"The Cooler"

Basically, it's about damn time. Chuck Hayes gets minutes and everyone can see how great he is. I don't know how many posts I've written about Chuck, but I'm going to revisit a few just to save time. (beware! quotes from old posts below)

(1) "For me sitting out, it was good and bad because I had a chance to develop and watch the NBA game," he said. "I had a chance to watch the defensive schemes and everything and watch Chuck Hayes, as great of a defender as he is on our team -- I had a chance to watch him all year and look at tape this summer to work on my defense." -Joey Dorsey

(2) “It hurt so bad once we lost Game 7,” recalls Dorsey. “We went into the locker room and everybody came together and I was the only one in the locker room that cried. I told coach, ‘I want to come back next year and be a defensive stopper. I want to work on defense in the perimeter and the low-post with Chuck Hayes; he’s one of the great low-post defenders on the team. It just hurt so bad that we didn’t have that size to dominate the glass against the Lakers...

...I look at [Luis] Scola,” Dorsey says, “Because he’s one of the best low-post players I’ve ever seen; his footwork and everything. I’m waiting for him to get back from Argentina so I can start working out with him. And getting with Chuck Hayes. Chuck is one of the best low-post defenders and when (opponents) go on the pick-and-roll, Chuck is like a guard when he’s out there defending, so I just need to learn from Chuck and learn from Yao and Scola – who better to learn from than from those three?”

(3) ...#44 Chuck Hayes in '07-'08:
Defensive Rating
1. Kevin Garnett-BOS 93.8
2. Tim Duncan-SAS 96.6
3. Chuck Hayes-HOU 96.7

and Chuck in '06-'07:

Offensive Rebounds

14. Amare Stoudemire-PHO 222
15. Erick(a) Dampier-DAL 217
16. Tim Duncan-SAS 213
17. Chuck Hayes-HOU 204

Defensive Rating

1. Tim Duncan-SAS 94.5
2. Ben Wallace-CHI 94.8
3. Marcus Camby-DEN 97.2
4. Yao Ming-HOU 97.7
5. Manu Ginobili-SAS 97.9
6. Chuck Hayes-HOU 98.0

(4) from chron.com & clutchfans:

By the time Chuck Hayes was given one of the NBA’s toughest assignments, matched up with Boston’s Kevin Garnett on Wednesday, the job had become even tougher. Garnett was already on a roll before Hayes got in the game. Hayes, however, slowed Garnett long enough for the Rockets to turn things around in a performance they later called a key to the win.
“He came in in the second quarter, and he just battled Garnett when he really had it going,” Rockets coach Rick Adelman said. “I can’t give Chuck enough credit. He hasn’t been playing, and he took on the challenge. He kind of set the tone in that first half for us.”
Though Hayes has often been used as a defensive specialist against the top-scoring power forwards, Garnett is a particularly tough matchup because the shots Hayes usually forces opposing big men to take — jumpers often a step or two deeper than usual — are the shots Garnett covets.
“He does such a good job of not bringing (the ball) low so I can’t swipe it down,” Hayes said. “He has a high release and a fade to his shot. My best position is if he is going to fade and shoot that shot, try to get him as far away from the basket as I can and try to do what Shane ( Battier) does so well and get a good contest of his shot.
“I did my best. He started off the game tremendously hot. He had them on fire. He was in rhythm. When I got in there and got on him in the second quarter, they tried to get him going again. I did everything in my power to try not to let that happen again.”

(5) "You can’t say enough about the second group. Aaron gave us a huge lift and Brent (Barry) and Chuck Hayes was terrific defensively in the second half. Just showed we can be pretty good if we just stay with it. We’ve got a lot of guys that can help.”

"Ron was terrific the whole game," said Adelman. "Took some big shots, defended well. It was a great team win... And all along I was hoping to play Chuck. I didn’t even worry about Chuck getting three fouls in the first half. I had to put him in. He’s got to do the best job, he’s got to stay solid. He does so many things for us when he’s on the court.”

(6) "Everyone wants Kevin Garnett—he's got the perfect height, body, mentality—but most times, you're going to have to do with less," Morey says. "Behind Yao and Tracy, we've been willing to give up an inch of height, let's say, for more skill, a person who plays harder and creates for others, who defends and rebounds well." Morey's "basketball players" don't pop off a stat sheet, but they give coach Rick Adelman interchangeable and versatile parts that are capable of creating offensive and defensive advantages. "Chuck can guard anyone from 1 to 5; Shane can play 2, 3 or 4; Luis Scola can play 3, 4 or 5; and Brent Barry can go 1, 2 or 3," Morey says. "We're limited only by our strategic insight."

Discussion with the "experts" at The Dream Shake:

grungedave said...

