Will it be easier to sign a free agent C now that Yao is gone.

who do you have in mind?

quality centers are hard to come by ...

 

I don't care who mans the C this year.

Rox should be thinking Howard or bust.

In the meantime, we still have the Chuckwagon.

BEAST!

 

Which C did the Rockets miss out on as a FA in the past couple years due to Yao being on the payroll?

 

Drew Gooden.

 

Any C who wanted to start.

 

Mengke Bateer

 

I say we wait for D. Howard

 

No it won't be any easier, there are a handful of options but no better than when we first started thinking about a new center years ago. I hate to say it but if none of the 5 spot guys we have pan out we may be in for another 'rebuilding' year. I really like DeAndre Jordan and would kill to get him here but I duno how they could make that happen. He's not a huge defender but I like what I've seen of him on the floor. Other than that I'm just going to pray Morey comes up with another crazy trade that helps us.

 

It's gonna be the Nnamdi Aso situation all over again...Great

 

What I don't understand is that TMac and Yao were eating up 30+ million give or take a million in salary. Both are gone. The Rockets should be in the best imaginable position to snag a big name free agent. BUT, when I read the financial discussions on the board (most of which I can't follow), suddenly that salary money isn't available. That just doesn't make common sense. In every other conceivable industry or business if you have two positions become vacant, you have that salary money to spend, possibly on employees with smaller salaries.

 

Year 3 for Thabeet.

DD

 

Unless those industries are losing money, then said jobs are no longer available due to financial contractions.

 

It's really simple.

1. It's how the "soft cap" CBA works: The NBA salary cap (assuming the structure for the new CBA is similar) is a "soft cap," which was $58 mil last year, and which almost EVERY team exceeds by a significant with the use of exceptions (rookie contract exception, MLE, even veteran minimum wage exceptions).

In particular, the Rockets salary last year was $70 mil. Yao's contract expiration lower the salary commitment by $18 mil or so, and Chuck Hayes' contract expration got rid of another $2 mil. These, and other more minor salary changes may have decreased the salary by $21 mil or so, but it only got the team down to maybe $48/$49 mil, which is only $9/10 mil away from the $58 mil "cap" level.

In other words, just because the Rockets had $70 mil in salaries last year, it doesn't mean the league allows them to pay $70 mil again next year.



2. Also, the money saved with the "McGrady salary cut" was taken up in other moves: Scola got a bigger contract as a FA, Lowry did, too. The McGrady trade also brought in KMart, who makes a decent amount of $.

 

And that's the exact reason why payroll shouldn't just stop at 70mil if making huge amount of money isn't that big an issue for the owner.

 

Was Tyson Chandler an FA?

 

then it's bust.

there's no ****ing way. even less chance than the Bosh nonsense last year.

 

I agree. Don't waste time chasing after Howard, who btw, already has his eyes set on LA. Go after more realistic players like Dalembert, Jordan or M. Gasol(who may have trouble getting paid in Memphis due to large contracts already given out).

 

^ i agree..the Rox starting C position can be sold to M. Gasol or Dalembert...Howard?! nevermind..