Exactly! Let me ask you this Almu. Name me 5 better PFs than Brand in the NBA? Your response should be something like: KG, Duncan, Jermaine Oneil, Dirk, Webber (when healthy). And then Brand, right? Now name me 5 players, <b> any </b> position, better than Tracy Mcgrady........Kinda hard aint it......
According to players (Baron Davis) and coaches (Phil Jackson), the Rockets were extremely efficient and effective in the pick and roll game. But maybe they are wrong and we should take your word for it.
Ummmm, how many games did we win? Did you know that B.D. and S.F. are close friends? And who knows what the Zenmeister was spinning at the time but who believes anything P.J. has to say? Oh, we ran PnR plays, and there a few jewels scattered throughout the season, but a top PnR team? You'll need bullets with more pop, Gunn.
Speaking of spinning. That's a pretty clever way to somehow transform the thoughts of an all-star caliber player and a nine-time world champion coach so that they correspond with your perceptions of the team and their offensive abilities. The reality of this situation is that you are standing there with you pisser in the wind because you know absolutely nothing about the psyche of the players or coaches or what those individuals may feel about other teams offensive schemes. You are doing nothing but hypothesizing on your already distant reach.
Until the Rockets top the 60-win barrier, or at least the 55-win mark, I cannot in good conscience accord them "top" PnR status. I think you are missing my point. They run a PnR but they are not even in Utah's PnR class.
Guys, Lost in all of this McGrady vs. Brand stuff is the fact that Tmac is going to cost A LOT more to acquire than Brand. No doubt about it, if the choice was between Tmac and Brand straight-up for Steve, I would take Tmac every time. But that is not the case. We would absolutely, positively have to take GHill along with Tmac...there is no way the Magic will give away McGrady without using the opportunity to unload Hill's contract at the same time. So what that means is that the Rocks would have to include more than Steve: probably Cat and either Cato or MoT. How can we justify giving up three starters to bring in one, no matter how talented? After all, this needn't be a fullscale reconstruction, just fine tuning. Bringing in Brand would cost us Steve and some filler, but certainly not another starter. If the Clips asked for Cat, MoT, or Cato along with Steve for just Brand, I would tell them to take a hike. I would also do the same if the Magic proposed that offer. I am not in favor of destroying the bulk of this team to bring in anyone not named Duncan, KG, Jermaine, LeBron, or Kobe...PERIOD. But, if we could bring in EBrand for only SFrancis, I would do that deal in a heartbeat. That is the difference for me between Tmac and Brand, not in the respective talent of each individual, but what it would cost this franchise to get each of them. Brand is the better value, so he is my man. If you want to fork over a third of the roster for McGrady, well, I guess that is your right as a fan. If, however, you think we have any shot at McGrady without including Steve, Cat, and Cato/MoT, than you are dreamcasting more than even I am.
You have no point. Or maybe you did but it is not worth noting. I don't consider twisting the thoughs of credible players and coaches on the effectiveness of the Rocket's offensive sets to conform with your disillusioned view of the overall status of said offensive abilities, as making a point. No one here declared the Rockets as "the best" pick and roll team, but just that they were one of the top pick and roll teams. Now, is there room for improvement? Ofcourse there is. But some players can only achieve certain levels of success. Every player has limits on their capabilities. For example, some players are better than others at specific tasks. It sounds simple because, in this case, it just is. Coach Van Gundy's offensive philosophies and teachings, no matter what the level complexity, are not going to turn water into wine, so to speak; players have to execute, and again, some are better than others. Now your origonal remark that "Van Gundy's offensive sets would hamper McGrady", as I stated, is just ludacris. Yao Ming was a large proponent of the Rocket's success in the pick and roll game, which in turn, propelled the Rocket's success on the court; and a pick and roll with Yao and McGrady is a lethal combination. As previously stated, Tracy frequently took full advantage of screens to free himself from defenders to capitalize on the offensive side of the ball. If we want to take advantage of and execute coach Van Gundy's highly capable system then we need to bring in players that can execute this philosophy to the best of our advantage.
The issue isn't JVG's p&r. It's whether or not we have guards that can run the P&R effectively vs ALL teams. Not just the Lakers. Once that happens, then we should start winning more as a team, not just as individuals trying to run the p&r. I'm glad that JVG brought in the p&r more. If Rudy was here, we'd still being doing clearouts ISOs; that of which would make SF and Cat happy. But not the team. If you want JVG's p&r to run even better. Bring in gaurds that can do it better. T-Mac would be a start. Then Barry.