Name me one "skill" Chuck possesses that would be NBA-quality? He can't dribble. He can't shoot. He can't pass. He can't jump. He's not tall. He's not quick. ... basically he's smart and he hustles, but that's not exactly a basketball skill.

... of course, that's why I love the guy (but I like winning more, so I won't shed a tear when Chuck is traded soon, like Novak).

August 6, 2008 5:34 PM

chris said...

You -will- cry when Scola is our big trying to protect the low post.

I guess Dorsey is supposed to fill that role, but he's only a rookie.

Even if he has comparable defense, it will be hard to see him getting key minutes.

Smarts probably would be the basis for most skills, and I didn't really want to discredit that.

Still, I think Chuck does have a high skill level. People, maybe even me, would have to describe them as 'intangible' skills, just because I'm not knowledgeable enough to pinpoint the defensive body positioning that he uses.

He shuts down (or at least can handle guarding) opponents ranging from Ron Artest to Lebron to Boozer.

He strips balls better than any non-All-star PF in the league.

He knows where to be all the time (smarts, yes) but he's not just a coach with all the answers.

You have to actually combine your intelligence with athleticism (not limited to how high you jump) to play in the league.

I just hate when people sell Chuck short. He does so much to help the team.

I guess we're talking semantics here when you say 'skill,' but I don't limit skills to dribbling and shooting.

He is quick and he can pass. And as I said before, jumping is not the only important athletic part of basketball.

August 6, 2008 6:17 PM

UofTOrange said...

Chuck doesn't any NBA level skills, he has a TON of almost NBA defensive skills and those together add up to him being a viable NBA backup PF. I really like the guy, but intangibles aren't skills, they are intangibles. Either way, I love Chuck, I also don't think he has a place on the Rockets anymore.

Chuck highlight from Lakers series:



Travel then an airball

Morey's Foreward

"Jeff Van Gundy, our former coach, is my favorite broadcaster on TV and consistently gets kudos for the fantastic job he does. One key to his success is that every time you tune in and listen to him you learn something you did not know before. This book is like that... Basically, if you consider yourself a basketball fan and you are not reading this book, then you aught to turn in your serious fan credentials." -Morey

PDF of Morey's Foreward for Basketball Prospectus

PDF of Rockets essay from BP

Hayes and Alston "get it"

"Rafer is a guy who just gets it," Frank told the Newark Star-Ledger.

The Baseline

"Chuck Hayes gets it."

Jonathon Feigen - Houston Chronicle

Some Sherman Alexie

Not sure about the legality of posting this much word-for-word, but he can write me a letter if he wants.

Excerpt from Sherman Alexie's Whatever Happened to Frank Snake Church in his collection of short stories Ten Little Indians:

Seven days a week, Frank drove the city and searched for games. He traveled from the manicured intramural courts at the University of Washington to the broken-asphalt courts of the Central District; from the violent and verbose games in Green Lake Park to the genial and clumsy games at the YMCA; from the gladiator battles under the I-5 freeway to the hyperorganized leagues at Sound Mind & Body Gym. He played against black men who believed it was their tribal right to dominate the court. He played against black, brown, and white men who didn't care about any color other than the green-money bets placed on every point and game. He played against Basketball Democrats who came to the court alone and ran with anybody, and Basketball Republicans who traveled in groups of five and ran only with one another. He played against women who endured endless variations of the same dumb joke: Hey, girl, you can play, but it's shirts and skins, and you're running skins. He played against former football players who still wanted to play football, and former wrestlers who wanted only to wrestle. He played against undisciplined young men who couldn't run a basic pick-and-roll, and against elderly men who never missed their two-handed set shots. He played against sociopathic ball hogs, wild gun runners, rebound hounds, and assist-happy magicians. He played games to seven, nine, eleven, and twenty-one points. He played one-on-one, two-on-two, three-on-three, four-on-four, five-on-five, and mob rules, improvisational, every-baller-for-himself, anarchist, free-for-all, death-cage matches. He played against cheaters who constantly changed the score, and honest freaks who called fouls on themselves. He played against Basketball Presbyterians who refused to fast-break, and Basketball Pagans who refused to slow down. He played against the vain Allen-Iverson-wanna-be punks who dribbled between their legs, around their backs and missed 99 percent of the ridiculous, driving, triple-pump, reverse scoop shots they hoisted up but talked endless and pornographic trash whenever they happened to make even one shot. He played against the vain Larry-Bird-wanna-be court lawyers who argued every foul call and planted themselves at three-point lines and constantly called for the ball because they were open, damn it, more open than any outsider shooter in the history of the damn game, so pass the freaking rock!

