It's looking like Joe Johnson may slip to 13 I for one think he will be a mistake- Let me be the lone voice to say NO to JJ and I told you so next year REASONS- He is not a quick Athletic guy who can shut guys down defensively. He is a good ball handler and scorer with size, but he won't take the ball out of Stevie or Cat's hands BETTER fits for team Chemistry- R. Jefferson,Radmanovic, White (trade up?), Battier (falling?), Haywood (yes Haywood he's a big risk and a big center which we may be desparate for), Diop (another big,big risk- see foot injury) Woods (back injury?) JJ may be the next penny- but the next p. hardeway does not fit our needs - we need a more pure SF who can play D and rebound ------------------
hester: Battier's the guy isn't he then? Wish it were so. ------------------ "How far you go in life depends on you being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant of the weak. Because someday you will have been all of these."
Trust me, Joe Johnson will not be a bust in the NBA. After watching him for almost two years at Arkansas, his game is tailor-made with the Rockets system. He's a guy who will be able to step up and hit the outside shot, and run the fast break with Stevie and Cat. If your concerned about his defense, remember no single person will have to shut down another person next year. With zone defenses, you always have a help defender if you get broken down and his long arms will be a huge plus. ------------------
Cliffnote- good point, it's not that he wouldn't fit because our guys would embrace him and make it happen- I don't think he would be the best fit in this draft because Stevie is just learning to run the offense, to be THE GUY and I don't think we need to take the ball out of his hands. It would be nice to have a SF who can really handle the ball but our more pressing need is stronger in the paint defense and toughness. Also Gasol and some of the others have the hop and quickness that fits our chemistry- I like Johnson but chemistry wise I think the defense, strength and athleticism of Jefferson, battier, white are bigger priorities- Gasol is just gonna be a very good player and gets the nod over Johnson on size alone. ------------------
Now I wouldn't mind seeing Stevie and Joe Johnson in our backcourt I think this is where JJ belongs I WOULD LOVE JJ in our backcourt, but I love CAT also SOOOOOOO ------------------
rhester- If your looking for Pau Gasol to be in a Rocket uni stop, because he's not making it past the third pick. ------------------
I haven't see him play enough, and i originally thought he reminded me of Todd Day, but more and more the comparisons I hear on J.J sound like Walt Williams sounded coming out, though I've never hard anyone make the comparison...Anyone who, unlike myself, actually knows this guy's gamewell enough to form an opinion see any similarity? ------------------
As noted before I watched Johnson alot in the last two years and if I had to compare him with anyone, it would be a young Scottie Pippen with a better shot. A big 3 who can handle the ball and take it to the hole. The main difference being that J.J. has a much better stroke from the outside. I know buffalospeedway is another Hogs fan, maybe he can confirm my comparison, or make a better one. ------------------
Rocketfan007- If JJ can defend and rebound like a young Pippen-I'm for trading up I kept reading takes that he would really make a 2 guard and not bring the defense and athleticism that we would like at SF Also we need more strength in the paint- Either from the 5 spot or 4 spot Our frontcourt cannot rebound and if JJ is a solid rebounder @ 6'9" at the SF GREAT!!! If he's a rock- I hope he proves me wrong ------------------
OK, check this out: http://college.espn.go.com/ncaa/mbasketball/teamstats?teamId=6 JJ led the hogs in points AND rebounds. If his game improves at a reasonable rate, he should be able to step it up and take some of the rebounding burden off of our dynamo of a point guard. Lord knows neither Mo-T nor Cato has any intention of helping in that area. One thing I have picked up on in watching JJ play is that he makes the game look easy. When you're watching him play, you don't think it's weird that a guy at 6'8'' has handle like that, because he makes it look like "hey, this is just the way you're supposed to do it, right?" Same thing with shooting runners in the lane (he did that alot, effectively) and college threes. As for defense, aside from leading the team in rebounds -- Don't you think a guy being coached by Nolan "40 minutes of hell" Richardson would learn something about team defense? Which, as Rocketfan007 mentioned earlier, will be important next year. ------------------
JAG: That comparison has some merit, although JJ is a better defender than Williams. But you have to wonder how good Williams would have been if he'd stayed in better shape and wasn't lazy. I'm not sure he'd be an all-star... but very close, at least. If JJ is another Walt with more drive and better defense... sign me up . ------------------ Newbiehad... coming to a bbs near you, October 31st.
what makes u think that jj wont fit in with our guys. U make one okay point with reason behind it and that was that jj isnt a defensive stopper. ON the other hand u give no reason why jj wont fit in with our guys. U say that gasol, white , and other will fit in. ------------------
I think JJ would be a great fit...it would free up Steve from some of his ballhandling duties so that he can concentrate on scoring a little bit more. To me, though, the ultimate fit for this team would be Battier. ------------------ It's a ring toss game.
