Last two games 25 min, 4 Reb (2 Offensive), 1 Blk, 19 points 25 min, 1 Reb (1 Offensive), 20 points All while shooting over 57%.... Lets hope he can keep on producing like this.
It's going to be interesting to watch the Rockets without Rafer these next couple of games... I wonder if Brooks is going to start... More importantly, I wonder if Rafer is still going to start when he returns from his suspension...
I think even if Brooks plays out of his mind, Rafer is still going to be the started (at least for the rest of the season). However, if Brooks keeps playing like this I can see him being the starter next year.
You guys watch how much better the first unit plays tonight with AB over Rafer.... Having a PG that is a threat to score and penetrates with the ball will make EVERYONE'S job easier.... I expect the Rockets to get out to a fast start under Brooks. DD
i like brooks off the bench better, you already have artest tmac and yao to score in the starting lineup no need to take shots away from them..second unit is perfect for brooks
AB can set the table for them, they will be getting much better shots with AB at the point. Rafer is nice at passing the ball, but he does not set the table all that well and only makes the safe pass. I think AB may just Wally Pipp Rafer. DD
DD, I was going to bring this up. Some people don't understand the thesis of the game. Brooks makes the game easier for tracy. Just as scola made the game easier for yao. That's what gives players energy at the end. For the most part tracy has to create for everyone except for artest. When brooks is in the game, you now have a penetrator and scorer. He's actual gotten better at making passes. The next 2 games will end the "rafer runs the offense better" excuse.
How easy did Brooks make the game for Tracy and Yao tonight? You are right, Brooks can penetrate and score, but the way he does it is perfectly suited for his bench role. He may start one day and may be great at it, but he isnt ready at this point.
you have 3 all stars who can get you 20+ a night........you dont need a scoring pg, you need a pg who can put those 3 people in a position to score instead of jacking up 16 shots on his own.
That PG you speak of just happens to be a terrible open jumpshot shooter, and also is suspended for 2 games. AB will learn how to play with the Big 3, I'm not worried about that. I'm more worried about the Big 3 themselves, to say they haven't meshed well and haven't clicked together has been an understatement. They collectively sucked tonight, moreso on Tmac and Artest.
I forgot it was his fault tracy went 2-12 and yao let another older pivot cancel him out and some. Yep, when the rox were up by 11 brooks had nothing to do with that either.
Brooks played fine, they lost the lead when they took out Wafer, and put in Tmac and took the ball out of ABs hands. Brooks had the team going...Tmac stopped it cold. DD
It's crazy how some people are defending Rafer, of all people. Even if it's true that we win this game with Rafer (which is impossible to determine), the fact is that he isn't good enough to lead a team that wants to contend, especially when our so-called stars don't show up every game. If McGrady was a Kobe or Pierce-caliber player, maybe we could get by with Alston but even that is questionable. With our inconsistent key players, we can't afford an empty hole of a PG like Alston if we even want to think about righting the ship this season. We simply need more production out of our PG spot. Parker struggled mightily early in his career, as you've pointed out several times, but Popovich stuck with him and he has improved year after year. I'm not saying Brooks will be the next Parker but we need to try something different. I'd rather see Brooks be up and down for a couple months and lose a few games early in the year and have him ready to go come playoffs. It's time to make a change. We aren't likely going to be able to upgrade McGrady or Yao this season and those two don't have backups that our capable of taking their spots. It's time to hand the reigns over to Brooks and let him learn on the job. In my opinion, the end result will be better than anything we can accomplish with Alston. I doubt Adelman will do it any time soon but I really don't see any reason to wait. I'm not worried about Alston's feelings and I'm not worried about what we will lose by not starting Alston. We need to take a risk and promote Brooks permanently as soon as possible or make a serious trade to bring in an upgrade. We can't continue with Alston unless we are content with another 1st round loss.
this match against Spurs, proved that Alston is still the first choice for a starter... and AB0 is more suitable coming off the bench... his speed can do help to Rocket when coming off the bench
