I don't see how he panicked. Really. He set his price for Courtney Lee and did not budge. He set his price for other players as well and did not budge. He traded away Battier who will expire this season for two other assets and Brooks (who was NOT going to be with us next year and was no good this year) for another two pieces. It was a good deadline for him. He put in his offer and did not budge. He prob. had 100 deals that did not go through this year.
Martin = Water because his Jumper is always Wet or is it because he sometimes plays softer than Linka?
I think it's the leadership change, and what we have been asking for a while now, playing the young guys. Lowry and Hayes are now pretty much the leaders of this team now and both have more fire and heart than Brooks had (which translates on defense), and really Chase's offensive contributions (his defense and rebounding are looking a little better as well) combined with Martin being on fire lately are elevating us with no dead spots. Our bench with Lee and Patterson getting more minutes are bringing energy and defense (TWill's playing time with a few rebounds and not being a liability on D helps a little too) to help get stops or keep leads. Younger players have more energy and hunger. Young teams also do better in back to backs. And our team has more defensive talent on the floor with Lee, TWill, Pat, Hayes, and Lowry playing starters or increased minutes.
The fact that Budinger and Lee having performed well in Shane's minutes helps a lot, too. Budinger, in particular, have played a lot better as starter than he has as a sub. Maybe not having to play with Aaron Brooks helps. Lee is like a smaller but faster version of Battier. Chuck Hayes called him a "top 5" guys at closing out on jump shooter after the NOLA game-- when he did a great job closing out on Ariza's corner 3 and forcing him into an airball.
Here's my honest take. I thought trading Brooks for ____ was a no brainer in terms of helping us win, now. Where he fit on the team, starter or off the bench, was a debate regarding his role, not worth. When healthy he clearly helps, somewhat. Unfortunately, he was not this year, and playing him into shape has clearly cost us. Trading him for anything, whether it meant more minutes for Lowry, Lee at PG, or the new guy, would have contributed in the winning department. I thought trading Battier for basically nothing(this year) would have been a huge loss, in terms of helping us win, now. Bud and Lee may get more minutes and tally up similar or higher boxscore stats, but Battier's "intangibles" would have been irreplaceable. Net net I thought the - in losing Battier would have overwhelmed the + in losing Brooks. So I expected a markedly worse product on the floor.(but potentially brighter future) Where I went wrong was potentially overestimating the loss in Battier. Don't get me wrong, I still hold him to the same level of esteem today. However I might have underestimated the young guys stepping up. Budinger provides much better spacing and offensive flow, and we've yet to see him get isoed up defensively(crossing my fingers there). If Lee can give us a similar level of defensive production, all we really lost here was "leadership". While that is the rah rah buzz word that everyone looks to in regards to Shane, how much actual measurable effect does it really have oncourt? I still think losing Battier hurts us a lot overall. But maybe not as much as I initially feared. When you add that to what everyone has been saying, addition by subtraction with Brooks, passing of the trade deadline, more clearly defined roles etc., I think that is what could potentially upgrade our on court production after all.
+1. This team now has an identity; no more wondering if tomorrow, they get told that they've been shipped off to some other city. This team that we have right here is playing scary basketball. Whether they can sustain it is anybody's guess, but for now, just sit back and enjoy the ride, folks.
I can't believe no one posted this pic yet. But yeah, it's too early to tell if this team really is now turning it around. It's a nice streak they're putting up, but this season will only be a success if they make the play-offs.
Dragic a paper weight? Give me a reason for me to believe that... As good as Brooks were last season, this year his production took a big dip. I know he was injured at the beginning of the season with that ankle sprain but its already halfway thru the season and he hasn't got any better. Even right before the ALl Star game, Brooks usually struggles and often forces bad shots which forces Kyle Lowry to rush back into the game. Morey made a great decision. He signed Lowry to a new contract and traded Brooks because he knew he wasn't going to resign Aaron Brooks. Anyway, back to Dragic. He is a little bit younger than Brooks and he has more potential to become a better player. He has size advantage over Brooks and he is a better defender so other PGs can't abuse Dragic like they do to Brooks. Brooks is incredibly quick and a very good shooter. That's the only thing Brooks possesses is his scoring ability. But Dragic can also score, distributes, and defend. Though Dragic isn't as good of a scorer Brooks is, he is a much better all around player. Standing at 6'3, our PGs combo just got bigger and better. I personally believe that Dragic can get to the rim just as well as Brooks can but he is a better finisher. Brooks seem to lost his step this season and because he uses his quickness as an advantage, his production fell. Morey just wouldn't trade Brooks and Ish away if he wasn't going to get a good PG in return. I think Dragic can start in this league and I think by playing with Nash, he picked up some good advice along the way. I guess you don't see Dragic play that much but I can assure you that Dragic is an upgrade over Brooks. Right now, he just need to get comfortable with his new teammates and the new system. But once he gets settle down, you will see why Morey made this trade. Like Brooks, Dragic too has struggled this season as well. But he has shown flashes that he can become a very good PG. He is a very gifted passer and we will need that off the bench. His good passing ability will help this team but it will help the young guys develop because he can create opportunities for them. Thabeet on the other hand, I just don't watch him enough to know what he will bring to the table. I wouldn't neccessarily say he's a paper weight because he has the length and size that will help this team one day. Hopefully he can develop into a great shot blocker and protect the paint. He has size and athleticism and that is something you can't teach. So hopefully he can show some promising potential by the end of the season.
So wait, Morey was....SUCCESSFUL?!? We netted a 7'3" bust and a career backup PG and THAT is successful to you? What happened to "luring a superstar" or a couple of difference makers? Wasn't THAT the plan? Wasn't THAT what all these "assets" was supposed to land?!? You're saying pulling Thabeet and Dragic = success?!?!? We are not a successful team...in a league that rewards over HALF of the teams with playoffs, we are on the outside looking in. We are LITERALLY one of the worst franchises in the NBA. Daryl Morey is our GM. Period.
Excellent. Pic is excellent. Post is repped. While I don't expect fairy godmothers and magic to save us...I like what you did thar...and your sig? BRAVO, sir. Bravo....Bra-f..king-o!.
battier is gone but either Chuck or Luis were to leave I would totally lose it. Not just because of the type of guys. But since mac and Yao were gone these were the guys that stuck with us and gave us great rockets basketball. Especially last season with brooks and battier .
So I guess I'm wondering how you thought we were going to "lure a superstar"... Morey was probably the most active GM around the deadline according to a lot of sources and he said himself that he didn't get the trade he wanted. But he got something. It's better that he got something than to just let these guys walk at the end of the season with nothing to show for it. Battier and Brooks were good players, but they were clearly holding back some of the younger players on a team that needs to be in rebuild mode. Morey made a tough decision and did the best he could. I can assure you that DM is considered one of the best GM's in the league by people in the know... and that the rockets are probably considered more of a "Middle of the pack" team than "one of the worst franchises in the NBA". I think you're going a little overboard there.
I'm going overboard? Really?!? So, are you saying that Morey's plan has worked? His plan was to collect assets, cash in said assets for star/difference maker. Win. So, are you saying that he succeeded? REALLY?!?!?!? The Rockets are going to miss the playoffs for the next 4-5 years. I'm not sure that has sunk in for you yet. We suck.
