i don't see why people stick the "pass first point guard" label on rafer? the man was always looking for his own shot but he merely passes when he starts missing
Yeah, he stalls the offense. It was no coincidence that when he had a bad shooting night in Orlando...the 4-14 night that the other shooters have a bad night. The PG runs the team, and Rafer had many plays when he was just displaying his dribbling skills.
The success of the rox during the regular season makes Rafer look good to those that don't follow the rox. They watch him soak three pointers on espn, but don't see the several bricks he teardrops during a game. Rafer is not a quality starting point. He rode the coattails of the team.
I think Rafer makes the Magic better, only because they didn't have other options. Anthony Johnson and Tyronn Lue? Puh-lease. So far, I like what Lowry brings. It's nice watching PG's that can actually finish on the break. We haven't seen that the entire time Rafer was here. All in all, I like the trade. Rafer always played hard here, but playing hard doesn't make him a good PG. A leopard can't change his stripes....he won't go to the Magic and suddenly be able to shoot or finish. But, he will bring them some stability compared to what they had before the deal.
Yes, I been thinking the same thing, I dont recall them bashing rafer when he was in houston but he sure wasn't getting this kind of love...now they act like he is Billups or something...national media just hates Houston. Funny how charles barkley was saying how Rafer is so much better than Brookes while comparing stats that obviously favor Brookes... rockets 9-1 with Brooks, 28-20 with Rafer... I really wanted to see their reaction after the game when we blew the cavs out, cuz they were talking like we gave up on the season...Charles is a stubborn moron.
Rafer's an adequate pg that can run a good halfcourt system, especially for the price that the team is getting him for. That said, the media is pretty much all over him because of an anticlimatic trade deadline. I think he was the most significant move moving from playoff team to Eastern Conf. contender.
Some of you just plain tell on yourselves sometimes.... Rafer isn't an elite point guard, but stats don’t always tell the whole story. If you think evaluating a player based on stats alone paints a full picture, then Shane Battier sucks and that's not true. I’m not blind, I watch 82 rocket games a year like many of you and I see what Rafer meant to this team and I appreciate him for what he’s done. Rafer was bashed by fans in Houston for years because all they ever noticed was his shooting percentage (37-39% avg) which wasn’t great, but Skip wasn’t traded for because of his offense. He was brought here to run the team and because of our superstar inconsistencies, he was thrust into that third scorer roll far too many times. Was that his fault, or management fault? The Rockets were suppose to have the personnel on the floor to makeup for Rafer’s shooting woes…he’s a floor general, not a third option scorer. I personally thought he did a pretty decent job and was clutch when the game was on the line. If people want to judge off of stats...that's fine. You know why coaches love Rafer.....simple **He doesn't turn the ball over **He plays hard every game….no stats for that **He runs a team like its 2nd nature...no stats for that **You can't press him because his handles are well above average...no stats for that (I mean people don't even try to steal the ball from him because they are afraid he will make them look silly lol) **He's a leader on the court...no stats for that So....maybe his show grew old to many of you, but I hated to see him go. I do not think Aaron is "better" than him right now, although I believe AB will soon grow into a special player.. Just because someone is a better scorer doesn't mean they are the "better" player. The Rockets made a decision to move towards the future and saved money in the process....Rafer is probably in a better place where he still have his big man and surrounded by a gang of shooters. Rafer deserves the praise he gets....it's sad for some, stats have to qualify you first.
Rafer was the next "Magic". At least you'd think so reading the panicked and angry reactions of rockets fans in the thread announcing he was traded.
I believe the media is just stating that when Nelson went down, the Magic took a pretty good hit, and with the addition of Alston, they are back in the mix instead of having whoever else was there instead (Johnson?).
And you know more than guys that have played the game or been around the game for their whole lives. No, Rafer started here for 4 years and beat out everybody that wanted his job, he is not below average if you lump in all his skills.
I'm sure it's implied "below average starting PG". It's easy to name 20+ point guards in the game one would take over Rafer. I guess he's above average in the sense that he's better than half of the point guards on teams' 15-man rosters. But starting PG for a team that wishes to contend? No.
Honestly I always been a Skip hater don't want some guy that has street cred leading my nba team just seem like he missed on too many fundamentals, I didn't care if we got a Russian point guard I just wanted skip gone so what every Mike Lowry does is a plus yes I called him Mike Lowry from the movie bad boys thats my nickname for him.
thats what happens when you go to a team whos best pg at tht time is tyron "i look like a wnba pg" lue.
Rafer might be a good floor general and sometimes good scorer. But, damn, Lowry is way more efficient. He attacks the basket, and knows how to dish to open players, especially Yao and shooters at 3 line.
And Hayes for a post move and Yao on the break. haha, I'm kidding. I like Lowry a lot. But to say he's better than Rafer *right now* is not quite true in my opinion. I like how he runs with that Yao-less squad though. That squad is fun to watch. He seems to be very good at entry passes as well. Thank goodness for small miracles there.
Certainly Rafer is better than AJ and Lue. But the way the media is talking, they're making Rafer out to be an upgrade over Jameer Nelson. They're talking like Rafer is the missing piece of the puzzle and that the Magic weren't really a threat to Cleveland and Boston before but are now. That's where the head scratching comes in. Yeah, Rafer is a decent starter and better than what the Magic had after the Nelson injury. But he's not better than Jameer and he's not the guy to push you over the hump.
How did he ride the coattails of the team? Where exactly did they get him that he had not been before?
