Yea, and then therse how to use him too. Draymond green was mntioned. People talk about simmons lack of progress and in some ways his offense is troubling, but they overlook that he is committed to and has grown substantially on defense. something that isn't as celebrated for all those that think he doesnt put in work into hi game and now hes elite at almost everything except shooting Leonard had a terrible shot when he went to the spurs, they've got a shooting coach and had a plan and each year they set it up. Organizations matter. Who knows where tyrke evans would be if he had a better franchise. Be it having coaches, specialist coaches, the right plan, facilities can all bring th best out of your talent...all the more reason for the rockets to stop bullshitting about new facilities since 2017 and do it now with this new crop
The highlighted is where the mistake happened and not changing the team around to accommodate and keep Butler. They knew Simmons couldn't shoot and knew it was a problem back to LSU with the wrong hand. The Sixers know him better than ANYBODY. He didn't make his first 3 until that season and has only taken 34 in his entire career. As an organization that has to give you pause and the correct decision would have been to trade him then for max return. Which teams won chips paying Gordon Hayward, Kemba Walker, John Wall, and Tobias Harris max deals? If they don't get Lillard and they won't, Ben Simmons has wrecked the future of the Sixers and he will wreck the future of where he goes. Usman Garuba is an excellent example of why you don't pay a Ben Simmons max money. If he plays to his potential and develops a 3 shot you effectively have a better or comparable player to Simmons and the ability to sign a max player who is actually worth the money. In the NBA because of guaranteed contracts you can never separate the player from the contract. Ben Simmons at $5M is valuable and at $38M crippling. Kemba Celtics bad, Kemba Knicks good. Morey made plenty of mistakes but dumping Portions was not one of them. Two teams went on to pay that bust the max and look what happened to them. Maxes to the wrong players cripple teams which we learned with Ryno. The big mistake people are making with Simmons is the evaluation of an asset with declining value whose value is tied to a faulty narrative based perception and not reality. A year ago he was an all-star on the end of a rookie deal. Now some team is trying to trade him but still thinks he is worth 2 1sts. More of the same decline in PERCEPTION next year and some team would be lucky to trade him like we are dealing with in Wall.
indeed, indeed. Yet one still must have the players on one’s side. Philly roster looks pretty good to me INCLUSIVE of Benny No Shoot. They go nowhere. The Cs were roster laden throughout the Big 3 era. Two Finals, one ‘chip. I like Doc. Just don’t want him coaching up my guys.
@xiki help me out, in all seriousness, what is it about Doc Rivers as a coach? He's obviously very affable, his players probably like him as a person, he must have some good qualities as a coach, but what is that missing thing? Is he merely the good guy who succeeds if given elite level talent (and who wouldn't)? Asking seriously. Anyone else can chime in; I'm probably only good for "evaluating" Mike D'Antoni and other Rockets coaches (especially when the team loses ).
Want to poach any Blazer players? Might be having a sale soon. Get ready for POR to implode. LOVE IT!
PHI: McCollum (POR) + 2 POR FRP + 1 POR pick swap + House (HOU) POR: Simmons (PHI) + Gordon (HOU) HOU: Jones Jr (POR) + Elleby (POR) bought out or moved
I am sure this trade thread would be wildly entertaining all season long......but last trade season thread on Clutchfans was a classic. D-Rock pushing AG to the Rockets everyday was so entertaining (the arguments, debates, agreements and disagreements over AG was soooooo hilarious) lol I have nothing but respect for you D-Rock lol By the way I might do the same to this thread with MPJ to The Rockets until he signs that Denver extension. lol
We need to trade for Bol Bol right now. He is only making $2.1 million on an expiring contract. He probably won't see the floor on the Denver Nuggets. He would fit perfectly on the Rox. Stretch 5 who can rebound and block shots.
I would love to get him, but what do we have that Denver would want or need? Who do you think the Rockets should be willing to give up for him? I really don’t know Denver’s roster or needs very well. I’d like to hear other’s idea on obtaining him, because I think he would be a good fit and gives up some insurance if Garuba doesn’t pan out (doubtful).
There was a good amount of people on here complaining about Evan Mobley's rail thin body frame prior to the draft. I wonder how loud the screams will be if Bol Bol is in a Rockets uniform.
Yup. I'm determined to get Rubio here as a backup 1, even with Wall still on the team. Then hopefully sign him multi year around $10m per after this season while moving off of Wall's contract. Plus I love the idea of Reddish being our starting PF. Or at least swapping time between him, Garuba and KJ in either forward spot. Getting rid of Tate SUCKS. But you essentially use him to move Gordon here. He should have farrrr more value than a late FRP. Gordon would be clear upgrade next to Trae than Gallo. Yes Gallo brings the size but Gordon should bring the same outside shooting and a LOT more defense. Should be able to take the guard defensive assignment off of Trae most nights. Tate and Reddish are similar value IMO. Reddish is younger and bigger but already has an injury history. Tate is smaller, older but just coming off of All Rookie honors and is a defensive beast. Gallo should help the Cavs in what they were dead last in the league at last year. 3 pt shooting. They were also 24th in fg%. Mobley should help, but bringing in a vet to help carry the offensive load should help the team as a whole. Further to this, the Cavs hopefully find a trade pairing Sexton and Love. anyway Rockets in: Rubio, Reddish (sign Brooks 3yr $10.5) Hawks in: Gordon, Tate Cavs in: Gallo, House, 2024 GS 2RP via Houston, 2025 Houston 2RP Depth Chart: Wall/Rubio/Augustine/Brooks Green/Nwaba/Christopher KPJ/KJ/Khyri Reddish/Usman Wood/Sengun/Theis
Like the idea of getting Reddish, but we have absolutely no need for Rubio. We are stuck with Wall for 2 more years and KPJ needs all the minutes he can get as our superstar pg of the future.
True but you can not teach height. Bol Bol is a modern day big man. He can handle the rock like KD. Go watch the footage on him.
Havent read this entire thread but really have my eye on the Pelicans SRP via Cleveland. NOP has 3 second rounders that are unlikely to help them make Zion happy. Id gladly "sacrifice" House or DJ for that pick. Ibou Badji would be a nice addition as a backup uber-athletic big to develop with Sengun and Garuba.
I respectfully disagree. I 100% think we start Wall and KPJ. Even if we stagger their minutes we will still need playmaking off the bench. As much as I love DJ and what he did for the team last year, he ain't the one. Plus Rubio defensively is a major upgrade over DJ, and I think is the perfect complimentary piece for KPJ once we move in from Wall - if we manage to keep him. Would rather have Rubio on the bench than either Gallo or House (hence why i included the 2nd rounders to move them).
You make good points, but I’d rather keep my powder dry until Wall is gone. We don’t need any other point guard on the team this year, unless we are seriously trying to make the play-in. Signing Rubio to a multi-year 10mil contract is contrary to everything we see Stone doing. This year we will be “unintentionally” tanking. If by some magic, we are in contention for the play-in and we want to do something for a veteran we will do it at the deadline without tying ourselves into a mid 30’s PG (which we already have). If we somehow can get rid of Wall then somebody like Rubio might be plausible.
