I think many here are ery hard on him, mainly because he was overused and given a lot more to do that he could. He played very well in the Lakers and lately when his responsabilities were limited. If our trade partener requires us to include him i won´t doubt it. But i think Battier (expiring) and Buddinger (younger, cheaper) will be better baits than him. So, Ariza should start.
If he was overused, how does trading the other 2 guys competing for his spot decrease how much time he would get And I agree with DD, he is the worst of the 3
The best players should start, because they deserve the most minutes. The debate between Ariza and Battier is close, but I think Ariza deserves more minutes. When you put Budinger into the picture, he is clearly the better of the three. Adelman said the starting SF needs to play well off the ball. Budinger is that man. I am sure Yao will look out for Budinger defensively if his man beats him. I think Battier will be packaged with a draft pick and traded.
Start Ariza and Let Bud come off the bench for scoring. Bud and Lowry (Hopefully back) run really well together. If we get good offers for Battier like a 1st round draft pick then trade him.
Well, mainly we will have another 3 to go and also Martin alongside him that could play heavy minutes. Overused in terms of asked to do a lot more than he could.
Other: Jared Jeffries, with Jan Vesely coming off the bench. 2 6'11 SF's who have shot blocking ability and also play the 4 spot. Bud will back up Martin primarily. Bat and Ariza will be packaged in a trade(s).
The Ariza hate is ridiculous and pathetic. Ariza is arguably the best defensively and is solid offensively as long as he isn't asked to dominate. Ariza easily. BAttier and Budinger should split the 2 + 3 bench minutes.
Aaron Brooks Kevin Martin Chase Budinger Could very well be the worst defensive line-up ever created. I like your thinking DD... :grin:
i would guess it would be Ariza...but i really hope Budinger would improve defensively so he would take over for the future.
Since the All Star break (just 20 games), Ariza has shot better from the field than Shane Battier's season average Ariza Post All Star (20 games) http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/a/arizatr01/splits/2010/ HTML: FG% 3P% FT% MP PTS TRB AST .413 .381 .667 32.4 12.4 5.5 4.3 Here's Battier's last year 2009 season http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/battish01/splits/2009/ HTML: FG% 3P% FT% MP PTS TRB AST .410 .384 .821 33.9 7.3 4.8 2.3 Battier THIS season, 2010 http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/battish01/splits/2010/ HTML: FG% 3P% FT% MP PTS TRB AST .398 .362 .726 32.4 8.0 4.7 2.4 Ariza is equaling Battier's last 2 years FG and 3pt shooting numbers. FTs still bad. Ariza's March and April hasnt been as good, he had a strong 7 game February to boast the numbers. But Ariza is actually averaging the same rebounding, assists, steals and blocks numbers while playing 6 LESS minutes than before. That doesnt make Ariza a winner, if he gets traded I wont miss him. But the least you can say is he's re-adjusting to his true role and position. IMO Ariza, Battier, Budinger and Jeffries are all tradable or keepable. Lot of money tied in that one position even if its just for another year.
No way. Ariza is inefficient on the offensive end. Overall he is efficient as a a player when he cuts down his shots. Let me explain. The Rockets averaged 85 FGA this season. Deduct 17 shots for Yao, and 14 for scola. That leaves 54. Brooks needs to cut his shots down from 16 to 14 with Yao back, and Marin deserves his 14 shots per game. That leaves 26 shots for Chase, Hill, Battier, Ariza, and Lowry. Chase needs to take 9 shots as a starter leaving 17 shots for Ariza, Battier, Hill, and Lowry. These guys aren't scorers and should not be relied upon to produce offensively. They are great defensive players. Yao - 17 Scola - 14 Budinger - 9 Martin - 14 Brooks - 14 Hill - 5 Ariza - 5 Lowry - 5 Battier - 2 Ariza averaged 14 FGA this season while making 38.7%. On average he missed 9 shots, and only made 5. If he is in the game, teams will leave him open for the three and expect him to take even more shots. If teams double off of Budinger, he will cost them three points. I believe the Rockets have the chance to shoot their way to the #1 FG% next season if Budinger starts and Ariza's role is severely reduced.
Theres no reason to allocate a specific number of shots per game to each player. This is basketball 101. You load your team with players who create as many matchup problems as possible and feed those players the shots on the night when they have the advantage.
