I don't think anyone reasonable is saying Brooks is a scrub, and if they are I certainly disagree. I already said I agree with giving him time. The PG position should be his to lose going into next year presuming we don't make some trade for Chris Paul or something. I just disagree with the presumption that there is no way Lowry could out play Brooks by next year considering Lowry is currently further along than Brooks was when he was 23. Who is a "traditional" PG? I mean Stockton averaged 17 points per game for several seasons which is more than Fisher, Rondo, Williams, barely less than most of Parker's years, and comparable to Billups. Stockton just happened to also average over 13 assists a game with only ~3 turn overs at the same time. Nash has averaged ~17 points for most of the last decade, but he isn't typically thought of as a scoring PG. Magic was a pass first PG who won champtionships. Isiah was a scoring PG, but he averaged over 8 assists a game for most of his career. It helps if your PG can shoot, but Rondo won a ring and was an all star this year and shoots worse than Lowry from the outside. So that contradicts the arguement that you need a scoring PG to beat the Lakers doesn't it? The Rockets could potentially win with Brooks playing a Tony Parker like role, but if they add another big scorer to the line up they could also potentially win with Lowry playing a Rondo like role. It depends on what the rest of the team ends up looking like. For as many all star pass first PG's like Stockton who didn't win rings you list you can like wise find plenty of all star scoring PG's who didn't either. And there are quite a few Derek Fisher/Steve Kerr type PG's who neither were primary scorers nor primary distributors for their team. So I stand by my statement that there isn't a specific "type" of pg you need to have to win a ring.
At least the OP didnt say try to get Steve Nash, trade Brooks for a bag of balls or something outlandish. Just said hold him accountable for plays he should be making, and go with the in-house 2nd option if necessary.
This is just a year to let the kids run wild, and see what they can do. When Yao returns and brings 19 additional points per game, then AB and Ariza can settle into their actual roles in Adelman's system.
We all know Rondo was an important part of that championship but the sole reason they won was because of Garnett, Pierce, Allen at their peak.
From the looks of this lowry doesn't have trouble finding Yao. <object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/y1YlXpHNqp8&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/y1YlXpHNqp8&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object>
no matter what brooks has the tools to be a star & that make him a great player for this team& a great asset taken at the end of the 1st round not a lot of allstars come out of the end of the 1st. let us not forget skip a real nice guy but it just killed my heart to see him w/ the ball at a critical point in the game the same way it does now when ariza has the ball now
I dont understand why Portland hasnt offered us multiple first round picks for Brooks and Battier at this point, they would be perfect for that team considering they need a wing defender and a point that can play off the ball next to Roy. I would take back Andre Miller and ship their picks (and possibly with New Yorks) for Bosh or Amare.
I do agree AB made a lot improvements, I've acknowleged that in many posts.. Lowry did the same, made a lot improvements as well. But I still think up to this point, a Yao/Scola/Ariza/Martin?lowry lineup will make the unit more all-around, more balanced than a Yao/Scola/Ariza/Martin/AB lineup, and AB's scoring might be more needed for 2nd unit since Landry is gone. Can things change next season? Of course, too many things can happen in 9 months. Let's wait and see.
You didn't say that he is pretty much the same as he was in the Laker series? Especially the 4 games without Yao? Well, to be sure, you arent the only one decrying his passing ability(and IMO that position does have merit) so it might have been someone else saying he hasnt changed from last year. But this post is a much more balanced stance on the situation. I also have no problem with Brooks coming off the bench as instant offense. I think we are another non PG scorer in the starting lineup away from that though. I too think there is too much that can change from now to then. We will see. I am fairly confident in RA that after training camp when both players get to have some run with Yao and the offense together that he will get the guy on the floor at the right time who helps the team win. Edit: Not for you Choujie but I tend to take offense when Rockets players are being unfairly criticized. I have defended Ariza at times this year when it warranted it. I defended Rafer Alston when it warranted, and even defended McGrady when it was warranted(that hasn't been in quite some time though).
It was somebody else who argued with DD for AB being the same in Lakers series. But I mentioned he had 18asts/22TOs in that series though, that is for debating something else, maybe when fans call AB all-star caliber player. I defended Rafer more than you and I defended Ariza more than you if you check previous posts. When AB playes well, I give him props too. The point I've been making in this thread is with enough firepower, Lowry being the starting PG might server better for Rockets overall. Lowry has advantage in many aspects of the game than AB minus scoring.
If Brooks is having subpar shooting, he is virtually useless. Lowry can do many more things even he is missing shots. IMO, it is an easy choice as to who should be the start next year along with Yao, Martin, and PF to be announced.
Brooks has been hovering right around the league average for guards in assists per game, all season long. So when you have a league average passing point guard coupled with well above average shooting, what do you have? A pretty darn good player. You guys are just making him the new whipping boy. Next week it'll be somebody else. 'Fess up and let's move on.
Its not that I wan't the dude to fail, but this is exactly why he drives me so crazy. Two absolutely terrible bounce passes into the post, one crazy drive into the lane that should of been his third turnover that Chuck Hayes luckily grabbed out of the air. Its mind boggling that before your team reaches 10 points you already cost your team a few possesions. Yes the Rockets lead, but the lead should be bigger. Im not advocating benching the dude, its that he just isn't a great/good PG. Period.
It's one game. Repeat after me: It's one game. He is 24 years old. This will be his first full season as a starter in the NBA. You're being ridiculous.
You either see it or you don't. You either see Brooks jacking up quick three's before the team is even positioned, or you don't. You either see, even when Brooks completes a bounce pass that generally they are caught lower than is needed to follow through for a shot or you don't. You either see a wreckless drive into the lane with absolutely no will to dish or you don't. You either see the turnovers or you don't. You either see the lazy defense or you don't. You don't get it do you. Its not about weather or not AB is a player in this league. Its about the fact that he has years of playing PG experience, and isn't doing the things that he should be doing to get his team going. Weather or not he is on his first year or fifth NBA year, missing the basic plays, doing the wrong things, or being a general bonehead is whats concerning. If Francis were to play like this he would be touted a bonehead, or having low BB IQ. Even the announcers touched up on it. "Brooks has to figure it out, how to get Martin and Scola touches" Thats about as bad a first period a PG could have BTW.
