I agree with the premise, but to the extent that in today's NBA, PF and Center are interchangeable, and PG is the only truly unique position (SF and SG can also be interchangeable), I think PG matters more. Yes, Hayes can't make up for his deficit, but usually the Yao/Hayes combo can. Usually. PG, on the other hand, now has an equal number of solid, all-star level playmakers at the best teams across the league (Nash, Parker, Deron, CP3, Baron, Terry) as the PF position does. And if you don't have a great PG, it's not like you can rely on a great SG to take over those duties. A bad PF can be "hidden" by a great center, or a bad center can be "hidden" by a great PF, but a bad PF is simply exposed...as has been the case with Rafer.
if we're throwing out names of point guards how come Steve Blake isn't ever mentioned? He's a free agent this year and I think he would be ideal for us. He's not a major scorer, but he's very smart and makes good decisions. Additionally, he does shoot the three pretty well. Plus, I don't think he's be that much - I think he's a realistic possibility and would be an improvement for us. I certainly wouldn't mind Rafer coming off the bench.
Only three rated PG's in the draft (Conley, Crittenton, & Law) and two of note in free agency (Billups & Mo Williams).
His bad defensive effort in Milwaukee would have to be reviewed to see how it would effect Yao in the lineup. With the lack of PG's available and many teams after one he's speculated to get over-priced at the full MLE, at that price he's just not worth it.
With a good power forward then Rafer will be even more open. Will he still miss? I vote power forward and simply ban Rafer from shooting.
I would love a PG to replace Rafer. I'm not just talking about as a starter, I'm talking about on the roster. Send Rafer packing and let the door hit his sorry tail on the way out. Bring in MJ.
i say power forward moreso than point guard. the lesser of two evils. remember it was a REBOUND at the end of the game we couldn't get versus utah, not a 3 pointer or an assist (basically the only things a PG would do for us with yao or tmac). tmac can do all of our PG things (not that that is the best situation cause it's not). but tmac just needs hustle players who can shoot on the perimeter. but to dominate, we need a PF. yao cannot carry the load on the boards and down low on offense. he is too one dimensional to do so. and he showed us that in the playoffs. he needs help. more than tmac needs help on the perimeter. hopefully we get both! but i am guessing adelman will see PG as the greater need.
It's a hard question. I voted for PG. As bad as Juan has been, I think he's a chance to drink from the fountain of youth under Adelman. JH is underutilized in JVG's offense, his jumper is more likely to have a bigger use under Adelman. Rafer has been inconsistent, and we don't really have a solid backup pg now. Get someone who can shoot and defend.
I find it's interesting that more people voted that an upgrade at PG is more important than an upgrade at PF... but then nearly everyone that posted talked about and upgrade at PF. The bottom line is both. So this vote is skewed just a bit. Obviously it will be very difficult to get both, so you pick whichever you can get. Either one is going to do better in Adelman's offense, merely because it has more motion. Rafer will have to shoot less and Chuck will do better helping more people get shots rather than just helping Tracy for a curl shot around a pick. So my choice isn't on this list... get the best of either position that is available, and work with what you have. Obviously Chuck doesn't have starter talent, but he is a very good teammate and hustler. We know that Rafer is a bad spot up shooter but he's very good at passing in the open court (not so much in a stagnant offense). There are things there with both of them that you can use, but obviously some more talent and no boneheads would be helpful.
I'm fine with our power forward situation. It's less than ideal, sure, but we've done pretty well in the past with guys like Chucky Brown starting the 4. We need a guy to run our team. We desperately need a good point guard and that ought to be priority 1, 2 and 3 this offseason. Obviously if deals like the rumored Artest package present themselves, you jump on it, but so far as what the Rockets themselves pursue via trade and free agency - it ought to all be with a mind to getting a quality point guard. Rafer will be a great backup PG but he's just not cutting it as a starter - and the rest of the point guards we have aren't even cutting it as backups.
The difference is and it's a humongus big difference given our financial status, Willams is gonna command 6 plus mill a year. steve can be had for 1.2 mill vet exception.
No. I don't think Chuck is starting caliber either but a new starting PG is still MORE important for this team. Both Rafer and Chuck are sinkholes as starters. We need another creator and PG is the position for it. We need a new PF but I'll settle for a platoon guy to compliment Chuck if our PG need is addressed. Rafer is also a very poor defender and I'm sick of chumps like Jamal Tinsley lighting us up like they were playing 5 on 4. Throw in Rafer's terrible shooting percentage for good measure and it adds up that he is our weakest link, followed by Chuck.
I have to agree that Rafer is bad shooter, he's pretty poor defender. He's so quick to shoot only 3s cause he should be player who attacks the basket. But Rafer is a lot better starter than Chuck is. How can you put Hayes in the first five. It makes a lot easier task for other teams caus they have only 4 players to defend
I think the PG is the most important priority due to the handling of the basketall on a majority of the offensive plays and is constantly left wide open. Also, I think there is a journey man out there that can give us more than what Chuck is giving us now. I think JVG fell in love with Chuck's hustle and forgot about offense as evident by our 1st round exit. We lost game 7 by 4 points and horrible shooting by Rafer and Chuck doomed us. Imagine a Mo, Steve, Blake, Bibby, etc... or any of the top rookie point guards (Daniel Gibson) getting in the paint and scoring at least 10 ponts for us. We're close to playing SA in the Western Conf Finals and they don't want to see us.
Solid point. Williams should still be number 1, though, if you could get him for the full MLE. Then you could also add Francis, and trade Alston.
I'm not sold on Mo Williams just yet, I'm not syaing he wouldn't be a good addition but you have to consider the timing. He played well last year in a weak east where he scored alot. Also, he was playing for a contract. In Houston, he won't be the primary or the secondary scoring option. It's kinda like the Mike James situation in Toronto. I wouldn't mind getting Williams for the MLE, but there is a possibility he may turn into the Mike James from the wolves.
I wouldn't defend Rafer either, but anyways we don't need a PF that can play offensively, just board. As much as people bad mouth Howard around here, he still has some offensive game so we do have a PF that can drop 10ppg with decent minutes. Rafer hasn't shown my very much at all. He plays more minutes than anyone on the team and can't lead his team in assists out of the point position? Alston is rich man's version of Smush Parker.
