Not to undermine Amare's atheletic ability, Yao was blocked by a double team. Amare came in to help; he was not Yao's main defender. That basically tells the story when you try to shake off your main defender and your teammate was not able to shield off his man. On the other end, Amare was blocked by Cato because Cato defended Amare. That was a different story as Amare was single-handed by Cato. From that perspective, I don't see how Amare outplayed Yao in aggressiveness as he did not need to face double team most of the time while Yao had to. We can say Amare's game is more a power game like Shaq but that does not mean he is more aggressive, which is more mental. Even with these factors not reflected on stat, Yao is still alightly better than Amare in most categories according to the stat.
For some reason, Yao and the Rox looks really determine to kick Phoenix's butt. I guess they just can't stand losing to the Suns. I smelled a rivalry.
Postgame quotes POSTGAME QUOTES NOVEMBER 14, 2003 ROCKETS COACH JEFF VAN GUNDY On whether it was one of those games where shots weren’t falling and other ways had to be found to win: "Well, I thought in the second half we did. I thought in the first half we didn’t. In the second half we were much more active. I thought we really fought and at the same time, I thought Cuttino (Mobley) made a couple of great plays, particularly his skip pass to Jim (Jackson) when they took away his isolation with the zone principles. We did some good things and we know they’re a very, very quality team. It makes it a real good win.” On whether they doubled on Stephon Marbury: "We did it the first three or four plays of the game, too, when he dribbled out; but he’s a hard guy to guard and we’re asking guys like (Kelvin) Cato, I mean, I’m so proud of Kelvin. He played 37 minutes, he is trapping, 35 feet from the basket, getting back, playing defense, taking the charge. We’re asking him to do things that are really difficult for even the quickest power forwards. So I can’t say enough about the effort he’s been giving us.” On Cuttino Mobley’s eight assists: "Well, it’s the same thing as last night. Anybody can take you out of any play in the NBA now the way the rules are set. But they shouldn’t be able to stop us when they over-commit to one player or one side of the floor from us getting a quality shot. Sometimes you’ve just got to be a playmaker.” On how important this win is with an upcoming road trip: "It’s just important to win every game. Every game matters the same in the regular season and it’s very easy in the West to know that, it’s going to be very difficult to get one of the eight spots so we’re going to have to do a lot of games.” On the play of Kelvin Cato: "To think he could play 37 minutes of that intensity, you know he’s made great strides in his conditioning. I think he still realizes he needs to make more strides in his conditioning, but he has come so far since the summer, it makes me feel good for him.” On if the players are feeding off one another: "We’re not trying to sell (Kelvin Cato) as a classic power forward and he doesn’t consider himself such, but he brings toughness, defense, rebounding, protecting the paint, the activity level we spoke about before, you know, trap (Stephon) Marbury. These things are certainly what you need in a power forward next to Yao (Ming), who obviously has a long way to go from an aggression standpoint.” On what was done better in the second half: "Well, we were out-rebounded by six in the first half, we were even on the boards in the second half. We hit the floor, got a couple of loose balls, we made multiple efforts to close the lane down and still get back to shooters. We hit the floor, all stuff you’ve got to do if you want to win.” On the spirit of the bench: "If you watch our bench, which I can’t say enough about as well, I think we derived great spirit from our bench tonight. Our bench is alive, they’re into the game, guys that don’t play, guys that do play, and I think those types of plays bring you a spirit that’s hard to quantify what it actually means in the final score, but I know in the course of a season, it means a great deal.” -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- YAO MING On Amare Stoudemire: "He helped close a lot of gaps (defensively) for the Suns tonight." On having Kelvin Cato in the starting lineup: "Having another big strong person out there allows us to not get pushed out to the exterior." On playing tonight after a game last night: "It feels good getting the win. The game was tiring for me. There were guys who were more tired than me, but we kept going and we were winners today. Their center (Jahidi White) is like a forklift." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- STEVE FRANCIS On the key to the win: "I thought in the second half we buckled down against what was kind of a fast-paced game. We were able to execute on offense the way we wanted to. We wanted to establish the inside as usual and our guards did a good job of recognizing that and getting the ball inside to Yao." On bouncing back from the loss last night: "We lacked (the same effort) last night in Dallas. We didn’t get the loose balls. We didn’t get the jump balls and the balls that were bouncing out of bounds weren’t going our way. Tonight was a good challenge for us, especially after losing last night and coming back with an emotional effort from all the guys." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- KELVIN CATO On his preparation: "We all matched up pretty well, but this is the league. You have to come out here every night and play hard regardless of who you’re playing. It doesn’t make a difference what their record is. This is the league. Everybody out here can play and can compete." On the play of Amare Stoudemire: "He’s working hard on his stuff. He is getting a lot better. He made some jumpers that I didn’t think he was going to make. He is a complete player. Her rebounds well, he block shots, and he scores. He is not just dunking the ball every time now. He is getting better."
