Yeah, I'd definitely rather have LMA or Kevin Love than either guy... but that seems like a long shot, too. Faried is an upgrade. Aside from not being quite the 3 point shooter TJones is - which isn't saying much, Terrence shot 15% from 3 in the post-season - I think he does everything else as well or better than Terrence... and brings a lot more energy, which this team sorely lacked at times. If there was a way to do it, I'd be happy just trading Dwight for Lawson plus say Denver's 7th pick. I don't think that's possible, though, but if it was it would clear out a ton of cap space. Then I'd go sign Gasol, DeAndre, Love or Aldridge, and have the 7th pick in the draft. At the end of the day I think Denver is high on Jusuf, and if trading Lawson probably want more younger, better talent back. Or draft picks. I just would trade Dwight if the return was an all-star level player on a couple year contract under paid and cap space... IF there was surety that one of Love, LMA, Gasol, DeAndre Jordan would sign with that cap space. I'm not a Dwight hater, but (1) two years of seeing him struggle offensively, all the way to hack-a-Dwights, (2) two years of seeing him do well in the playoffs not really move the needle anyway.. which points to the way the league is becoming guard oriented. Great against the Blazers... didn't help. Had solid play this post-season. Didn't really meaningfully impact W/L the way you'd hope a great Dwight Howard would.. and most importantly, (3) his $22 million price tag lead me to believe he's a COG that is the perfect combination of being able to return a solid package that fills needs elsewhere, while also better balancing the cap situation of the team.
Agree with this. It's true... Yep... which is precisely the reason I'd be in favor of trading him. Overpaid and aging, even if still extremely valuable. In any case, I'd still love to add Lawson, but I don't really see how, without trading Ariza, and I don't think that improves the team.
Bring in JJ Barea as a backup to replace Prigioni. No brainer. High energy guy, good motor, plus shooter and instant offense off the bench.
To trade him u must find a partner. Right now i think ny and boston. Noone else. And thats debatable. His history has made trading for him extremely risky.
Faried and Lawson sure arent helping your defense Your point about Dwight may be true but thw rockets were basically a dwight injury and Harden blunder from going up 2-0 against the warriors The team made it to the WCF missing 2 starters. Do you really a Lineup of Lawson-Harden-Ariza-Faried-Dmo is going to go farther then Bev-Harden-Ariza-Dmo-Howard?
i used to like him too, but for some reason, he's forgotten how to play over the last 2 years. Lawson or Conley please. Lull is another option. Not including Lowery because he's under contract with TO and don't see him getting moved.
What's to say the player you bring in for Dmo gets injured. You have to look at players assuming health unless they have some type of injury history. Dmo has improved each year and will probably be better next year. Outside of a couple guys there are no players that would give you more than a marginal increase at the position. Why would you gut the roster for that? Dmo is young, on a cheap contract, and improving every year. This team needs a pg. The pf situation is fine.
I see no problem with him voicing this publicly. The need for a secondary creator was glaring by November, and I think most were surprised it went largely unaddressed at the deadline -- maybe Harden was, too. I think Morey certainly would have addressed it this summer, but this definitely adds pressure. As for Bev -- I'm the biggest Bev fan out there, but if returning to a bench role would make him want to bolt, then I wish him the best of luck going forward. It's not like he's a skilled creator and Harden is seeking an upgrade. Harden is seeking someone with a specific skill Bev does not have -- one that has become more essential this season than last -- so I don't even view it as a knock on him. Bev would be great off the bench, and part of building a championship caliber squad is having guys buy into their roles when it's clearly best for the team (see, e.g., David Lee & Iggy). This should end the 3-year old debate about Harden being unwilling to play with someone who would take the ball out of his hands. I suspect the answer has always been that he is willing to do it if it's someone he trusts.
The Rockets will improve to a 63 win team next year, Golden State will regress to about 58 wins after they sign Draymond to a Max and have to trade away some key role players to make the room. Rockets with # 1 seed and roles will be reversed in the WCF next year. Rockets will win 4-1 with Curry breaking the NBA record for most turnovers with 14.
Exactly. Most of the time, reporters press you with a question, and you either duck it or answer it. "That's one of the conversations" sounds like Harden's way of admitting something Berman has put to him, and simultaneously trying to broaden the conversation so it's NOT just focused on one position. This is not a calling out.
....you guys know what Morey is going to do - make a big non-splash like bring in George Hill or Ricky Rubio. Actually, there is some truth to the theory that any PG in Houston doesn't necessarily have to be a great passer which gives Morey a bit of a different(potentially undervalued players for this skill set since we don't need a traditional PG) market to scour. He will likely be looking for guys who are basically 3 and D guys but who can handle the ball as a PG although there isn't a lot of that available necessarily. Here is my guess of players Morey might be targeting: George Hill Ricky Rubio CJ Watson Mario Chalmers Jordan Clarkson Ty Lawson ....some Euro/South American player none of us have heard of.
It would be nice if the Rockets could finally win 60 games in a season. Given how competitive the West is and the likelihood that the Warriors will not be as good(they'll lose Barbosa and maybe Speights and can't possibly be as lucky healthwise), that might be enough for the #1 seed.