Frank played so well that he earned ( and re-earned) a playground reputation and was known by a variety of nicknames: Shooter, Old Man, Chief, and Three. Frank's favorite nickname was Oh Shit, given to him in July by a teenage Chicano kid in MLK, Jr. Park.

"Every time the old Indio shoots and makes one of those crazy thirty-footers," the Chican kid had said, "his man be yelling, 'Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit!"

Randolph to Grizz Explained

Enlightening explanation as to why the Grizz have been in almost every deal possible this past season/off-season.

There Is No Window

in reply to this from Rockets Buzz

No, we are not lottery bound. And no, we are not title contenders. We will lose more games this year than last year, and we will struggle to maintain relevancy throughout the season. Anyone whose fanaticism depends on foretelling the demise of powerhouses like L.A. and S.A. as our Rockets assume their place at the head of the league, should get out while they still can. This season is for the true fans: the ones who watched Rafer and Luther and Juwan and Mutombo when Yao and T-Mac couldn't play.

But all is not lost. There is still hope. What is the one thing the Rockets have never had in the Yao era - youth. The reasoning was somewhat sound - Yao needs veterans who can run half-court sets and get him the ball - but this philosophy merely led us to where we stand today. Now, we move forward. We are not in a rebuilding mode. Shit, we've been quietly rebuilding since Aaron and Carl showed so much promise in their rookie seasons, ever since T-Mac tried to put the team on his brittle back and failed.

We've thrown countless fringe veterans onto the floor around Yao and T-Mac, just hoping they would be enough to hold it all together: Kirk Snyder, Juwan Howard, Keith Bogans, David Wesley, Jon Barry, Ron Artest (I loved Artest and maybe I still will. In losing him we may have lost our on-court incendiary, but at this point our burgeoning team needs fewer and fewer combustible elements in this, its most formative season.) What we've been reluctant to do or incapable of doing is betting on development. We've never had time to waste waiting on the young guys to figure it out. We were always worried about Yao and Tmac and their "window of opportunity." You could say the window has shut, but I choose to say that there is no window. Not in the defeatist sense - like Yao or T-Mac couldn't win. Rather in the "think outside the box - there is no box" mentality.

"Where's the Cat? Where's the cradle?" -Kurt Vonnegut

The Celtics may have pulled off a complete roster revamping in one fell swoop, but we're in no position to hope for miracles. Our hopes should rest in development and unity.

Fresh From DM's Twitter

Congratulations to Jermaine on joining the Rockets for many years. JT is doing well at Grgurich camp this week along with Joey and Chuck.

vonvon

thanks to some dude on clutchfans for linking to this article on myfoxhouston

While Wafer will meet with the Clippers Tuesday, he is still hopeful he might be able to return to the Rockets.

"This is where I want to be," Wafer said. "They gave me my first opportunity. I want to be here."

Professor McGrady

My Fox Houston McGrady Interview

"It's really no comparison to how I feel now and I how felt trying to play all of last season," McGrady said. "My knee is feeling extremely strong. The most important thing is I'm confident in it. You guys just stay tuned. I'm out here grinding in Chicago, trying to get back right, but yes I will be playing for the Rockets in the '09-10 season.

"I feel that if I go out there right now I could get somebody 30 (points)."

Rod Benson's Summer League Summary

Too Much Rod Benson - Ball Don't Lie

"I got a simple game called "The Moron Test." It really has nothing to do with intelligence and everything to do with patience and diligence. It took me five tries to beat it, so now I get more enjoyment from trying to beat my best time and from watching other people play.

While on the way from Houston to Vegas, I decided to bet some guys on the team if they could beat it in five tries or less. Chase Budinger(notes) beat it in six, the rest of the guys gave up after five. The best part was watching Joey Dorsey(notes) miss the first question. The first question simply says, "Press the red button to begin." Joey pressed the green one."

DM Interview

SportsRadioInterviews.com

On Andersen:

"We feel like he’s at a good age actually.  People are focusing I think on how old he is, but he’s 29, we’re gonna sign him to probably a 3-year deal with some options for the Rockets at the end of it.  We feel like he’s just a good player, he’s a good player at a good price"

and more on Budinger and Dorsey

The Foot Race For Big Men

Okay, so probably a bad title for this blog but more so just an excuse for me to show this.



Man Kaman is still going after despite a pretty big deficit.

I would take either of those guys at this point as long as we would not have to give up much. Brad Miller is probably slower now than that video NOW, considering the uniform he was wearing. So yeah, scratch Brad Miller off my list.
I would love for us to somehow get rid of Brian Cook's contract and pick up Haddadi. Any suggestions on that?

Von

Wafer listed as 4th best unrestricted free agent on the market by the dudes at Ball Don't Lie.

"He averaged almost 10 points per game last year. He's not a minimum player. But when you walk out on your coach on national TV, in this economy? Deal with what you can get, Von Wafer."

