Rafer Watch

I like your line up= less pressure on Steve Francis ( at the Shooting guard) to set up plays. RAfer brings the bal down the floor quickly - which is great- less time off the clock to develop more options. He does more than it appears to make this team gel. He deserves more credit for being an effective point guard - even if his shot is suspect.

Many of those shots last season were of desperation. Rafer's heart is there and he is not stupid.

 

Though Scola had come,I am still not satisfid with PF.Can we find another player like Cato?

 

Rafer will stay in Houston,no doubt about it!

 

The point is, he is replacable. His 3pt shooting will not be missed because mike James can easily replace him (he is a slightly better shooter). And them James has the ability to make a layup and a midrange shot (something rafer does not have). The team really does not need and more shooters, as I said earlier, they were a top 5 3pt shooting team in the League last year. Just cause you make a ton of 3s doesnt make you a good shooter. Gilbert is not a greater shooter, he is a good scorer and he takes a ton of shots.

 

I hope he won't

 

One correction: Mike James is a terrific 3-point shooter. Definitely ahead of Alston in that category. And Battier is damn good, too. T-Mac should also up his efficiency with more scorers around him this season. I do agree that Alston is a good 3-point shooter but we do have other options.

 

If Adelman gets this team running in a more up-tempo offense as promised, that will lead right into Alston strengths. He is hands down the best fastbreaking PG out of Francis, James, Synder and Head (leaving Brooks out of the equation until we see him live). Those guards are better at running the wing. Rafer can actually lead a fastbreak. He is good at it.

At 20-25mpg in an up-tempo offense, Alston will be the best he can be. That said, not sure if I want to see playing much in the 4th Q. But he is worth keeping over cutting for his ability to run a fastbreak alone.

 

ima miss him..

 

Then if the break isn't there we can call timeout and sub in somebody who isn't a halfcourt albatross.

 

your crusade to bash Alston for not being a spot up shooter in JVG's offense is largely irrelevant in an Adelman offense. You do know that, right?

Alston is not good enough to play more than 25 mpg in any offense, but Francis cannot run a fastbreak worth a damn, and he will not contribute much to helping us develop an uptempo offense unless he's running the wing. That's just a fact.

I just see Francis as a 6th man type and one who closes the games more often than not. I like him in the end game. And I like the idea of getting him going as a go to guy when Yao is taking his first breather. And I don't see James starting ahead of Francis, for worries about Francis' sensitivities.

 

Too bad Rafer also sucks at layups, and floaters and well defense !!

Rafer is no longer needed, Tracy can run the fast break, James can run it, Brooks can run it.

It doesn't have to originate from the PG position.

DD

 

Rafer Alston is far from a halfcourt albatross.

The Rockets from last season, very much a half court team, averaged 109 points per 100 possession while Alston is on the court. Is that great? No, but it isn't bad, either, considering the Spurs averaged 111 points per 100 possession with Tony Parker on the court, it's somewhat comparable.

The problem with the Rockets really was that they only averaged 101 points per 100 possession with Rafer Alston on the bench.

Alston got the team into the offense quickly without turning the ball over much, and that's has more of an effect than you might think. When the Rockets put in a far better shooter but lessor dribbler against pressure in Luther Head as PG, they struggled.

You might not think about it, but a lot of the times, when the shot clock is running down and a team has to force up a low% shot, such a situation could have been avoided if the PG got the ball up the court quicker when the 24 second clock first started running.

Can James, Francis, or Brooks do the same? We'll see. I have more confidence in Brooks or James doing this than with Francis (just not part of SF's skill set).

 

Oh, Rafer can certainly be a spot-up shooter, he's just not a spot up-maker, or a layup maker, or a maker on the move...or anything but a millstone on offense outside of the pedestrian job of getting the ball up the court. Run the break? I guess, but I don't see him as superior to James, and I see James as vastly superior in finishing a break...him being able to make a layup and all.

I don't think Adelman's magic motion is going to solve this, or deceive teams from being able to capitalize on this, I don't count on Francis being a starting PG this year at all - more of a utility guy to plug in at 1 or 2 depending on who else is injured (which will likely be him at some point). I would gladly start James and if Francis doesn't like it, well he's on a short term vet min deal.

Rafer spent so much time on the court last year that's its really hard to read too much into this - He was a constant, not a variable, and largely piggybacked off of the teams success if you look at these stats. Secondly as you rightly point out, he had no viable backup.

 

For reserve pg he is brilliant...
10-15 minutes per game if he wants,perfect

 

SamFisher,

I know it is fun and all to bash players. I know a lot of fans consider it part of the game. I guess I don't really have much else to say.

 

I bash Alston a lot, but I kinda agree. I think Francis will start, but will get under 30mpg. James will play a more sg than pg. Who gets the leftover pg minutes will depend on how good Brooks is at the nba level.

Rafer is a solid backup pg.

 

For all the posters hating on me because I said that Rafer would be the starting point guard on opening night keep some things in mind.

1. In all of my posts I have never supported Rafer or thought he was a good player on our team. At the same time I have never outright hated on him either. So for all of you feeling that I said that because I think he is the best fit for the team you are off. Why did I make this statement?

1. Last season we had an outstanding starting 5 in terms of efficiency. Im not 100% sure about this but I think the Hollinger Ratings as far as greatest starting NBA starting 5's the Rockets were always at or near the top. With Morey on board as our GM don't you think this stat kind of stood out to him.

2. We did get Steve Francis and Mike James and I am very happy about signing them but why do they need to start. NBA chemistry is a very funny thing. You don't put the best 5 players out on the floor at the same time. Its all about B A L A N C E. Personally I would love to have Stevie & James come off the bench to give us a nice boost when Yao and T-Mac have a seat. We don't need overkill in our starting line up. What we need is a steady Offensive (and Defensive) attack. So just because Rafer starts does not mean he will get the majority of the minutes.

3. This is a team with totally different players. It will definitely be a work in progress. As VanGundy used to say "I put the team out there that gives me the best chance to win" I think Adelman feels the same way. Will having Steve at point guard along with Yao + T-Mac = more winning? Probably. However CHEMISTRY between them needs to develop and Im not sure that Adelman is going to throw that into the mix immediately when we had a damn good starting 5 together last year.

4. If there is 1 thing that Morey has taught us so far its that he NEVER EVER just lets opportunities go by. He is constantly working and trying to get as much value as he can. Why on EARTH would Kid Genius cut Rafer Alston or trade him right now when his stock is so low? That just does not seem like Morey's style, and sitting his ass on the bench for the hole season will not increase his trade value either. He needs to try to build Rafer up again before shipping him out for something with higher value.

Rafer has his faults and personally I do NOT see him being a Rocket in June (I think he will probably get traded before the All Star Break). However based on all of these reasons (and not because I am high or ignorant) I feel strongly that he will be the starting point guard for the Houston Rockets on opening day.

 

NO HE WILL NOT!