http://www.nypost.com/sports/37246.htm ROCKETS ARE A WRECK December 28, 2004 -- JIMMY Jackson got the call yesterday he didn't want to hear, and had no idea was coming. As the journeyman small forward was preparing to join his Rocket teammates on the team charter to Milwaukee for tonight's game, VP Carroll Dawson informed him he'd been traded along with Bostjan Nachbar to New Orleans for David Wesley. Just like that, Jackson, who appeared finally to have found a home in Houston, went from a 13-14 counterfeit contender — until it stops losing home games to the likes of the expansionist Bobcats, that team's lone road win — to lower than whale waste. The 2-23 Hornets are on course to surpass the '72-73 Sixers (9-73) as the lousiest team in NBA history. For now, they're Jackson's 10th employer (first in the Developmental League) in 121/3 increasingly depressing seasons. OK, I understand why the Hornets made the trade; not for Jackson, that's for sure, despite his starting status and ability to down shots. Having already free fallen out of the standings (they're hoping an arbitrator and a judge will allow them back in the league), GM Alan Bristow and coach Byron Scott are looking to luck into an untapped resource. In his third season, nobody knows whether or not the 6-9 Nachbar, No. 15 in the '02 draft, can play at this level. On the other hand, it's beyond comprehension what Dawson and Jeff Van Gundy are thinking. Acquiring Wesley, 34, isn't as irrelevant as the Mavericks swapping Dan Dickau (again, at least the Hornets got potential) for dead end Darrell Armstrong, but it's not much better. Whereas Armstrong took minutes away from Jason Terry and Devin Harris (before Don Nelson came out of his coma), Wesley will take shots away from Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming, and maybe even Hakeem. Like Armstrong, Wesley doesn't loosely qualify as a pure point guard. Wherever he's roamed he's been a shoot-first, pass-as-a-last-resort type guard. Meanwhile, Jackson's a deadlier shooter. Moreover, Wesley doesn't give it up. I'll say! He wouldn't even make a pass at Kobe's wife. If Wesley's arrival in Van Gundy's starting backcourt isn't opaque enough, this is the worst he's played since the bad old days in New Jersey and Boston, his first two pro seasons. Yeah, his poor play certainly could have something to do with the injury-riddled Hornets' harsh conditions. But you'd think a $4.6 million salary ($4.9M next season) would be enough inspiration to rise above the squalor. If a paycheck isn't the thing-of-the-bob-that-does-the-job, how about simply showing some old-fashioned pride? Not to say Wesley, even in his current state of disrepute, isn't an improvement on what the Rockets have on playmaking patrol. On second thought, I will say it; at best, he's a Bob Sura clone and substantially superior to Charlie Ward, whose game is so shabby four houses of worship refused him sanctuary. These are the two pointless guards management chose to sign last summer as free agents to "complement" Tyronn Lue, exchanged last week for Jon Barry, whose poisonous attitude and bad mouthing of coaches when not playing has led to his last three change of addresses. Obviously, Van Gundy had some say regarding the recruitment of his perennial pet mistake. Ward got $1.7M and $1.8M guaranteed with a $2.04M team option. Why wait, Jeff? Pick it up right now. Nobody else was offering more than a 10-day contract. But Carroll, who helped Rudy Tomjanovich assemble Houston's two title teams ('94-'95), has the (last) sway. Carroll has been groping since, overpaying ineligible receivers as if he were bidding against Warriors whiz Chris Mullin. Maurice Taylor, Shandon Anderson, Howard Eisley, Matt Maloney (on the Rockets' cap this season, his last, at last, for $3.237,250), Brent Price and Moochie Norris were all rewarded with senseless long-term contracts. Sura was the latest to strike it rich without earning it, unless you deem last season's stats (7.5 points, 2.9 assists, 1.3 turnovers and 41 percent from the field) for the hopeless Hawks noteworthy. Thanks to the Rockets' tainted top talent scout, owner Les Alexander owes the 10-year rent-a-wreck $3.2M/$3.5M/$3.8M this year and the next two; I'm unsure whether the fourth season of $3.8M is guaranteed. Thanks to Carroll (Van Gundy, too), the Rockets are being forced to restock, if not rethink. That might be asking too much. * For your dining and dancing pleasure, I now present the player mismanagement mishandled: Last season, Damon Jones, a lethal long-distance shooter (98 threes, 36 percent clip), led the league in assist-to-turnover ratio, almost five-to-one (5.8 avg. in 82 games), for the playoff-presiding Bucks. Having played in college for the Houston Cougars and subsequently making his home in that city, the 6-3 orchestrator wanted desperately to stay put in the winter as well. Clearly, Jones would've furnished a perfect balance to Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady; double- team them and he'd make the defense pay dearly. Clear to everyone, that is, except Carroll. Five months later, Jones, is playing, no, make that, thriving off Shaq and Dwyane Wade. He's leading the league in 3-point conversions (87; 45 percent), 17 more than his Quentin Richardson, his nearest rival, and averaging a career-high 11.7 points. More importantly, the Eastern Conference leading Heat haven't lost since Stan Van Gundy inserted Jones into the starting lineup, 11 straight if Carroll and Alexander are keeping score at home.