Also on the list is Nesterovic - deemed fit for Houston.

"He's a damn good defender, something some NBA analysts would fail to realize when they decide to only look up blocks per game on their Blackberries, rather than watch the actual games. He can score with the floater, and would be a very good backup at a pretty cheap price.

The solution? To Houston. The Rockets can talk all they want about running and weaving in Yao Ming's(notes)absence, but they'll also need someone to defend the pivot, and not act like a Collins twin once the ball meets the center's hands on offense."

Quotes

Wisdom from Joey and idiocy from Clyde- the baby-seal-clubber-Drexler: FanHouse


"For me sitting out, it was good and bad because I had a chance to develop and watch the NBA game," he said. "I had a chance to watch the defensive schemes and everything and watch Chuck Hayes, as great of a defender as he is on our team -- I had a chance to watch him all year and look at tape this summer to work on my defense." -Joey Dorsey


"I'm going to coach in the NBA. I don't know where, but I am. And I'll be a good one," Drexler told FanHouse over the weekend. "When I turn 50, that's what I'll be doing. The timing will be perfect." -Clyde Drexler

"The Race NOT Always WON by the Fastest!!"  -Hasheem Thabeet from The Baseline

Expectations pt2

Really cool video. The editor chose some really good games.

Expectations

22 games in a row? Lakers to game 7? no injuries(besides Yao)?

Why is anyone ruling these things out? Our front court is going to be dangerous.

Brooks - The word in the paper is that Artest was giving him some of his "Hood'ism" during the time that AB took over. SO could we expect more from this gem? My expectations for Brooks this year is for him to dramatically bring up his scoring and start to show more signs of a true pg. I want to see the drive and dish out to ariza. Can not wait to see what that looks like.

Battier - We all know what this dude does, and he is going to be our leader for these youngsters. He is going to gaurd that two or that three and going to do the best job he can do.

Ariza over Artest? - okay, so let us compare the pro's and cons.
PRO
Artest is a GREAT defender, a great spot up shooter and very versatile as he can guard play point gaurds and pf's.
CON
Artest also tends to overplay, psychs himself out of a shot, he's been know as a "ballstopper" and i believe it from this 1 year. He argues with team mates supposively and I am sorry but his shooting in the playoffs was inconsistent. His numbers might be decent, but he made the crazy shots, not the spot up easy ones. He made like three point fading banks off the glass.
PRO
Ariza is a REALY GOOD defender and to some gold and purple bandwagoners he is "great." He is an improving shooter and probably the most athletic Rocket now.
CON
I am very optimistic on Ariza's "cons." The word is that he has been known to have bad handles on a break. As long as he knows this, works on it I think it will be fine. Hopefully that means more passing, more ball movement.

When I think basketball, I think about teamwork and chemistry. Cheese aside, I believe that Aaron and Ariza making it happen. I can hear Clyde, Bill.. and i guess Matt making up names for the new fast break duo.

Up Tempo

Full Article from Chron.com

“All our acquisitions, if you trace them, especially in the last two years, have been anticipating being a more up-tempo team,” general manager Daryl Morey said. “We anticipated our second team to do that. It just happens now that it is probably going to be our first team next year. We wanted players who could play in transition, and also work in the half court with Yao. Our acquisitions have been pretty consistent — more athleticism, play in transition, defensive-minded, attack the hoop.”

I Want To See This Tape

YAO

MIX

Wild Wild West

I had high hopes around this time last year.
Dreams of this:
PG Alston
SG Battier
SF McGrady
PF Scola
C Yao

When it came to Texas teams, Rockets beat out SA and Dallas. We were far more of a contender for a championship. Then like these other teams, we were plagued with injuries that set us back.

All of the signings and trades that have gone on recently, are really going to benefit these Texas teams.



The Mavericks have traded for Shawn Marion, re-signed Jason Kidd, and found a reliable center in Gortat. I see all of these players working out. I see Shawn Marion getting talked about more next season. Jason Kidd will be able to utilize him correctly. Also, Q- ross was signed.

San "Antonio" McDyess

As much as I hate the Spurs, they have made some pretty reliable moves. Richard Jefferson has always been a player that has looked good when I see him play, but always flew well under my radar. After they traded for him I was curious who they were going to have protect the paint. But according to sources, Kurt Thomas and Bruce Bowen have said they will come back. And with the aquisition of McDyess, gotta be a lil' scared as a Rocket's fan.


With the lack of big man and the rumors going around about Amare in Houston. I am very very optomistic to see where Morey takes us.

Ariza

"It had a lot to do with it," Ariza said. "I was approached by some really, really good teams. I felt like I could help myself a lot more and I could help myself also. But [that series] was definitely a good way to woo me.

