Am I The Only One Who Doesn't Want Howard If It Means Losing Asik

We need a 4 who can share some defensive duty with Asik and take it over when Asik is on the bench.

 

No. We need a superstar. Superstars win in this league. Solid role players to fill out an already average roster do not.

Clutchfans grow waaaaaay too attached to our role players. Asik is good. Very good. Howard is great. Howard would put us over the hump. Why are some of you content with signing a Millsap/Smith at the PF and bringing in a Jermaine O'Neal-esque backup Center and rolling with that? We'd get NOWHERE with that roster.

We need STARPOWER to trump Miami's STARPOWER. You can't beat them with fundamentals and depth. This is a new league.

 

You can't beat Miami's star power...or OKC's for that matter. Howard won't get us over the "hump" as you call it, more likely it'll put us in the same "darkhorse" contender status we had with Tmac and Yao before for around 3 years and then Howard loses whatever athleticism he had and we're stuck with him for the next 2 more.

Howard's definitely a star, but considering his health issues, ft kryptonite and diva problems I'm not sure he's a superstar anymore. Remember when Deron Williams had an awful season in Utah and people were saying he was just playing it out? Well he went to Brooklyn and hasn't been the same dominant guy who lead Utah into the WCF. People who rely on athleticism don't go back to 100% when they have a major injury.

 

I don't disagree with any of your comments. But I would say the following:
1) I think we need to focus on being the best in the West. Can't worry about Miami until the finals (construct the team to beat Spurs, OKC, etc)
2) If Howard is great--why didn't he step it up for LA? I understand Howard is 'great' on paper, but that hasn't translated in games per se. The answer could be 'he was injured' or 'he can't play with Kobe' or "he didn't get enough touches' or "dantoni is an idiot" --all COULD be legit reasons why he did little to NOTHING for LA, but then, what guarantees do we have that none of those points are true next year with Houston? I just see the same old problems.

My only contention is value of Howard over Asik dollar for dollar, and if its not THAT significant (noone is arguing that Howard isn't a better player, the question is how much better + overall impact) then couldn't the $$$ be spent on a PF + stud 6 man or something. I think the Rockets team is a legit 4-6 seed next year AS IS. But yeah, if its just about the player, sure, Howard, is better. But GREAT? Great players don't get swept in 4 games, especially after playing 8 seasons.

 

Wouldnt a team structured to beat Miami be able to beat any team in the West? Especially OKC, who are like an inferior version of the Heat?

 

Chicago Bulls are beating the superstar laden Miami Heat at Miami.

Looks like fundamentals are beating star power. Depth isn't even in the equation for the Bulls.

 

This. Asik is still very undeveloped, who knows what he might be next year while still under contract. Howard is what Howard is. I'd prefer Pau Gasol over Howard at this point. Makes more sense for us and isn't a total liability down the stretch. Howard is great by default, but not dominant.

Make a strong run at CP3, trade for Pau and we have something battle OKC and Miami with.

 

asik under developed??? what is he going to develop?? better hands, a leaping ability?? stop with the bullshiit..

dwight>>>>asik and its ridiculous to think otherwise..

 

its a 7 game series...

 

I really don't like Howard's attitude but he has as much potential as any player in the NBA.

He could be the most dominant player in the NBA in Houston if he puts his mind to it.

Unfortunately, I think we gotta go for Dwight . . .

 

correct, but the Bulls are showing that with the right system and the right players, it is possible to win. Brooklyn has the superstars yet still lost the series.

let's not discount the right player character makeup and heart. combine that with good coaching and good things can happen.

that's precisely why the Rockets are the talk of the NBA now, they have the culture and the right mix of players and are winning far beyond expectations. it's hard to see Howard just fitting in and doing his thing to preserve the culture.

 

This. Well said. Dwight was very durable in his first 6 years. Like a candle, I think he's shown sign of burning too bright too soon -- reducing his shelf life. It's not easy coming back from the injury, and we don't for sure if he's going return to peak form. I'm not saying Dwight's washed up, he still have some good years left, but he may not perform like he was. Look at last few years: guys like Ibaka, Chandler and this year Marc Gasol had taken the title of defensive player of the year.

Also for what it is worth, I think SVG squeezed a lot out of Dwight during the Orlando years. Maybe the yelling didn't help SVG at the end, but he pushed Dwight's buttons to get the most out of him during the Orlando years. Not every coach could (or is willing do that) to their franchise player at the risk of their careers.

 

Would rather go after CP3 or Kevin Love. If Dwight isn't 2 feet away from the basket he's almost useless. He relies on athleticism way too much and when that goes away he will be just another guy.

 

Kevin Love will be a great PF addition, he can add a pick and pop dimension with his outside shooting, plus the Rox are gonna gobble up all the rebounds with Omer and Love playing together.

 

Stamina, for one thing. This is his first season as a starter and first season to get major minutes.

"Better hands" isn't Asik's problem, it's court awareness. He's just not ready to receive passes. When he is, he can receive passes. There's a lot of room for Asik to improve, he can develop a post game and get stronger. Leaping ability is the least of his concerns, why does he need to jump high when he's already 7 feet tall?

You have no idea what you're talking about, you're probably one fo the guys who went ballistic when the Dwight turned the Rox down Sometimes the obvious decision isn't always the correct one.

 

Exactly, just look at Marc Gasol and Noah. Neither of them have the athleticism of Howard, but theyre so much smarter and use what they got to their maximum potential. Their passing game is what really makes them dangerous though, and I hope that is something Asik will work hard on in the summer. Of course we also have to utilize it.

Im happy those two are being praised as the best centers in the game, we dont need more future Howards or De Andre Jordans

 

If you want Asik over Howard then you would rather lose with pride then win while being better.

 

Neither Marc Gasol or Noah will take their teams to the finals. Dwight has been there when healthy. Deondre Jordan shouldn't even be in the conversation with any of the three centers mentioned. Sounds like your hating on athleticism and automatically making it like its a case for a lack of effort because of the natural athleticism. It would help the rockets on defense a heck of a lot more if Dwight was in the middle especially when your point guard is Jeremy Lin. Harden doesn't play much D. When you think about what's better for the rockets on the basketball court it's really a no brainer. Asiks ceiling isn't as big as Marc Gasol's.

 

Marc Gasol plays out of the high post, so he perfectly suits low post players (such as Zach, his brother or Morey's secondary target with him, Nene), nice jumper, great passer, he's basically Al Horford on steroids, but he's never going to be a dominant low post player nor an elite rebounder.

Very very very different players Dwight and Marc