This is actually Alperen's 1st bad offensive season but it is also his best defensive + rebounding season. It is also Rockets best + most successful season in the young core era.
Rockets remind me of those defensive NFL teams that need all of their All Pro LBs, safeties, corners and defensive ends to stay healthy because if any of them go down so does the season. Ime went to the Finals with 2 players who at the time were more experienced and straight up better than any offensive player on our roster. Amen is better than both Tatum and Brown defensively but he is still a project on the offensive side. Though he has shown much progress this year. With attention to defense you are always in games. But (to me) the main difference between our record this year and our record last year is Amen and Tari being absolute havoc merchants with the second units.
What is your time frame to Championship? Who could you consolidate with? IS Booker "get-able" - I dunno if the Suns will part with him . . . thought they going no where with Beal around their ankles What Talent Upgrade will be Available? (youngish talent anyway) If you want a 2 yr window what would cost us little in bodies KD could be had - Probably for something like FVV + a Pick Harden will be a Free Agent (unless you can find a better more competent PG) *I know I know - The Hatred* CP3 would be REALLY CHEAP but he not coming HERE Lack of a PG is killing the Suns FVV Booker and Beal could be credible with some changes Naz Reid / Myles Turner /Clint Capela Clint could come cheap and is a willing back up IMO . . Naz and Myles are not https://hoopshype.com/lists/2025-nba-free-agent-rankings-top-centers-available-this-summer/ If you looking Long Term . . . I dunno any LONG TERM YOUNGISH Talent we can Trade for Trae Young? LaMello on the Block? Rocket River
I used to be excited by this, but let's be honest the HC doesn't give a f*ck. You would think we're giving that responsibility to the young guys because we believe in them but it's actually that they're just cheaping out on investing in this roster. They know we need shooters, but they don't think these guys deserve it. Their idea is: let's not give them spacing and force them to play in the hardest offense of any playoff team, then let's judge them based on this extreme test. No other young guys are having to face this same idiocy except the Magic, and you can see it in Paolo Banchero's 51% TS% this season. Same exact struggles as us when they're healthy. In reality it seems like they're just punting till they can trade those young guys for a veteran superstar. All 3 of Alpi, Jalen and Amen are going to be or are already all stars. They find 3 potential all stars useless, even a smidgen of offensive improvement in the meantime is unreasonable to them unless we acquire a player worth $60m+ per season to come join the very guys they themselves don't believe it. What a cluster ****. I think if Ime has a large voice in the front office, our entire set of rebuilding assets is in danger. If I had to guess how that dynamic would go, Udoka will push Stone this summer and if he doesn't comply I'm sure Tilman would take Udoka's side because he will side with the guy who acts more tough.
KD and Harden solves alot of offensive woes Remember how in 2018 The Rockets had the most WIDE OPEN 3s in the league I think Reed could be special in a JOE HARRIS at his best kind of way in that offense. Amen could be PJ Tucker with handles, a mid range, movement , basketball skills and . ok ok . . well he can hit a corner three Like PJ Even at this big age - KD and HARDEN > CP3 and HARDEN and I think person for person . . .the reast of this squad matches up well with the rest of that squad Plus so much younger Rocket River
With all due respect Rocket River, if we conducted a 5 year rebuild to sign two 35+ year old stars and make our draft picks be their PJ Tuckers and Joe Harrises, security will have to drag me out of the Rockets building the next day for trying to beat the sh*t out of Stone. We do not need to solve offensive woes by giving up equal defense, that's useless. We need the defense to be top 10 and the offense to climb into top 10. There is 0% chance that team will be a top 10 defense no matter how much Ime claps. We need some OG Anunoby's in here. Some Derrick Whites. That's what this trio needs to open the damn paint for them. We don't need to hand over our team to a couple of geriatric stars. Reality is all the young guys we valued highest would just leave. Their agents wouldn't let them be role players when the market is going to offer them near-max or max contracts. Alpi is an all star, Jalen was talked about as an All Star on national media and is progressing rapidly and many think Amen is the best of the 3. In what world are these guys going to become ballboys for two stars who can't even seem to lift their current teams - nevermind the next 2 years? Harden is done, toasted. If he wants to come for CP3 price for nostalgia he's welcome (MLE). That's what a player is worth when they can't play defense, shoot 39% from the field and 34% from 3 and will only decline going forward. Now imagine you get rid of Zubac his vertical threat on PnR and Sengun's defender is sitting in the paint. He will not even get these veteran FT's they're