"This is a great young team that has a lot of potential. It's very, very scrappy. They never give up and I believe that's the type of player I am. No matter what the situation is, up by 100 or down by 100, these guys still fight and continue. I'm happy to be part of that."

from Fran Blinebury? writing for NBA.com?

Stackhouse

Through all the sign-and-trade stuff in the Marion deal, Jerry Stackhouse's contract will be bought out by the Grizzlies, and he will become a free agent.

Seems like a safe pickup if he comes on the cheap. Even with Ariza, we need someone else to create their own shots from the wing. I guess if/when Tracy comes back, it won't seem necessary.

Jogging

Need an incentive to hit Memorial Park's running track? What about keeping pace with a 6'11 beast named Joey.

"Went out to Memorial and did the three miles this weekend." -Joey Dorsey

Video/Article from Jason Friedman @ nba.com/rockets

also when asked who impressed him he noted Chase Budinger's athleticism.

Relevant:

"...Next Phase of the Offseason"
Sean Deveney @ The Baseline

Chronicle article - “It’s early,” Hinkle said. “No player has changed hands yet. No one has even signed a contract yet. Remember two years ago at this time? The only power forward on our roster was Steve Novak.”

Let's think minutes for a second.

PG: Aaron and Kyle will split all 48

SG: Ariza will start, that much we know. James White seems to be next in line, but who knows what our draftees will play like in training camp or what Brent Barry is going to do for the team next year. I'm imagining that Ariza holds 20-25 minutes at the 2, with other minutes spent at the 3. That leaves 10-20 minutes to split between James White and our rooks.

SF: Battier will hold this spot down, possibly switching defensive roles with Ariza depending on matchups. He and Ariza should play 40+ minutes at the 3 spot. The other options are about the same as those at the backup 2 spot. Budinger is 6'7 and seems like he'd slide to the 3 if he can't keep up with the NBA's 2 guards' pace. Our bigs are stretched too thin to slide Carl over to the 3, even though he could pull it off against bigger opponents.

PF/C: Who knows. This is our deepest and weakest position. We have a lot of talent, but none of them can protect the rim. Chuck can dig people out of the post and slide in front of slashers, but, beyond that, we have no shot blocking. Carl can get up, but he hasn't got the timing or positioning polished yet. Scola is crafty and can get steals, but he can't really stop the post up -or- block shots. The scoring load will fall heavily on Luis and Landry, but what we really need is an inside presence: rebounding, changing if not blocking shots and taking up space.

Ariza and the Future

Assuming the reports are accurate, Ariza will be our starting... 2-guard? and... "Adelman promised [Ariza] the Rockets would feature him offensively." (ESPN.com) I'm not too sure what the word 'feature' portends, considering that Ariza's effectiveness has, thus far, been limited to open 3s, pump fakes and the ensuing slam or step-in jumper created by the pump fake. I can see some serious quickness with Brooks and Ariza in the backcourt, and I think that's what Adelman's getting at. Adelman's system never found itself running through a singularity, apart from Yao. And with Yao on the bench and Artest in L.A., the ball should begin flying around the perimeter this season.

King Courts Ariza

"Even so, according to sources, a flattered Ariza strongly considered reneging on his agreement with the Rockets and heading for Cleveland, which made him the same offer as Houston last week. In the end, however, he decided to keep his word to the Rockets.

"He's a very loyal person," the source said. "[Rockets coach] Rick Adelman had lunch with him for three straight days last week and that meant a lot to him."

"He wanted to be sure he'd start," the source said. "That was a big hang-up."

ESPN.com's Chris Broussard on Lebron & Ariza

Building a Narrative

Even though I'm coming to consider this year a wash, I want to address the assigned lens through which our team is perceived throughout the regular season - the regular season being the source from which I take the most pleasure. Leading up to the season, and all throughout it, the bulk of the national fan base for the league is bombarded with narratives that ESPN or whoever promotes and forces you to invest yourself in. You either side with the protagonist or antagonist of your choice... your choices being limited to the teams with their own narratives pre-established.

Take two years ago: the words "historic, dynasty, lakers and celtics" were so ubiquitous that your mind was forced to consider the two options, the Lakers or the Celtics winning, as viable, whether or not you have your own team to root for. I eventually sided with the Celtics, only to become disgusted with their pairing of this glen davis, 'ubuntu' crap with "the big three."

This last year's forced narrative was even more blatant and abrasive: Kobe vs. Lebron. The media's, and some people would say the league's, agenda came to a nauseating culmination embodied in unfunny and obnoxious puppetry.

So for this year, I can only hope for less constraining story lines that might leave room for, dare we dream, actual analysis. If the Shaq & Lebron merger or the Kobe & Ron stunt are premonitions, we're in for much of the same.

