ClutchFans Game Thread: Rockets @ Timberwolves 12/3/2018

Scapegoating is pretty common in threads like this.

Make no mistake, it was a catastrophic offseason rotationwise and in terms of bringing in high quality role player.

If you go the CP3 path, you have to get a Jimmy Butler or another consistent scorer at all cost.

It's what you do, otherwise do not give him that contract. He won't be healthy enough to contend every year.

Morey is doing neither at that moment, it could change but right now nothing has been accomplished.

Morey is just paying for dragging out Harden's prime years and not being able to surround him with young enough stars YET.

(He still got couple more years)

 

Yeah sure, the Playoffs are like a tougher tournament, not a season system.

While in a tournament HC advantage is key, whoever gets hot and got the matchup bonus, can surprise.

The dilemma with us is MDA has been running Harden to the ground so that he is often gassed once the Playoffs roll around and intense Defense is being played on him.

Milk Hair did the same.

 

I didn't have to watch the game to know who won, although I did watch the game. All you have to do is glance at the length of the game thread after the game. If it's short, we won. If it is over 30 pages and growing, we lost. This place can be entirely predictable at times.

 

Oh no! We suck again! Again!

 

I would not have signed CP3 to a 4 year deal - and given him a 3 year Max with a 4th year team option and if he didn't like it....would have let him shop around.

DD

 

I assume that he was promised that deal when we got him. Would the Rocks really want to stiff the president of the player's union by welching on a promised contract? Morey clearly thought it was worth the risk. Considering how close we came to a championship last season, it wasn't a bad bet. Having said that, sure, I wish it was for 3 years, with a 4th year team option. You are not alone.

 

Depth, depth, depth. Familiar song. 7 games in 11 days. 3 games in 4. They start out hot and then fall off a cliff. Dead legs in shooting and lose the rebound battle. Classic signs.

While this wasn't a B2B, the team was tired through attrition. 7 in 11. And DEPTH again rears its head on minutes. Danuel House is a MAIN rotation piece, folks.

So, the Rockets are going to be UP and DOWN UNTIL they get more "playable depth" pieces. Just how it is.

This is on Morey to fix. Hopefully sooner than later.

 

I can't believe we play hardball everywhere but with old vets? I don't think players care as much about rep, and they care more about the team and the money....

I don't believe signing CP3 to a 4 year deal was good business - or if you ARE going to do that, you need to commit to keeping last year's team together and go deep into the Luxury tax for this short window.

Essentially the Rockets spent BIG to keep CP3 and then gutted the team around him and Harden - they literally closed their own window.

You don't say you are going to compete with Golden State then spit the bit on the competition for players part.

GS keeps their important role players, Livingston, Iguadola, Green and fill in those lessor role players - we literally flipped 2 of our top 7 players......just not smart if you are trying to win.

You don't **** with a win streak.....

DD

 

You can throw all of your rocks at Chris Paul. But remember, his "ceiling" in a playoff setting is higher than the role players given up for him.

That is why you make trades for "high ceiling players" who can raise their level of play in the biggest moments. Think back to the tail end of the Utah series.

I have no problem with CP on this roster. A big part of CP is just "augmenting" Harden's game. Keeps Harden balanced. That is PART of what you are paying for with CP.

As @Nook has mentioned many times, which I agree with, it is the DEPTH that is the big issue to buoy the team during stretches. Morey has to fix that. And in a macro sense, finding a 3rd star is critical. Another high ceiling player.

It is about improving your margin for error.

 

Fine, if you are going all in, then GO ALL IN - don't shirk on Ariza and Luc - pay them and keep the rotation intact - you can't replace an Ariza - he was KEY to this team.

DD

 

We do not even know if Ariza came back to the table with the Rockets on that contract. Suns could have said "take it or leave it right NOW." We just don't know. And Luc ain't doing F-ALL right now. And we don't know the "opportunity cost" of making those moves versus what might come.

"Change" is not the problem. It is the "right change" that didn't happen. Morey recognizes that (Haberstroh Pod). And he will have to rectify that with the "right change."

Less about Ariza/Luc change and more about "not making the right follow up moves." Lets see what Morey does.

 

I thought Paul actually looked good in the first half. He wasn't looking for his shot but he didn't need to with the lead being built up so much, and he was dancing with the ball, making crisp passes, just running the floor well. He was pretty bad in the second half but then so was every one else.

 

Projecting forward, I think what we saw in the 1st half of that Wolves game with CP is what we ultimately will see from CP down the road. A player that is not a "1B" to Harden in a scoring sense, but a player that will really augment the rest of the role players to lift the boat. But, the "quality" of role players and bench depth will have to be improved. And ideally a "1B" second star to Harden needs to be acquired. Like they tried to do with Butler.

 

But Morey has been pretty crap at understanding chemistry - and it is not something to take lightly, he has always been, put good players together and they will figure it out.

that is just bullshit - Dwight Howard, Melo to name two.

You need to get pieces that fit chemistry wise.

DD

 

He didn't include Tucker in the Butler deal. Who knows what other deals didn't happen similar to this.

 

He is a leader with Philly. He did not have to score that much.

 

There is no denying this. If GMs were rated like players in NBA2K, he'd have the lowest Chemistry-Building rating.

Chemistry 101 = "I need someone at each position"; thus keep the PF and trade the SG for Butler who is a SG/SF.

Advanced Chemistry = what @DaDakota is talking about; that is, the player styles must fit regardless of position. Morey is "pretty crap at understanding that," historically. Paul had to tell him to get Moute, for instance.

That said, his A+ rating at asset management, offsets his lake of caring for chemistry, and historically, allows him flexibility to hit home runs and fix his mistakes.

 

I get what you're saying, DD, but I agree with Deuce about CP3. He's made Harden a better player, in my opinion. Sure, I would have loved to have kept Trevor. I really wanted to keep him, but for $15,000,000 bucks? That's crazy money, and I'm at a loss to explain why the Suns offered him that. It blows my mind. I'm sure it blew Ariza's mind when he heard it.

Would he have taken a deal starting at $10 million from the Rockets? Say, 10, 12, 14, with the 3rd year a team option? That's the most I would have offered, had I been Morey, and he would have been assured of $22 million over two years. Not chump change. We'll probably never know what went down. I don't regret CP3's deal, though. Just wish it was a year shorter.

Luc? When I couldn't find a straight answer to what was done about his shoulder, I didn't want him back. No regrets there.

 

what really sucks is how Minny is being touted as this defensive juggernaut and that Covington and Wiggins shut us down and all this mess, when anyone that was watching really saw yet another Houston offensive collapse. 3 point shooting continues to be a mess. Leadership on the team is a joke. Feels bad man.jpeg.

 

So no assesment on the X's and O's last night, whatd you think of the trapping of Harden/CP? I'd like to know even if the answer is simple or obvious.