From the CC.net homepage: "Rudy pushed for the Terence Morris swap, that had the Rockets sending a future first rounder to Atlanta, but Rockets owner Les Alexander was against the deal. He finally relented and agreed with Tomjanovich but that deal almost did not go down, a source told ClutchCity.net." My question: Was Les right? How seriously have we depleted (signed away) our future income stream of first-round draft picks? I haven't been able to keep up with all the additions and subtractions, but by my reckoning, we just cashed in our previous stockpile as well as one more that was coming to us, and we still owe another. Just how far are we in the hole at this point? If our current roster doesn't click, and we can't trade guys like Walt and Cato for beans, have we trapped ourselves in mediocrity for years? Was Morris--a second-round selection for whom we spent a first-round pick--worth digging ourselves deeper into that hole?
Will, Norm Hitzkas on Sports Radio 1310 in Dallas was reporting that Houston was in position to have three more picks next year. That was before the Morris trade went down. Maybe someone that has a little more knowledge can confirm it. If that is true it should leave us with two for next year. ------------------
It's all good to me. It's all about creating a Family. Terence fits perfectly. This was a deep draft. Good move if you ask me. ------------------ humble, but hungry.
Time will tell, but despite his 43% shooting last year, I think he recorded like 55% when Steve was dishing him the ball in college. Taking the angle that he prefers to play a role rather than lead, he could be a perfect fit for this team. A talented athlete without the ego. I think the glass is half full. I prefer to think of him as a high lottery pick of the 2000 draft that we're paying 2nd round money to at the expense of a future 1st rounder that wasn't ours to begin with that we would have had to pay a guaranteed contract to.
Excellent move. The pick the Rockets gave was the Turkcan pick Philadelphia owes them, and that wasn't owed until 2004 if I understand correctly. And you know with the Sixers it'll be a bottom 5 pick every year. Morris has lottery talent, would've been a lottery pick a year ago, and he fits in great here already with his connections to Maryland. And it makes Steve happy. The value of Terence Morris to this team imho exceeds that of a future 25th pick (in weaker drafts) or that of a future 25th pick in trades. Good move. ------------------ EDDIE, EDDIE, EDDIE!!! Draftsource.net-- the premier source for draft info. Profiles, rankings, mock drafts, and more! The Mo Taylor Fan Site
It depends, if we're able to unload some of the many small forwards that we've got. We're fine. Cuz right now we've got Walt, Shandon, Eddie, Langhi, Morris, and even 'Los, playing possibly the same position. ------------------ Dream Rejects Every Attempt Made
Will, we could always tank again. Francis trade gave us an extra pick Collier trade gave us an extra pick plus our natural 2001 pick those three brought us Griffin. How did we ruin our draft future by using future considerations from the past. As for the Morris trade, that wasn't our natural pick, either, it came from Turkcan. So, to me that is merely cashing in on Turkcan finally and getting a similar player to Rashard of equal age. How does Morris for Turkcan ruin our drafting future? Bottomline: Francis and Griffin are arguably the two best picks in 2 of 3 yrs. That will cost you. No pain, no gain.
I think it was a good trade for # of reasons. 1) Like Cat had already mention, the pick will be from Detroit and it doesn't have to be their own, so you can bet it will be something from #23 to #29. Usually these picks will result in a "role player" at best, which Morris is "expected/groomed" to be. 2) It's not guarantee money. If he suck big time in his 1st year, you drop him without worrying about year 2 and 3. 3) You show Francis (who will be a FA soon) that you value his opinion and that will increase the chance for him to re-up with you. I think Rudy looks at Morris as the pre-injured Walt, where he has multiple skills. Had the complaint came from CD instead of Les, I would be more worry. In this case I trust Rudy's judgement more than Les. I think Les didn't like the deal because he worry Morris will be like Cato, which I guess could happen. But with his friend Francis there, I think Morris will be more motivated than ever. ------------------ 15 years later... Zoom
An early second-round pick is sometimes worth more than a late first-rounder, because you avoid paying guaranteed money to a guy, if he doesn't work out. And I don't mind giving Steve his chance at talent evaluation. If Morris works out, great! If not, then you never have to hear him campaign for another draft pick again. ------------------ I'm so amazingly cool you could keep a side of meat in me for a month. I am so hip that I have difficulty seeing over my pelvis.