Our narrative's hopes are pinned to the fate of Yao's feet. While Aaron Brooks was building up enough hype in the playoffs to hope for some pro-Rockets spin this next season, the media seems to be content to prognosticate our inevitable deconstruction. The nation loves to doubt Yao: "He may have a better all around game than Dwight, but he can't stay on the floor!" As soon as bad winds began brewing in Houston, our team's future was promptly taken out back and shot. Who knows what narrative will be promoted for the '09-'10 season, but lets hope our team can construct its own - one based on youth and hustle and hope.

Some Stuff

T-Mac article from Bethlehem Shoals @ SportingNews.com

"World, Meet Chuck Hayes" @SportingNews.com - article from the playoffs

No prospect in this year’s draft knows this better than point guard Brandon Jennings. Last year, Mr. Jennings was one of America’s best high-school point guards and the quintessential product of AAU. Rather than doing a one-year minimum stint in college before entering the NBA draft, he played a season in Italy where, he says, things were different.

His time in Europe began with a rare stretch for an AAU product: He went weeks without touching a basketball. His team spent the preseason running across Roman parks and soccer fields.

In September, they retreated to an Italian mountain hideaway for two weeks and ran there, too. They practiced fundamentals and rarely scrimmaged. Coming from the AAU, this was new for Mr. Jennings, who averaged 5.5 points per game in limited minutes during the in Italy.

It was, he says, the most intense two weeks of his basketball life. If he’d never gone to Europe, he says, “I wouldn’t know the pick-and-roll game. I wouldn’t know how to guard, wouldn’t know how to fight through screens. I’m stronger now.”

Jo' Do'

Joey Dorsey via Jason Friedman @ rockets.com

“It hurt so bad once we lost Game 7,” recalls Dorsey. “We went into the locker room and everybody came together and I was the only one in the locker room that cried. I told coach, ‘I want to come back next year and be a defensive stopper. I want to work on defense in the perimeter and the low-post with Chuck Hayes; he’s one of the great low-post defenders on the team. It just hurt so bad that we didn’t have that size to dominate the glass against the Lakers...

...I look at [Luis] Scola,” Dorsey says, “Because he’s one of the best low-post players I’ve ever seen; his footwork and everything. I’m waiting for him to get back from Argentina so I can start working out with him. And getting with Chuck Hayes. Chuck is one of the best low-post defenders and when (opponents) go on the pick-and-roll, Chuck is like a guard when he’s out there defending, so I just need to learn from Chuck and learn from Yao and Scola – who better to learn from than from those three?”

Some of the Stuff I've Been Missing on Daryl Morey's "Twitter"

link to dm's page
"Pain in Yao's foot appears to start at 4:33 in the 4th. I am optimistic as it does not look too bad on video.

It appears foot was hurt earlier in game and aggravated around 4Q 4:33. From video, sprain seems likely and anything serious seems unlikely.

Can't sleep-adrenaline too high.Great play&coaching won gm.Leaving TC now after sending usual "feedback" to the lgue.Drft workts Fri.BeatLA!

Spoke to Ron upon landing in HOU from CHI pre-draft camp. He thinks no one else will take the LAL to 7 gms and we were the #2 team this year"


and from ericmusselman's:

"Stan and JVG are the two coaches I've allowed to say a lot of things to me. I understand the amount of work they put in." - Rafer Alston

ron?

"Bio ARTEST IS SO HOOD, VERY GHETTO AND LOVES IT. HOWEVER THERE IS SOME INTEELINCE WITH THAT , AND WITH THAT COMES PEOPLE WHO WANT TO SEE HIM FALL"

aaronbrooks = thirty2zero = thirty2zero.com

"We won over the city of Houston and made all of our Rocket fans world wide proud." -Shane Battier

Sam Hinkie Podcast via rockets.com:
(pretty long, good stuff is kind of later on)
more depth at the wing and at the big position in the offseason. Yao is in China, coming back - not participating in international competition for the first time in 12 years

Battier's Blog Post: "I missed the first 20 games of the season to completely heal my ankle. When I came back, our team just could not find a good rhythm. Between me, Tracy, and Ron, we could not find a consistent, healthy lineup. It was frustrating to watch and it was frustrating to play. We knew we had an unbelievably talented team, but we just could not put together a winning streak...

...Portland was a worthy adversary in the first round. Again, no one gave us a chance to win the series against them. (but did we listen to those people? NO WAY!) After winning the first game of the series in Portland, we knew we were in control. We were able to finish them off by winning all of our home games. In the process, we won over the city of Houston and made all of our Rocket fans world wide proud."

