giddyup...you're confusing yourself. He is an unrestricted free agent. Just like Hayes was. unrestriced means he is not restricted by any teams rights. he is completely free. Just like all UFAs in the offseason. You know how we talk all summer about free agents and whether one is restricted or not. Smith is one of the unrestricted ones. should I go on.
A couple of more losses and the Rockets will be looking to deal a lot of the underachieving (Bud, Hill) and unwanted (Flynn, Thabeet) talent. Hopefully they'll get something done soon, so we can make some roster space for Greg Smith.
Giddy, The only players on the Vipers that the Rockets have ANY rights to are the ones they send to them from their 15 man roster, Morris for example. Otherwise every other Dleague player is able to be called up by any team. So if the Rox like someone on Reno, and they are not one that was sent down by their parent club the Rox could just offer him a deal and away we go. DD
Fellers, I'm not confused at all. I'm raising some potential complexities. DaDa first said that if a team offered him a contract he was gone. That turns out not to be the case. I didn't think so which is why I was asking follow-up questions to see where the rubber meets the road . I've never heard NBA lore about some NBDA guy even getting two offers. They get one and jump on it-- can't blame them. But I wasn't sure if there just never were second offers or if we just never heard about second offers or if they were not allowed by the league rules more similar to the NFL. It would appear that they are allowed, so if we really want Smith and he really wants us and only us (doubtful) we can just bide our time and let him develop by playing. In the NFL a player gets cut and he's not a true UFA unless all teams pass on claiming him in the ~24 hour period after he is cut.
yeah i just don't get it. This guy shows a lot of promise, and at a position of need. Hill clearly has not taken that "next step", and we know what we're gonna get from Dalembert (inconsistant effort and inconsistant results), so why not give Smith the pro-reps necessary to evaluate if he can be part of our future in the front court? Perhaps, because he's unrestricted, part of our strategy is to sign him to a long-term contract this offseason and we don't want to improve his market value by showcasing him in the pros. I really have no idea. All i know is that given the current alternatives, giving Smith 15 minutes a night at the 5 doesn't seem like a bad idea.
Any unrestricted free agent is able to field mutiple offers. If Smith gets an offer, his agent could call the Rockets and ask if they will match, or he could just sign the deal. The Rockets have no hold, they could have a gentlemans agreement I guess, but that is really no agreement at all. DD
Forget anything else in this thread. Forgot about the NBDL. Smith can sign with any team he wants. No team has any team rights to stop it--that is, he is not restricted. You know the answer. Just forgot about the fact he is playing for an NBDL team. Free agents are not required to stop playing basketball. Relax the mind and accept the fact that you know what an unrestricted FA is versus a restricted one. :grin:
Not completely correct. Any unsigned draft picks who are playing in the NBDL can only sign with the team that drafted them.
If Alexander had just given Morey the sign to tank and stay away from anymore 'big' contracts we definitely would've signed this guy and not Dalembert. So if you want to blame some1, blame our great old fart of an owner Mr. Leslie Alexander.
That's what I thought would prevail and I was seeking confirmation of it but I was thrown off by DaDa's first reply that if he gets an offer, we lose him. We lose him only if he chooses to sign with another club... if he gets such an offer. If Smith wants to play for the Rockets... or McHale... and has some kind of promise, we can afford to bide our time and let the other dominoes fall in our roster adjustments before we bring him up (if that is even our plan). Just trying to gauge our "security" on Smith as a prospect. The details do matter so I was trying to get them clarified.
Gotcha.....I was implying that if he ACCEPTS an offer...not just gets one....he is not held to any offer, he is free to seek a better one or ignore it all together. DD
I figured that is what you meant but it wasn't what you said so I was "drilling down" to get specific. Most of these guys are just going to jump all over the first offer.... but don't most of them drift back to the D-League anyway? We never hear about "bidding wars" for these prospects. They are more like projects.... In all likelihood, we have romanticized Smith as a player but it's fun to think about our having uncovered a diamond in the rough.
Actually Azubuke had a bunch of offers, Chuck Hayes was a guy whom we got that others had interest in..... I suspect (and this is talking out my butt) that the Rockets are waiting for 10 day contracts to be allowed and plan to bring him up for a look then. DD
You go to some NBAD games don't you? You need to start a blog DaDaToots.com with this kind of info.... :grin:
I used to go to a bunch when we were affliated with the Toros, had tickets next to Otis Thorpe, got to know him pretty well at the games, lots of inside scoop etc. But once the Spurs bought them, and the Rox went with Rio Grande, I dropped my tickets. Plus I coach my son's basketball team (sorry undefeated for 2 years basketball team) ....so I don't have the time. DD
Don't know. But it would be smart if you don't want to give a roster spot to a 2nd rounder who you are going to send to the NBDL anyhow.
The Rockets have 15 guys under contract right now. Unless they trade or waive someone, they won't be able to add Smith (or anyone else) on a 10-day contract. And guys (yes, YOU, jopatmc, DD, knote32, etc.), . . . come on, man! To paraphrase the great Allen Iverson: "We're talkin' 'bout Greg Smith! Not a rotation player! Not a rotation player! We're talkin' 'bout GREG SMITH!!!" jopatmc, I'm disappointed in you, especially, as you've gone so far as to accuse the Rockets front office of signing a MINIMUM salaried player (Adrien) for the clandestine purpose of including his salary in a trade for matching purposes, all so they could re-sign a D-League guy as their 15th man. You're better than that, dude! DD, are the Rockets really "screwed" if a guy they cut in training camp gets picked up by another NBA team to sit at the end of their bench? I'll give you the benefit of the doubt on that one, though, since I assume (and hope) you were saying that in the context of the Rockets' ability to bring Smith back as opposed to the franchise's overall prospects. knote32, if you were an NBA general manager in Morey's shoes, would you REALLY cut Thabeet right now to sign Smith? You DO realize that Thabeet is a walking, talking large expiring contract that could be the difference in being able to match salaries in a huge trade this season or not. AFTER the trade deadline? Have at it. But before March 15??? You'd honestly jeopardize the franchise's ability to make trades on a grand scale, all so you could get the 15th man who you think has more upside??? Like jopatmc, you're too smart to think that. Guys, let's step off the ledge here before going too overboard over Greg Smith. I actually really like him and hope he's still (or back) on the Vipers after the March 15 trade deadline so that the Rockets can add him to fill out a post-trade depleted roster and/or to take the place of a waived buyout candidate. But (as cod has already articulated) you guys are getting a little TOO excited about this kid. Understandable given the seemingly dim prospects of guys like Thabeet and Hill. But still. Easy, there.
