In order for this team to be successful, I think its important for Mobley and co. to take a backseat to our superstar Steve Francis. Francis should be our leader and should utilize the rest of the players on our team as a supporting cast.
That's what I've been saying all along. This season more than ever has shown who the man is on this team. In fact, I believe that Mobley should be third behind Steve and EG. Steve is already a superstar and EG will be.
No doubt, Eddie Griffin is a future star. However, the question is where will Maurice Taylor fit in when he comes back next year?
Mo will start at the 4 just like always.....EG will play off the bench behind Rice & Taylor until Rice is gone or traded and then EG will start at the three spot besides Mo,... i presume is the plan.
I don't want the players to take a backseat. This team is thin on talent, in order to win everybody is going to have to be on the same page. Obviously Francis is the main go-to guy, but instead of this team being "Francis and friends" we need a balance attack. I think this team is capable of being like the Milwaukee Bucks. A team run by their Big Three with a solid supporting cast. I would feel more comfortable with a balanced attack because if we lean solely on Francis then we're screwed if he has an offnight, gets injured, or is in foul trouble.
So should Kobe take a back seat to Shaq? After all, Shaq is probably the leader of the Lakers. He's the most dominant player in the entire league. I sure hope the Rockets aren't like the fans on this board. Most other teams would be thrilled to have three players like Steve Francis, Cuttino Mobley, and Eddie Griffin. Instead, we sit here ranking them, and criticizing one to support another. They're all three good players, and they all bring something different to the table. If you just go to one guy, defenses will focus on purely shutting him down, and the other two won't have enough repetition to be consistently perform when Steve gets the double teams. Look at the dominant teams in the game today. The Lakers, Spurs, Kings, Bucks, etc. The Lakers have two leaders-- Kobe and Shaq. The Spurs have Duncan and Robinson. The Kings have Webber and Peja. The Bucks have Cassell, Allen, and Robinson. Those teams spread the ball around, and they don't have to have "one leader" to be successful. All of those teams know that if a defense commits to stopping the star player, they have another star waiting in the wings to pick the defense apart. If we keep giving it to Steve over and over again and make him the sole leader, how are Cuttino and EG going to be prepared when Steve is covered or injured? Be happy that we have them all, instead of trying to rank order them.
Look, I believe that Mobley has an important role on this team, but I'm sorry, he isn't in the class of Steve and EG. Mobley is a great role player and will be very valuble to the Rockets when he realises what his role is. This team is not at their best when Mobley is trying to be the man, the losing streak showed that fact. The reason I'm so excited about EG is because he is 19 years old and he's contributing like he is now. Just think what he can do when he really starts meeting his potential. Again I'm not trying to hate on Mobley, but without a doubt the future and present of this franchise is Steve and EG. I'm really not sure how the Rockets will address the Mo and Kt situation at PF. It will be interesting to see.
Whatever. The team is not at their best when key starters are injured for long periods of time, starters that include Mobley who nonetheless played his heart out during the losing streak. So maybe the gamecasters don't emphasize it like Kobe. Mobley is already very valuable to the Rockets, and he will not be more valuable by 'taking a backseat.' Yes, I'm excited about Griffin too, and yes, Mobley oftentimes makes poor decisions and takes poor shots. Heck, I'll also say Mobley's mistakes have cost us several games. But his no-fear mentality has also won us many games going back to the first few games of his rookie year. Can Mobley be better? Yes. Could he perhaps take better shots and let others help carry the offensive load when he's struggling? Sure, and so should Steve and Eddie. I'm not saying Mobley needs to have his 15 shots a game, regardless of at whose expense. I'm saying why call for limiting his opportunities when he can consistently get by his man? Mobley can score on just about any 2-guard in the league. Eddie has yet to reach this point for 4s or 3s or what-have-you.
