I know you're not talking about being a hater. It's not that far of a stretched that Rafer eventually gets traded if he doesn't play like he did in the past couple preseason games. He's our best trade bait right now.
and there's no reason to believe he won't keep performing like this. yes, he'll have off shooting nights. yes, he'll probably go 0-10 in some games, but his passing in the open court and decision making is unmatched on this team. trust me, we are NOT getting rid of Rafer when our backup PGs are Mike James, who doesnt look to pass at times, and Steve Francis, well i dont have to go further.
SF3 better be a sixth man. Sometimes he can be a starter if the opponent PG is strong. Rafer can't guard stronger PG, like Deron Williams.
i dont know why people have the notion that Francis is a good defender. He lacks the ability to quickly react with his defender, whether its moving laterally or contesting a shot. Delonte West was schooling him last night. i don't know how many times i've seen Francis get burned off the dribble or someone shooting over him easily. He simply can't react or move fast enough, and the same problem occurs for him offensively. Rafer's D is no worse than Francis', but at least Rafer is a SMART defender. Mike James is our best small guard defender by far though.
It was bad when Szerbiak (sp?) blew by Francis with that spin move before Steve fouled him and Bill Worrel says "he beat Francis easily." with a hint of disgust for Stevie's defense.
Its amazing that you continue to see a person whos yearly field goal average of .380 as someone who has "off nights". This same person who has NEVER shot over .415. Has only broken .400 mark twice in his career none the less. Thats absolutely hilarious. Some off nights.... He doesnt make the spectacular decision, he only allows someone else to run the offense. His weak rebounding, his atrocious D, and absolute inability to get to the freethrow line, or make his free throws make him a terrible player. Unbelievable that you want a third year of Rafer suckage getting significant minutes.
obviously i'm not the only one. Adelman thinks so as well. i would think an NBA coach knows more than a rafer hater who's disgruntled because he's succeeding.
Wow...just wow. You really really need to rewatch last year. Rafer is a horrendous defender. He is terrible. He plays the P n R terribly, he gets lost in the rotation many times, and he has no ability to disrupt a shot. D Williams exposed Rafer for a fraud of a starting PG in the series last year. I would like your explaination as to how Rafer is a smart defender.
He's doing well. I hope he continues to play well. He's gotta play well in the regular season. We'll just have to wait and see. What he did here in 2 years arent erased by 4 preseason games.... It's October 21st. Let's see what Adelman thinks on January 21st
Well It seems that Head isnt getting any minutes according to that article as well. Which would go to show that you are lost as to how the pecking order will go. More hilarity from you man. Succeeding???? Really???? In 4 preseason games. 1 against a euro team, 1 against the Mavs NBDL team, and he had a terrible game last night. Compared to a lifetime .380 FG%. A lifetime of sucking at D, a lifetime of letting someone else run the Offense for him in Houston and Miami. Awesome man, you sir are the master evaluator.
Here's the quote: He says it will be tough to give 3 guys minutes backing up the three perimeter positions (PG, SG, SF). It's already been established that Rafer/James will start (with the other being the primary backup) and Battier will start. So, you have (probably) James and Wells getting the majority of the backup minutes at those three positions. Adelman says "we may play small, some", implying a third guy may also get some time -- either Head or Francis. But he makes it clear that there won't be four guys getting backup minutes at those three positions. Between Mike, Bonzi, Luther, and Steve, one will have to sit. Since we know Mike and Bonzi are set, it's between Luther and Steve. And Adelman has had only positive things to say about Luther; not so much about Steve. Draw your own conclusions. And this notion that Rafer is a disaster on defense is a total crock. I don't know where that view originated from, but there isn't any truth to it. He played 37 MPG, every game, at the PG position for the one of the best defensive teams in the league last year. And somehow he's a terrible defensive player? Whatever.
Say what you want. the bottom line is Rafer will be starting, and Head will be getting more minutes Francis, who will be buried in the bench.
I just want to know where are these Rafer supporters last year? Because I could have sworn this board was 99.8% Anti-Rafer. I'm not saying thats a good thing because I hated all those Rafer threads with the same exact topic. Now, all of a sudden Skip has a couple good games and he is suddenly an "elite" PG. Doesn't make much sense to me. A leopard doesn't change it's spots, and Skip is no exception.
excellent post. it is between luther and steve at the moment, and adelman has said nothing but good things about luther. the only time adelman even mentioned francis was deciding if he can fit or not. defintely doesnt look good for francis.
you're right, a leopard cant change his spots, but his strengths can be utilized in a way that overshadows his weaknesses, which is what adelman's offense is doing to Rafer. Francis on the other hand, well, like you said a leopard cant change his spots.
Ill take the fact that Head all but see's the writing on the wall and doesnt want his family or friends to talk about it as a pretty solid conclusion. Yes he IS a horrific defender. Try watcing a few games from last year, and you can figure it out real quick. The team was a great defensive team due to JVG's slow it down tempo, Yao, Tmac, Battier, and Chuck. It had ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with rafer. I wonder if some of you know how to watch a game that doesn't include..."my team scored, their team scored". NO one on this planet would claim Rafer is even a decent defender at his position. He is lousy. Im not claiming SF is god, but ONCE again for the slow... Rafer is a lifetime .380 shooter. Rafer is a lifetime 2 boards a game player Rafer can not create his own shot Rafer does not get to the line Rafer is a PG who shoots under .700 from the charity stripe. Rafer is a lifetime let D Wade, Let TMac run the offense for him Rafer is a lifetime lousy defender Rafers ONLY asset is he doesnt turn the ball over. Rafer can not run a fast break for ****. One more time. He is a lifetime .380 shooter. Not one year, not two years. A lifetime. Get it through your skulls. He does that while feeding off of players like D wade, TMac and Yao. Thats an embarassment. I got you down Duvursa and roffl. I dare you guys to poke your heads out after 40 games. The Rox may be doing well, but it wont be due to rafer. He will shoot crappy, jack a ton of 3's standing all alone at the line, never get boards, and unable to stop the oppositions PG. Bank on it. I mean its not like hes had a few bad years, only a bad career.
it doesn't matter if rafer is a bad defender or shoots 0/10 every night. the fact is his positives outweigh his negatives, and that's why he's our starting PG and that's why Francis is the 10th man off the bench.
durvasa, I respect your posts a lot, but I can't believe you actually said this. Rafer's awful defense was discussed ad nauseum last season and during the summer. I don't remember you defending him at all. I lost count of the times he got abused last season. When the regular season starts and opposing PGs begin playing intense basketball, Rafer will eventually revert back to typical form. He won't have the opportunity to tank as much as last season because Adelman will yank him. Teams will game plan to go after his poor defense while clamping down on our two stars on offense, baiting Rafer into taking shots. Tissue soft, non-intense pre-season basketball is Rafer's best environment.
