Hey all! Haven't posted in here for a while, though i was following this bbs all along. It's the offseason, and there's not much to talk about. But the issue i wanted to tackle was that some posters in here are so optimistic about the Rockets upcoming season looking at their current roster. No offence, but an unproven player like Griffin WON'T contribute right away. not with the clog your team has at the 3. The addition of Rice was something i couldnt figure out! why would the Rockets acquire an aging, overpaid, past-his prime shooter like Rice??? People over here also keep saying that the young players will be a year older and more mature. ya well, so will the rest of the league!! Hakeem's gone, and im sure glad it wasnt to a western team that leaves a BIG gap at the 5 for the Rockets, and am not buyin the "Cato's time is NOW" crap. Im sure glad we got rid of him. Rocketfans kee saying how good it was getting rid of Pippen and his huge salary was. Well, is Cato any better?!?!?!? Two seasons and he produced nothing but his ugly colored cars! The Blazers however got better by aquiring Anderson, who's young and will fit in better with the blazers. Zach Randolph was a HUGE pickup as well. and you gotta hand it to him, he KILLED you guys in the summer games point of this is thread is that i want to discuss HOW exactly do you think your Rocket team is a better than the Portland team??? If you ask me, the Rockets' offseason wasn't such a bright one! Rockets lost: Olajuwon, Bullard, Anderson, (Maybe Norris) Rockets got: Griffin, Morris, Rice What do ya'll think??? Cant wait
Here are my rankings of the two teams: Blazers C Sabonis 4 PF Wallace 8 SF Pippen 3 SG Wells 6 PG Stoudamire 5 6 Anderson 6 7 Davis 5 8 Patterson 4 9 Randolph 4 10 Kemp 3 11 Kerr 3 12 Harvey 2 (Blazers total 53) Rockets C Cato 3 PF Taylor 6 SF Rice 6 SG Mobley 7 PG Francis 10 6 Norris 5 7 Griffin 5 8 Thomas 4 9 Williams 3 10 Collier 3 11 Langhi 3 12 Morris 2 (Rockets total 57) So that proves it. Regarding your comments of Griffin, I disagree. I think he'll see more time at the 4 than the 3 and will definitely contribute. I agree with you about the Rocks plight at center. If we don't pull something off, it's going to be bad at the 5 spot. But, come to think of it, I don't think the Blazers are THAT much better off than the Rocks at the 5. Sabonis is on his last legs and other than that you don't have a legitimate backup center. Regardless, I think both teams will make the playoffs. Good Luck w/ following your team!
Good point... But, it's not a good thing for an old team like the Blazers to get a year older... Ask the Utah Jazz if they enjoy getting older and older... Whereas, a young up and coming team like the Rockets welcome another year of maturity... Both, physically and mentally... The Blazers made a good move in firing Dunleavy... Now, let's see if Cheeks can play the role of parole officer withi the Jail Blazers... Rice helps the Rockets in that he is still one of the best 3-pt shooters in the league... One thing for sure, is that the Blazers could sure use a 3 pt shooter like Rice... Randolph did have a nice summer, but it's kind of stupid for you to say that Griffin is "unproven" which is true... But, then you go ahead and talk about how Randolph was a "HUGE pickup"... I guess he's a proven commodity? Seeing how he wasn't even a starter in college... The only thing huge about him is his @ss... It's really easy to see why the Blazers won't do much this year... They don't have any players who can score against a zone... Sheed will get his points, but who is the top 3 pt shooter? Sheed? Sheed can't be at 2 places at once, in the paint and hanging behind the arc... Wells is a nice post-up player, but we shall see if he can come back after his injury... Anderson will realize that he had it good in SA, when he was able to get open 3's all day, and could afford to gamble on defense, with the Twin Towers guarding his back... The Blazers were a sinking ship after a 50-win season... I don't think they improve too much this year personnel-wise... I see the Blazers winning around 50 games again this year... Now, the Rockets got a big upgrade at SF, in Rice... Blazer fan or not, you have to admit that Anderson/Williams flat out sucked at SF... The Rockets will be one of the tougher teams to defend because of the trio of Francis, Mobley, and Rice... Everyone talks about how we lost Olajuwon... Guess what? We played 24 games without him, so it's not like we don't know what to do without the presence of an injury-prone player... If we did re-sign him, he would probably play only half the games anyway... In his 58 games, Olajuwon played a total of 26.6 minutes per game... So people who think we lose a whole lot, are conveniently forgetting that Olajuwon was a burden to the team chemistry, and he wasn't playing a lot of minutes... Losing Olajuwon is the equivalent to losing Sabonis... In terms of production...
Matador By your measures, if Francis gets a 10, then Wallace is a DEFINATE 10! Pippen get s a 3?!?!?! equal to Langhi, Collier, and Cato?!?!?! if that's not being biased, i don't know what is. I know how much hatred Houston's got for Pip but hey, you have to admit he's more valuable than CATO or COLLIER!!! Plus, Anderson and Wells can't equal Glen Rice. Thank You
Francis is better than Wallace... I'd rate Wallace at a 9... The main justification for this is, look at how many teams in the West have premier PF's (except for the Rockets)... The quality of PG's these days are downright crappy... Francis is a top 3 PG... Wallace is a top 5 PF...
