[USA Today] Rockets GM Daryl Morey happy with roster after trade

Post-deadline Q&A

Rockets GM Daryl Morey happy with roster after trade: 'We feel very comfortable we can beat the Lakers'

Shortly after the NBA trade deadline passed Thursday afternoon, Morey spoke to USA TODAY Sports explaining why he feels otherwise. Below is an edited portion of his Q&A.

What do you think the trade does?

Morey: "We’re obviously excited. Covington is a guy we’ve been trying to get for a long time. (Coach) Mike (D'Antoni) has really figured out how to most maximize our two superstars and style of play. We’re excited to put it on the floor and start beating up on people."

How did you weigh the pros and cons of trading Capela?

Morey: "Clint is a great player and great human. He was an amazing Rocket and is definitely going to be missed. Obviously he’s going to do great in Atlanta. The reason to do this is James Harden. I think the key to winning a championship is get superstars who are great players. We have that with Westbrook and Harden, and then get the right fit and the right style around them. With Mike’s approach with shooting and space, that’s where we’re at our best. Adding a Covington where we can shore up our perimeter defense and also be a top-notch shooter is a huge part of our ability to play that way. We’re ready to go to battle.

"On offense, we think it’s a pace game, an athleticism game and it’s a shooting game. It’s spacing. It’s us having guys who are dynamic that can attack off the dribble. With defense, we think you have to start at the perimeter and be solid there. Unfortunately, rim protection is really difficult these days with the rules that they are if a guy is getting downhill. It’s very hard even if the center is back to handle that. You have to cut off penetration at the start with a strong perimeter and then get the rebound and get out and go."

You said two months ago you did not think you would make a deal. What changed your sentiments?

Morey: "It was really just Covington becoming available. We’ve been working on that for a long time. We thought he’d be a perfect piece to play the style we thought would be best for two superstars on our roster. Clint is an extremely good player and one we did not want to give up. But it was required in this deal. Without the perfect piece for how we wanted to play becoming available, Clint would still be here. That was really the only way to get this done."

How significant were the luxury tax savings?

(Capela has three years worth $51.3 million left on his contract after this season; Covington has two years worth $25 million left on his deal after this season.)

Morey: "None. I was happy because it gave us a window to add someone. But no one was moving any players in that window, unfortunately, that we thought could help us."

Have you gotten the message from up top about trimming on luxury taxes?

Morey: "No. Actually, I’m being totally up front. I was getting strong encouragement to go the other way."

Really?

Morey: "Yeah. Absolutely. Ownership incorrectly gets beat up. We operate like every other team in the NBA. When you’re a contender, you’re right around the luxury tax line. That’s how we’ve always operated. That’s how we’ve operated since I’ve been here since 2006. We still have a huge payroll in the league. I know people like to focus on it. But that’s a weird thing. Focus on the team on the floor. If people don’t like that we don’t have a big man or don’t like how we play, that’s fine. But judge us for how we are. Judge us on our wins and losses. We’ve had one of the best records in the league for 10-14 years and have been a perennial playoff contender. We got an exciting roster with top players. I would talk about that. I don’t understand why people are focused on the other stuff."

Where do you see the Rockets being in the mix among the other Western Conference contenders?

Morey: "We feel very good. Vegas just came out. We’re the third favorite to win the title. So clearly, a pretty objective source thinks we’re pretty damn good. We want to get home-court in the playoffs as long as we can get it. We feel pretty good down the stretch to position ourselves well for the playoffs. As much as people want to say, 'How will you handle this guy or that big guy?' I say the other coach is even more afraid sitting there wondering how the hell are they going to play their big guy who has no one to guard."

Even with saying that, what do you think your top needs are on the buyout market?

Morey: "Honestly, we’re just going for best player. We like how we’re playing. People are saying, 'You have to get a big this or a big that.' But we’re going for the best player. If that’s a big, we’ll go grab it and figure out if he can fit into our style. If it’s a wing, we’ll do that. We feel very comfortable with our roster. We like where we’re at. We think this is a team that can win the championship. But if we can add a good player in the buyout market, we’ll do it. But we’re not counting on the buyout market."

What were your expectations with the Harden-Westbrook pairing and how have you seen it play out?

Morey: "We’re thrilled. We wanted to get our pace up. Westbrook has single-handedly done that. If we want to play this small style, which we did, we knew we needed to have guards that could switch with Russ, Eric and James. We knew we needed to have guards who were also strong and could rebound. Obviously Russ is pretty famous for being the best rebounding guard ever probably. We have the roster to unlock how we’re playing. We have it even more now with Robert Covington. We really feel like this is the direction the NBA is going to be going. Just like everyone was scratching their heads wondering why we’re shooting 50 3s a couple of years ago and saying we can’t win anything, we almost knocked off the Warriors. Now they will wonder why they have a 5 who has no one they can guard on the floor.”

What’s the goal now for 3s?

Morey: "However they get it. You’re sort of screwed guarding us. If you cut off penetration, we’re going to take a lot of 3s. You try to take away the 3-pointers, we’re going to get a lot at the rim. Hopefully how many we take is dictated by the opponent a little bit."

Even if you like this deal, do you have any concerns moving forward beyond health?

Morey: "No, we’re comfortable with this roster, obviously. It’s very tough competition in the West. The Lakers deserve to be called the favorites. They play better than anyone to this point. They’re playing unbelievable basketball at both ends. So they’re the favorite. We’re in a group with the Clippers, Utah and Denver and the other top contenders in the West to fight with them. But we feel very comfortable we can beat the Lakers. Right now, they deserve to be called the favorite in the West. Milwaukee, if we’re lucky to get enough to play them, is looking pretty tough in the East. It’s never an easy road in the West. It should be fun for us and the fans. We’re really excited to see what we can do. We’re comfortable with what we got."