I'm not a Rudy basher... but I can say one thing about a possible coaching change: winning isn't everything. The decision to keep Rudy or let him go doesn't need to be based on how many wins we should have achieved this year. The best reasons for the Rockets to change coaches don't have anything to do with wins. 1) Bring in a different philosphy of basketball. I may love the Rockets, but they are about as far from the way I believe basketball should be played as any other team in the NBA. I don't want any more one-on-one basketball. I don't care how well it could be executed with the current group of players under Rudy in the future. 2) Change for changes sake. The Rockets have maintained their pride and good attitude, which was drawn from their two championships, for a long time because of Rudy's presence. I feel like that attitude is disappearing. "Humble and hungry" aren't the words that I use to describe what I see anymore, and I don't know if we can regain that. 3) Discipline. On the court and off the court our team seems to lack discipline. The team doesn't play with consistent effort and they keep getting busted for smoking pot.
43-39 in 9th place is exactly what I predicted at the start of the season. However, after Ming started playing well, my expectations went up. I think the Rocks underacheived this year, and I think the primary reason is that the man running their offense is not real good at it. Steve Francis is great at getting his own shot, and lousy at setting up teamates and setting the tempo for the team's offense. He needs to be moved to the 2 guard spot. I have been watching Gilbert Arenas with GS, and he really knows how to push the ball up...he is light years ahead of Steve in understanding the value of early offense and a fast break pass. I would push hard to get him on the Rocks and move SF to 2. DD
Oh, I would also make a run at Piatkowski and Brent Barry..they fit in better with an inside out game. Especially Barry, he is a very smart player. DD
I'm not talking about under and over achieving. I'm talking about philosophy, change, and discipline.
I know Doc....I just feel that a few of these players are unable to handle the change in philosophy and should be moved for players that are professional on and off the court. DD
Most of these things I consider top-down type of issues (there are always exceptions and the Trailblazers). We have such a young team, that I can't believe they aren't still impressionable enough to adjust to a lot of things. Especially Eddie and Steve.