Kidrock I never said Randolph was any less "unproven" than Griffin was. No one can deny the talent Griffin has, especially on defence. But i was mainly pointing out that Zach was a good pickup at the pick we had, no one expects him to be big, but the summer games, to me, were a good sign.
Alright, you don't think Pippen sucks that bad. OK, that's cool. But I think he is that bad. Let's look at his numbers for last year: 13.7 points/games, 5.7 boards, 2.3 dimes, 4 turnovers a game , 2.67 steals, .67 blocks, AND 39 minutes a game For playing those minutes, those stats suck (except for the steals). I bet if Langhi got 40 minutes a game, he could put up comparable numbers. Yeah, I'm probably biased in some of my rankings, but I'm a Rockets fan, what do you expect.
Why? Neither of them has played in an all-star game, Rice is an all-star just two years removed. He didn't get the touches he needed in New York with Spree, Houston around. With a consistent starting slot, he should be back to being a 16, 17 ppg scorer. Now explain to me how the Blazers had this huge summer... Anderson-good pickup, helps them get younger, but either he or Wells will take a seat on the bench. Randolph seems to be a pretty good player, but in the end wont be half the player Griffin is. Basically you got a backup for your two strongest positions. Still no good center, still no point guard who is capable of playing down the stretch. Pip is a quality SF, but not a very good player anymore. And you still have him for what three more years?
Actually, Pippen's numbers are pretty decent, if you take into consideration the fact that he's a role player in Por... Put him on a crappy team, and he comes close to scoring 20 a game in 39 minutes... The 5.7 boards is pretty decent for a SF too... As much as I hate him, he is better than Langhi and Morris... I will say with the new rule changes, Rice's value is equal to Pippen's, if not slightly higher...
I really like Randolph, as I wished the Rockets had drafted him... But, I think Griffin will be slightly better than Randolph because he can create for himself much better than Randolph... Randolph will be a garbage-type player who will score off of offensive boards, or on open dunks... Randolph will be a good player, but he might be a Jermaine O'Neal-type in that he will not get enough minutes to develop in Por, unless Por turns their roster 180 degrees...
kidrock8 Whose side are you on anyways? I know Pip is probably better than the likes of Cato, Collier, and Langhi. But I hate the man with a passion and I think he is a jerk that is overrated.
this is the same girl that comes in every year and talks a load of smack then mysteriously disappears right around when the blazers make their usual exit of the playoffs.. come back when the jail blazers arent first round fodder.. as hey pee would say.. next..
Shots/Game Allan Houston: 15.48 Latrell Sprewell: 15.83 ------------------------------- Steve Francis: 15.24 Cuttino Mobley: 15.37 Now YOU explain to me how Rice is supposedly gonna get more shots in Houston when the main reason he left NY was that there werent enough shots for the three of them?!?!? on what basis is this exactly???? Cuz Griffin was drafted higher??? The topic of this discussion is next year, not the future.
Rice could get more shots beacause Francis will pass him the ball and shoot less. He is a team player and just wants to win. Mobley, on the other hand will probably take the same number of shots. Also, the Rockets are going to play a more uptempo game than the boring Knicks ever did. This in itself will allow more shot opportunities.
Halfway into next season Francis will be arguably the top point guard in the league. Point guard is the most important position on any team, as they run the offense and have the ball in their hands for the majority of the game. Wallace is arguably a top 5 player at his position, but PF is a STACKED position. Nearly every team has a very good power forward or stud young PF of their own, while there are much fewer star quality PGs. HOU - Taylor/Griffin --- SAN - Duncan --- Daniels/Porter MIN - Garnett/Smith --- Brandon DAL - Howard/Nowitzki --- Nash/Hardaway most likely DEN - McDyess --- Van Exel/Johnson UTA - Malone/Marshall --- Stockton VAN - Swift/Gasol? --- Jason Williams LAL - Horry/Walker --- Fisher/Hunter/Harper/Shaw SAC - Webber --- Bibby/Jackson SEA - Baker --- Payton/Williams PHX - Marion/Rogers can kind of play PF --- Marbury LAC - Brand --- Dooling GSW - Jamison/Fortson --- Hughes?/Blaylock PHI - ??/ --- Snow/Claxton BOS - Walker --- Anderson NYK - Camby/Harrington --- Eisley/Jackson NJN - Martin/Van Horn --- Kidd MIA - Grant/Mason --- Carter WAS - K. Brown/Laettner --- Whitney? ORL - Outlaw/Grant --- Armstrong MIL - Caffey/Williams/Thomas (kind of) --- Cassell IND - O'neal/Harrington --- Rose/Best CHI - Curry/Fizer/Chandler --- Crawford DET - Robinson/White --- Atkins/Cleaves TOR - Davis --- Williams ATL - Abdur-Rahim/Ratliff --- Vaughn? CLE - Hill/Mihm --- Miller CHA - Campbell/Brown/Coleman --- Davis Pretty much every team except for the Sonics, 76ers, Lakers, Magic, Bucks have a near all-star caliber or future one (ie Brown, Curry/Fizer/Chandler, Griffin) As for pgs the Spurs, Grizzlies, possibly Jazz (too old), Lakers, Warriors, arguably Blazers and Stoudamire, 76ers, Celtics, Knicks, Heat, Wizards, Magic, Bulls, Pistons, Raptors and Hawks lack a near all-star caliber pg. Also, Wallace will never become a "10" if he can't stay in crucial games at crucial times.
