well, I stopped reading after u compared Steve Novak to Nowitzki and Yao.. u cant compare Novak to Yao & Nowitzki! Yao is 7'6, u have to give him time and let him develop to reach is potential because he HAS potential. Nowitzki is a 7 footer who can shoot, u have to work on him to make him a good player. but please tell me, what is Novak's potential? he is 6'7 (or 6'8, I dont really know), he is not athletic AT ALL, he got no hops, he cant play D, he cant rebound. now all of these weaknesses are acceptable as long as he hits the wide-open 3. he is supposed to be a 3 pts shooter. u cant develop a guy who's only task is to shoot the 3. shooting threes is supposedly his only positive thing, well, he proved that he cant shoot the 3 well. there is no point at giving him a chance to thrive to his potential if his theoretical potential is ONLY shooting the 3. I can shoot the 3 really well, maybe I should go join the rockets and let them work on my "potential". the looks Novak had are GREAT looks, not good looks, GREAT LOOKS. he had wideopen threes from any where he wants and he blew all of them. one of them wasn't even close. he might be a great shooter (I believe he is), but he simply cant shoot during a game. and like I said before, that reminds us of Mr. Ryan Bowen.
why, that sounds like a certain 7'6" guy... I wonder how he's doing now! RocketsMac, I dont know why you're suddenly against Novak just because he missed those two shots. You base your decision too much on emotions sir!
I dont think u get my point. u said it ur self, the guy is freakin 7'6. but when u are 6'7 and u want to play in this league, u better have something special because there a lot of 6'7 guys out there.
Why we lost this game? It's not because Alston's terrible shooting, it's because we do not have a tough man playing inside!!!
Just because Yao is taller, he deserved special treatment? Okay.... Novak is listed at 6'11" btw, are you gonna change your mind about Novak now because he's taller?
I think everyone is overreacting here. To say it is JVG who messed up Novak is like saying JVG broke Yao's leg because he demands that Yao play help defense. No rookie should automatically get 35 minutes a game, especially one with as many weaknesses as Novak has. Novak has struggled because he is a rookie and adjusting to the NBA. Everyone he plays is more athletic and stronger then the competition he faced before. Yes his shot has been off so far, but shooters go through slumps and have to find their way out of it. Juwan learned to shoot again after a miserable slump so why cant Novak. Biggest thing for Novak is to take this year and get stronger in the weight room. No I am not comparing Novak to Yao, but look at how much difference added strength made for Yao. Novak will always have the shot, now he needs to find ways to stay on the floor, and probably wont do that till at least next year. As for saying he cant shoot in games that is rediculous. I think he did okay in games at Marquette. Hell he did great in games during summer league and the preseason. The more he gets used to the NBA the better he will be. Give him a break.
It's not true. His defense is getting better recently. Esp. Jump shot defens and 3 pt defense. He is still not strong enough to defend a poster.
Novaks' performance or non-performance are irrelevant in the grand scheme of things. Our Problem is at the PG and yes- more at the PF spot. Blaming rafer is wonderful ( and I am one of his original critics)- but the PF spot is our biggest hole, if you notice differentials.
wtf does this mean? also, what's up with your sig? don't really see someone getting owned..just see you talking trash about a poster..for no reason
yes, novak missed 2 pretty open 3-point shots in clutch time, but the real discussion we should be having is how lost he looked on both sides of the court. on offense, he set terrible picks, didn't really seem to know what he was doing or where he was supposed to be. on defense, yikes. that and1 play that mark blount had on him, the boy was literally facing the wrong direction. jvg is not the one to blame for this loss. a few made free throws here and there, a couple timely defensive rebounds, and this game would have been ours. we always seem to struggle shooting the ball against minnesota for some reason. oh and just a side note, jvg should have stuck with johnjohn in OT, instead of bringing rafer back cold after sitting out the entire 4th. i didn't think he could get colder, but he did.
This is why jvg is a terrible coach and is totally overrated. He's totally ruined novak and has novak playing in fear. The rockets are lucky to be winning despite jvg. He really needs to go after this year.
Ironically, I think JVG was trying to MAKE Novak with this game, he had enough confidence to have him in there for scoring late in the game and OT, and it worked as a player had to guard him and it allowed TMac to drive in and score and eventually tie the game. If he would have made those shots it would have been a bonus.....he will make those shots....he is a shooter...give him some time. DD
Novak is not ready defensively. Come on, guys, give JVG some credits on our team defense, he did a great job. That was important in most of our wins.
Maybe it's better to think of it this way. Even potential star players like Yao needed time before they learned how to play in the NBA. So it's only natural that a role player like Novak would need time to adjust to the pace of this league. Novak may not have the upside of a Nowitzki, but give him enough opportunities and he may be able to contribute to our team. JVG seems to think so, or else he wouldn't be putting him in at such crucial moments of a game.
