Capela has missed 10 games this season. Rockets are 9-1.

but we most likely are not getting a legit forward. tillman is just trying to shed salary. i doubt we end up with pieces that legit make us better.

 

I think part of the point is that we are clearly not that team anymore.

 

Think it's a small sample size but I agree with the bolded. We ran a lot of PNR in 2017 and now we run some the fewest.

 

Small ball works...stay tuned....MDA is gonna show Houston why.

 

Thank you DD....more concerned about playoff records than a meaningless 10 game stretch during regular season. Half the posters here think we can go to the Finals this year with half pint small ball. Just amazing. Clippers and Lakers are legit big teams and we have zero chance of winning with PJ or Harden at center....zero!!!

 

I think the point is that Capela is, for whatever reason, not being as effective as he was two years ago.

 

this isn't the same team as it was two years ago

 

SO MUCH THIS, we are too short.

This is a play for "Lets win a few in the regular season to keep the lemmings happy" but have no real shot in the playoffs.

DD

 

I hate to sound like a broken record. But this is all on Fertita.

if both D'Antoni and Morey know this is most likely their last year, makes sense to go all in on something they know won't happen again. Given Mike's age, this can be his last chance with a player of Harden's quality. In no other place they would have a shot at what they are doing, no one would allow James to go for 38 a game, nor go with 6'6 or smaller lineups.

Mike always talks about Phoenix and how he should have been more stubborn at the end before the Shaq trade, he mentions that if anything, they would have doubled down on what they did. You can check Steve Nash and Morey's on the Book of Basketball podcast.

Now let's go to Morey, Simmons insists he was about to leave in the offseason and decided against it at the very last minute. His boss is undermining his decision making, the Chinagate gets here and his position gets shakier. He knows that he can go to the Knicks and try again or even a future outside the NBA (Simmons insists he may be looking for offers outside basket)

 

Really don't like Fertita....

DD

 

Clearly. And Capela not being the same player is a contributing factor (one of several) to that.

 

his drop off isn't as dramatic as some of you are making it seem. most of it is due to the fit of the actual team now. domino effect of the off season

 

Well I don't think its THAT dramatic overall, but it is significant on the defensive end. I still think he's an above average center, but for our system, I'd rather have an above average wing and a below average center than the other way around, which is what we currently have.

 

if the rockets continue to play small much more than ever then sure. but when it comes time to face the elite teams who are much bigger then what. it's basically pick your poison

 

Poor PJ gonna die playing center all year.

 

Just seems like a foregone conclusion that we are dumping Capela, and it really doesn't make sense why.

If you are hell bent on getting under the tax, then just don't sign Gordon to the extension and dump his expiring.

This has the feeling of Tilman "learning along the way", which is a nightmare scenario.

 

Capela's skillset fits just about anywhere. With P.J. at four, you don't need offensive creativity from him.

 

I think a lot of people see trading Capela as a critique on him as a player. I don't believe that's the case.

The Rockets have two all-time elite penetrators (Brody + Beard) and two other above average drive & dish guys (Gordon & Rivers). The team is built for attacking the lane for easy layups, fouls and kickouts to wide open 3 point shooters.

We all love our alley oops to Capela, but watch a dozen games and you'll see something that happens almost every contest. Capela is open for those lobs early and then the opponent makes adjustments and those plays dry up late in the game. If he's not getting dunks, Capela is an absolute zero on offense otherwise.

Pulling Capela changes the offensive equation. With no big in the lineup, the Rockets get to punish any opponent that leaves a plodding rim protector in the game by playing their outside-in game. If their big doesn't guard aggressively at the 3 point line, the Rockets will kill you with triples. If they do, one of our guards will blow by the big to the rim.

When Capela is hovering around the lane, the Rockets suffer trying to get to the rim. Film study proves this - Harden and Westbrook need space to get easy, high percentage layups. Leave Steven Adams (for example) within range of the rim and they change their shots to avoid getting swatted and their efficiency plummets. Remove him from the lane and (barring the occassional wiff on a two handed dunk by WB) the Rockets are a layup machine.

The Rockets have an asset in Capela that is artificially inflated in value because he plays with Harden in a system designed to accentuate his one dimensional offensive game and to mask all his other deficiencies. He is likely to be overvalued by other teams, particularly because of his VERY team friendly contract. This means that the Rockets have the opportunity that every trader loves - to sell high on an asset that is overvalued relative to his actual production.

If Morey and D'A are all in to win this year, trading Capela is exactly the kind of move that makes sense, particularly if the numbers suggest the team is better off without him on the court. They can test the small ball lineup for the rest of this year and not be around to have to clean up the mess if it doesn't work out.

I for one will be fascinated to see what Morey comes up with at the trade deadline.

 

we’ll see how all this midget ball and playing scrub C’s does against the likes of the Lakers, Jazz, and Nuggets come playoff time...trash Capela all u want, but he’s certainly no liability against those particular teams

Rockets were getting obliterated on the glass by the Pelicans for a large majority of the game, but it’s the Pelicans so u can survive that...let that happen against the Lakers tho...