Eddie is not a very good defensive player. He is a block or nothing...and I mean n o t h i n g. Defensr is all about positioning and deny the ball. Eddie doesn't have a clue, or he thinks his blocking can make up for everything. Yao is not that great on defensive positioning, either. I'm not going to bother arguing this point Chen. I know how to spot good defense. Kenny's minutes prove it. It's not like he's out there for his scoring ability.
HeyP, I agree that he played pretty good helpout D today on our zone defense, specifically the second half...I have no problems with him defensively, he's a good rebounder and hustles...I agree he should get some minutes for his defense, but not as much as he's been getting... His offensive game is what I have a problem with...when he's on the court gets the ball in the post or faceup, he kills the flow of our offense with his one on one ballerina crap...the problem with him is that once he start to dribble to make that initial move, his basketball IQ Seem to drop drastically...he either decides to pass or shoot and nothing's going to stop him...once he starts to twirl, its over...the rest should run back on defense once he starts that initial spin because they won't see the ball again...
Everyone from the Clutch crew is really cool, yall know about rockets...Kenny thomas is the best player we have ever had in our history...GO CLUTCH CREW
heypartner, PLEASE get off of Kenny. I agree with you that he is out playing Griff and MoT, but it seems that every time I look into another thread you are talking about KT. Kenny is a solid player both sides of the court, but not to be held as high as you hold him. KT is the short-term answer, not the long-term. That is what most of us see at least. Personally I see a lot of guys score on Kenny (while swatting at the ball) but I will be honest and say that I don't pay that much attention to KT on the defensive side. He does seem to be a good rebounder. Now on the offensive side. ERRRR. Tonight he was not to bad. He reminds me of Sergio's grip grip grip grip grip grip grip then hit the golf ball. The only thing I don't like about his game is the fact that no matter (three Sonics, almost four) how many players are guarding him 90% (made up on the spot percentage) of the time he tries to score instead of pass. Against the Warriors I saw him pass more. And tonight Moochie of all people had to tell him to pass. Lets see how good his defense is Sunday against C.Web.
I saw that too!! KT hustles on defense, but somebody needs to tell him that he SUCKSS shooting from the outside. He must be shooting 10% from beyond 15ft this season....but he still bricks them up every night. You would think that Rudy would tell him that he is not Reggie Miller, and stop taking those freakin outside jumpers! HeyPartner, Griffin is more then just a shot blocker. My personal opinion he is one of the top rebounders on this team. I watch every game on legue pass, and I have never heard the opposing broadcasters once talk about KT's defense (they mention his first step). But several times they talk about Griffins defense. Not just his shot blocking, but all the shots he alters and the rebounds that he takes with authority. This is nothing against KT, but labeling Griffin weak because Elton Brand schooled him one game does not make sense.
Don't foget that the opposing team's broadcasters aren't watching the Rockets night in and night out. I often feel they just repeat what they've heard in the media about our team.
why are guys wasting your time debating on him ? Just trade him to the CBA for a bag of potato chips !
I agree, heypartner. Kenny's defense and rebounding is pretty solid. If nothing else, there's no doubt he's more active and more productive right now than Taylor and Griffin. So, to those that want to get rid of him, maybe you should make sure we first have some PFs behind him who are playing up to the same level. As far as Kenny's shot selection, it infuriates me more than any other player on the team, including Mobley. There was one play against the Sonics, where Steve worked hard to get an offensive rebound, and made a great decision to pull the ball out and reset. He passes it to Kenny and the first thing he does is heave up a brick. Uh, Kenny...Steve didn't bring the ball and reset the offense so you could shoot a jumper. In my opinion, Kenny shooting jump shots should be the last option on offense. Someone needs to tell Kenny that. I would love nothing more to see Griffin come around and take away KT's minutes, but right now that wouldn't be justified.
