I say Nachbar. Why? A number of factors come into play. I would have prefered that he was a 20 point scorer to give him the job, no question asked, but he is not, yet. We know what JJ and AD can give but if Boki is the SF of the future I say start him now. Give him the exposure like we are doing now and by the end of the year he could be our "gino". The only other competition he has had really is JJ and he has won that in my book. AD has been injured and I would not hold up my investment in Boki to play AD. It may feel somewhat premature but if we keep in mind his play internationally and in Europe, he has been a pretty good contributor to his respective teams. Another consideration is his relationship with Yao which was already great off the court and is now getting good enough on the court. Can he stay defensively with those 3's in the league? Maybe not but he is shaping up as if he is likely to give some problems himself. Give it a try, I cannot see what we have to lose; afterall, he may be the reason why Posey is not here.
I would rather start Jim Jackson at SF atnd have Nachbar come in against second team SFs. Nachbar is steadily improving which is great to see but I still think he is aways away from being a solid starting SF. Hopefully Nachbar can continue this progression in the next two games against Denver (Carmello Anthoy) and San Antonio. In my opinion, what Nachbar is doing now by continuing to improve is he is moving himself AHEAD of A. Griffin on the SF depth chart as the first SF off the bench. It also may mean Pike plays the lions share of his minutes at the back up 2 guard spot instead of playing back up 3.
So far in the preseason, don't get me wrong... Yao and Stevie have played HARD, but the hardest workers I've seen thus far is Moochie, Boki, and Cato. Boki deserves the starting spot. Jimmy would be great coming in at the backup 2 or 3 spot, being a smart vet, I think he can hold his own very well against the other team's bench's. Starting five: Stevie/Cuttino/Boki/Cato/Yao 2nd string: Moochie/Piatkowski/Adrian Griffin/Mo Taylor/Amaechi (plug in Jimmy to the mix in the 2 or 3 spot, whichever spot is open, for atleast 8-20 minutes a game.
I don't want to give him the starting spot too soon like we did Eddie. Have him come off the bench for a little while and start him only when he earns it. I hope they make any of the same mistakes with Boki as they made with Eddie. I would start Piatkowski at the 3. The only way to keep the defense from packing in on Yao, especially if Cato starts at the 4, is to have a shooter the the 3. JJ has looked terrible this preseason. And even if Pike can't guard the more athletic 3's, we still have Yao and Cato there to erase his mistakes.
I think Boki needs to show some consistency (i.e. several games in a row with a good shooting %). Last nights game was a good sign, but it doesn't take away the other 4 games in the preseason where he went 11-40. Boki is still not a good defender, but he does try and he hustles. I like how he handles the ball, but he still makes some mistakes with his passing. He had 5 TOs last night. Of course, I like his rebounding. Lets face it though, Boki is still a work in process. Until he finds his shot, then the rest of his skills just don't warrant a starting spot IMO. JJ is a solid shooter and solid defender (his preseason play notwithstanding). In the end, I think Boki is going to have to prove at the start of the season that he is a better overall option than JJ. We have too much at stake this year to throw Boki in the starting lineup. Remember, JVG is going to make people, especially younger players, earn their time on the court.
Boki had a good game last night. He finally started to make some shots. We all have to remember to treat him like this is his rookie season. Defensively he may not be as athletic as other small forwards in the league but with JVGs help I believe he is smart enough to learn some trixs. Before the season was set to begin I was thinking that the Small Forward position would be our weak link however with Boki's good work ethic he may turn out to be serviceable. Most Improved Player 2003-2004 : Boki Nachbar
God knows I have spent alot of timie defending Boki around here, but I agree with codell...I'm not quite ready to throw Boki in as the starter once the season starts. He is making a marked improvement, but until he can show it consistently, he needs to be second string. His rebounding, hustle, ball handling and entry passing is good....his D better than everyone thought(but not great) and his shot seems to be coming around... but still.. let him work his way into the starter slot.
This would be my ranking: 1-Jim Jackson 2-Piatkowski 3-Adrian Griffin 4-Boki I have to say that it's very, very close between all of those guys. Luckily most of those guys can play the 2. I hope Boki can have a great year, but he's only put together one good game. I have to wait and see. JJ is shooting horribly this preseason, but given his history and hard play he should turn it around. Piatkowski and Griffin haven't played this preseason but Piatkowski will likely be our best spot up shooter and AG will be are main stopper.
A Smart move ,, MUST & HAS to be.. Starters PG- Steve Francis SG- Jim Jackson SF - Nachbar ( Piatkowski .. would start if healthy ) PF- Cato C - Yao Ming Perfect balance of firepower, defensive, rebounding.. Hitting the outside shots always key.. SG & SF will have open shots .. Cato in this mix will be big .. as a weak side defender / offensive rebounder and has a physical mismatch on the majority of the PF in the west ( height wise ).. Bench - Moochie ( stuck with him .. no other options ) Cat Mobley ( suberb offensive player ) comes at the SG Mo Tay ( another offensive threat ) comes in at the PF Piatkowski .. when healthy (takes over for Nachbar) Thats you 8 -9 man rotation.. Cat coming off the bench prevents the "wunder duo" ( Steve & Cat ) from reverting to their old ways of [ shoot first ask questions later ] because it will minimize their minutes on the court together.. Also .. Jim Jackson .. is the smart tough defensive verteran that will make good decisions .. in the starting line-up May need some additional bulk.. off the bench if Cato or Yao get into foul trouble... Don " I am English" Amechi IS NOT THE Answer..
