Whatever. rafer is good regardless of what ppl say. he won't try and take over the game. I remember this one part last season. when MJ demanded the ball and tmac was all like "screw it. ill do this myself fool" lol
Rafer sux. He's a one-dimensional player who can't defend, shoot, or finish in traffic. Unfortunately, since Les won't go over the cap unless it's for a superstar, we're probably stuck with him as the starting PG next year.
LOL! When you started off with "Whatever", I knew you were in trouble. That is the ultimate excuse to win an argument by a middle schooler.
Damn! I love that cockiness! That's the attitude our players need. I cant believe they let him go. Mike james situation hurts because WE HAD HIM!! Not because we could have, should have, might have, would have, BUT because, WE HAD HIM DAMMIT!!
Mike James "singlehandedly" took over against the Pistons because they didn't care about that game. Chauncey made half his passes underhanded, Sheed took a 25 footer left-handed, and Rip was trying to nail a half court alley oop. Oh, and none of the starters played in the 4th quarter (and barely played in the 2nd). It wasn't really much of an accomplishment. Much like James' big numbers this year. It's easy to rack up big numbers when you lose pretty much every game and when you do win it's more because the other team didn't care enough to try than that you played good. Empty numbers from an empty season. James was on Detroit's team a couple years ago, they barely played him 5 minutes per game in the playoffs and let him walk for nothing. There's a reason for those two things. James can be a 6th man on a good team, but no good team will ever hand him the keys as a starter.
so you're saying james should've stopped caring about the game also and just let detroit win b/c it wouldn't be much of an accomplishment if he did win? i'm glad he still cares with 3 games left in an otherwise lost season for the team. he seems to enjoy playing and competing in basketball and seems to be quite good at it, as he was with us. still a bad trade.
He cares about his numbers and his checkbook next year. That's nowhere near the same thing as caring about winning. Beating a team that doesn't care about the game and is joking and laughing throughout is not an accomplishment to crow about. He was given a victory. Whoo hoo! If he could have single-handedly beat good teams then he should have done it before this. You know, when it mattered to his team. He's a huge risk for a team that actually wants to build a championship team because he's proven that his ego is huge and hasn't proven he knows how to fit on a winning team. The trade for Streetballer doesn't matter. Neither of them are winners (Rafer may want to fit on a team though) and neither is the answer for a legit contender (or hopeful).
I can't believe anyone would say that the Mike James for Rafer Alston trade was a good one. With Mike James here, we would have been in the thick of the playoff race even with all the injuries. The guy is EXACTLY what this team is missing a passionate, aggressive player, who can get a shot for himself as well as others. One of the worst trades in franchise history. Can't win em all I guess. DD
don't know have anyone posted this... this is from an article in maxboxing.com http://www.maxboxing.com/Berg/Berg041506.asp here is the part about mike james... " Current Toronto Raptors point guard Mike James plans to take up boxing in the off-season – which, given the Raptors’ 50+ losses this season, is just days away. While James said he has no plans for boxing professionally or even beyond this summer, he strikes one as the kind of guy who gets obsessive about his leisure-time pursuits, especially when they’re competitive. He also wants what he does to speak volumes about who he is. ... James already owns a good measure of street cred. The youngest of seven children, James grew up in an impoverished neighborhood of Amityville, New York, amidst drug dealers and violent crime. His nickname is “Amityville Horror,” and though he’s not scary, he is direct, intense and driven. James has had his own share of hard luck, which he refers to and dwells upon like a priest fingering rosary beads. A fab player out of high school, he couldn’t land a hoops scholarship at a big Division I school, so he settled in at Duquesne, a private Catholic school in Pittsburgh. Despite his impressive stats there, he got the brush-off again – this time in the1998 NBA draft. After several years in Europe and the Continental Basketball Association, he was picked up, then let go, then picked up again by the Miami Heat. No solid NBA ground for James – at least for his first three years in the league, when he bounced from Miami to Boston to Detroit and then Houston. He made some headway with the Pistons, backing up their PG Chauncey Billups and averaging good numbers off the bench. He was so sure the Rockets would want him that he bought a home in Houston. But off they quickly sent him to Toronto, where, finally, due to the astonishing inexperience and sheer awfulness of that team in addition to James’ more than respectable game, Mike James has thrived. So, now that he’s made his bones and is on the verge of being offered the richest contract of his life, James is taking a step back toward his hard-luck roots. NBA reporters and Raptors beat writers have followed him around since mid-February, when he sprang his off-season plans on them, asking him, “Boxing?! Why boxing?” James essentially has said over and over, “Why not boxing?” He’s quick to point out the respectable reasons for putting on the gloves – because he’s always been a boxing fan and his family used to gather around the TV to watch fights. Mostly, though, it’s a great way for basketball players to train and stay in tip-top shape during the summer. Boxing improves footwork, hand-eye coordination, anaerobic endurance, etc., etc. James’ ostensible reason for wanting to box has become, over the course of months and repeated explanations, less a rationale than a dog-and-pony show. And everyone likes a dog-and-pony show. James had mentioned before that his brother was once a boxer, so when I met him last week I asked him to tell me more. And in speaking about his brother’s experience as a boxer, James began to make his way toward some of his deeper reasons for wanting to climb in the ring. “Everyone overlooked him, and he never got the opportunity to prove himself,” James said of his brother, Dioni James, who I was told got a late start in boxing. How long and successful Dioni’s amateur career was I don’t know, but as a pro he lasted only one fight, a fourth-round loss by TKO. But James wasn’t explaining his brother’s experience so much as he was reinforcing the story of his own struggle to succeed as well as his role as an outsider always trying to crash the gates to the party to get in. Though James seeks out risky activities (he loves motorcycles, parasailing and skydiving) and works to master anything he takes up (don’t put your money against his on a pool table), his intended foray into boxing strikes me as a way for him to remind himself where he’s from and what he’s about. There is no better metaphor for a guy who’s walked in his shoes than that of a fighter. " I can't believed we traded him!!! And he wanted to be a rocket.
