<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'></p> As the offseason dragged on, and the Rockets' roster swelled with guards, Rockets general manager Daryl Morey developed a stock line to explain how it would work out.</p> He would start with the inarguable position that it is better to have too many options than too few. Beyond that, Morey said, it would be Rockets coach Rick Adelman's problem.</p> Adelman's first decision came quickly when Rafer Alston surprisingly grabbed hold of the starting point-guard position. After that, the new coach began tinkering and examining and still has not stopped.</p> The latest experiment yanked Steve Francis and Mike James from the mix and inserted Luther Head into the rotation. With the Rockets 28th in the NBA in 3-point shooting, Adelman put his top range shooter back on the floor, getting solid performances from Head in the past two games.</p> </p> <h3>More to come?</h3> The experimenting, however, might not be over.</p> "That's one thing I have to look at," Adelman said. "We know who's going to start right now. After that, I'm going to see who is going to play the best. It may not be the same guys every game. I mean, I have to find a way we can be consistent. ...</p> "I just decided I wanted to see (a different rotation). Everybody has been so up and down. I was just going to go with Luis (Scola), Bonzi (Wells) and Luther. And I really didn't have that set in my mind completely. I was going to try it and see how it went."</p> It went well enough for Adelman to stick with the latest version of his backup guard rotation for a while. But in the latest experiment, Adelman said he could mix and match.</p> "I think Luther deserves a chance to play," Adelman said.</p> Head is making 46.1 percent of his shots this season, by far the best among the Rockets' guards. Averaging 12.8 minutes, he has averaged 4.5 points per game. In the past two games, however, he has played 43 minutes, making eight of 15 shots for 24 points.</p> "It's about getting a rhythm," Head said.</p> "I'm just going in there being aggressive at all times, playing as hard as I can; knowing I'm not playing the whole game, I know I can give it my all every minute I'm in there."</p> The latest tweak, however, returned Francis to the bench. After beginning the season out of the rotation, Francis had begun getting consistent playing time. But he struggled in his two starts when Alston was out with a groin injury and did not play at all against the Pistons. He made two of seven shots for eight points, with six assists and five turnovers in the two starts without Alston, both losses. In his past five games since his best game, helping to key a win against Phoenix, he has made seven of 20 shots.</p> "One thing he learned, and maybe we learned, is that he played pretty good in New Jersey, he played minutes and he wasn't able to respond in the next two games," Adelman said. "I just don't think he's in the shape he needs to be in.</p> "If anything, I think that's a lesson he's got to understand. Right now, especially when we have all these days off, he's got to really push himself to get to the next level. I think he could have done some damage, particularly in the Philadelphia game, but physically it just didn't look like he could do it. I was disappointed in the way he played, but I can't point at him because it wasn't a very good game all around."</p> </p> <h3>Practicing patience</h3> For now, however, Head is next in the line. He said he understood when he had to wait for his chance. Now that he has gotten it, however, he said he plans to end Adelman's search for answers.</p> "I knew who I had ahead of me," Head said. "These guys have been in the league awhile. I understood. I just tried to have as much patience as possible. Given an opportunity, I'm going to try to take advantage of it."</div></p> Source: Houston Chronicle</p>
luther might be our best shooter from beyond the arc, but the guy can't run the point to save his life....I'm hoping adleman doesn't do this for too long.........................</p>
