But that's another thing, Moochie's deal wasn't even that huge (I belive it was something like 11 million over 3 years) in the grand scheme, it was less than say, Stromile Swift, David Wesley, or Juwan Howard. Not only that they were able to sell him off to the Knicks anyway without having to take anything too terrible in return.
Well, Sam, to start, you're off on the terms of the contract. The contract was worth ~21 million over 5 years. I'm sure you'll say it's not that big of a difference, but it's nearly double the figure you have in mind. Next, you'll say well, he wasn't making that much money compared to guys like Swift and Wesley. The main difference is those guys at least have some semblence of an NBA game. Neither are all stars, but Moochie was absolute garbage for about the last 3-4 years of that contract. Honestly, he wasn't that great before he got the contract, either, our team just sucked so bad any feel good story made us happy. I'd say that, for most fans, their favorite part of Moochie's game was his afro. A hairdo isn't worth 5 years 21 million.
To start with, my estimate checks out, for the three years he played full seasons with the Rockets (and by averaging over the course of the deal - I knew he did not average 4m per season which is why I picked a number south of that, and it checks out) Patricia's has him listed at making 3.1 in 02, 3.6 in 03, , and 4.2 last year. That makes a shade under 11 million; and as for the last year, we had to pya that after agreeing to take him back. as an expiring contract. (and if you add up the other two years (3.8 and 3.5) on the deal, it comes out to 18.3 million, not 21 million - so if anybody guessed wrong on his contract, it's not me...) In the reality of the NBA, ~3.5 million does not get you that much, so I fail to see Moochie's contract as something that is as cumbersome as say, Juwan Howard's albatross deal. ....which is why those years were spent primarily in New York...so what beef do we rightfully have about that?
He didn't just accept a huge offer from the Rockets. He hired Dan Fegan, and held out to get more money. Francis even chimed in, saying that we really needed to sign him. Cuban was supposedly interested. Then, we give him the ludicrous contract, and what happens? He comes in late to camp, and he's incredibly out of shape and totally useless on the court. Once he signed that deal, he was never the same. I think that's where the main problem stems from between the fans and the Mooch. His decline was pretty much instantaneous after he signed. Similar deal with Cato, but I'd say it was different with Taylor. Taylor got injured because he was working his ass off during the offseason. Just bad luck, and it does take a while to recover from an achilles injury.
Tell it like it is! Before the contract, Moochie was an effort and hustle guy. He was almost inspirational to watch. You knew he would give 100% of what little talent he had. That's what made him popular with some fans. I'll be honest and say Moochie was never one of my favorites. The hustle was nice but the 'fro never did anything for me. After he hit a couple of game clinching shots, I thought Rudy cut him way too much slack by letting him take others (which he missed just about every time). On the radio some guys ridiculed Rudy about letting a scrub like Moochie take game-changing shots. But regardless of that, everyone liked his hustle. What it became public that Moochie was holding out, I thought it was silly and everything would get worked out very quickly. When it became extended, pretty much everyone I talked to was shocked. When SF chimed in support, I'll admit right now I turned on Moochie. When a 6yr/$22MM contract was announced, I turned hard against the Rockets. No other contract they signed has ever made me so upset. The radio guys were completely stunned. Every single caller couldn't understand why the Rockets gave him so much money. Nobody else wanted him. As KeepKenny stated above, Moochie instantaneously went from untalented (but hustling) scrub to towel and water boy. He was never in shape again and the hustle and desire disappeared completely. It was disgraceful, and Moochie remains a poster child for why guaranteed contracts are wrong for the NBA.
It all somehow comes back to the money. I don't understand the preoccupation with how much money the guy was making. It wasn't as if his deal was the salary cap busting reason the Rockets couldn't go out and sign a better player. No, Matt Maloney and Bryce Drew had deals that had already accomplished that. So what if they guy held out...you would too if you were in his shoes. It's called a market-based economy, r****ds. He got what he was 'worth.' If Cuban was talking to him, than it's not as if the Rockets overpaid in a vacuum. I know many fans would just love to return to the days where players were only slightly more than indentured servants (see pre-free agency baseball), but it's not happening. The true worth of a player is the value (or detriment) to the team. Some of this revisionist history distorts the fact that the guy gave the Rockets a couple of solid years off the bench. If you want to factor in his salary, he was probably making either the league average or less for that period. His salary absolutely did not hurt the salary cap. If his presence helped team unity during that time (re: Steve F.'s comments), the Rocket were that much better for it. If the coach recognized that his input was no longer valueable, necessitating a trade, then it happened. Yes, it's disappointing that his production dipped. It could have something to do with his age, or even something else the public doesn't know about. I don't remember Mooch coming into camp out of shape, but maybe I'm wrong. I do not know, though, that the money made him lazy. Many of the posts above take that as fact. It's just disheartening to see a former Rocket get trashed for just about no reason (besides the fact that the team decided, in THIER ultimate wisdom, to pay him a decent chunk of change).
