I gotta agree with f4p, I don't understand why so many are leaving Cat on the bench to play Boki (JJ and Pike I might understand a little more, but Boki?). He's had one good quarter and suddenly he's starting material. NOT YET. Cat is still by far our best option at the 2. You want a spot up shooter (which Boki has not shown himself to be.. yet)? Put Pike in at the 3 then since the JJ that's supposed to be an offensive option hasn't showed up just yet. I think this lineup would work nicely: Yao/Cato/Pike/Mobley/Francis (this is only if and when Mobley and Pike are back from injuries) Yao and Cato clogging up the lane is a nightmare for the opponents and Mobley is a good defender. This lineup is pretty nice offensively too with Mobley and Francis able to create, Pike spotting up for 3's, Yao posting and working inside and Cato going for putbacks and high percentage shots. You could substitute JJ in for Pike if you're worried about Pike being burned, but with Cato and Yao behind him I don't think that's an overwhelming concern. But Boki should be a backup at the 3. Let's see how these next preseason games go, if Boki is just astounding then maybe, just maybe, he can be in consideration to be the starter.
i dont really see him being anywhere close to a peja type player. he just doesnt have the same range or jump shot. hes more of a hedo turkluugauoaoug92i5aoj. hes a slasher, not a shooter.
I dont see where you are seeing people starting Boki over Cat. I saw one person. Mostly they are starting either Pike or JJ over Mobley. and before you ask..no, I dont really see starting Boki either. maybe later in the season if he shows he deserves it, but not now.
First, I don't think Cat has much of a choice. It's Gundy's/ Alexander's choice to how much Cat is going to play. It seems to me Gundy is being fair and allowing players to earn the minutes. If Cat is unable to play at a level and be discipline/good enough to get the job done then why should the Rockets keep Cat or play him?
Ditto... our rotation would also include: Guards Mooch, Piatkowski, Wilks Forwards Nachbar, Piatkowski, Griffin, Meech, Cato/Taylor Centers Cato, Meech, Taylor
Yeah, sorry, most of the ppl in this thread have been putting Cat as their starter (although some of them don't want that to be the case or think that he should ), but from many other threads ppl have been moving JJ over the 2 just in order to start Boki at the 3. Also I disagree with starting JJ at the 2, so far Cat can do much much more than what JJ has shown. Starting Pike over Cat at the 2 has it's advantages, but then we'd be stuck with an offensively inept 3 (at least so far with Boki's and JJ's play) AND 4 (if Cato starts).
To those who think Mobley will start. wait a minute. Jeff Van Gundy has been very decisive with his statements concerning what kind of players he wants playing with Steve and Yao. He has said he wants players that know their roles, players that know who they are, and players that don't want to be superstars -- wannbe superstars. So think about it again fellers. Do you really think Mobley will be starting? Not a chance. Not a snowballs chance in hell.
Hold on, Mobley has been asked to change roles so many times, and he has tried to change his role, with varying degrees of success, I'm sure he'll do his best to fit the role JVG gives him. Hell, I think he's more compliant than Francis is. Now if Mobley doesn't start, what better choices are there? Pike starting at the 2 is great and all, but wtf happens to the 3 spot? AG hasn't played in a while, no telling if he would fit in or not so he's probly not starting, Boki has had one good quarter in almost his entire NBA career so no he shouldn't get the nod, JJ is a viable option except for the fact that he hasn't clicked yet. As of now, I still think the best option is to put Pike at the 3 (possibly JJ if he shows up in the next few preseason games) and Cat at the 2. And JVG hasn't said anything bad about Mobley yet, in fact he's praised him and called him one of the cornerstones or something or other.
Yea JVG has made it clear that he wants to surround Yao and Steve with smart players. From what i seen of Mobley last year, he's not a smart player. Especially when it comes to crunch time, he thinks he's superman or something and he wants to be the hero and jacking up shots or forcing the issue and ended up missing them. I think JVG is going to evualte Mobley when he comes back and see if he changes the way he play or still the same old Mobley. If it's the same Mobley, I expect Pikowski to replace him as the starter. Beside Pikowski seems to be more of a fundamental player, play smart and don't jack up shots and he's pretty accurate from outside. I expect YAO, STEVE, and J. JACKSON to be a sure starter. CATO and YAO is pretty nice. E. Griffin is too short and weight lesser compare to the PFs in the west, so he's going to get schooled by Garnett, Duncan, Webber, Rasheed Wallace. Mo Taylor is the better matchups but still not good enough since he doesn't rebound the ball. My choice would be Cato. Pound per pound and height, he's going to match up well with those PFs from the WEST and he can rebound and block, which help Yao a lot. JVG said that they might have trouble with transition defense with 2 centers, but I thought Cato runs pretty fast for his size. I don't think it's that big of a problem. Cato has the body of a PF and the quickness of a PF.
