If you were a smart, businessman like superstar player, why wouldn't the Rockets be on the list of teams you'd like to play for. A few points to plead my case: 1. Exposure to the Chinese market, due to playing with Yao a. i.e. A guy like CP3's worldwide popularity would shoot through the roof 2. Top 3 GM, we will consistently stay competitive 3. Top 5 Owner, he's willing to spend money and wants to win at most costs 4. Top 5 Coach, well liked/intelligent/experienced I realize this is nothing new and many think we are overlooked for a variety of reasons. To name a few; we are the 4th largest city (population) but only something like the 10th largest media market, Yao is coming off an injury, most people dont see Houston as an appealing city to visit, we dont have Hollywood or South Beach. In my opinion, these things shouldnt outweigh our ability to attract players. Why aren't the Big Timers wanting to play here? Or atleast give us a look??
Houston, not as great as New York, LA, Miami, Chicago Not as bad as Minnesota, Utah, Milwaukee, Cleveland
But shouldnt our roster and other positive attributes outweigh how 'great' a city is considered? If I were a businessman like player..it would for me. just a thought
Who cares? These guys are dummies and not business men. Just thrust into millions because of a particular physical skill not their mental capacity. They dont see money they see friends and dreams because they have lived in a dream and fantasy world their whole entire lives.
If there is one thing I've learned about the NBA this offseason is the players are more stupid than ever. The way they've acted, the things they've said, and the "decisions" they've made fly in the face of competition and even common sense.
Does anybody have any info on the ratio of transplants from other cities who are living in Houston compared to other major cities in the U.S. ?
We are a subpar destination only if Yao isn't healthy. When we got T-Mac a year ago he was a top 5 player in the league and was happy to come here. No we don't have the same attraction of a Los Angeles or New York but neither do the 28 teams in the league. People are talking about how Lebron and Bosh went to South Beach but they went there because of Wade and cap space and not because of the city. Don't get me wrong Miami is a plus, but let's not act like that team has been attracting great players year after year. We have been able to get players like Barkley, Drexler, Pippen, and T-Mac and that was all because we had a great big man for them to play with. Players go where the talent is unless the city is terrible and Houston is far from that. If we had just lost to the Lakers in 7 games last year with a healthy Yao there is no doubt that we would be on Chris Paul's list of teams. We factor Yao into the decision because we are fans and have to believe that he is going to be healthy and a factor, but players looking commit to a new team probably aren't as positive as we are and I can't blame them.
Hopelessly building around Yao = no clue team. No player should come here for just waiting for the rebuilding to start.
It's a different era. These players wanna hook up in the best cities of the country not that Houston isn't but unfortunately H-Town does not have the glamour N.Y. , L.A. , Chi Town and MIAMI have.. Even Dallas is considered a more appealing city than Houston so that's why we lose out on those big names. Yes we have a great franchise with to me the Best Owner with a good GM and a good coaching staff and players but guys like CP3 and Melo are gonna wanna go to N.Y. or team up with #24 in L.A. or Amare in N.Y. to form the next super team. Name the last Big Free Agent Player that chose Houston ? Clyde, Pippen, Barkley, Francis, T-Mack All Trades. We need to turn Galveston into a huge casinos strip, clean the beaches and bring back six flags to Houston because we really don't have anything attractive going. ( NASA not an option )
Maybe we can put your mama in a miniskirt out on the seawall and see if she can pull in 2000 dollars a day.
So much of this perception is driven by Yao and whether he's going to be healthy. If Yao had been healthy and (for the sake of argument, because I think we would have won) we had still lost to LA, we'd be mentioned as a primo destination in every article about free agency and trade speculation. Everyone here should know it's about Yao, not Houston.
i love morey just as much as the next rockets fan but i think he should work the other way around and get a superstar first cause as we all well know morey can find talent at cici's pizza. we all know yao is awesome but fragile and getting older and hasnt seen nba level action in over a year so for a superstar to dedicate to a fragile big man is asking alot. but i still believe morey has something up his sleeve.
Very few teams in the league sign big time free agents because there are hardly ever any available. The last time the Lakers did was Shaq. I don't think Dallas ever has. Miami never has before this year. Chicago signed Boozer this year and he was a lower tier free agent this summer but before that the biggest name they had got in a long time was Ben Wallace and they over paid for him. Atlanta and Phoenix are the only two playoff teams from last year whose best player was signed through free agency. Most teams get good through trades not signing big free agents and we have had no problem in the past getting players to come here through trades and I don't think we will in the future if Yao is healthy. Also, Pippen decided to come here when he was a free agent and we worked out a deal with Chicago for a sign and trade.
Business player realizes the loss of revenue, when Yao gets injured. The team goes from a playoff underdog to a lottery team with a low draft pick.
Bingo. With the current roster, I don't think many players consider Houston a marquee destination if there is any uncertainty with Yao's health.
Thats not true. Pippen wanted to come here in a Sign and trade to get all of his money. Barkley wanted to come here. Francis wanted to come here. Tmac wanted to come here and all of them asked for us specifically by name at some point.
