Three double-doubles (I changed the title of the thread to the more interesting question raised by BGM below) Three double-doubles tonight. Francis (15 boards!), Griffin, and -- can this be? Cato? What's going on here? Is this fluky or insignificant or does it mean we should start this lineup more often? I see that Cato atoned for his uncharacteristic performance on the boards by shooting 2 of 6 from the line.
I hope Cato keeps it up and then maybe someone will be dumb enough to take him during the trading deadline.
Cato and EG really work well together, they should use this lineup for the rest of the season... Cato's averaged around 10 boards for his last 3-4 games I believe...
I don't wanna get my hopes too high for Cato cuz I always end up disappointed, but i have to give him my props for this whole week.
It seems that Steve is making Cato look like a potential 6th Man Award candidate. Steve and Kelvin make a great combo...Steve drives, Cato's defender slides over to help, Steve lobs up a pass, dunk Cato. I'm not going to hold my breath, but Cato looks like he's beginning to get very interested in how the Rockets are doing. He actually looked pumped up during the game.
I know pretty much everyone in Houston hates Kelvin, and just about everyone on this board hates him also, but I really want to see him do well. He's really not that overpaid compared to other centers in the league, and I really don't like the idea of just trading him off to someone else and trying to start Eddie at center. It's been pointed out that it's nearly impossible to tell how Eddie will grow, but I really enjoyed this setup. I liked having 2 big guys in the frontcourt that could both play C, who could body up with the other teams players and box out. At times Cato really can play well on defense and do what he needs to do on offense. I still remember our game against San Antonio when Cato was matched up on Tim Duncan and he held him pretty well and was probably a major reason we actually won last year. We don't need a center with a jumpshot or a guy that can post up, we need a center that can hustle, rebound, and dunk. I know Cato still misses the occasional dunk, but he's improving. I also think Eddie helps Cato a lot just because he's a tall body that can block shots. Normally Cato's the one having to play help defense and get out of position so he can block the opposing guards shot. Now Eddie's the one that leaves for the block, and Kelvin just backs him up for a rebound. If Cato could pull down 8-10 rebounds a game (which he has lately), and score 8-12 points a game, then I wouldn't want to trade him unless we traded for a center that could start also. I just hope for the best for him, which would also mean the best for the Rockets.
band geek mobster, very good post on Cato. It is good to see a new thought on the board instead of everyone following the crowd. Things have gotten way too crazy and hysterical with Cato on this board. In the past the hysteria even arose to the point where people were wishing him a slow and painful death. Lately he has come close to giving us most of what we need at center as posters have mentioned above. The other thing is that at the minimum he is one of the top backup centers in the league and for those who advocate Eddie as center we clearly need a good back up with weight and muscle if Eddie is the starter at center. As Jack Ramsey said somewhere recently, it is too early to give up on a relatively young big man like Cato. If we trade him for another good big man with weight and strength ok, but none of this nutty stuff like practically giving away Mo Taylor, KT, Cuttino, or believe it or not on the Rocketman.com Steve, just so we can unload Cato. We all want a Steve or Eddie who came ready to star right out of the box at evry position, but that is unrealistic and isn't necessary for a champion contender.
Sorry, but as well as he has been playing the past few games I am still no where near convinced, especially on the rebounding side of the argument, tha Cato is starting to play up to his potential. 80% of the rebounds he has pulled down have been gimme's. In other words my grandmother could have gotten the rebound because it simply bounced to him with no opposition around. I don't mean to sound like I am bashing the guy, but his rebounds are slightly overinflated. I will give him credit that he has been hustling and having more fun on the court, evidenced by the smiles and obvious enjoyment on his face. Hopefully he can keep this positive attitude and let it shine through on the court.
Cato and Griffin would be a great Combo. Add in Mo Taylor, and we have a rotation similar to our backcourt. Francis, Cat and Moochie. I think Griffin should play PF alongside Cato, and Mo T should play PF alongside Griffin. Willis can have the few minutes where Griffin rests. Cato really has improved, and I think he can continue to improve as long as he can keep his positive attitude up. When he has Griffin playing with him, I think it will rejuvenate(sp?) his shotblocking ability too. It would be excellent to have an excellent frontcourt (Cato, Griff, Mo) to go with the best backcourt in the league.
He looks great. Trade him before the deadline!!! Note to Fans from other teams who happen to stumble on this site. We all love Cato here, and will really hate to see him come to your team.
"Rehabilitate" to me implies that Cato was once good. Since this was never the case, I say the answer is "No".
