- Patrick Patterson has definitely improved. By the third, as I write this, he had hit a three pointer, and made two fluid jump hooks. He couldn’t have dreamed of either task last year when his wrist seemed as if it was made of stone. I predicted that Pat would lose his starting spot by January. But if he keeps it up, who knows? We know for sure, the Rockets love his defense which is borderline elite in some aspects.
- Terrence Jones reminds me a little bit of Carl Landry’s rookie year the way he seems to jump out of his shoes at times. But unlike Landry, he can handle the ball a little bit too. Notice how he’ll get low when dribbling, something uncommon for big men who are uncomfortable in that position.
- I thought Jeremy Lin looked awful. Then I looked at the scoreboard and saw he had 11 assists. He airballed a few shot attempts, lending weight to the theory that what has hindered him is the recovering leg.
- Kevin Martin was tremendous from the start. Hopefully this continues and GM’s take notice. The best case would be a deal netting an expiring contract and a future first pick.
- In the games I’ve seen, Carlos Delfino also has looked very good. In my opinion, he and Martin will share the load at shooting guard to start the year, to the detriment of Jeremy Lamb, until one of the former two are (hopefully) traded.
- No Royce White got in with five minutes left in the fourth when the game was already completely out of hand. On two possessions, he snagged the rebound and raced down the floor leading the break, finding Donatas Motiejunas on the left baseline with a beautiful behind-the-back pass; Motiejunas converted on only one of the plays. Both times, the crowd roared, loving what it saw. On his other touches, White crisply delivered the ball into Motiejunas (ironically) in the post. He also had a missed layup and turnover on the break. One thing is for sure – White is definitely entertaining. But will he crack this regular rotation? That he didn’t get in until late in the fourth is probably indicative of things to come – McHale’s pregame comments would lead one to infer that he’s searching for his regular lineup. I spoke to one colleague earlier today who felt that the missed week of camp might have been enough to bury White for good. How can you disagree, especially with how Jones and Motiejunas has looked? McHale can’t punish the guys who actually did show up.
- McHale’s comments in the postgame presser were telling. At one point he said, “there’s nothing like experience,” pausing to add, “it’s hard to even describe to people.” He then went on to describe how many of the players had not even seen NBA sets and that such simulation itself–something usually taken for granted–was itself a challenge in practice. We go back to the familiar dilemma I’ve touched on since last year. McHale wants–needs–to win, for his resume. You can’t blame him, and you sense the frustration with the task ahead of him. But if winning comes at the cost of player development, it’s not a worthwhile end.
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