I don't have the stats, but Zach Randolf = Juwan Howard = Shareef Abdur Rahim. They're all offensive-minded forwards who can be a 20 point player when they are the number-one option, but really shouldn't even start.
Rockets should sign Kelvin Cato with their TE. He's a banger and a bruiser in the paint. Chuck Hayes is a thug, but he's too small at the 4. Cato played his best basketball alongside Yao during the Franchise-Yao era.
well if the rockets arent gonna get zach randolph, or wilcox, reggie evans is a smart move. he can rebound his ass off.
I think if we do force our hand, it will be to pick up Jaron Collins or Kelvin Cato. Ya, it's not ideal - but in a pinch it ought to work out. The best thing for the Rockets to do is not panic and commit to someone for several years that doesn't completely fit what we need. Better to find someone decent to give a smaller contract to and watch the market until that perfect player comes along...
Good idea glimmertwins. I would prefer Jarron Collins but a motivated and healthy Cato would be fine too.
i still dont understand why the rockets arent shopping for a new power forward. they could at least get reggie evans. he is sh!tloads better than juwon howard as far as rebounding goes. what in the hell are the rockets organization thinking????
How do you know they aren't shopping? Seems like a couple of months ago CD hinted they had some ideas on what they wanted to do but they were waiting on the Iverson and Harrington situations to settle first.
Think back about the last umpteen trades. How many of those did we know about in advance. TMac trade was it. Every other trade not only came out of the thin blue air, but we players involved were virtually never even speculated in this BBS. I'd venture to guess they are working like hell to pull off a trade but we just don't have many tradable assets.
i like bringing Cato at 4. Sure we got Howard, Hayes, Novak and Battier. but which one of those 4 will shot down KG, Duncan, Brand, J-O'Neal, and the other big body PFs. We've gotten killed at the PF spot last year, but Battier will help alot. but for some reason, i dont see battier shuttin down those big 4. Bring in Cato for his atheleticsm and bring back old times with his allys from franchise but instead the assist will go to skip to my lou.
I agree...I keep waiting and waiting for them to do something, but it seems like they are content with what they have...they need a few more pieces before they are ready for the season...a legit pf and another couple of outside shooters...not to mention a backup center...ok thats more than a few pieces...
What concerns me is that neither Battier nor Howard are rebounding machines which puts all the pressure on Yao and Deke to get most all the rbs. I can see us giving up quite a few possessions because of weak rebounding.
I have a concern, this may not belong in this thread or may deserve its own, but since I can't create threads I’ll let someone else decide that and make the changes as necessary. I’m still confused on where the rockets need to fill a void. SG or PF? Of course that will be determined on Battier’s role, but I want to know what others have to say about this. I don’t think we can be contenders with a line up of Snyder/Head/Sura at the 2 (If Battier plays the 4). Nor can we have a 4 spot of Howard/Hayes/Novak (If battier plays the 2, or 3 and Mcgrady moves to the 2). We can all agree that we need one more piece to have a satisfactory/good off-season, but what will that be? Btw, we lost out on Eddie House, a great shooter and instant offense of the bench. However, we do have the cheaper unproven version of him in JLIII. Feedback????
Yes Evans can rebound, but he can not shoot worth a lick. At least juwan is fairly steady from 15 feet so his man can not sag down on yao. If evans was playing alongside yao, he might get us a few extra possessions, but he will also guarantee that Yao or Tmac will be double teamed hard by the other PF on every possession that evans is on the floor. As for the rox needing to make another move, I agree. However, it isnt easy to get a talented player when you dont have one to give back. The rox are basically capped out so a free agent signing of harrington or wells is out, and what would atl or sac want in return from us. Everyone can keep throwing out these Howard, Head and Sura trades, but what team wants a highly paid PF who is majorly on the decline, a small tweener guard, and a broken down veteran who may or may not ever play again. We just have to be patient and hope there is something in the works.
Reggie Evans is not that good a basketball player. He can rebound. That's it. He isn't some kind of lockdown defender, shot blocker or anything else. We all know about his lack of offense. If he was good enough some team would have signed him by now but all he's going to get are leftover crumbs. Someone explain why we need Reggie Evans with Chuck Hayes on board. If choosing between the two, I might choose Hayes.
If we get 27 points and 17 rebounds from the PF spot should we be able to compete with what we have? (Battier 14 ppg, 7 rpg, Howard 8 ppg, 5 rpg Hayes 5 ppg, 5 rpg) Are these stats unrealistic? As far as D goes, IMO Battier can guard the quicker PF's. When were we most effective in the first round against Dallas 2 years ago. When we had T-Mac and Bowen guarding Dirk (mainly T-mac). Howard can give us a body in the post against bigger PF's. He will get taken ofcourse, but won't that be compensated typically by our advantage at the center compared with whoever we are playing? The fact reamins you don't guard a Duncan or Garnett one one one anyway.
Ok, point noted. But if we have Battier logging minutes at 4. What about the 2 spot. I don't have much confidence in Snyder/Head/Sura (Unproven/Undersized/Unhealthy). There are a lot SG's in the league that are better than that, a lot!
I think Battier plays the 3 and 4 with Howard and Hayes carving up the other minutes at the 4. I would actually be surprised if Hayes rebounding numbers are that low, but I didn't want to exagerate and get ripped to shreds out here. When you have Battier, T-Mac, Hayes/Howard, and Yao on the floor together, T-Mac will be playing the 2. I know everybody is concerned about him holding up guarding 2's, but he shouldn't have to do it all game, just spot minutes depending on the rotation and matchups. I am kind of optimistic (guardedly optimistic) about Snyder. He is definitely unproven, but he has been a starting 2, he is young, he brings athleticism. The only real question is can he consistently hit the outside shot. Granted that is a big question, but I think he brings more to the table than Wesley did last year. Head can give us decent minutes off the bench. If V-Span develops he might see time there as well.
No, but this assumes Battier is playing all his minutes at PF. If Howard and Hayes are playing enough to get those numbers, Battier may only be playing 10-15 mpg at PF.
