CB Draft '09 Mock Press Conference: Southwest Division

[Roy Hobbs]

I think SA effected their team of the future when trading Mayo they look more stuck in middle, IMO.

What's the rule for team of the future? If you are a contender you are not eligible? Is that it? B/c I'd assume several future teams would love CP3, Kevin Martin, Al Horford, Anderson, JJ, Daye, Buddinger, etc

I think that's how it's going to be this year.  If not, Chicago rates highly, as does Orlando.

[RebusRankin]

I think No is last because outside of Kobe, they don't have a heck of a lot. As others have said, Kobe barely made the play-offs with Butler and Odom and this team doesn't have even that.

[wdleehi]

Houston:

As a win now team, only one of your main guys was on a winning team.  Is this a concern?


Are you worried that two of your starters are considered question marks on a bad Golden State team?  (Can Ellis be a PG?)

[jgod213]

seems like we have a large amount of differing views on this division.

personally i see my team winning this division because outside of dallas i see a lot of thin benches.  I could see san antonio making some noise because they probably have the second best depth in the division.

i also think the rockets do have enough of a supporting cast to lock in a 2 or 3 seed, suprised to see some rank them towards the lower end of the division.

[Rondo2287]

I think SA effected their team of the future when trading Mayo they look more stuck in middle, IMO.

What's the rule for team of the future? If you are a contender you are not eligible? Is that it? B/c I'd assume several future teams would love CP3, Kevin Martin, Al Horford, Anderson, JJ, Daye, Buddinger, etc

Ya I think we should try to spread the wealth in that contenders probably shouldnt be team of the future contenders as well

[Roy Hobbs]

Are you worried that two of your starters are considered question marks on a bad Golden State team?  (Can Ellis be a PG?)

And can Randolph be a center?  He only played very limited time there as a rookie, but when he did, the Warriors gave up 124.8 points per 48 minutes, which is atrociously bad.  Opposing centers shot 63% (eFG%) against him.

[wdleehi]

Are you worried that two of your starters are considered question marks on a bad Golden State team?  (Can Ellis be a PG?)

And can Randolph be a center?  He only played very limited time there as a rookie, but when he did, the Warriors gave up 124.8 points per 48 minutes, which is atrociously bad.  Opposing centers shot 63% (eFG%) against him.

Isn't he listed as a SF?

[Roy Hobbs]

i also think the rockets do have enough of a supporting cast to lock in a 2 or 3 seed, suprised to see some rank them towards the lower end of the division.

Again, look at their team:

Center -- Anthony Randolph isn't a center, and played extremely poorly when he was put there last season.

Grant Hill -- 37 years old.

Monta Ellis -- A SG playing PG, who is going to clash with Joe Johnson

Plus, they have six rookies, two second year players, and fourth year guy recovering from microfracture surgery.  Of their prime rotation players, only Joe Johnson made the playoffs.  Johnson and Bosh are good players.  The rest of the team is a massive question mark.

Before I rank them any higher than third, I'd like to see how some of their young, unproven guys perform.  Realistically, on paper they may be the fourth most talented team in the division. 

[Roy Hobbs]

Are you worried that two of your starters are considered question marks on a bad Golden State team?  (Can Ellis be a PG?)

And can Randolph be a center?  He only played very limited time there as a rookie, but when he did, the Warriors gave up 124.8 points per 48 minutes, which is atrociously bad.  Opposing centers shot 63% (eFG%) against him.

Isn't he listed as a SF?

In "real life", yes.  He's a SF/PF.  Wiggle has him playing center, though.

[The Walker Wiggle]

Alright, I'm up again for the time being. I'll try to field the questions at hand first.

Bosh, Johnson, and Ellis are all the number 1 scoring options on their teams.  So who's the first on your team, and who's 3rd.  And if you need a last second shot, who's the play for?

The model I have in mind is Boston's Big Three. (We even went so far as to hire that team's top assistant...) Which is to say, I trust my stars and want to facilitate ball movement. And I hope (?) that shows in Houston's draft philosophy; in scoring balance, great playmakers at the 2 and 3 and a pair of unselfish 4s with strong ball handling skills.

Johnson and Bosh command double teams, Ellis collapses defenses in the paint, so the team will stress finding the open player, the mismatch, the hot hand...

That said, I hate a cop out. So if I'm forced to show you the whiteboard, the play is more often for Joe Johnson. Over the last two seasons in Atlanta, it's his performance under pressure, that first and foremost, carried the day for the Hawks.

Bosh we look for early in the game and then often. Ellis will get a lot of his looks in transition and driving to the hoop following slow rotations.

The man can't even run a press conference, how's he supposed to run a whole team?  Last place vote from me. 

This cracked me up. (Even worse! Houston's GM is asleep at the wheel AND he thinks it's a joke!)

[JSD]

Center -- Anthony Randolph isn't a center, and played extremely poorly when he was put there last season.

He's 6' 11" 210 lbs which is a bit undersized for a C but for 18 MPG he averaged 8 and 6.

Grant Hill -- 37 years old.

A young 36 years old when you consider all the time he's missed. He had a excellent season last year and is still a starter.

Monta Ellis -- A SG playing PG, who is going to clash with Joe Johnson

It was goodbye Baron for a reason. Monta Ellis will start at the 1 in GS.

[Roy Hobbs]

Center -- Anthony Randolph isn't a center, and played extremely poorly when he was put there last season.

He's 6' 11" 210 lbs which is a bit undersized for a C but for 18 MPG he averaged 8 and 6.

What do his stats as a SF/PF have to do with his ability to defend centers like Dwight Howard, Shaq, Oden, Big Al, etc.?

Grant Hill -- 37 years old.

A young 36 years old when you consider all the time he's missed. He had a excellent season last year and is still a starter.

He'll be 37 when the season starts, and there isn't a long track record of 37 year old starting small forwards in the league.  Time will tell.

Monta Ellis -- A SG playing PG, who is going to clash with Joe Johnson

It was goodbye Baron for a reason. Monta Ellis will start at the 1 in GS.

Read reports out of Golden State.  They're not happy with Ellis.  Also, over the past two seasons, his assist average has gone down ( 4.1 -> 3.9 -> 3.7)

[Rondo2287]

In all fairness to Houston though, Joe Johnson has averaged 5.8,5.8,4.4,6.5 assists over the past 4 years. 

[wdleehi]

In all fairness to Houston though, Joe Johnson has averaged 5.8,5.8,4.4,6.5 assists over the past 4 years. 

But even in Atlanta, they didn't become a playoff team until they added a real PG (Bibby) that took that pressure of Johnson to be the PG on offense. 

[Roy Hobbs]

In all fairness to Houston though, Joe Johnson has averaged 5.8,5.8,4.4,6.5 assists over the past 4 years. 

Yeah, there's no doubt about it, Johnson is a very good player, and he can handle the ball.  That's part of the problem, though.  Ellis needs the ball in his hands to be effective, as his game is primarily going to the hoop.  He had a .377 eFG% on jumpers last season, which is extremely poor for a guard (it's almost exactly what Rondo shot, for whatever it's worth).