I think the Rockets knew Dwight would opt out and were okay with that. However, I disagree with your contention about bad messages and loyalty. They did shop him before the trading deadline. They held on to Dwight not because of loyalty, but because their asking price was too high.
Thats still of the mindset that we're "A top FA destination" the Giannis, KAT and Noel's of present are the future superstars that Melo, Durant, and LBJ are today. How bout the Rockets draft/develop/pay their own future superstar instead of trying to outbid for someone else's? We have the time, this roster is not set up to win a title. What happens when/if we strike out with those guys 2-3 years from now?
You can't just "sign the up and comers" because those players are almost always restricted FA's, and their teams almost always match. You can't just "draft/develop/pay their own future superstar". With Harden, you're never going to realistically be one of the worst teams in the league, barring injury, therefore you're never going to be in range for a true superstar talent. There are exceptions, but those are very rare and require a lot of unforeseeable luck. If it were as easy as y'all make it out to be, the Rockets would do it. Hell...every team in the league would do it.
I think the Rockets were hoping he would opt out. I have no doubt they shopped Dwight, but were most likely not happy with what the offers were. Only way a deal would have went down is if Dwight would have opted in or possibly agreed to resign with the team he was traded to.
Its easy to look at the Anderson contract and think its a ridiculous overpay, but looking at it as a percentage of the team's cap puts it back in perspective. Ever since it was rumored that Les wanted to bring in MDA, I've felt that it would be a hire to keep the team competitive enough in the regular season to consistently make the playoffs, but not enough to actually win a title... the priority was to have an 'exciting' product, but not necessarily a championship one. Not to mention that GSW is looking like they are going to be completely dominant (jinx!) for the next few years.
Baby steps man. Morey is not as successful drafting 1st rounders as he is finding hidden gems in FA or trades.
Almost does not mean always. And there will be teams that will not match RFA offers for various reasons like Sixers at 5 spot. Will not be able to pay all 3 guys: Noel, Embiid, Okafor Same situation in Sacramento. Have to identify these type of opportunities and leverage value trades before players lost without any return. Its easy to **** on other peoples ideas and crying about your situation. Giving up is for losers.