Zero Draft Picks

And so, with the Offseason upon us, we will begin to fill our days with useless yet invaluable chatter until Preseason, The Season and The Playoffs come back:

from ericmusselman's twitter
SVG on Rafer: "His mindset is key. What's made his career is he's a good defender as a point guard, he has good energy and pushes the pace."

I Get Chills

Since I have recently been banned from a blog, by a bunch of so-called rocket fans, that can't take any criticism but can DEFINITELY dish it...

...I have decided to make a quick post.


No one wants to talk about the series against Utah where Rafer was out game 1 and game 2. Shit, we might have won that. No love for Rafer.
Don't get me wrong, Brooks is very deserving and Lowry possesses game that Rafer doesn't. I love our team. Just really miss the dribbling, crazy defense and pushing the ball.



everyone create a sportsnation account and leave a comment on the dream shake... they will delete your comment and ban you, because they are over sensitive and can't TAKE IT.

rocket fans that can't take it....

dont like it

Yao vs. Dwight Howard "dominance" debate?

Exhibit A:



Chuck highlight from Lakers series:



Travel then an airball

Wouldn't this be nice?

(1) Lakers vs. (8) Jazz
(2) Denver vs. (7) Dallas
(3) San Antonio vs. (6) New Orleans
(4) Houston vs. (5) Portland

or

(1) Lakers vs. (8) Jazz
(2) San Antonio vs. (7) Dallas
(3) Denver vs. (6) New Orleans
(4) Houston vs. (5) Portland

Carlos Boozer's life as a flow chart

LINK

Ron and Kobe

this one is a must see. i watched it a couple times and it got better each time.

http://www.thedreamshake.com/2009/3/13/796666/kobe-and-artest-the-lost-t

thebasketballjones.net

Two Ron Links

Mark Madsen blogs about Ron

Jazz Blog about Ron and some (mostly incorrect) stuff about the Jazz Rockets game:

"When he was on the court, Yao caused the Jazz fits whether they double-teamed him or stayed home. Kyle Lowry hit a three-pointer and earned a trip to the foul line off a drive as Yao found him open when the Jazz went to double-team.

When they stayed home, Yao followed up his own miss for a three-point play. For only playing 30 minutes, Yao had an incredible line of 19 points, seven rebounds, six assists and five blocks."

Up to this point

Are we a collapsing giant like Dallas or Phoenix? Is Ron a Trojan horse-type powder keg such as we've seen J-Kidd and Shaq become? Has Tracy played his last days as a Rocket, and if so, is it safe to say that our team is falling apart?

The team has pruned some dying limbs, in my opinion, and the healthy portion of the group has more room to grow.

Tracy's leaving us has left us the opportunity to put up some JVGish, Thibbodeauxian defensive strangleholds - Artest and Battier and Yao starting every game together should make every game tough for the opposition's offense. I know Shane and Ron haven't played their best basketball of the season, but shouldn't that be a sign of hope? They've both been a step slow, but are on the way back.

Rafer leaving hurts a lot, but I can take solace in knowing that Rafer will get out of the first round before T-Mac; and because he's playing for a Van Gundy.

We've played Memphis like 7 times this year, so who could be unsure about what Lowry can do for us. We regular season watchers have probably seen more of Kyle Lowry than any other NBA fans, beside Memphis, and even then the numbers might be close.

It looks like we're embracing a Lowry - Wafer - Landry youth bench movement, having now promoted Brooks to the starting lineup.

All in all, I'm optimistic. I guess that's a choice I've made: to give a shit about where we can go from here. I think we can get back to playing defense for 48minutes, all five people on the floor held accountable. I think we can get the ball moving like Adleman always wanted, and we finally have guards that can penetrate like everyone always wanted. I think turnovers will kill us, and that'll keep us out of any big games in the playoffs, but I'm not putting it past this group to win a whole lot and beat some really good teams.

Whatever will they do?

Sprains and tears and dislocations, Oh my!

Whoever heard of making it through a season with one of your starters injured!?

Man I -really- feel sorry for all of these teams. I mean really sorry.

Wow,  I couldn't imagine what -that- would be like.

(mild sarcasm)

Going to go get me some weights

(also from Des Moines?)
Eric Musselman relays some helpful tips on his blog in this post: "Lift weights if you want to be competitive on the basketball court"

Statistical thing

(from TrueHoop)
Type HOU into your search/find field on this site and check out the Rockets that have led the league in different areas. Lots of Yao "the MVP" Ming on the '08-'09 leader board. Some highlights from years gone by include...

