[Cyberx News] Rockets among teams trying to trade for Bledsoe

Except Rondo is good at finishing at the basket, while Rubio is one of the worst PGs in the league in that regard.

 

Rondo is a much better shooter than Rubio and also much better at finishing at the rim.

I would be very disappointed if we got Rubio. The fact that that Minnesota team never sniffed the playoffs, let alone a .500 record even though they had Kevin Love makes me concerned about Rubio.

If he's as good as people say he is, they should have easily made the playoffs last season with Kevin Love.

 

You guys do realize that the next "big move" (IE: the one that strips the Rockets of assets like their young talent, NO pick, TPE, etc.) will probably be the move that solidifies this roster going forward right?

That being said, can anyone... ANYONE tell me straight to my face that Ricky Freaking Rubio is what puts this team over the edge from 2nd tier to 1st tier contender AFTER GIVING UP everything they'd have to give up to get him, stripping them of little to no abilities to add top tier talent or develop top tier talent for 2 to 4 years?????

I'd even go as far as to say that I feel the same about even better talents Faried, and Bledsoe.

I'm sure Morey will try to steal one of these guys if he can but thats the point.... Does anyone think Morey will actually be able to "Steal" anyone like Faried???

All this random trade thread talk (which is being labelled as "insider info") screams to me "Impatient fans wanting moves for the sake of making moves". Stop driving yourselves crazy in the meantime, and lets try to get excited about the new, underrated, young talent Morey is bringing in this training camp (which is only a short month away and the first preseason game which is about 4 weeks away).

Come December/January Morey will be much, much more aggressive with moves if nothing breaks with the current talent on the roster, but he's not going to throw the towel yet on this roster that hasn't even played a minute together on the floor yet this year.

 

I for one can't say how thankful I am that CF isn't the GM of the Houston Rockets...people, DM isn't going to put his flexibility on the line by signing Ricky freaking Rubio of all people as the 3rd piece that's going to bring a championship to Houston

Now lets just everyone take 5 and regroup

Spoiler

 

Feel better already

 

The only, and I mean only true/proven stars that you really have any chance at over the next 2 years are LMA and Durant. LMA said he's as much as signed the contract to stay in Portland, and Durant is two years away.

Trading for a Bledsoe or Rubio would be like when we traded for Harden. No one quite knows their upside, but bringing them in would prove that more thinks a lot of them.

 

I wouldn't be so certain Morey doesn't like Rubio. Rubio's the anti-Parsons. He doesn't have the box score stats, other than assists, but he does have some of that Battier thing of "everyone seems to play better when he's on the court" stuff. Does Morey like him so much he'd trade Minnesota a lot of assets AND give Rubio max? I doubt it. But if Minnesota don't believe they can re-sign him and the asking price drops, I wouldn't be so sure he won't pull the trigger.

 

lol

Rubio would not come near to making this team a championship contender. Morey will not lock down the cap unless a player makes us so. Now if Rubio can give us a very team friendly contract I can see shedding assets but he won't from what I have read.

 

Never thought McHale is a good coach before and probably not in the future.

But he at least got one thing right.

This is not NBA 2K, you can not just trade your way to the championship, its not very fair for the coach and the players also.

At some point, you at least need to give sometime for your players and coach the chance to grow,

together.

I am all for getting the 3rd superstar for the Roxs, like if we are the Cavs, I am all for trading anything other than Lebron and Kyrie for Love.

But other than that, we are not the team who took a gamble on Lin and Asik anymore, we don't need to take all these kind of Bledsoe, Faried, and god for sake Sessions wtf!? seriously, its a waste of time and it will get us no where.

 

Minnesota had a pretty solid offense last year. I'm not saying Rubio was surrounded with Ray Allen's of the world, but he had offensive talent around him. They failed to make the playoffs for two reasons:

(1) the biggest, 4th quarter collapses, which were often tied to the fact that in crunch time their two best players aren't the best get your own shot guys. Rubio is clearly horrible at it. Love is really good at it... for a power forward, in a guard driven clutch league where it is VERY hard to just give the ball to your PF or C down the stretch, though Love has had plenty of successful moments of doing just that, but he's still a PF.... he's not going to initiate plays, and worst comes to worst you just double team him, or anybody, off Rubio...not a strategy that would work the whole game, but in crunch time it worked great.
(2) defense

Point being, Rubio's not going to become a better shooter because he's surrounded by Rockets instead of TWolves.

Now, if Rubio could shoot and/or finish at the rim... well, then he's Tony Parker and headed to the HOF.

 

Despite nobody knowing Harden's true upside(given lower usage & MPG w/OKC), if you didn't already know he was a big time player when the Rockets traded for him, you just weren't paying attention.

That guy was a HUGE part of a finals team that really should have beat the Heat. Also, people have a short term memory on this, but Harden was the key for beating the Spurs, and took probably about 90's of the blame for OKC not beating the Heat. Mostly because the Heat were smart enough to know that Harden, while he might not be the best player, was really the key to their offense late in games.

