I've asked this a thousand times - who cares what "harry palmer" and other Raptors fans think about James? Alston was persona non-grata in Toronto, and they sucked even worse with him . They're whining because he shoots too much - well he has the same eFG% as Bosh (50.8 vs. 50.7%) and shoots about 15 shots a game, same as Bosh Imagine how ****ty they'd be with Alston as their primary perimeter scoring threat.
Here's the easy answer for summer transactions: Use the MLE on Cassell, or if that fails Claxton, and draft a SG. Keep the rest of the team, and Rafer become a good backup PG.
As long as Alston doesn't shoot from the perimiter except for once in a while, as long as he makes smart passes, as long as he plays pass first, as long as he keeps driving, and as long as he doesn't die in the clutch, I'm cool with Rafer Alston being our PG. He's a pretty good ball handler, he's quick, and he likes to push the ball. But even with all of that, he REALLY needs to work on his defense. That's what always makes me so angry with him is that he makes dumb plays on the offensive end, and then gets beat on the defensive end. It's a lose-lose situation with him sometimes. So basically... Weaknesses: Entire defensive game, clutch excecution, 3 pt. long range shooting, and he sometimes makes bad passes/doesn't find the open man. Strengths: Ability to handle the ball, quick, pushes the ball, and he can get/finish in the lane pretty well.
did Bobby Sura die or something ??? Y'all keep mentioning CAssell and others and nobody talks about Bobby..Bobby is a warrior and I am sure that he'll be back next season and better than ever..
I would never put my faith in Sura. Including this year, bobby sura has played an average of 46 games for the last 6 years!! (TRASH) So that shows next year he will be hurt once more! Even if you dont include this year, he still only played only 55 games a year
WHERE'S THE TROJAN? CAUSE WE GOT F****D IN THIS TRADE RAFER ALSTON PPG: 11.7 RPG 4.1 APG 6.7 FG% .379 3P% .332 MPG 38.3 MIKE JAMES PPG: 20.0 RPG 3.3 APG 5.9 FG% .470 3P% .440 MPG 37.0
Rafer is a legitimate starting PG IMO, but his problem on this team is the inability to hit the open 3 consistently. You look at inside out teams of the past, and all of them had a good shooter at PG: Kenny Smith and Sam Cassell, Derek Fisher for the Lakers. So, either Rafer needs to improve that shooting, or he may be a backup in the longrun. I think Van Gundy does like Rafer though, which may be a problem...Jeff may accept that he hurts the offense at times when he does everything else that is needed at PG. I definitely wouldn't complain if we drafted Marcus Williams.
I don't think Rafer is a starting point guard on a good team in this league. I think he's a good backup point guard on a good team. Rafer is far too inconsistant to be a starter. People are harping on his shooting, and they're right. However, he'll have nights where he turns the ball over 6+ times, and nights where he only dishes out a couple of assists. Sure he'll have 10 assist/ 2TO nights too, but his lack of a shot, and his inconsistant play in terms of running the court as a pg precludes him from ever being a reliable starter at the 1. I think it's clear now that we got fleaced on the Mike James trade. Hopefully we can bring in a starting pg in the offseason (preferably one who can shoot the ball with consistancy). Can anyone say, "Sammy the Alien".
