Hell, I don't care about his post, I just want to know how I can have "Running with scissors" instead of "Member"in my tag!
No I did not have the same optimism. People we are young. Last year we were younger. Let us grow up to be big boys so we can play like big boys. Our team leader is just getting past his mid twenties. Jordan's bulls didn't win crap before that. Every year for the next five we will get a lot better. Fact.
I'm going to have to stick up for A-TRAIN, Nachbar was absolutely horrendous in the summer league, Griffin has showed nothing yet and if you think Yao is going to improve after spending his entire offseason with the Chinese National Team, I've got a bridge in Brooklyn I can sell relatively cheap. Rice and Nachbar at the 3 spot. If that doesn't spell DISASTER, I don't know what does. The great wall in China couldn't hide that potential duo and I just can't see Yao doing anything but potentially going backwards after the Chinese National Team gets ahold of him again. When is Ewing and JVG going to work with him, in November?? This team didn't make the playoffs last year, didn't have a number 1 pick and lost their starting 3 and who was their best defensive player and you think we're going to improve??? Bet is they don't play .500 ball next year with all the improvements the West made and the hiring of Dunleavy in Clipperland.
new (worse) coach new system the players don't get. stronger Yao that breaks down in January. "smarter" team? Yeah, right. killer road schedule just about the time the team might be "getting it" = no playoffs, probably 40 wins with an outside shot at 3 or 4 more. For the record, despite the losses, I don't think they will "suck." They might be more boring than they've ever been, but I do expect them to be competitive after the learning period ends in December or January.
except for mobley, hawkins, and cato. and eg and yao, while not better defenders, were more important defenders b/c of their inside presence. and for my part, I just like seeing A-Train back in the GARM (despite his ZRB^2 pessimism) b/c he doesn't seem to hate steve francis and/or cuttino mobley, which is a rare find these days. and Sane, what's up with writing a post I agree with. i'm a little freaked out.
edc, I will bet you $100 or if you prefer, the loser has to get a new moniker, that the Rockets will have at least 47 wins next year. Put your money where your mouth is if you really think that poorly of them.
Well I know for sure that edc doesn't actually think that poorly of them. He just dislikes Van Gundy and is bitter about losing Rudy. I know he knows we will win more than 40. We won 40-something last year, and we're a young team, meaning we have greater room for improvement, and unlike other teams, are chemistry is solid since we haven't had a lot of player movement.
new worse coach? I know you love Rudy and so do I. But Rudy was a great motivator, not a great teacher. Good fit for a veteran team with a HOF center for the ages. JVG is a great teacher. Good fit for a young team like us. new system the players don't get? How do you know? We haven't even started camp yet. stronger Yao that breaks down in January? If he's stronger, what makes you think he's going to break down in January? smarter team yeah right. ? Yeah. Smarter team with a hard ass for a coach. Smarter team. killer road schedule? We play the same 41 home/41 road games we play every year. It all evens out during the season. This isn't college football.
I don't see it. He was an adequate head coach in NY, and will be decent if uninspiring here. Boring offense and defense-oriented with guys that do not / cannot play that way. Paraphrasing Dierker from his book (yes, baseball, but the quote is applicable): "A lot of guys say that 'you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink.' I look at it the other way 'If you don't have the horses, you can't lead them to water.'" Intelligence is not the strong point of this club. I don't think anybody would doubt that. They have never been quick to pick up adjustments. I don't see them doing it here either. He broke down at the end of last season. January might be a bit of an exaggeration, but he has been going straight through without a break. This time it wasn't out of a relatively light CBA season to CNT to NBA, but NBA to CNT to NBA. It is a definite possibility it will happen again, and happen sooner. Yep, but the problem is how the games are laid out. The adage is that a one-game homestand is basically a road game. If you believe that, the Rox are on a month-long road trip from Mid-March to the end of the season covering the last 16 games. They need to be in playoff contention by the time that stretch starts or they can forget about it. How long does it take them to "get" the new system? They would've been better off with those road games earlier in the season when they are likely to be struggling anyway.
hmmm... someone didn't feel the love after reading mickey b's "ten things i've learned from clutch bbs" thread (or something like that) in the hangout forum. anyway, about a-train... how could you not like a guy after coming up with this haiku? classic stuff, eh? no we're not jocking his nards. well... on the other hand... not as much as you jock "wink" and "cat". (off topic part of post below.) speaking of "cat" and "wink", i saw "cat's eye" again on turner movies last night. i remember being a kid and laughing my arse off at the lady jumping around the room with the electric floor because her husband couldn't stop smoking. i laughed just as hard yesterday. funny.
Damn....A-Train posts in the G.A.R.M.!! nice to see the ol A-Train is back... Time to bring some reality back to the GARM..you go A-Train!! There has been too much champagne and popouri in the forum. too many hugs and kisses... etc.... Though damn...do you have to be so truthful on your first slap back to reality?
Lets see, the Clippers were a lottery team last year, they lose their starting PG and their starting center and it propels them to the playoffs. Makes sense to me! Maybe we can trade Francis and Yao and become a playoff team ourselves! Rockets send: Steve Francis Yao Ming to Minnesota For Ervin Johnson Troy Hudson Playoffs here we come baby!