awarding him. He has never in his life succeeded except with 4 shooters or 3 shooters and a vertical threat. It's not going to be different when he's a worse player. If KD joins, it's only as an elite sniper. Defensively we have to hide him now on the worst players so he can give us good defense. He cannot lift a team's floor any longer. The team you designed is exactly like the Suns: plenty of scorers, no defenders so we're trying to squeeze people into awkward roles. Then we're going to discover we need elite 3&D player - just like we do now - and we're going to discover those are expensive and we can't afford them. Back at the same ceiling as Clippers, Suns and Harden's Rockets. Only the current Rockets can afford elite 3&D role players. It doesn't work. This is not Dunn and Richards, our guys are stars, they know it, their agents know it, the media knows it about at least 2 of them, and for some reason only Rockets fans don't. Sengun is not a dirty work player. Amen is not going to be someone's role player, and with Harden/KD here he will be purely off ball which will tank his value immediately. Please no Rocket River. Please. Kevin Durant himself said at the deadline our players are too good to trade for him and we have an incredible thing going. Next season, the trio of Sengun/Amen/Green will be flat out undebatably better than KD and Harden. Our trio needs great two way players who can shoot at an elite volume and efficiency. We're supposed to help them be better. A star archetype will never be a good role player. Michael Jordan would be a horrendous role player at any age. Albert Einstein was a terrible employee. These two things are not the same and no amount of force will change the 'self'. They will be successful stars or they will fail as stars. There's no universe in which these 3 become the dirty work guys. How can it be the team with the 2nd highest pile of trade assets in the NBA can only acquire stars that have 1 or 2 years left? What are we the Utah Jazz sitting in a city no star wants to live in and our best young player is Keyonte George? Then why are we acting like them? I feel traumatized by your idea. Mercy!!!!!
If we lose against the Pelicans tonight after losing against the Pacers, we really need to figure out a way to trade for LaMelo or Zion with keeping majority of our starting 5.
LMAO They would NOT be the lead Horses They would be the Role Players Let Sengun/Jalen/Amen lead and Harden be the FVV Role KD be a better version of what Jabari is now. . . until Jabari is ready to step up Next season, the trio of Sengun/Amen/Green will be flat out undebatably better than KD and Harden. Agreed - But them on the Court with HARDEN AND KD is better than them on the court with FVV And Brooks/Bari Esp considering that Brooks and Bari could come off the bench at any time Nah - I'm not saying turn it over . . I'm saying a minor uipgrade that cost us little to nothing Rocket River
If you're asking me whether I would be entertained, I would be extremely entertained. If you're asking me whether we'll make it past the second round, no. KD and Harden need defenders around them, they are both going to be among the worst 5% of defenders next season. Green and Sengun can't do that at all, no point wasting time. Amen can't carry a defense, he's not a rim protector. I don't believe at all that KD and Harden would want to come and be the 4th and 5th best players on the team, those two care a ton about legacy. And then it's Ime trying to get great offense out of this? A very real chance that even with all that we just end up 5th best offense or something. We'd have to trade Sengun for an elite rim protector basically. That would be the only way. To pay what we'd have to pay for those two in terms of assets, then pay their salaries, then also dump Sengun. It's such a high price don't you think? Trust me, it's clear: the 2 players around Amen/Sengun/Green have to be good defenders and elite shooters who love playing that role and won't ask for the ball much. One more year of growth for all 3 means no more usage available. We can do better although like I said it would be highly entertaining. KD is a good fit imo. Doesn't want to play PG. Actually shoots well right now. Is a PF so it will create better spacing (takes the opposing PF out of the paint whereas Harden would just keep the PG out of the paint). Better defender. Plug and play, the entire system does not need to be designed around him.
I'd have FVV and Tari switched, and Jalen and Brooks switched for how they've performed this year when healthy. I'm surprised Tari did as well as this with half the measures taking minutes played into account.
The Pistons are 3rd in net efficiency rating, ahead of OKC??? They are a dangerous team. Whether it's the Knicks, Bucks or Pacers, Pistons have a realistic chance at winning in the 1st round.
This is a pretty outlandish read based on some pretty dubious reporting by some pretty dubious reporters (the Booker stuff) Stone's actual actions suggest he's loathe to give up on his promising young players unless he's blown away by the return
I wish we could have Austin Reeves on this team. He would be the perfect FVV replacement. And perfect fit with our young group. Still hoping Sheppard can be our Reeves. Yall think it’s possible?
