Well, let's all calm down before we actually know what's up with Juwan's knee. We all thought Sura would be out for the season a couple weeks ago, too, CONVINCED, but he came back. If we do lost Juwan for the rest of the season and the playoffs, well, it will definitely hurt, but it won't cripple us. Yao's rebounding has really started to pick up, and we got our best rebounder back in Sura. Those long rebounds are going to be crucial if we end up playing the Sonics or Mavs in the first round. Also, the guys we still have aren't terrible. Padgett can be damn effective in short stretches. Spoon is basically a poor man's Juwan-- he has a decent mid-ranger and he can pull down rebounds. He's also a big body on defense, which is about all Juwan gives you. No post game, though. Baker probably doesn't have much left, but he's got 6 fouls to give. Yeah, it'll be harder. Juwan makes better decisions than any of those guys. But Juwan Howard is not the crucial element that determines this team's success. The crucial elements will be excellent performances from our two stars and TEAM PLAY, something that our backups aren't likely to disrupt much. They may not be great, but they're still Van Gundy Types.
Howard may have been a big part of the team.... but his contributions on the court (hit the occasional jumper... grab a few rebounds) can be replaced by the 3 other PFs on the roster... I mean, look he was grabbing some rebounds and hitting wide open shots (something NBA-ers should ALL be able to do) ... but his defense is a little lacking - JVG had to use Spoon on KG, Tmac on Odom (last play of the LA game) and Bowen on Dirk and Wal-taaa McCarty - so its not like Jo Ho was stoping anyone
I don't think we should flip out and look back at Mo Taylor with rose-colored glasses. He stank. He had a terrible contract, and paying him that kind of money for four weeks of the regular season is NOT worth it. Don't worry, I'm sure that the coaching staff will figure something out. No matter what, the Mo Taylor trade was a great one. Even if TMac were out for the next four weeks, none of us would say we wish we had Steve Francis back.
Taylor was an offensive stud and ... bad for the team. He didn't pass, he didn't rebound, and his defense was suspect. He obviously wasn't a good locker room guy because JVG refused to play him for the last month or two he was in Houston. Three drug violations (don't get me wrong, I've got nothing against the herb, but that's pathetic). The Taylor trade is a completely moot point. Now, on the Baker issue, I am curious to see what he can do. I too thought that because he hasn't been playing, he must be washed up. Certainly JVG would have given him some minutes if he looked decent in practice. But maybe JH got the minutes because we were winning with him, and JVG didn't wan't to screw up chemistry. Who knows. If he can play, I'm sure we'll get to see it. By the way, Spoon looks really out of shape, far more than last year. I think he's actually gained weight.
I suspect that CD has something cooking from the NBDL. Maybe even a call to Malick [back in Senegal?]. I hear Gabe Muoneke (former longhorn) on NBDL-Columbus is NBA ready, and a monster on the boards.
Scratch that got my longhorns confused....I meant James Thomas , playing for Roanoke. He's averaging 13.2 rb/g.