...#44 Chuck Hayes in '07-'08:

Defensive Rating

1. Kevin Garnett-BOS 93.8
2. Tim Duncan-SAS 96.6
3. Chuck Hayes-HOU 96.7

and Chuck in '06-'07:

Offensive Rebounds

14. Amare Stoudemire-PHO 222
15. Erick(a) Dampier-DAL 217
16. Tim Duncan-SAS 213
17. Chuck Hayes-HOU 204

Defensive Rating

1. Tim Duncan-SAS 94.5
2. Ben Wallace-CHI 94.8
3. Marcus Camby-DEN 97.2
4. Yao Ming-HOU 97.7
5. Manu Ginobili-SAS 97.9
6. Chuck Hayes-HOU 98.0

and "the old" T-Mac ('06-'07):

Free Throw Attempts

16. Dwyane Wade-MIA 535
17. Kevin Garnett-MIN 498
18. Tracy McGrady-HOU 488

Defensive Rating

15. LeBron James-CLE 100.3
16. Shawn Marion-PHO 100.4
17. Tracy McGrady-HOU 100.5

Defensive Win Shares

8. Kevin Garnett-MIN 4.9
9. Rafer Alston-HOU 4.8
10. Kirk Hinrich-CHI 4.7
11. Shane Battier-HOU 4.5
12. Tracy McGrady-HOU 4.4

Depressing or encouraging?

p.s. (from NBA.com)

"Francis, a 6-foot-3, 210-pound guard, did not appear in a game for Memphis or travel with the Grizzlies, though he did occasionally practice with the team.

Grizzlies general manager Chris Wallace announced last week that the team was working on a buyout of Francis' contract. The Grizzlies announced Tuesday that Francis was leaving."

Mike Harris & Bonzi Wells

Here is a link to the Asia-Basket website. If you look at the league leaders on the right, you'll see Bonzi and Mike averaging something like 30+ points. (Harris: 32 pts. 15 reb.)

nba.com recap mia vs. hou

Alston didn't realize Yao didn't miss and criticized himself for not getting him even more looks.

"That's a bad job by myself. I took too many shots,'' said Alston, who went 9-for-17 from the field. "But that's tremendous. I wish I could have a day like that.''

Thanks to...

Wafer for having a name that impossibly rhymes with Rafer and for the game winning three @ Boston.

Aaron Brooks for improving his game and playing with passion.

Tracy McGrady for taking some of the pressure off of Yao during this crazy first half (or so) of the season.

Yao Ming for being in-shape and injury free.

Carl Landry for sticking around and maximizing his role at back-up PF/C.

Ron Ron for playing hard against 'bron 'bron and everything else he's tried to bring to the team - especially grabbing teammates by the shoulders on the bench when they're pissed off.

Rafer for being Rafer. (p.s. please do not take any more buzzer beater/last play attempts even if you have a mismatch. please find your teammates)

Luis for not shooting the referees.

Brent Barry for improving his shooting from the beginning of the season.

Luther for hitting some threes and playing good D on Chris Paul in a win over NO.

Dikembe for re-signing as a cheerleader/shot blocker.

Daryl for sticking to the plan.

Rick for maintaining his sanity.

Sikma for making his wild and angry faces from the bench.

Elston for always talking to Rick during timeouts with his eyebrows raised and his hand over his mouth and his arms crossed.

Hope I didn't forget anyone.

Chuck on Garnett

from chron.com & clutchfans:

By the time Chuck Hayes was given one of the NBA’s toughest assignments, matched up with Boston’s Kevin Garnett on Wednesday, the job had become even tougher. Garnett was already on a roll before Hayes got in the game. Hayes, however, slowed Garnett long enough for the Rockets to turn things around in a performance they later called a key to the win.

“He came in in the second quarter, and he just battled Garnett when he really had it going,” Rockets coach Rick Adelman said. “I can’t give Chuck enough credit. He hasn’t been playing, and he took on the challenge. He kind of set the tone in that first half for us.”

Though Hayes has often been used as a defensive specialist against the top-scoring power forwards, Garnett is a particularly tough matchup because the shots Hayes usually forces opposing big men to take — jumpers often a step or two deeper than usual — are the shots Garnett covets.

“He does such a good job of not bringing (the ball) low so I can’t swipe it down,” Hayes said. “He has a high release and a fade to his shot. My best position is if he is going to fade and shoot that shot, try to get him as far away from the basket as I can and try to do what Shane ( Battier) does so well and get a good contest of his shot.

“I did my best. He started off the game tremendously hot. He had them on fire. He was in rhythm. When I got in there and got on him in the second quarter, they tried to get him going again. I did everything in my power to try not to let that happen again.”

Ron Artest - Celtics Post Game

It was left to noted hoop mind Ron Artest, who got in a couple of good whacks on Pierce before fouling out, to deliver yet another blow to the Green.

“Yao Ming is the best center in the league surrounded by some good players,” he said. “But sometimes we forget that hard work is more important than talent. Last year Boston had hard work and talent. That’s why they ran through everybody.”