Please don't compare Rubio, Bledsoe, and whoever else to what Harden was when the Rockets traded for him. Its insulting. After 3+ years in the league, we should know enough to know that they both aren't stud players, and in Rubio's case... not even a top half of the league starting NBA caliber PG, and unlike Harden, their roles & minutes in Houston would actually DECREASE from where they have been the past year or two.

And all that being said... I actually really like Bledsoe, and think Rubio will improve, but they are closer now to who they are than who they will be in two years.

 

If after 180 games averaging over 30 mins a game, nobody knows Rubio's upside.. it's cause there AIN'T ONE! Dude sucks! 'Sucks' might be a bit harsh, but he sure as hell isn't worth working to obtain, let alone to sign to a max contract.... I don't know why people talk about him like he's anything... maybe they just like rolling their R's on RRRRRicky RRRRubio.... idk...
As for Bledsoe, if after 4 years you don't know his upside it's cause he's always injured - THAT should be your first clue that he's not worth pursuing...
...jus sayin....

 

Do not want Rubio. Thank you for agreeing.

 

I need an update.

Haven't really followed these threads much so i'm lost. What is the scuttlebutt on getting Bledsoe and can someone give me a % chance we land him?

Thanks fellas.

 

Well then what do you suggest? We hold out for Durant or LMA, or hope that one of our current players becomes a star?

I'd say comparing Rubio's situation in Minnesota to Harden's in OKC is unfair. On one hand, you have one of the best run organizations in the league, and on the other you have one of the worst.

I suppose we could go round and round on this all day. Rubio and Bledsoe are both better players now and have higher upsides than any PG we have on this roster, and I believe you have to put the probably of Durant or LMA coming here at fairly low odds. Therefore, we should take the best calculated risk within our "winning" timeframe.

Another way to put this is, which of the following has the highest probability of happening?

LMA to Houston

Durant to Houston

Rubio becomes an average shooter

Bledsoe stays healthy and learns not to turn the ball over

In each of those scenarios, you're getting a star. You have to make one bet......which one?

 

He doesn't need to be "good".......he just needs to be average to be effective.

Can he be average? I think so. The two biggest areas of the game young players advance in throughout their careers are shooting and defense. He is not a talented shooter, but I believe he can build that up over time.

Again, you have to make a calculated bet at some point. All I'm betting is that he can become average. If you say you disagree, then you must be betting that the Rockets can get LMA/Durant, or that Bledsoe will stay healthy.

 

Can we bring in Llull if we get Rubio?

 

Ok. Well there is alot to comment on that, but just a few things-

A. Lets please not put Rubio, Bledsoe, etc. in a conversation with Durant and LMA. Rubio becoming a shooter, and Bledsoe staying healthy does not equate star player based on all the facts at hand.

Bledsoe (who is a superior player) had a fairly high Usage rate last year when healthy(maybe not superstar level but def. all star level usage), and produced a fair level 17PPG, 5.5 APG, while still maintaining a high defensive rating.

In Houston, Bledsoe's usage would surely drop and so would his offensive production, and defensively he's great, but so is Pat Beverley. IMO, I see an upgrade at PG but I don't see where this is a player that is going to be a franchise changer anywhere like a James Harden or the aforementioned superstars.

That being said... yes he'd improve the team.

What's the answer to upgrading the team to tier 1 status???... I don't know right this second but its not "Robbing Peter to Pay Paul". In a case like this where you are upgrading by marginally upgrading one position, what are you taking away to get that upgrade? You aren't rounding out the roster the way San Antonio does year after year with value contracts for players that fit their role to the T when you make a play for someone under this scenario. The San Antonio role player way is one way to upgrade. The other way is the obvious big 3 methodology which Morey tried for understandably, and probably failed at for good.

More players of the same caliber or better WILL BE available at some point, and the Rockets will be able to get them at a better rate that wont be robbing them of other key players or assets to get there. In the meantime, they keep their assets in the case that a true Stud player comes available in the future.

The reason why the Rockets will stay engaged in a "Bledsoe-like" situation is because they never know if the price might drop to an affordable bargain. If that happens I'm sure Morey and 29 other GM's will jump at the chance to add him. Right now the case is Bledsoe demanding superstar money, and Phoenix demanding all-star level talent back in return for a Bledsoe trade. I dont know why that scenario has Rockets fans all hot and bothered.

Something might change, but I doubt anything happens until teams find out that they aren't who they were hoping to be, and start making changes mid-season.... Its like paying for a toy on Christmas Eve (most expensive day to shop) when you really dont need it till next Summer, and you know after the new year its going to go on clearance.

 

Shooting =/= finishing at the rim. I'm not sure he can be average. And me doubting his finishing abilities (and other aspects of his game) doesn't mean I think we'll get LMA or Durant. It just means I don't like Rubio's game. I'm not crazy about Rondo but I would MUCH rather have him than pay Rubio max. I'm just anti-Rubio.

 

It also doesn't bode well for Rubio that the only shooting spot he excels at is the free throw line. Some players can't finish near the rim but can hit the 3 pointer; some can't shoot for crap behind the arc but can finish. Rubio does nothing well in terms of shooting.