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Dennis Lindsey
Rockets Vice President of Basketball Operations/Player Personnel
-I’m very proud to be a Rocket and to work here on a day-to-day basis for a team that I grew up with. Rudy, Calvin (Murphy), Hakeem, and Clyde, were why I started playing basketball. The day that I leave this job, I’ll always be a Rocket.
1.03.06
The following Blog was written by Gersson Rosas. Gersson is a personnel scout in our basketball operations department; he is a valued member of our organization due to his hard work, loyalty, and versatility. When we hired Gersson we needed to improve our department on several different fronts: 1) We needed someone with a South American background (Gersson was born in Colombia, South America), 2) We wanted someone who had experience with video editing (Gersson had been a video coordinator for men’s basketball at the University of Houston), 3) We like to hire scouts with previous coaching experience, which helps with a transition to full time scouting (Gersson has coached at the high school and college levels in addition to his individual work with professional players). Gersson, who was raised in Houston, has a passion for basketball and especially for the Houston Rockets since this is his home team. As a young scout, Gersson is already a respected member of the NBA scouting community, and we think he has a bright future in the league.
Dennis Lindsey
The game of basketball has tremendously developed throughout the world, and the Olympics of 2004 were a perfect example of that. Argentina’s Olympic championship let the world know that basketball in Latin America is alive and thriving. This was an exciting accomplishment, not only for Argentina and Latin America, but also for basketball as a whole. Over the past two decades Latin America has gradually left an imprint on the NBA and basketball in general. Argentinean Manu Ginobili followed up his Olympic gold by leading the San Antonio Spurs to a victory over the Detroit Pistons in the NBA Finals, thus becoming an NBA champion. Going into this season there will be 16 players from Latin America playing in the NBA. (Argentina = 5, Belize = 1, Brazil = 5, Dominican Republic = 1, Mexico = 1, Puerto Rico = 2, Uruguay = 1) A majority of Latin American countries have followed the lead of Argentina, Brazil and Puerto Rico and produced solid basketball federations with the focus on fundamental skill development in structured basketball environments. Argentina’s rise to basketball power has given life to Latin American basketball, as now these countries have a desire to compete on an international stage. A region that has been dominated by its fascination for soccer has suddenly become a hotbed for hoops and the next basketball frontier.
As a native of Colombia, South America, I utilized my culture and ability to speak Spanish to develop a background in Latin American basketball through various means. Growing up in Houston, I was fortunate to have been exposed to some good University of Houston teams during the 1980’s that consisted of a number of players from Latin American countries, including Brazil (Rolando Ferreira), Colombia (Alvaro Teheran, Rafael Carrasco, Angel Sanz) and Venezuela (Carl Herrera, David Diaz), which piqued my interest regarding the impact of Latin American basketball players in the United States. Throughout college, I partnered with various sports agents on projects that consisted of placing undrafted or free agent players in South American professional leagues. In addition, some of my other responsibilities with these projects included individual basketball development, draft preparation and player relations. These experiences were beneficial, as I was able to build up deliberate relationships with basketball personnel throughout Latin America, which in turn led to more opportunities. One of which was working with Oscar Torres of Venezuela during his tenure with the Houston Rockets, on a wide range of tasks that included everything from individual basketball workouts to English classes. As a result of this experience, I assisted the Venezuelan basketball federation, which Torres was a member of, at the 2002 World Championships in Indianapolis, Indiana.
My experiences and background in Latin American basketball has granted me the opportunity to become a scout/video coordinator for the Houston Rockets. As a result, one of my primary responsibilities is Latin American scouting, which has been an exciting endeavor. One of our first initiatives was to execute a thorough campaign targeting all Latin American federations, pro leagues and teams in order to develop fundamental relationships with credible and knowledgeable basketball personnel. We have also established a presence in Latin American basketball, by our live scouting efforts and active involvement in programs like the NBA’s Basketball Without Borders Americas, FIBA competitions and professional league play. Our personnel video department is one of our strongest advantages, as we place a major emphasis on international game footage to identify and analyze future professional prospects. Latin America is in an exciting stage of its basketball progression and we are keeping pace through our concentrated efforts throughout all of Central America, South America and the Caribbean.
