If Eric Gordon and Clint capela don't turn into their old selves real soon i think its safe to say we'll probably never win a championship with James Harden in his prime. If by years end EG and Capela's contract are negative contracts -- as they are right now -- there will be no way to meaningfully improve the team so we'll be stuck with what we've got. it is not a good thing when house and mclemore are two of your best players. and PJ is looking old too. Russ needs a center who can at least shoot a midrange jumper to give him space or shoot when he dumps it off after a drive....capela just turns the ball over cuz he can't dribble or shoot worth a ****. He is only playable against traditional centers who aren't mobile....kelly olynyk and meyers leonard made him look like ****. i will still be fan, but it looks like morey gave away our future...we have no real young talent and can't fully rebuild until later. we are a fringe playoff team right now, with the spurs, mavs, and even suns looking to be on the rise. the nets and heat were just letting russ shoot clogging the driving lanes, and i think a lot of teams are going to do just that. i am crossing my fingers and hoping we are just out of shape and all of that usual beginning-of-the-season stuff. but if not, its looks like we are in deep ****.
Keep in mind, though: Morey didn't give away the future by making simply bad trades, he gave away the future to make bad trades specifically to keep his boss out of the luxury tax. Dumping draft picks in order to dump salary. This one's not on Morey, he was just following orders. Even the giant Ryno contract was in line with what other GMs were doing that summer.
Capela is fine, he is losing time - and Westbrook is stealing rebounds......this is 100% a Russ Westbrook disruption. DD
i'm not blaming morey because i know he's merely doing what the boss wants...sell tickets, make money. Its just that we need to sit through this ****, an illusion that we are contenders, when we appear to be stuck in mediocrity for years now.....unless some miracle happens and we find undrafted rookies...
Winning a title was a long shot to begin with. The NBA has been ruled by dynasties so unless you are on a dynasty, it is very rare to win a title. Right now they are not "negative contracts". Eric Gordon has played a total of 200 minutes this season...... that is 3.5 hours of basketball. Capela certainly has positive value around the league and would be quite an asset on the right team. House has just looked good period...... and that is a good thing as he extends the Rockets depth. PJ Tucker should be a 6th man..... Capela and Westbrook are a bad mix for spacing purposes. It is also why Capela will be dealt if the Rockets get a good trade offer. The Rockets don't need a center that hits mid range shots, they need a center that can hit 35% on 3's. The offense would hit another another level. Morey? I think you are mixing up the GM and the owner. It wasn't Daryl that wanted to deal Anderson for what amounted to two first round picks. It wasn't Daryl that was pushing for the Westbrook deal. [/QUOTE]we are a fringe playoff team right now, with the spurs, mavs, and even suns looking to be on the rise. the nets and heat were just letting russ shoot clogging the driving lanes, and i think a lot of teams are going to do just that.[/QUOTE] Yeah...... that is because it is a personnel issue. It isn't really an "in shape" issue........ it is having a new player added to the team (Westbrook) and also learning a new defensive system.
If Westbrook is stealing rebounds, then Capela should have more time to do things like defend the post.... but he hasn't really been good at that. The reality is that Westbrook is a vastly superior play than Capela and if Clint cannot adjust (I said it was a bad fit before the season started) then Clint has the problem and will need to go. Westbrook helps a lot with the rebounding issue for the Rockets, which is only more fire for the Rockets need a long wing to play the 4/5 that can switch quick, alter shots and hit 3's.
This is a key point, IMO. At his age, PJ doesn't have the energy to chase kids around for 35 minutes every game. He should be coming off the bench to play 20 or so, bringing constant hustle. The problem is we have nobody to slot in as the starting PF, and aren't likely to acquire a starting-caliber PF anytime in the near future.
Yes and it also immediately transforms the Rockets bench from mediocre to one of the best in the NBA. Assuming the Rockets deal Capela for a 4/5 that fits better and then trades for someone like Crowder to play the 4........ The Rockets bench then has: Tucker, Gordon, Rivers, Thabo and Tyson Chandler..... Other than the need for another good three point shooter (McLemore?) the bench is very strong and very good defensively.
You have your ear in a lot it seems. Have you heard anything regarding Houston obtaining a 4/5? Doing that plus Crowder would be a pipe dream
Yes. The Rockets have been trying to get a long wing (3/4 or 4/5) since before the season started. The problem is that it is early in the season and a lot of teams are reluctant to make a deal this early. The teams I have heard willing to make moves are the Grizzlies and the Pacers.
It's a shame we can't offer anything for Turner, he'd be a perfect fit, I'm sure lots of teams are looking at him. Bruno isn't getting much PT in Memphis which is weird after he had a nice season last year, I'd like him back.
True, but Morey has never been a fan of building through the draft. He is much more confident in trading for proven players (or undervalued players) on other teams than picking talents in the draft. He has been mostly successful in that regard. But any GM makes mistakes no matter how good you are. It's inevitable. When you make a mistake big enough, like the Ryno signing, and the CP trade/contract, you lose all your leverages and you no longer can afford any significant improvement. (Yes, I consider the CP trade a mistake, a huge one IMO, because I assume that the subsequent ludicrous contract was attached to the trade.) And it doesn't help when your owner cares more about money than winning.
Next ten games or so will tell us a tremendous amount about this season the future of the Rockets franchise.
Gotta disagree with you on that one, since it got us closer to a title than we've been since the mid-'90s. It was a little short-sighted in that CP3 would start his decline so soon, but I still say the trade was a success overall. If that hammy had stayed healthy, we'd have a title and the remaining years of his or WB's contract would be looked at as the price we paid to get it.
