I see your logic. It's ok that we don't have a PG in the second trade, but not in the first one? Also, you're implying that McGrady "hogs" the ball. Whom in the league do you suggest has the right to "hog" the ball if not McGrady? I'd rather have McGrady break the double team than any other Rockets player taking on single coverage. Please reade above. Read it again and again. Get T-Mac and Yao on the same team, worry about the rest later.
The Rockets are already behind. Changes must be made this offseason. Preferably starting with a new GM, though I realize that isn't going to happen. I now think the Rockets should go after TM if only to keep him from the Suns and Spurs. If you put TM and TD on the same team, it's lights out for the next half decade. Also getting TM is a nice cushion in case the unthinkable happens. That YM forces a trade once he becomes a FA.
Yeah, if the things not going well w/ Francis on the team and there seems no hope to win it all any time soon, Yao probably will opt out since I strongly suspect the Lakers will go after Yao to replace an aging Shaq (when both their current contracts are up on two years).
That's hialrious. The Rockets are still sucking on their thumbs. Their mouthes smell like milk and their behinds smell like ****. You want to get T-Mac JUST so no one else gets him? Absolutely hilarious. You say it as if we've been contending a few years. The reasons to get one of the best players in the league: 1) No one else gets him. 2) He's a nice cushion in case Yao leaves. How about we get Shaq just in case Yao goes down with an injury, and so that he doesn't go to another Western Conference powerhouse? We need a T-Mac. He would be equal with Yao Ming on this team. He's not some cushion - he'd be half of the next dynasty in the NBA.
dude, are you going to be really upset if we don't end up getting TMac... just sayin' that because the chances are pretty low that we do get him. also, don't get me wrong, i would be ecstatic if we got TMac. but... does it bother you that TMac has never played more than 80 games a seaons before?
I would be upset if there were a chance to get him and Rox didn't make a strongstrongstrong run at getting it done.
i guess that's true. if the magic were agreeable to a trade where Francis and TMac are the principles, i guess the Rockets should try to get it done. while i'm worried about TMac's health, there's not really any doubt that if TMac is healthy, we would be better. I mean c'mon. Kobe is awesome because he never gets double teamed. TMac struggles to be a one man show, as everyone does, with legit big man maybe he'll really shine. my line is this -- Francis and Yao are not enough to win a championship anytime soon. The west is just too loaded for that. We'd have to have ultra awesome role players for that to happen. Think about it, even if Yao becomes Tim Duncan, which he won't, we still won't be able to win because our role players aren't as good. Therefore, if you can get TMac, or Elton Brand, you gotta do it. Otherwise we're just gonna be a low seed every year.
Look at the West, save Clips (and someone should), and you see that every team is a play off contender -- unless their summer is becursed the worst!
It will bother me if CD doesn't try his best - i.e., if Phoenix or someone else picks him up with a deal that we could do better than. Chances are, if he decides to leave, and the list that we've heard about is accurate, then we have the best chance of them all. 64 games in his rookie season out of high school. 49 out of 50 in 2nd season = 80 out of 82 games 79 games 77 games 76 games 75 games 67 games I am dissapointed with the last one, but we know he missed 3 for some funeral. We know that when he sat out, he said that "there's no point me hurting myself" - meaning he could have played if the season was important. So looking at those numbers, the average is 74 games per season. Not great, but not bad. If you exclude this last season when he CLEARLY CLEARLY sat out due to lack of motivation (losing like hell), the average is bumped up more. Now let's compare averages: Vince Carter 69 games per season Paul Pierce 79 games per season Allen Iverson 70 games per season Jerry Stackhouse 63 games per season Steve Francis 74 games per season Kobe Bryant 74 games per season I'm not worried at all. He's going to get rest this summer, and surgery if needed. he's not going to the Olympics, has lived through losing without a solid team, has taken as many shots as he's wanted. He's ready. What's more likely? A lightbulb suddenly going on in Francis' head in his SIXTH season, or a 25-year old McGrady's back healing up?
That's completely different. First of all, you can hardly extrapolate McGrady's numbers during the 98 season. Secondly, Steve Francis has proven that he is one of the most durable NBA players in the league. During the 01-02 season Francis missed 25 games due to a freak occurrence with meniere's disease. If you were to throw that season out you'd be talking about him averaging 79 games a season (3 games). To put that in perspective, he missed 3 games this season, 1 due to suspension, the other 2 at the end of the season after clinching the playoff spot. In McGrady's case his absences have been due to chronic/lingering back problems, which is a slight cause of concern. Francis's absences have always been inconsequential or due to his migraines, which are behind him. Either way, your basic principle still stands. He's not the most durable of players like a Francis, Mobley, or Malone; but he's not injury prone either. It's just a minor cause of concern that a 25 year old would have chronic back problems, but it still shouldnt detract from us trying to get him.
If McGrady only wants SA or Phx then what can CD/JVG/LA do? (Actually, recruit him like a stud HS QB!!!) If he leaves it open then do not get beat out by the others.
Disagree completely. Francis put his meniere's behind him, T-Mac will put his back problems behind him. Both injuries may come back for both of them. You cannot say "throw this season out" for any reason. If you want to count that, I will throw McGrady's final season out because, as I said, he wouldn't have sat out more than a few games if it weren't for the losing season. So he was healthy enough to play many more games. I used the same method to calculate games for everyone's lockout season. Francis wasn't there in the lockout season. Also, Francis missed lots of games in his career because of plantar fasciitis. Also, with the amount of T's he gets, he's likely to miss games that way as well. To me, it really doesn't matter why you miss the games. It matters to me how many times a season you're on the court. T-Mac is 74 games, Francis is 74.8. Is 74.8 games of Francis betetr than 74 games of T-Mac? Hell, 70 games of T-Mac is better than 74 games of Francis. xiki, If you re-read my post, I said "and the list we've heard about is accurate". The list is Houston, Phoenix, LA, San Antonio.
I ignored LAL. It is preposterous to me that they could effect a deal. Therefore, I surmised that if the list is, indeed, accurate then it's down to Spurs/Suns/GoodGuys. All three teams have assets to attract both TMac and Orlando, as a trade partner. Therefore it is incumbent upon Rox management -- coaches, GM, owner to recruit him hard the first second he announces he wants to opt out (or earlier, quietly etc etc).
Not sure if it has been posted but the NY Times had an article over the weekend on how T Mac wanted to play with Shaq. I don't know whether that means that Shaq would go east or TMac would go west....but i don't remember it mentioning that he wanted to play with Yao...or any other center for that matter.
Since Shaq doesn't want to leave a dollar on the table and there is no way imaginable for Orlando - LAL to deal then NYT article is essentially irrelevant, IMO. Besides, Shaq says, and it's probably close to true, that everyone (except Kobe?) wants to play with him then TMac is just one more...
I saw that article in the Orlando Sentinel and it said that Tracy Mcgrady will entertain trades ONLY from 4 teams and they were the Los Angeles Lakers Houston Rockets San Antonio Spurs Phoenix Suns.
This was an interesting excerpt from ESPN.com Marc Stein's latest article. http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/playoffs2004/columns/story?columnist=stein_marc&id=1807865
interesting. if i were the magic, i would certainly take perennial all star / electrifying player (Francis) over two solid players (Marion and Johnson)... but who knows what they feel their needs are. No way they give us TMac for Francis straight up though... that would be the best deal ever. when do you guys think a trade would happen, if it were to happen?
Orlando presumably would want trading partner to absorb Howard, so Francis/Cat - TMac/JuHo = @ 3mil saved by Magic and good enough deal to happen? Happens 8/26 when SF can be traded.