The Houston Rockets are a basketball organization that prides itself on a rich international history and appreciates diversity in the game of basketball. From Hakeem Olajuwon (Nigeria) to Carlos Herrera (Venezuela) to Yao Ming (China), our team has had a definite international flair. The organization’s global focus has resulted in a thorough player personnel system that encompasses international scouting, strategic relationships with international federations/professional leagues/international teams, involvement in NBA/FIBA international events and intense game film evaluation. We have found that not only is it important to identify international prospects, but it is extremely vital to track and obtain comprehensive information regarding those prospects from trusted sources, in order to make an informed decision. We make sure as a whole that we operate in a professional and positive manner with Latin American basketball organizations, in order to uphold the strong international reputation that the Houston Rockets have long been known for.
11.30.05
Dean Cooper wrote the following blog that will give you some thumbnail information on how we cover the NBA Draft. Dean started with us as a scout, and then after the first two years with the Rockets became an assistant coach. After Rudy Tomjanovich stepped down as our head coach due to health concerns, Dean joined us again in the personnel department; his last two years with the Rockets has been as Director of Scouting.
Dean has gained a reputation around the NBA as a hard working and organized person who can work effectively with many types of people. The NBA rewarded him for his hard work this past summer when Dean directed the Basketball Without Borders, China Basketball Camp. He was in charge of setting up the basketball portion of the camp, which included the practice schedule, playing schedule, draft of players, and the coordination of the coaches.
Dean sets our scouting schedule for each scout on the road; he does a great job of prioritizing which prospects are most important for us to see, which dictates our schedules as we go forward into our scouting seasons. We are fortunate to have Dean for several reasons: 1) He has a passion and loyalty for the Rockets, 2) he has developed good contacts at all levels (college, minor leagues, internationally, and NBA), 3) his coaching background gives him a solid point of view on what a coach is looking for in a player, 4) he loves studying basketball in various ways, and 5) he also enjoys to travel, which is a main function of the job.
Dennis Lindsey
The EVOLUTION/CHANGING of the NBA Draft has changed the method(s) we use to prepare, year to year. In fact, we have an additional ruling. I am referring to the “…19 years old and 1 year out of High School…” rule.
First, with the number of “EARLY ENTRIES” (players not 4-year college seniors or born in the 22nd year prior to draft year; these players automatically become eligible) we must assume that all players will “declare” for the NBA Draft. We will begin to compile our data and analysis of players as quickly as they become “blips” on our radar screen. The more information over a given period of time…the better and more informed judgment and decision we will be able to make.
The “candidate pool” itself has grown over the past several seasons. Our game has become very global and the NBA is the place that the vast majority of the basketball population aspires to play. The insurgence of international players has widened the scope of candidates. There has been and will continue to be players from all parts of the globe making the migration to our league…we must have those players evaluated fairly, thoroughly and most importantly, accurately. As this expansion of our game takes place…we must extend and develop our contact list around the globe.
Some of the methods that we use on a day-to-day basis have changed slightly but remain the core functions of our duties and source of evaluation. They include:
1) In Person Evaluation: We must see a prospect live so that we are able to assess true size, speed, quickness, strength, etc. Also, when we evaluate a player in person, we are able to see aspects that tape evaluation does not allow. For instance, how a player acts/reacts in the huddle during timeouts, with teammates…and so on.
2) Tape Evaluation: Using video tape allows us to further evaluate a player’s game and his playing tendencies. We are able to have more “mass” production of evaluation. We are able to stop and start the tape so that we can be more critical of their individual playing habits.
