What do you think the Rockets would be like with out the Harden trade?

We already have a thread on how many wins we'd have without Harden. As for your question, I don't think we would be that good to be honest. I think we'd have around 7 wins by now.

 

Martin drops lots of points, leaves next season for contract

we get a good pick from Toronto

still no star

 

Linsanity all day err day

 

Without the Harden trade you'd be making a thread asking what we'd be like if we traded for him. (and with a worse record)

 

We would have a much different Lin then the one we have been seeing all season.

 

lovable losers.

 

This!

 

eh, if we didn't bring Harden in at the beginning of the season, it'd be a season waiting to see what the first move would be, where Martin would end up. No stability with no go-to player. At least there's some reason to believe this core of Lin, Harden, Parson, Asik will be around this year and next. I think the record would be worse than it is right now if we stayed pat. Maybe it's optimistic, but I think this roster is good enough to gel and make a push to get into the playoffs this year.

 

Not sure about our record (depends on how Martin would play), but the future would not be as bright. IMO, our current record would be the same or a bit better since Martin looked good in the preseason relative to last year (I know many people will hate or call me LOF or whatever) because roles would be better defined. Again, our future is brighter with Harden. I have faith that he and Lin (and much more importantly the management/coaching staff, now and future) will figure things out.

 

We would have about 4-6 wins... Jeremy Lamb would be in the D-League... We would draft a ****ty player with the Toronto pick and stash him in Europe.

 

Better.

 

I think we would be less-Hard!
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Reason for that is maybe because Harden is so good and talented that everyone starts to depend on him way too much...

Notice that whenever he plays, everyone takes a step back. But without Harden in the lineup, everyone steps up and play harder because they don't have anyone to rely on.

Harden gives this team a brighter future. But if the Rockets never made a trade for him, they would be stuck in the same position where they are searching desperately for a star player. Even with the Toronto's pick, they would probably draft an average-good player who's probably pretty good but not a star. Plus Harden can actually make Houston an attractive place for stars to sign.

Some people may sit here and complain about Harden and saying the Rockets are better without Harden. But its only one game without Harden and everyone steps up. But in reality, without Harden, everyone would be complaining anyway about how the Rockets need a star player. That is what everyone is complaining about for the past few years since Yao retiring. But now when the Rockets finally got a star that is young and rising, some people still complains that the Rockets are better off...

Tonight's game is just one of those games where everyone is playing hard and hitting their shots. The Rockets including Lin should always be playing like this with Harden in the lineup and not depend on him too much.

 

Less good.

 

Jeremy seems to play better when the star players are injured and there is pressure on him to show his stuff. I wonder if it's psychological. He's never been treated like a "star" -- either a promising draft pick or a star signing. He's mostly been treated like a scrub, so he defers to the stars on a team. Maybe his coaches tell him to defer -- or they tell him to be aggressive, but he just can't, because he feels like he's not a star?