ESPN: Rockets talking trade-up with Kings, Raptors -- targeting Dwight or Drummond?

They aren't good when you consider that Durant, Harden, Westbrook, Bosh, and Wade were all non-top-1 picks in the past decade. Centers have the worse best-case-scenarios among all positions over the past decade when leaving out pick #1.

 

1. I am not sure the Rockets are stuck on Drummond vs. Dwight. They may very well use the 5th pick on someone else. They will have at least one of Barnes, Robinson, Beal or MKG to choose from as well at 5.

2. The deal for the picks can very well be done without knowing which way Orlando wants to go with Dwight on draft night or at any other time. Worst come to worst, you just traded Lowry, Dalembert plus a couple of mid-firsts (plus maybe other ancillary pieces) for a couple of top 10 picks and cap space to make deals both before and after July 1 (when the NBA's season turn over).

3. I am thinking that a somewhat realistic scenario could be the something like the following:

Trade 1:
HOU sends Lowry + 16th pick to SAC
SAC sends 5th pick to HOU
HOU sends Kevin Martin to MIN
MIN sends 18th pick to HOU
MIN sends Brad Miller to SAC (bought out for $800K next year)
MIN sends Martell Webster to Cleveland (bought out for $640K next year)
HOU sends $1.5 million cash to Cleveland to cover the cost of Webster's salary while allowing CLE to turn a $860K profit for nothing).


Trade 2:
HOU sends 14th pick + Sam Dalembert+Marcus Morris to Toronto
Toronto sends 8th pick to Houston.




You can move all the picks around a bit without changing the salaries #s, maybe change some of the ancillary pieces like replacing Morris with either the 18th pick or the 2013 Dallas pick. Anyhow, if you make the above trade, you can end up more than $20 million of 2011-12 cap room, which can be used IMMEDIATELY to make deals on draft night and, if Dwight Howard falls through, you have more than $25 million in cap room for the 2012-13 season on top of the 2 picks.

 

So you are telling me there is the potential to have a Dwight Howard, Deron Williams, Luis Scola, Marcus Camby, Donatas, Chase Budinger, Chandler Parsons, Patrick Patterson, Goran Dragic, Courtney Lee and another max FA? That is going to fit under the cap?

Even if it is just Dwight Howard, Deron Williams and another max FA next summer (none who stick out at me as being overly exciting)....we just are assuming now that vets are going to flock to us and sign for peanuts like in Miami?

My point is, is I'd rather go the more traditional two star route and have more to go around for the team. And I don't like the combination of Deron and Howard....but I admit, that's a completely personal opinion.

And my point remains that I'd rather take Drummond and watch that play out some first. You can always make the decision to trade him later on...and even if he doesn't look too promising. A clever team can keep those revelations apparent for at least a few months....until he is shipped out for Howard (who will be promptly leaving).

 

A clever team can keep those revelations from becoming apparent for at least a few months....until he is shipped out for Howard (who will be promptly leaving). How do you think we ended up with half the lottery picks of 2009?

 

Sorry, misread it, Deron Williams would be the other "max FA." Missed his name there. Even with Williams added, though, they won't be restricted to veteran minimum guys: they can very well spend the MLE or, if they are clever enough, generate a large trade player exception when they deal away Kevin Martin.

 

He also said he lost 22 lbs after he stopped eating cookies and junk food. Basically, he weighed in that heavy cause he was carrying around excess weight. He is extremely impressive physically, but his highlight reel for UConn was almost exclusively him dunking off of alley oops or dunks other players created for him. His high school highlight reel is impressive, but he certainly looked nothing like that in college. I think the style he played in college is a better indicator of what his pro game will be like.

BTW have you seen Javale McGee's highlight reels? They are pretty impressive.

 

I understand we have a chance to get into the top 10 when we include Lowry but why would another team trade for either 14/ 16 + ?? for a top 10 pick? Who do we have that teams really want other then Dalembert's contract?

 

That was a good breakdown,but I think people are reading to high into martin to minny. I'm not saying its not possible,but they may make houston take a contract like darko and martell. When a team seems desperate, then other teams leverage that against them. Just like when sacramento wanted to dmp martin and knew the rockets wanted to dump mcgrady. They helped facilitate the trade,but it gave them a chance to dump martins contract.

 

I know,right

 

Motiejunas, Llull, Mavs Pick, Kevin Martin or whatever you get for him from Minny, some teams might even like the Busty Twin.

 

Very good points. If drummond fits in thegasol-hibbert-horford class, why not just offer money to lopez and keep your picks?

 

What's your early opinion of do-nuts? I would hesitate to give up a young,special talent this early.

 

Don't want to give him up either. Just saying that he has value in a trade.

I think it will take him a year or more to really adjust to NBA rules. Europe allow more contact so he might be a foul machine early on.

 

We hear something similar every year around this time, hope it works out finally...

 

And that is without taking into account marcus morris. You could resign camby as the backup center.

 

I am praying for this Andre Drummond or Dwight Howard acquisition to happen, lol.

 

He might be a foul box,but so was scola early on. As much as I would love to have howard or even drummond, they give up do-nuts,then lose howard,its gonna be really tough. I personally think howard opting in was the worse for the rockets and I really don't know why he did it. I really don't expect the rockets to get up in the draft and that might be the best thing for them. I thought manuvering and getting do-nut was a great move by morey. I just wish they would show some patience and see how this thing turns out. I'm a risk taker,but this howard dream is a little bit out of it to me.

 

Who would you rather keep? DMo or Patterson? I think their value is similar at the moment. Patrick is a solid bench player with NBA experience, where DMo is a Euro with potential.

 

so what happens if dwight walks?

we suck...which is still better than coming 9th

 

If you really think we would acquire Howard without first getting a feeling as to whether he will re-sign or not, then you are very naive.

Our offer for him will be based upon his response.