Now that Morey has been with us half a decade his style of management is becoming more apparent over time. And while I am not one of these posters he thinks he can do no wrong and I do not give him a pass on his mistakes just because he is making less of them. I do see what he is trying to accomplish and more and more I like what I see. Things that I thought were faults in the past look better in the big picture. That being said I would like to have a better understanding of Morey's M.O.. So if you guys could help by listing any of Morey methods of operation you can think of. I'll start... 1. He believes it's smarter to find a veteran to help off the bench than to try to develop one. Hence the release of Thabeet and the aquisition of Camby. 2. He believes that rookies with star power who sometimes do not develop with one team on occassion blossom with their second team. Hence the Thabeet Twill trades. 3. He believes it's better to draft/sign a more talented player who is a bit undersized than to sign a lesser talented player with size. Hence Patrick Patterson Chuck Hayes. Please continue...
Patrick Patterson isn't undersized. #1 isn't an M.O.....the move made sense, considering thabeet didnt work out and we needed help inside from an established player. Blazers blew things up and Camby wanted to be here. It's not something more does often, so i don't think you can say he looks to make that kind of move.
Regarding #1, I am not sure he prefers vets off the bench over developing young player for the same role. Plenty of young guys like Budinger, Patterson and Parsons contribute either off the bench or as starter. The Camby vs. Thabeet comparison is simply the matter of a player who does not suck vs. a player who sucks. In fact, the Camby move is kind of an exception. The team hasn't really used the bench roster spots on vets, mostly they've gone to young players (those discussed above, Morris, 09 busts, D-Leaguers like Adrien and Greg Smith, etc.).
Disregard my examples. But in Moreys own words he has said that he believes it is better to sign an established player with a certain skillset rather than try to develop one. That's a method of operation IMO. And if you do not think Patrick is undersized fine use Landry as an example. Again has clearly said he believes in going after undersixed players that show talent as opposed to passing over them for someone with lesser talent and size. The point is not to concentrate on my list but to come up with some of your own. Again guys forget about my examples tell me your own thoughts. Treat it like the Rocket family feud. Name something Morey does to improve the Rocket team?
Let's not kid ourselves on Camby. He's a 10 million dollar expiring. And he'll finish up his career at home on the cheap ...wouldn't shock me if the Rockets get 2-3 years out of the Cambyman. We add a key piece while retaining..... *Flexibility
Two times this year, Morey was in position to make a move by trading in the pieces he has collected. I think it is pretty clear he is waiting to make the right move. Getting Dwight here, even for half season was the right move. Nene/Gasol/Lowry would of been strong, but I am not sure if it would of been good enough. Its not terribly exciting, but I get his methodology. I would of like to have known what the Dwight package was.
Code: void trade(ownAsset, otherAsset){ if(otherAsset==SuperStar) stop(); else trade(otherAsset, getNextTrade()); } Unfortunately it looks like we will get a stackoverflow before a super star.
stay afloat until we can get a superstar... unfortunately the boat has holes and is slowly sinking. (which might be a faster way of finding a superstar, rather than the purgatory that we're in now)
Morey's philosophy is simple.. maximize the information possible to give you an advantage over your adversaries. This can be statistics, scouting, mental profiling, etc. He has discussed how the Spurs did that with their international pipeline, and how the Celtics did it getting KG and Allen. What you are citing are examples of what the "information" he gets tells him is important. This will change over time as teams adjust. For example, if teams start favoring seniors; don't be surprised if Daryl starts going after sophmores. Currently it appears to me that Daryl does not expect to find a star late in the lottery, so he targets players that have skills that translate to the NBA. He also does not let a lack or height, or speed, or scoring destroy his evaluation of players that excel at other skills. Look at Novak, Lowry, Bud, etc. If there is one consistent with Morey it is being fiscally responsible and retaining rooster versatility.
I think he is a bean counter who isn't nearly the basketball genius that people on this board think he is. If the bottom-line is the measure, he is not succeeding. That is indisputable. More time? How much? Five more years, ten? In the meantime, teams like Dallas and San Antonio (our biggest rivals) are retooling on the run, making the playoffs every year.
San Antonio and Dallas didn't lose their star players to career ending injuries, thus the playoff appearances.
#2 is referred to the "second draft" theory, which was popularized by John Hollinger of ESPN. When looking at the roster over the years, he clearly doesn't believe in stop-gap solutions to fill needs. Instead it seems he prefers to stock pile potential or players with one or two attributes that might make them a contributor later on.
Ooohh oohh I know!!! He likes to acquire as many chances as possible for one of these players to possibly break out with a better than expected season then try to sell high on one of them if they do not turn into Superstars. Thus the stock piling of middle first round picks and former draft busts. He then flips them for more draft picks or young players/veteran help if it does not pan out.
8. He prefers to deal in the shade of 3-team trades where his fleecing is less noticeable to his counterparts