He's my favorite player on the roster but I think trading him would be more beneficial than keeping him.
I hesitated to post that. I am not sure how much effect the injury will have on his game if any. Considering Scola's game is not based on athletic ability he should be effective in this league for years to come. The problem is I don't see his production going up, but his salary will continue to rise. That doesn't mean he is overpaid. I think we got him at a bargain as long as he's able to remain consistent for the duration of his contract. When Morey heard the Nets were going to offer Scola 5 years, $55 million (I'm guessing from Scola's agent and confirmed by the Nets who probably didn't want to write up an offer sheet until hearing from both Scola and the Rockets) Morey went ahead and offered $5 years, $47 million. Scola decided he would rather stay in Houston than play for the Nets. $8 million is a substantial amount of cash for someone who won't receive a similar contract considering his age.
Scola is not on the decline in my opinion. The way he plays he should be able to go on for at least 3-4 years. He doesn't rely on athleticism like other big men like Tim Duncan, Kenyon Martin, etc. who declined at 30.
I don't buy the notion that he is on the decline. Dirk just played his best basketball in the playoffs, and he just turned 33. And I think Dirk will probably keep it up for a few years. I don't think Scola will decline much, if at all, over the next 2, 3 years. Although they play a different style, both are similar insofar as they rely on skill more than on athleticism. All that said - and Scola is probably my favorite player on the roster now that Yao might be gone and Battier is gone - we might as well blow everything up and suck for a while so we get a very high draft pick. I don't see any other way right no to get back into contention.
Trading Scola to anyone but a contender says players are assets. I don't disagree with this notion. If he is traded, it would be nice to see him playing for a contender.
Well, he gave up $8 million to avoid playing on NJ, an organization that looked absolutely horrible until they somehow got Deron Williams. I don't think he would have given up $8 million if the offer were from a contender. That's not an insult to his loyalty ... it's just sensible. Anyway, trading him to a contender now is our best option, and it really is not a bad thing for him either.
If the Rockets can get a sweet deal for Scola they should make the move -- I love his play, but he is 31 coming off knee surgery and he has about a million miles on those legs.
Fortunately he has the most value to contenders anyway. So it should be win-win. I wonder if OKC would be interested in Scola for Ibaka? Ibaka clearly has more long-term upside, but Scola is better at creating his own offense, which they could use. His leadership and savvy would also be very valuable to a young team like theirs.
Scola has not declined at all. Scola has another good 5 or 6 years left in the tank before he starts declining. You only trade Scola to get to tier talent. It's not his fault there is a 6'6' center playing along side him.
At 31, players are trying to secure a long-term deal from whichever team is willing to pay the most. Some players, and every agent would say it's sensible to take the offer from the team offering the most money.
If a trade involving Scola potentially makes the Rockets better, you have to do it. I'm a huge fan of Scola, dude has bigtime heart, but I want the team to get better and if trading him improves the team then do it.
Luis is a gentleman and a scholar, and should retire a Rocket. (but if he's the key piece in a deal that will unquestionably improve the team, you move Luis, or anyone else)
not sure if he's on the decline. the guy is not much of an athlete anyway so i think he could plateau for a while. I would be open to trading anybody. Scola probably wouldn't mind going to a contender as well.
Scola is one of my favorite players and I would hate to see him go but the same can be said about many other players on our team. I would hate to see players like scola,kmart,chuck,yao,lowry etc be traded but if it is for the better of the team, I would trade them. Scola plays his heart out every night but the truth is, we need to develop ppat and need to get a legitamite sf. To do this, I think it is necessary to trade scola.
