Re: T-Mac vs Rockets - fight!
Commentary
McGrady has fans back on his side
BY JEROME SOLOMON
Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
Dec. 16, 2009, 1:07AM
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<!-- /Ad --> For weeks Tracy McGrady has said he was ready to go, but the Rockets have said he wasn’t. Many times since his season came to an end last February because of a knee injury, the image of Tracy McGrady drew a strong reaction at Toyota Center. Typically, the crowd booed when McGrady was featured during the team’s pregame highlight video.
Tuesday night, however, McGrady’s appearance elicited a much different response from the Rockets faithful. After nine months out of uniform, a career-threatening surgery and a number change, McGrady returned to the Rockets’ lineup against the Detroit Pistons and drew a rousing ovation, with a sizable portion of the crowd rising to its feet to welcome him back.
What?
Guess it’s that heart-growing-fonder-because-of-absence thing. Yes, it’s confusing. Let’s hope there is no more drama. The Rockets rolled to a 107-96 win over the Pistons, and while McGrady’s appearance brought a level of excitement to the game, his play had little to do with the outcome. But it changes things. Despite many predictions that he would never play for the Rockets again, Tracy McGrady is back. And he is happy. “Through all the stuff that we’ve been through, you haven’t heard it come out of my mouth that I want to leave,” McGrady said. “This is home for me. My wife and kids love it here; I love it here. This is where I live in the offseason. “I love everything about the organization — the owner, the fans and my teammates. This is it. I feel comfortable here. This is where I want to be.”
The decision to play McGrady for the first time this season was a last-minute one, as the Rockets were shorthanded with Trevor Ariza serving a one-game suspension. For weeks, McGrady has said he is ready to go, but the Rockets have said he wasn’t, which put McGrady in the unusual position of being a player who drew criticism for wanting to play.
Adelman reconsiders
Even as late as Monday’s practice, coach Rick Adelman said he hadn’t even thought about activating McGrady. Twenty-four hours later, Adelman changed his mind. He didn’t even tell McGrady until he arrived at the arena a couple hours before the game. Makes one wonder what miraculous turn of events made the Rockets think McGrady could be available for a few minutes in Tuesday’s contest but couldn’t have been available for a few minutes in any games before then.
McGrady played for 7 minutes and 44 seconds in the first quarter. He made one 3-point shot, missed another attempt from the floor and grabbed three rebounds. “The more I thought about it, with the schedule the way it is with all these back-to-back (games), we need bodies,” Adelman said. At times, it has seemed as if the Rockets didn’t want McGrady’s body in the lineup. In a sense, the Rockets and McGrady have been at odds off and on for the better part of a year. The team allowed fans and media to run with the idea that McGrady was healthy last season when it was obvious he wasn’t. It kept repeating the refrain that MRIs McGrady underwent showed no change while leaving out the fact that those MRIs showed damage that might require surgery to repair.
A year gone bad
Fans turned on McGrady, who was in and out of the lineup and unable to be the player he was before the injury. McGrady reacted to his struggles (and the team’s leaving him hanging) by announcing on his Web site that he had elected to have season-ending surgery — before the team had decided that would be the best course of action. “Obviously, it was a bad year,” McGrady said. “It was a year that I probably should have never even played. But I tried it, went through a lot, and it’s over with.”
Perhaps.
The seemingly shaky relationship grew shakier when McGrady returned to practice this season and started to think he was ready to play. McGrady’s thinking he was ahead of schedule didn’t seem to matter to the Rockets. One had to wonder whether the Rockets were choosing to sit McGrady because of a sizable insurance policy that saved the team six figures every game he sat. We’re talking about a lot of moolah saved in the 22 games McGrady didn’t play. Makes sense.
It also made sense that perhaps the Rockets didn’t want to play McGrady, who is in the last year of his contract, until he could show enough that teams would be interested in trading for him. Slowly working him into shape might show warts that would hurt his trade value.
Thank-yous all around
The situation almost turned ugly when McGrady donned his uniform for a game in Minnesota on Nov. 18, though the team had no thoughts of activating him for the game. But now McGrady is back, and he says he is happy. He had two words for Adelman: “Thank you.” The crowd reaction to his return might have been a thank-you as well. “That felt real good,” McGrady said. “That shows me that they appreciate what I’ve done in my five years here.”
