I wish he would drill it into his players heads to stop double teaming all the time and letting the opponents have VERY EASY open shots. That's what nearly took the game away today.
I think JVG is one of the best coaches in the league and I think his coaching style is a great fit for Yao. I honestly don't think I'd replace him even if we could pick any coach.
Everybody can have a win. Coming out and saying 'fire xxx' after a win would make people look like a hater. But a win can not save JVG's a$$. I mean, look at the big picture of last 3 years. I don't see a successful path. It's always up and down. And the roster rotation hasn't been that successful except the trade for TMac. You can say those were Les' fault but it's not likely that JVG didn't have a big part in them. He may have won the hearts of some New York fans. But the Rockets under his lead has been a passionless and inconsistant team. Sorry I just don't see how he can lead the team to champainship, although he talks about it all the time.
His first year here, he took the Rockets back to the playoffs for the first time in quite a while. 2nd year lead his team to a 50 win season. 13-4, I think, since the all star break. 20-10 when both Yao and T-mac play the full game. I think he consistent when he has a full compliment of players and has the respect of his players.
Both year Rox was kicked out in the first round. I actually didn't blame him the first time since Lakers made the finals that year and they were clearly a better team. Last year's defeat was worse. Rox led the series 2-0. Before last year, no Houston team ever lost a series after winning first two games on the road. Yet Rox pulled a Phoenix Suns themselves, lost 4 of next 5 games and made history with a humiliating 40pts loss in the last game. More importantly, JVG was outcoached by a rookie during most of the series. He failed to adjust after Avery Johnson changed game plan in game 3 and had no answer to Dallas's small ball throughout the rest of series. That was when I started to doubt his ability. Great coachs have to make quick adjustment to different situations. But that seems to be JVG's biggest weakness. He is very slow in terms of adjustment. Very few ppl will argue that he is a good coach, even edc admits JVG's preparation for the game is excellent, but a lot of us question if he has the championship coach quality and if he is the right coach to lead Rox to the next level instead of just trying to make playoffs every year.
But be honest Rockets03... If we lose to the Spurs this weekend, aren't you going to come here and lay the blame where you always do? The thing that ticks me off is that you are straddling the fence. Of course we all want the Rockets to win. But you either support or don't. In your case, you support if he wins. But if he loses, you throw him to the sharks. You can't have it both ways. I support him no matter what. Not blindly because I do find faults. He is not perfect. But you give me Gundy and two good outside shooters to go with Yao and Mac and I will take my chances against anyone, anytime, anywhere. The way Gundy coaches is the way to do it when you have a big man that dominates or is at least above average. Play the half court. NO RUNNING TEAM besides the Lakers of the 80's won a championship!! Your beloved Rudy T. used Olajuwon as the catalyst for the offense. And play tough D. And run when you can. I never see a game where Gundy does NOT waves his arm to push the ball up the court when there is an opening. But whatever. Its like I am talking to myself. 95 percent of the people hate the guy win/lose/draw. Most hide when we are winning. And come out when there is a triple OT loss to the Pistons or something like that.
Be honest ivanyy2000, did you think the Rockets were gonna win that series BEFORE IT STARTED? I was hopeful but I thought it would have been a minor miracle. Why? Some teams just don't matchup well with other teams. The Rockets of the early 90's got decimated by Seattle every year. I think we could have beat the Bulls in the finals but we could never get past Seattle that we ALWAYS seems to get paired up with in an early round. The Rockets got beat by a Mavs team whos stregnths played to all our weaknesses. I liked our chances against any other team, including the Spurs. The Suns, like the Mavs, were hard on us but we had success against them. 1. Their best player, Jirk, was our weakest position. Bowen was our starter. 2. They rely on athletic permimeter players of which we have NONE. 3. They have terrific outside shooters and JVG's plan is to shut down the paint (which probably 85% of the time, that works. I'll take those odds). The Mavs and the Suns were (and continue to be) our worst matchups. The fact we took them to 7 games at all was amazing. EVERYBODY was picking Dallas to win in 5 games. The Rockets played as well as they could but just got outmatched by the Mavs. That is why everybody we brought in this summer was younger and more athletic. JVG did as best he could with what he had. I hope we get to play them again cause we got guys that can matchup MUCH better this time around.
And to add to that...., as much as it pains me, but Avery Johnson seems to have some real coaching chops
I like JVG and hope he stays and suceeds. That said, Almu you didn't need to bring this back up. Whenever we lose, people bring this up and list in-game reasons why he should be fired. Whenever we win, someone brings this up and asks where everyone went. Just let it die, for the love of God..