3) Statistical Evaluation: The study of a player’s statistics allows us to see how he does the things that appear “within the game.” Also, it allows us to compare, contrast and average players across a timeline, with other players of similar positions, age, size, body type, style of game, etc.
4) Background Evaluation: We must look into the playing habits, personnel habits and social habits of our candidate pool. How a player is with his teammates, what he does off the court, etc., is vital information. Locker-room chemistry is a very important piece of the “winning” puzzle.
The use of each method listed above is vital. We use each of these methods and measurements in different settings. We believe that we should evaluate players in as many different situations as possible. See a player with his college team, all-star teams, USA teams, pick-up games, etc. As each team changes for a player, often their role changes as well. This allows us to see players in different environments, playing styles, coaching styles and the like.
These are some of the staples and changes that go into our scouting process. We like to think that we try to learn and improve each season. Like the team itself, we are always looking to upgrade and keep competitive in our process. There are many ways to accomplish success in this league…we feel that these things have worked well for us and provide a solid foundation for helping us move forward, alongside, an “ever changing” NBA.
11.02.05
It has only taken my 2nd blog to get on one of my “soapbox” basketball issues. After going thru several basketball topics on my mind, I want to give basketball fans something to think about regarding the State of Texas, and it’s men’s basketball past, present, and future. Texas has been underappreciated as a strong basketball hotbed for as long as I can remember in my 36 years. I do have to admit a couple of things before going forward with my points:
1) I am a proud Texan, born and raised with all the positive and negative attributes
2) Ever since middle school (when I first fell in love with hoops), I quickly realized this is a football state, and other sport athletes are treated as 2nd class citizens (e.g., I have been locked out of many gyms due to football coaches)
3) Due to my realization I have a “basketball chip” on my shoulder
4) I married into a “football family” on my own doing; and am treated with the status of a house pet with an affectionate name to go with it…”the thump-baller”
5) I have a fondness for Texas basketball people, and especially Houston-area born and/or raised basketball players, coaches, media, and fans
6) I love to needle my East Coast Basketball friends about the merits of Texas basketball at all levels
Joe Ash, a former scout of ours, who now works for the Indiana Pacers in management, and I would debate which of our home states had the better men players. Joe is from New Jersey, so I would go straight for the jugular with a line-up such as Slater Martin, Clyde Drexler, Larry Johnson, Hakeem Olajuwon (yes, he is a Texan, under the Raised a Texan Rule), and Shaq O’Neal. Not a bad line-up, I did not hit him bench (Ford, Rodman, Lewis, Mason, Sharman, etc.) because he would have been overwhelmed. With that he would just mumble something about Rick Barry, but I digress.
When Andy Katz of ESPN did an excellent article on Texas Schoolboy basketball several years ago, which hit on the importance of recruiting Texas well by the top basketball universities in the country, I got a little photocopy-happy and several of my east coast basketball associates got the articles in their lockers and offices (not to name the names, but Steve Francis, Cuttino Mobley, Jeff Van Gundy, Tom Thibodeau, and Steve Clifford were exposed to my propaganda). Since Patrick Ewing crushed my teenage years with him leading Georgetown over University of Houston in the 1984 NCAA Championship Men’s Game, he got a few extra copies and a big fat picture in our player’s lounge of Olajuwon scoring over him in the 1994 NBA Finals!! That should be a lesson to him, “he who laughs last, laughs best.”
On a more serious note, I have been to several men’s high school state championships all over the country as a player, coach, and scout. I may be biased, but the State of Texas with its fan support, facilities, coaches, and players are right at the top of the list. For example, many people do not realize it, but Texas has the nation’s all time leader in basketball coaching victories in Robert Hughes of Fort Worth Dunbar High School. He has not only been a leader of the basketball team, but in the community of Fort Worth as well.
