What would you do diffrently after the Rockets won the two championships?

I disagree. Dream was great until he got surgery late in 97. The fact is we could have contended in 97 if our shooters didn't fail us in game 5. I'm looking at Mario, Eddie and Clyde who didn't deliver. Their legs and the Utah crowd were the two biggest reasons for that I'd imagine. I can't blame Eddie because he won us games 3 and 4 but the other two have no excuse. In game 6, Clyde shot the ball too early which was a stupid move which is inexcusable for a veteran like him. It was a bad shot so it's not like he created a good shot for himself. He missed pretty badly and the rest is history. Dream was great that year and he had Ostertag, Foster and Carr at his mercy so I am not going to blame him.

 

We had the number 1 pick the year we drafted Yao. Are you saying that if you could go back in time you would still take Yao over Amare?

 

Of course you take Yao, even with the foresight of his injuries. He is a great human being, humble and gave everything he had. That's a great person to have had for this ****ty organisation. Amare is thrash, doesn't play hard, all about the money, huge ego, and was only good with Nash. No thanks!

 

So, you admit that winning a championship without Drexler in 95 was very unlikely, correct? (keep in mind that Dream missed a lot of games that season, and the Rockets might not have even made the playoffs without Drexler to lean on).

Let me try to understand your argument. So, even in hindsight, you are suggesting that we should have given up the actual championship we won with Drexler in '95 for a chance at a potential championship with a different roster of players in '96?? Why? Any time a team wins a championship, it means they were lucky enough to catch lightning in a bottle for a short period of time and ride it all the way to the finish line.

Why do you assume that would have happened again a year later, especially considering the fact that one of the main reasons the Rockets were able to win championships in 94 and 95 is that they were lucky enough to avoid facing the Sonics! We know for a fact that any incarnation of the Rockets would face the Sonics in '96, since that is exactly what happened. So, even if you like your alternate reality Rockets' chances against the Sonics, you have to admit it was no better than 50/50 they would beat them. So, why do you prefer this possible victory over the actual one in 95? Because Drexler declined after that?

I think anytime you have a chance to win a championship, you make the moves that take you there, even if it closes the window sooner for future seasons. The Drexler move is unquestionable based on the results, IMO.

 

Good argument and you got my point. Yes I admit without the Drexler trade there's probably no championship. I know about the injuries, it's in my comment

My main reason for not going for the championship that season is that the team we had could've competed in years to follow. The main reason is Thorpe and Dream. Letting go of Thorpe was a big mistake. I would've taken my chance in 96 with Thorpe over Drexler vs. Sonics. In 93 playoffs Thorpe was outstanding and in 95 was still able to put up 20+ & 10+ games and battle Kemp. We didn't lose in 93 because of him.

No it's not because of Drexler's decline, he was a great player but the team felt they didn't need to make that trade. I think only Olajuwon and maybe some others liked the trade. Nobody wanted to lose Thorpe, even if they liked Drexler on the team. Will look for quotes, but I know I've seen interviews with Kenny and Elie, some others as well, who didn't like to blow up the team like that after winning a championship.

The team is so different with Thorpe and maybe in 95-96 with no Drexler we would've had Maxwell or traded him for some1 / start Elie the whole year. Also keeping Herrera to me was a no-brainer, apparently not for the Rockets organisation (probably because he was injured quite a lot).

- Don't forget, they let go of Rodman right after so Herrera was brought in to start.

You have a very valid point with the hind-sight of winning the championship and going for it, since chances are slim of winning one anyway, especially in the NBA. Still I liked that team so much, I just want to see what the championship team could've done.

Personally, I don't like the Rockets team after the trade because Thorpe was like Sampson - it was a Twin Towers pt.2 for me. The Rockets became older and older and didn't get a good young team again until 2002-2003 with Francis, Griffin, Mobley, Yao etc.

That would've been different had it not started with Drexler. The organisation gave up on the future with that one, because after this trade panning out as far as winning a championship, it gave way for Leslie to do the trades for Barkley and Pippen.

 

Yao turned out alright, he was healthy for most of his career til that foot injury.
I thought he played well when we lost in the first round against the Lakers with Steve/Cutino considering he wasn't the main focus of the offense.

And your theory of Amare plus Tracy on the same team is bunk cause Amare doesn't like Tracy.

http://www.insidehoops.com/blog/?p=5635

Posted by Inside Hoops

Mar 27

Frank Isola of the New York Daily News reports:
Amar'e Stoudemire does not like Tracy McGrady

According to Amar’e Stoudemire, his beef with Tracy McGrady dates back to the fall of 2001, when Stoudemire was a high school All-America in Florida and McGrady was entering his fifth NBA season. At the time, McGrady was attending his brother’s football game when Stoudemire approached and asked for advice about making the jump from high school to the pros.

“He pretty much didn’t say anything,” Stoudemire remembered. “So I look at myself as being successful in the NBA and if a kid from my hometown came up to me and said, ‘Amar’e, I’m thinking about going to (the NBA),’ I would say, ‘It’s a tough process, college is very important. Education is very important,’ so forth and so on. But I didn’t get any of that.”

