How many games will it take for Alston to land in JVG's doghouse? Surprising move by the Rockets, I thought James was a solid player off the bench for them. Rafer Alston is a streaky player and with a lengthy contract. It makes you wonder how serious Sura's injury really is. The Rockets better hope the Alston from the Miami Heat a few seasons ago shows up. Alston played very well off the bench for Stan Van Gundy. If last year's Alston shows up it could be a terrible move for Houston.
...Oh dear god. This really would be barely an upgrade in my eyes. They're fairly similar players where James is a better penetrater and spark while Alston has better playmaking capabilities and handles. But really, Mike James means a lot to this team. He was a great team player and did a lot for the team in the short time that he has been here. Meanwhile, Alston has been dubbed a headcase and has one of the most volatile personalities in the NBA. Plus, his style doesn't exactly fit Van Gundy's style of playing. Alston has mediocre defense and makes some really bad decisions. I feel we have a bomb on our hands ticking away with the Van Gundy and Alston duo. I mean, I don't understand why we would trade Mike James. Couldn't we trade Wesley instead? We have enough depth at the shooting guard position so Barry can easily sub in for him if Wesley was traded. Meanwhile, by trading James away, this just means we'll be a lotting a bit less minutes whoever backs up.
OH Man.. this is GREAT, IMO. Rafer needs a new start, and here in Houston he gets it. You may say he's locked up into a big contract, but we ALL know Mike James was going to leave us for more money when he was an FA. Rafer brings excitement as well. He may not be instant offense, but is definitely a better assist man than James. I think he's one of those guys who needs the extra push in the back to get it going, some what like Swift, and Van Gundy is the guy to do it. If JVG did not want this to happen, it would not have. This is a high risk, high reward type thing, but it could screw up badly for us. But I feel optimistic today.
This is quite a gamble. Alston is a better pg than james so i guess the rockets were thinking we need a starter. His defense isnt to great though and his offense is a lot like James. He hogs the ball and takes a lot of shots. But why james, he was such a good sixth man and alston isnt any taller or younger than him.
for Rafer, it's a good new start(but why not earlier in the off season?) I don't actually see how this benefits the Rockets in a significant manner, from a Rockets perspective. Alston was talking about being veriy dedicated this season for the Raptors and I think it can be pulled off. I don't think last year's Alston will show up. The HIghlight reel has the potential to be very impressive, and I am pretty sure Skip won't think he's the go to guy, he was anxious to be playing with Carter when he got resigned with the Raptors(but you all know how he was). As for houston, the move is questionable, but I think it will turn out all right
From watching Rafer last year, my observations were: He's good at penetrating and is quick enough to beat his defender any time. He's got good court vision and his passes are accurate and creative (especially on the fast break or when he's penetrating) He is a streaky player (had a whole month where he played like one of the better point guards in the East, and had another few months where he couldn't get it going). He doesn't realize when he's playing bad (if he decides that he's going to shoot the 3ball in one game, he will continue shooting no matter how bad his % is). He's not so much a headcase, as he doesn't respond well to harsh criticism or abrasive personalities (Both Mitchell and Jalen got in his face about his play, and he took it the wrong way). He doesn't use his streetball moves on the court (if you didn't know he used to be Skip to my Lou, then it would be impossible to know that he used to play streetball). I hope the Rockets know what they're getting. He has the potential to be a starting point guard, but he has to play to his capability on a consistent basis. I also hope that JVG is informed about Rafer, because he can't yell at him or criticize him too much. Mitchell learned that the hard way last season, and was ready to be a lot more encouraging with him this year. I honestly don't think he will end up being as good as he could be. He'll probably have a honeymoon period in the beginning of the season where he'll play great, but will lose his focus towards the end of the season.
I think a lot of people got it wrong about James. He was not traded because he was such a great team player and had developed great team chemistry. As much as we love his offensive spark, he was a black hole that rarely gives the ball up, and that got to T-mac. Since week 1 of James as a Rocket, JVG was trying to mold James to play team ball and know his role when he's on the court with T-mac and Yao, but James never improved. With this new season, where James would have to take over the bulk of PG minutes and roll w/ the starters, things looked great for James but not the Rockets. Remember he is playing for a contract and he had announce on radio 610 last week that he "willingly took a smaller role last year because of JVC, but seeks to be much bigger this season" which all but translates to more beef with T-mac. Obviously that ring he got from the Piston was getting to his head. I'm not saying Rafer doesn't have his personal issues. but its one season in toronto...a system that was obviously dysfunctional w/ a coach that wants to kick all the player's ass. Skip 2 my lou also played for Stan (with Odom and Flash). so he knows how to play w/ stars and stan will give JVG a honest opinion of Rafer. Rafer was also one of the better perimeter defenders on that team, and he has develop a solid range. Yeah he's streaky, but no more than James, or Wesley, or T-mac.