Is anyone else just in awe that Almu is blasting someone <I>else</I> for only showing up in this thread when it is convenient and loving/hating someone because they are from a certain city? The irony is just too rich.
Amen to that Clutch! If you lock this thread and put a ban on "Fire JVG" threads say for the next year or two I put $100 clams in the tip jar for ya....Pretty please?
jvg is a solid, respected and astute coach who is also a disciplinarian. ( see stro smith.) AND he gets his players back, without kissing them in public. That's why TM says he's the best he's ever had. Because he is! I AM NOT saying he's "the best bb coach on planet earth, although some of you seem to feel that guy is probably in china or something. : ).. still, given this team this situation this year, he's a fit. Stop the hacking! And as noteld many times, the main reason for the rise of the rockets is so simple, Yao has a healthy Big Toe. I know that sounds simplistic, but bb is a simple game really. Seriously, did you EVER believe that Yao would pull off the spins, Yao Shakes and rim slams he is getting used too? I sure didn't. GO BIG FELLA Sure makes JVG look pretty smart right now !
How can anyone draw any conclusion on JVG at this point of the season? With the situation we have been all season (injuries, player changes), there is no way to say how well this team should have performed, under any coach! So you cannot blame the guy for the Rockets' performance this season. The same goes true for those JVG lovers. We have sucked big time this year, you can blame the injuries, or player changes, but the fact remains we have played terrible, we lost the games we were supposed to lose, and we have lost the games we should have won. So to say JVG is a good coach, based on how the Rockets have been playing this season, is over reach.
No, Clutch. The hypocrisy is where its rich. I just like consistency. How annoying is it to come on the board after a loss and hear the same crap on this thread. Or the many incoherent ones that float around the BBS since he got here? Well, if you want the guy fired, lets get him fired WIN OR LOSE. The reasons to fire him are dumb. Because he can't win when BOTH his main players are out? Because we can't beat the Suns? Or is it because he is a New Yorker? Or because he doesn't smile. Doesn't stop being miserable unless we win a title? The guy can do no right. I don't base his coaching on this season. I base it on the fact that Rudy had the same team and didnt make the playoffs. The same team the next year with Gundy as coach, got to the playoffs. The year after, we won 50 games and though we lost in the end, NOBODY on this board came away with any "fire Gundy" crap afterwards. Everyone was pretty stoked because NOBODY thought we would do what we did last year. I base it on that and on the fact the man has never had a losing season and is trying his damnest night in and night out to get the Rockets to the playoffs DESPITE the very worst circumstances this year injury wise. On top of that, people b****ed that Yao wasn't growing under his "system" and yet it looks like Yao is doing EXACTLY that with another "New Yorker" mentoring him on the side. That theory is proving false. You see anyone mentioning the positives? Its like "sure, Saddam held the country in place and we were at peace and there were no troops to worry about over there... but I just don't like him. Lets invade!" Like I said, Clutchy. The man can do no right. Its about being fair. Not judgmental like 95% of the instant Quaker Oats fanatics that somehow have infiltrated this place. So, lets fire him. Win or lose. I bring up the thread because when we are winning, the haters run. Or say things like "I want Gundy to succeed. I love the Rocks, etc. BUT..." Please.
Like I've said before Almu, you're seriously obsessed about this JVG-Houston-New York thing, and you've become a bit of a clown in recent years because of it. I don't think JVG should be fired ... people forget too easily how well they played last year. However, you're just as quiet when the Rockets lose and you're not even reading some of the things people complain about in this thread. His offenses are unimaginative, his substitutions are not wise, he's obsessed with a no-talent hack like Ryan Bowen, he tears in to the team publically laying blame at their feet, he did not put our roster in a terrific position this season (D.A., Padgett, re-signing Bowen, Alston-James, Jon Barry) and we have no shooters -- and that he played a large role in all of that. I think that's a little more substance than "he doesn't smile". Year 1 of JVG I loved that he took the players to task publically... loved the discipline he brought (this place was like a playground for these guys before he came). But that year, those weren't the players he chose. We're in Year 3 now and when he goes postal about effort and quickness and talent, I think to myself, "Who brought these guys in and who is supposed to be coaching them?" And you know Almu -- You love New York and don't care for Houston any longer ... good for you. I don't hate the city of New York. But while you're dry-humping the Statue of Liberty over there, at least consider the possibility that JVG hasn't exactly been Norman Dale so far this season and all the complainers aren't infected with some irrational confederate hatred of your guy because he's a yankee that ain't like all us good ol boy hicks livin' on the farm. Pass the butter, ma!
