I came of age both literally and as a basketball fan right when the Rockets finally started to put it together. I remember becoming a big bball fan in 92-93, right when Hakeem learned that he couldnt carry the laod by himself and the Rockets finally put a decent supporting cast around Dream. Thus, I have never diligently watched a team rebuild. How much time does it take? I swear, I have seen the same stupid mistakes by Cuttino and Steve - i.e getting too cute with the ball, overdribbling, jacking contested 24 footers. An amazing lack of defensive intensity. I am also concerned about what I see as a lack of development in Eddie Griffin. he looked phenomenal in stretches last year, but his stat sheet is routinely 3-8 with 5 rebounds. I havent seen much development in the low post or in his upper body. my questions are: Are the Rockets on pace to fulfill their predicted greatness as the MING dynasty? or do we have a problem that Steve and Cat really are bone-headed like barkley implied a couple of years ago? As far as big men develop is Eddie progressing adequately? I know it takes time... and the Rockets are still a few years away. But it is tough to see so much talent and then watch them drop games to crappy teams like the Knicks and the Grizzlies. I honestly think that their record may be inflated bc even when they win we dont look that impressive i.e. Pacers.
How about when we shoot 54% from the field and 100% from the line against the Jazz, and lose? Or how about when they controlled the game at Phoenix, only to lose on a couple of missed freebies and a miracle shot by Marbury? You could just as easily make the argument that are record is negatively inflated as it is positively. It goes both ways. The Rockets are well, well ahead in the rebuilding cycle. Think about how long it took the Celtics and Lakers to rebuild from the late 1980's championship teams to become contenders again. The Rockets have done a fantastic job. They've basically been rebuilding for 2 years-- the season three years ago wasn't intended as such, but became it midway through when both Hakeem and Barkley went down and we had no one else. In that time frame, we've gone from one of the oldest teams to one of the youngest, with quality young players at every position on the floor. In a two year span, that's incredible. I wouldn't worry too much about EG, yet. IMO, Mo Taylor will get the majority of minutes at power forward as soon as he can get his legs back. EG's basically like a high schooler. Look how long it took Jermaine O'Neal. Look at how long it's taking Chandler and Curry. There are a few exceptions (Stoudamire), but usually, with young big men, it takes them until they are 22 or 23 years old and in their 3rd or 4th seasons in the league to get the bulk needed to play on an every night basis. I don't think it was the Rockets plan to play EG as much as they are this season, but they're being forced into it by how subpar Mo is playing. Whenever Mo gets it back, I think they'll start splitting the minutes, and EG will play in matchups more suited for him. On Steve and Cuttino, I still think it's the process of learning to play with a dominant big man. With the exception of 10 games in Steve's rookie season and Mobley's rookie season (when he was a PG), these two have been the go-to guys on the team, with little help in the low post. They're getting it now, but Yao's only been a consistent force for about 20 games, which is much less than two and a half seasons. I do see some improvement, but at this stage, you have to understand that there are occasionally lapses where they go back to the style of play of the last two or so years. The only thing that's going to fix this is time, and hopefully it'll be fixed by th playoffs.
