Yeah, he made it clear to Morey once he became the owner : if you will ever mention to me anything about the luxury tax, you will be fired.
Does this mean it never came up as in 'I'm not paying it' or 'it doesn't matter, of course I'll pay it if I need to' or Morey never had plans to go far into the luxury tax to begin with so never brought it up?
Luxury tax has never came up in any discussions We're ready to bust the budget We'll have our pick of the free agents We're running it back
I'm pretty sure Tilman told Morey at the end of last season that he wants value from any new signings. You can can tell from the words Morey used yesterday: This tells me that Morey has an edict not to overpay anyone.
"We know we're going to be in the luxury tax, and if you want to compete for a championship, I feel like unless you get real lucky, you're going to be in the luxury tax," Fertitta told ESPN before the Rockets' summer league game Monday against the Clippers. "So it is what it is. ... It never even came up in any discussion."
Uhmm pants on fire? Come on, anyone believing this is a moron. The most telling and pathetic statement is the one about guys outperforming their contracts, i.e. "we are looking at cheap ways to stay flexible, get some rejects and decent players who will sign for less in the hope they outperform Luc & Ariza so we can look smart".
Quotes from TheScore.com: Tilman: "We know we're going to be in the luxury tax, and if you want to compete for a championship, I feel like unless you get real lucky, you're going to be in the luxury tax.So it is what it is. ... It never even came up in any discussion." Maori: "Both Trevor and Mbah a Moute were a big part of our team. That's part of my job and our staff's job is to put together a new group for this year. We feel confident. We need our best team on April 15. We're going to either sign or trade or something to get us back to where we need to be, and we also really like our group."
That quote pretty much tells you all you need to know. Morey is operating on a very tight budget. Tilman will pay for stars(CP3, Melo with the MLE, Capela for at least 15 mil/yr). But he won't shell out for the supporting cast. Morey is basically stuck looking for bargain basement deals. A pretty depressing and sobering moment as a Rockets fan. Les wasn't exactly a big spender either, but I don't see how we ever compete with the elite franchises in the NBA with this kind of owner.
Tilman is also a major businessman. After the Boogie signing you think he's going to up his risk profile and shell out a shitload of cash paying for a team that most likely won't beat 5 all-NBA players? Why pay 50m or whatever it is potentially in luxury tax for a team that's gonna end up 2nd anyways (from his perspective)
If that is true, then he is a terrible ****ing owner and businessman. They should have every scenario down to the penny.
That's a pathetic attitude for an owner. He has a 65-win team that was a CP3 hammy and Scott Foster whistle away from a title. And how in the hell does he know the Warriors are a shoo-in for the championship next season? Sure, they're the overwhelming favorite. But for all we know, one of their stars could blow out a knee in the season opener. If Tilman is gonna be nickel and diming as the Rockets owner, I'd prefer he just sell the team. He'll make a profit coming off the season they just had. But hand the reigns to someone who actually wants to compete.
