Not really since what are the alternatives…..? Mediocrity and hope you can turn pull another Harden trade? We are simply trying to build up our asset war chest…. You aren’t seeing the forest through the trees….
You can improve through trades, player development, and free agency…. High draft picks can either being developed or traded…. We aren’t stuck with whoever we draft, even if it’s out of the top 2.
I’m also curious to what the alternative strategies are? So far it’s just been assuming we’d still get the #2 pick in 2021 while keeping the best players from the Harden trade…. Then profit.
They have basically sacrificed a couple of years of player development now on incompetent coaching to get an extra few percent points chance at the top pick. It did not work last year. Hopefully it will this year because next year we have to either finally start to develop the talent we already have with a good staff or shoot for the bottom again to get the bottom 4 protection for the OKC owned pick.
Right now the Rockets would have a 15% chance of getting Victor Wembanyama. That doesn't sound great until you consider that he is one of the 2-3 biggest NBA prospects over the last 45 years. The other ones? LeBron, Shaq..... really only Kareem and Wilt before then. So, a 1:7 chance is really valuable when we are talking about a pedigree of player that historically has not only won a title, but multiple titles. The Rockets have about a 30% chance of getting the #1 OR #2 pick in the draft. Getting the #2 pick in this draft means more than most years, because the #2 prospect in this draft would be a #1 pick in about half the prior drafts. Henderson is viewed similar to how Derrick Rose was viewed. He likely would have gone #1 in 5-7 of the last 10 drafts. So, even if the Rockets do not get the #1 pick, they can get a player with a better than 50% chance of being a multiple all-star. A Rockets core of Green/Henderson and Smith is very appealing. Henderson would likely be the best overall player out of that group. The next best player is Amen Thompson, and he is clearly ahead of players #4-5 at this point. Thompson is the most athletic guard in a draft since Morant. He is someone that may not make an immediate impact like Wembanyama or Henderson, but he still has the upside of being an elite player. He also is known as a strong worker. if the Rockets stay #1 in the loss standings, they are guaranteed a top 5 pick. In the 4-5 pick range will be players like Ausar Thompson, Cam Whitmore, Nick Smith and Brandon Miller. They all project as likely long-term starters.
The alternative as far as I can see it is to flip KPJ, KJ, Gordon, and some picks for veteran players to win 35 games, throwing away a 1:7 chance for a 0 chance.
The Rockets are just trying to give themselves the best odds to improve long term before the OKC trade kicks in again. That means they are trying to get as many high draft picks as possible to package together for a trade or develop.
People need to just bear through it and hope they hold the course. We're not remotely "behind" in our rebuild, most of the other teams have been doing it more than twice as long as we have and we have more pieces from it already than some of them. I can bear the losing and watching religiously for flashes of brilliance, it's actually more bearable than the Martin/Scola/Lowry etc years because we actually have a lot more talent with all star potential on the roster.
I disagree. Look at last year. I think we would have been more than happy if we ended up selecting Keegan Murray or Benedict Mathurin. This year I'd be thrilled with about 5-6 other guys. But obviously they're all a consolation prize after Wemby and Scoot.
We're the best at being an absolute embarrassment on the court. Though the Pistons, Magic, Spurs, and Hornets can try their best, they will fail. We are the gods of trash basketball.
