Can the Rockets Still Contend? PLUS Skinny Zion & NBA Bounce Back Candidates | ALL NBA PODCAST
Tim Legler and Adam Mares break down the biggest NBA storylines, starting with how the Houston Rockets can contend after Fred VanVleet’s season ending injury. They discuss whether Amen Thompson or Reed Sheppard can step in as the lead point guard, how Kevin Durant can help minimize the loss, and if the Rockets should make a trade to fill the void. They also look at Zion Williamson’s weight loss, which players most need bounce-back seasons, and who could have breakout years including Jaden Ivey and Jalen Suggs.
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00:00 – Intro
02:18 – Will the Houston Rockets still compete for a championship after Fred VanVleet’s injury.
10:12 – Can Reed Sheppard step in and be the lead point guard?
14:17 – How does Kevin Durant minimize the impact of FVV injury?
17:07 – Will the Rockets make a trade to fill the point guard void?
23:53 – How do the Rockets fill the leadership void from Fred VanVleet?
28:12 – The impact of Zion Williamson’s weight loss
35:11 – Who are the players that MOST need bounce back years?
41:37 – Could Jaden Ivey or Jalen Suggs have breakout years this year?
47:06 – Is it now or never for Devin Booker?
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37 Comments
The biggest hit by FVV’s absence is gonna be to Sengun as now there is virtually no one who can reliably set him up in the paint
We actually don’t have to go all in on KD. He, just like FVV, serves as training wheels for Sengun, Amen and Jabari/Tari to reach their prime.
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I think the 3 coaches that actually could mitigate significantly this problem are Spo, Carlisle, and Ime. I think their ceiling went from champion to western conference lose though.
They are trying to play him like Oubre. Oubre has been a starter for how many seasons and gets paid 8 million. Lowry probably starts, and Maxey will be the two guard where his non passing tail belongs.
Thanks guys. Always a pleasure to watch you. Kudos.
It's going to be on Udoka's staff to figure it out. They have guys that can pass in Sengun, KD, Amen and Reed.
If they go into the season starting with Reed-Amen-KD-Jabari-Sengun, that's a good sign. It'll mean Reed is showing he's at least ready to keep them afloat and by year's end, the experience will be huge.
Give Reed and Amen the chance until the trade deadline. I expect they will grow into it and be great. If not then make a move but right now there is no reason to panic.
I don't see it has a bad thing like most cause I think Amen is going to become a superstar now and Reed get to show why he was pick number 3 in the draft
Maybe the Rockets should go after Beal or maybe Booker. Heck why not both??
9:21 Play off Amen at your peril i think. He will just have a runway baked in for him to get to the rim to initiate drive and kick offense or score/get fouled. He is so damn fast and athletic that i think it counteracts his lack of shooting.
14:10 Adam, do you think that Amen can do what Ben Simmons did his first few years? If so there's no worries for hin taking over point guard duties especially with the other players making on the roster KD/ Sengun.
14:10 Adam, do you think that Amen can do what Ben Simmons did his first few years? If so there's no worries for hin taking over point guard duties especially with the other players making on the roster KD/ Sengun.
22:15 What about Jrue Holiday? Or Anfernee Simons?
I can see CP3 popping up
FVF timely 3's will definitely be missed
Coaching will play a bigger role & they got a good one
I love Fred, but this may have been just what Sheppard and Amen need to push their development. I think you start Sheppard and just suffer some losses to accelerate his development. Legends are made by guys like Sheppard who come in during a crisis like this and show everybody what they've got. That may not happen here, but I would go for it till December just to see what Sheppard can learn from a "trial by fire" experience. Amen has become this this weird "Swiss army knife" kind of guy but he has some point forward feel to him so that can be developed that end of his game a bit but he probably shouldn't be forced to be the full time point. Come December we find this team has evolved into something that doesn't need a true point and they're better than they were last year. I would still want to hold on to Fred but maybe that's not in the cards.
I don’t think this Rocket team is a contender they got talent but I don’t think KD is the same guy
This is the beat thing that happened to the Rockets. They need to replace him ideally with a defensive playermaker that can shoot 3s. They can try get jrue holiday even if they sacrifice 1 st round pick. And they should now run the offence through Sengun.
Adam… Say it with me, bubba. VanVleet. Van-VVVVVleet. Not Fleet. VLEET. 👍🏻 Love you guys. Love the show. So excited about the preseason coming up!!!
Did people actually watch Fred last yr?? He was BUNS. Playoffs he heated up but he was asssss. Being a table setter is being over blown… AMEN STOCK TO THE MOON
If FVV is the dealbreaker brother we are in trouble lmaoo.
Amen was a point guard his whole career
I have thought this for a long time but this bum Legs have hated the Hawks for years and he never disappoint. No mention of the Hawks for at least having a chance to be better this season. Keep this same energy.
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Hot take but i think KD will average 30 ppg this season. The only capable scorer they have is Sengun. And he isn't averaging more than 20 ppg.
Saw a police office who looked like Tim Legler today.
When the Nuggets lost Jamal Murray for 2 consecutive playoffs, despite having the NBA's best player in Jokic, they lost in 2nd and then 1st round in the playoffs. Without VanVleet they are still a good team, but probably not the #2 team in the conference. Perhaps they still are able to overcome it in the regular season. But, in the playoffs, they lose a ton of playmaking. And you can't just overcome that.
I agree. Not being a shooter changes what Amen will be able to do. That being said, it's possible that this might actually work out. Senguin is a great passer. Durant is a great passer. They have great playmakers at every position. The league has been moving to positionless basketball for a decade. Isn't what they have now perfect for this style of play? It might turn out that that this Swiss army knife approach is hard to slow down.
love cj mccollum, he does NOT fill vanvleet’s void because you need toughness. you need guys willing to guard steph curry & clap in his face during a first round playoff series
Van Vleet was never going to be the long term answer at PG. Sheppard may be, may be not… But the Rockets arent going to sink just because FVV got injured, not in todays positionless game. There are loads of plays and options that the Rockets can lean into… Maybe Amen or whoever can bring up the ball but the offense will probably run through KD and Sengun.
Tim grew 2 inches in the off season.
This is the push the rockets needed to fully play through Sengun
Still doing this Zion thing huh? Yeah. He will look pretty damn good sitting on the bench half the season
Fred will come back this year so no need to trade anyone ….will have him for the playoffs