with apologies to David Crosby... don't spend as much time in the Garm as I should, and I don't get to see too many Rockets games, but I've stayed up way past my bedtime the past couple of nights, and after watching the first two games of the lakers series, I can't help but feel it's the not the players, or at least not the players many here think it is. We can win with Yao, Steve, and Cat. While JVG has done wonders with the defense, and has gotten the guards to dribble less, the offense hasn't really changed that much since Rudy T; it's still basically a dump it in, throw it back out offense, with some high screen and rolls thrown in. We need a motion offense, and while the ball might move more now, the players don't. I think this results from a fundamental misconception on the part of JVG (and Rudy T before him) as to what type a player Yao is. He's not Shaq, Ewing, or even Akeem (never could get used to the "H"). He's a bigger, more talented Vlade or Smits- think a 7'6' Walton in '77. He needs an offense designed around his exceptional passing skills and ability to see over the defense. Cutters-to-the-basket, not just spot up three point shooters, and this is what he has in Steve and Cat. The problem is they're all square pegs in a round hole. Rudy thought he had drafted the next Dream, and tried to surround him with Kenny Smith, Cassell (what I wouldn't give to see him in a Rocket's uniform now) and Horry clones. Similarly, JVG thinks Yao is Ewing, and runs an offense better suited to Allan Houston, although admittedly SF does have his John Starks moments. It's so difficult for these Rockets to score in this offense every possesion becomes critical, and defense takes on an even greater priority. There's no margin for error. Yao also needs a true power forward; one who can score and defend. While Cato and MoT may be able to do one or the other, neither can do both. This team needs it's Horace Grant, OT, or, god forbid, Karl Malone. Park Yao in the high post- run the offense through him, let Steve and Cat cut to the basket, move w/out the ball, and give me a power forward who can watch his back and shoot from 15' in, and then we'd have a true contender. Think triangle (Triad). Sure, we could blow up this team. Or, we could use the talent we have to it's potential. What do you think? Can this road be taken, taken at all?..."you are afraid, embarrased too. no one has ever said such a thing to you..."
good read, but I have one disagreement of sorts. the fact that Yao is 7'6'' just screams low post to me. once he gets position there he cannot be stopped. that being said, battling down there every possession just runs him down at this point. i think we have to find a happy medium between the two because he showed in stretches that he can be very effective running the offense from the top of the key. about the forward(s) I couldn't agree more. if only cato could hit a 10'-15' jump shot or Mo could play D! our offense would improve so much with the addition of a rasheed wallace type player or even rahim.
you have to wonder what this team would've been like had griffin not self-destructed, or if we had signed Horry in the off-season. although i'd love a webber at the 4, i'm not sure we need a superstar. Kurt thomas could do the trick.
I like Yao in the high post out of the triangle. He can shoot, drift free throw line, roll on a pick, pass to cutters, pass to open shooters, or swing it to the 2 and 4 on the left for the two man game. Yao gets to use his height advantage to see the whole court and direct the traffic. He uses his shooting ability where he won't get stripped or blocked. I definately think that's a better match for Yao's skills than parking him down low and making him fight. That takes away his passing, his vision. That gets him stripped, blocked, bumped and banged. That makes the entry pass much harder. Put Eric Dampier down on the block. Run lighthouse Yao at the high post. All that said I also think we should fire JVG and CD and trade everyone and start over.
Bass, I have never agreed with you on anything in that other, evil forum, but I totally agree with you on this. JVG is making the same mistakes Rudy made with Yao. The guy is not Hakeem or Ewing so quit trying to make him that player. He's effective facing the basket and you're not losing anything moving him away from the basket because he's not a great rebounder anyway.
I agree in general and will add another thing. That while Yao isn't Ewing or Hakeem Francis isn't Kenny Smith or John Starks either. I don't think JVG really knows how to get the most out of this staff. He knows a system that I don't think suits the talents of who we have. Like you and other posters say Yao has unusual talents for a center but also lacks the strength and tenacity to hang in the low posts. Francis has creative explosive moves and rebounding ability that is rarely seen in a point guard or other players his size but is inconsistent handling the ball and shooting from outside. These are talents and weaknesses that don't fit into JVG or other more traditional basketball strategies. The only Rox who seem to fit JVG's system are the former Knicks and Cato who fulfills the rebounding bruiser role that Oakley and Anthony Mason did for the Knicks. It seems to me that Francis' skills are better for the 3 position while Jim Jackson is better at the 1. Unfortunately their sizes rule that out especially on D but maybe JVG could experiment more on the offensize end. At the same time even though Yao is 7'-6" his skills would seem better at the 4 spot on offense where he could set up in the high post to either spot shoot over a shorter defender or pass over a defender to cutting players.
See how Webber get criticized in Sac town? Because he did not go to the post where he belongs. Sure he is a great passer and doing fine in high post, but those plays just cannot get it done when it counts. We don't want Yao become a second coming of Webber, a 7'6 giant should belong in low post and let his presence felt by opponent. Yao has shown us he can do that, he just need to do it more consistently. I certainly agree we should mix some high post passing in our offence when Yao is tired and not effective in low post, but he should stay in low post 80-90 percent of time.
