This sounds like a realisitc trade. You almost always lose something you wish you could keep, but it's not bad to keep Martin if you are going into win now mode with Gasol. Perhaps Dwight Howard would be willing to consider coming to a team with Gasol, Lowry, Parsons and Martin joining him in the starting line up?
I think they overvalue Gasol at 30+ with a contract that is all but pretty and his lack of interest to play for the rockets at all. I assume he is a rental until his contract is up and im sure he will be gone....so the list of players mentioned to acquire this guy should be shortened. something like.... Dragic +scola or Flynn,Scola and Bud ====Gasol (maybe a pickwould be nice) anything else is really given up to much ....period.
This. Let's not get linsane twice. Before trading Morris, give the guy some real playing time at the NBA level and see how he performs.
I don't think a deal with the Rockets and Lakers is forthcoming. Don't forget the Kobe factor here because it's a big deal. He's made it very clear to the public even, that he doesn't want to see Gasol moved unless it's to bring in a marquee player. If the trade just nets LA a "dog's breakfast" of players without any real star power, it signals to Kobe that management is going for a salary dump here and not interested in competing for titles near term. Kobe will absolutely go ballistic over that since he only has a few good years left and he expects to spend them playing for championships. Kupchak has to get the one player with star power from Houston which is Lowry in return for Pau or move on to another deal. it's as simple as that. Totally makes sense that the Rockets couldn't do or shouldn't do that deal but that's the only way the Lakers FO can balance this tightrope act they're on. Kupchak's plan "B" for all this would be to keep Gasol for the remainder of this season and deal for a point guard separately (Calderon, Sessions, Augustin), which is a doable proposition with draft picks and the TPE framed in some fashion. It will keep them competing seriously in the West this year and postpone the inevitable which is that they will have to move Gasol at som epoint. Plan "C" would be centered around Howard for Bynum and assets assuming that Orlando and Dwight would decide that LA is the best destination for him. It's conceivable but unlikely once again, that LA would throw all their assets (including Gasol) into the pot just to bring back a center when that isn't even one of the areas of major concern for the team right now. As far as concern over the cap or having to pay the tax, the Lakers new gigantic cable contract will cover all of that and more so it's not a real pain point for the franchise such that they would cut off their nose to spite their face during this trade deadline cycle.
lets not forget that with increased attention in the middle for gasol, martin will be freed up a lot as well which can only help. No matter what, as the last game showed, martin can knock down open looks and if teams decide to double down low that can open some looks for him. If we get kaman as well I think kaman/gasol would make a formidable front court to go with the martin/lowry backcourt, I would take my chances in the playoffs with that team
All of Morey's trade talks right now concerning Pau and everybody else is for the express purpose of being able to put together a multi-team deal with Orlando that brings Dwight here. If we could get Pau for Scola, Morris, Dragic, and Bud then that's a pretty big move that enables us to package Pau and Martin to Orlando or reroute Martin to Indy for Granger and send Orlando Granger and Pau for Dwight and Hedo. This also leaves us with plenty of pieces to go after DWill of the Nets fold on him....Lowry, Patterson, picks, expirings for DWill. Or we just let the Nets stew and lose DWill for nothing and force them to take Lowry and expirings alone for DWill. DWill Lee Parsons Dwight Hedo (with Motie coming over next season) Also Llull, etc.
I don't think they'd be cutthroat about Morris for the same reason, switch him with T Will or a pick and they'd still see the same value.
That's a great team and all but it kinda feels like it loses the essence of the Rockets. It's like it's a completely different team and not even our Rockets anymore.
That's because they aren't our players. But let them put on the uni and play a few games and all will be forgotten and they'll be our favs.
No star power amongst those four players is going to be a problem for the Lakers. Neither Chase nor Dragic are even NBA caliber starters as evidenced by their time in Houston, Marcus Morris is a "D Leaguer" for the present, all be it he's just a rookie and Scola is a solid player with a lot of miles, never to be confused with a 4 time All Star with two championship rings like Gasol. I think there is a better chance for the Rockets to target a big like Gortat or Brooke Lopez with these sort of "packages". Offer to put the Morris twins together in Phoenix along with Scola and possibly Martin. Might have to take back some expirings (Grant Hill) but Gortat could be had. How about a three way deal with New Jersey that puts both the Morris and the Lopez twins in Phoenix? The Lakers want to trade star power for star power. When they want journeyman and fillers they trade in kind for that.
