# Final Rockets' Report Card



## FirstRocket (Mar 10, 2005)

*REPORT CARD*
*by Joe Booker,*

*Vin Baker*: Best years are behind him. He was injured most of the time and was not used when he was healthy. He cannot be brought back.
*GRADE: D*

*Jon Barry:* Has had some good games, but his age and lack of quickness have been a liability. He should not be brought back.
*GRADE: C-*

*Ryan Bowen*: Has not done the job expected of a role player. He is a stand up shooter and cannot create. He should not be invited back. Why was he signed?
*GRADE: F*

*Juan Howard*: Played a key role before injuries. When healthy he is a compliment to Tracy McGrady. He is getting older and you don’t know how he will respond to his injury. If he is healthy he will take pressure of McGrady.
*GRADE: B+*

*Mike James*: This was a good addition. He plays better as a starter and did a great job when he replaced an injured Bob Sura. He is quicker and a better shooter than Sura.
*GRADE: B*

*Tracy McGrady*: He is the Rockets. His performances explain everything. Without McGrady the Rockets would have been a lottery pick.
*GRADE: A+*

*Dikembe Mutombo*: Did an outstanding job filling in for Yao Ming. He is almost 40-years old and his best years are behind him. Team seems to play better when he is in the game. He should be brought back.
*GRADE: C*

*Moochie Norris*: He played a little more than the trainers. Can’t figure out why he is on the team. Can you believe they brought him back a second time? Stop laughing!
*GRADE: F*

*Scott Padgett*: He is a stand up shooter and cannot create. He is too slow to matchup with most players on defense. He should not be invited back. 
*GRADE: F*

*Bob Sura*: He has a lot of energy. Plays hard and tough, but is more of a role player than a starter. He is not a true point guard and at age 33, will be better coming off the bench.
*GRADE*: *C+*

*Charlie Ward*: I am still trying to figure out why he was brought here. He has been injured most of the time. He should not be brought back. He just laughs all the way to the bank. He is under contract for two more years. I would like to be his agent. Stop laughing!
*GRADE: F*

*Clarence Weatherspoon*: This is another player I cannot figure why he was brought here. He should not be brought back. He was paid to sit.
*GRADE: F*

*David Westley*: He has been valuable as a defensive player, but disappeared in the playoffs. He is 35 and his best years as a starter are behind him. He would be better coming off the bench.
*GRADE: C+*

*Yao Ming*: This is his third year in the league. For a player of his height, more is expected of him. He gets tired early and often. He seldom put together back-to-back good games. He plays in China during the off season and it takes its toll on him.
*GRADE: C+*

*Jeff Van Gundy:* He has not gotten the team beyond the first round. I question how he used some of his players and some of the players he brought in. Did he let a rookie out-coach him in the playoffs? Why was Rockets owner Les Alexander so anxious to extend his contract for one more year? He had two years left on his old contract. Did he think other teams would be knocking down his door calling for Van Gundy’s service? Don’t laugh.
*GRADE: C*

*Carroll Dawson:* The Rockets general manager did a good job when he traded for Tracy McGrady. Getting McGrady was a no-brainer. He brought in several questionable players and over-paid them. He has brought in role players as starters. He pays mediocre players superstar money. Hey, charity starts at home.
The entire town laughed when Rod Strickland was signed. Did Strickland really look like Red Foxx running down the court?
*GRADE: C*

*For full article, click: **Final Report Card*


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## The_Franchise (Mar 30, 2003)

Black biased author who can't given any credit to non-African American players. Ignored.


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## FirstRocket (Mar 10, 2005)

Mr. Roger's Cardigan said:


> Black biased author who can't given any credit to non-African American players. Ignored.


I don't think it is completely biased. Few good points such as Vince Baker, Moochie and Sura.


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## The_Franchise (Mar 30, 2003)

FirstRocket said:


> I don't think it is completely biased. Few good points such as Vince Baker, Moochie and Sura.


How does Vin Baker get a better grade than Scott Padgett and Ryan Bowen? And Strickland was JVG's idea, not Dawson. Dawson did a great job with the few resources he had this season.


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## sherwin (Mar 21, 2005)

Why even re-post this garbage?

Mutombo with a C grade? Yao with C+?

Did this guy even watch a regular season game?

And if he can't figure out why Baker/Norris/Ward were brought in then he is clueless. Norris & Baker = almost expired contracts we had to take on to get the Knicks to take Taylor. Ward = we had no PG at the beginning of the season! Sura was injured.


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## FirstRocket (Mar 10, 2005)

Mr. Roger's Cardigan said:


> How does Vin Baker get a better grade than Scott Padgett and Ryan Bowen? And Strickland was JVG's idea, not Dawson. Dawson did a great job with the few resources he had this season.


