He underutilized Bonzi and Snyder. AS for Spanoulis... playing him out of position in garbage time is not exactly "allowing" him to play and develop.
This is what annoys me to no end... you guys take little snippets you see from telecasts, extrapolate them out with the situation of the team, and actually form a beleif system based on nothing but random speculation. For what its worth, I've seen JVG scream at both Yao and T-mac, so I really don't understand what your point is... especailly since I know you have zero access to their practices. As for Bonzi... I saw the guy out there... I saw the fat rippling in his body. Frankly, I was frustrated that JVG (and the team) gave him as many chances as they did... if I ever wanted JVG to fit into the fan-created opinion that he's a "ruthless dictator, etc." it was for Bonzi, who didn't GIVE A DAMN from the second his agent turned down that Kings offer, and he was disgruntled enough to accept our MLE. Seriously... Bonzi had a hurt ego from the get-go. He's the only player in history to follow-up a tremendous playoff series with being forced to take a pay-cut. JVG (and every single Rockets fan) merely wanted him to be a professional... get in shape, learn the system, play hard. But once again... keep on believing that the coach is the biggest problem and focus everything you have into fixing that. I'll keep looking for ways to get talent that could actually match up with the teams left in the playoffs... the teams that we're supposed to be "equal" with at this point. And I'm not going to be looking too hard at our wonderful bench that you guys continue to overvalue.
Bonzi was fat and out of shape... unless you thought JVG was causing him to have merely a 2 inch vertical. I guess he was using the force to keep his elevation down. Even in the game where he scored 27 points (being force-fed against Boston), it was painfully obvious that Bonzi was a shell of the guy from last year. But yea... JVG told him to go get out of shape in the off-season and sulk after not getting his big contract. Snyder could have been utilized more... I'll give you that. I'd take Snyder over Head any day of the week. Kirk does, however, need to improve his shooting. And good ol' V-span... the perennial all-star in the making, if only they play him at the right position. Even if I do go with this runaway theory that our bench being underdeveloped is the biggest reason why we're not championship contenders... why were these our best bench options? Why do I see other playoff teams with experienced NBA players, who are in shape, and who possess both size and athletic ability? Why do I continue to see a talent disparity that has plagued this team since they traded for T-mac?
It's only "clear" in hind sight. If we won vs Utah then it would be much less clear. The funny thing is that many of the same critics who say we shouldn't have tried to win now want to hammer Jeff for... not winning now. It doesn't make sense to say he should have played the rookies more because we had no chance of advancing, but at the same time he needs to go because we didn't get to the 2nd round. I doubt playing rookies would have resulted in a better record or advancing to the 2nd round, so my gut says that the same people would still be crying for Jeff's job either way in that case. While the fans don't know what the rockets have in Spanoulis and Novak, but I am pretty sure the rockets coaching staff and front office has a lot better grasp than their limited play time would imply. Don't forget Chuck Hayes went from undrafted rookie to starter for this team in a year, so it isn't like new players NEVER get a chance to contribute or that limited play in year one means they are bench fodder forever. The bigger problem is we don't have better talent to put on the floor to keep Hayes from being the starter. Improving the roster next year will have alot more to do with improved success than who the coach is.
nothing is official until the team says its official.. i would like to see the Rockets keep Van Gundy and improve their roster... to me, an average NBA fan, which is what everyone else here is, by the way, the talent on the roster and the coach's ability to coach are two separate entities
prove me wrong, show me one televised or documented piece of evidence where Tmac is being screamed by JVG, prove it and I'll shut up huh, before we got him noone really cared about his physical status? they guessed he was ready? well, guy is cheap, let's get him here! I am not sure about that, but on the other hand, Bonzi was fat/bigboned or whatever you want to call it almost his whole career, he was a hard head all of his career, did the management speculate or did they know who to pick up?! what you see is what you get, and it Bonzis case it did not change...you can put it on the management as a bad move, but at the end he did not have issues with the management, it was more a personal than a physical issue with Bonzi and JVG, he was not given a real chance IMO... I am not to defend his case, he made mistakes too, but through years JVG had the same problems with other players, he puts himself way on the top..
I agree about Bonzi, as for Vspan though... I never claimed he would be a perennial all star, I just hinted that he might become an effective role player. I don't think that is too much to ask for now, is it?
No doubt, put me right in there too..... Come on Nick, show us where JVG has criticized TMac directly......
Guess you couldn't understand why you were misapplying it. I guess maybe all of your MIT phd's were busy. PS Stephen Hawking says you're an idiot.
You want the snippet from the telecast like Amel did? Will that make you happy? Because clearly... whatever the average fan sees (or doesn't see) on tv is the only thing that is ever true. What about the games where T-mac was taken out for chucking (earlier this season, in his slump), or where he has to reinforce to T-mac that its okay to have fun out there. Also, you're acting like T-mac was as bad as Rafer or Vspan (guys who did need criticism)... I don't even know who you're criticizing anymore... T-mac, JVG, both? You accuse JVG of being soft with T-mac, and yet he played at an awfully high level throughout the season as well as the post-season. Perhaps he knew what buttons to press. The bottom line is that T-mac brought his game consistently throughout the season... but apparently none of it matters because JVG was unwilling to "yell" at him at the same time the telecast was showing the sidelines for the brief 2-5 minutes per game. (fwiw, I have witnessed the yelling... it was around the same time period when T-mac proceeded to yell at his teammates for slacking the entire 4th quarter).
Judging from how every thread gets hijacked to argue about him, and how people are claiming that JVG should lose his job with his underdevelopment of V-span as a major reason for it... he better damn well be more than simply an effective role player. He's slowly becoming Charles Barkley/Scottie Pippen/Roger Clemens/Luke Scott/Hunter Pence/Matt Schaub all in one (aka - saviors for Houston sports).
JVG should lose his job because he failed to adequatly develop ANYONE from the bench. He failed with V-Span He failed with Snyder He failed with Novak He failed with Bonzi He failed to get the team over the hump doing it his way. He failed to do what Les told him to do in his demeanor. JVG failed.......BUH BYE ! DD
JVG never calls out Tmac....never. He has pulled him for the game for dogging it....Golden State, but he never calls him out. You never hear him going...."TMAC.....DRIVE THE BALL they are in the penalty" Tmac is soft, he doesn't play hard all the time, he coasts....that, more than anything is why he is 0-6 in the playoffs. When Tmac decides to pay the price he will get out of the first round. And it won't be for JVG.....GET THAT ENABLER the hell out of here. DD
And Jerry Sloan failed to develop Kirk Snyder, too.. and Jerry Sloan failed to develop Ronnie Brewer. And Mike D'Antoni failed to develop Marcus Banks. And Phil Jackson failed to develop Smush Parker, Kwame Brown.. And Rick Carlisle failed to develop Sarunas Jasikevicius.
Key is, we don't need an allstar. All I'm upset about is JVG's reluctance to make changes even if things don't work. Don't let the board's sentiments take you away from the facts. I do have faith though that Vspan can be a good role player, anything more than that is just a bonus.
