I thought this was the most significant part of his discussion. When Yao is in the post, you don't need a point guard. When he's not, it means a motion offense involving both guards and the small forward moving and passing, which also doesn't require a true point guard. I was encouraged simply to hear him speak about the team, and I'm excited about the new season. I think and hope that Cat and Steve buy in.
I like what he said about Francis. Steve plays his own form of the point guard position, just like Yao plays different from other centers in the league. As a coach you have to adjust to the kind of players you have, and JVG is doing a great job of that already.
He actually did talk about Rice. He said he knew the system and was the best spot up shooter on the team, but he has had trouble staying healthy the last couple of years. He said A Griffin was the type of guy who played well without the basketball and that we needed more guys like that last year. (And for those guys who are hung up on height and don't think A Griffin is a 3 because he's 6-5, Coach used the words "obviously a three" about him, while he said Piatkowski could "play the 2 and some 3"). He said there would be tough competition for the starting position and gave no indication who, if anyone had the best shot at being the starter. j
JVG was also interviewed by Mark Berman on Fox sports tonight and he said, "Time is now that we need to win. We are no longer young, we are no longer inexperienced, we have no excuses for not winning and putting a product on the floor that fans want to see." Berman said the Rockets were leaving no stone unturned as coaches and staff had traveled across the country to talk to their players and that Anthony Falsone had returned Monday after visiting with Yao Ming in China (no specific details about the China trip). JVG said, "We're trying to show our team that we're willing to go as far as we need to go in order to win and they need to recipro- cate and they need to come back in the type of condition that we expect and be ready to win" Sounds like music to my ears. Houston Native
Everybody recapped the conversation really well. I wanted to add though that I really like Van Gundy's attitude when he speaks, he's straight to the point and just seems like a no-nonsense kind of guy.
think of the guys who kicked the ball into Dream. Cuttino, Pippen, Matt Maloney, Kenny Smith. bring the ball up, kick it into the big man. matt maloney probably kicked that inlet pass as well timed as anyone. he was a master at getting the defender up at the wrong time. that and hitting the trey were the ONLY things he could do, but he did those well. I believe Pike is the guy to be kicking the ball into the post and hanging on the arc on the left. Once Yao gets the ball, he's got the offensive options. HE is our point guard, not the point guard. Put the ball in his hands, and give him two cutters, a guy on the arc, and guy in close to pass to, if he doesn't take the shot. If Mo can hit his shot, he's a great guy to pass off to. When Mo is in shape and has his shot working, it's a thing of beauty. Put Cat and Steve on either side of him, and drive one or both. From 7'5, there's got to be a visible seam in the defense, and we know the big man can deliver the pass. Yao is so about playing basketball unselfishly, so good with passing, we need to make him our quarterback. Dude isn't looking for 30 points a night, but he's fully capable of getting 6 assists per game if the offense runs through him. I believe he will have a triple double with assists at least once in his career. maybe this year.
Another update on Yao in Chinese by this insider "YangYi'. He claimed he was there when Yao first met Falson in China. Basically, Falson was JVG's message boy. His only business in China was to delivery 3 letters to Yao. One from JVG and 2 others from the other 2 assistant coach. I guess the coaches don't care how he is weighted now. Everybody except MJ is overweighted during summer. Coaches will deal with the extra fat during the preseason camp. http://sports.tom.com/1019/1094/2003821-187701.html Yao weight 145kg now. He thought he was slower than b4 and wanted to lose 5 kg, about 11 lb.
Steve is a scorer, not a playmaker or a shooter. He rebounds well, which means you want him not on the arc taking treys, but driving and taking midrange shots, layups or dunks. If you put him on the arc, you take him away from the rebounds. He's not a great three point shooter, and he's not a true point guard. take the ball out of his hands, and put it back in his hands when he's getting ready to score. but let someone else decide who needs the ball and when
So far I'm really impressed by the coaches efforts to meet with all the players. Letting the players know exactly what's expected of them and being up front sounds a smart move.
there's obviously no sugar-coating with jvg. he tells it like it is and what he expects and i'm friggin pumped because of it.
Guys the one thing that I realize is that we probably aren't going to make any more moves unless we add the vet. PG and/or physical PF... All I care about is keeping Hawkins somehow... He's a keeper... I think the team we have right now is going to start the season, plus vet. PG and/orPF/Hawkins... So if your really thinking we are going to make any big move, don't... Think about it... Some of these weaker teams will want to trade before the trade deadline and we have players that others want out of necessity... Also we all should know we aren't going to win the NBA championship this season but this season should be the beginning of the future... From that article in the Chronicle, Coach Van Gundy says it all about where these players need to be before practices begin and when he expects them to be in Houston(with exception of Yao Ming)... Talks about winning, Not raising your stats... I would have to say thats directed at the entire team because it does seem some players will shoot no matter what, they know who they are and its not just one or two guys... That article really tells us what he expects: from this season, from his players and from himself... A great article... All I'm worried about now is keeping Hawkins... Just love his D!!
"YangYi", this dude is a joke. He claim himself as Yao's shadow, you just read the article and he's everywhere w/ Yao. I wonder if he has anything better to do than spending all his time with a GUY
I just love the fact that he thinks that Steve is more than capable of running the point guard postion. What an idiot..
You're right, an NBA head coach that doesn't know as much about his team as his fans would have to be an idiot. But I highly doubt Jeff Van Gundy is an idiot. You take an 8th seeded team to the finals, no matter who's on your squad, and I'll begin to respect your opinion more than his. Just have a little patience RP, this guy isn't Rudy. There should be a difference.
You do realize that I was being sarcastic Dallas, don't you? All I'am saying is that Steve Francis will ALWAYS be the point guard of this team. I don't care if the Rockest trade Cat, Pike and Hawkins tommorrow.
No, I didn't actually. I was wondering what the deal was there, that kind of a statement was not like you at all. I thought maybe you were mad at the Rox for hiring JVG from a pre-existing grudge or something. Then I read your post in the 'Where do the Rockets rank' thread and definitely didn't detect any bitterness there so I began to suspect I might have misread you. Sorry for jumping on you, I should have known better.
in a nutshell, this is what he said in not so many terms: -Rice can shoot and he likes him, but he has proven he cannot play a full season Translated: He is an injury waiting to happen and not a strong possibility for a starting 3 -Nachbar has good work ethic and he likes his attitude, but he had a rough summer league against scrubs and that does not bode well Translated: He is a project and not a starting 3 -Our weakest link is the 3 and that is not good. We need to find something Translated: We are listening and talking to anyone with a 3 possibility
