court after watching him try to guard players.

All in all our biggest downfall wasn't that they didn't get minutes- it was the fact that we needed so much help around Yao and Tracy that we needed to try them out instead of giving them a year to learn and develop. We have a very sorry supporting cast around Yao and Tracy.

 

like rhester said, we have a fairly general idea for what those players have to offer. None of which are still the type of players that put the rockets over the top.

 

Geez, DD, you act like you are a far greater talent evaluator than JVG, even though you don't have his experience, expertise, and exposure to those players day in day out in practice and in games. JVG is there everyday. He knows exactly what they can do, and sat them because they don't have it, nor will playing time get it.

What was evident to me in this playoff series is that we just don't have the talent yet to be contenders. JVG got what he could out of what he had, and did pretty amazing at that. He got Yao and TMac to step up during the year, and by the time playoffs came, there wasnt anything to step up to. Yao never got his quickness back after the injury, and for some reason, didn't study Boozer like he normally would to adjust to his game. TMac was just doing too much. Head flunked. We can't ignore the possiblity, though, that we just ran into the buzzsaw team that might win it all this year.

If MeSpan had what it took, and had the right attitude to get it, I believe JVG would have played him to get that experience. (You don't know that he wouldn't ... you just accuse over and over and over.) JVG knew that playing time wasn't going to get his head screwed on right, but just give him more excuses to blameshift. If JVG needs a rookie, he'll play him, just as he did Head. In the meantime, he knows that the player needs to work to improve, and he obviously didn't see enough improvement to put him on the court to build his confidence or give him his "head," as he said about McGrady.

I thought JVG did a pretty good job getting the most out of his players this year. JVG has to know that Rafer isn't what we need. He pushed hard to get Mike James, and had to be hugely dissapointed when we lost him at the last minute, just as James probably is. James really would have made that little extra difference, even though he's flunked in Minnesota. But, he knew he needed Rafer to go all out, since he didn't have anyone who could step up behind him. So, as a loyal coach and good motivator, he came out publically supporting Rafer, and Rafer responded giving the best of what he had. His best just wasn't good enough, unfortunately.

The thing I was concerned about when we hired Van Gundy did turn out to be a problem. At the time, we needed someone with a strong hand to whip everyone into shape, and develop serious defense that wins championships. But, I always wondered if he could lead, motivate and provide a championship spirit to take us all the way. IMHO, he failed at that this year, and I have a feeling he knows it too. His team didn't step up for him in the playoffs. They failed him. (sorta makes me wonder if they knew he was on his way out, or if something happened behind the scenes to take the air out of their balloons) It seems, he had harped so long and hard, there was nothing left in the gastank, just like Francis and Mobely used to tune him out. There was no leader, like Sura, Dream, Clyde or Mario to push us on the court. James might have made that difference, although I don't think he would have been the longer term solution.

When we hired JVG, I thought it would have been great for JVG to get them in shape, and then bring back Rudy to take them all the way. He DOES know how to do that. But, I don't think Rudy has it in him anymore, unfortunately. I don't really see anyone else on the horizon who would do what Rudy could do. So, I'm concerned about what poison we'll drink if JVG leaves. Perhaps JVG can hire someone who provides that, either on the sideline or as a consultant. But, probably the decision has already been made behind the scenes, and they are just trying to put the right spin on it, like when Rudy left.

The bottom line, even more than finding someone better than JVG to take us to the top, is to get more talent. Hayes was a good find, but shouldn't be a starter, IMHO. Battier was a great piece, but we gave up too much for him, when we could have gotten an additional piece for Swift, I believe. We should have done the trade kicker with James, we should have gotten Duhon and Chandler when we had a chance, we shouldn't have given up our draft pick to get rid of Rice, we should have drafted better. Bonzi was worth the risk, but that one failed. This is CD's problem, not JVG's. I'm looking forward to see how Morey does this summer. We shouldn't change the core of this team. We just need a better supporting cast for Yao, TMac and Battier. Everyone else is game for upgrading, whatever that takes.

 

what kind of coach benches players indefinitely just for asking for more playing time?

 

No, not like that at all. Your talent for analogies is remarkably bad.

If we were to analogize the situation, it would be as if JVG didn't bother to show up for Knicks training camp, watched no game film during the season, didn't bother with scouting, and spent practice on his cell phone playing "brickbreaker". Then finally when told he was being demoted back to assistant, he got mad and quit.

 

so i assume you're a maxwell hater as well.

all im saying is bonzi should have been more productive this season...and i believe another coach would have made that work.

 

he also has a few more rings then jvg

 

jvg also has other playoff success, but no one wants to acknowledge his past accomplishments, so why acknowledge PJs? b/c it helps your argument?

 

LOLOLOLOL - please give me an example of the future talent that was run off by JVG from either team he coached.

All you have is a one-dimensional part timer in Nachbar (getting rid of him, by the way, was the key in a series of moves that led to a very successful season at the time) - now I know about your great triumph in persisting in your musty man love for Nachbar after he was kicked out of NO as a salary dump to reach the dizzying heights - you've only reminded us of it ten thousand times. But anyway - name some more young gems that were run off.

DaDakota - this will constitute my response to your next post: Future advice - when you have to base an argument on Frederic Weis's lost potential - just imagine the taste of Vince Carter's sweaty crotch and enjoin yourself from posting.

 

Lets see

Tyronne Lue, Nachbar, Mobely, Francis, James, Swift, Bonzi, Azubuike

All these guys were doing better are currently better on other teams.

 

With exception of Francis who's sucking it up under Isiah Thomas. He wasn't bad at Orlando.

 

lue is doing what he always did, which isnt much.

nachbar, 2.5 years later, finally figured out how to perform in games and not just practice.

mobley is what he is.

francis is worse.

james is worse.

swift may put up nubmers but the guys stinks, you cant argue that.

bonzi is a headcase

azuibuke..yes would have been nice to keep him around but it was a roster move. Who do you drop in the preseason to keep him? in retrospect, its easy but at the time it was a tough situation. But he also put up some hollow stats while GS was playing like the GS of old, i.e. like poo

 

actually wsnt it the injury of baxter that made them bring back chuck?

but where was chuck even mentioned? have a hard time staying on topic ehh?