[Athletic] Rockets secured the No. 2 pick. Now, they weigh their options: ‘We can work with that’

https://theathletic.com/2668346/202...ey-weigh-their-options-we-can-work-with-that/

On a night where thousands of Rockets fans were glued to their televisions, anxiously waiting for deputy commissioner Mark Tatum to flip card after card over to find their draft fate, Rockets GM Rafael Stone says he was simply reading a book.

Could it have been an attempt to keep his emotions in check? After all, Stone’s first year at the helm wasn’t the warmest of welcomes to general manager, overseeing a 17-55 Rockets team that literally limped to the finish line. There was the looming fear of possibly ending up with a pick outside of the top four, a nightmare scenario in which the Oklahoma City Thunder would have seen the selection conveyed to them, a parting gift from the Russell Westbrook trade. There was also the natural hope of the worst team in the league being blessed with the top pick, a pick-me-up of sorts. Such a wild range of possibilities could have kept Stone from turning his TV on.

But he didn’t.

“I decided that probably would be unpleasant so I didn’t do it, is the real answer,” Stone said. “I knew what time the results were going to be announced and I figured out at that time.”

The Rockets ended up with the second overall pick with the Detroit Pistons earning top honors. “We can work with that,” Stone said after learning his team’s fate.

“We’re certainly hopeful it’s very impactful but there’s a lot of work to be done. We have to figure out who’s going to be there, who’s not. Have to figure out if drafting is the right thing. We were excited coming into the draft, we felt like we were going to exit with an improved team and we’re still really excited.”

In what has become a yearly draft tradition, there are a certain number of names that float to the top of every draft board, from media members to front offices alike. This year, it’s no different. It’s not set in stone just yet, but there’s a very real chance that the Pistons take Oklahoma State’s Cade Cunningham when July 29 rolls around.

That’s where the fun begins.

For the next month, the thought exercises will reign supreme. The Rockets could go in any number of ways here at two. The draft, as we all know is a crapshoot, but we can comfortably place three players in the tier right under Cunningham right now — Jalen Green (G-League Elite), Evan Mobley (USC) and Jalen Suggs (Gonzaga). Each of those three names would make any front office happy should they draft them.

For the sake of this article, let’s just assume that the Rockets are taking someone from that trio. If so, what do they actually want? Should they go Green, banking on future stardom, explosiveness and scoring? Should they go Mobley, attempting to restore the versatile two-big setup next to Christian Wood? Or do they go Suggs, having a floor general waiting in the wing for John Wall’s eventual departure? My thoughts on Green will be available on The Athletic’s official beat writer mock draft — and I have more on him coming next week which you all will love (hopefully) but let’s take a look at the other contestants.

Quick thoughts on Mobley
You could make a very strong argument for Mobley going first overall. Mobley is cut from the modern-day big cloth, super-skilled big men that have guard/wing ball skills. He can create his own shot, can handle the ball some and can finish at the rim. For a team that already has Wood on the roster, Mobley can slot right next to him akin to Kelly Olynyk down the stretch of last season — and is probably a better fit anyway.

Mobley actually might be better equipped defensively to keep up with guards and wings on the perimeter than his future teammate Wood is right now. He has great lateral quickness and footwork for his size and won’t be played off the floor in perceived mismatches. Where Mobley needs to improve is his toughness, his shooting consistency and his low-post defense. The Rockets are well aware of some of the challenges at that end of the floor with Wood and both of them have thin frames.

Quick thoughts on Suggs
Suggs is everything a coach should want in a young point guard. The first aspect that jumps off the page is his feel for the game. There have been comparisons to Jason Kidd and Baron Davis not only because of their presence as bigger guards but also how they see the floor. Suggs can create consistent offense for his teammates at the next level and he’s not a slouch himself offensively either. It’s no secret what he can do on the other end of the floor with All-Defense potential written all over him: quick feet, strong base, elite motor.

Silas will love how quickly Suggs can generate attacks or halfcourt quick-hitters. Suggs can shoot from deep but he’s not lights out, defenses may force him to beat them from there routinely. But he’s a smooth operator in between the lines and won’t need to be a team’s go-to scorer, anyway. Suggs is ready from Day 1 and should have a long, fruitful career as a primary/secondary playmaker.