First off, he played closer to 10 mpg in the playofs with Detroit. He played almost 20 mpg with Detroit during the regular season. But hey - make it 5 minutes if that's what you have to do to make your case. Second, I love how you guys try to measure him by superstar criteria: Empty numbers (what about Yao Ming's season this year - empty numbers?), not leading his team to the playoffs....etc. An undrafted FA, making barely 3m per season, acquired for a second round pick, who's having a hell of a season, and you guys make the implicit comparison to Steve Nash ("James will never be a champion starter, MUHUAHAHAHAHA!") By the way, that is the all-time lamest insult when you're talking about basketball. Lots of great players didn't win championships due to circumstance. Jack Haley has multiple rings. So Kreskin-like pronouncements on the future nba-championshipness of players is about as empty as you can get. I don't know why you people have such a bone to pick with James. I think he's a great story, he's a fiery player, and guy that you have to root for. He's worked hard and succeeded against daunting odds I guess it's just a case sour grapes leftover from the horrific alston trade.
James had his minutes cut as the playoffs went on. He played more early because there were blowouts and he got garbage time. He was around 5 mpg for the finals and 8 for the playoffs. He barely played and was not a factor in any way shape or form. As for the rest, if he's going to get paid 3 million next year, then that's great, but if he wants "all-star" money, since he is one by his own estimation, then he's crazy. And there have been plenty of stars who never won championships, but none of them only had stats when they were on one of the worst teams in the league. Right now James is Tyrone Corbin, not Charles Barkley. Use Haley in your comparisons/jokes if you want, but Haley never said he was an all-star or demanded to be paid like one. I can't speak for others, but I don't hate James. He just hasn't proven that he's anything except a guy that can put up stats on a horrible team or a 10th-12th man on a real team.
20ppg on any team in the NBA is not too shabby. The Rockets were extremely foolish to trade away the player they needed the most this year. DD
this thread is pretty much dead, but i'll ask anyway: WHAT THE **** ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? where has he just been a 10-12th man? the fact he even played in the playoffs in detroit's title run makes it hard for me to believe he was the 10th man and definitely not the 12th man (interesting note: it seems most fans like the people on their title teams, apparently detroit fans are different). he was the 6th man on the rockets last year and we were 19-8 with him and took dallas to 7 games. maybe you don't consider that a real team but i'd think a 5th seed is real. maybe not. and you act like he's putting up good stats on a bad team just by hogging the ball and passing every time. he has actually upped his fg% to an amazing 47% and his 3pt % to an amazing 44.6%. he's getting 5.9 asts with only 2.6 to's. and all this on a team where defenses don't have much else to worry about. so he's actually increased all of his stats (to the point he's now a 20 and 6 guy) while increasing his efficiency. most would laud the improvement in a player's game. apparently not you or most on this board. like Sam said, it's like he's stealing money from you.
James did not play in every playoff game either. Those playoff minutes (and DNPs) were closer to Darko Milicic than anyone who would be considered in the regular rotation that year. I'll assume you wouldn't have considered Darko in the rotation then. There are always a couple players on bad teams that put up stats. Someone has to score. It doesn't always transfer to a winning environment. James is a risk and his comments seem to further emphasize his love of stats and self. Someone will take the chance, but they'll know they are taking a risk (unlike those here who assume everythings close to a given). The stealing money comment doesn't deserve much attention as it's just a cheap shot to divert attention.
exaggerate much? He played in 22 out of 23 playoff games, logging 195 minutes. Darko logged 14 minutes in 8 playoff games that year. why do you keep lying about James playoff stats? It's easily checkable and that's the second time you'be been busted on it in this thread. As is your entire line of criticism.
Fine, I'll look up the stats... He was 10th on the team in mpg game during the playoffs. Yet he wasn't the 10th man. Got it. You "busted" me bigtime. I didn't look up the stats before that and was going on memory, but it's still the same thing. He didn't play in every game, he didn't play much, and he was a 10th-12th man. Hell, he played 4.4 mpg during the finals (Superstar!). He had zero impact on them winning or losing. That's about all that's worth saying on that. He's a bench player on a legit team. If he puts the team ahead of himself then he'll contribute to winning.
And he was 9th in total minutes. And he was 8th off the bench in the regular season. Detroit went to a short bench in the playoffs - and an NBA finals MVP point guard playing in front of him. What does any of this prove anyhow? He's got a ring. He was a contributor and a rotation player on an NBA championship team. He can also be an NBA starter and a primary scoring threat. He's done it all, certainly a lot more than Rafer Alston ever has - for less money. Except for the 20 mpg he played during the regular season. Shockingly, since Detroit had a Finals MVP point guard at his position, he didn't play much in the finals. So yes, an undrafted free agent compares unfavorably to the NBA Finals MVP. Therefore he sucks, or something. Great lecture. I'm sure Mike James will read this and take it to heart, coach.
