exactly...What exactly has Deandre done to warrant Morey's attention...besides a highlight reel dunk or two a game ...or 1 or 2 blocks of epic proportions....would we even know this dude existed???
Morey has always had to draft for a playoff contending team. He drafted players to fit in a system because of hope for the return of Yao (which never happened). DeAndre Jordan has been a bench player project up until this season; 3 years into his NBA career. that's like saying Pat Pat would be sitting on the bench and unproductive until 2014. Drafting Projects has risk and Morey won't commit to that risk if he feels another player can help the team win more games.
If we controlled the world's Petro supply, we could exercise monopoly power over this precious commodity and set any price we wanted - we would be trillionaires and kings among men. Nations and industries would tremble and grovel under our iron grip. Let us dream and work towards consolidating this position - the Petros, all that precious Petro, must be ours.
I agree with this. Honestly, any near 7 foot big man not taken in the top 5 (and even some taken in the top 5) is probably going to be a project. I believe Morey has alluded to in the past that he doesn't focus as much on trying to predict a rookie's future growth but focuses more on how their abilities translate to the NBA right now and in the near future. Outside of those top guys most big centers show little to no reason for being drafted. So, we find ourselves in the position the team is currently in. With the current strategy it is impossible to attain a big center through the draft without being an awful team. And, most teams aren't willing to trade they're young centers until they feel their salary outweighs their current production and they don't have a bright future. So, yeah, the low lotto to 2nd round center picks seem to be a bit of a crap shoot (probably not 10:1 for a good GM) but there is a heavy reward. Deandre Jordan may not be a great player but his type is scarce in this league, much more difficult to attain than most of our assets.
If we drafted 20 TWills, Will one turn into Lebron James? If we draft 10 squids will one turn into human
The guy actually hasn't improved since his rookie year. The only stat that he's improved upon is FG%, and that's all due to the attention Griffin gets.
I want a high-risk/no-reward gamble, where if we hit the jackpot, we get a 7/7/40%FT "shot blocking" center who would anchor one of the worst defenses in the league. Thabeet doesn't fit the bill since we got him for cheap.
What do you call Joey Dorsey? He was a project big time. I think morey has done a good job, but even if you have a contending team, which the rockets havent been since 97, you can still take the most talented player if he needs a little developing. Morey has said before they didnt think Rudy would develop as fast as he did. I'm also sure alot of gm's wish they wouldve drafted Bynum even with his inuries.Even when Jason Kidd was offered, they said no. They wouldnt have won a title without Bynum.
Your right on this. Also note that Thabeet DOES have a proven track record in college and his first year in the pros. Until this summer, Thabeet was a proven 7ft shot blocker/space eater. Only until this year, something went wrong and now its up to the Rockets coaching to retool his game, or tweek it to be successful in the NBA. If Thabeet was drafted as the 10th pick in the draft, then Memphis would never have pushed him to be anything more than a role playing Center and his value would have been just that. That value would have been accepted with open arms by Rockets fans for a Battier expiring trade, but now Thabeet has been labeled a bust, and fans want to bust Morey's chops. This shows that Morey can obtain draft picks projects with little risk AND also draft players that can produce at a high level now like Patterson. Let the man do his job. He isn't a baffoon like alot of "experts" on here that think he is and think they could do better. You dont graduate and teach at MIT because your a moron.
I never liked this guy all that much. I think McGee is in the same mould but his superior atheleticism gives him a few more highlight reel dunks and blocks than DeAndre Jordan. Anyone for Hasan Whiteside?:grin:
Morey said drafting Dorsey was about drafting a player with an NBA body. Morey didn't see Dorsey as a raw project, he saw him as a player he could work with and improve but never a project with starting potential. his words:http://www.nba.com/rockets/news/Rockets_select_Donte_Greene_J-276233-34.html "He's someone who can make an impact right away. He’s ready to play right now" ------------------------------------------------------ that's a load of bull. Bynum has barely contributed in the playoff games and finals. Odom has done more and Artest won them game 7 last season. Morey wasn't even the GM when we traded our pick (Memphis drafted Gay with it) for Battier either.
Your right, the Rockets totally could have drafted Hassan Whiteside or Solomon Alabi this past year... that sure did work out for Sacramento and Toronto this year didnt it? -Or maybe its that Morey and the coaches actually have the resources us fans do not have and can make better assesments on players and know in detail their health problems, and actual skill & talent level other than blind stats and You-Tube videos. -I will take Patrick Patterson any day of the week over these guys.
Seattle/OKC did draft 3 Johan Petros in a row. They turned out to be that ugly redheaded kid, the actual Johan Petro and Mohammed Saer Sene.
He's getting paid something like $5m right now and we have to decide soon whether to pick up an option on another year at an even more punitive rate without any assurance whether he'll be good enough to warm our benches. And this coming into a new CBA that will probably be more restrictive about what you can do over the salary-cap. I think that's risky. But, I was thinking of "high-risk" more in the finance sense -- his value is highly volatile and uncertain. He might become very valuable or could remain completely worthless. Who knows.
I swear, sports fans are just effing impossible to please. Has Morey REALLY not earned your trust yet?
Dont forget Bj Mullens, Collison, and Aldrich.....They need to stop drafting big men period...Now maybe they dont have to with Perkins there..although I think he stinks too