You know what's really hilarious about this thread? If Tracy McGrady talked more -- to his teammates, a la Michael Jordan -- he might have more of the leadership effect we're looking for. It's the same damn problem we had with Olajuwon. Example only gets you so far. The problem isn't that T-Mac talks too much. It's that he talks to little.
T-Man your posts clearly do not count since you have only 281 posts. Simply put, my logic is undeniable. sincerely,
that never applies. seriously... if your bigger you always win, period. why do you think Goliath won?
Adversity often bring people together - herein player-to-player as well as player-to-fans relationships. I thought this was [and still] an opportunity for Mac and company to endear themselves even more to their fans. Gosh I wish I was able to make it as a pro baller. I know almost certainly that I did die on the field of play especially at times like these. Mac did nothing to endear me further instead I felt repulsion and some level of disgust. I just hope it is injury. This hurts mopre because I so much like them guys especially mac. Oh well, bring on Utah Jazz.
For good measure, here's JVG's quotes: "These guys have all been on lottery teams before, minus the younger players . . . But I'm sure if I went back and watched film, that's exactly how many of their games when t hey were playing for bad l ottery teams looked. Uninspired and beaten before the game even began. It's not a personnel situation. This is an attitude situation based on some adversity. So what? Anybody can be great when it's going good, when there is no tough set of circumstances. Obviously, we were very weak minded, when it came to dealing with our situation" Going down the list, it seems like the audience for this quote (exempting Head & Howard) is solely Wesley, Stro, and most importantly Tracy.
First of all I know who Larry Smith is, and secondly, you do more talking than any that you are accusing.
JVG agrees with me. thanks for posting that. I really don't see how anyone in their right mind watching the last two games argue otherwise.
I've also been a fan of this team from the mid 80's. Larry Smith getting 15 boards a night when Hakeem is out is not a fair comparison. No team geared their entire defensive scheme to stop Larry Smith. He was always a great rebounder, so him filling in for Dream and getting 15 rebounds a game wasn't extraordinary to me. Tmac is hurt and is playing through his injuries. I think it's pretty obvious to see this if you've watched him play recently (including the west coast trip). I'm impressed that he's still playing through his back pain and trying his best despite getting double teamed almost every time the Rockets have the ball.
So what are his injuries If it is his back . . . will rest help it If not .. . is it something we can expect for the rest of his career Rocket River
I mean seriously, what do you expect the man to do? Yell at his team to make wide open shots? The guy continues to pass to them even when they aren't hitting their shots. It's not like he isn't trusting his teammates And everytime he gets the ball, two defenders rush at him. What the hell is he supposed to do? Chuck it up and hope it goes in? Then you criticize him for a poor offensive night. He comes off the pick and roll and both defenders stick to him. He does what he's supposed to do and pass the ball to the open man. But they can't make jack sh*t. And until they start making some shots, no defense is going to respect them. I don't know what games you're watching, but when Yao is out, T-Mac has no space to move. To beat a double team you pass it around so it goes to the open man and that's where you punish the defense for double teaming somebody. But they just can't shoot for sh*t What leading does T-Mac need to do right now? I see a player that keeps trusting his teammates to make shots even into the 4th quarter, when they haven't been making shots all night. I see a player who's fighting for rebounds because we have no inside force to grab them. I see a player who constantly gets trapped by the double team and makes the right play. IMO it all starts with having Ryan Bowen start. If he's getting starter minutes, then T-Mac is constantly going to have Bowen's man sagging off of Bowen and following T-Mac. I dont think Bowen's shot will ever come around. He's just way too much of an offensive liability
I couldn't agree more. Compare last night's Tracy to the Tracy in the Dallas series last year. He was very animated in that series and almost took us over the top with Dallas even though we were inferior to them 3-12. I really believe part of the reason for the feeling of hopelessness that we are feeling from TMac on the floor is because when he initiates the offense, he knows he has no chance of getting the ball back to be able to do something with it. We have no initiator outside of TMac. We don't have a PG that can run the pick and roll and get the ball inside and break down defenses. TMac is the only one that can break down the defense and they are doubling him at the top as soon as he gets the ball. The defenses are forcing the ball out of his hands or he has to take the off balance jumper with 2 or 3 defenders in his face. He has absolutely zero chance of being successful until we get another player that can break down defenses.
