I DO DAMNIT! I am the anti-ZRB and anti-Blinebury! I think we have enough talent to make the playoffs. I believe Steve and Mobley will carry us! I believe Griffin will put up ROY type numbers! I believe Cato and Kenny will do an andequate job in the frontcourt! Steve and Cat are hungry to make the playoffs and our offense should still be one of the most dangerous in the league. I am going to be the LOUDEST MF IN THE ENTIRE COMPAQ THIS UPCOMING YEAR DAMNIT! Sorry I had to get that out, but the negativity was getting to me.
R03, If the roster stays the same (I'll count Mooch as in) then i am really not sure, i think i will be borderline, yes Steve and Cat are super talents and will probably be required to score 45 pts combined a night if we are to make it. Rice will have to step up and Eddie will have to contribute in some way. Kenny is solid and as for Cato you Knows??? But the biggest problem i have, it was a problem with Mo playing although he could go into shoot-out mode against other PFs, is the points we are going to give up in the paint. There are some big boys in the West, and although Kenny plays great Defense and hustles, he is just too small, and then when Kenny goes to the bench Eddie has to step and he will get outmuscles. One way to overcome this is to play lots of swarming trapping defenses that utilise the speed of Steve and Cat and the shot blocking of Cato, however Rudy has yet to ever show me any Creative and Agressive Defensive schemes. So in short the playoffs aren't out of reach with super coaching from Rudy, 60 pts a night combined from Steve, Cat and Ricey and superb play from Cato, Kenny and Eddie, but another front court player would make the task much mroe acheivable. Smeg
I know we will usually get killed by McDyess, Duncan, Wallace, Shaq, Webber, etc. But we should also be killing most other teams with our backcourt. Our backcourt should be one of the top three (Kobe & whoever and Penny & Marbury) if not the best next year. Rice will open the lanes all day long for Steve and Cuttino to drive. Kenny is also an able outside shooter. Cato, I believe will finally play with some heart now that the pressure on him is full force. Sure another big man like Jahidi or Jackson would help tremendously, but I believe in Steve and Cuttino. Rudy I admit has barely shown any innovative ideas on defense or offense. He really did not have to come up with defensive sets because Hakeem basically has been taking care of that job for the last decade or so. Given the new zone rules, lets give Rudy some time before we start our annual "Rudy Sucks" threads.
While I am not usually with you, R03, in this case, I am. I do think we have the talent and ability to make the playoffs. Before, I thought we had the ability to make 5-8 seed. Now, it is looking like we would have to settle for 8th seed. But we can do it. Rice will help with the scoring that we lose in Mo's injury, and Dream's trade. Cato will start putting up numbers more similar to what he is being paid, and Kenny will surprise a few people on this board by providing huscle and rebounding toughness. It can be done.
R03, Agree it will be a battle between our backcourt and Rice versus oposition front courts. I am not saying Rudy sucks and will certainly give him some time to work with the new deensive strategies, just hoping he has done nothing special on defense cause Dream has been there rather than he has done nothing with the D cause he has no idea what to do. The other big worry is now depth in the front court. At centre we have Cato and Collier At Power Forward we have Kenny and Eddie Imagine if Kenny or Cato goes down with an injury and there is a fair chance one of them will over an 82 game season Just make a quick comparison we some other C & PF quartets around the West Spurs - Robinson, Duncan, Rose, Ferry Dallas - Bradley, Nowitski, Howard, Manning Denver - Lafrentz, McDyess, Willis, Cisse Golden State - Jackson, Fortson, Jamison, Foyle Clippers - Kandi, Brand, Strong, Rooks Lakers - Shaq, Horry, S Walker, Madsen Memphis - Wright, Reeves, Austin, Swift Minnesota - KG, Smith, Nestrovic, Garrett Phoenix - Googs, Tsakalisis, Rogers, Wallace Portland - Wallace, D Davis, Kemp, Sabonis Sacramento - Webber, Divac, Pollard, Funderbuke Seattle - Baker, Booth, Lewis, Radmanovic Utah - Karla, Amaechi, Polynice, Ostertag
here's the East, can your front court combination compete? Atlanta - Mohamed, Reef, Henderson, Ratliff Boston - Potapenko, Battie, McCarty, Blount Charlotte - Campbell, Brown, Coleman, Magloire Chicago - Curry, Chandler, Fizer, B Miller Cleveland - T Hill, Mihm, Ilgaulkas, Doleac Detroit - C Robinson, Williamson, B Wallace, Moore Indiana - O'Neal, Croshere, Harrington, Foster Milwaukee - Johnson, S Williams, Caffey, T Thomas Miami - Mourning, Grant, Ellis, Causwell New York - Camby, K thomas, Weatherspoon, Harrington New Jersey - Martin, MacCulloch, Van Horn, Collins Orlando - Grant, Ewing, Outlaw, DeClecq Phili - Mutombo, Geiger, Traylor, Moiso Toronto - Dream, A Davis, JYD, Clark Washington - Brown, Laettner, E Thomas, Haywood
Whenever ther is a major rules change, weird things happen in the NBA. The Rockets will definitely make the playoffs. Definitely.
