I would argue that if we let him walk by not offering the contract, not only would we look foolish, but so would CP. Because CP would have to take less to play elsewhere anyway, and unless he was joining LAL, which if he joined to take up so much cap space, would be a huge waste for them, then at that point, what are we doing? Why would Magic get a discount over Morey? I'll also add that I think it is terrible how people started counting games into the season to say we shouldn't pass judgment. Morey himself said he deserves blame, people need to get on the same page about that. I'd agree with you that he'll make some solid moves down the road to make up for it. I just think it's not a bad thing to call him out, as long as its not a kneejerk.
According to my friends, the annual salary/bonus for most GMs is between 1 million and 3 million. Buford: 10 million Bob Myers: 9 million Morey: 3 million Cavs and Suns: less than 1 million Head Coach: Pop: 11 Million Rivers: 10 million Tom Thibodeau: 8 million (lottery bound) Wizards Scott Brook: 7 million (lottery bound) MDA: 4 million Houston is a big city, but gm/coach are lower than expected.
I agree that Morey needs to be held accountable for his moves, but listing all the bad ones and not giving credit for the good ones isn't right. And declaring that its the end of the Rockets window and that we're going to waste Harden's prime years because of a 30 game stretch of bad play is over the top. My scorecard for Morey is as follows this season: Melo - Minor negative MCW - Minor negative Anderson for Knight / Chriss - TBD pending what happens with Knight Ariza - Negative (not a major negative because signing him at $15M precludes other more impactful moves) LMaM - Minor negative (due to injury concerns) House - Minor positive Ennis - Minor positive CP3 - Positive but with caveats (Major Negative if he declines steeply due to injury, Major Positive if he helps lead the Rox to the Finals) Capela - Major positive (awesome team friendly contract for potential perennial All-Star) Rivers - Minor positive That scorecard isn't a disaster. If the Rox continue to win at a 70% clip for another month, everything will look different.
It certainly looked like a disaster couple of weeks ago. Up to this point, CP has shown that he's on a major decline. Is it definitive? No, so you're right that we can have patience on this. However, based on watching him play, I'd bet my 100 bucks on the side that says CPs stats and minutes will decline on the season and in the post-season. I don't think that's unrealistic, I think I'm going to be 100% correct on that.
i didn't see any evidence last year that CP3 was in decline. I don't buy that he went away for a summer and came back a completely different player. I think that CP3 is trying to play through injuries. He doesn't have the hop he had last year during the playoffs which negatively affects his shots - particularly his 3 pointers. I hope that Austin Rivers and Brandon Knight can provide Harden enough support that CP3 doesn't feel the need to rush back from rehab and he lets himself FULLY heal. I think we see last year's CP3 once that happens. You may end up being right, but I think we both agree we hope that's not the case.
As long as they don't win 56 …. I took the under at 55.5. I don't consider Melo or MCW to be negatives at all …. at the cost of the minimum , either is worth the gamble. There is no lower cost than the least you can pay …. If one or both catch fire , its a huge win. If neither play worth a damn , its no real loss and those contracts are easy to unload or flat out cut if it comes down to it. As for the rest of your list , I pretty much agree tho I don't like the Anderson trade … that $20m contract of his would have been trade chip gold next season , they didn't save a whole lot of money over the life of the deal and reduced their potential incoming salary next season for that small savings. Maybe gambling on Chriss was worth the difference ?
Last year? I was sure we're all talking about the ongoing season, for which he's clearly on a decline so far. I'm not sure if you're agreeing w/ me that he looks to be on a decline. I sure as hell hope he plays better when he comes back, especially on a 40 mil contract. I'd agree, get as much healing as possible for CP, and don't even try to come back unless you're feeling 100%. Maybe sit out the whole season minus 10 games. I don't care. Be fresh when you get back. TBH, I'd feel better trading him away for better-fit pieces to play alongside Harden at this point. But Morey's dug a hole for himself there, his contract is not highly valued by other NBA teams at the moment. Also, is it just your hunch that CP was injured the whole time and that's why he wasn't playing well? If it's not a hunch, I'd like sources, like other players mentioning that he had to deal w/ injuries during the bad stretches.