Here's a simple stat from 2009 that I think bodes well for the Texans in 2010.  Take a team's rank in total offense and their rank in total defense and average the two together.  This gives you a rough approximation of the production of the team overall -- low man wins.  For last season, the winner was Green Bay Packers with an average rank of 4.0 (they ranked 6th in offense and 2nd in defense).   The Cowgirls were 2nd at 5.0, and the Vikings 3rd with 5.5.  So, the top three all made the playoffs, and the Vikings made it all the way to the Super Bowl.

What does that have to do with the Texans?    JUMP

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  Many people are upset that we traded Landry; I'm not.  Don't get me wrong, we're definitely going to miss Landry.  But, when I look at Kevin's production vs Carl's on a per minute basis, they're about even.  On a "total" contribution basis, I have Carl at 33.0, and Kevin at 32.4 -- close enough to even.  (For my per-minute calculations, see Rockets at All-Star Break).

With Landry and Scola, we had two of our best players playing the same position.  Adding Kevin distributes the talent more evenly.  Maybe more importantly, Kevin is a better fit for the team we want to be when Yao comes back.  With Yao in the lineup the middle gets pretty clogged up; the openings will be outside, not inside.  Kevin can take better advantage of those openings than Carl would have been able to.

I'm a big Rockets fan (1/2-season ticket holder) with an analytical background.  Thought at least some of you might be interested in the statistics I keep.  I look at stats on a per-minute basis -- for example, points per minute -- rather than in total or per game.  I think this is a better measure of real production since it puts bench players on the same basis as starters.

Many of the results are no surprise; e.g., Yao is the most productive scorer, and Deke is the leader in blocked shots.  You might or might not be be surprised to find out that even though Von Wafer is around 7th in total points, he's 2nd in scoring production.

So far, I have numbers for points, rebounds, assists, blocks, steals and free throw attempts (an underappreciated stat).  There's not enough room here to cover all of the results, but if you interested see this post.