i don't want to sound like i'm overreacting, but doing this for wins now means we're gonna have an exhausted team come playoff time. like the lakers, playing out stars 40+ minutes is not a good formula. as of now alston and battier are leading the team in minutes per game with 36, tmac's at 35, and yao is at 33. kobe averages 40, and odom 39 minutes per game marion plays 38, nash 35. dirk, jho, terry are all in the 35-36 minute range duncan plays 34, and parker plays 32 minutes. this would be my complaint with JVG, his rotation pattern... similarly, leaving 3 or 4 starters in when we're up 20 with 2 minutes to play. sure yao's been out, but there are still plenty of games left for the team to build cohesiveness. i think someone posted this already, but i like pop's thinking http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/stories/MYSA031807.06C.BKNspurs.notebook.3c8b857.html just my thoughts
maybe the bench play sucks bc jvg has luther effin head running point. it doesn't take a genius to figure out that's a recipe for disaster. snyder has done a good job bringin the ball up and playing solid defense. if jvg is so concerned about our bench, he needs to question his strategy of having head bring the ball up court when he obviously struggles, instead of using the much more effective snyder. snyder on the court as a big 1 should allow head to drain all the 3s he wants while not having to shoulder point duties. in other news, i wish livingston were healthy, bc the clippers could've really given dallas or phoenix fits in the 1st round with a fully healthy team. especially if cassell is in good shape.
Sort of a catch-22 about playing Head at PG....he's not big enough to guard most SG's, but he doesn't have enough skills to play PG.
I dunno, these guys are pro athletes. They train and condition for this kind of stuff. I don't worry about them getting tired down the stretch. I hope I'm right.
this board seems to have A LOT of dissenters on this idea. tmac and yao just play too much, or it's something like, develop the bench JVG, you IDIOT! IF you would have, rox would not only have a fresh tmac and yao, BUT a DEEP BENCH. And to augment their opinion, yao and tmac wouldn't be hurt so much!
I'm generally in the same line of thinking. I don't really believe long-term fatigue is an issue. However, aches and pains, and injuries are related to PT. Kobe Bryant is an ironman. Yao and McGrady, not so much. Alston and Battier are relative ironmen (which is probably why they are our current PT leaders). If we're increasing someone's time, it should be theirs. Of course, once we're actually in the playoffs, McGrady and Yao will have to play every minute they're needed.
boo hoo, the poor guys will be tired even though the rockets have been winning they have not looked good. it would be nice to fix that problem before the playoffs. plus, its not like the playoffs (especially the first round) is back to back games every night. isnt there like a 4 day break before the first game?
I can't believe some of you people. McGrady just two years ago was one of the top 5 players in the league in minutes played per game. You really think he doesn't have the stamina to handle 40 minutes per night?
What other choice does Van Gundy have? Rest up his star player thereby risking our chance to gain home court advantage against the Jazz? We need to win games here to have a better chance in the playoffs. I'm all for this decision.
HCA is only going to help in the first round. 1 extra game in houston could make a difference, but i'd like to think that the rockets will handle the jazz before it gets to a game 7.
tmac averages 35 mins this yr. i think JVG thinks of the playoffs and the "big picture" so that's why tmac hasn't played 40 mins like he did 2 yrs ago, which was ridiculous. in the playoffs 2 yrs ago, tmac played 43 mins a game. so expect when we start the playoffs, tmac will play 41-42 mins once again. i think he said this b/c whenever tmac goes out, we suck offensively w/ no understanding of what play to run. tmac will get his normal ret in the 2nd quarter, but he might play the entire 2nd half from now on if the game is too close. for instance, the last 2 games should be comfortable wins but when tmac goes out for his 2nd quarter rest, we can't score. that was obvious v. hornets.
what's stupid about that? every time i've seen snyder bring the ball up court, he's gotten across the half-court line in like 1 second without any real trouble. the only time he turns it over is when he tries to start a fastbreak by himself. telling him to slow the ball down is a lot easier than telling luther to be able to see over defenders and not dribble himself into a trap. every time luther brings it up, we run our shot clock down to about 17 before he gets across. if you have any basketball sense you'd see that luther at the point is an exercise in futility. maybe kirk isn't the smartest player, but his size lets him handle ball pressure much better than what luther's shown himself to be capable of. now, if you have a legitimate reason to say my idea is stupid, then say it. only jackasses toss out disparaging statements without backing them up.
again, he says this i think if the game is close in the 2nd half. if we handle teams, mac ain't gonna smell 35 mins. don't worry. he won't play heavy mins EVERY game.
dookiester, Snyder has no point guard skills whatsoever. He's got the traditional, athletic swingman, 3-4 step handles. He gets the ball up because no one is expecting it and he doesn't get real pressure. Luther's not a point guard, but his ball handling under real pressure will put Snyder's to shame.
alright these are valid points. but the problem with your logic is that i don't really think luther's handling under 'real pressure' is going to put ANYBODY to shame. in fact, whenever there's been significant pressure, luther has struggled mightily and is prone to turnover the ball. even once he's our halfcourt set, his passing is slow and predictable because he winds up his passes. so from everything i've seen, what you've said about Snyder having no point guard skills whatsoever applies equally to luther head. the fact that no body pressures snyder should be all the more reason to go to him. if they pressure him and he struggles more than luther already does, then i've got no complaints.
