Rodman always came to camp in extraordinary shape. The only coach Bonzi has ever gotten along with was Adelman. Though I loved JVG and his style, it was time for a change. I am glad they brought in Adelman, and one reason is because it enticed Bonzi to stay and actually care. For that alone (among other things), Adelman deserves kudos.
i'm going to refrain from rebutting and just agree with you on looking forward. we gotta focus on the present, and the present is a beautiful thing right about now! 6-1 begins in 4 1/2 hrs!!!!!
Maybe. But even when Bonzi wasn't in the best shape under Adelman, he played much better than he did last season. I wouldn't have minded at all if Bonzi got more opportunities down the stretch last year. But I understand the reasoning for not doing so as well. Coaching decisions aren't black and white. Sometimes, different decisions make sense for different reasons. The way the roster was constructed last year, we didn't have a suitable backup PG. That means Rafer had to play a lot of minutes. And with T-Mac and Shane also getting 35-40 minutes a game, and Luther also in the rotation, there just wasn't much room for Bonzi (feeling like a broken record, here). Could he have worked himself into shape and gotten into a good rhythm playing 15 mpg? Would it have been worth it? Again, arguments could be made on both sides. Yes, ideally, if Bonzi started playing well that would have been great to have. That's how I felt last year as well. On the other hand, JVG's short rotation was working, and we were trying to win as many games as possible to secure home court advantage. Is experimenting late in the season with home court advantage on the line a good idea? Which would make sense for him to say, because he's playing for a new contract this year and he doesn't want people to think he's injury prone. I think early on he was just out of shape and not getting along well with the coach. In mid-season, I think he missed games due to real injuries (as he had under Rick Adelman in Sacramento). Late in the season, JVG was reluctant to bring him back in for reasons I stated above. JVG's issues with Bonzi are very different. Rodman was a workout fiend. His level of physical fitness was borderline freakish. JVG's philosophy is similar to Pat Riley's -- there's a huge emphasis placed on physical fitness.
The problem was JVG's short rotation it killed our chances of going very far in the playoffs. Yes we were winning and yes we got home court advantage but Yao and T-mac were running on fumes by the time the playoffs came around. Saying we didn't have room for Bonzi is Krazy. If you have a great option on your roster there is no excuse for not playing him. Shane played great at SF but we lost because we couldn't score or rebound in crucial moments and that's exactly what Bonzi gives this team. I don't buy the don't have room logic that's the same thing the Spurs fans are saying about Scola because they have Tim Duncan at the PF position.
There's a tradeoff. If you give Bonzi more minutes, that will invariably take away minutes from Luther and Shane. That means you're replacing two of the best perimeter shooters in the game who helped provide spacing with a very poor 3-point shooter. Remember, JVG's offense placed a huge emphasis on the 3-pointer and the spacing it provides. And this year we have a potent 3-point shooting PG who can also handle the ball in Mike James, which makes it easier to give Luther's minutes to Bonzi. Further, as I said, if we started experimenting with Bonzi late in the season when Yao returned, does that impact our ability to get home court advantage? Remember, we were winning a high percentage of our games with the short rotation, and losing most of the games in which Bonzi played.
And yet Bonzi got a ahcnce to to get his in ONE game all year and he scored 27 points. Out of shape Bonzi > in shape Luther Head. JVG = moron Just like out of shape Francis > in shape Alston. I really do not get why some fans insist on defending head coaches specifically on the dumbest decisions they make.
Your argument is getting old Waterox. Bonzi is a ******. He was on ESPNs list of worst team players. Everyone hates him around the league, ex-teammates and coaches included. He's always been a problem. He's a ******. I hope he never sees a fat paycheck again. Good thing he's coming off the bench. He should have been taking a few notes from Juwan last year.
You don't reward poor effort. I put all of the blame on Bonzi. That said I'm very willing to give him a second chance. I'm glad he is doing well now.
Does anyone know if we have Bonzi's bird rights cause if he keeps playing like this we better resign him soon as we win the championship!!
The Rockets have his early Bird rights which means they can sign him for any amount up to the MLE next year (about $5.5 million to start) without having to dip into their own MLE, allowing them to re-sign Bonzi and add another MLE player (possibly using it to re-sign Francis as well?).
This thread is mistitled it should say "If we had Rick Adelman last year" Because then we would have been in the WC finals. DD
Blame Thunder Legs... and the donuts. Bonzi is a jerk, yes, a talented jerk. I have been criticizing JVG's personnel decisions. But I don't blame him for Bonzi's problem last year. Bonzi didn't take responsibility himself. That's what it was.
No trade kicker for James. My way or the highway coaching of Wells. Defend VG all you want. Trash James and Wells all you want. Ignore the results all you want. In essence, that's what this entire thread will boil down to.
I've got my crow in a pan, and I'm preheating the oven. I'm getting ready to eat it, and it'll be the best tasting bird I've ever had. Even so, I'm not going to actually eat it until he's still playing this way in January. The general consensus that I get from Blazers and Kings fans is that Bonzi will play really well in stretches and then get tired, bored, whatever and either mail it in or make up an injury for time off.
It's funny that you bring up James who couldn't play well enough the keep his starting job from a rookie last year. I had reservations about both Wells & James coming into this season. So far, both have proved me wrong. I hope that continues to the rings.
JVG didn't say that he didn't want to give Mike James a trade kicker. The only thing that we know about JVG is that he wanted to give the MLE to Matt Harpring, and the front office thought it would be better to chase after Mike James.
We know he didn't want to trade "The Curse" Juwan Howard for Mike James in place of letting Rafer play 48mpg. Tell me which suggestion is more insane.
