If teams are tanking for Wemby the Rockets should....?

plan worked to perfection tonight

 

He's not saying they wouldn't want to play with Wemby. He is saying that the team is ready now. The Rockets are done tanking.

 

He's not saying they wouldn't want to play with Wemby. He is saying that the team is ready now. The Rockets are done tanking.

 

To me it's not really about the "tank" as much as it's about the age of the team. Tonight was a prime example. Thought they played well. Competed their butts off and still loss to a team minus all of its big guns. KPJ and JG played great and it still wasn't enough to beat the bench unit. There's nothing wrong with playing hard, growing, gaining that needed experience and still finishing in a position to possibly land a top pick.

 

We now have the road map for your tank job, we just keep Jabari out all season, trade Tate and Josh Gordon, and play guys like Boban and Josh Christopher heavy minutes. I could see that scenario leading to 20 wins.

 

That's all we can ask. Just let the Rockets play to win. If they lose, then just try better the next time. Intentional losing should be avoided. It will not help the team long-term.

 

LOL.

Keep in mind. That game would have been a lot uglier if Butler, Lowry, Herro and Bam had played.

I still loved the game. KPJ and JG looked great!

 

And I wouldn't really expect the Rockets to hang with the best teams in the NBA this season, but they should destroy the worst and beat the mediocre. That's why I don't think a tank is possible without extreme measures.

 

Wemby is becoming the pipe-dream that most team forums are going to discuss for the next 8 months. If we did somehow get him, obviously we'd work around that, but I'm assuming we won't get the #1 pick.

I know I'm a Scoot Henderson fan, but I really do think he's what we need for this core group.

Our biggest strengths roster-wise on this team are:

• Having our Go-To/Future 25-30ppg guy in Jalen
• Having 2 low-USG, versatile Forwards who can defend and get you 18+ without needing the ball much: Jabari as a spacer, Tari as the hustle/slasher/utility guy
• A handful of other young talent, to develop or trade: Sengun, KPJ, Tate, Martin, Jaygup, TyTy, Garuba (?), Fernando (?)

Our biggest weaknesses on this roster are:

• Poor passing/ball-movement: KPJ is improving but his PG instincts aren't ideal, and much of the rest of the roster is mediocre in this department
• Interior-D/Rim-Protection: Tari/Bari should become an elite-duo at the Fwd spots, but Sengun as the back-line is the weak-link here
• P/R Finisher: Again, I like Sengun, but young Guards today need to run the P/R, and not having a vertical threat hurts their development
• Experience, obviously

Basically, we can fix the rim-protection/finisher problem pretty easily. We have a few expendable young players that could yield a solid young athletic C that fits with our core-three of Green/Smith/Eason. A Bamba, Jalen Smith or Gafford type would do fine, since we wouldn't be asking them to do a ton.

But the passing/ball-movement problem is one that either requires full-team improvement (which usually needs legitimate coaching/schematic change, as well as time), or adding a primary creator who can handle a large chunk of the shot-creation (like Luka or Ja). And I think the latter option is available in Scoot. He won't have to push 30/10/10 like Luka, but if he could eventually be a 25/8 guy next to Jalen's 28/5, that'd be ideal (and the best backcourt in the L, sorry Detroit).

 

I agree and that's likely true unless like many other NBA Execs, TF has other plans in mind. Best outcome... they don't finish last in rankings, grow some across the board, start to run some semblance of a legit system designed to meet this group and bring the most out of each skill they possess while finishing in a position to possibly land a top pick in the lottery.

 

Unless Sengun can be used like some sort of Draymond or Jokic, then I think he's not a good a good fit with the current Rockets. Rockets sorely need a playmaker and an excellent coach. For the playmaker, it doesn't matter the position. KPJ, I agree with you can only serve as a backup playmaker. He's more of an SG disguising as PG. For me, developing JG, Tari and Bari should take precedence. Just let them play major minutes. Let them commit mistakes. Let them win or lose. The more they play together, the more they'll be better. Aspiring for lottery picks are just secondary. I am really amazed at how Warriors and Celtics can make later picks work. Rockets got some luck with Tari. Rockets got a lot of trading pieces. Tanking isn't the only way.

 

Sengun doesn't have the speed and athleticism to be Draymond. He can be a small version of Jokic if he can shoot. If I were the coaches, I would order him to work on his shot till he dropped dead. That's the only thing that will make him fit and will open up not just his own game but the whole offense.

 

A non intentional tank / bottom feed is quite possible without said extreme measure because as you noted they should destroy the worst teams but being they were just that months ago and they got even younger via draft it's all a coin flip on w-l's, those mediocre teams at home will be a tough out for a team trying to learn how to win/close out games since being assembled which is a toss-up more so on the road, but at home [toyota] they should handle those same type teams

and hopefully they can be highly or semi-competitive against those said best teams and pull off a few upsets, and that still could lead to a high or middle of pack lottery pick while trying to win every game

a 7 to 10 game improvement would still put them in the mix to get a high pick, but it will take some supreme high luck for top 2-3 because of those other squads who plan to all-out tank with no shame for the Wemby/Scoot sweepstakes

the Rockets are really just starting year 2 of the full blown rebuild, even with KD it took OKC 3 years before they were legit competitive and 5 to reach a Finals trip, that's how i feel Stone should be looking at this squad

 

What I mean to say is like Draymond in the offense. He's got a wide body and the talent of a passer. Defense-wise, he's too slow. His defense is limited around the rim and there's not much to be expected. Athletic guards will just go around him, or do a step back during a switch and he's toast.

 

I really don’t want to finish bottom 4 again this season.

 

One of Draymond's advantage is that he can play PG on offense. He can grab a defensive rebound, dribble up court to lead a fast break. Sengun doesn't have that kind of handles and speed. But Sengun is much better at scoring in the post. Draymond has no scoring move other than dribble drive to the basket if he has the lane. He can catch and shoot the 3 if you leave him wide open, but not very efficiently. (At least he's not afraid to shoot, like Ben Simmons is.) Sengun has a lot more scoring ability down low.

 

That's true but I think Sengun will shine on this team as a passer from the high post. His dribbling skills is enough to get him within the low post. His passes though are more important for this team with shooters and cutters. Low post offense isn't too viable in today's game.

 

Who does he defend?