I would argue that it was damaging, in that Barkley was injury prone by that point (true, it didn't show up in the W/L column, but the decline was there), and we really only got 2.5 seasons from him. Meanwhile, Horry and Cassell went on to become impact players for many years to come. It was a calculated risk, and I understand why the team took it (the window was closing on both Dream and Glide by that point), but I still wish they'd spent most or all of their careers as Rockets.
The names look good, but Hakeem and Drexler were well past their prime. I don't know that that is a championship team, especially with the big men we had coming off the bench... - Charles Jones - Kevin Willis - I liked him but he was already old as dirt (amazingly he played another 5 years or so) - Othella Harrington - Matt Bullard
That being said, my picks for this thread are also Sam I Am and Big Shot Bob. Nostalgia for the championship years I guess. Plus the image of Barkley taking three pointers in those pin striped pajamas still haunts me at night.
i really wish they could have kept Von Wafer, Carl Landry, and it would be nice if we still had Steve Francis. other than that i can't think of any other players at this point.
I want to say Thorpe, but we got Drexler in exchange and a 2nd championship, so I dont know. If we could get Thorpe without losing Drexler, that would be great.
That trade upset me because he was one of my favorite players, but at that point he was barely playing. He and Tracy Murray were probably the best bench cheerleaders the Rockets ever had.
Probably not. The Barkley trade was almost for the sole purpose of beating Seattle. We could never get past them since 92-93 season.
Scottie Pippen Kelvin Cato Moochie Norris Chucky Brown Steve Novak Stromile Swift Terrence Morris Bostjan Nachbar
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Can't compare the two. First, Carmelo hasn't even entered his prime yet and still is improving while Barkley when the trade went down, was clearly on his last legs. Second, the Rockets at that time already had 2 HOF All-Stars on the team in Hakeem and Clyde. This current Rockets roster only has one. In this league you need at least 2 All-Stars to win. As much as I love Brooks and Scola, they aren't all-stars just yet. Maybe in a couple of years, but our window of winning a championship is closing fast.
I think we can not let Budingger go. The potential guy has a great 3 point skill. With Yao coming back this season, Budingger will get more open-look opportunity.
