If the starting lineup is not . . . ill lose my mind

10 minutes a game? r are you kidding me?

 

Yes, this isn't the francis of 5 years ago like so many people believe or want to believe just due to nostalgia. James should be getting 30 mins a game with the other 18 minutes to be divided by francis and whoever else we end up keeping.

 

ya but atleast 20 a night for francis...not 10...he can play point and sg so theres other ways to use him

 

Well I think 20 is kind of the high end for francis. I see francis as like a payton, trying to ride the coat tails of yao and tmac to a championship, without really contributing much himself.

 

I have a different opinion on Francis. I think he is looking to contribute...

With all the doubts from Orlando, NY, and Portland, he is eager to prove himself that

1) He can still play like a star
2) He has matured

 

Thats great......and I also dont think Francis should start.

 

Oh I have no doubt Francis THINKS he can contribute, cause his ego wouldn't allow any less. I just have doubts that he can actually contribute much with his diminished skills now and broken down body.

 

Yeah and every one of those players (including Ben Wallace) is a better offensive player than Hayes.

Wallace and Bowen are elite defensive players, which Hayes isn't. He's a good defensive player, but Wallace and Bowen are 1st team All-Defense kind of guys.

Buck Williams was a good post up player that averaged over 15 ppg each of his first 7 years in the league. Three times he averaged over 18ppg. How in the world can you compare a guy like that to Chuck Hayes?

Don't you think that it's an overstatement to say that Elie "flourished" under Adelman? Elie only played one season for Adelman and he averaged 8.6 pts and shot 45%. The previous season in Golden State he averaged 7.8 ppg and shot 52%. In fact, after one season Adelman traded him to Houston for a 2nd round pick.

As for Fox, Harper and Payton, those guys could score the ball. In their best seasons, Fox averaged 15ppg, Harper 23 ppg and Payton 25ppg. Even at the ends of their careers when they became role players, they took fewer shots, but they never were an offensive liability.

 

Elie "flourished". Ok I agree. Overstatement. But Williams offense fell off which I indicated, yet he still maintained a prominent position. Jerome Kersey got most of his points running the floor getting easy baskets. I think Hayes could get some high % buckets running the floor and roaming the deep block when Yao is up high. Hayes can still be a weapon on offense despite his limited abilities. Pollard and Keon Clark would come into the game and score quick baskets while roaming the low blocks.

I keep defending Hayes. Its because I think consistency is vital. A rookie won't provide that. Its not so much I love Hayes (although I do) as it is me being weary of starting a rookie.

 

Good thing scola isn't a rookie then.

 

Good for you. On the other hand, Adelman and Morey don't have the same doubts.

 

they both have their doubts...it was just too good of price to pass up on....like last year everyone had doubts about bonzi, but it was worth the risk.

 

Agreed that Buck Williams offense fell off in Portland. There simply weren't enough shots for him after Drexler, Porter, Kersey and Duckworth got theirs. That's not the point though. The point is that Williams had the ability to score and you couldn't totally ignore him the way you can Hayes. Same for all the other guys that you mentioned earlier.

Jerome Kersey had a jump shot, which is something Chuck Hayes doesn't have. He could also slash to the basket. Teams had to account for Kersey.

Pollard and Clark are good examples of how Adelman can use Hayes. I'm glad you brought them up, but you're making my point for me. Now remind me, were they primarily starters or bench players? That's right, they came off the bench, which is exactly what I expect Hayes to do. Come off the bench and provide some energy in limited minutes. What were Adleman's starting bigs like? They had offensive skills and were good passers. Does that sound more like Scola or Hayes?

Nobody is saying Hayes can't contribute. The argument is to your statement that he will/should start. He's got limited ability, but he makes up for some of it with heart and desire. That's great and that can help any team, but his heart and desire don't overcome enough to make him starter material. He's simply ovrematched as a starter. He needs to be a high energy guy coming off the bench playing limited minutes (ala Najera).

 

What I should have said was "doubts to the same degree." Some people tend to think that Steve Francis is a certain chemistry killer and team cancer, which is just not true.

Morey, even if he had doubts, said we were looking for penetration guys and Steve was the best among the available.

The objective numbers seems to back him up. Even a supposedly diminished Francis still did a good job getting to the basket and drawing fouls at a higher rate than any of the other small guards they got. In fact, last season, his per 40 min stats were fairly similar to that of his season under Van Gundy.