I think we stand a good chance of being a playoff team for the following reasons: ** Don't know if team will use medical trade exception (which I think is available if player is to be out entire season....which is very likely), but I think we will make one or two moves to: 1) get another banger like Mason to replace Taylor and, 2) strengthen our center position with White etc. ** Even as we are, I'm not sure we're not at least as good as last year already. Remember, Hakeem didn't really contribute until late in the year. Also Taylor started slowly and then was slowed by his Achilles tendonitis toward the end of the season just as he was finding his game. And... ** Rice will be an pleasant surprise re. how much "game" he has left. ** Our younger players have had another year of experience and playing together. Value of this is incalculable. Look at how the Kings meshed over the last few years. ** Collier has a real chance to contribute. From what I saw of him, he is a natural shooter, wasn't afraid to bang, and had a good nose for the ball (good rebound #/minutes played). He will be even more valuable with "zones" ** Cato is the key- if he contributes only what he CAN do on a regular basis, we're far ahead of last year Am I an optimist? Do a lot of things have to fall into place?Yes and yes. But I really think this team stands a great chance of making the playoffs this year. DR
I agree with Smeg. If the roster stays the same it will be borderline because we would have to have several things fall into place (Griffin maturing quickly, Cato coming alive, KT producing regularly), but if the Rockets can trade for White and sign McCoy or pull off a deal for another decent big man then I sa pencil in the Rockets for the playoffs.
Doc, they must petition the league for an exception, and the league examines the player with a physician to see if there is any reasonable chance he can play that year. There is little if any precedence for an exception being awarded for common injuries, even those requiring surgery. This might be due to the disabling injury having to occur prior to Nov 30th to be awarded an exception for missed games this season to count. (Injuries after Dec 1st must keep you out for the <i>following</i> year to get an exception...unlikely.) Maybe these dates are the reason the exception is so rare, simply because it is rare to have a season-ending injury so early...if it is even considered season-ending. I think it is also because different players will heal faster, so the NBA goes with the best possible time frame. Can you tell me the quickest you've ever seen someone with a tear recover?
Lets bet on it! I will forfiet all of my post at the end of this season if we dont make the playoffs.
Crispee, thanks for the information on the medical exception. I think it would be pretty unusual for a high performance athlete (esp. a basketball player where stop and go, cutting, repetitive jumping are crucial) to really get back before about nine months. So do the math and that takes us into about May. A lot depends on the nature of his injury, the repair, and how fast his rehab goes. Make no mistake, this is a terrible injury, but one where he could reasonably expect to get back pretty close to where he was before. It would not surprise me if they don't even try to get him back on the court this season; it would only be in the last month or so and that may make no sense. He's in the first year of a six year contract. So the smartest thing may be to dedicate this entire year to optimizing his rehabilitation and recovery (which will be difficult at best). Don't even attempt to bring him back. Then he will be more prepared to go on with his professional career beginning with the 2002-3 season. In this case, he may legitimately qualify for the medical exception. These are just my opinions "from a distance." The Rocket medical team is in the best position to make these calls. Let's stay tuned. Dallas (Doc)Rocket
Yes, but that is about injury strategy, not injury recovery. If the player can play, you don't get the exception. I also doubt the league will require him to be more than just practicing with the team to be deemed ready to play. The key thing about the exception is precedence. If you can recover from the injury by May in most circumstances, then it isn't season-ending. The league can't consider team trainer strategy for rehab. For instance, let's say Steve Kerr had this injury during the Bulls title runs. He doesn't need to be 100% to be effective, and the Bulls wouldn't need him before the playoffs, anyhow. It is unfair to give the Bulls a replacement player when they indeed will use Kerr at less than 100%. It is a matter of precedence. If they give us one, everyone must be given one in the future...even the lame Kerr scenario. If Mo' is even 80% ready by May, I doubt we get the exception. btw: once a replacement player is awarded, the CBA states that the disabled player can come back before season's end "notwithstanding the determination by a physician designated by the NBA" that he couldn't, hence both Elliott and Zo coming back.
Hey why did this thread turn into a "medical exemption" discussion?! I want to know who believes the Rockets will make the playoffs.
uh, because some will say "Yes" because they believe we have a chance at the exception, otherwise "No." imo, I'm too superstitious right to do anything other than count my blessings.
They don't need the exception to make a few moves to shore up Mo's loss. It sure would help though. Most people think an injury like this takes 9-12 months. That's season ending in my book, hopefully it will be in the NBA's book too...
In answer to the first question: I BELIEVE!!! I fully expect Steve, Cat, and Rice to go OFF this year on offense. There will be noone in the post or down low demanding the ball (except Rice's wife ). Hakeem's shots and Mo's shots will go to our guards and Rice, giving them plenty of chances to score. Teams can't double them, because they will have to leave someone open - and I bet even Cato will make 70% of his dunks if left open for a pass or an alley-oop. On defense, we really aren't losing that much - Kenny is an excellent rebounder, and we were going to be collapsing a bit with the zone on the post anyway. I really am going to miss Mo though - it sounds like he was planning on throwing his weight around in the low post this year.
