Pros of gaining WB and Cons of losing CP3

he's 3.5yrs younger than cp3 not 5

 

The pros of getting Russ over Paul far out weigh the cons

 

For the friends angle, it actually goes back before their days in OKC.



So, it's a lot like Josh Smith and Dwight Howard who, if you didn't know, played on the same AAU team.

 

But it's kind of like 6, with the injuries (I'm not not serious on that). Man, i honestly think a CP3 in his late 20s/early early 30s would have been able to have worked out even better than season 1 we saw, just sucks, father time is cruel.

 

Wait. There's cons to losing cp3?

 

But better, right?? Haha, this is going to be on repeat now, like the AAU thing

 

Pro: We needed to do something..

Con: You usually gain a 1at rd pick when you trade a "max" player somewhere..

 

ya i've been dealing with all kinds of stuff like patellar tendonitis, sore achilles, etc myself while playing ball just twice a week. **** father time

 

Exactly man!! Same here!

I really hope this trade works, but I don't understand the hate this board gives CP3 sometimes, I mean that first season was amazing, if we got even 1 or 2 more of those, Houston would have a chip.

 

Unfortunately Cp3 is a "max" player only because of his salary. Not his ability.

 

yeah his body failed him, but otherwise he was very good for us. and the rift between him and harden seems to be very blown out of proportion. i mean for the first 5 games of the GS series they were both coming out together in the postgame pressers and seemed perfectly fine with each other. with westbrook, like Clutch i am not a fan of some aspects of his inefficient game. however i do respect him otherwise and i don't think chemistry is going to be a problem. very oddly enough, out of all the talking heads in the media, barkley has made the most insightful comments about this pairing. saying that russ needs to play 2 guard and let harden run the show. if russ is able to improve his percentages on open 3's and FT's, then this could work. we'll see

 

Yeah, I have a feeling the national telecasts will mention it every now and then, or at least talk about their friendship.

Hopefully it will mean they are more willing to work with each other too.

 

To ne fair was lbj a better option last year for him? That team was full of injury prone guys. U would have added one more plus have traded some of ur young guys to get him like we did.

In short I think your point of lbj being a better spot for him is questionable. Lasts years Lakers that is

 

Injuries and contract aside, I became a huge fan of CP3 during his time in Houston.

I am mostly going to miss his crafty ability to split the defense and constantly keep getting that corner jumper on the elbows. That thing was money and seeing a midrange in our offense was a welcomed addition.

His ability to steal the ball in the paint. His BB IQ is GOAT level inside the arch defensively. His ability to strip, swipe, poke the ball away to create a break/turnover is one that I just dont see Westbrook being able to do.

He was a voice and a leader. Always pro Rockets and pro TEAM. Never took the credit but gave all the praise. Openly voiced support for Harden's MVP runs, always gave credit to Tucker and Capela. Gordon when he was hot. Dude just wanted to win here and I respect his gritty style of play and his overall team-first approach.

At times, I loved watching a CP3 led Rockets offense. It was a welcome change of pace once a while and you saw his ability to control the floor. Nobody else has that ability, and it was a pleasure to watch.

And finally. he actually WANTED to come here, and wanted to make it work. Sure, the contract stings, but you cant expect the NBAPA president to take a pay cut. That's a conflict of interest regarding the greater good of the Players Association so I dont blame him.

I will never forget the 2017-2018 run. Without him, we never make it that far. Ironically, it was losing him that cost us the championship.

Ill look back at the CP3 era and have nothing but love for him. I loathed him when he was in NO and LA. He honestly gave us all he had and actually wanted to come to Houston, its just unfortunate there looks to be not much left. Its a move we had to do. If we could have kept him, I am sure we would.

 

Where is the Bastketball IQ con of losing CP3 and Gaining WB?

 

Good post. Looking forward to see Westbrook's adjustments. Not very optimistic there, but you never know. It is a fresh start for him too. I'm open to be gladly impressed.

 

Exactly my sentiment

 

i never thought we would have beat the thunder last year if we had met them in the first round of the playoffs.

As much as i can see all of his obvious flaws as basketball player, i do acknowledge what he does do that doesn't show up in his stats: RW wears the other team out. He puts a lot of pressure on the other team having to constantly play transition D, which tires their legs out, which leads to missing shots on the other end, gassing them by the fourth quarter.

With RW running the break, James harden trailing, someone else will be wide open for a 3: Eric Gordon and PJ Tucker. I can see this being a career year for EG. A lot of those setups from Paul weren't good enough to get him wide-open shots. But with Russ and James commanding double teams, that deep 3 from EG should be there. CC should also benefit sprinting down the floor with russ for easy dunks.

We are just basically hoping that this advantage in the fast break supercedes the disadvantages of having Russ off the ball in a seven game series.....

and one thing we do know is: Russ can probably play 40 minutes a game in the playoffs if needed.

We may as well just give him the ball and let him do his thing.

 

...because high BBIQ somehow heals hamstrings and reverses time so that CP3 stays at age 29 forever?