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Lots of things to be excited about right now, both on and off the court. Tonight the team reveals its new marketing campaign (which includes a very special announcement) so you’ll see plenty of coverage on Rockets.com this evening between 7 and 8 PM CST. Something else to look forward to: a completely redesigned Rockets.com, which should be unveiled around the start of the regular season. Obviously that’s a pretty big deal for me and from the sneak peeks I’ve seen so far, I think all of you will really enjoy it as well.

But let’s face it, what you really want to know is how the guys are looking on the court. So let’s get right to it.

Shane Battier and Luis Scola arrived in town last weekend and they’ve since joined the 5-on-5 scrimmages which have been taking place at the Toyota Center practice court the last several weeks. Right now, everyone on the roster (including recent signee Garrett Temple, Will Conroy and Pops Mensah-Bonsu) is there except for Tracy McGrady, Yao Ming, Carl Landry and Kyle Lowry. It’s quite a sight to see these guys going at each other day after day and I’m happy to report that everyone clearly busted their butts to get into great shape for the upcoming season. Chuck Hayes in particular looks trimmed down and fantastic and it was no surprise to see his team (which also featured Chase Budinger, Jermaine Taylor, Temple and David Andersen) all four games I witnessed Tuesday. The Chronicle’s [url http://blogs.chron.com/nba/2009/09/summers_gone_and_the_time_is_r.html]Jonathan Feigen compared Hayes to Magic Johnson[/url] for his fearless forays which witnessed him going coast-to-coast on the break, and while that’s obviously a bit of playful hyperbole, it does speak to the fact that the Chuckwagon has clearly put in serious work this summer to get himself primed for a season when his team will need him more than ever.

What else stood out: Battier and Scola are in great shape as well; no surprise given the fact both guys are consummate professionals. No doubt Battier benefited from a full summer of rest and training, as opposed to last summer when he had to deal with rehab and a subsequent set-back in his recovery from offseason surgery. And speaking of being in tremendous physical condition, Trevor Ariza is a greyhound out there who can seemingly run for days without breaking a sweat. Also worth noting: he supposedly dominates the Rockets’ pre-scrimmage tag drills (brought to the team by new [url http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/bk/bkn/6632311.html]Director of strength and conditioning Darryl Eto[/url]) thanks to his incredible combination of quickness and length. Can’t wait to see how Coach Adelman unleashes Ariza this season.

As for the rookies, Taylor and Budinger look like classic Morey draft day steals. Budinger is just ridiculously smooth out there, always playing under control and making the right decisions. And while there’s no way he’ll come close to duplicating his jaw-dropping summer league percentages from three-point land (he shot .727 from beyond the arc in Vegas), his lightning-quick release outside jumper is still finding the bottom of the net far more often than not. Budinger is the first to admit that he needs to get stronger ("I'm playing against men now," he says) and there's no question expectations should be tempered until we see how he fares when the real games begin, but it's tough not to be tantalized by his potential. Taylor, meanwhile, is much more of a slasher, who’s carved-out-of-granite physique allows him to finish at the hoop even when sustaining copious contact. Don’t pencil him into the Von Wafer role just yet, but if he continues to progress, Coach Adelman has shown himself willing to give players opportunities on gameday once they earn them during practice.

Finally, don’t sleep on the newest signees, [url http://my.nba.com/thread.jspa?threadID=5800031045]Garrett Temple and Will Conroy[/url]. Conroy tore up the D-league last year and really knows how to run an offense, while Temple is a smart, athletic guard with the potential to be a lockdown defender in this league some day. Right now they’re long shots to make the team simply because there’s not much wiggle room on the roster but both players have a lot of fans within the Rockets’ organization and if they don’t happen to stick coming out of training camp, rest assured Rockets’ brass will be keeping a very close eye on them should an opening appear later on.

One final note: All signs point to Tracy McGrady attending Houston’s Media Day, so everyone who’s been anxiously awaiting T-Mac news should find themselves sated next Monday.