All the last two games prove is that Tracy is unable to beat any NBA team 1 on 5... and his CONFIDENCE that he gained from becoming such a remarkable all-around player under JVG the last two years is probably what really spurred the quote you're referencing... I don't think even Tracy knew at that time that his supporting cast would end up looking WORSE than the Orlando Magic... he was too used to winning with these guys. Sometimes, confidence can blind the fact that your team is really not that good... sometimes it can spur you to victory despite your deficits, but more often than not, the better teams always win. I have no problem with Tracy attempting to use his confidence and spur on the team. I do have a problem with the rest of the team not showing any signs of life... period.
tigermission, This post was so good, I just want to take a moment to tell you , "damn fine job " you are one of the few posters I look forward to reading in this forum.
The thing is, from DAY ONE McGrady has said the right things and the things that we want to hear. Not necessarily because he's trying to lie to us or give us false hopes, but because he has to make us believe in him and because he has to make him believe in his own self (especially after those horrid Orlando years). Things went bad but then it turned around and went great last year...got to the playoffs...almost got out of the second round...etc. So everything was status quo. Now McGrady isn't doing anything different. It's just that things aren't going as well as they did last year. He wanted to turn Stromile into an all-star player--you can't hold this against TMac. He had no idea what kind of player Swift was really like. And like us, McGrady only saw the espn highlights and the athleticism. I am pretty sure he didn't know Swift was capable of being that lazy and that inept. "As long as I'm on the court, we'll be fine"--did you not see that west-coast swing? Tracy makes things happen for everyone. If Yao had not gone down, I highly doubt we would have lost to Toronto and probably even Denver. Things were opening up for everyone else and there was even a semblance of an offensive set. Now, Tracy hogs the ball and throws up bad shots. Either that or he passes to the open man who CLANGS it. Tracy gets Wesley, Head, and even Bowen open shots but they're simply not hitting. Does this excuse his low 40% shooting? I don't know but I hope that everyone can agree that the Rockets WOULD be fine if the shooters made their shots when Tracy gets them one. As for McGrady's shooting...I think this is one area where we can see how he and Vince Carter are related. I think after sitting out so many games, Tracy has stopped driving in and penetrating because of his back. Like when someone bodies up on Carter and all he does afterwards is jack up shots. Tracy IS a good shooter, but his shot selection has been more suspect than before. He's just making it hard upon himself with the acrobatic threes and the difficult turnarounds and fadeaways. All in all, Tracy DOES talk the talk. Now has he walked the walk? I say he has as much as he possibly can. I mean, when you get double or even triple teamed, and you pass it to the open shooter and he clangs the shot, what else can you do? Sure scoring in the 50-60s is a great individual accomplishment, but I doubt the player that scores that much, his coach, his teammates, and his fans don't want to see their team's fortunes being dependent on many of those nights. It's just impossible.
There seem to be some good points made in various posts - that point out a part of the problem or part of the potential solution. I find myself agreeing with the same general crowd that I always agree with - similar thinking styles? And I find myself disagreeing with the same people I always disagree with - different view, different emphasis on various points. My emphasis from most important to least: Talent on the floor - our top eight players right now SUCK compared to the top 8 from most other teams. Proper mix of talent available to play right now - we SUCK, we are missing the Scott Padgetts and Sura's etc of last year who could hit a 3 and rebound and fire up the team with inspired play with talented teammates who played well together. Our passing SUCKS right now, as does our ball handling. And our shooting. Luther and others had a bad game last night - I was flying cross country so I missed it and don't know if the other team keyed on him, or if he just had a really bad night. That happens - I expect him to come back and have 20 some points some night soon. Team chemistry, knowing where your teammates will be and what they can do - this is lineup # ? for this season ? Attitude - I doubt Gundy can go get 6 more guys from the NBADL with marginal talent and great attitudes and whip the Pistons or the Spurs. Bird was great with a winning attitude which he worked with guys named Parrish and McHale and Johnson and Ainge. same for the Jordans and Magics. Said it before - this team with the other 6 healthy is still probably 3 high grade players short of where they need to be talent wise. They will still be short a real PF, a really good backup SF, and a PG (who could be Rafer/Sura but may not be). Gundy gets paid to rant - I usually don't listen to much of what he says on motivation - he seems to be Mr. Analysis Paralysis. He has his strengths and weaknesses and like most obsessive/compulsive in your face management types he thinks EVERYTHING he does and thinks is wonderful. TIGERMISSION and JOPATMC - agree with your posts, good points.
you are officially a 12 year old and im one too for writing back but hey there has to be. Foff pgabfagot
