[Yahoo] Houston will make Josh Smith offer if they can't sign Dwight

Obviously you're the confused one.

 

Around 12 per and I won't cry.

 

You're right, feel better now?

 

It's cool. Mistakes happen, and the CBA isn't exactly easy to understand. There are dozens of people on here who know it better than I ever will.

Anyway, back to the point of the thread: No Josh Smith, please.

 

LOL.

Reminds me of Royce's #BeWell

 

If only it were that simple...

 

Did you forget that Dwight got swept by the Spurs?!?!?!? Look at next year's 2014 free-agent list of PFs, if Superman abandons us, you better get Josh Smith. A true PF will be a black hole for a long time, I don't think TJones/Donatas are true PFs.

 

Again, the only I'm cool with this deal if it's a 1 year max or 1 and 1 (team option). Otherwise you try and rent Hickson, West, Milsap, Jefferson, hell even Brand for a year or hope Gasol falls to you for a rental. You tie yourself to Josh Smith at the expense of cap flexibility and I think you've confined yourself to mediocrity barring a major upgrade at PG.

 

Yeah, our NBA 2k14 rating will improve and we'd have a shot at a virtual championship.

 

Josh Smith has one of the lowest basketball IQ's in the league

 

This could really come back to bite us in the ass. I would hate to throw a huge contract at Smith - Smith alone isn't going to make us a contender and we'll be over the cap and stuck there. Much rather absorb Gasol's salary or something for a year if the Dwight plan falls through to maintain flexibility for next year. It would be A LOT easier to stomach a bad contract if we do get Dwight, as then it would all be winning now. Even then I question the fit... Smith might help with transition defense, but with Dwight in tow what you want from your 4 would be shooting and shooting and shooting. I shudder to imagine not one, but TWO 50% free throw shooters on the team at the same time... Ugh.

 

That's not much of an issue when you're asking him to be, at best, your 3rd scoring option. Especially since he won't be creating most of his own shots or handling the ball nearly as much as he did in ATL.

 

That's not true.

#1: Joe never put up a PER greater than 19.5.. a season in which he only played 57 games mind you. James has been 21.1 and 23 the last two seasons. Joe has never put up a TS% greater than 55.7%. James was only less than that his rookie year and has been at 60% or greater the last two years. James consistently puts up equal or better rebounds, assists, steals and blocks per 36 minutes. Last year he scored much more per 36 minutes than Joe ever has. James Harden last year, at 23, his first year as the man on his team, was better (meaningfully) than Joe Johnson has ever been.

#2: The rest of the Rockets squad is better than the supporting cast of the Hakws ever were. The Hakws best teams had supporting casts of Bibby, Josh Smith, Marvin Williams and a young Al Horford. There was some Jamal Crawford (depending on the year) and I guess Zaza Pachulia. If the Rockets were to sign Smith, they'd have Harden, Smith, Parsons, Lin, Asik. Harden > Johnson. Smith = Smith. Parsons = Horford (both young, up and comers). Asik > Pachulia/Williams. Lin = Bibby/Crawford. It's not a HUGE improvement, but I'd take the Rockets squad. They are meaningfully younger and much better offensively.

#3: The value of 0-15 feet premiere defenders at the 3/4/5 is severely underrated. I'm talking a guy that can guard the interior, but is also great and PnR defense out near the FT line. KG, Odom, Chandler (the year the Mavs won), Wallace, Horry, Dennis Rodman, Tim Duncan, etc. They don't all come the same - Odom is a very different player than Duncan or Rodman. But whereas Duncan/Rodman might be a little bit better at post defense and in the interior, and Odom might be a little bit better at the mid-range defense, all of them are uniquely above average in both areas. They play smart, fundamentally sound defense. This position has gotten even more important as the 3 point shot has become more and more prevalent. Because the only way to guard the 3 is often to chase teams off the line. That means you need those 3/4/5 guys to be able to step up if necessary but also rotate appropriately, get back into the lane to challenge, etc. The Heat of late represent an anomaly principally and entirely because of Lebron, who easily could have won the last few defensive player of the year awards along with his MVPs, if you ask me. Who else has a Lebron defensively? No one. Ron Artest used to be able to play that kind of defense (though honestly not as good as Lebron), but in today's NBA it's just Lebron.

This is where Josh comes in. He hurts his value by being so bad at times offensively. But defensively he is exactly what the Rockets need. Asik is/can be a great paint protector, but I wouldn't/don't trust him on PnR, and I certainly cringe every time I see him get switched on a guard near the 3 point line. Josh is at least capable of doing both, if not doing both well.

#4: All the above said, I'd still not be super interested in Smith being the replacement for Dwight. I think teams like the Pistons are the LAST teams that should be interested in signing him. His best value is on a team like the Rockets, post-acquiring Dwight. The clear #3 guy - and frankly, offensively maybe even lower than that - who can maximize the team's defensive potential. Dwight/Smith/Parsons front-court defensively gives you EXACTLY what you need... ESPECIALLY in the playoffs. But without Dwight, Josh moves up a rung in the ladder, gets too assertive offensively, etc.

I love the Dwight/Smith combo. I don't love the Smith alone acquisition. That said, if its the path DM decides to go, I think it does catapult the Rockets into potential WCF team, and I'd assume DM would be doing so only with future moves in mind, recognizing that he still has some assets to trade in the future (Lin principally, but others).

 

He'll probably get 15 or 16. I like it. I think he would actually fit in really well. We would probably have a top 3 defensive front court.

 

I take this more as an indication that they expect to get Dwight, but want Josh Smith to know they are genuinely interested.

Maybe the allure of playing with Dwight and Harden, coupled with the genuine interest from the Rockets would persuade him to come to town for a discount?

That might be what Morey is thinking.


Otherwise, this seems pretty uncharacteristic, and/or just a lie/misinformation.

 

How in the world can we get Dwight, Josh and keep Asik?

 

sign and traded to us for Lin and possibly Jones/White/DMo

 

I has confuse too

 

GIINNNNOOOOBBBIIILLIIII

or corey brewer

 

I'm fine with my self assurance but that's besides the point. Remarks and personal attacks aside rockets can go over the cap to resign parsons if needed. Josh smiths potential contract, or Dwight's if it works out have no implications on parsons availability.

Everyone in here is fine and likely willing to share information, but you go off asking people to educate themselves when initial remarks didn't make sense to them. The knee jerk reactions in here pretty much involves one responding to another. With that said. Hope it doesn't come down to josh smith