it would be ignorance to vindicate him of a significant portion of the blame when it comes to instances like the transfer of the team from adelman to mchale. And it seems ever move contradicts the previous one. We're rebuilding. Nope we're retooling. Nope we're satisfied with what we have and we're making a deep playoff push. If theres one thing thats come out of all this its never to listen to the rockets PR.
How can you blame him when he had to build a team around injury prone players? Do you remember the talent that surrounded Yao and Tmac before he got here? Now Les is holding us back by not allowing the team to tank. Also we have no idea what this team would have been like if the trade with through and we signed Nene. I am not sure how any logical person can blame Morey for this.
those who blame morey for this teams' mediocrity don't have a good pulse on the entire league. morey has done an amazing job considering the hand he's been dealt, from the injured washed-up stars to david stern vetoing the trade. when lebron went to miami, he started a domino effect. now stars want to cluster together and ensure their legacy... houston has not been the right destination since transitioning from yao/tmac to klow7/martin/scola. morey has a team full of movable assets... but when the star players like dwight howard insist on playing with another star - or going to a team who can outright sign another star - it negates any GMs work to build a talented team roster. retraction anyone? otherwise... we will have to wait for the draft to land us the talent we need to contend.
Hey Morey has already gotten us 1 star in Klow, a star he is paying peanuts right now. Give him time until he can rope another star for the MLE
So you'd rather the Rockets be run like the Knicks? The Rockets could potentially have around 30 million in cap space this summer. Also, there are people here that have complained that Morey has made too many trades that hurt team chemistry, or whatever. You actually think he hasn't made enough trades? There's these 2 guys that are free agents this summer. I think their names are something like Deron Williams and some dude named Dwight. Attention wasted.
i don't think we were stuck in mediocrity with Morey, at best- we were an average team, at worst- yup, we were also an average team. I think however Morey has come to understand that just adding and subtracting minor assets to the team will not have a major impact. He's finally grasped that sometimes in order to take 2 steps forward, you gotta take one back, or just say **** the walking and buy a car. We cant afford a car (Howard) So expect to be stuck in mediocrity this season and perhaps next for a good lottery picks. And also to give our assets a shot at padding their stats so that 3 or 4 of them can be collectively traded for one player
We're is everyone getting that were mediocre? We officially suck. 3-7 out of the gate, no identity, no closer, second to last place in our conference. The tankers got their wish now please shut up and let the people that actaully know what they are doing work.
Truth of the matter is that morey has done good things and he has made mistakes. He has weaknesses and strengths. Our goal may not align with his and Les's but I do believe he wants to build a contender. Problem is...does he get we need to suck before we can be good.
Les wants to win. That keeps Morey from rebuilding through the draft. And Kevin is fighting to keep his coaching job so he's walking the company line of win at all costs. The person that you should fire can't be fired so you only hope that he changes his mind.
I didn't read the thread because of it's absurd premise, but I was curious if there has been any consensus on the GM you geniuses believe is better than Morey? My guess is it would be a pretty short list. Riley? West? Remember, Red Auerbach is dead.
I know it is speculation, but does anyone perceive a master plan in all this shuffling? It is like a chess game and there may be several potential moves depending on multiple circumstances. Personally, I can't discern any particular strategy except accumulating and trading away undersized forwards.
Some people have compared the Rockets losing Yao and Tracy to the Blazers losing Roy and Oden, but they don't seem to recognize the differences in circumstances. 1) Blazers had five mediocre to horrible seasons where they missed the playoffs that lead to those high draft picks for Roy, Oden, and Aldridge. The Rockets worst season under Morey is 42-40. The Blazers went 27-55, 21-61, 32-50, and 41-41 during their "tanking" years prior to rebounding to 3 straight first round exits. 2) The Blazers fired Pritchard, the GM responsible for those drafts, hired a new GM in Cho and kept him less than a year before firing him, and now are still looking for a permanent GM with Chad Buchanan filling the position as acting General Manager for now. 3) Are the Blazers REALLY that much closer to contending than the Rockets? They still have Aldridge, and have had a nice start to this season at 7-4, but four of those wins include Philly, Denver, Sacramento and Cleveland all at home, and two of their quality wins over the Clippers and Lakers were also at home. They may end up with a better record than the Rockets and make the playoffs, but does anyone really consider them to have a legitimate chance to win a championship this year? Or is another first round exit more likely? 4) If you are looking at "results" as the bottom line, Portland had 3 years of going out in the first round, followed by five years of not making the playoffs, leading up to 3 more years of first round playoff exits. 5) Brandon Roy played 43 games last year and was part of the playoffs even if he wasn't up to his all star level. TLDR: The Blazers are pretty much in the same boat as the Rockets, and don't have either of the GM's responsible for their current roster any more. They might be slightly better than Houston due to some win now moves like Camby and Gerald Wallace and having the same coach, but they aren't likely to actually win a championship because of them.
