All I know is with Artest, the Rox made it to the second round for the first time in 20 years and we took LA to 7 games. Say what you will but the Ron-Ron haters are in denial if they say he had nothing to do with that. Show me where Ariza made that much of a difference and took us to the playoffs this year. You guys don't remember this. One of the most thrilling moments in a dozen years in Houston basketball. <object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/yV4g911O_zE&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/yV4g911O_zE&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>
My point exactly. 10 years not 20 years... sure as hell felt like 20 though. Glad to someone else still gets it.
Probably better than Aaron Brooks "I went to the draft lottery and all i got was this lousy T-Shirt" T-Shirt.
No 2nd round = No AB in red suit with matching bowtie= No DD fantasies. Don't act like you weren't impressed.
I believe they get to the 2nd round without Ron just as easily as they got there with Ron. Ron had to leave for AB to blossom.... Aaron netted us the 14th pick.....come on now.... DD
Ok if Trevers stats are irrelevent because Orlando was Jello soft means Hakeems stats in the finals dont me ***** cause Jordan wasnt in the league. Yeah I said it. Or at least thats the way i interpret your thinking.
That's a pretty ignorant post from a well renowned poster. Artest was a big part of the reason why the team didn't fold even with all the Tmac drama starting earlier in the season. He brought toughness to the team that not even JVG could instill. He changed the complexion of our team all together by giving us an identity and created the blueprint for what we were this past season. Aside from all the intangibles he brought 17 ppg/ 5 boards/ 3 assits/ 1.5 steals and 40% shooting from deep. There was nothing more exciting than watching Shane and Ron give the elite peremiter players the business. Watching them together shut down Lebron was a thing of beauty. Every single player on last years team grew an extra pair of you know what... because of Ron. They knew Ron Ron had their backs no matter what. If Ron never left us for the Lakers or if he was forced into retirement due to some kind of injury or what not he would be held in a much higher regard. He was like Bob Sura times 5 for us. Don't be so easy to forget.
I agree with DaDakota. Dont get me wrong, Ron had his moments, but I believe our teams success against LA and Portland had much more to do with Aaron Brooks stepping up his game (some of them were absolutely incredible) along with Scola, Battier and the rest of the team. Heck, even Von Wafer had a decent impact off the bench. Also agree that Ron leaving allowed other guys to blossom, namely AB (although Scola blossomed quite a bit as well).
Your comparison between these 2 years is beyond faulty. You forgot that the offense and defense centered around a certain skilled big man who was missing during Ariza's time.
You must have missed the entire season with Yao OUT of the fold. Neglecting Yao's presence last year in your comparison is comparable and similar to neglecting Gasol on the Lakers that year. I am not sure if you kept tab on the Lakers or not, but towards the end of the season and through the playoffs, Ariza was a highly-efficient 4th option for the Lakers and their primary wing defender. Look up his percentages, or better yet watch the tape and SEE how much of a better, smoother fit Ariza was than Artest is. Granted he's not a good option #2 here, but last I checked Ariza didn't have the privilege of taking advantage of double teams on Yao for easy baskets. (sorry about the double post, btw)
I've only watched bits and pieces of this year's Lakers playoff games, so I could be wrong. But it seems like Artest has simply been aging really, really badly. His drop off from Sacramento to Houston to LA is really quite noticeable, which is weird considering he isn't really that old. I think Morey really saw his problematic progression, and simply do not believe he's worth hanging on to until Yao's return next year. And so far, Morey's looking like a genius yet again in this regards. Artest simply look old. Plain and simple. Dude looks older than Derek Fisher.
IMO, he has gotten too big and it has effected his quickness....too much muscle and not enough speed. And to top it off, he is a Mo-Ron ....so, that never helps. DD
Seems to me that Ron is better suited to be a main scorer on a team, albiet not a great team, then as a role player. Ariza is better better suited to be a role player, albiet not on a bad team, then as a main scorer.