 

stats can be manipulated any way you want to...the only stat that matters is helping a team win...stevo has been on one playoff team...but he can help. its just depends on how he sees himself. its easy to talk about only wanting to win now, or telling the media what it wants to hear, but its another to truly change yourself. the players will be the only ones to truly know if stevo really has changed.

 

According to Yao Ming, Steve did change under Van Gundy, in his one playoff season. He probably was not happy about it, but he did it.

 

Well also according to Yao, Steve and Cat tried to get him to join a players revolt to get jvg fired.

 

Some informative tidbits:

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/bk/bkn/4976798.html

Scola fills Adelman's bill
Coach's fantasy becomes Rockets' new-look reality


By FRAN BLINEBURY
Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle

Complete Rockets coverage In the days before the NBA draft and the start of the free-agent signing period, Rick Adelman was practically bleary-eyed from watching video.

There were dozens of college prospects who might have been worth rolling the dice on with the 26th pick in the first round, handfuls of veteran free agents who would soon be looking for a new home and bigger paydays.

Then there was one video the new Rockets boss watched like a kid with his nose pressed against a candy store window.

"Look, we had to fill that power forward spot and you always want to be familiar with all of the players," Adelman said. "I had heard his name, but you knew the Spurs had his rights.

"Then I looked at the film and said, 'Oh, that's the guy. He'd be perfect for us and everything we want to do.' But I never got excited, because I didn't think it could ever happen. It was strictly fantasy stuff."


'More open to change'
On Tuesday afternoon, Luis Scola was a 6-9, 245-pound fantasy come to life, sliding like a perfect fit into a custom-made pair of Manolo Blahniks.

"I've looked at a lot of tape on Luis and the way he plays," said an almost giddy Adelman. "I think he's going to be a great attribute to Yao (Ming), because he's very active. There is always movement. He's a good passer. Of all the people we looked at in terms of being a complement to Yao, he really fills the bill."

Scola, 27, was a second-round draft choice by San Antonio in 2002, but he could never come to an agreement to play for the Spurs. A member of Argentina's gold-medal team at the 2004 Olympics, he has spent the past seven seasons with Tau Ceramica, winning a Spanish league title and twice being named MVP in the last three years.

"It's hard to know why I did not come (to the NBA) before now," Scola said. "Maybe I could have done it a couple of years ago when I was younger. Maybe now, I'm just more open to change. Different food, different league, different teammates.

"For every basketball player, the NBA is the dream. This has been my dream since I was a little kid. When I first started playing for the international team against NBA players, I could see that I was coming closer. It becomes a goal.

"You want to be the best player that you can be. For that, you have to play against the best players. The NBA has the best players in the world."

Despite the fact he might have been part of three NBA titles with the Spurs over the past five years, Scola couldn't have landed with a winning team that needs him as much as the Rockets. He provides size at a position where they were small. He brings a good shot, fine passing instincts and plenty of hustle.

"He's someone who we think can come in and contribute right away to the team," Rockets general manager Daryl Morey said. "It may take some time for the team to mesh with a new coach, new players. But we feel that by next year's playoffs, we have really improved with the addition of Luis."


A passer deluxe
Adelman is envisioning who can move the ball and make scoring opportunities easier for Yao and Tracy McGrady.

"With Yao and Tracy both, we need players who are going to be active and aggressive," Adelman said. "In the offense that we like to run, you want to have a lot of activity on the floor to make it easier for your better players to be effective.

"I think he can do that as far as cutting to the basket or passing the ball. The more passers you have on the floor, the more scorers you have, the harder you are to defend. He really fits the bill."

Scola will play for Argentina this summer in the Tournament of Americas, the qualifying tournament for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. There, he'll be reunited with Manu Ginobili, who could have been his teammate in San Antonio.

"Manu was the first one to call me after the trade became official," Scola said. "He is a great friend, a great player. It would have been fun and an honor to play with Manu and Tim Duncan. I would like to have been part of those rings they won.

"Now I am here. I am happy to be in Houston. Manu and I will always be friends. But when we play in the NBA next season, I will only try to beat him."

fran.blinebury@chron.com

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Scola is exactly what Adelman wants to compliment, not Deke, not Butler, but Yao Ming. He's Adelman type of player. Morey thinks Scola can contribute immediately. He is NBA ready.

By all accounts Scola is a tenacious mofo on the court, comparing him to the quitessential flower forward JHo is a bit off. I think Scola is gonna surprise a lot people.

 

hayes will be a better compliment to yao to start, but i trust morey that scola will be a great compliment to yao...all praise to morey

 

Personly, i don't like rafer due to his poor shooting, though he got the most 3s last season.