Because Yao is going to need a lot of relief this year, and there is no guarantee that he will be here in subsequent years. Might as well get that backup in place now and have someone who can start if Yao can't answer the bell.
My list of who we want in order: 1.Granger 2.Lee 3.Josh Smith Of course Paul too, but he isn't available so I won't include him in the list.
Thats pretty weak, Morey is a value guy and Gortaint still has the same bad contract that Morey refused to offer him last offseason with zero chance of Yao playing even with the prospects of getting the injured player exception (aka Trevor Arisa) in addition to the MLE. So now Gortaint is all of a sudden worth 7 mill as Yao's backup? Really? Would I want him on this team with a a better contract, yes, I like his energy and skillset, but his contract does not match his production. So move on, Morey did.
Wait? Granger is available?? THAT's who I want. Yao Scola Granger Martin Brooks = Deadly. Granger and Jefferson are the "Kevin Martin" of their respective positions. Especially Big Al who is coming off injury, splitting time with younger guys taking his spot (Tyreke Evans), and is sort of overshadowed by more marquee names at his position. Underrrated with a low market value. Granger is also underrated and underexposed due to the team he plays on. Of these two, I'd rather have Granger, as he is healthier and I fear Jefferson getting fat and his production becoming that of a Jermaine O'Neal/ Elton Brand.
The contract doesn't match the production because he is backing up someone who plays between 35 and 38 minutes a night. Gortat hasn't made $7M in his career. He signed for the full MLE last year. Orlando was going to match whatever he was offered because they knew he had more value than that. If Yao comes back at full strength and they sign him to an extension next year, Gortat would be an easily moveable contract if they felt like he couldn't get enough minutes to warrant the contract. It would be a much more productive way to spend $7M than what we are giving Jefferies to be Battier, Ariza, Chase, Hayes, Scola, and Hill's backup.
Al Jefferson is a Center and is too slow to guard Power Forwards. If Yao goes down, you absolutely go after Jefferson, but until then, that is just too high a price to pay for a back-up.
You are right TPH (The Polish Hammer) has not made 7 million yet, sorry, i just rounded his contract to the yearly average of 7 mil. Marcin Gortat $6,322,320 in 2010/11 $6,790,640 in 2011/12 $7,258,960 in 2012/13 $7,727,280 in 2013/14 If Morey knew Orlando (already way over the cap last off season) would match any offer (and go into Luxury Tax territory) why did Dork Elvis knock on Gortaint's door at midnight last July 1st only to offer a portion of the MLE? Even after all that, i bet DM can now see the error of his ways and is ready to take on that Jared Jefferiesesque contract. I would rather watch Hill develop at the 5 or give Shaq 3 years at the full MLE than add Gortat to this team @ 7mill per. Dare I mention rocketsfanslovegortat@gmail.com? Alas, life before iPads, how ever did we recruit?
He basically played 60% of his minutes at center last year and 40% at power forward. http://www.82games.com/0910/09MIN12.HTM#bypos Granted, for a team with no true center presence in the first place, and one trying to give Kevin Love minutes, too. I don't find Jefferson to be too slow to play power forward. Moreover, the fact that he can slide over to center is great, given Yao shouldn't be getting the same quantity of minutes going forward. As much as I wanted Bosh, the one concern I did have with him was his ability to play center. You don't have that concern with Jefferson - though he's clearly not the player Bosh is. I was not very impressed with Al's offensive arsenal this year. I didn't watch him a ton, but in the few games I saw, I didn't see a player that was meshing in very well...and at times, it looked liked it was his fault more than the team / system's fault. he was somewhat selfish at times. Still, stats don't lie. His PER's been around 20 for 4 straight years = solid, and year 2 post knee surgery should be another step towards what he was. The Rockets could do much worse in the offseason than adding AL Jefferson for peanuts (Jeffries, Andersen and 1 pick).
I think you explore a S&T with Atlanta for Josh Smith and do whatever you can to sign Ray Allen with the MLE. If you can swing it, get Brad Miller to back-up Yao. That would be a nice off-season, IMO.
I was not trying to start an argument, but you have to remember that he did think Gortat was worth the time and energy to actually show up at his door at midnight. Why did he deem him the top FA target yet only offer a partial MLE? I don't know. I will not pretend to understand Morey's strategies, but I will also not assume he does everything perfectly. But I agree that since they missed out on Bosh, this team should hold onto Scola and Hill. I am really looking forward to seeing how Hill progresses and all indications are that he will be a keeper. Losing out on Bosh might have been a blessing in disguise if the team will actually use their resources to solidify the center and wing positions. Feigen's column mentioned that teams like Boston may be willing to give Brad Miller a larger contract to fill in for a year. While I think Miller is acceptable, I would like a longer term fix than that. Hence the Gortat scenario. Outside of Jefferson, I don't know who is available via trade. And for those who mention Josh Smith, he is a power forward that isn't as good as Scola. We need a legitimate center. As I look around, I am more intrigued by the suggestion of Shaq for 3 years.
Adding Iggy to what we already have without giving up anything substantial besides expirings and draft picks would be very tempting.
right on, i'm just bored while i work from home and i'm tired of the Gortat love. i just think we can get better bang for the buck as we are already over the salary cap. What would you give Orl for Gortat? What would Orl want from us, they lose Gortat and they are in the same situation as us, an AllStar center and no backup. I'll set aside my deflated sense of his value if you or anyone can present me a trade that makes sense for both teams
