V-span deserves more time no doubt. I think JVG is trying to use V-span in the wrong way. V-span is not a stand around spot up shooter. He's one of the few players on the team that can get to the rim and he's strong enough to finish. Rafer can get to the rim but he does not finish well. Let V-span operate with the ball in his hands. He can set up other guys with his penetration. And in the 4th Q when the other teams are making a run V-span is a better defender than Head and Rafer.
yeah, he's the 2nd best 3 point shooter, but NOT tonight! like someone else pointed out, if he didn't miss so many, why the hell did we need that shot?
I do NOT think we will have to worry about this too much longer. Eventually (Hopefully sooner than later) Vspan will be finishing games instead of Rafer. JVG will gain confidence in him at the point and won't have him playing off guard in the rotation. Once this evolves (and it shouldn't take too long the way things are progressing) this will be PROBLEM SOLVED. No more 4th quarter collapses !!!
A big shot down the stretch is a big shot down the stretch, period. Sure he missed a lot of shots but he hit one when we needed it the most. You can say we wouldn't need it if he didn't miss so many shots but thats not the case.
To me ill advised shots down the stretch of a close game are pretty much turnovers(because every possession is crucial, and your point guard has to know better), and he had a number of them. I'm sorry but the 4th quarter has to be Yao-Tracy time. Every possession they are on the court, the play has to be designed for them. That is my biggest pet peeve with Van Gundy(and I don't hate him as coach or anything, it's just a criticism). He runs set plays in key moments of games for guys not named Yao/Tracy. That means no rafer alston deciding randomly the possession before the 3 to drive and put up a floater. There was also a possession where Yao was posted and Alston had no confidence to make the entry pass so he took it on himself to do too much. You also can't foul a jumpshooter in a 3 point game with only a few minutes remaining. He should have been on the bench at some point in the 4th for his play, quite frankly. He redeemed himself with a 3, but honestly that was almost the last guy on the court I wanted taking that shot at that moment. And it doesn't take away he played poorly in the quarter until that point.
The truth is, I really don't think Bill will do any worse than Alston in the 4th. Especial when Bill played really well in the first quarter. And Bill is not that kind of guy who shy away at crunch time, he is 300 times tougher + 5 times smarter than Alston.
In the regular season, you don't change things on a whim. If you're starter - who you chose after weeks and weeks of training camp and preseason, isn't being effective - you don't pull him out and abandon him. WHY? For one, if you do that, then the players feel that if they miss a shot, they will be pulled. They will not have confidence, and it will hurt their psychological strength and toughness. More importantly. Basketball is streaky. Sometimes a guy can shoot horribly, but he will hit the key shot. Case in point?????? Rafer Alston. With a one point lead and the clock winding down, T-mac passed to ball to Alston, who had been shooting horrendously. Guess what - Rafer hit the shot. YOu don't pull a player that quickly in the regular season. Because the season is long - and it's more important to build team chemistry and trust then win a game. Now, if it was the playoffs - it's different, because every game is so critical, every move makes a huge difference. But it's hard to earn your spot in the rotation - you should be given some leeway before you lose it....
By the way, if you still think Bill is TO prone, a brick from Alston is almost the same as a TO, and he doesn't offer the same defense as Bill.
Wow! Someone who was actually *watching* the game came up with the conclusion that Rafer is a liability in crunch time! What a surprise! You, my friend, speak the TRUTH! Preach on!
I really believe JVG is a rational guy, not a instinct guy. So what does rational person do down the wire, put in the Vets that have played for him for a year instead of a guy who only played less than 30 min total for him. A rational tend not to trust a late 2nd round pick until he proves he is worthy. We would never know what difference Vspan would've made if he had been put in down the strech. What we know is Rafer and Head hit big shots for us, also missed and screwed ton of plays for us. We know that JVG put in Vspan earlier than Head in the 2nd half, and his production was relatively limited in the 2nd half compared with 2nd half, coupled with some risky moves. We also know we won tonight. JVG doesnt get it? The little head is rational and conservative. He's got his reasons. Not necessary bad ones. Of course instinct guy would've let Vspan play more. He could win the game for us or lose it for us.
Rafer shot 4-16, but was 4-9 from beyond the arc, or 44%. That means, before the shot he was 3-8 for 38% beyond the arc, right around the 39% he was shooting from beyond the arc for the season. Most teams will take their chances with a 38% 3P% shooter taking a wide open 3. If Spanoulis goes back in the game and makes some mistakes, he's back to square one. Van Gundy likes to build on confidence. Expect Spanoulis to get a few more minutes next game to build on the last two.
Rockets are 8-4 on the year. We've won 7 of the last 9 games. Let's just put this in perspective. I think Spanoulis will gradually get more and more minutes, if he continues to play the way he has the last two games. He's clearly our best defender at the PG position. That isn't even close. But he needs to earn playing time in crunch time by proving his worth a little more. Another week or so of solid play, and he'll be in there I bet.
Further more, practically every one of the shots Rafer took inside were drives to the basket after a play had broken down with the clock running out. Not to excuse that ... Rafer has always had a significant weakness finishing in traffic. But the way he has been shooting the 3 ball this season, I'm perfectly fine with either him or Luther shooting a game winning shot. (Speaking of Luther ... he too was having a fairly bad shooting night until late in the 4th quarter, and his ice veins in the 4th are fast becoming a trend.)
Yup - I think this reminds me of the whole Cassell - Kenny Smith debate. People wanted Cassell to start of the vetern Smith, but Rudy T never let it happen for good reason. He knew once Cassell was the started, Smith would fade and become less valuable, and Cassell wouldn't be as motivated. Same thing here - keep VSPAN hungry and make Alston feel important, because we still need Rafer.
How dare you make an implicit JVG-Rudy T comparison. Don't you know Van Gundy doesn't get it and will never win?
If Alson continues his piss poor decision making and that overwhelmed not knowing what to do look down the strech as he did in almost all of the collapses, I am not fine with him to be on the court when we need to close out the game.