I think we should do a trade for Artest and have something like this: Ming Cato Artest Pike SF Bench: Mo T. A. Griff Mooch EG JJ the trade should be Mobley + trade$$$ = Ron Artest and 2nd Rounder (maybe throw EG while you at it)
First off remember JVG prefers veterna status come start of season. Thinking Boki is ready to start is not going to happen especially if we are to be playoff bound. It might and will probably change if younger player(s) show improvement and fit into the system. Remember boki wasn't a PT rookie, meaning this year will be his first true test out of the gate when the regular season starts. I see the obvious Opening day Starting Line-UP: C Ming F Taylor(EG if he comes around and only blowing steam, not likely) F Jackson G Mobley G Francis If the PF is the area of contraversy, I still doubt Cato would be used to play a PF position as a starter, evening if temporary. JVG's half court offensive scheme won't allow Cato to fit and he can't run down the faster natural power forwards. Maybe a trade might be in a near future mix, but we don't have in that much in terms of trade bait players we want to give up, even Cat. If Cat were to be traded it would be in Dire Straits, right now its too early to make that assumption. Besides, the JVG system is not even up to par yet, but once it is, then again can we from a fan prospective even consider a viable trade. As for Eddie, we can't give up on him yet. Remember he is still a young man with alot of early life pressure. Some athletics can take up the pressure and demand, but with his early short comings it only added the pressure. On his end he does need to mature greatly. For his sake I hope he does; However, time is running out and the rockets patience are wearing thin and this fan wants to see resluts else we must move onto another player very soon at his postion. Anyway, I do think we will see a great year and get to see Yao prosper so I recommend to my fellow fans who are somewhat don't to THiNK BiG(and I don't mean the fat lady singer either ) Htown4life
I also think most likely he will stay. But he is going to play JVG's game, and he is not the one to decide who starts at 2. With the $7 mil trade money, he is a good bait to get an all-star level player.
I wouldn't be so sure... If I had to bet, Cat will not start. Jimmy Jackson is the better fit for the starters role on this team. He has decent size for a shooting guard which is important to be able to help defend against the larger shooting guards and small forwards in the league. This makes him more versatile. He also had a decent shot and knows when to make the correct pass. Cat is more of an energy player in my opinion. He can give us a spark off the bench and play hard nose defense. Cat is not worthy of the starters role at shooting guard. He doesn't have the size, consistancy, and good decision making abilities to warrent a starters position. For those who are such great supporters of Cat I sometime wonder why? You keep making excuses for the guy. Such as, he has been asked to play different positions. Or he is a great pick for a second round draft pick. Or he signed for less to stay with the Rockets. But the truth is, Cat value isn't worth much if he doesn't fit into the puzzle to help the Rocket organization to winning a championship. I do think Cat could help the Rockets win a championship. He has impressive ability to slash to the basket, can play decent defense, and is an impressive free throw shooter. It would be nice if Cat could watch tapes of a Doug Christy or Bobby Jackson or maybe even a Bruce Bowen. All these guys play amazing defense and can hit a spot up jumper. I think Gundy said it best when he alluded to the idea that he likes players who play hard and know their limitations and play to their strengths. Hint Hint!!!!
