Not to mention CP3 himself shoots 51%FG 44% 3pFG, grabs almost 5 rebounds, 10 asstis with only 2 TOs, plus 2 steals per game. CP3 is simple combination of Lowry and AB's good attributes. I can't believe DD blindly think CP3 is not a huge upgrade over AB.
McGrady goes out, Camby comes in, Davis goes to Golden State, we get some GSW player, or 4-way Maggette to a team like Boston.
I couldn't disagree more. Sure, players have held teams hostages...when the player was a valuable asset on the court. McGrady is a valuable asset as an expiring contract, not as a player. If you make the NO trade or the SacTown Trade or GS trade it's to free up money. Those teams could care less about McGrady and if he plays there or resigns. If they traded for him and he's on their roster, then sure they'll run him out there for some minutes. If he complains then they sit him or simply send him away (see Marbury or Tinsley). If he refuses to report then even better, now you've gotten out from under your long term deals and you can simply suspend McGrady and not have to pay his salary for the remainder of the year. Truthfully, that would be the preferred path for most of those teams, it's even more of a cost saver. Anytime a player and a team decide to part ways, the teams tell the agent "We'll seek a trade" and "You're free to look for deals". That's just telling them that they are going to actively look to get rid of them, it doesn't mean that the player/agent has to sign off on any deal. Let me ask you this, after another bad departure from a team and all of his talk about "I just want a chance to play", do you really believe that McGrady would complain about going ANYWHERE? It would be PR suicide. After all of this if McGrady were traded to Minnesota or NJ and he complains or refuses to play, the'd be written off by most any team that hadn't already written him off. Where McGrady wants to go or how he feels about any destination won't really factor into any decisions.
Do you know the contracts of Biedrins and Magette?! No way in hell Morey takes them both. Biedrins makes NINE millions every year till the end of the 2013/14 season. Magette's contract runs for three more years after this season and he makes a little over 10 millions per year. That's a total of 70 million dollars over the next four seasons for a backup center (behind Yao) and an injury-prone SG who plays bad defense. There is absolutely zero chance that Morey will take on these contracts. Morey can get more out of 70 million dollars. I believe he wouldn't even take on Magette's contract if it's not paired with Biedrins' contract.
Don't expect the Rockets to have much (if any) cap room in 2011. Remember, by that time, Scola and Lowry will be making a lot more money on their new deals (hopefully). Also, Yao (max salary cap hold), Brooks (~$6M cap hold) and Landry ($6M cap hold) will all be up for big deals that summer. Also, the salaries of the other players currently under contract will have risen at a higher rate than the salary cap. Hate to burst your bubble. There is some validity, however, to having the expiring contracts to acquire assets VIA TRADE before the February 2011 trade deadline. Still, I want no part of Gadzuric's bloated contract. Redd just isn't worth the cost. Frankly, I'd rather have Jared Jeffries and the "incentives" that the Knicks would give us (either from them or in a 3-way trade) to take his contract off their books. Not that I WANT Jeffries. Just that the Redd/Gadzuric combo is less appealing.
WHAT? Did you read what I said? It is not that he is not an upgrade, it is that we have greater needs than the PG position. I would take CP3, especially if all we had to give up was Brooks and McGrady. I am saying that we need WING players and a CENTER......those are more pressing needs. DD
Booyah, that's exactly right. There are way too many questions about McGrady and his ability to play after his microfracture. Whether or not he steps onto the court is irrelevant to whoever trades for him.
I know it's a long shot but Biedrins is a 10/10 guy in limited minutes and Maggette is one of the best offensive players in the league. Both guys just happen to plug this team's two only real weaknesses. Doubt Morey will do it but I would. That team has legit contender written all over it. Regarding Maggette's defense, when are people going to realize you are not going to get Battier level defense from every player? We have enough guards/wings who defend and can't score. Let's inject some offense into the lineup and let Battier/Ariza earn their check on defense and get out of the way on offense.
I'd want Paul if we could get him, but I'm not convinced that it is possible. I still see NO as a decent trading partner, though. What about sending McGrady and Scola to the Hornets for West and Peja? It saves them a lot of money without impacting their production too much. Due to TMAC's popularity among casual fans, NO might be able to sell that rather than trading Paul. Since SAC wants an athletic big, we could then send either West or Landry to them for Martin and perhaps pick up Tyrus Thomas from Chicago for Cook, J. Taylor and a second round pick since it is pretty clear they would have to renounce him to try to acquire a big name free agent during the offseason anyway. Alternatively, the Rockets could try to get NO to take Thomas, who went to LSU, and keep Scola if they were able to entice Chicago to get into the deal from the start.
Incorrect, the Rockets greatest need is a super-star, regardless of position. Hence upgrading swingmen and center positions can be dealt with separately.
Of I read. I LOLed when you sad CP3 is 10, AB is solid 8, AB fits the team better than CP3 etc. That's not true man. CP3 simple does everything better than AB and he can fit the style way better than AB if he's asked to do so. The difference between CP3 and AB is much bigger than just 2. Once Yao comes back, our C position will be fine, assuming Andersen's play doesn't get worse. So Center is not a huge concern unless you are looking at this season only. Wing players are just much easier to get if Rockets have cap space. It's not a huge concern either. In Morey we trust. This team plus Yao plus another impact piece is a contender.
A super-star isn't coming. We need to upgrade the positions we have. I promise you Morey is going to bring in a wing and a big man or he won't bring in anything.
Ya'll read my mind. Okafor would be a perfect player for Yao once he comes back next season. But now that I think of it, they're contracts are totally cap killers. If it was just for Okafor and some expireing contracts I would go for it, but if you add Peja, it will stop us from adding any good free agents for awhile.
Kindly note that nothing in my post implied that a super-star's arrival is pending. The idea that a super-star is the greatest need for this team is indebatable, as we do not have one!
Tmac wasnt going to be trade, at least not this quickly before...everyone is assuming this was the case all along, but it wasnt. This trade talk is happening because tmac officially requested it now. If he hadnt the rockets still would be waiting it out, that's why wafer was brought in. Hell, even now the trade may not happen, if morey can't get what he wants he wont pull the trigger.
I guess that depends on your definition of superstar. I think there are less than 10 superstars in the league and probably closer to five. We don't need those guys. We need a solid big man and a wing who has all star level talent offensively. A young Rip Hamilton on this team would make it a top 4 team in the West. Add Yao next season and you have your contender right there.
...see I don't think you acquire for need if you have the chance to get a true superstar - they are just too rare...even rarer the kind who are "team" players. Filling holes on the cheap with other people's spare parts is what Morey is good at and considering most teams are weak down low, I don't think center depth is as critical as you think(though I agree that it is a need). Let's consider one more thing about superstars like Paul - superstars get calls in big games when you need every advantage you can get. To make it to the next level you really need that superstar guard(since Guards are the ones who get protected the most with modern rules) and Houston doesn't really have one. It sad but true - we now have to consider the referee element in planning for a team....
Thanks, you answered pretty much along my same lines of thinking. Tracy has NO leverage in this whatsoever. emjohn, when Tracy did that to Orlando, he held the cards. He could have made the situation uglier by sitting out or whatever. We owe him no favors. When you think about it, Tracy's best bet may BE to get traded to a lottery bound team. He can show his....ahem...skills and there wouldn't be any pressure on him as far as W's and L's
