Not as concerned about his age as I am his position in the NBA. Typically age seems to matter more from 18-20 because guys are still growing into their own bodies. Rozier is what he is, athletically, which is fine... but I wonder what he'll become at this level. Seems to have a good work ethic to where you can safely expect some improvement, but I'm not sure he's a PG... and question his feel for the game (at least at PG). He's all stop-and-go, esp in the halfcourt, and doesn't seem to know what he wants to do yet. Hopefully that's just part of the learning curve -- I'm sure it's steep -- and not reflective of his court sense.
He gave good minutes tonight, which is nice. Agree with all those above that would like for him (and the other rookies) to see more minutes sooner than later. Hard to tell where these guys are at from watching them in spot minutes, and doubt it'd make that significant of a difference (negatively) to start giving them some legitimate time. We shall see. Hunter looks good, too... but still spot minutes, rail-thin, and a bit hesitant on offense. Really liked what I saw from him against the Hawks, though. Seems like a safer bet to carve out an NBA career.
What exactly do you mean by "legitimate time"? When everybody's healthy, we have four guards who need to be legitimate parts of the rotation in Bradley, Smart, Turner, and Thomas.
I don't see how Brad gets the rooks in to the regular rotation unless it's because injuries dictate that one of them gets called up, as it's been thus far.
I agree with you. It's not really possible, which is a bit frustrating at fans, but we have our own interests at heart. Sort of a Catch-22 -- fans want to see what the rookies have to offer, and management/coach want to win games. Obviously tough to balance with such a deep roster. Injuries have dictated some PT for Hunter (AB) and Rozier (Smart), though, so we have gotten some chance to gauge their readiness, which is nice. I'm sure each will get their look in due time.
CBS has shown a willingness to pull guys when their heads aren't in the game or they simply aren't performing. If that nets 12-15 mpg for a guy like Hunter (injuries taken into account), that seems ideal. I guess it is up to not just injuries, but whether or not CBS has similar questions about what RJ may provide, now and in the future. I imagine this issue will be at least partially rectified with roster moves, though I'm not sold that'll happen by the deadline.