Given up on Eddie already? I still hope he comes back and is part of that rotation Francis, Mobley, Mooch, Pike, Boki, A. Griff, Jackson share the 1,2 and 3 Yao, Cato, E Griff, Pig, Taylor share the 4,5 Besides Francis and Yao playing time should depend on match-ups This is the deepest I ever remember the Rockets being.
If Boki matches his last night performance in the next two games and we win I think it is Boki's spot to lose. JJ I know is better than he has shown but to me this is not about JJ and more about Boki. I just sense that they let Posey go in part because of Boki. Codell, I agree that a lot is riding on this season. I think time on the floor is his only need right now and he spent the whole year last year on the bench and we know now that was a mistake especially if both Hawk and Tmo are not here anymore. I would not further compound that mistake. The exit of Posey, the focus on Boki in the SL and the minutes he is getting now suggest that the organization believes in him and will give him the exposure.
Got me on that one BRO'' Amechi has the bulk ( flabb , fat ,, are just a few adjectives ) I should have said.. some muscle.. ala.. a kevin willis / anthony mason / charles oakley type of player..
DR, The only thing Boki has done well this season, is rebounding. His shooting % is poor, his assists/TO ratio is really bad and he is averaging 4.5 fouls in 32 mins. Lets not let one or two good shooting nights erase the rest of his liabilities. Lets also keep in mind that he was exposed when he has had to play frontline starters like Lewis and solid backup players like Woods, Wallace and Lynch. As far as saying that it was a mistake to not play him last year, thats just BS. Boki has shown very little that says he can play with legit NBA rotation players. Yet, you can for certain say that it was a mistake?? I believe in giving him his exposure and the time to justify his draft position, but as a backup, earning his time. I hardly believe in handing someone a starting spot when they have done nothing to deserve it, especially when there is a proven veteran ahead of them.
Boki is playing extremely hard, and thats why he's earned more minutes on the court. The first 3 games, every time he took a shot, he wasnt sure wether to take it or not. I think van gundy is got him scared. But after last night, what Calvin Murphy pointed out, Van Gundy told him to start shooting or else he was going to pull him out of the game. We all saw boki play different after that. I definately think Boki should come off the bench, right behind Jim Jackson. The rockets need some more Vets as starters and we all know JJ can play some ball. This is what I think the starting lineup should be. PG-Francis/Moochie SG-Mobley/Pike SF-Jackson/Nachbar PF-Cato/MoTaylor - either or at starting C-Yao/Amech or Cato I dont know whats going on with Eddie right now, but so far this preseason he hasnt done anything thats impressed van gundy.
I agree with this lineup. But I still hope Griffin can somehow fit in and contribute because once the season starts I don't think Cato will be able to match up with some of the pfs that we'll be playing against, which would leave Griffin as our best option for defense (which is scary) because of his rebounding and blocking skills. I dunno what's up with JJ, but if he doesn't pull his game together and make some shots (which I believe he will), Pike should probly start at the 3. Nachbar starting would be a very bad idea right now. Let's see how he does in the preseason games that the Rox have left. I'd use him as the main backup for the 3 at least for the first quarter of this season, but if he shows up to be a stud, put him in as a starter.
Am I the only one who likes AG? I think he's a really good complimentary player. He's going to do the little things. I think his shot might be better than JJ's right now.
Codell, Boki has been playing better for a while now, it is only his shooting that has been poor. Just in case you did not see it, JJ is just as bad. While you focus on his liabiities I will focus on his assets. Despite the as/to ratio he is a very good ball handler for his height. Another factor is his height. None of the other guys are going to be able to put a hand in Shard's face. He is long enough to do that. He is the best slasher in the group. As the rest of the team settles down it is no wonder that Boki's smarts become more evident, afterall, he is an european. Another strength is the role he can play in ball movement, something that is very important to JVG. Finally his hustle. Preseason or no preseason, it is not lost on me that in two games that we beat the Kings, Boki did what he was supposed to do - show that he belongs.
One thing you have to give Boki is that he harrassed Peja to no end. I thing we disrupted Peja's game by his hustle D. Not that he is naturally a great defender, but that he made up for a lack of d quickness by pure constant effort. JVG must love his effort. Should he start? Just a little more consistancy and definately yes. Why- because he plays very smart, he doesn't demand the ball. He works very hard. Is a good role player. Can run the break. And with a little more confidence (JVG is working on this) can hit a better percentage jumper. He is tall enough to cover any of the other 3's in the league. JJ is a better player hands down right now, but I don't think the best thing for the Rockets is to sit Boki down unless he shoots himself to the bench. He is giving us too much positive energy with his play right now.
i agree with codell. outside of the yao/cato five spot, the three is probably are deepest position. jim jackson, eric piatowski, and adrian griffin have proven themselves as valuable players in this league already. as much as boki is improving it's impossible for me to launch him over these 3 guys when he has played about a games worth of minutes in the regular season his whole career. let him earn it off the bench and in practice.
