There has been much made of the way Daryl Morey treating players like assets affecting our ability to land free agents. I have a hard time buying that theory. Every year teams besides the Rockets trade players. Has anyone treated players more like assets than Mark Cuban and he has had no issues luring free agents since he has been in Dallas. I am wondering if the NBA players see Houston as a 2nd class organization. Do other organizations make their teams more desirable with better perks than the Rockets? Do other organizations just make themselves more desirable than Houston? As irritating as Cuban can be he understands one thing, you treat millionaires like millionaires. When he bought the Mavericks they had hideous uniforms, stayed in 2nd class hotels, played in a 2nd class arena blah blah blah. The arena in Dallas can actually be credited to Ross Perot who bought the team in 96 but it was still under construction when Cuban bought the team and it was his mission to make sure it was “plush”. His 2nd order of business was to get rid of the nasty green, blue and white uniforms with the cowboy hat on the chest that Don Carter used. Cuban also got rid of the little narrow body DC-9 the team used and now has nice spacious Boeing 757 decked out in executive class furnishings. While the Rockets fly an old narrow body Boeing 727 dinosaur with what is equivalent to business class seating. The Rockets locker room compares very unfavorably to the Mav’s and Heat locker rooms. Cuban placed entertainment systems in each locker, hired the players a masseuse to use, put bigger seats courtside for his team since most of them are over 6’5” etc… stuff that seems like small stuff but ads up. Add the uniforms, which I have a hard time to imagining any NBA Player thinking that the Rockets have great looking uniforms and it just seems like one more negative. So here are some basic pictorial comparisons between the Rockets, Mavs and Heat. Mavs: Team Plane Team Locker American Airlines Center Heat Plane[/b] I could not find any pictures of the interior of their plane. The Boeing 737 -400 is a superior aircraft to the pre-historic Boeing 727. Locker Room Rockets: Team Plane Locker Room So am I making too much of it? If given a choice would it make a difference to you about the extra amenities that you might get from a team besides the Rockets? And the bottom line is will any of this affect our ability to sign a significant free agent. The one free agent that we can keep an eye on this off season is Deron Williams who we know Daryl Morey likes. We also know the Mavs are going to try and sign him and we know he will not re-up with NJ. Where will DWill wind up and why?
damn i wouldnt play in houston looking at those pics lol. bottom line is Agents dont like to be lowballed on contracts and Morey will not overpay just because someone is popular with fans. Therefore, we get no big name ballers
The Rockets locker room actually looks pretty similar to the Mavs. We can't see as much of the room in that shot. That's also a bad picture of the inside of the plane, are there any better ones out there? That said, the Heat definitely went all out, and impressive facilities like that can't hurt.
Show them enough money and possible endorsements and they'd play in a barn, sleep in bunk beds, and ride a damn donkey to their next game.
I found another pic of the Rockets plane but could not find anymore interior pics of the mavs or heat plane.
But what if the money is the same? Houston and Dallas will both offer Deron Williams the exact same amount of money. So what will be the deciding factor? Will the amenities push him away from the Rockets?
The only question I have with this is "we know he will not re-up with NJ" as he very well may. I'd be very surprised if there is a third choice for him. Hey, Bima - - if a guy opts in as Howard did yesterday (and DWill didn't) does that affect their tradability in any manner?
The players are what make the city attractive. We haven't done anything In the playoffs in the last decade; sure we took the lakers to 7, but either than that we have been one n done. This team has no superstar, we haven't made much noise this season. Season after season we surprise what seems to be the whole league (besides us fans). The last time we were relevant was when in 07-08? We are the dark horse and have been for quite sometime, I have faith that some player out there will take on the idea of hoping on and riding us to the promise land. For now, we wait and ponder why no one wants to come to Houston. I love my city, I love my team. Once a big player commits, it's easy to fall in love with her, Houston, that is.
And become a Rent-a-Rocket, I don't think so! When you come to Houston, keep your car running in the parking lot.
With the max superstud players, the contract value is irrelevant. So what other reasons would those guys choose Houston?
I'll put it to y'all like this: When T-Mac demanded a trade, his 3 wish list teams were Houston (Yao), Indy (Prime J. O'Neal), and PHX (About to get Nash, young STAT). None of those cities are "glamorous". If DeMarcus Cousins turns into a bonafide all-star, players wouldn't give a damn about playing for SAC.
New York and LA are the only I want to go there cities. After that, most players want to go to a winning situation. The city of Houston is more a help than a hinderance though.
this is not about the City of Houston though. Houston is definitely a help in my oppinion (although I'm biased). My question is the amenities players receive from some orginizations that they may not receive from others.
Have trouble carpeting and paintjob matters, everything is still first class. We're not treating them like the boys in Major League. Morey and his cold-blooded lowballing may be a problem though.
