You can't be serious. He does so much for this team that goes unnoticed. We wouldn't win 20 freaking games without him (in boeheim voice)
Clutch, you are slightly wrong, let me correct your prank. There lies your problem. We are forcing Rafer to do too much. We ask him to be a point guard and shooting guard at the same time. Rafer Alston, the PG - Skip to my Lou baby! He is doing a fantastic job. It's beautiful watching him handle the ball. He is truly one of the best ball-handlers in the world. Another great game today vs the Jazz. 7 assists and just 1 turnover. Beautiful alley-oop pass to T-Mac late in the game. He's a decent defender for his size. Helping our defense hold Deron Williams to 12 points on 5-15 shooting is excellent. Rafer Alston, the SG - This is the Rafer Alston that everyone wants to kill. IMO, it's a damn shame that he even exists. Why does he then? It's because he doesn't have a choice. He was created as a result of the Rockets not having enough talent offensively at the guard position. Head didn't even play today. Snyder with 18 unproductive minutes offensively. JLIII does some good things when he's out there, but sadly, is not enough. He's a defensive liability with his size, and sometimes refuses to pass. V-Span could become a pretty good PG, but we already have the great Rafer Alston, the PG to take care of that role. V-Span is not good enough of a shooter. I'd still like to see V-Span play a little bit specifically to reduce Rafer's time. Battier is our best 3PT shooter, but is never involved enough offensively. How the hell does he only attempt four 3's? More importantly, why is Rafer taking twice as many shots as Shane (like today)? Solutions to get rid of Rafer Alston, the SG - Obviously, we need a true 3rd scorer. Bonzi Wells is the best answer, but apparently he is too slow and doesn't fit on our team. I would think that it wouldn't be a big deal if he was slow, considering that we play slow (I mean, one of the best players we have in Yao is one of the slowest players in the league). His defensive is lagging because he never got in shape. You get in shape by playing, and he never got that opportunity because of injuries. Another solution is getting Steve Francis. Too bad that won't happen this year. Maybe next year. Another solution is to run more plays or just giving Battier more shots. Luther Head's existence will also reduce Rafer's shot attempts.
No, because next year he won,t have the chance to shoot them anymore. He will be out of here!!!! Or I hope he will be.
The joke is even bigger than Rafer. I've said it before in the past in frustrated posts and I'll repeat it again. This team is still desparately in need of an inspirational leader. T-mac spoke of how "hungry" he was after the loss to Dallas in the first round a couple of years ago. Only a hungry T-mac doesn't show up often enough to be a leader of the team. Sure the other players speak of his talents with awe and so does JVG but you can tell when a player is playing with fire and a "hunger". I didn't see that in T-mac tonight. For crying out loud how much more incentive does a player who is "hungry" need than to get a real leg up in securing homecourt advantage in the first round of the playoffs? Especially one who hasn't found a way or a team to get beyond the first round of the playoffs? Where's the fire? Many find Kobe Bryant to be self-centered and trying to hog the spotlight. But when his team needed a miracle against the Rockets Friday night he did his damndest to supply one. We all remember the T-mac that supplied a miracle against the Spurs. Where is he now? He should have been going to the basket relentlessly against the Jazz. He should have been leaving it all out on the floor for homecourt advantage. I didn't see that. (And if having Yao in the middle "clogs" it so he can't drive to the basket, then the Yao / T-mac combo may have to be questioned.) T-mac clearly has so much innate talent and ability. And Yao has developed into a real force at center. That combo is like a dream on paper. Is the lack of it becoming a reality that they haven't been on the court together consistently enough in 3 seasons? I don't think so. I know some of the fans here think these kinds of threads after losses like this are just frustrated "whining" (some as much as say so). Well, if, as a fan, you can't see that the Rockets have loose ends and cracks in their game that are serious -- serious enough for them to exit in the first round (AGAIN!), then I think that is being in denial. EVERY fan who who posts here with criticism does so because they care. -- A LOT! And every critic would LOVE to have to eat their words and see the Rockets go all the way. But the warning signs are there. JVG has been sounding the warning for weeks and so have many fans on this board. The "fire" is raging. But it's not on the court. And it's not coming from T-mac consistently enough. Too many here are in denial that it will all work out OK. Bad habits are hard to change overnight. The odds are AGAINST the Rockets having much success in the playoffs this season. This is not the 6th seed Rockets of '95 with a Hakeem and a "hungry" Clyde Drexler. If they exit in the first round there could well be more than just "minor" tweaks in the offseason. If McGrady really likes and respects JVG as his coach, he'd better wake up -- and fast!
I remember after the Suns game you called Rafer a "bad player" and a "backup". Did this game change your mind?
Good post. I agree 100%. McGrady's poor play was very disheartening today, given the gravity of the game. He definitely did not show any leadership qualities today. I sometimes wonder that his chronic back issues have slowed him to the point where he can't penetrate and score like he used to.
I am not saying he is a great player or even a good player. He is adequate and does some positive things that go unnoticed. You cant blame him for the loss. He has to make that shot but he missed and it happens. He made some big shots and free throws in la. But hey who gives a **** right? I believe he is also in the top 10 in steals in the league. He doesnt turn the ball over. He also sets up the offense really well. But hey who gives a **** because he missed that three tonight. Why dont we talk about tmacs shot selection and hideous defense and all around effort. Tmac could set the tone for this team but he doesnt
I don't know man... last time I saw Cassell, he looked more like an exotic dancer than a basketball player. Boy have things changed. Did anyone ever make a .GIF of that?
Do you guys remember that game where Rafer got thrown out of the game? Boy did our offense look terrible. Nobody could set up the offense and that made everybody play bad. You guys have your minds set that Rafer sucks that no matter what he does, he will always get bashed and thats really sad.
Rafer doesn't deserve all the blame he's been getting for this season. Why does Rafer shoot so many 3s? Um, he's a 37% 3-ball shooter. Way better than average, so if he was open, I'd tell him to let it fly too. Yes, let's ignore McGrady's horrific display of "leadership" and "superstar" player; or Hayes' 3-8 shooting; or Van Gundy asking for way too much out of Lucas and Snyder. Yes, let's pick on the point guard, like always, despite the fact that while he had a poor shooting game (just like everybody else not named Yao), he had 7 assists, 1 TO. Doing his job. Maybe if SOMEBODY else would have stepped up, Alston would not have been in the situation to shoot the last shot. Let's put it this way. Put Chauncey Billups on this team, not Rafer. You still have no backcourt depth. No frontcourt depth; in fact, only ONE reliable, consistent frontcourt player not named Yao. Still have no leadership from McGrady. Battier still only leads by intangibles, which, unfortunately, sometimes yoy have to produce more if you want to win more. And, you'll still lose in the 2nd round of the playoffs, just like the Rockets will this year. Many many more problems other than Rafer. 1) TMac isn't a leader. 2) When Hayes is a starter for a team, you have massive frontcourt problems. 3) No backcourt depth. 4) No 3rd scorer.
I don't solely blame him for the loss(I blame McGrady also), and I think he should have taken that 3 pointer. But the Rockets don't need a player with Rafer's skillset. They need a PG who isn't a complete liability on offense most games. Look at how stagnant the offense looked in this game. We need someone to step up and score and Rafer, with his worst FG% in the NBA isn't it. 2-10 and 1-7 from 3 UGH. This was basically a playoff game and he stunk up the joint as expected. I guarantee you Rockets brass will try and make a move at PG in the offseason.