There were a couple of telling things with Kenny last night. On the first play of the game, they tried to go to Yao in the post but he was being fronted. The swung the ball to the top of the key to allow him to re-position and either get a pass from there or have the ball swung back in his direction. KT got the ball at the top of the key and, without even looking back in Yao's direction, he fired up a 20-foot jumper that clanged. A couple trips back down the floor, he got the ball on the elbow, juked two or three times then ran down the side of the key and flung up a wild shot that didn't even hit rim. He managed to settle down later and I thought that the Yao/KT/Rice/Francis/Norris and Yao/KT/Rice/Hawkins/Francis lineups were killing them but the main reason was because they ran through Yao and Steve, not KT. KT went to becoming a rebounder and defender and it really paid off. However, in the 4th, there was another bad example of KT's desire to get shots. The offense had been flowing well through Yao and KT got the ball down near the baseline. Yao had position, but KT shot it from 18 feet with a man in his face instead. Clang. After the game Lisa interviewed him and alluded to the difficulty spreading minutes around to all the forwards. KT said, and I'm paraphrasing, that if he gets the ball and he's open, he's going to shoot it regardless and that he has to play his game on the floor. There is no question the guy is frustrated. Comments like this have been common for him. I remember seeing a Rockets.com video with him at media day and you could hear Jonathan Feigen ask him if he was disappointed over not getting re-signed. KT said, "Don't ask me that" and then after a few moments of journalistic silence, "What do you think?" I've grown really fond of KT's game this season despite my criticisms. As a rebounder, defender and occassional offensive weapon, he is a tremendous asset. But, it is becoming clear that he is not terribly interested in passing the ball on the offensive end for whatever reason - vision, belief he can beat his defender, whatever. Defenses are markedly different this year with so many teams using the zone. That one-on-one game doesn't work and KT's offense is suffering. If he could learn to play within the confines of the offense instead of needing to control the ball to get his shots, the team would be much better off because his defense and rebounding are a huge plus.
We need to resign Kenny. He's the only consistency we've had at pf. Eddie's done nothing but occasionaly hit a few threes and block a few shots while Mo isn't doing much at all. Kenny has been scoring, rebounding, and playing better defense then both of them. Kenny is not the one to let go. We need to choose whether to invest our time in Eddie or Mo and let the other one go. Kenny goes all out ever time on the floor and he knows the game. The times he doesn't pass the ball is because he looks directly where he wants to pass (which is a habit he needs to work harder to change) and also because he's used to shooting much better. He used to be a pretty good three point shooter.
Good quote, Jeff. Like many other players on this team KT could be just what we need, with some changes. They key question is who can get there first or ultimately at all? Can Eddie learn to drive a bit, play position defense a bit, get stronger. Can Mo T learn to rebound a little better and get his shot going again and get slightly quicker. Can KT learn to pick his offensive opportunities a bit better, pass better and develop his outside shot a bit? My take on KT is that he is trying to pass more, but is like Steve in that he isn't an instinctive pass first guy. He makes his passes only after drawing the double team when making a driving move. I think there is a reasonable case to be made for all three making these improvements, though the chances of all three doing so would be remote. That is what creates controversy on the bbs and gives Rudy fits.
Very good post Jeff...I think KT is a pretty good player, he just need to have better shot selection and know his role on this team and he'll be fine...even if you are playing a great game all day but for 2-3 plays, you throw up some crazy stupid shots with 5 guys on your face and all of your teamates open, you'll be flamed here (Ask Cat)...
I'd have to defend Eddie on the defense comment...Eddie is our best help out defender hands down, KT is not in his league defensively no matter how you spin it...in my eyes, KT is just a slightly above average defender at best whereas Eddie is a defensive stud...
I think you're wrong on this. I believe that they are both average defenders, with Eddie getting more credit than he is due because of his blocks. Kenny playes a more cerebral brand of defense, using positioning, toughness and quick hands to keep his man frustrated, but his lack of height and size limit him to how dominant he can be. Eddie could certainly develop into the defensive stud that you want him to be, but until he dedicates himself to the mental aspect of being a great defender and stops assuming his height and timing are enough, he will remain no better than the KT's of the league.