It's funny how we accept trolls into our midst when they just include a couple of smilie faces in their posts. BlazerGal, do your shots per game make sense to you considering Francis and Mobley do not put Rice out of place? Francis and Mobley both have ball handling skills that neither Sprewell nor Houston possess. Sprewell, Houston and Rice on the floor at the same time isn't nearly as potent as Francis, Mobley and Rice. Sprewell = slasher; Houston and Rice = outside threats. Francis and Mobley = penetrators (and all around threats); Rice = outside threat. Rice will excel, excel he will.
BlazersGal, Umm, first of all, Sabonis may not be coming back. Second of all, some say Jahidi White is coming to town. your C would be who? Dale Davis? I'm shivering..... Let's compare the teams....btw, don't tell me head to head doesn't matter, and it's about thw whole league, coz you post is named Blazers Vs. Rockets.. Let's assume (and this is VERY VERY probable) the Rocket trade Walt for Jahidi White.... Center Rockets: Jahidi White, Kelvin Cato Blazers: Dale Davis, Arvydas Sabonis (maybe) Even if Sabonis does come back, how many minutes can he possibly play on those knees? 20 minutes? That leaves 28 minutes to an unhappy, undersized, Dale Davis. I'd put up our centers against your Dale Davis. At 6'10, he's just an inch taller than Jahidi White, and and inch shorter than Cato. As a Rockets fan, I'd say we're better off. To a friend, I'd say were even. For you, I'm gonna say you have a slight advantage, okay? Power Forward Rockets: Mo Taylor, Eddie Griffin, Kenny thomas Blazers: Rasheed Wallace, Shawn Kemp, Dale Davis, Zach Randoph Hmmmmm. You think this is gonna be a happy bunch? Sure, Wallace might burn Mo on offense. But not if he's pulled every five minutes for one of the other three starting calicer PFs. Rasheed's gonna get even more technicals this season, mostly because of Cheeks' attitude, but because he's not gonna get the minutes he wants and deserves. he certainly won't burn Griffin. Small Forward Rockets: Glen Rice, Eddie Griffin, Dan Langhi Blazers: Scottie Pippen, Ruben Patteson Tell me, at this point in their careers, who would the Blazers have? Scottie at 16MILL/season, or Glen Rice at 9MILL/season? Rice's knees are better. Rice's game is better. Rice's game hasn't diminished much. Plus, you don't even need the knees to drain the open 3-pointers off Wink and Cat drives to the basket. Scottie deserves a 4/10 in ranking. He's AWFUL, did you hear? AWFUL. Then you have zone buster Rube Patterson. Excuse me? he can't shoot at all? He only drives? Good at man to man D? Oh, that doesn't help much with the new rules....Meanwhile Glen and Langhi will shoot the lights outta the zone. Even head to head, I'd put my money on Glen, not Scottie. Shooting Guard Rockets: Cuttino Mobley, Norris, Morris Blazers: Anderson, Wells Please don't get me started on how much these two are gonna complain. They both deserve 40 minutes. the SF minutes are taken. The PG minutes are taken. They're goin to have to sette for 24 minutes a night. They ain't gonna be too happy? Plus, neither of em can take Mobley. NONE can defend Mobley. I can't wait to see the whole league take apart this unhappy bunch of people. Point Guard Rockets: Francis, Moochie Blazers: Stoudamire, Barkley No comparison. Francis will be one of the top 3 Point Guards in the league this season, and Stoudamire would be top 10, AT BEST. Not to downplay Stoudamire. I know he's got skills. But he just doesn't got the ball, and even if he did, Francis would burn him. So it's simple. We've got a happy group of people. Happy=Chemistry We got better with a year. Your team is much older than ours, and most of your players are not so happy with the extra year. We have a hungry team. You have a whining team. Sure, the Blazers may end up on top of the Rox. But head to head, I'll take our chances over yours. I'll take our players, our situation, and our future.
Houston and Sprewell, not to mention LJ all play minutes at SF, our top 3 scorers from last season don't. It isn't about just the shots in NY, but limited playing time Rice got in NY.
Whoops! ESPN had their defualt stats on the playoffs. Here are his real stats. Not any better: 11.3 points, 5.2 boards, 4.6 dimes, 1.47 steals, .55 blocks, 2.4 turnovers, 33.3 minutes a game. My point still stands that he sucks.
