Its been quite a roller coaster ride this season to be a Rox fan. The last two weeks have been fun and have been enjoying watching them play on TV and winning. We all new they would crash at some point the Rox cant seem to keep a win streak longer than 3 games.. whats up with that? Even Memphis has a longer streak than us. My thoughts about the Rox team now in the middle of the season and what I think we can do to bolster the roster.. This isnt a trade thread or bash thread just my opinions on what I think we need as a team. 1. Everyone talks about the need for a PF I dont see that as much.. I believe the only reason JVG keeps MoT out of the starting lineup is for scoring off the bench. If MoT starts who would provide the scoring off the bench for this team? I believe our real weakness is the SF position, JJ is trying to fill that role but he is an undersized 3 and would be much more effective as the starting 2 guard handling the ball more and letting SF be more creative. I dont want make any trades and hope we get a nice pick up during the offseason for a tall atheletic 3 who has nice range. They dont need to be a dead eye shooter but at least make the open shot. Insert JJ as the starting 2 and Cat as the scoring punch off the bench... I feel bad for Cat but JJ can do what he does while making better decisions and playing better defense. I would love to for Boki to fill this role but he is not in that type of position yet .. hopefully he can grow into that role (that would be ideal) but im not counting on it. 2. Move MoT into the starting lineup... Cato plays tough defense and should still get his minutes but with MoT starting it take some pressure off Yao right away since Mo can make the defenses pay for doubling Yao giving up the short / midrange jumpshots. We would still have great 1/2 punch of Mo/ Cato but we need to help Yao in the beginning of the games. A 2 man game of Yao/ Mo is much more effective than Yao/ Cato. 3. JVG needs to learn better timeout management, he uses them like they grow on trees. He has to be willing to go to his bench earlier and more often.. If one of his starters cant find their shooting touch find someone on the bench who will. When MoT and Cato cant find their shot I see Padgett on the bench just licking his lips. I know all of us scratch our heads at how JVG's rotates his players and part of that may be stubborness on his part or lack of creativity.. im not sure yet. 4. We have been working on getting Yao involved early and often, trying to get him to shoot more and pass less. We need to try and bring SF along too.. We keep forgetting what a scoring threat SF could be given the right plays the green light from JVG. Thats why I think JJ in the backcourt with SF would make for some interesting BB.. JJ can set us up while SF looks for his shot. Not all the time but in certain situations and with certain rotations. 5. I believe we are certain role players away from being a serious contender.. I like what MJ has done for us the few games he has been here, but come on that guy is on his last legs. I would have loved CWard or some other reliable PG to back up SF. People who can shoot the 3 and make good decisions. what would people think of this type of rotation.. SF / MJ (hopefully a younger decent PG for the future) JJ / Cat (Cat would bring the scoring punch we need off the bench) Boki / Pike (these are our shooters I hope Boki can grow into this role) I give Boki the nod cuz he is younger and a better defender than Pike. MoT / Padgett (MoT helps take some of the burden off Yao and keeps defenses honest when they try to cheat on Yao) Cato still spends minutes here.. Yao / Cato (Cato shares minutes at center and PF so he is on the floor) looking at this rotation what appears to be our weakest position? JJ is a geat defender and solid role player but undersized for the 3. What are your thoughts? J
I like some of your suggestions and agree that we have the talent and probably don't need to trade. I've been wondering about starting Taylor too but I think JVG likes using Taylor as instant offense off of the bench as compared to other coaches who will bring in a defensive player off of the bench. I also like the idea of bringin Piatkowski and Nachbar. I think Piatkowski can give some needed outside shooting relief while Nachbar might open the offense up more too. The biggest problem with the Rox IMO is offensive consistency. If the guards can start shooting better things will pick up because it will prevent the type of contain Yao defenses we've been seeing work on the Rox.
I think JJ would have an easier time scoring against 2's in this league than 3's... Im crossing my fingers that JVG trys to develop Boki (who has such sweet stroke but lacks confidence) into the 3 of the future. I like the idea of Pike/ Cat off the bench as shooters on demand.. Cat would probably be more effective against other teams 2nd team than against starting 2's. I know he has been hot in certain stretches but this team is so inconsistent it drives me nuts. I hope we can keep this team together and add a few pieces to make everything work. I think Wilks is a great guy but we need a more reliable backup PG.. MJ is that for now but I dont know how long he will last. The Rox have been horrible at developing talent in the past I hope we can rectify that with Boki and some other young talent. I wouldnt be suprised if Yao and Boki become the Rox of the future. Yao providing the solid inside presence and Boki the outside threat... have you been Boki's first step and drive to the hoop... I think hes quite talented and could develop into a Peja or a Kukoc at worst.. which is exactly what we need. I wonder what AG will be able to contribute to this team other than rest for JJ/ Cat. J
