I know the seasons not over. However, I was reading John Hollinger's articles "Top 25 free agents in summer of '07" and realized there are some pretty good players to be had. In a dreamworld, Houston would pay a luxury tax to pick up Billups but I just don't see that happening. Realistically, I think we need to bring back Mutombo and Hayes. I'm not so sure Wells is worth saving. Hopefully, there's a bit of cash left over to pick up another good player. Here's a few folks I'd like to see us target for a reasonable price (2007 salaries listed), a good fit and sans baggage. Mo Williams, Bucks - $1,920,000 The departure of T.J. Ford allowed Williams to become a starter, and he's taken that opportunity and run with it. Williams is putting up big numbers -- 18.3 points, 6.3 assists -- and looks increasingly confident running the point despite questions in this area when he left college. He's improved every year, so he'll be a prime target for teams who need point guard help but can't afford Billups. Jason Kapono, Heat - $1,188,000 He's hitting a sizzling 52.5 percent on 3-pointers as a result and has the fourth-best true shooting percentage in basketball; that should earn him a nice payday over the summer. Won the 3pt shootaround at the All-Star weekend this year. DeShawn Stevenson, Wizards (player) - $932,015 Stevenson had to settle for the minimum after opting out of his contract with Orlando a year ago; I have a feeling he'll do better this time. The 25-year-old defensive specialist finally is beginning to blossom at the offensive end, shooting 46.5 percent on 3-pointers while reducing the 20-foot fadeaways off the dribble that had been his previous calling card. Stevenson has been excellent since Antawn Jamison went down with an injury. Anderson Varejao, Cavs - $945,600 Scouts and execs absolutely love the guy because he plays hard all the time and never needs the ball. But on the other hand, you have to wonder if he's already pretty close to his ceiling as far as productivity and, if so, whether that output is worth anything more than the midlevel exception. Chucky Atkins, Grizzles - $3,000,000 Atkins is a fantastic outside shooter, which fit in with Memphis' general philosophy of surrounding Pau Gasol with shooters and letting the 3s fly. He also has retained some penetration skills, even at 31 last year, and can get to the basket and draw fouls. Atkins takes care of the ball, annually posting among the lowest turnover ratios at his position, but he's a mediocre passer who does most of his shot-creating for himself. Charlie Bell, Bucks (restricted) - $744,551 The fourth key Milwaukee player who will become a free agent after the season, Bell should be a desirable commodity because he's still fairly young (27), he plays solid defense on the wings despite his small stature (6-3), and he can shoot the rock (36.9 percent on 3s for his career). Mikki Moore, Nets $1,070,00 The hyperactive big man has been a revelation with New Jersey this season, shooting 61.5 percent from the floor while basically saving the Nets' season after Nenad Krstic went down. That said, I would bid very carefully with him. Matt Carroll, Bobcats - $1,188,000 Carroll has a rep as a shooter and he certainly can stroke it, but unlike a lot of shooters he has a real knack for getting to the line. That helps him get points even when the jumper isn't falling, which is why he scores so much (19.3 points per 40 minutes) for a shooting specialist. -mostly excerpts from article
Well, a 25 year old PG average 18 and 6 will probably get close to atleast 8 million a year, and there's just no way the Rockets can compete even if they wanted to.
mo william bring everything to table.....check out his numbers this season <http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/players/3750> 18.6 pts 6.3 ast 5.1 rbs 1.2 steals 35.7% 3 pts that look alot like bobby sura number except the pts
In all honesty, I expect him to atleast get Rashard's numbers, if he doesn't then his agent should change get careers.
I like Mo Williams. He could fit in here nicely and he brings toughness and decent playmaking skills. Stevenson would also be good, if Bonzi decides to leave the Rockets. He can hit the outside shot, play solid defense, and he's still very young.
The question is who realistically could be/should be signed by the Rox for the MLE, or a split part of it. I believe only Mo Wms from your list. However, from the rest of Hollinger's list: Outlaw Mo Pete Udoka But where oh where are the prospective 4s?
As far as I am concerned, the top 3 most important FA for Rockets to look at are: 1. Chuck Hayes 2. Dikembe Mutombo 3. Jake Tsakalidis.
For a prospective 4, I would look at Varejao's numbers while Zydrunas Ilgauskas was out. DATE TREB STL BLK PTS 02/14 17 2 2 9 02/15 11 2 1 15 02/21 15 0 1 16 I didn't mention Outlaw, Mo or Udoka because they are either inconsistent or not showing upsell value given their minutes.
won't hayes require some of the MLE? mutombo = vet's exception. anyone like billups (more than the MLE) is not possible. i'm guessing a guy like mo williams should find a way to get more than the MLE also. Atkins is possible.. Stevenson could replace Wells if they don't think Snyder is up to the task
in other words staying pat? hayes height has an issue the past few games. if only jvg would swap jho and hayes's postions over when they're on the court. i'd like to see if his troubles would then still exist. rockets don't need both deke and jake. jake has a future but will his asking price be friendly enough?
Atkins is the only one who we have a realistic chance to get. Matt Carroll an outside chance. Mo Williams is likely to walk and get a contract around the 7 to 8 million mark, and Charlie Bell is gonna have any offer matched. Varejao might look for a Nene deal or at worst, a Wilcox deal. Stevenson is Kirk Snyder in a Wizards uni. Kapono is Novak Sr. Mikki Moore is ok, but since we got Mutombo and Jake he's of no use.
Anderson Varejao would be a nice addition Maybe T-mac can learn a couple of lines of Portugês and convince him to come here for less money T-Mac>than Arli$$ michaels
Rockets will have 10 players already signed plus Sura's 1 million at around $57.5 million. Add around $900k for the 1st round pick. That's $58.4M. I think the Rocks traded away their 2nd rounder. I'm not too sure on that. Anyway, that'll be 4 roster spots open with the notable own free agents of Hayes, Deke, and/or Jake to be added. This year's Luxury Tax Threshold is $65.42M. The trend has been up so far so I'm going to use the estimate of around $67.5M based purely on guess work. If they re-sign Hayes for the minimum that'd be under $800K. Then add either Deke or Jake but not both for $2.5M. Team salary would then be around $61.7M. Rockets now have two remaining roster spots while being around $5.8M under the LT threshold. Rockets would probably want to be around $2-3M under the LT threshold just in case they need to work some trades during the season. So of the $5.8M, they'd only want to spend around $3.8M. This season the MLE is $5.4M and the LLE is $2M. Minimum salaried players don't dip into the MLE or LLE. One scenario is Travis Diener for the min ($800K) and 3M to spend on a SF/PF. Or another Chucky Atkins for $3M and around $800K (min for vet's with under 4 year exp) on a SF/PF. Either scenario saves the LLE. This would be the conservative step of staying pat.
Another option is to trade up in the draft to get a mid first rounder and draft Acie Law. This kid is the real deal and reminds me of Billups. If he is already off the boards then the Rockets will have a shot at getting a better power foward than they will with the current pick they will have, a mid 20's.
