[538] Rockets Still Relevant

the rockets should embrace their big 5. they've proven they can win and have only lost to the best team of all time. its ok to kick the tires on adding another star if jimmy, westbrook, and others become available, but we don't need to desperately shop our guys around.

we also don't have to maintain a holding pattern to be ready for whatever next star hits the market. i think its ok to support our starting 5 by providing a bench who can lower their minutes and keep them fresh. 2 more bench players worth more than the minimum is all we need to win now.

 

We're the 5th best team in the West and are looking at a first round exit as currently constructed.

If we stand pat, yes we're still a pretty good team, that's championship aspirations have come to a close unfortunately. That's primarily due to what other teams around us have done, not really what we've failed to do persay.

 

we'll have to agree to disagree.

the difference between our 65 win season and last year wasn't that we lost a star player. getting back to 65 wins won't require the addition of a star player either. the difference between the two seasons was ariza, moute, and a productive nene. we just need depth around our starting 5.

 

I'll like our outlook a lot more if our "stability" leads to a great start to the season while the other, newly-renovated teams are still figuring everything out.

Also, let's not forget, Tilman did not want this "stability" - he did not want to run the team back. So before we get too far down the path of "dumb Rockets fans don't know what they want" let's acknowledge that this line of thinking came straight from the owner himself.

 

Not a single forecast system nor the pros in Vegas agree with you, but I’m sure you are the correct one

 

There is zero basis for this other than putting way too much stock into the quantity of new players that other teams have. Fans are injecting an emotional component into their stochastic models, whereas data modelers... Aren't.

 

Yep. Let the game be played. Some of these teams look good on paper but health/chemistry is so crucial

 

Their metric really loves them some bigs. Would you have Hart has a better defender than Tucker? Or shoot, even Clark?

 

I’m much more optimistic than most I think about where we stand and feel like a good chunk on here are just upset because we’re not making major acquisitions that we don’t necessarily need to make. But I do agree and have thought for awhile now that most of the anxt on here is because fans were promised a new toy that they didn’t end up getting. Didn’t need it, but the promise of it makes not getting it frustrating.

 

I made a similar comment the other day while listening to some guys melt down over the summer so far! I've been looking outside every day and the sky hasn't fallen yet.

 

Those same forecasts had Toronto winning the title and Milwaukee winning 60 games, etc., etc... Right? Didn't think so.

 

I’m surprised people think the problem is we brought back most of the guys from last year. It’s not about that. We are having a better summer than if we had traded for Butler. However, we have glaring weaknesses left to be addressed that could’ve been with 2 more additions.

I think some veterans would’ve definitely come for the minimum, BAE or part of the MLE. Maybe I am mistaken, but from everything we know, even the guys we are chasing are far from ideal. That is worrisome for now.

 

Who the hell cares? Aren't these all regular season projections? We all know Rockets and James Harden kill it in the regular season, nothing new

Playoffs where it matters is a different story. Our superstar freezes under bright lights, our GM keeps insisting 3 ball and our coach plays 6 men

 

exactly. this year we have rivers, house, and maybe most importantly a defensive coach, all from day 1.

james and clint are pretty durable and i expect they miss less games than last year. paul will probably still miss the same-ish.

we still need to add 2 rotation players before the start of the season but if we get that i think we should be considered #1 in the west for the regular season.

 

Why are we all so focused on what happened 2 seasons ago or last year with this team? I'm talking about Harden and Paul and Gordon all being a year older, another year away from their prime and towards the end of their career. And we are bringing up 65 wins and getting the Warriors in the second round, blah, blah, blah... The league is catching up quick, I can't believe the Kool aid bring drank in this thread, smh

 

So the Rockets as currently constructed would beat the Lakers in a 7 game series? Just wanna read a yes reply from you please.

 

Stability by bringing them back is great and I'm all for it, but it's not going to matter unless we change the offensive scheme to a more ball movement offense and leave ISO on emergency cases.

 

Yes