As a player, coach, and scout I have crossed paths with some great basketball men in Texas, who have chosen in my opinion a very noble profession of middle school or high school basketball coach, because they love the game, and to teach young men. Men like Jack Kern and Bob Cook, both of whom who taught us basketball, and who were like second fathers to me, and my teammates at the time. Also, like the “basketball” State of Indiana, Texas has storied programs such as FW Dunbar, Troup, Buna, Clear Lake, Duncanville, and Willowridge of Fort Bend. I have left out many historic programs as you can imagine, but also with the population growth in Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, and San Antonio, there are also several new schools that are emerging basketball powerhouses with fine young coaches.
As I travel around the world scouting basketball players, a couple of common denominators stand out inside certain areas of “basketball infrastructure”: 1) facilities, 2) media coverage/exposure, 3) summer playing opportunities, 4) coaching at each level (middle school, high school, junior college, university programs, and on the international front there are club level programs). Most good basketball regions have most, if not all, of these basketball building blocks to help develop the basketball players from immediate areas. The regions and countries that do not have the proper basketball support systems often see their own talented players die on the vine, or never fully develop their full potential. It happens in many places and it is sad to witness.
Texas is a leader in the facilities front – the finest high school gyms I have been in are in Texas. As I already stated, the middle school and high school coaches are some of the best in the country. Also, Texas has some of the greatest junior college coaches in the country in Scott Gernander of San Jacinto in Pasadena, and last year’s men’s national champion Bill Foy of Paris Junior College among others. Texas also has past college coaching legends such as Guy V. Lewis, Abe Lemons, and Don Haskins. Currently, Bobby Knight, Billy Tubbs, Tom Penders, and Rick Barnes all have great accomplishments as men’s collegiate coaches in the State of Texas. In addition, the State of Texas also has a good share of young rising coaches such as Billy Gillispie, Scott Drew, Doc Sadler, Willis Wilson, Danny Kaspar and Ron Cottrell, to name a few. Lastly, nobody has done a better job in the country with fewer resources than Bob Marlin of Sam Houston State, who has turned around the Bearkat Basketball Program that never had a winning season in Division I basketball before he got to the school. All of these coaches and many others have helped develop the basketball talent in this region. I would need 10 pages to list all the great basketball players developed by junior colleges, colleges, and universities in the State of Texas.
A couple of factors have set men’s basketball back in Texas in my opinion over the years. One of the largest obstacles was the UIL of Texas, which governs high school athletics in Texas. For many years the UIL did not allow or severely limited summer basketball opportunities for basketball players in the state during the 1970s and 1980s. Greg Kite, from Memorial High School, first brought national attention to this by suing the UIL so he could play in the summer, which was one of the first steps to lifting these restrictions. When I played for the Houston BCI Summer League in 1986 for Jack Thompson, we were strictly limited by the number of games we could play, but it was this little bit of exposure for me and countless other players that allowed us to get to colleges and universities. Since the late 1980s restrictions on summer play have been lifted, and Texas high school basketball has been a hotbed for basketball recruiting at all levels and luckily has caught up with the top states in the country in developing basketball talent. Also, for many years men’s basketball in my state has been underexposed for various reasons at every level, but thankfully the newspapers, radio stations, Internet, and television outlets have caught on to the basketball quality, and the interest level has risen over the last decade. We have some talented and entertaining local journalists who have helped increase our exposure over the last 15 years, and we thank them for their work that helps keep us in business.
Now with the quality of players and coaches that the Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, and Dallas Mavericks have, the State of Texas is poised to experience some great basketball over the next couple of years. The thing I find during the upswings of the basketball pendulum that players like Yao Ming, Tracy McGrady, Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, and Dirk Nowitzki create is that it reminds me of past greats such as Moses Malone, Calvin Murphy, Hakeem Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler, George Gervin, David Robinson, Rolando Blackman, and Mark Aguirre. Those active players along with the leadership of current coaches, Jeff Van Gundy, Gregg Popovich, and Avery Johnson have the NBA section of Texas basketball poised to build on the past successes of Rudy Tomjanovich, Bill Fitch, Bob Bass, Doug Moe, Don Nelson, and Dick Motta.