How often are good players picked up after the 14th pick? If we plan on making the playoffs, the best we can get is 14. you really can't get much there, unless you get lucky. Look at the Clippers and Vancouver. They have been lotto teams for years, not getting anything. And since the Clippers have yet to play, we can't determe how good they are. Picks are nice, but you can't build your team around them every year. ------------------ "Bada Bing!"
This pick is the one from Philadelphia, but it isn't Philadelphia's pick. This is the pick that will come from Detroit. Detroit traded it to Philly in the Stackhouse deal, Philly traded it to Houston for Turken, Houston trades it to Atlanta for Morris. There is still 4 years left for Detroit to deliver the pick and it can be any pick (so they can trade for the last first rounder in the draft if they want). It isn't a terribly valuable pick. ------------------
Les is a Yankee owner, not a basketball guy. Do we really want THIS owner making personel decisions. Let Jerry be Jerry, not Les. ------------------ "Chucky who? I thought we were talking about basketball?" Charles Barkley
The more curious question is why Les just didn't buy a 2nd round pick like Cuban purportedly has done in the past. This would have saved that first rounder. No reflection on TRock but this does not make sense to me ------------------
I've watched a lot of ACC ball. If Morris plays like he did two years ago the Rockets will have gotten a steal. I'm not a Maryland fan but I think Morris is victim of too much hype. Hype he couldn't live up to. I think Rocket fans will love his work on defense and he is an underrated ball handler for his size. He’ll get his hands on a lot of balls, especially in the passing lanes, and he is unselfish. Offensively he isn't on all the time but when he is on a roll he is very solid. Morris is one of those players who will be up and down offensively but will find a way to contribute. He’s no Vince Carter but he he’s no scrub either if you don’t respect his outside game he will bust your @ss. I hope Morris becomes like Mobley, a second round pick with something to prove to everyone who passed on him. ------------------
Come on man, xhill out ! Every time something great happens, someone wants to start worrying about the friggin future. Hey, lets go play ball and let the future take care of itself. Like this team isn't stocked to the gills now. The Rockets are explosive. Now give Hakeem 6.5 million and get on with it. ------------------
As far as I can tell: the Rockets still owe Vancouver a #1; the only thing we have coming to us are the 2 #2s from Chicago. The one we owe Vancouver will have to be good anyway and I'm betting we won't have a first-rounder next draft. There are still trades to be made, though, I'm sure and picks might be involved. Don't worry. We're only one #1 in the hole. ------------------ RealGM Gafford Art Artisan Cakes
If it turns out the Rockets don't have a number one next year then thats fine with me. Next year is suppose to be a weak draft, kind of like last year. ------------------
There are plenty of GOOD NBA players who are not big time scorers. In fact I'd be so bold as to suggest that every team NEEDS players who are willing to do the dirty work and not seek the glory of trying to score 15ppg. Facts are Morris shot 34% from the 3 point line for his college CAREER - including that lousy 29% his senior year. His college CAREER FG% was just a pinch under 50 - this is a guy who can score when needs be, he scored at 55% last time he played with Francis and Obinne Ekezie and was just required to be a role player. Morris is NOT a bad shooter, but this is not what he is on this team for. CD stated that he liked the way Morris moved in defense and coupled with his long wingspan makes him a mean defender. This showed up in college, he blocked shots (2.3, 2.1 + 2.2 per game) and gets steals 1.9/game over his career, and he is also an EXCELLENT rebounder for his frame, averaging 7.8 per game over his last 3 college seasons. Now I hear the argument that Griffen does all these things and better, and I'm not here to argue that. But are you not excited to have a CHEAP SF coming off the bench to play minutes behind Eddie who plays better D and doesn't lose a beat in the intangibles department? Oh and what about those periods of the game where we have Griffen and Morris on the court at the same time,m those long 6'9 frames manning the forward spots and giving us the option of playing a full court press and being exceptionally mobile while still being superb defenders and giving an interior presence. Is anyone terribly distressed that Walt might sit for longer stretches of a ball game now? I like Langhi as much as the next man, but he doesn't bring anywhere near the defense and hustle that T-Mo brings - sure he's a sweeter shooter, but T-Mo has a much wider range of skills. Redundant? I don't think so. (Bullard plays at PF NOT SF) ------------------
