Agree...or trying to change the tire while the car is still moving 100mph. The car needs to pit, fix it and get it back out on the track before we stand a chance at winning the race. We may be passing other cars in the pit and that may excite some casual fans but the race is longer. The Memphis and the Hawks have already passed us and others are speeding up our @#$. The Clippers have gone screaming by us but yet we still have an driver that refuses to pit to correct the problem. The only thing the driver is allowing is slapping a new sponsor sticker on the car for the fans to ooh and ahh over distracting them from the whapwhapwhap of the flat tire.
I think it's Les' fault. He won't let us truly rebuild as it would involve sucking I think Morey's trade for Camby was great and the Brooks/Dragic trade was a peach I think our GM has done an amazing job with the parameters given, which are tough
I'm trying hard to stay positive. Thinking if we have two draft picks it'll be easier to move up for a future star.
It's funny/ironic/sad how the season is playing out ultimately in exactly the way the tankers laid out. I'll admit, the process by which they got there was completely different than I expected, but at the end of the day, same results. This is not a McHale problem. He isn't the greatest coach, but on the whole he's performed better than expected. Moreover, sneaking into the playoffs as an 8 seed, even if it resulted in a solid playoff series or heck, even an upset, would have been super fun and exciting, but not changed the overall big picture. We wouldn't be a "budding Memphis-like" team, but rather more of a Golden State squad with one solid run, then back to mediocrity. It's a talent problem. There are 2 people to blame. 40% DM, 60% Les. I understand people who want to entirely blame one or the other. Both clearly get some blame. DM has to do better. Stern screwed him to be sure, but that doesn't mean there aren't other trades to be had. Could we still have gotten Gasol by trading Lowry? Sure, we didn't know Dragic would be what he is, but that's DM's job. He did it well by upgrading from Alston to Brooks to Lowry. Was there maybe a way to get Bogut - which incidentally might have resulted in a Golden State-esque tank, but might have been able to sell that to Les, and get that better draft pick this year. Surely there were other moves. Getting close to acquiring Dwight Howard, or Melo, or Bosh, or Gasol, or Nene or whomever year after year doesn't mean squat. Les' role in the problem is obvious. You've hired DM to construct a championship team. Take the reigns off. Your P&L will ultimately benefit enormously in the fair weather city that is Houston.
Why are people talking about these mid rounds picks like they are valuable? They aren't. No one should be excited about a 13th or 14th pick, let alone a late teens/early twenties. The draft is deep...but not that deep. Only way those picks help us is if we somehow draft a super steal (unlikely) or manage to trade for a superstar, which is also unlikely because those type of picks aren't the kind of picks you trade superstars for. We could try to package them and trade up in the draft, but with our current paradoxical "rebuild while staying competitive" team direction, I doubt that'll be our plan of attack. The Rockets are in the worst position they could have been at the end of this season. It wouldn't surprise me if next season is Morey's last. Les Alexander is ruining this team pretty fast, and I'm sure he is already reeling from the loss of his cash cow, Yao, and it's only going to get worse.
High ceiling players The Rockets just don't have anyone to take them to the next level. The team will sit in mediocrity until they can obtain that type of player(s). And that is only going to happen with a HIGH (probably top 5) draft pick or being lucky and getting a Star type player in a bad situation (T-mac in the past, Dwight Howard now). As a huge Rockets fan, my feelings are best described as "apathy." They are what they are. It's hard to invest a lot of emotion in a team that has such a low ceiling. :-/
Yep. Exactly how it played out. We don't have to flat out tank for a potential good draft pick (it's an option); we need to blow up the roster by keeping all that are pieces for the future and moving all that aren't. We need a better core of players.
After Sampson was injured and the team gutted by some key players getting kicked out of the league for stuffing their noses with coke, the Rockets became a rather average team. They often hovered around .500, sometimes doing better, but rarely getting past the first round. It was frustrating. You know what made it all bearable? You could watch Hakeem play. We don't have that now. While we have some players with certain skills, who play hard, and are fun to watch, we simply don't have that amazing player that you want to see, win or lose. We lost Yao, the nearest to that in recent history. I don't see a replacement at any position like that on the horizon, and I love many of our players. It makes this that much harder to take. So yeah, we need that high ceiling player. When are we going to get him, with trades for an established star so hard to pull off now, and how are we going to get him without having a high draft pick?
Yeah, a complete waste of a season. Sadly were not going to see a change in direction until it starts to effect Les pocket book.
Lowry for Favors? He can be a nice player in this league in the right system. Pair him up with Donatas and we could possibly have our future frontcourt. Move out all other pieces that aren't in our future core (Scola, Martin,Dally, Camby, possibly Lee). We also need a player with some flashiness.
Wow Clutch. You have always been the voice of moderation through all the good and bad years of the team. There is palpable serious frustration in your posts. This really ups the pressure for the Rockets to do something. This is the time for Les to really feel the pain of the fans and do something major to change things up. Better luck next year is not going to cut it anymore. This is it, I think.
