This is pretty much spot on as far as im concerned. I think most people are frustrated with the injuries and his demeanor on the court. He's a really smooth/calculated player on the court. Not extremely aggressive, he doesn't dunk often, takes alot of jumpers, doesnt show much emotion etc. etc. People mistake that for not trying or not caring, but honestly most of those things have nothing to do with being effective. To me it just shows a level of experience and understanding what he has to do on the court. You rarely ever see him try to do too much. Everything is within the flow of the game. Tim Duncan is a guy who has a similar style of play. He's just a savy vet that knows what he can do to help his team win, and with other great scorers around him, he doesnt have to be a hero out there every night. There are times in a game where he should be more aggressive, but with the type of talent we have on the roster this year, he can doesn't have to play at the superstar every night anymore. That's beneficial to the team, and it's good for the longterm health of McGrady and the houston rockets. The team has progressed to the point where we can win games without mcgrady on the floor. Do you remember the days where it was an automatic L when he was out of the lineup? This is a huge positive and people still want to look at it and make it a negative and say trade mcgrady. We will need mcgrady in the post season. In games with playoff intensity, its all about matchups, execution in the half court and maximizing each possesion. For a guy that handles the ball alot, mcgrady has an an excellent assist to turnover ratio. He can also be used on offense in so many ways. He can post, he can iso, he can run the screen and roll, he can spot up from behind the 3 point line. He is a mismatch and a very versatile player in the half court, and that's why we will need him in the post season.
I can't find the exact quote since it's been awhile. It was something to the extent of "Yao is predictable". I took it as a slam since there was still a game to be played if I remembered correctly. I think he blocked Yao's fadeaway twice, slapped the ball out of his hands a couple of times, and also drew some offensive charges on him. "Okur has drawn praise throughout much of the series for his work on Yao Ming, the 7-foot-6 Rockets center from China who stands about seven inches taller than the Jazz pivot from Turkey. " "They (were) defending differently from the last game," he said Monday night. "They are trying to change my shot, and to block my shot. I think they pushed harder more." -Yao
another good point that people don't see. we never had any players other than t-mac and yao that actually showed up. if you compare our bench from previous years, there is no comparison. yao and t-mac are the only players that actually showed up. they are the reason we even won playoff games. remember, it takes 5 not 1 or 2. when it comes to playoffs, you will be sure that yao and t-mac will do their part but will others do theirs? that's the question. like he said, it's should not be only on yao and t-mac's shoulders, it should be on the whole team, the role players.
