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.