I did not say it is not biased but not completely. If you disregard the grade which nobody is going to completely agree with the writer, his comments about Vin Baker, Moochie and Sura is acceptable. Likewise some of the other comments but not all.


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## Minstrel (Dec 31, 2002)

His comments on Mutombo didn't really mesh with his grade of Mutombo. He was amazing, tremendous...C.

Many of the other grades were off-kilter, as well, notably Vin Baker getting anything but an 'F' and Padgett and Bowen, who had their (limited) uses getting 'F's.


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## The_Franchise (Mar 30, 2003)

FirstRocket said:


> I did not say it is not biased but not completely. If you disregard the grade which nobody is going to completely agree with the writer, his comments about Vin Baker, Moochie and Sura is acceptable. Likewise some of the other comments but not all.


True, but considering Mike James was almost 2 letter grades better than Jon Barry in this report, I'd say it's questionable. Not to mention the site is blackathlete.com and the author went to Prairie View A&M!


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## Hakeem (Aug 12, 2004)

Terrible. Shallow points, poorly written, spelling mistakes...


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## kisstherim (Jul 15, 2004)

This writer deserves a *F*!


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## Jamez52637 (May 3, 2005)

Can't believe i just wasted 3 mins of my life to actually read this [email protected]


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## ThaShark316 (May 7, 2004)

Jamez52637 said:


> Can't believe i just wasted 3 mins of my life to actually read this [email protected]



Agreed.

So so bad, on so many levels. LMAO @ Vin Baker getting a better grade than Bowen and Padgett.


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## FirstRocket (Mar 10, 2005)

ThaShark316 said:


> Agreed.
> 
> So so bad, on so many levels. LMAO @ Vin Baker getting a better grade than Bowen and Padgett.


'cuz he played less minutes (if he did play at all) than Bowen and Padgett. :biggrin:


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## FirstRocket (Mar 10, 2005)

Jamez52637 said:


> Can't believe i just wasted 3 mins of my life to actually read this [email protected]


Sorry for taking 3mins of your life away on this stupid crap. Unfortunately, I can't give you back. Maybe, you can make me waste 3mins of my life by posting 3mins crap for me to read.:biggrin:


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## WhoRocks (Feb 24, 2005)

Wow, I was unaware of the writer's history beforehand but the D for Vin Baker put me on immediate alert (_only D Vin Baker still got_). The grades aren't entirely flawed; Mutombo should have been higher, Ming and Van Gundy a little higher too, James lower. I believe the GM if based on this year alone should have also ranked a little better; McGrady was not necessarily automatic, and he did manage to get Barry and James for Lue and Gaines.


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## Yao Mania (Aug 4, 2003)

I think any of us here on the board can post better grades then that. Reading that article has just made me stupider basketball-wise.


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## ms200402 (May 2, 2004)

Baker D(how many minutes he played) > Pagget/Bowen F?

Yao C+ OK
Mu should be B

T-mac A (his last game drop his score)


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## The_Franchise (Mar 30, 2003)

A C- for Barry though? He was huge for this team coming off the bench, easily our most consistent shooter, and posted some incredible +/- stats (JVG also mentioned this the other day).


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## Pasha The Great (Apr 9, 2005)

We should all send him an email and tell him about how his article was so bad, maybe he will choose another profession. His email is [email protected]


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## tone wone (Jan 30, 2003)

here's a solution...

why dont you guys make your own "Final Rockets' Report Card"


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## sean_3579 (May 15, 2005)

As the words of Bill Walton " That was TERRIBLE" 

HAS THIS GUY WATCH ANY OF THE GAMES THIS SEASON, DEKE A C NO WAY, YAO MING A C YEAH RIGHT, SOMEONE GET THIS No Masked Cursing - YM OUT OF HERE.


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## Pimped Out (May 4, 2005)

sean_3579 said:


> As the words of Bill Walton " That was TERRIBLE"


No, in the words of bill walton, "that was the worst final report card in the history of the rockets franchise"


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## c_dog (Sep 15, 2002)

jon barry deserves more credit. he was valuable, imo, as he was the only role player who didn't seem to have problem giving up the ball to yao. he was also timely in his 3's and shot with efficiency.

mike james was alright... i don't see how he got a B. he is a good scorer and perhaps one of the better pieces we got, but i'd have trouble giving him anything higher than a C+.

juwan howard also a teeny bit too high. maybe a B cuz he wasn't expected to do much, but it's more about him contributing more than expected than him actually being a good player.

mutumbo was excellent, imo. the stats don't say much but he was a prescence down low and grabbed rebounds. everytime he scores it's just a bonus.


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