KT may be the best on-the-ball defender on the team, well, maybe after Hawkins. Eddie is a great weak side shot blocker but he is WAY too thin to be a solid one-on-one defender. He routinely gets out-muscled on the low block and his footwork still needs work. If EG becomes the type of defender KT is now, he will immediately become the starter. But, the guy is 20. I think it is reasonable to give him a break. He came into the league with almost no real offensive skills. He added maybe one offensive move in the offseason that has been predictable and not overly effective. He has a nice jump shot when he doesn't hesitate but it isn't good enough for him to be jacking three's whenvever he wants. On the defensive end, his is a tremendous shot blocker and he is an above average rebounder. But his skill as a one-on-one defender is suspect due partially to the fact that he still doesn't have the bulk to muscle guys around on the block. Right now, it would seem our best option is KT. The only problem is that he has a real tendency to take the Rockets out of their game and go it on his own. Rather than making him look like a great player trapped in a system that doesn't exploit his abilities, it makes him look like a selfish player determined to get his shots no matter what the consequences to his team. I honestly don't believe that is true. I just think KT is frustrated because the system (and opponents' defenses) isn't built around him as much as it was last season. He is particularly vulnerable because he is a free agent who was not offered a contract by his team so he feels it is important to prove something. The only problem is that the only thing he is proving is that he can't or won't pass the basketball. I'm not sure if the team needs a personnel change or if they just need to develop a chemistry as a group of players. Either way, KT will eventually need to accept his role as the third or fourth option on offense because if he is the first option, your team probably isn't very good.
I noticed Griffin being more active yesterday than he's been in a while, it got him a little over anxious though. As for Griffin's passing vs. KT's "glaucoma" (copyright Will)...KT's hold it, hold it, hold it is kinda like Moochie's dribble dribble dribble IMO. It sets everyone else out of sync. No one has a clue what KT plans to do, ie where to look for a pass when to prepare for an offensive rebound, etc. It stagnates the game. Teams seem to usually rotate off Griffin (and his sub-40% shooting is part of the reason) so when he gets the ball, he's usually open, but if not he passes it around. He doesn't make the passes that lead to easy buckets like Yao can, but I don't think he ever ruins the ball movement, or the team's rhythm other than the times he's lost clueless on where to go. Griffin's favorite spot? How many times does he TOUCH the ball inside the 3 point arc? Not many. I think he likes that little elbow spot, but he doesn't get the ball for reasons unknown (poor positioning, not part of offense, the Shandn Andersn experiment, etc. etc.) The team defense aspect- I think your argument of the team's defense when KT was in the game vs. Griffin is not a very strong one. There are 4 other guys on the court. Griffin's having a slow learning curve picking up the new offense and the new defense, and I think it's semi-understandable. 1. He's 20 years old. 2. He's in his 2nd year. 3. Look at his prior experience: one year of ugly ball in the NBA, one year of poor coaching in college (Seton Hall was terribly coached- it had two college stud big men in Griffin and Dalembert and couldn't even get INTO the NCAA tournament), and high school where the plan was give the ball to Eddie. I don't think is unmoveable. While I think he's playing the best basketball of our PFs, I don't think he's played a LOT better than Mo or Eddie.
Jeff, I agree 100%. But this means that either KT should change or he should go - hopefully before the trade deadline.
You see, I don't understand this, and maybe somebody who followed Griffin early on at Seton Hall can explain. Wasn't Griffin voted as the best high school player in the nation as a senior? Wasn't he also the early favorite to go #1 in the draft before all those high school players started climbing the charts? Griffin is 6'10". That's tall but normal for an NBA power forward. He weighed probably around 210/215 before his first NBA season. That's a beanpole by NBA standards. And while he is a "good" athlete, he's not of these guys like a Kwame Brown or Amare Stoudamire who can jump out of the gym and run the floor like a gazelle. And then top of all that, as you say, he had no real offensive skills. So tell me, how could a player with these characteristics be so unbelievably hyped? Was it just the blocked shots? I just dont' understand. There had to have been something Griffin could do in college or in high school that he just hasn't been able to show in the NBA. That's the only way I can make sense of it.
