Parsons actually has over half those 98 starts (at 57). Harden and Asik and Patterson are all in single digits for starts. Lin in his total seasons has played less NBA minutes than Harden has, coming off the BENCH for OKC, in one season.
Well, Patterson won't be back any time soon that's for sure. That's what Bill said before last nights game. So I'm not surprised they called up D-Mo. Either TJones or D-Mo will be getting some playing time behind Morris, that's almost a given. The Rockets have been going with a small lineup in recent games, but that won't work against all teams.
no disrespect, but it's about time. It's sad that Houston took it so long before it became quite a drama in Lithuania basketball web sites. Few nights ago Lithuanian NT coach( Jonas Kazlauskas) and A.Sabonis was in Toronto Ontario Center to watch three Lithuanian playing and D-mo was in a D-League match. Basically they both told, that it would be better for D-Mo to improve in Euroleague than in NBDL. After all, D-mo spent all sumer for summerleague instead of going for a third time with NT team and try to qualify for olympics team.
Well Kazlauskas said that "Rockets apologized for DMo situation and said that whole situation developed accidentally" if anything isn't lost in translation it sounds like they expected to make a trade for Howard and bring Dmo, but when trade failed... and there are we now
Obviously the translation might be off, and I dont speak Lithuanian so I dont know for sure what the heck they are saying. However, if this is what they were really saying, they obviously do not understand how the Rockets use the D-League. D-Mo is not a D-League player. He's down there mostly just to practice while he's currently not getting playing time with the Rockets. Guess who else is doing that with their team.... Amare Stoudamire while he works his way back into shape. Is Amare a D-League player? Morey has stated multiple times that D-Mo is a big part of their plans moving forward, and went as far as to tell Clutch that they dont have to worry about him being included in a Dwight Howard package this past Summer. Yes you become a better player by playing in the Euroleague than being a D-League player, but he's not that. He's being brought back and forth to practice with the team as much as possible so he's ready to be inserted into the lineup when the time comes. Its amazing that people STILL dont understand how the Rockets and many other teams now use the D-League.
Seems strange given the Rockets legion of PFs that people complain about, but is it time to add another PF to the roster? All we have now are tweeners and rookies at the 4. Maybe a vet like Kenyon Martin would help?
What "situation" is there to apologize about? I seriously doubt there was a guarantee in D-Mo's contract that he would definitely be playing next to Dwight Howard this year. D-Mo signed on knowing that the trade wasn't a definite reality, and that he was going to have to work hard to beat out other players for minutes. The Rockets do not seem like a team that is going to make promises like that. Maybe Morey told D-Mo's agent something like "alot of the moves that were made were not in the plans, shifted the direction of the team, and caused duplication at the PF position that is now making it more challenging to get minutes. However, in the future, things will open up eventually with injury or other moves and D-Mo will get his chance." That sounds more like what Morey would say to D-Mo's representatives.
FYI, D-Mo has a team option on his contract till the Summer of 2016. The guy has time to develop a little bit on the defensive end, and in the weight room before they just throw him out there. Especially when the team has invested millions of dollars, and a load of time in guys like Morris, Patterson, and Smith who all could become free agents as early as the Summer of 2014. I think D-Mo is going to be a big part of this team moving forward, but I want to see what they can get out of Morris/Patterson for at least the first half of this season before the Rockets just throw them to the curb.
I wonder which player will get more playing time. Jones is I think more NBA ready of the two and more similar to Patterson, so it may be easier to integrate him into the rotation. Plus, the dude's got skills. On the other hand, I'd love to see whether D-Mo's offensive skills could add another dimension to this team's offense.
McHale will squeeze every minute he can out of Asik, Smith, and Morris before he plays the rookies...
What the hell do you think Smith and Morris are???? Grizzled Vets??? Go back and look at how many NBA minutes both guys played last season.
McHale and the entire Rockets organization are now confronted by a totally unexpected situation. They actually could be competitive this season. Develop the rookies or try to make the playoffs? I feel sure that it has been discussed at great length. Which is the better long term solution? Right now it seems to me that they are going for the playoffs. If that changes I would expect to see much more of D-Mo and Jones. But until then ...
I expect that as well, and I can see Parsons getting some time at the 4 too. But if Patterson is out for a long stretch, there could be some minutes left over for D-mo or Jones.