09.06.05
Welcome to my first blog for the 2005-2006 season. We will be writing on several basketball topics - most of our topics will be closely related to the Rockets, but at times we may be blogging (not sure if that is a word yet) on basketball in general. My blog will at times have some guests writers, most of whom work for the Houston Rockets in various capacities in basketball operations. We look forward to sharing some of our thoughts on basketball as the season goes on, and we hope that you find the blog informative and enjoyable to read. We have pre-set some of our topics to start the blog, but we will also let the topics vary as the season and our work within basketball operations take shape.
Currently, we are in the middle of training camp, which is taking place in the beautiful Toyota Center. Carroll and I were talking yesterday about how great it is to come to work in such a great building. It gives us a great sense of pride to be working in a state of the art building that gives us a competitive advantage in several areas. Many things go into having a successful training camp; one of the most important of which is to give our coaches the right kind of players to move forward with in training camp, which is the springboard for the season. Obviously, teams like to have centerpiece players like Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming, but you also want to surround them with players of the right complementary characteristics. Some traits we are looking for are basketball smarts; on-time, on-target passers; good shooting from 3-point range; toughness; and ability to move quickly on defense. We want players who are confident, but who are humble in accepting whatever role given to them. For example, one of our non-guaranteed contract players is Chuck Hayes. He is a player who has many of the listed traits above. It took four years of college scouting, a couple of pre-draft camps, several individual workouts, multiple mini-camps, and a summer league to identify him as being the right kind of player who can fit into our preseason program.
Each person in basketball operations performs key roles to make our training camp and preseason work as seamlessly as possible. Carroll and Jeff head the process and direction of the camp, but many people work behind the scenes to make the camp function effectively. For example, Jay Namoc is our equipment manger who is constantly meeting the needs of the trainers, coaches, and players. It is amazing to watch Jay and his staff meet the special needs of the players; each player has his own tastes regarding his shoes, shirts, socks, shorts, sweat bands, drinks, and training aids. On a continual basis Jay has to meet these needs on time with no excuses so the players can perform without distraction. Keith Jones, Missy Leget, Bill Amonette, and David Macha each perform very important roles in getting and keeping our players healthy, in shape, and strong. It takes a lot of coordination of Keith’s staff to make sure each player is getting the right type of athletic training and conditioning. Some players need to get healthy, others need to increase their strength, and many need to reduce body fat to compete effectively. Keith and his staff should be proud that our team is in great shape heading into the preseason. Coach Van Gundy had a great quote the other day to the media: “Your players being in shape before training camp starts will not guarantee success, but if they are not in shape it guarantees you will not have success.” So it goes without saying that when all the players are healthy and in shape Keith does not hear many “Good jobs,” but he and his staff get a lot of pressure and questions when Yao Ming goes into surgery and rehab on his ankle like he did this summer.
Due to time and space restraints, there are many things and people that I did not mention that go into having a productive training camp and preseason, but their efforts are no less appreciated. It is great to experience the teamwork to make a great training camp happen, so we can give you a great product to watch in the end. I was talking with Bobby Sura a couple of days ago about his surgery, rehab, and the state of the team. Many times players who are hurt can give interesting perspectives on what is happening because they are part of the team, but they cannot participate in the drills because they are hurt; therefore, they can observe what is happening. I don’t remember the exact statement, but he said that before he got with the Houston Rockets he had no idea how much it took to win. This is coming from a guy who has always prepared well, competed hard, and whose toughness is appreciated throughout the league even before he became a Rocket. I think what he was speaking to was the direction that Les, Jeff, Carroll, and George give us, but also the “little touches” of details that may give us an advantage on the court, and help build a team spirit as we move forward as One Team.
