LOL...thats exactly what I was thinking. Maybe someone e-mailed 610 about the trade and let them in on it also.
Hot, I think that players who are PASS oriented fit in very quickly.....my guess is that this team just got a lot faster and will be really fun to watch. DD
I was also one of the few who liked the Wesley trade from the start, and I just must say I have more reservations about this. Mike was not just better on D, I really think he was a better shooter. However, like you said, DA should help the scoring off the bench. Add in Howard's low-post presence, and honestly our bench scoring might be better than last year right there. There might be too much stock being put into what this does to our bench.
If it's true that Mike James and T-Mac weren't getting along to the point James wouldn't look at him during the playoffs when T-Mac was calling for the ball then this might not be bad attitude wise. Alston gets a fresh start and we get rid of someone who could potentially cause bad chemistry for our superstar. Besides, like everyone has been saying, I'm sure JVG checked Alston out with his brother. Toronto management didn't strike me as very professional either. What kind of coach gets in fights with their players? Also, if Alston fits with the Rockets then his contract is an asset, not a detriment. He's reasonably priced but its for a long time. With James we were either going to lose him after this season or sign him to a bad contract. Therefore, trading James for Alston is a gamble, but it could pay off.
nods, agreed Da, but the thing with Skip is I don't think I've ever seen him play with a decent big man before. TMac and Stro will get better looks from Skip's game, but I think Yao's will suffer in the beginning. I do believe that Skip will adjust and Yao will come on strong after 20 games or so
Wow. Impressive...Alston still improving alot: http://www.nba.com/playerfile/rafer_alston/ His career highs, all from the past 2 seasons, are also impressive (who would like to see 15 assists from our point? ). As for Sura, he's a very good starter but no longer durable enough for an entire season. It was s smart move.
Larry Bird said that when he came to the Celtics, in his very first training camp, he was hitting his teamates in the head with the ball as often as he could. He said it only took 2 days for players to be much more aware.....lots of Aspirin though. JUST LOOKED 3 - 1 Assist/turnover ratio.....I am speechless, I have no words... DD
WTF CD?!?! You keep making these lopsided trades and teams are going to stop answering your phone calls! Man, I liked Mike James but Rafer Alston is going to help a lot more especially with Bob Sura's injury. I think his beef with the Raptor's coaching staff was wack, just a coach trying to show everyone who's the boss and abusing his power. The only thing wrong with his game is his suspect defense, outside of that I think he'll fit in fine.
No kidding, DD. If Rafer can improve our passing out of the one as much as he should, we're all going to be saying, "Mike James? Who??" It's been a huge weakness for the Rocks. Maybe this is the cure.
LOL, someone try that on Yao. It will either annoy the **** out of him or wake him up when hes tired. Either way is good for us
my guess is that either moochie or head depends who has a better training camp. /me prays for head i love you moochie but your skills as a cheerleader are sadly more valuable than your skills as a pg
BTW, I just realized with Sura and Mike James gone, our passing game has improved significantly in the span of a month.
WOW, I have to say I am a bit surprised about this trade. The way the Rockets were handling their payroll these days I didnt think they would take on Alston's salary. I worry about Alston's attitude as well. Those are the two biggest strikes against him in my mind. I agree with others that JVG probably consulted his brother Stan about him. Probably is convinced that Alston's attitude problems were more a reflection of the horrible situation in Toronto. I liked Mike James. I am going to be sorry to see him go. But this was the last year of his deal with him opting out and he was going to want more money as well. Honestly, I thought for sure if we were going to add another PG it was going to be through giving up Wesley's expiring deal and not via Mike James. I think more than anything else, this deal speaks volumes about where they feel Sura is at these days. I think the Rockets feel they need solid "distribution" at the PG position and we all know James is more of a scorer. Clearly Alston is more of a passer...but he has been known to jack 3s at odd times. Overall, I am skeptical about this deal. Hopefully the Rockets have done their due dilligence here.
Another thought, we still have dead weights like Moochie, Ward and Baker. More trades are on the way? We need to cut one loose, do we? Or a 2 for 1 trade. It would've been sweeter if it were Moochie+Ward for Alston.
