Still no love for "old man" Tate out there. He was 2 barely missed layups from having a career night. Although half of you wanted to trade him for a bag of chips this summer, Stone will have a lot of offers for him at the deadline I'm sure will hard to turn down.
https://theathletic.com/2931735/202...rockets-were-fearless-against-veteran-lakers/ “Game 2” of Lakers-Rockets was extremely competitive and exciting. There were highlight plays galore from both teams, and the 236 combined points indicate an overly offensive exhibition — which is exactly why I want to start this with a conversation about Jae’Sean Tate’s defense. Remember when P.J. Tucker and all 6 foot 5 of him held the title as the defensive glue that held Houston together? Remember when that job was Trevor Ariza’s? Well, there’s a new sheriff in town. If the Rockets ever want to be even a half-decent defensive unit, they’ll need every minute of Tate they can get. What was once a legit three-man battle for the starting small forward spot looks like it’s trending in one direction now. Some of that is simply circumstantial — Eric Gordon has missed some time with injuries, as has Danuel House — but man, if Tate is hitting his shots I just don’t see why Silas would opt for anything else. The man simply oozes versatility and IQ. You’re going to see two incredibly crucial fourth-quarter possessions in a high-stakes game (I only use “high-stakes” because Houston surprised the Lakers honestly, and Staples Center was electric). Just watch Tate wrestle and battle with the 7-footer Anthony Davis. No, seriously, watch. This looks like a cage match. Tucker watching this game down the stretch probably had an expression similar to the Spiderman GIF or the Leonardo DiCaprio one, because this is a carbon copy. Most of the battle is won before the ball is ever entered into Davis, which is what high-level defenders tend to do. Tate’s enthusiasm and energy are infectious — just look at Houston’s bench a few feet away, engaged as ever. Vid On the very next Lakers possession, Tate is matched up with Russell Westbrook. As most know, Westbrook is adept at breaking the first wall of defense. He typically uses his speed and power to plow through hopeless souls en route to the rim, but Tate has a different agenda. There’s just no easy angle to take because Tate has walled everything off. Watch Tate’s left hand after Westbrook resets. It’s Lockdown 101, up at an angle ready to react to another dribble or shot. Vid Tate also spent time defending LeBron James and any other Lakers player who managed to have the ball out in front of him. There’s a certain level of trust that has been established between him and Silas dating back to his rookie season. “It’s huge,” Silas said of Tate’s versatility. “It’s huge, but it’s his mentality, you know? His versatility is great, and his strength and size are great for our group, but he wanted it. He wanted to guard those guys, and he wants to be in those situations. He wants to be like the stopper down the stretch. He was good (Tuesday) with his scoring, his crashing the glass and then his defense. For a second-year player, that’s pretty good.” “That’s my role,” Tate added. “That’s what I’m on the court at different times for because I feel like I can be an elite defender. And Coach trusts me. He trusts me on the best players on the other team, and my teammates trust me.” Tate finished with a season-high 20 points, going 9 of 15 from the field and hitting two of his four 3-pointers — and he should have had more. There were a few easy finishes around the rim that he rushed, but that’s OK. Tate’s impact always seems to go beyond the box score. There aren’t too many conversations about him that won’t have words like “energy” and “hustle,” but his rebounds and second-chance efforts just feel bigger. Last season, the Rockets defended 5.3 points better with him on the floor. This season, that number has more than doubled, to 11.3 (per Cleaning the Glass). That sounds like someone who should be on the floor as much as possible if the Rockets want to see growth in their young group.
How many people can play top tier defense on Anthony Davis one possession, get a block on Westbrook on a hard drive to the rim the very next play, then guard Lebron a few possessions later?
If you want to have a truly great team you need a player like Tate. Someone who does not demand the ball, can score points when open and lock up a wide range of players. Every starter can not average 20 points per game. . . . . He is more valuable than people realize. Lock this guy up and move on to more pressing issues with this team. Versatile defender that is a utility scorer is a role that teams can overlook at their own peril. The great thing is he is young and fits with our rebuild.
He belongs in the NBA, which is already a lot for a professional basketball player. There's no way he ever gets to the all-star level but he definitely belongs in the NBA. He's the type of scrappy player all teams would love to have
One thing for sure. That spin cycle move is always on maximum He averages 12 points, 10, rebounds and 10 spin moves
I really hope we keep Tate for a long time. We do good with those defensive glue guy players. Battier, Ariza, Tucker - these were foundational players for us, hopefully Tate has years of being that for us.
Tate is like the wing version of Chuck Hayes and has a little PJ in him as well. Great defender and smart enough to score when the opportunity arises. Eventually, I think he'll be able to be a defensive coach on the floor like Battier was (just needs more experience). I do wonder however if he'll be easier to guard on offense once the scouting reports start including his spin moves. A more consistent 3 shot would help him immensely. In any case, I want to keep him on this team - players with this mentality who are effective are rarer than hyper athletic guys with less gray matter and/or heart.
He's still one of my favorite players on this team. He's a Houston-type player even though he's foreign-born (Ohio). Needs to retire a Rocket.
We have King Tuck with the Astros and Tate-uncommon with the Rockets. Two of my favorites that I hope stay til retiring.
