It was just a mere two years ago when Rockets fans relished and relied upon the explosiveness of Tracy McGrady.
After Houston had acquired the 6’8” superman from Orlando, he infused a sense of purpose and energy into the franchise that had been missing since the days of Hakeem Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler and Charles Barkley.
He soared around and above defenders, utilizing such elegant grace with each and every move. He made long, ridiculous jump shots that grazed the tips of helpless foes but always seemed to find the comfort of twine.
He was the “Batman” to Yao Ming’s “Robin” in the 2005 playoffs against Dallas, heroically sinking shot after shot but never receiving the consistent support from teammates that would allow him to advance past the first round of the playoffs for the first time of his career.
And, now, it appears the days of a swooping, slinging McGrady are long gone as he falls closer and closer to the demise of other potential greats such as Anfernee Hardaway and Grant Hill, both supreme talents interrupted by the bitter plague known as chronic injury.
For Grant Hill, it was his ankle. For Hardaway, it was his knees that would hinder a prosperous career. For McGrady, it is the back that appears to have derailed him. McGrady missed 35 games last season, mostly due to his back troubles.
He was absent for eight games in the first half of the season due to chronic back spasms. For the year, he tallied the worst shooting numbers of his career and averaged the least amount of points (24.4) since the 1999-2000 season, his third and final year as a Toronto Raptor.
The more telling numbers lie within the basic statistics. 79% of McGrady’s shot attempts last season were jump shots. No longer was McGrady comfortable gliding to the basket, abandoning each and every defender in his path for a ferocious dunk. Instead, he was careful and more assertive, knowing that any wrong turn, any wrong fall would land him back on the injured reserve list.
The back problems have lingered with McGrady since his days with the Magic. As far as the chronic aspect of his injury is concerned, Rockets trainer Keith Jones noted that it was more of a compression injury and not a structural issue. It was a bruise of the spine.
The real concern is that, now, McGrady feels fine and healthy. After three months off, McGrady has been training and has stated that his back is “pain-free.”
"Man the back was what, March?" McGrady said during an interview with a local Houston radio station in late July. "I am done with the back problems, officially over. I am healthy. I am proud to say that because it was a rough season last year, but yeah I'm healthy and ready to go. Thank God for another year."
McGrady has returned to exercises that he aborted last season; exercises that were reason for his being, relatively, injury-free during previous years. The fact remains, however, that chronic injuries do not go away, and Rockets players, coaches and fans will flinch whenever McGrady lands awkwardly.
What frustrates the matter even more is the Rockets have done nothing to shore up depth behind McGrady. They’ve added unproven youth to the backcourt but have done nothing to shore up the swingman position. Shane Battier will be rotating between the small and power forward positions and will be relied upon for defense, not scoring.
At this point, McGrady’s backup seems to be 6’6” Kirk Snyder, an able athlete who has been an inconsistent shooter.
Either way, the sooner Rockets fans realize that the days of McGrady leading the league in scoring are over, the better. Once upon a time, McGrady was an athletic jumping-jack, never settling for jump shots and always on a mission to drive to the basket, and either score or get to the free throw line. Nowadays, McGrady seems content to shoot jump shots from all angles, which means that his length and height, while still a valuable asset defensively, becomes a mute point offensively.
Now, more so than ever, this is Yao’s team. McGrady, by default, has been relegated to the secondary scorer, as he can no longer take the bruising and pounding of drives into the paint.
He can no longer exhort fans with his explosiveness.