Whatever back to you. I'm going to say this and I'm not going to augue this point anymore. Steve and EG are the cornerstones of this franchise for the future. This team needed a second superstar type player along with Steve to get them over the hump and they have it with EG. Like I said, Mobley is important to this team, but with Mobley as our second best player, where have the Rockets gotten? They haven't made the playoffs, I know that. Mobley was a steal in the second round, but with EG blossoming into the player his is, I believe the Rockets are starting to put the pieces together. Mobley is good, but he is not a franchise or cornerstone type player. Francis and EG are, and upon these two the Rockets need to build and become contenders again.
hey pooh, my post came across a lot more intense than I actually feel. Sorry about that. I totally respect your opinion, so keep on posting, and don't let me rub you the wrong way. Personally, I think Mobley's value to the team even now is underestimated. Griffin has amazing upside, and it's going to be very exciting watching him mature. But I think Mobley can be better than he is presently as well. I think a lot of his improvement will be mental, and will arise with comfort within a more flowing offensive system where everyone's involved and comfortable. Francis is the Franchise, but I wonder if we'd have won as many games as we did last year without Mobley. I remember worrying about Webber last year, because I was afraid that with him, Steve and Cuttino, there wouldn't be enough ball to go around. Funny, I'm not as worried about that with Steve, Cuttino and Griffin. I'm not even worried about the return of Taylor necessarily even if the abovementioned guys reach their potential as long as his role in the offense isn't significantly bigger than what it was last year (12-15 ppg, maybe 10-12 shots per game). I think we still disagree about what the losing streak says about Mobley's abilities, but that's cool.
No harm. This particular subject has been tossed around here for so long. I've been critical of Mobley so many times because sometimes he still makes rookie mistakes and he's in his fourth year now. Francis and EG make mistakes too, but overall their ability and overall basketball IQ is better than Mobley's. It seems that Francis and EG trust their teammates more than Mobley does, a sign of maturity and a sign of players who make their team better. Francis sometimes still dribbles too much, but overall, he doesn't force things as much as Mobley tends to do. EG doesn't force it too much for a younger player as well. Mobley is older than both Steve and EG. He should be setting this type of example by now.
I'm not going to bash im, but he does make mental errors. Maybe he will grow out of it, i hope he does. Did anyone see him try to shoot over wallace and stackhouse? I think sometimes he isn't given his due and plays with a chip on his shoulder too often. I think he'll mature, he did it when he went from starting pg, to 6th man. So he'll adjust I hope.
The worst thing that could happen with Cuttino is him "taking a backseat". The most important thing he has going for him is his confidence. His attitude that he is as good as anyone in the league aloows him to play beyond his abilities. There must be some reason that he was picked in the second round, but now he is one of the better SGs in the association. It is not some hidden talent that he possessed. It is fire, spirit, and a never say die attitude. That is why I see him as a leader of this team. That is why I want him shooting the last second shots. That is why he shouldn't take a backseat to anyone.
i don't want him to be passive, i hope he just see that when other players are playing better than you, its other aspect to the game than scoring. It would have been nice since he was playing bad offensively to clamp down Stack. Thats the difference between good players and great players. It would have been extra special to see him just put the hammer down on Stack defensively and this game would have been over. He'll learn sooner or later. I just hope its sooner than later.
What about a certain team that went to the finals last year riding a 6'0, 160 pound guy's back the entire time? I'm not saying I want the Rockets to be like the Sixers - one dimensional - but those teams with two stars aren't the only successful ballclubs in the NBA.
I think maybe I should rephrase my thought. Maybe Mobley does not need to take a backseat, rather Francis needs to take a step forward. I think Francis should be more of a team leader than Mobley. In order for us to win, Steve needs to be *the* team leader. Clutch time can be shared between them, but one of the duties of a star point guard is to lead the team. Francis needs to be more audible and expect more from his teammates, rather than them relying upon him. I think the future of this team is reliant upon Francis stepping up and permanently taking the reigns of the team.
