Harden is the defacto point guard .... Sure you could upgrade the point to a guy who shoots better from deep than Lin , or defends better .... but you really don't want a guy who dominates the ball to take it away from your best playmaker in Harden. PF is the obvious answer .... but I'd expand that to "any post player who can force a double team out of the post , shoots consistently well out to ~18ft , can defend and rebound above average at either the C or PF spot. Notice that doesn't describe DH12 .... He doesn't shoot well and has few post moves not to mention the horrid FT shooting. He's just a more athletic version of Asik .... and leaves you with the same hole at the PF spot. Yes , he's an upgrade over Asik if healthy & motivated. But is he $11m better ?! Problem is that todays breed of C/PF just don't seem to have much of a post game .... Most want to face up or shoot 3's rather than fight for low post position. Traditional post players who can dominate in the paint are few and far between ....
PF is our biggest need to upgrade, but not our top priority this off season. Howard's our biggest priority this year, with pf being addressed after Howard lands or next year.
PF is our weakest position, but the free agent class for power forwards is pretty weak outside of Josh Smith. If we were to sign Howard, I would expect some sort of trade involving Asik to land a better power forward, whether it be a stretch or defensive minded big.
This is misleading because they assume we will pick up options on delfino and others. Rockets clearly have space to sign him (3 lowest payroll)
I was troubled on to vote in this poll. It indicated front line players but gave no choice for backup players. For example, the majority of voters singled out PF for an upgrade. However, IMO we have a solid core of PFs -- they just need time to ripen. Short term, I favor T-Jones, but long term I really like what D-Mo will bring to the table. At center, I like what I see with Asik, but we need to acquire a rookie center to develop. Perhaps we can use C-Robinson to trade for a mid-first to do just that. Of course, I would love to see C-Rob fulfill his potential but I am not optimistic. I voted for PG because Lin wears down too easily. I love his intelligence, but his shot is still streaky. Beverley has some skills but I am not convinced he is the answer, especially because of his lack of height and shooting dependability. Depending on what we do with Delfino, we need a change of pace for Parsons. I know, I know. I still like Bud coming in to scorch the opposition second squads, but he will never leave Adelman so I have to get over it ... same for Steve Novak's shooting when he was a Rocket.
PF We may already have the answer buried in our rotation, but I doubt any of them puts us over the top. PG I think Lin will improve, thus upgrading the spot enough for a championship roster.
I don't want to speak for Thumbs .... But when you look at the roster , minus Delfino and Garcia .... they have nothing on the bench behind Parsons. Might not need a "change of pace" but they definitely need to find a solid backup / bench guy to take minutes behind both Parsons & Harden. Lin or whoever the PG is can handle the ball during those minutes but they need to upgrade that bench position. I like what Delfino was able to do but when he tried to initiate the offense or create .... he was a turnover waiting to happen. Garcia played more within his abilities as a shooter but you need a guy who can get his shot off the bench.
They should just stagger Harden and Lin's minutes. Solved. I'd be ecstatic if we can keep Garcia backing up Parsons. Just don't see a Parsons backup who can create his own shot as a need.
I can't believe people picked anything other than the 4. I'm not sure if they're serious or not. We can't even answer the question who our starting 4 for next year is. Is it Smith? Jones? T-Rob? D-Mo?! White?!?! Other than that, as someone mentioned bench is a big need. We can resign Garcia on the cheap right? If no one else does.
Dwight is gonna be the most powerful PF in the league!!! Lin Harden Parsons Howard Asik Dwight, "Jeremy, let them come to me! BWAAAHAHAHA! (evil laugh)". Dwight, "Bev, don't foul. Let them come to me! BWAAAAHAHAHA! (evil laugh)" Dwight, "Harden, yes that's the right way to play. Let them come to me! BWAAAHAHAHA! (evil laugh)"