“He doesn’t remember,” Stoudemire said. “I’m not surprised he doesn’t remember.”

McGrady disputed Stoudemire’s recollection, saying he and Stoudemire had a phone conversation about him turning pro. McGrady added that the two were together in New York as recently as last September following a Jay-Z concert.

Read more: http://www.insidehoops.com/blog/?p=5635#ixzz1abQYKr8p

 

Good find tinman.

 

Drafting Amare would give you a lot of offense, but you would still have disgustingly bad defense.

If Amare was your PF, then I think your team could go far if you had a decent center. If Amare was your center, I don't think your team would ever win a championship.

I don't remember the last time a team won a championship with a center that does not play a lick of defense.

 

I don't remember the last time a team won a championship with a 6-6 center.

Sorry, had to say it :grin:

 

Alot of folks want to put our downturn on Barkley, and who we gave up to get him.... But I believe it's 6 of onehalf dozen of another....
The real problem we had post championships was - TURRIBLE DRAFTING!
Thinking Matt Maloney was a championship caliber point guard - just insane!
CD kept packaging multile players into trades and simply couldnt reload through the the draft.... daft picks 93-99:
Cassell (WINNER!), Petruska, Nicola, Burditt, Erik Meek, Harrington (decent), Livingston, Bell, Rhodes (decent), Zwikker, Dickerson (decent), Bryce Drew, Turkcan, Mobley (WINNER!), Thomas (decent), Washington, Hamilton..... 17 picks..... 2 winners.....4 role players.....11 washouts.....

....oh and those turrible turrible blue and pinstripe uniforms.... jus turrible!

 

1. Don't trade for Barkley
2. Don't sign Pippen
3. 1997; Draft Stephen Jackson over Serge Zwickker
4. 1998; Trade down one of 3 1st Round picks to grab Rashard Lewis

 

Thats funny, cause I personally went up to Amare and asked for an autograph once at NBA summer league and he was the biggest jerk! Just looked through me with a deadpan expression and didnt even say a single word... no "Im not doin autographs today" or "sorry man"....just a blank stare and nothing.... screw him!

Posted by Inside Hoops

Mar 27

Frank Isola of the New York Daily News reports:
Amar'e Stoudemire does not like Tracy McGrady

According to Amar’e Stoudemire, his beef with Tracy McGrady dates back to the fall of 2001, when Stoudemire was a high school All-America in Florida and McGrady was entering his fifth NBA season. At the time, McGrady was attending his brother’s football game when Stoudemire approached and asked for advice about making the jump from high school to the pros.

“He pretty much didn’t say anything,” Stoudemire remembered. “So I look at myself as being successful in the NBA and if a kid from my hometown came up to me and said, ‘Amar’e, I’m thinking about going to (the NBA),’ I would say, ‘It’s a tough process, college is very important. Education is very important,’ so forth and so on. But I didn’t get any of that.”

“He doesn’t remember,” Stoudemire said. “I’m not surprised he doesn’t remember.”

McGrady disputed Stoudemire’s recollection, saying he and Stoudemire had a phone conversation about him turning pro. McGrady added that the two were together in New York as recently as last September following a Jay-Z concert.

Read more: http://www.insidehoops.com/blog/?p=5635#ixzz1abQYKr8p[/QUOTE]

 

McGrady lives in his own bubble...thank god that loser is gone from my Rockets.

DD

 

He was our last superstar. I don't think we will ever get another one unless we tank and up with Harrison Barnes or something or trade for Howard or Chris Paul.

He was the best Rocket the last decade whether you like it or not.

 

Well it's a good thing Darfur and charity work is part of T-Mac's bubble.

 

Haha he was out of touch with what's going on in the world he wanted to build a swimming pool...that's really disrespectful and shows a lack of effort to know what's going on over there. Kind of like his lack of effort on the basketball court, irony huh

 

that sucks, but I think it's different if you are a star athlete thinking of jumping to the nba as opposed to a regular fan.

 

Keep Cassel and Horry - sign Kevin Willis. Keep the old uniforms.

 

1995 NBA Draft:

41st pick. Erik Meek is left behind, for Eric Snow (competent point guard, very good defender, works out more so, in the event that the Rockets still end up trading Horry and Cassell for Barkley). (95-96 season)

1996 NBA Draft

44th pick (trade up a few spots in mid 30s): Draft Jeff McInnis

50th pick. Shandon Anderson (UGA) over Terrell Bell (UGA star, but never played in the NBA)




1998 NBA Draft

18th going for potential with Rashard Lewis. 16th, we pick RASHO (LOL @ Stephen A. Smith) Nesterovic or try to trade up one spot for Matt Harpring.


1999 NBA Draft

Do we nix picking Kenny Thomas, and push towards Andrei Kirlenko?

Ginobili goes at 50, instead 58.


While, we sign Brent Barry as a free agent.

 

I don't think Snow would have worked on that team. He would help in guarding Stockton but he's not going to make teams pay four double teaming the big three in the low post. He's really one of the worst shooters ever. I think we should have never traded our first round pick in 96 and should have drafted Fisher because he could shoot and play and solid defense. He never got enough burn in his rookie year since Van Exel was playing heavy minutes.