Commentary
McGrady has fans back on his side
BY JEROME SOLOMON
Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
Dec. 16, 2009, 1:07AM
<!-- Ad 120x60 --> <script type="text/javascript">/*<![CDATA[*/ try{yld_mgr.place_ad_here("STY120");}catch(e){} /*]]>*/</script>
<!-- /Ad --> For weeks Tracy McGrady has said he was ready to go, but the Rockets have said he wasn’t. Many times since his season came to an end last February because of a knee injury, the image of Tracy McGrady drew a strong reaction at Toyota Center. Typically, the crowd booed when McGrady was featured during the team’s pregame highlight video.
Tuesday night, however, McGrady’s appearance elicited a much different response from the Rockets faithful. After nine months out of uniform, a career-threatening surgery and a number change, McGrady returned to the Rockets’ lineup against the Detroit Pistons and drew a rousing ovation, with a sizable portion of the crowd rising to its feet to welcome him back.
What?
Guess it’s that heart-growing-fonder-because-of-absence thing. Yes, it’s confusing. Let’s hope there is no more drama. The Rockets rolled to a 107-96 win over the Pistons, and while McGrady’s appearance brought a level of excitement to the game, his play had little to do with the outcome. But it changes things. Despite many predictions that he would never play for the Rockets again, Tracy McGrady is back. And he is happy. “Through all the stuff that we’ve been through, you haven’t heard it come out of my mouth that I want to leave,” McGrady said. “This is home for me. My wife and kids love it here; I love it here. This is where I live in the offseason. “I love everything about the organization — the owner, the fans and my teammates. This is it. I feel comfortable here. This is where I want to be.”
The decision to play McGrady for the first time this season was a last-minute one, as the Rockets were shorthanded with Trevor Ariza serving a one-game suspension. For weeks, McGrady has said he is ready to go, but the Rockets have said he wasn’t, which put McGrady in the unusual position of being a player who drew criticism for wanting to play.
Adelman reconsiders
Even as late as Monday’s practice, coach Rick Adelman said he hadn’t even thought about activating McGrady. Twenty-four hours later, Adelman changed his mind. He didn’t even tell McGrady until he arrived at the arena a couple hours before the game. Makes one wonder what miraculous turn of events made the Rockets think McGrady could be available for a few minutes in Tuesday’s contest but couldn’t have been available for a few minutes in any games before then.
McGrady played for 7 minutes and 44 seconds in the first quarter. He made one 3-point shot, missed another attempt from the floor and grabbed three rebounds. “The more I thought about it, with the schedule the way it is with all these back-to-back (games), we need bodies,” Adelman said. At times, it has seemed as if the Rockets didn’t want McGrady’s body in the lineup. In a sense, the Rockets and McGrady have been at odds off and on for the better part of a year. The team allowed fans and media to run with the idea that McGrady was healthy last season when it was obvious he wasn’t. It kept repeating the refrain that MRIs McGrady underwent showed no change while leaving out the fact that those MRIs showed damage that might require surgery to repair.
A year gone bad
Fans turned on McGrady, who was in and out of the lineup and unable to be the player he was before the injury. McGrady reacted to his struggles (and the team’s leaving him hanging) by announcing on his Web site that he had elected to have season-ending surgery — before the team had decided that would be the best course of action. “Obviously, it was a bad year,” McGrady said. “It was a year that I probably should have never even played. But I tried it, went through a lot, and it’s over with.”
Perhaps.
The seemingly shaky relationship grew shakier when McGrady returned to practice this season and started to think he was ready to play. McGrady’s thinking he was ahead of schedule didn’t seem to matter to the Rockets. One had to wonder whether the Rockets were choosing to sit McGrady because of a sizable insurance policy that saved the team six figures every game he sat. We’re talking about a lot of moolah saved in the 22 games McGrady didn’t play. Makes sense.
It also made sense that perhaps the Rockets didn’t want to play McGrady, who is in the last year of his contract, until he could show enough that teams would be interested in trading for him. Slowly working him into shape might show warts that would hurt his trade value.
Thank-yous all around
The situation almost turned ugly when McGrady donned his uniform for a game in Minnesota on Nov. 18, though the team had no thoughts of activating him for the game. But now McGrady is back, and he says he is happy. He had two words for Adelman: “Thank you.” The crowd reaction to his return might have been a thank-you as well. “That felt real good,” McGrady said. “That shows me that they appreciate what I’ve done in my five years here.”
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