Mike James would be an awesome starting 2 guard for us right now. A legitimate third scoring threat, and someone who can get his own shots when McGrady is hurt or on the bench. Let's rescind the trade. Wesley, Moochie and Head could man the PG spot until Sura is ready.
I loved the trade at first, but now think it was a major mistake. Chemistry is a hard thing......we should have kept MJ and gone with newcomers Swift and Anderson....too many new faces. DD
Right now it looks like a mistake. What MJ brings to the table certainly would help us. We need a 3rd scoring threat on the team, someone to break down the defense. However, keep in mind that MJ will opt out of his deal after this season. He clearly will be looking for MLE money and I think the Rockets knew this. So part of the deal was the long term effect. But currently in the "short term" it is hurting us. The idea in trading for Alston was that he would be a more steady ball handler, someone that would break down the defense and create shots for others. So far he isnt doing that. And since he isnt doing that he really is offering nothing to the team other than a guy that can bring the ball up the floor. James is more selfish than Alston, but at least James brought something to the table in terms of scoring. Maybe Alston will start to get more comfortable and do more later in the year, but right now he is a ghost out there. He looks pretty robotic really.
The stuff we're missing is what Mobley, Vernon Maxwell, Bob Sura, Mike James and Sam Cassell had. It's not the name you have but how you compete. Luthor Head isn't well known, but in my opinion he is of the same mold as the guards above. Sometimes you have to sacrifice bad decision making for a warrior. Mike James and Vernon Maxwell are the epitome of that.
I am disappointed, team speed is the one thing I thought would improve with the new guys but we are as slow as last year. Rafer and DA lack speed and SS doesn't get enough minutes where it makes a difference. Only discernible statistical improvement from last year is that instead of being the oldest team in the league, we are the second oldest team.
Deuce - Alston will make about $1.2M less than the MLE and his contract runs for 4 more years after the current one. That's not a whole lot of money $ differential. We used the full MLE on Stro but we'll have a new one next summer. The jury is obviously still out, but I for one would rather have had James' mental toughness and transition skills and dealt with a FA PG next summer. A pass first PG is a good thing. But a pass first PG who doesn't push tempo or shoot well enough to draw defenders away from TM and YM is a very bad thing. Off-topic but a best case scenario may wind up being getting TMac's back as much rest as possible and give Luther Head as much PT as possible. We still could be a dangerous 6 through 8 seed and not jeopardize McGrady's health long-term.
i like a david wesley & derek anderson trade for mike bibby & kevin martin... what do you think guys???
It seems like I was one of the only ones that wanted to keep mike james...I thought we where set..I never liked the trade, but I tried to give it a chance since everybody said it was good for us.seems like people in houston been wanting a pass first point guard I always wanted the kind of point that kept pressure on the defense that's why I didn't mind having steve, but his only flaw was turnovers.people can't seem to make there mind up what they want.first we need a number three scorer then we get one (mike james)Then people or complaining that he is scoring too much and taking the ball out of t mac and yao hands.....does it really matter who puts the ball in the hoop??We fianlly got what alot of you wanted a pass first point guard who would defer to t mac and yao and people or unhappy now..