 

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Regardless of which direction the Rockets go, Stone is confident that whoever is brought in is someone who the organization is confident can step in and complement the young core already in place. Remember, players like Jae’Sean Tate and K.J. Martin weren’t lottery picks or highly sought-after names last season. They had to grind their way to make it to the NBA. While Houston is proud of their development thus far, there are different expectations of them than there would be of a second overall pick. Houston is looking for real talent at No. 2, someone that can be groomed to be a household name down the line.

“I think the goal is to find a star player,” Stone said. “That’s always our goal, to find really talented basketball players. When you bring in young players, you’re looking for star players. I don’t know that I would use the word expect, I wouldn’t put that pressure on a player. But what I would expect is a player to give us everything they’ve got and they’re going to work as hard as they can. We’re likely to get someone really talented with the pick and if we don’t pick it, it will be because we received someone who we think is really talented. That was going to be the case no matter where we pick. We have three first-round picks and expect to come away with a more talented roster.”

This week, the Rockets are in Chicago for the NBA’s official draft combine. Stone noted that head coach Stephen Silas is currently on vacation but plans to join the brain trust in a couple of days. For a fairly new partnership, it’s important that Stone and Silas are on the same page. During Stone’s sit-down with The Athletic, he noted that he and Silas see the game similarly which helps in their day-to-day discussions. Now, with a season under their belt, roster building is of the utmost importance. Because there are still some moving parts internally — the Rockets have nine free agents of their own — it’s important not to get too bogged down with specific fits. Best player available should be written on every board available in Houston for the next month.

Emptying the clip
1. Could we see a trade? Knowing Houston, anything is possible. On Tuesday night, Stone didn’t want to commit to anything but you can tell from what he’s saying that those thoughts are certainly floating around in his head.

“The easiest way to make a mistake is to predetermine what you’re going to do,” Stone said. “I think our approach to the draft, free agency, even in-season trades is to look at everything as it comes up. We’ll do all the work, we’ve been working on the draft for what seems like an extraordinarily long period of time but we still have a month to go. We’ll research all the players, not just one or two and try to figure out the best way to move forward.”

“I think it’s a big part of the job. You shouldn’t foreclose anything. You have to do the work and use the allotted time and have the discussions. You have to go through the process. I think it’s worthwhile in itself to avoid predetermining things.”

I think those two responses in themselves are enough to believe that should the right deal present itself on draft night, the Rockets could very well make a trade. But what sort of deal would that even be? Ben Simmons? Jaylen Brown? Bradley Beal? Maybe something on a smaller scale involving Eric Gordon? The possibilities are endless with this team, which is what makes this time of the year so exciting and intriguing.

2. Houston will bring in about 60 players between now and the draft for workouts, evaluations and interviews. Last season, they weren’t able to bring in any because of the pandemic, an aspect that might have played a factor into their selections — there’s only so much you can learn about someone from watching players on film. This year, they’ll have a bevy of players at their disposal to evaluate. Florida’s Tre Mann already worked out at Toyota Center last week according to his social media.

3. It’s important that the Rockets get these evaluations in because they aren’t just picking at No. 2. Houston has two other picks in the first round, back-to-backs at Nos. 23 and 24. Stone noted that the bulk of his front office’s scouting was done on players that could potentially go in that 20-30 range because they have successive selections. There’s a reality where three rookies are added to the roster, although I wouldn’t bet the house on that. When you’re picking at the end of the first round, you want to go strictly talent. A team like Houston isn’t all too worried about positions, anyway. Silas and Stone like versatile, multi-faceted players that aren’t etched in one position.

“You want to make sure that there’s opportunity and everything else but that’s at the margins,” Stone said. Generally, you want to bring in the best players you can. We’re young and have interesting guys at almost every position. We have guys who are multi-positional and can play with others. If you’re a great basketball player you can play with others. In my experience, the truly great players enhance one another, play better off one another, enjoy one another and I don’t terribly worry about positionality. We’ve been more positionless than most and it seems likely to continue.