One thing is clear from this thread - Only Yao and Francis and to a large extent Cato (because of Eddy situation) will consistently start. I predict that there will be a revolving door of starters at the 2 and 3 positions simply because no one has stood out yet. So regardless of who starts against Denver on opening night it may not mean much if the combination does not work on the floor consistent. It will take a while before we know our TRUE starting five - methinks it will take anywhere from 10 to 13 games baring any setbacks in the form of injuries. So that said, here is my starting five come opening day; Francis JJax Boki Cato Yao [marquee]Mobley[/marquee]
Um, apparently he was voted the official fall guy by the BBS for all the Rox shortcomings, but placing all the blame on him and Steve last year is just not right. Granted he made his share of bonehead plays and his jumper was at times inconsistent, but I think it had more to do with the situation he was in. There is no denying that Cat has game. The guy hustles, plays D, can penetrate and get to the hoop about as well anyone, and can shoot from long range. He and Steve were both put in a tough spot last year to try and carry an over-rated team of young, athletic players not one of which (other than said two) could hit an open jumper to save thier life, and somehow try to get the ball to these players to help them develope. Rudy's offensive system, or lack thereof, really did not help their cause either. They both played their f-ing hearts out 40-45 min./game last year on both sides of the ball, and that is all you can ask as a fan. But take a look at last years team. They had no chemistry. The lack of movement away from the ball by the rest of Rox last year was just terrible. No screans, no cuts. They all just stood and watched. That's why SF and Cat always ended up with the ball in their hands as the shot clock dwindled in some desperate attempt to score. On-ball defenders were able to put a lot more pressure on them last year, taking away their jump shot and forcing them to drive, because help-defenders were always right there waiting, showing no respect for the Rox supporting cast. Rarely MoT would muster up the energy to cut to an open spot to receive a pass, put opposing teams just left Eddie and Posey on the wings. Sadly enough, it never occured to those bonheads to try and move to a spot which might create a better passing lane, or heaven-forbid, cut to the basket. And all this resulted in some bad-looking passes and turnovers attributed to the guards. And the way things were last year, I would rather Cat/Steve shoot sky-hooks in the lane with thier off-hand than move the ball around. Did you not see some of the shots put up by the supporting cast? Need I remind you about the home-game against the Lakers last year. How many times did we have to hear Walton say the "worst shot in the Hiiiiistory of the Rockets"? And while Franchise was going nuts and Cat was playing his heart out on Kobe, this stupid BBS was counting every missed shot and turnover they made. Bottom line, to expect Kobe Bryant like performances out of him every night is unfair. But, he does have talent. The talent worthy of being a starting SG in this league. How he will adjust to JVG's system is still unclear, but for now, the starting spot should go to the most talented player.
he's a top 10, minimum top 12, shooting guard in this league who you know will always bring his best effort and yet you want to put in a guy who came off the bench last year and who waits through every offseason (sometimes into the season) for an opportunity to present itself (i.e. injury) before he gets picked up and your replacement for that guy in the starting lineup is a guy who's played 77 minutes of nba basketball, sucked in the summer leagues, and struggled for all but one quarter in the preseason. if we're throwing in the jvg factor, then what of him always mentioning steve, yao, and cuttino as the core of this team? why would he mention cuttino as part of a 3 person core if he was going to bring him off the bench for a small contract, end of offseason pick up that was there all offseason if this guy was really who he wanted to start? if jvg wants, defense, why is he gonna replace cuttino's D with boki's D? why is he gonna replace cuttino's ability to hit an outside shot (look at 2 season's ago-39% on 3's, and the 2nd half of last season when he went to a more spot up role and shot around 39% on 3's again) with boki's inability to hit an outside shot? why is he gonna put an inferior player, jj, who won't help us more on the court, into's cuttino's slot if his interest is in winning ball games? why wouldn't he just do the obvious thing, take our big whole at sf, fill it will primarily sf playing jackson, a guy who i'm glad we got and can apparently play a little D and hit an outside shot (though he doesn't take a lot of 3's) and then use our sg who can play D and hit an outside shot and play them together? that would seem to make perfect sense. are you saying we got rid of rice and signed jj the same day b/c we thought boki was really our sf and we just wanted to supplant mobley at sg? or would it make more sense that we got rid of our main sf and picked up another, cheaper sf to fill that whole since sg is already a position we have taken care of? and if jj is playing sg, and mobley is backing him up, then when is piat getting in and why did we sign him. the only place he could play is sf, but then again he's a shooting guard. so now we're playing an sf at sg, moving our backup sg to backup sf, and starting a near rookie, just in the interest of making sure mobley comes off the bench. somehow i don't see that happening. For those who are such great detractors of Cat I sometime wonder why?