Yeah we had optimism last year nad if you didn't notice we missed the playoffs by ONE game! Since then, #7 seed Utah is in shambles, Golden State lost one of their best players, Seattle lost a center that could have helped them get over the hump, and the Clippers lost their starting PG and Center. So why shouldn't we feel optimistic this year? <b>Everyone here is underestimating the Sonics. They now have a solid pg with a superstar in Ray Allen at sg and a budding star at sf in Rashard Lewis. They just got Collison who will produce immediately at pf and they've got Jerome James and Peja Drobnjak playing center. They came close to finishing ahead of us before making these aquisitions last year and all we have done is add Eric Piatkowski.</b> Seattle doesn't have a frontcourt, the Rockets destroyed their frontline last year. Lewis has been a budding star for the last 2 years, still hasn't stopped the Rockets from beating Seattle. Seattle faded last year because they didn't have a frontline and wore down. Remember their fast start and then fade? What makes them any better? It's not about who you add it's about the players we have, Yao Ming is going to improve and be a force in the paint, what's Seattle's answer to that? What is Seattle going to do when the West destroys their frontline? You actually think Collison is going to make a stronger impact in the paint then Yao Ming with one year under his belt? You need a good big man in the paint to get to the playoffs in the West and Seattle had a nice finish last year, but reality is going to set in when the rest of the league adjusts to them and just decimates that sorry @ss frontline of theirs. Seattle will be lucky to get to .500. People act like the Rockets were a sub.-500 team that couldn't play well together, they won 43 games and missed the playoffs by ONE game!
Last year we missed the big picture because we kept making excuses for ourselves. We are too young too inexperienced blah blah blah. There won't be excuses this year. JVG will bring us to the wonderland!
Not everyone can see at this point why JVG will be much more effective than a 2002/03 Rudy T, or just maybe they wont admit it yet! IMHO Rudy T and ineffective assistant Coaches had lost control of the Team last season. I say that because the same mistakes continued throughout the season without any attempt to correct them. Our game was being controled by the Guards and our image was that of a guard oriented Team that played defence spasmodically, with under acheivers at Center and Power Forward. Now along comes JVG! Defence! Defence! Defence! By seasons end the Rockets will be a hated team because of their defence, if they arn't, expect JVG to trade the miscreants next off season. No team goes to the Playoffs or ever wins a Championship without playing the Team Game. By coaching JVG and his Assistants will attempt to mold the minds and hearts of their charges, into a fighting force that not only wants to win but believes that they can win. No more Dribble Mania, no more standing arround watching the Guards doing their thing, no more being unfit and getting fit at the Teams expense. I expect JVG to come through this upcoming season by giving us a Team that plays hard Defence and the Team Game. Our Teams play might get a little boring but we will be a winner if JVG has his way. My pick for the most improved player 03/04 is Moochie Norris.
It is not that we got better, it is just that we will get lucky because a couple of other teams will get worse.
Man, a lot of folks on this BBS need to layoff that Rockets Red Koolaid! I simply do not share this unbridled optimism because I want to see the Rockets actually SHOW some improvement on the basketball court before I buy into their being a better team under JVG. I've watched them stagnate for the past 7 years and the only area the Rockets team and organization has shown improvement is in their ability to create excuses for the sorry state of the franchise. Until they quit making excuses and go out and prove themselves on the court, I'll remain skeptical of both the team and the organization. So far, there appears to be two scenarios at work here. One is that JVG's presence ALONE virtually GUARANTEES them a playoff spot (and a high one at that) because he's a REAL coach who'll whip their sorry asses into shape and have them play team defense which will be ALL that they need to become a force in the West. After all, the man is a basketball GOD! The other scenario is that the Rockets will do well because of the expected DECLINE of other teams (Utah, Portland, Seattle, LA Clips - well the Clips are always in decline...) and not because of any IMPROVEMENT by the Rockets themselves. That's all well and good but what happens if the expected decline in Portland, Seattle or even Utah does not occur on schedule? What if, god forbid, Denver improves more than expected? Where will that leave the Rockets who were "counting" on this to happen? Sorry, but I just don't buy either scenario and neither should anyone else. This team has teased and flopped about long enough. The time has come for them to step up and actually DO SOMETHING on the court where it counts. When that happens, I'll be right there at the bar with the rest of you folks drinking all the red koolaid I can lay my hands on.
Hillboy, you have to understand that basketball teams, like stock markets, are cyclical. Because of the salary cap, an NBA team or an NFL team cannot just pay for great players every year like the Yanks or Tribe. They have to draft them and them and to draft them they have to suck. Just like San Antonio did to get Duncan. Just like we did to get Olajuwon and now Ming. After drafting these great players, the teams start to rise and become great again. Like cleveland and Denver will also do. After Shaq retires the Lakers will start to suck again. If you can't see this obvious trait of salary cap sports you are blind. Every major sports journalist will tell you that he expects the Rockets to do well in the coming years because they are a young team with talent now getting experience.
