How big of a gap are there really between Houston and Portland in terms of marketability? In terms of media presence & power you have LA and NYC, than a huge drop off to Chicago & Miami and than another huge drop off which is basically every other city in America. Yes we are the 4th largest city (by city limit definition, but we are 10th in terms of MSA a much more accurate gauge) , but honestly we are by no means even remotely close to a glamor city, we are by no means a media hot spot, we are not a city that gets alot of international or national exposure (sure Lin helped, but even his own popularity in both US and China have taken a complete nose dive this year), we are not known as a play ground for the celebrities or ultra rich etc
Josh Smith already makes around $12 million so there's no way he's going down to $10 million. I'd bet he makes about $16 million a year on his next contract. Somebody'll pay it. That would mean trading Lin and Asik to even the salaries out, which is probably not worth it depending on what you think of J-Smoove.
Sure we are a great destination for Howard. I just don't think its a clear home run as why we are a better destination than Portland. Lillard+Batum+Aldrige+Howard,, that's one hell of a line up right there as well. Harden will be the best SG within a year or 2? aren't we getting ahead of our selves? Also the last time Howard played with a ball dominant SG, things didn't turn out too well hopefully this don't stay on his mind.
I never stated we we're a glamor city or a media hot spot. What I did say is we have more exposure! Which means more publicity! Houston has the Rockets/Astros/Texans, all major league teams and Portland has the Blazers. We are 5th in MSA (not sure where you got 10th) and Portland is 23-24th in MSA. Also I don't understand how you assume that Lin's fanbase in Asia has deminished. Did you not notice the allstar balloting?...or at the very least kept up with all the LOF/LOH b.s. on this forum? The majority of LOF don't reside in Houston. Regardless if you think Portland is a more attractive destination for Howard that's fine, but I disagree. ......... ......... .........
My bad on the MSA number, got confused with the CSA ranking. Having these glamor city or media hot spot aspects= more exposure and more publicity. Just by by having close to 3x the population of Portland MSA doesn't mean our national & international exposure and publicity is 3x that of Portland. If I have to guess, in terms of exposure& publicity drop off for Howard, from LA to Portland is is probably not that different from LA to Houston Sure Lin is still popular in Taiwan and somewhat popular in China. Just take a look at weibo (China's version of twitter) even Yi Jianlian have 4 times the # of followers as Jeremy. Lin doesn't come anywhere close to that of Yao or other major Chinese sports celebrities (eg liu xiang, guo jingjing etc) . Compared to them, two things holding back Lin's popularity in China 1) he's not Chinese 2) he's no where near a superstar. Right now he's more like a fad and I can't imagine how paring up with Lin will dramatically improve Howard's marketability. I'm not saying Portland is a more attractive destination for Howard, it's probably as attractive to Howard as Houston.
Not close. No matter how you want to spin it, Houston is a significantly bigger market than Portland, has a more highly-regarded star and has a better overall team.
Yes. And those are not overrated qualities in a player. Look at the last two playoff games we lost, each by 3 points. In Game 2, Asik received the ball late in the 4th quarter and had a point blank layup that he blew. Dwight Howard gets that and it's a dunk. That would've put the Rockets up by a point. In Game 3, Asik loses an offensive rebound to Ibaka who hits a tough turnaround shot. If Dwight Howard is in there and gets that board, the Rockets maintain a 1-point lead. That's not to say Asik hasn't brought a lot to this team, particularly given the reasonably cheap contract he signed(for a big man anyway). But I'd rather shell out more money and get someone who'll make those plays that can change the outcome of games(and by extension a playoff series and an entire season).
He's got a go to move in the post, it's draw the dbl or triple team and dish back out to the open man or cutter. Also we have Harden for the clutch moments so theirs no need for him to be the man down the stretch. We just want good hands to finish and rebounds. Unfortunately it's going to cost us to get those. DH 2013 welcome to Houston!
I keep having this dream wherein our lineup is: Howard Love Harden Parsons Lin/Bev ...but then I wake up
Not exactly groundbreaking news from Broussard, ha, but.... MDA will be the coach but in all honesty, even that is in question. Dwight will be a FA. What will he say? He likes MDA the person, not so sure about the system. Dwight wants more of an inside-out game and that will be a heavy factor. Houston, Dallas, Atlanta the top options. Queasy about Atlanta. Dallas can offer only about 14 mil. Houston, while can't max him, seem to be the biggest competitor because of James Harden's presence.
Basically, Dwight and the core of a 33-win team in a tiny market (by NBA standards), or Dwight and the core of a 45-win team in a medium-to-large market. For the same money. Oh, and did I mention the latter team also has the biggest star (younger, too)? Hmmm...
strange, having the "bigger market" and better star sure didn't lead to more nationally televised games for us this year when compared to the Blazers. Houston is a much bigger city, but I question whether its a much bigger in terms of media exposure and publicity. Divas like Howard care about national media exposure, publicity opportunities, chance to mingle with other celebrities, 3 areas that's basically a wash between Houston and Portland despite the bigger population.
Harden + Lin gives him that 100 times over compared to Portland. Portland is attractive, but unfortunately for them, they are just a less attractive version of Houston.
That's because the Harden deal didn't happen until after the NBA's television schedule was 99% locked in. Oh, and the chance to mingle with other celebrities? Houston is an EXTREMELY popular city for NBA players. Tons live here in the offseason. Remember all the publicity during the ASG? I'm not sure you can identify even one NBA player that lives in Portland that isn't a Blazer.
Dwight Howard's life needs fixing? Not exactly... I think billions of people on this planet would love to have his life right now.
He can sign a contract w/ Lakers worth $113 million + endorsements + hang out with Hollywood celebrities. Dwight Howard is living high on the hog that is the Buss family. Forget about him Morey, focus on fixing the team.
Talent for talent, Blazers top 3 players is better then just one Harden. The other role players can be added and subtracted afterwards. And if DH really wants to consider marketability and make the most money, he'd just stay put in LA.
