Now that the 2003-2004 season is over, what should the Rockets do to improve?

I am quite unsure Yoa will ever develop into a NBA force. Yoa having stamina problems, given how young he is, is also concerning. I am in no way giving up on him, but the Yoa we are seeing may be all the Yoa we ever get.

 

1. We definitely need someone else to play pg. We don't need an all-star just a role player.

2. Dump Cato because his hands are awful and we need a replacement.

3. Keep mobley and only trade Francis for the right price(A definite all-star or an extremely high lottery pick). 3 Gaurd lineup.

4. Bring Omar Cook to training camp and see if he can still play up to the level he did at St. John's. And maybe Mario Austin.

I know there are a couple of problems with it but here it goes.
Starting Lineup
Carlos Arroyo/Omar Cook
Steve Francis/Jimmy Jackson
Cuttino Mobley/JJ/Bostjan Nachbar
Mo Taylor/Draft Choice(Hakim Warrick/Malick Badaine)
Yao Ming/Stromile Swift(From Cato Deal)

 

First, Yao needs to eat beef, protein-laden beef, a 10-gallon hat full of it daily. That will improve his stamina -- not the near-vegan diet to which he is accustomed.

Second, we keep Cato as a backup center.

Third, Mo Taylor spends the summer with a defensive coach and a set of weights.

Fourth, Nachbar spends the summer working with coaches and weights prior to becoming starting SF.

Fifth, trade Francis to Washingon for their #1, Steve Blake, Christian Laettner and Larry Hughes. The first two are the real trades while the contracts of Laettner and Hughes expire in one year. Washington no longer needs either of them, and they could be serviceable in the JVG system. In Francis, Washington gets a real draw for their homies.

Sixth, we make Mobley understand that Sixth Man is not a demotion and that he can be vital to the Rockets' success.

All this except Point #1 gets rearranged if the Rockets can engineer a deal to get a Brand, a McGrady or a Pierce.

 

I think the Rockets should pursue T-Mac. With jvg's offense, i think Yao would benefit with T-Mac because he would demand more double teams that right now he gets when he puts the ball down. T-Mac would give us the outside and inside scoring presence.

 

I think we need to trade mobley right away. We should bring in nick van exel. Exel wants to play for houston, since his house is in houston, the last time he told my friend who knows him very well. Move Francis to SG and Exel to PG. Exel is a great passer and we need a vetran leadership to this team. Also if possible try to bring in Elton Brand. Thats all we need to do to become a damn solid team. More than anything we might loose mobley, Cato, Taylor.

Love to see this starting:

Yao
Brand
JJ
SF
Exel

Off the bench, would love to see Adrian driffin and nachbar back, even taylor would be nice but i doubt it.

 

This team not only need a PF that can shoot but a bunch of SG, PG and SF that can shoot deadly from downtown. Not only that, they need them to play smart and intelligent and know how to pass fundamentally. This is like asking too much, but that's what the Rox need to improve.

 

Its all a waste of time if you don't have a playmaker Point Guard to take care of Yao Ming. If you want to keep Steve Francis as our Playmaker then we should trade Yao Ming as he is also wasting time on this Rocket's Team .

 

Yetti, some of the problem this year was Yao....didn't you see in the playoffs how when he gets the ball he is reluctant to shoot and passes out alot of times to a teammate who has a more difficult shot. I love Yao's potential, but until he becomes more aggressive he isn't ready to bare the load of carrying a franchise. I am also not sure if Steve is ever going to fit in with this team and the new philosophy of JVG, but to think that if we get a "playmaking PG" is going to solve all of our problems is just not accurate. Like TheFreak said we will only go as far as Yao takes us. So until he becomes more consistant and more aggressive he is part of the problem.........not just a victim of those around him.

 

I'd more than happy if we could do a Tmac+ for Francis(+ Mobley)trade(realistic?) and get Kurt Thomas with the TE or some trade.
But then of course we'd have to find a starting PG...

ALA

 

My confidence in the orgainization as a whole.

 

Brent barry will be a FA.

 

....and make him grow BillWaltonlike (Portland days) facial hair.

He also needs to be castrated and given the balls of a bull dog or Afghani hound.

He needs to start drinking bitter beer befor every game.

He needs to be fined $1000 for every "layup" withing 5 feet of the bucket.

I like the guy (a down grade) and I am still rooting for him ....for in him our hopes of glory is embedded but I don't think I will have any patience for him anymore if he does not become "a man" real soon.

 

Is manhood defined by wisdom or angst; civility or rudeness; reason or fanaticism; sportsmanship or aggression? No, I think Yao is more of a man than the vast majority of NBA players. I do not question that.

Fegwu, like you, I do hope he discovers that his principal occupation is more gladiatoral than cerebral. Although I do not wish to see him forego the cerebral, I too would prefer to see him JUST STUFF THE BALL EVERYTIME HE IS WITHIN 5 FEET OF THE RIM.

 

Walton was a cerebral player but he's still telling Yao to "throw it down, Big Man".

(I'm waiting to see if anyone catches your #1, Blake, Laettner, Hughes with WAS ).

 

I haven't proposed it to the board as of yet. I need to purchase more fireproofing before I do. The proposal does seem to have some interest in the secret forum.

 

Just because you now have 2,000+ posts doesn't mean you can flaunt it.

 

Can we get Shareef Abdur Rahim?

 

Just sign 'Sheed with the ML exception. It's JVG's job to get Yao to become more aggressive. Steve will be a lot more happy to pass to a raging Yao than the passive, and often frightened, Yao.

And drop Mobley. He had a decent season, but he is still not worth all the bad shots (even the ones that go in) and turnovers.