The strategy is one of chaos, just be ready for anything should it come up and be a player. There is no clear cut strategy. DD
Again. The team and franchise are rebuilding right underneath our noses. Fans are just too dumb to notice. -The Rockets have the youngest roster in NBA in terms of NBA experience as stated this morning from Matt Bullard. -They Have a grand total of 3 "veteran" players all playing at a high level -They have a coming of age all-star point guard who with the start of the season has had the highest PER in the entire NBA. The Rockets probably wont have top draft picks in the next few years but neither will other good up and coming teams like the 76ers, Pacers, etc. Has Morey been dealt a tough deck of cards.... Yes Has Morey done well despite challenges... Yes Has Les done well.... ex. hire the correct people, spend money.... Yes Have the Rockets had a deep playoff run wit this new revamped roster....No Has this roster gained large media attention...No. The proof is right there. Morey and Les have done what they are supposed to do, and the end result is to get in the playoffs, and get national attention. Since the Rockets are only in the second real year with this new roster, and first year with new coach the book has yet to be written on Morey and Les. Pick this thread up two years from now and then you can judge.
I agree, I don't understand what they rocket's future plans are - nor do any of us. We, as fans, are not used to being at the bottom of our conference, nor should we. Blame the players, blame the organization, doesn't matter...make changes soon.
Seems like it, but Morey doesn't appear to be a "chaos" kind of guy, more like a bean counter. He must have some plan in mind, maybe not. We obviously don't appear to have much trade capital but calls can come out of nowhere. One team's trash can be another team's treasure.
How did we get Lucas? How did we get Ralph? How did we get Hakeem? How did we get Yao? By winning the title? No, we sucked, and it was no fun, but I was still a fan. I have no problem with Morey's plan to actively acquire a contingent of solid players that keep the team competitive while waiting for the best opportunity to capitalize on said players and make the acquisition that can move the team to the next level.
I agree that this is mainly a young team. That's not the argument. But youth doesn't translate well to future potential. I'm a patient person. If there was a young KD on this team and we were racking up Ws and Ls at an equal pace, I could see waiting for the right trade or FA or drafting a hidden Robin. But I don't have a lot of optimism around this team has the right foundation. Lowry is a definite keeper but I don't think he's the Batman we're looking for. Given the current path we're on, I can only hope that Lowry is enough to draw someone like Howard over. I'm just not sure that Howard is looking at Lowry's PER. The Pacers are not so much a true contender IMO. In fact, I see them as a poster child for treadmill teams. A first round team with 2nd round goal which can most likely only achieved if they play well enough during the season to miss playing the true contenders. The 76ers are in the same boat as the Pacers are today but add to that that they have actually had a couple of low picks to get them where they are. Still first round fodder IMO. If you exclude the 09ers from our roster, our team consists of #14 and up players - with the latest 14th pick playing in RGV. To get .500 out of this roster is a feat. This is a team of underdogs and overachievers. But I don't think you'll find the talent you need to win the title with only that - we need a stud to win. 1 is sometimes all it takes - many times that attracts others. Odds are against you that you can find that stud picking in the teens. And the bad thing is the better you get at being mediocre, the worse your pick becomes which gives you just enough gas to stay on the treadmill a little longer. Morey has done a pretty good job with what he's been dealt - yes. Les? Not so much. But I can understand Les not wanting to hurt the value of his asset or parade a known lotto team out there. Swinging for the fences is a gamble that can and most likely will hurt your team before it helps. And I can't say I wouldn't be the same way as an owner unless I had reeeediculous pockets of money and this was just my passion/hobby. But as a fan that wants to be a true contender again (Bulls, OKC, Heat, etc), I'd take a different path because my goal is not to just win - it's win a championship.