It is all about matchups. Adelman did not have some secret plan to unleash the terror that is Dikembe Mutombo Mpolondo (.....................) Mukamba Jean-Jacques Wamutombo on the league, he just happened to realize that Deke is a natural choice for backing up Yao against the big men Portland has. The 4/5 seeding is good for Deke, should we get past Portland he will certainly see a big role as well against the Lakers. It is matchups, nothing more.
I wish i could dig up the old thread where tons of people were saying we didn't need Deke, that he was washed up, and the mighty Joey Dorsey would easily take his place.
Deke is a monster!! I honestly think he could still win defensive player of the year even at his age. Amazing
There is no doubt the big mistake of 2007 and 2008 by JVG and Adelman. They should have played Deke more. He was dominating the regular season and all of the sudden he was taken out during crucial times in the playoffs. I guess we learned from it.
Well Deke is old and i don't think he'll be effective in terms of play-offs if he played every single regular season game game. This is a good matchup for Deke to play in because of Oden and Pryz. They are true centers. I'm not really sure how Deke will fare against the Lakers big men. Gasol is tall and talented and they can switch their power forward at center which gives them athleticism and outside shot.
I LOVE Deke. Was so glad to see him enter the game. I kept hoping that in the game against Dallas he would come in and see what he could do to shake/change things up. So perhaps RA was saving him for the playoffs. Really hope that he will come back next year and the next....... Interesting point to have both Yao and Deke playing at the same time!
I think Deke has a few more years left in him if he just plays backup. His age doesn't seem to matter too much since he doesn't rely on his athleticism. Deke should be getting 10-15 minutes every playoff game unless the other team plays a shooting big man. His defensive presence is just too valuable to keep on the bench. His lack of offensive skills should not be a concern because he knows how to be effective without getting touches.
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2009) Plot: Yao shoots & in. Yao misses & Dike rebounds & Yao shoots again & in. Rockets get the ring.
See, I don't buy that even though he doesn't need to play every single game. When you have a few days off you should be able to go, even at 42/43. He doesn't even play that much, 20 mins tops. Playing only 9 games did nothing good for Deke and we could've used him a lot more so it is just disrespectful. Despite what arguments RA might use, he and the whole Rockets organisation disrespected Deke by not bringing him back earlier. I think RA doesn't even like Deke, he said something earlier this year that if they were going to sign him it would be only if Yao went down. Talk about being disrespectful to a veteran who has been lowballed by the Rockets organisation for most of his time here. Having said that, Deke should've played in at least half the games this year and played about 10-20 mins in each of those games. I'm confident we would've won more games and I think Deke will be key if we get to see the Lakers / Jazz. However, I think this is the most we will see if Deke and don't be suprised if Hayes comes in off the bench in game 2 instead of Deke.
I know we had one a week back, but no Dikembe Mutombo Mpolondo Mukamba Jean-Jacques Wamutombo Appreciation Thread is complete without his full name Dikembe Mutombo Mpolondo Mukamba Jean-Jacques Wamutombo in the thread title. Deke is such a bad bad man that his name alone whips anyone else's butt.
Me love Cookie Monster! Seriously, Mutombo turned back the clock last night. For him to be able to come off of the bench and perform the way he does is nothing short of amazing.
Yes I loved that. It looked like he was mad at Yao for not standing tall. Mutumbo doesn't approve of taking charges. Deke could have flopped 20 times when Oden kept shoulder slamming him but Mutumbo just tried to fight through it and still contest the shot.
