10-21-2007, 09:27 AM
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#2 (permalink)
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SAFB
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Chile
Age: 19
Posts: 2,630
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Re: Rotation / Playing Time
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Adelman rolled out his starting five to start the second half, only he made one switch -- he replaced Rafer Alston, who was having his first bad preseason game (1-6 shooting, 2 assists), with Mike James.
The team exploded with 38 points in the third quarter.
James had a great shooting night two days before, but it was his point guard work that was really strong in this quarter. In just 9 minutes he picked a couple of steals and had 4 assists without a turnover. On one particularly impressive play, he nearly broke his defender's ankle with a crossover (which drew a gasp from the Sonics crowd), then found a wide open Battier for a three.
Rafer Alston is drawing heavy praise for locking down the starter's job early, but Adelman has terrific options with this roster. A lineup of James, McGrady, Battier, Scola and Yao (with Bonzi Wells off the bench) does not include an offensive or defensive liability.
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Rockets GM Daryl Morey said early in the preseason that it was his job to land a high-caliber power forward. I never thought he could pull it off, certainly not without trading Battier. So far, Scola has looked like the perfect acquisition.
At one point last night, Scola (10 points, 9 boards, 3 assists in 24 minutes) threw a bounce pass through a defender's legs to Yao under the basket for a slam.
Yeah, they did it to save money, but I don't think we'll ever know what the San Antonio Spurs were really thinking in choosing Houston as Scola's destination.
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It looks like Adelman is still trying to get a look at specific rotations and, as a result, is having guys take turns sitting games out. Against the Mavericks, Kirk Snyder and Steve Novak both sat out. In Seattle, Luther Head and Bonzi Wells rode the pine for 48 minutes.
Bonzi's rotation spot is likely safe, but Snyder, Novak and Head are all fighting for time and quite possibly are on the trading block over the next week.
Head has looked better than Steve Francis so far, but unfortunately for Luther only one of the two was hand-picked by the owner.
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Rockets first round draft pick Aaron Brooks had his first real good stint in preseason action.
Brooks hit 4-7 shots, including a pair of triples, and showed off his explosion and quickness on a couple of occasions. There has been some talk that he may start off in the NBDL to keep him playing, but he looked sharp on this night.
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