OMFG REMEMBER!!!! REMEMNBER WHEN I SAID THIS TRADE. During the beginning of summer time. I said we should get this guy alston w000000t!!! U guys said It was never gonna happen. Well i am sad to see james go, but be amazed at the assist handles and 3s by alston...what a good trade
i'm realy disapointed. why couldn't we trade wesley and ward instead of james? heres the worse part, whats going to happen to sura? when suras going to come back will he start? will he barely get any minutes because of rafer? what if jvg starts sura... will rafer acept the role? will head play more than 12 games? it just doesn't make sence to me AT ALL.
Raefer seems to be talented, but my main concern is still on how he'll work out with the team chemistry.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting igotask8board:</div><div class="quote_post">OMFG REMEMBER!!!! REMEMNBER WHEN I SAID THIS TRADE. During the beginning of summer time. I said we should get this guy alston w000000t!!! U guys said It was never gonna happen. Well i am sad to see james go, but be amazed at the assist handles and 3s by alston...what a good trade</div> http://www.justbball.com/forums/showthread...6893#post476893 I gotta give credit where it is deserved, way to predict this trade igotask8board. I never saw this coming and I'm not really sure whether or not this will help or hurt the Rockets.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting KfrumHTOWN!:</div><div class="quote_post">deep down inside i know almost everyone want's to see the THR (team highlight reel) that will come from skip,swift,tmac,DA and Yao!!!</div> Good trade for Houston, glad for Skip, hope he does really well and proves everyone wrong.
It's good for us, trust me. We needed a passer, not a scorer. James in the Katrina charity event did u guys see his passes? they were ugly and short, he was never a guy to pass and always took it to the hole or shot. We don't need that. I'm sure rafer will do better, he's bigger built, looks like francis, and hopefully can dish out assists as what a pg should do. Hopefully though, he won't hog the ball or be trigger happy.
Rafer Madness <div class="quote_poster">Quoting KfrumHTOWN!:</div><div class="quote_post">Rafer is a street legend. he was with the and 1 mixtape tour until he decided that he could play with the best of the best. </div> He was around well before anything AND1. Skip to my Lou(Rafer Alston) at the age of 14 dominated guys much older than him in the Entertainer's Basketball Classic. Not only is Skip a street legend, he pretty much singlehandedly revived the streetball scene. SLAM magazine once proclaimed him the best PG in the world when he was at Fresno State. I'd like to agree that JVG, T-Mac, and Yao will put Rafer in his place, and Rafer will have his best season yet.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Swish15:</div><div class="quote_post">http://www.justbball.com/forums/showthread...6893#post476893 I gotta give credit where it is deserved, way to predict this trade igotask8board. I never saw this coming and I'm not really sure whether or not this will help or hurt the Rockets.</div> Thank you. I don't know what the big fuss is about. Rafer isn't an asshole that is unaware. People can and will change. Do you think that he wants to end up liek the way he did in Toronto. Expect the best because he has a fresh start and something to porve. And honestly, who the f- would take wesley, ward, baker, and even norris for Alston. James isn't really worth as much as Alston. He will fit in nicely, he has better handles than T-Mac. Watch those and 1 mix tapes. I liked James' scoring abilities, but Rafer is even better imo. He can shoot the 3 a lot better to. Rafer should be able to quickly and easily take the ball up court (a lot faster than james could, because he has way better handles) and dish out the assist. We need someone who has speed, can DELIVER TO YAO/T MAC, and shoot the jumper. Rafer covers all three of those categories well. This reminds me of the Jackson-Wesley trade for some reason. I wanted to keep Jackson (SF who is taller) look how well he ended up doing w/ Phoenix. Look at how terrible wesley did in the playoffs. I kinda want Jackson back more now.
I like it because Alston is a pure, true PG...he can run a team comfortably and has great skills to accomodate...while you may question his behavior and reputation (as I do), you cannot question his talent...he averaged 14 points and 6 assists per game last year and shoots 36% from 3...hes also a solid ballhandler and a great passer...Considering that I believed that MJ was gonna opt out of his contract next year, I do believe that Alston was the best the Rockets could've received in return...
You guys are overreacting. I wasn't excited at first, but when I actually thought about it, it made more sense. Mike James isn't a playmaker for others. Skip can be, when he wants to be. I don't think Dawson was looking at what he did in Toronto. More so, how he did in Miami. If you can remember, he played GREAT. Especially in the playoffs (no ejections in game 7). One of the factors had to be the fact that Skip is more suited for a starting role. We needed somebody to run the team. I think he can do a good job as a starter. I also think he'll fit well with fast break line up. The only thing is his D, from what I've seen it's very suspect. But expect it to improve drastically under JVG.
this trade is so good, remember the trade the time he played for Miami, rafer was sooo good, rockets better with alston