I agree, but Gunn seems to believe we already have the "top" PnR team in the league. However, I do not believe JVG is a top flight offensive coach, but he is a brilliant defensive tactician.
Yep... "Top PnR" should be changed to "our bread and butter." If you compare it to other teams, we aren't *that* good. We're ok at it. Or, let me rephrase that... Just because something is our "bread and butter" doesn't mean that we are the best at it. It just happens to be our main weapon. I'd say that we are an average/slightly above average PnR team. We have fast guards. But even then, we just don't execute the PnR very efficently compared to other teams. Because as you know, one asspect of the PnR is the option to pass. And we surely aren't very good at passing. Not as a team.
B. Davis said that exactly. He said this is the best PnR team he has played against. I had his quote as my signature for awhile.
First of all, according to the testimony of players and coaches alike, we are "one of the top pick and roll teams" in the NBA. But as for these two statements, they can be mutually inclusive, in that, as I previously stated, some players are better than others at specific tasks. As a team, we are effective in the pick and roll in spite of some individuals that may be less effective than others. For example, Cuttino seems to be more effective in pick and roll situations than Steve. Now Mobley may not be the ultimate pick and roll player but with his ability to cut to the rim he can be very effective.
True. I do like the fact that JVG implemted the PnR *more* when he took over. It helped the WHOLE TEAM a lot better than before. I mean, we actually run plays now! Mobley has benifited. He likes to cut to the basket. So, there is some exclusive benefits that we enjoy as a TEAM utilizing the PnR compared to how we did before. But I just don't think we are *that* good. Not like Memphis, Sac, or even Dallas. Sure, we may be "one of the top PnR teams." But I think the gap between the others above us is very large.
Believe that we are "good". Dallas' pick and roll is solely predicated on the abilities of Steve Nash. The Mavericks as a team are not as good as the Rockets in pick and roll situations.
Do you think Francis/Mobley playing 40+ minutes a game affects their performance? Maybe they save themselves some plays? They're fast guys but if they had more rest every game, they could play faster around picks and moving without the ball. Maybe that slows down the fast break too.
I think one thing that really helps out in the search of a ring is to have an awesome player that can go one-on-one. I think that if we can get an awesome player like TMac then we cant pass it up. Think about what Kobe is doing for the Lakers and just think how it would be to have a player on the Rockets whose skill level is as good as his. If we pursue him, lets just hope that he has the heart and the desire to get some "bling-bling". Kobe stats FG% 3PM-A 3P% OFF DEF TOT APG SPG BPG TO PPG .438 71-217 .327 1.60 3.90 5.50 5.1 1.72 .43 2.63 24.0 TMac Stats FG% 3PM-A 3P% OFF DEF TOT APG SPG BPG TO PPG .417 174-513 .339 1.40 4.60 6.00 5.5 1.39 .63 2.67 28.0 Yao is no Shaq, but I'm sure that if Yao and TMac could buy into Van Gundy's system then it would be possible to win a championship. I think we should also see if we can get Tyronn Lue in the trade. Imagine this team... PG- Brent Barry (FA)/Tyronn Lue SG-TMac/Pike SF-JJ/Nachbar PF-Cato/Taylor/Padgett C-Ming/Weatherspoon
First, Donald Sterling is not going to give us Brand for Francis. He's not going to trade a max'd PF for a max'd PG. Secondly, you've got the logic screwed up regarding McGrady. The Magic are pushing McGrady to sign a contract extension or they are going to field offers for him. But no team is going to take McGrady without an extension for fear of losing him to free agency. Therefore, McGrady has a huge say in where he goes. McGrady and Hill make $28.9m. Subtract Francis's $11.3m and your at $17.7m. Subtract the $6.99m TE and you're down to $10.7m. Subtract Mobley and you're down to $4.4m. That's Weatherspoon $. Further, even if it costs Mo T instead of Spoon, it's still worth it if Hill does not take his 2005-06 player option since Taylor is contracted through 2006-07. Further, there is every reason to believe that the Magic would throw Reece Gaines or Ty Lue or even Gooden or Howard (they would now have 3 PF's with Taylor) into the mix making it 3 for 2. And if it's Cato, then one of Gaines or Gooden or Howard is definitely headed to HOU IMO.
