My question is why is KMJ playing so many mins and Tari is on the bench in the 4th qtr? Silas should be playing his best defenders at the end of the game and that's not KMJ. 32 mins for KMJ SMH. Now that Tate's back Silas will probably give him those mins and KMJ the 16. Makes no sense to me.
....if you got to the box score for the game on nba.com there are additional options now in the drop down menu for player tracking, defensed plays, etc.
I think this is something to keep an eye on in retrospect, I could see there being some friction between Smith and Green, I kind of get a diva vibe from Smith in the fact he thinks he should be the center piece on offense and the franchise guy when he will never be more than the 2nd or 3rd option on a good team until he can create his own shot. I also think with KPJ and Green being so tight he might see that as threat to him getting the shots he wants. This is something that happens with young guys that are drafted high hopefully these guys are mature enough to not let it linger.
Well, the Rockets leadership have consistently seen him as a "mentor" for the younger players and talked about it publicly... https://www.thedreamshake.com/2022/...ether-traded-or-not-jalen-green-2022-2023-nba https://www.houstonchronicle.com/te...ckets-Eric-Gordon-veteran-future-17469825.php Supposedly he helped Jalen last year, but like you, I do think EG has his sights set on his next gig and has checked out except for on the court where he knows he has to perform to get to the right team.
I mean he put up 32 his first game in the league, he would have been the best player on a lot of teams.
He's a lock to be bought out or traded before the year is out...likely it's going to be a buy out because salary matching means if we trade him it's likely only a salary dump move from another team - in other words not a contending team AND with the CBA increasing soon, the market for teams giving up future assets to get off salary is limited anyway. But regardless, they will buy him out for his remaining contract value minus a league minimum contract value so EGO makes the same amount of money this year in aggregate but gets the freedom of choosing a contender to sign for in a playoff run. I wish him the best, but I sure hope he doesn't go play for the Warriors....
All I know is Jabari Smith Jr. is already a better player than his old man, and Eric Gordon talked a lot of trash about his teammates and coaches behind their backs in the past. No idea about now, honestly, he seems at this point to have emotionally checked out on this team and I don't blame him. He wants an extension, or he wants to be traded. So, other than the fact that he takes little effort to coach and won't leave at halftime, I am not sure why he on the Rockets other than the fact that Stone didn't get what he wanted for him.
That said, Jalen has been in the system for a year now, while Jabari started learning it a month or two ago. Even though Jabari is obviously the better defender of the two, it's not out of the question that Jalen knows the schemes better, and is trying to be a leader on this young squad. He just needs to remember to lead by example as well. Bottom line: I like to see the fire in these youngsters. As long as no punches are thrown, of course.
Smith has 5 fouls playing 35 mins and playing shorthanded without any actual bigs, outside of spot Garuba mins Sengun has 5 fouls playing 20 mins. Big difference there. Context matters
Yes sir, we have a 3-prong attack of the future in KPj, G-4, and Jabari. We just need to add the 3&D wings that pass as well to go along with them. Having quote unquote......a point guard.... is overrated.
Whilst I agree, I can kind of justify it with the need to move either Tate or KJ to clear the logjam we currently have at the 3. I doubt the FO and coaches are missing how good Tari's playing, it's pretty clear as day. Neither Tate or KJ are big difference makers that teams are going to be going out of their way to acquire, so showcasing them might be the best way of drawing interest. Outside of that though, I agree 100%. It's clear Tari should be starting and playing lots of minutes, you can see his hustle making a difference in real time in games.
That's part of the problem too. He's not going to get mad at his buddy. Ultimately I think this is nothing but Jabari definitely upsets the apple cart with his mentality. Last year it was just the vibe bros. There wasn't alot of intensity seemingly. I'm sure they'll adjust.