That is some pretty terrible analysis. I'm sure Morris can be very servicble if he was given time. He will be useful for Lakers future. Dragic IS an nba caliber starter..especially when the Lakers are currently starting Fisher and giving minutes to Steve Blake at PG. Dragic is better than both. Chase is perhaps not starting material..but as a SF he can make those 3s that Artest/Barnes CANNOT ever make. Chase would fit in nicely in LA. Scola is no Gasol but can still provide great production. Obviously this means Bynum would have to step up his game as well. This move is great for BOTH teams.
I completely disagree. Morris received at least the same opportunity to get into the rotation as Parsons did. Basically you are saying the guy is untradeable because he hasn't been good enough in practice to crack the rotation.
The problem is that he's not a 3. We had rotational minutes available at that position, but not at the position he's best suited for ...which is the 4. He wasn't gonna get any minutes behind Pat and Scola, so that's why he's in the D-league. It doesn't mean that his stock is down. It doesn't mean that other teams aren't interested. It simply means that Morey went BPA in the draft, and unfortunately, there was never any real minutes available on our roster for his skill-set. Derrick Williams is having the same problem in Minny. It's not that he's not a talented, young player. It's that he's a tweener 4 on a team that has Love and Beasely.
You're missing the point. Sure, Dragic is an upgrade to what the Lakers have now. But so also is Calderon, Augustin, and Sessions and none of them would cost the Lakers Gasol. None of these options are "star power". But only Dragic costs LA Gasol? The Lakers don't want 31 year old Scola and his 4 year @ 9 million deal any more than the Rockets do. Scola is a solid player and has been a lot of things in his career. But he isn't "star power". Morris is in the D-League. I get it, he's a rookie and his potential isn't worthless, but by no means does he fit the "star power" description. I'm sure the Lakers would take Budinger, but it's the same situation as Dragic above: He may be better than what the Lakers have currently, but certainly not worth the price of Gasol. He's not "star power". The above analysis is correct, there is no "star power" return for the Lakers in this deal. Now, Gasol may not be worth the "star power" the Lakers will require to move him. But that's what it will take to pull him out of LA.
I agree that he is having the same problem as Williams, but I disagree with what your other two premises: 1) I don't think he is a 4. Of course, we can go back and forth on this all day long, but the Rockets have been talking about seeing him as a 3 since they drafted him, and they sent him to play 3 at RGV. 2) If he was a 4, as you contend, I think he would definitely have received more playing time so far. At the beginning of the season Patterson was injured, and we have seen the following group of players get minutes at the 4 so far this season: Parsons, Adrien and Hill. If Morris is really a 4 and he can't beat out Adrien, Parsons or Hill for minutes, then I see no reason not to include him in a deal for Gasol.
Yes - everyone who hasn't played will be a 20ppg scorer.... If a rookie tweener is part of a package which gets you Gasol - and only involves one starter, you pull the trigger!
The are many a player who do well in practice, but can't do squat when the lights are turn on in the big stage. Morris was a top player for a very good Kansas team, and in one pre-season game where he had significant minutes (San Antonio game) he was our leading scorer. I surmise that this guy could be a big time player. I guess Lin was not good enough in practice to crack the rotation either. The point is, if you think someone has true talents to succeed in this league, give them some burn to prove, especially if he was your lottery pick.
Even if it passed the sniff test in the Laker front office which I highly doubt, Kobe would never see this as a "great move" for the Lakers and neither would the Laker fan base. They would see it as a salary cap dump and be up in arms over the fact that we gave up one of our stars for no star in return. Something that is completely taboo and out of character with the franchise. Gasol has been the "Robin" and Kobe has been the "Batman" in the eyes of the Laker faithful during the past four years when the team has reached the finals three times and won the championship twice. They may not have the profile of a Stockton and Malone or a Piippen and Jordan, but together they have been plenty formidable enough rto make breaking up that duo hard to do. If Lowry is in the picture, different story. There's star power involved. If Rondo could be in the picture somehow, different story also. But baking this deal would never get it done. The person who thinks so, doesn't understand the dynamics and chemistry involved with the Lakers.
