For real. I wanted a PG upgrade, even a minor one, so that's kind of a disappointment, but if we got Smoove and Brewer today, people would be going crazy. The Rockets are far better than they were in November, so I'll take it.
I'll point out we also took a flyer on a hard working 22yr old who is looking an awful lot like a young Jimmy Butler. Most people don't know KJ but I tune in to Phi games frequently just to watch him alone. I'm positively giddy to see what talent of his level can do learning from a potential MVP candidate and a bunch of solid vets. It's rare that a guy that young with that much talent makes it to a high level team - normally there time is wasted on bad teams.
Let's just get crazy weird in the playoffs and throw a Harden/KJ/Smoove/TJ/Dwight lineup. Blocks for days. Shooting be damned.
This deadline showed me a couple of things: 1) the team believes D12 is coming back strong and 2) Harden's play minimizes the need for a star PG. Our bench critical needs were met earlier with Brewer and Smith. When TJones is fully recovered and back in his groove, we have an outstanding frontcourt bench. Canaan was simply taking up a roster spot...after his debacle in Detroit ( 0 for 6 shooting, matador defense) he was very unlikely to play in these final 30 or so games. Prig is a veteran who can reasonably be expected to provide good short minutes in the games at certain spots....and is far more likely to be used by McHale than Canaan looking forward to the playoffs. KJ is very athletic and probably will be a fixture on the bench the remainder of the season...but available to provide spot defensive skills under certain situations. So, in summary, we go from two guys who were just taking up space (Canaan and Shved) to two guys who you can confidently put in games in certain situations = more flexibility for the good guys. Let's get it on now in what should be one of the most exciting finishes in recent memory and playoffs that will be extremely competitive.
The answer to the thread question is no. I don't think anything was gained. I am mystified by these moves.
Actually, I give him credit for the team he has put together. His really strong past performance is why I have faith in him. What's tiring is the woe-is-me-the-apocalypse-is-coming fire everyone fans.
I can't wait. It almost sounds like Morey crunched the numbers and said, what if our 2nd string was able to prevent out opponents 2nd string from scoring at all and so he put together the best defensive 2nd team ever - ha!
Man, I can't wait to see how KJ & Pablo are incorporated into the line up. It's gonna be fun Fri, Sat, Mon & Wed.
excellent..thx..will have it up this eve. You definitely nailed it! If you can't beat top notch teams with offense then swarm them with defense!
Agreed, I really do think KJ fits our scheme well as a (very) poor man's Harden since we don't have a solidified SG backup and hopefully the 3:1 A/TO for Pablo means better inbounding to Dwight. However .. the most glaring hole this team had at the deadline was at PG, with second being finding a serviceable backup for D12. With all the PG names that suddenly started moving, you cannot say with a straight face that you would prefer to start Bev over any of those guys that were dealt. I guess I'm not mad .. Just disappointed.