Here's An Interesting TidBit - Parallels Btw the Rox and the Clips and some Ex-Rockets http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_y...slug=ap-first-placeclippers&prov=ap&type=lgns AP - Nov 21, 4:33 pm EST More Photos LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Cuttino Mobley's eyes narrowed as he pondered the question: What in the world was he thinking when he joined the Los Angeles Clippers last summer? "To change the perception," he replied, a bit of a growl in his voice. And the perception? "That they were losers." That's certainly not the case right now. And if the first 10 games of the season are any indication, those days are behind them. The Clippers, one of the true laughingstocks in professional sports through most of their existence, lead the Pacific Division with an 8-2 record, tying them for the top spot in the Western Conference with the defending NBA champion San Antonio Spurs entering Monday night's action. "I've been on good teams, so it's no biggie for me," Mobley said. "I didn't come here to be on a losing team. We can be really good." Seldom has the word good been used to describe the Clippers. This is a franchise that's made the playoffs only six times in 35 seasons and won only one postseason series -- in 1976 when the franchise played in Buffalo. The Clippers entered this season with an overall regular-season record of 1,017-1,821 including 572-1,118 since moving from San Diego to Los Angeles in 1984. They've had only one winning season in Los Angeles, going 45-37 in 1991-92, and haven't made the playoffs since 1997. All that history doesn't mean a thing at this point. The 8-2 start is the best in franchise history. "I think the biggest thing is the past is the past," forward Corey Maggette said. "It's good that the team's playing well. We don't want to get cocky -- it's still early. We just want to keep doing what we're doing." The 26-year-old Maggette is part of one of the NBA's best young front lines, along with 26-year-old Elton Brand and 23-year-old Chris Kaman. The 30-year-old Mobley and fellow newcomer Sam Cassell, 36, make up a veteran backcourt that knows how to win close games -- which has been a struggle for the Clippers. For example, they were 9-21 last season in games decided by five points or less. They're 2-1 in such games so far this year. "We have such great chemistry," Maggette said. "We have good leadership, and Elton's been playing tremendous." Brand, playing better than ever, is averaging 24.1 points and 10 rebounds. Maggette is close behind with a 20.5-point average, and Mobley and Cassell are combining to score nearly 33 points per game. The team is playing much better defense, too. The Clippers had the best November in franchise history last year, going 9-6 before fading to finish 37-45. They appear to be a cinch to better that record this month, with the obvious hope being they don't fade as they've done so often in the past. "As long as we just concentrate on what we have to do, we'll be OK," Mobley said. "It's as simple as that. I have confidence in myself and my team. The intensity's going to have to step up." "The chemistry, the camaraderie, has been excellent," Baylor said. "I like the spirit of this team. They believe they can win. It's a different mind-set this year. They believe they're going to win close games." [B/]Dunleavy said Cassell has made a tremendous difference. "He's been great, not only from a playing standpoint, but a leadership standpoint and a chemistry standpoint," the coach said. "That's where he's surprised me the most. He and Cuttino have really amazed me, the way they've dealt with the other players." [/B] ----------------------------------- What I find most interesting is the bit on the number of games the Clips lost LAST YEAR 5 points or less versus this year. Clearly the biggest change was the signing of Cassell and Mobley. Cassell is clearly not the Spring Chicken he used to be, but boy is he effective when it comes to the stretch. Same with Mobley who is not merely a good shooter but has the right "attitude" about knowing how to close out games. i.e. all the mental things one would like to have in their backcourt guards. In our case, here we are losing in the 4th quarter. Losing by a margin of 4 or 5 points and losing b/c of mental breakdowns. Talent-wise, and supposedly shooting-wise in the case of DA, you would think the differences between ours' and the Clips' backcourt is negligible. But the real disparity, IMHO, is the court savviness and "experience" of knowing how to close out games. (It's ironic that Mobley didn't always get it until his later 20s after he got traded to Sacramento.) This is also why I think JVG was considering letting T-Mac play point back in pre-season. It all fits. JVG probably saw how weak his PG leadership was going to be absent Sura. Meanwhile, at SG, DW was simply not his old self pre-surgery. They scrambled to get something for nothing by trading Mike James and here we are. While hindsight is always 20/20, the fact that they scrambled so late in summer to get a new starting PG was itself a huge red flag... theSAGE
I know this is a scary thought, but I wonder if the Rockets have any interest in Rueben Patterson. Before you go crazy, the guy wants out of Portland only because they are trying to play the younger players and he doesnt fit in. Patterson in my mind would be quite a defensive upgrade as a back up small forward and 2 guard. He's still got major hops and defensive prowess. I've watched a few of the Portland games late at night on NBA league pass, and he's aggressive and does hustle. Probably not the best teammate in the world, but the Rockets are a veteran team, I doubt with some PT he would cause much trouble. He's certainly better, than Wesley and DA. Just a thought.
