Kelechi: Rockets are front runners for Jimmy Butler and believe they are getting him. Kelechi: Rockets are confident of landing James Harden. 70% chance he returns. Kelechi: Rockets are blah blah blah Joel Embiid. Yeah, whatever… That said, Damn, y’all picky! It wasn’t long ago we were loading up the Tundra and begging Bosh to accept our iPad. It wasn’t long ago we sent Hakeem to meet with Kent Bazemore. (Harden voice) Let me say it again, we sent Hakeem to meet with Kent Bazemore. And Al Horford. We were meeting Marcin Gorat. Omer Asik. Jeremy Lin. We were begging Goran not to pack his Dynex. Spoiler I hope one of these kids is one day as good as Jaylen “just OK” Brown or Joel “do not want” Embiid. Spoiler Age of first season with Rockets Barkley: 33 Pippen: 33 Drexler: 32 Paul: 32 Westbrook: 31 Wall: 30 Elie: 30 Howard: 28 Thorpe: 26 McGrady: 25 K.Smith: 25 Maxwell: 24 Harden: 23 Moses: 21 *Embiid is 29, turns 30 in March 2024.
We're not making deals with Morey. Morey will want every draft pick of ours for the foreseeable future and one of our young stars. Morey isn't stupid and it'll cost us and arm and a leg to get the guy.
Our core is between 19 and 21. They will not help us contend in 3-4 years. Embiid will be old and maybe gone
Let's not forget that we did already sign veterans this summer. I actually really like the fit between FVV, Green, Brooks (if he can be convinced to play like the 4th/5th option), Jabari, and Embiid. That's what kinda gives me pause a bit. That team could potentially be pretty insane defensively and not bad at all on offense depending on how much Brooks can be convinced to buy in. Is it good enough to contend right now? I don't know. I'd hate to give up Sengun, and I think him and KPJ are the obvious centerpieces of any trade for Embiid. I could see us regretting it down the line. I'm not as all-in on him as his biggest boosters, but they could be right. So, yeah, I don't know. If it were up to me it would probably depend on how many draft picks Morey was asking for and whether he insisted on getting other core players in the deal besides Sengun.
Giving up on Sengun? This theoretical trade is 12-24 months away. At that point, they may be giving #1 picks to the Rox to sweeten the deal, not the other way around. You can only have 1 alpha dog on a team. If we are "giving up on Sengun" two years from now, it's only because we have another player (Jalen, Amen?) that has emerged as our clear #1 option and there is no room for Seguin. So maybe another team makes a "no-brainer" offer for Sengun? There are so unknowns. We have 7 potential stars on this team ...and I can comfortably say we won't have all 7 on this team in 3 years. But I definitely cannot predict which players will move on. Will be fun to watch.
I think the Rockets would have to give up Alperen Sengun, some of the Nets picks and two of the following players: J. Green, T. Eason, J. Smith Jr, A. Thompson, Kevin Porter Jr., C. Whitmore. The asking price will be high for Embiid.
I wouldn't trade Sengun for Embiid 1-1. This is what Mike Malone said about Jokic in 2016: Mike Malone saw why Jokic was special, even when he was a rookie. He always had his back, and he got rewarded for it years later. That's how the Rockets organization and fans should stand behind Sengun today.
Greg Monroe first before Joel Embiid https://hoopshype.com/rumor/greg-monroe-will-play-in-puerto-rico/
rings? How about a finals appearance? if the reward for being ass for 4 years is a 30 year old Embiid then sell the franchise
Like others, its comical at how people immediately take the Internet to scream DO NOT WANT for a literal reigning MVP for the 3x bottom of the barrel team looking at its 4th consecutive similar season (despite actually spending money and trying not to). It's moot because the DO NOT WANT is likely as strong or stronger from Embiid etc - but, come on people. To say the current Rockets are so sacred that you'd simply turn your nose up at Embiid under any circumstances - it's just silly, terminal process brain stuff.
Embiid’s camp put this interest out there, not the Rockets. Don’t let your emotions twist up the narrative. The Rockets have been ok with taking a non diva approach to the off-season (see James Harden). The price for an Embiid is just too high sorry
Its not so much that I wouldn't mind seeing him play in Houston, its what Morey would want in return that makes it a no for me.
Add Embiid to this team, sure. But trading lots of pieces for him condemns us (and him) to mediocrity. He's an MVP and has to be thinking about his legacy. Why would he want to come to a Houston team that traded away key pieces from an already bad team?