I always believed you design your game strategy based on your opponents, unless you are really good, in that case, you do what you do the best, let the others beat your system. The Rockets is not that good, and they don't have a consistent, sound system yet, so that means we need to attack the opponents' weakness, design our game plan based on that. One of the biggest defensive weakness for the Lakers is guarding penetration in the lane. We have seen again and again how Parker, Stoudmire, Bibby, and Nash did to them. Use PnR to free the guards, dribble penetrate into the middle to force the defensive rotation, create mismatch & open shots. The Rockets aren't doing that much. With this 'dump-it-into-Yao-and-wait' approach, we have focused on the one position which we don't have any advantage. Yao will not score on Shaq consistently in the low block, and it will wore him out quickly. We need to have our backcourt to penetrate, get Yao the ball one the move, instead of camp in the paint. He drew two fouls from O'Neal when he ran into the basket last game. Again, JVG needs to be flexible, make good adjustment.
oak and mase could shoot too, something cato cannot do. wasn't JJ a point gueard at Ohio state? couldn't he bring the ball up, move steve to the 2, let cat come off the bench, and start padgett at the 3 w/ MoT at the four. padgett would help offset some of Mo's defensive liabilities, let Mo play down low on offense and let padgett shoot threes and make the intro pass. and just curious, do you think horry is perhaps the best entry-to-the-post passer in NBA history?
not too sure how quick padgett is, but he seems too small (weight) to really be a four. boki'd be ideal if he could shoot.
Excellent thoughts...bottom line is that the pieces around Yao don't fit. He needs to be in a hybrid-motion offense where he can be fully utilized. Let's face it, the zone has changed the post game...even Shaq cannot get the ball consistently where he needs it enought times in the game. The difference between he and Yao can still be highly effective in the high due to his shooting and passing ability. Yes, the first option should always be for Yao to dive low and receive the ball as close to the basket as possible, however, defenses are designed to deny this first and foremost...therefore, we can't try to force it on every possession. What we can do is get the ball to Yao in the high post where he has more options being a three-point threat (pass, shoot, drive). Everytime we get the ball to him there and we are moving w/o the ball, good things happen (a la the pass to a cutting Weatherspoon for an easy dunk last game).
Look Asso (never could get used to the "B"). WTF is this? His name is Hakeem. Get used to it. Anways, on the content of your actual subject, yall are all way off. This JVG system is not anything like Rudy's offensive system. There is much more offensive motion in the sets this year. What you saw in the playoff games on occasion was JVG mixing in a couple of iso's for Steve, Mo, and Cat every now and then. I do agree that we need a much better offensive system overall though. JVG is no offensive genius, in fact i think he is subpar. We need to hire Nellie as our assistant coach once he gets fired this year.
Keep the core - build around them - begin by finding a PF that has some kind of offensive threat. I think the core players are here and that JVG is correct in stating that commitment and dedication to winning is really the element that has kept the team in the lottery the past few years. That being said, I don't think it's a stretch to say that Rox are in dire need of upgrade a PF because K.Cato (with all due respect) has too limited of a range and is not strong enough on the boards and is too slow. Too many teams play off Kelvin and double Yao. Kelvin is too slow to leverage the double against Yao and to cover many PF's on the other end.
BEST POST OF THE YEAR!!!! man.... it feels good to see some optimistic ideas on keeping the core of players we have now together and work around them..... I think the best thing we can do is bring in a big PG to share out the PG job with Francis.... sort of like what Dallas run last yr with Nash and Van Exel (though that will be 2 small PGs)..... bring in a stud PF that can rebound and score when needed (well... at least be more of an offensive threat than Cato) and at the SF position... well..... I think JJ still can handle it pretty well if we can't find someone.... last, hire a coach with offensive brain..... we have one heck of a defensive minded coach.... what we need now will be a coach who can design the offense properly......
Thing is Yao's shot has been way off for about the past month or so. He's had a few wide open looks around the 20 foot mark that were pretty much uncontested that he's been missing. I know he can make those jumpers, but he hasn't lately going back into the last few weeks of the regular season.
I would agree with you, but when you make a jump shooter tired it usually doesn't pan out too well. Also you have to consider that he's just not effective against Shaq in the low-post. I remember when we beat them earlier this season, Ming was mostly taking jumpers and forcing Shaq out. He's not the fastest, but I also think that he's still faster than Shaq.
I disagree with your idea of just putting Yao in low post. Yao should be operating mid post or low post with lots of options open up on the parameter or a cutting teammate to the hoop. We definitely needs a PF that can shoot and defend, I don't think we can get a Sheed. To me, Yao is not dream or Shaq or Ewing, he's a really unique big man with the ability to play an efficient team game. I don't see JVG using Yao to the fullest or even tried to, Yao is being forced into another Ewing. That takes a way his ability to pass and his court vision. For a big man he's a extremely good passer. We have to find somebody that knows how to use Yao, or Yao is going to be wasted. Maybe someone like Hubie Brown can do it.
this all sounds pretty good in theory, "keep the 3 we have" but 2 of those 3 are max players. how do you expect to pick of a Stud PF and a very good point guard with the money you left after that?
