StatsTeacher:
Z-man — do you think Lin’s shot will come around when his knee is really healed, or is he this bad a shooter?I hope it improves, of course.BTW I think people are too harsh on Brewer for that same reason.He just needs a month of b-ball before people get pissed at him, he is a great defender when healthy.

Ruru — hope you are right, but the west is a total clusterfuck, while the East is very lacking after Mia + NYK.Who are the 8 playoff teams in the West, care to go out on a limb?

My guess is that it will take a few years before he improves much, kind of like it took Kidd a while. I say this because 1) he is 24, and 2) he has never shot very well for a guard even during his 4 years at Harvard vs. inferior competition. His mechanics seem fine, so it seems like a consistency thing. Let’s face it, he and all NBA players have been practicing shooting pretty much their whole lives. For the most part,a either they can or they can’t, and additional practice won’t make a dramatic difference. However, shot selection can really help, if Lin can define a few spots where he shoots best from and work from those spots out, I can see him developing over time.

The issue for him here was that immediate results were to be demanded in our win now mode, and if he regressed and was benched or booed or resented by teammates or whatever, it could have really set him back. Houston is a great situation for him to work out the kinks for a couple of years, physically, mentally and skill wise.

Ruru — hope you are right, but the west is a total clusterfuck, while the East is very lacking after Mia + NYK. Who are the 8 playoff teams in the West, care to go out on a limb?

Z-man:
Some observations re: the Rockets:

James Harden is worth a max contract, needs to work on some things but is a machine on O

Chandler Parsons is a very, very good offensive player; he has a beautiful stroke and looks like a smart all-around player. Maybe some issues on D, but definitely a very solid starting SF.

I’m not sold on Asik yet (did I hear Clyde call him Hashish?)but he clearly got the better of Chandler last night.

Patterson-Morris PF combo is at least servicable.

Lin showed some signs, but also had some of those “what the hell is he doing?” moments. To be fair, so did Felton.

I have to say, I felt good for TD, despite how badly he played for us I always liked him.

Honestly, I think the Rockets are in pretty good shape going forward, and I can see them winning 35-40 games this year.

If Parsons is legit than they’ll make the playoffs.

He is an excellent passer
He is very athletic…not elite but up there…when healthy
He is much stronger dribbling right than left, which is not a good thing for a PG
He is not a good shooter
He is turnover prone, especially vs. good defensive team
He has durability concerns due to the way he plays (see Jon abbey)
He is a suspect defender (man to man and PnR)
He has good hands

I think people misunderstand my criticism, really, my only point has been to rebut those that have insisted that signing him was a no-brainier, or that he is clearly better (both for this team and in general) than Felton, or that Linsanity was a large enough sample to conclude that Lin is anything above a middling starter.

James Harden is worth a max contract, needs to work on some things but is a machine on O

Chandler Parsons is a very, very good offensive player; he has a beautiful stroke and looks like a smart all-around player. Maybe some issues on D, but definitely a very solid starting SF.

I’m not sold on Asik yet (did I hear Clyde call him Hashish?)but he clearly got the better of Chandler last night.

Patterson-Morris PF combo is at least servicable.

Lin showed some signs, but also had some of those “what the hell is he doing?” moments. To be fair, so did Felton.

I have to say, I felt good for TD, despite how badly he played for us I always liked him.

Honestly, I think the Rockets are in pretty good shape going forward, and I can see them winning 35-40 games this year.