OK, I’m going to wrap things up today with a mini-mailbag of sorts – this time with a twist. One of my good friends has spent her summer in China and she told me that she gets asked about the Rockets all the time. So she sent me three of the most frequently-asked questions from Chinese fans and I decided to answer them today, figuring that Rockets’ fans from all over the world probably have many of the same questions. Without further adieu, here they are:

1. From what you have seen in practice recently, what's the difference between David Andersen and Scola? Do you think Andersen's performance for the upcoming season will be able to match Scola's rookie year performance?

Scola and Andersen have two rather distinct styles on the offensive side of the ball. Whereas Luis loves to back defenders down in the low-post in order to use his bevy of spins, shimmies and pump fakes to score, Andersen prefers to set up shop from the free throw line extended where he can take advantage of his superior shooting skills in the pick-and-pop game. Scola of course can certainly knock down the open 15-footer as well, but Andersen’s range extends all the way out to the three-point line. If you’re looking for similarities, however, keep this in mind: both Scola and Andersen are sneaky-good passers with a knack for finding cutters streaking toward the basket.

As for Andersen’s prospects in his NBA debut season, there’s no question he’ll face an adjustment period, especially on the defensive end, similar to what Luis experienced during the first half of his rookie year. And like Scola, David possesses an excellent understanding of the game which should help him progress quickly and gain confidence. It’s too early so say whether or not Andersen can match Scola’s rookie season production (10.3 ppg and 6.4 rpg) but I do think it’s fair to expect Andersen to play his best basketball during the second half of the season after he’s had a chance to acclimate himself to the NBA game.

2. Who do you think will become the "scoring champion" for the Rockets and who will have a chance to make the All-Star game this year?

There are quite a few people, Aaron Brooks included, inside the Rockets’ organization who expect Luis Scola to lead the team in both points and rebounding this season. I think his claiming the team rebounding title is a slam dunk and there’s no question he’ll be right up there in scoring as well. A 17 and 10 season from Luis is not out of the question at all, especially in light of his [url http://www.nba.com/rockets/news/luis_leads_the_way_scola_hopi_2009_09_09.html]tremendous performance for Argentina this summer[/url] at the FIBA Americas tournament. That said, Scola would be the first to tell you that he’s not terribly interested in his stats – the only number he really cares about is how many games the Rockets win. But as long as we’re talking team scoring titles (and All-Star appearances), I think Scola and Brooks are the two obvious candidates (especially given the way they played against the Lakers once Yao went down in the playoffs last season), with Tracy McGrady being the X-factor in that equation since a healthy T-Mac would clearly be an offensive force to be reckoned with. One final point: An All-Star nod could be extremely difficult for Brooks simply because of the incredible depth at the point guard position in the Western Conference. It will be awfully tough for him to break through when battling the likes of Chris Paul, Steve Nash, Deron Williams, Tony Parker and Chauncey Billups for votes.

3. What are your thoughts about the Rockets signing Ariza but not Artest? Is Ariza more suitable for Coach Adelman's system/style? What do you expect to see from him in the upcoming season?

I LOVE the Ariza signing. Look, I really enjoyed covering Ron Artest last year and I thought he did an excellent job in helping to lift the Rockets to their deepest playoff run in 12 years. But I think Ariza is a better fit for the direction in which the Rockets are currently headed thanks to his combination of youth, athleticism and upside. Put it this way: If you were Daryl Morey and you had the choice to have Artest for the next five years or Ariza, whom would you choose? At their respective points in their careers, I’d take Ariza every time. While he’s not the physical defender Ron is, Trevor is the superior perimeter defender now and opposing wings won’t relish the opportunity to face both Ariza and Battier when the Rockets come calling. On the offensive end, Artest is more of a scorer than Ariza, but I think Trevor will be a better fit for Adelman’s system since he’s a versatile, team-first guy capable of sparking the transition game that the Rockets really want to showcase this season.

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Edited by Jason Friedman at 09/23/2009 12:57 PM

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Edited by Jason Friedman at 09/25/2009 6:52 AM