------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Lol! I always knew Amare should have been on the WNBA.
I don't think you should worry that he's already peaked. I mean, look at Dirk Nowitzki. He really, really, really stunk his first year, and it took him a long, long time to adapt to the NBA and become the player he is now. Yao hasn't peaked. If he was 26 years old, then maybe you can say that, but he's only 23. Kobe is 25, and people say that he's still years away from peaking. Anyway, if you look at all the old articles about yao right after draft night, the Rockets seemed to be expecting Yao to start playing well his third year. They originally planned to develop Yao the way the Pistons are developing Darko. Currently, the Pistons are benching Darko (he may play a minute here and there), then next year, he'll be a steady guy off the bench, and then the third year (when they figure the current stars will start to age), they'll be counting on him as a crucial starter. I think the Rockets had that very same plan, and then Yao surprised everyone when he proved to be a player they could start and use and rely on right away. Guys, there are two kinds of superstars. The first comes in right away (ala Jordan or Robinson or O Neal) and explode. The second kind grow into their talent, but in the end, a great player is a great player. yao isn't a great player now. At best, he's a good player (and that's not a bad thing at all), but don't count him out because of his current shortcomings. I mean, Boki is in the same rookie class as Yao, and are we worrying that Boki has already peaked? Of course, not. Despite his mistakes, we're thrilled by his upgraded role on the team and improvement. Yao has probably made more improvements than Boki, but because he's a starter and plays 28 to 30 minutes, we tend to forget that the best has yet to come and we criticize him as if he's been in the league as long as Francis. (By the way, I dont even think Francis has even peaked as an overall player yet). A lot of the mistakes he's making are the kind that a 1st year or 2nd year player would make. That's why veterans always have an edge--experience in the league makes consitency easier. His stamina can only increase. His turnovers can only decrease as he understands the offense and his role in the offense and where he feels most comfortable with the ball in the paint--and as his teammates figure out exactly where he likes to get the ball. And his confidence will only increase. Steve is pretty much a young veteran now, but I believe the same about him. His court vision is improving, and he's figuring out how to refine his talent so he can be a better overall point guard. Look for much better things from the Franchise, too. For all our gripes about the Rockets don't do right, at least we have the assurance that they're still a young time, and therefore can grow out of these mistakes. If they weren't, then I would really worry. But they're young (though they're not getting any younger), and Yao, Steve, Boki, and even Padgett are going to see better times in their game in the future. Eddie Griffen, too--if he's still on the time. In the meantime, we have good solid players who probably have already peaked--Cuttino, Jackson, M. Tayler, Pike, A. Griffen. Moochie? Well, we value him the way Notredame's football team valued Rudy Rutteger. John Amaechi--without a doubt, he'll be the league MVP in three years time
Also, look at all the patience we gave E. Griffen (sp?), despite how he wasn't peaking like that guy from new Jersey (the one we trade EG. for). I hope Eddie does come back. We could still really use him. Who knows? Maybe he'll decide to play, despite not having his contract extended, turn over a new leaf, and really become the player he was meant to become--and then the Rockets try to resign him during the next offseason. He's young and talented, regardless of his stats. it'd be a great story if he turned himself around and really gave the Rockets a big boost. I could see it. The Rockets are in the first round of the playoffs, playing, let's say, the Spurs, and Eddie wins the deciding game with a key block on one end, and a nice trey on the other. Maybe, I'm wishing too much. But I hope the best works out with him. He would ONLY make a bench that much deeper.