No question this analysis is a reality check. If you take of your Rocket red glasses for a second you can see that personnel blunders lead to garbage. This team is on the brink of garbage. You can only mess up so many times. Damon Jones should haunt us all. Boki will be a better player and one we will whine about losing. We are staking this season and in some ways next season on J Barry and D Wesley staying healthy and shooting lights out, and playing defense that neither have history of playing. JJ wasn't much better. I guess we are just in a no win situation. How long will this last? Where will it all end?
This is probably the first and last time I will even closely agree with Pete. I still think the Wesley deal isn't as bad as it's being made out to be, but not signing Damon Jones(or the unmentioned Mike James) was unexcusable.
I think I'm going to be sick. For once, Vescey was dead on. Les needs to fire everyone; JVG, CD, Lindsey - everyone. Shoot, he should probably fire himself. Bring back Charlie Thomas and the Patterson boys.
Posey, KT, Boki, EG.... Any player entering the prime of their careers gets washed away, for nothing. CD has lost it. DD
Vescey hit it on the nose with that assessment. I am still befuddled as to why the Roxs made that trade. Unless they see Wesley as a point guard, which according to Vescey is nowhere close. But, I have to believe that JVG wouldn't give up on JJ for just Wesley. Could the trade be design to create a roster spot? It seems Ward is going to come up lame, so we're down to Sura, Barrett, and Wesley at the PG spot. But who's going to play SF? T-Mac? Anyway, I can't believe that we couldn't have done better. Denver was looking for a SG. Why not trade for White and Tskit? Or maybe we should just come to grips that we're going to get alot worse before we get better. Let's hope not.
Wesley = a Bob Sura clone? Vescey has officially lost it. If he ever says anything, I believe the opposite, so we must be in great shape. Where is VesceySux when you need him......................... PS - Since Sura has become the starter, we are 7-3 and our offensive PPG has gone from 86 PPG to 93 PPG. IMO, he is worth every penny of 3 years/$10 MIL.
For anyone who thinks Wesley will improve this team, read this article. Peter Vecsey knows Wesley's game. Another shooting happy SG who is near dead end of his career. Enjoy!
Trust me, Wesley is by far the more shot happy one. JJ shot the ball because he was open (most of tyhe time anyway), Wesley will force up a shot if he isn't open. I've had this guy on my fantasy squad a few times and had to watch him play as a result.
Does anyone know if CD and JVG really did reject Damon Jones(and Mike James for that matter) in favor of Charlie Ward? I've heard Jones was dying to play here. Yet I've also heard that he preferred Miami's situation to ours. Which is it? I realize that it's a moot point now, but if CD and JVG did in fact pick Charlie Ward over Damon Jones, they should be lynched.
I have a hard time calling someone who averages 11 FGA per game for his career, while being a starter almost the entire time, shot happy, especially when he has always been the #2 or #3 scoring option on his team. His career 4.8 APG average tells me he is quite unselfish.
More importantly, what is the point? Even assuming they are the exact same caliber player, why make the move? This is an obvious lame attempt by management to pretend they're "doing something" when in fact nothing has been done at all. We are trading a 33 year old good locker room presence for a 34 year old player near the end of his career. Perhaps they can argue they're "sending a message" but to whom? TMac and Yao aren't going anywhere. Mo Taylor and Juwan Howard understand they have hideous contracts and can't be traded - not that they would necessarily care anyways. Ward received his free meal ticket. Sura is hurt. Bottom line: Rockets management is obviously trying to add pieces but because of their past incompetence, can't do anything other these meaningless moves. When fans on this board are clamoring for "give it more time to develop chemistry" while management is trading pieces away, what's the message they're sending?
I think this article is emotional and ridiculous. How about some real analysis? Vecsey will end up eating crow, again.
