I don't have a great reason but I'm not high on Clingan. His bad free throw % turns me off. I know it's irrational to just look at one metric but just my gut feel isn't good. This might be smokescreen as many suggested, and if real, and if we pick him, I hope I'm wrong but I think Reed is a far higher value pick
Definitely a smokescreen. If we did draft Clingan, I’d get onboard with it. Still not my first choice
If Sarr and Sheppard are off the board we will either trade out or draft Clingan to trade later. He has no fit on the Rockets, but he definitely has value to other teams. I think they definitely want to trade the pick, but are not getting the offers that make them happy. That could change on draft day.
If I were Clingan I'd be noping the f*ck out of getting drafted by us by the way--I can't imagine a worse possible landing spot for his career in the top 10. Even San Antonio would offer more playing time out the gate.
Clingan shares an agent with Sengun, I have no doubt that he DEFINITELY doesn't want to be drafted here, and if we had a competent FO, they'd have no interest in him whatsoever other than faking interest to make it less likely San Antonio trades up. But unfortunately that's a big "if"
My guess is that Portland is going to get that #3. Brogdon, #7, #14 for Brooks, #3. If the right player is not there at #7, the Rockets might trade it for a future FRP. Ime replaces a vet with a vet in a position of need and can still draft one or two projects like Carter, Dillingham, etc. With Brogdon any project can start at RGV and work their way up like Cam did. It accomplishes a lot of things. Vet leadership that plays defense, Jalen insurance, unloads Brooks contract for its final two years, and opens up minutes for Amen, Cam, and Tari. Portland is in full re-build mode and needs a star. They can cross their fingers and hope #3 is that.
That would definitely make Nets fans happy, we stole their pick just to wipe our ass with it and throw it away.
You are such a jerk. You’ve got your guy and any argument against your prognostication is stupid in your eyes. There are no NBA front offices or coaches that are slobbering over Sheppard like you or they would be knocking Atlanta’s and Houston’s doors down with offers. Of course, if we do draft Sheppard and it takes most of the year for him to crack the rotation, like it almost certainly will, you will crapping all over Ime as the worst coach in the NBA. I’d say you are the king of trolls, but I don’t think you are a troll, just a narcissists with absolutely no self-awareness.
My ideal scenario RN: ATL goes Sarr at #1 SA trades #4 + 2025 FRP (CHA or CHI) (top 5 protected) to WSH for #2 SA goes Risacher at #2 (viva Le France) HOU - POR - ORL trade POR: #3 (via HOU) + 2026 ORL FRP (top 5 protected) + Landale (HOU) + Tate (HOU) + #44 (via HOU) Selects Clingan. ORL: Brogdon (POR) + Brooks (HOU) + HOU 2027 FRP (top 3 protected) Magic secure quality backcourt player on solid deal (Brogdon). Brooks helps with perimeter defense. Issac secures a FRP. HOU: #7 (via POR) + #14 (via POR) + Isaac (ORL) + #34 (via POR) HOU then calls WSH and offers #7 + HOU 2025 FRP (lottery protected) for pick 4 Wiz don't have a 2025 FRP so they jump at the chance to have a pick in the stacked draft. POR selects Clingan at 3. Dreams of a jumbo front court with Ayton & Clingan. HOU selects Sheppard at #4 HOU selects Kel’el Ware at #14 HOU selects A.J. Johnson at #34 Throw NT-MLE at Jalen Smith (IND) Tari insurance FVV - Sheppard -AJJ Thrilla - Amen - Hinton or BAE Isaac - Cam - uncle Jeff Bari - Tari - Jalen Smith Sengawd - Adams - Ware 2nd round exit 2025 - 2026 use FVV $$$$ + cap raise + Adams $$ + Uncle Jeff $ on Thrilla + Sengawd + Isaac Amen - AJJ Thrilla - Sheppard Isaac - Cam Bari - Tari Sengawd - Jalen Smith - Ware Ship could also see Time Lord to Rox instead of pick 14, but I really like Ware
When you have the option to pick the best player in the draft and you choose to trade down to the purgatory of mediocrity that is the mid to late lottery either you are the smartest person in the room, or the dumbest. Given the track record, the Rockets FO is nowhere near the smartest people in any room. When it comes to guys like Sheppard, smart people see the quality.....and the kind of morons who think Jalen Green is an amazing player don't. I think it's fairly obvious which of those two camps I have more respect for. Now that's not to say that there aren't other good to decent players in this draft class, but passing up the best player who is also the best fit for your team to trade back to get 2 mediocre players would be flat out stupid....not just inherently, but also given the team's composition. There's already a minutes crunch at a lot of positions....throwing 2 more mid players into that does what exactly?
There is a concerted media push (maybe on behalf of Clingan’s agent) Clingan: 20 years old Edey: 22 years old Head to head: (Clingan’s team won the game) Edey: 39 minutes, 37 points, 10 rebounds Clingan: 31 minutes, 11 points, 5 rebounds Combine: Edey: 7’3.75 | 299 lbs | 9’7 standing reach | 7’10.75 wingspan | Hand length: 10” | Hand width: 10.75” Lane agility: 11.19 | Shuttle: 3.01 | Three quarter sprint: 3.42 | Standing vertical: 26” | Max vertical: 31.5” Off dribble college break left: 60% | On the move college: 56% | College corner left: 44% Clingan: 7’1.75 | 282 lbs | 9’7 standing reach | 7’6.75 wingspan | Hand length: 10” | Hand width: 10.25” Lane agility: 12.06 | Shuttle: 3.38 | Three quarter sprint: 3.46 | Standing vertical: 25.5” | Max vertical: 29” Off dribble college break left: 63.3% | On the move college: 40% | College corner left: 56% Edey: 25/12, 32 minutes (18/10, 25 minutes across 4-year college career; 3-year starter) Clingan: 13/7, 22 minutes (10/6, 17 minutes in his 2-year college career; 1-year starter) Edey: Made 1-2 three pointers in college career; career 71% free throw shooter (71% last year) Clingan: Made 2-9 three-pointers in college career; career 56% free throw shooter (58% last year) Edey: no history of injuries Clingan: history of foot/ankle injuries Spoiler Dropped 37 on Clingan’s head Better combine numbers despite being taller/heavier One: Projected top 5 pick (even possibly #1), “plenty of room for improvement” Other: Lucky to go mid-first, “limited upside” Spoiler https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id...lingan-zach-edey-unique-game-sets-apart-draft "As long as there's basketball, there's always a place for those guys. But big men now more than ever, are role players," one Eastern Conference scout told ESPN. "It's like running backs in the NFL -- they used to be what your offense featured, now they're complementary by nature, outside of the two or three that are incredible. So if you're going into it [from that perspective], who are the guys with the best complementary skills?" … Scouts are hoping Clingan, 20, can become a starter in the NBA because of his defensive impact, offensive flashes, shooting potential and room for projection at a younger age. While he isn't the level of scorer as Edey, there are more believable areas for improvement that might shift him into a more modern stretch 5. Ironically, Clingan played in more of a timeshare in college, and Edey, 22, logged 30-plus minutes each of his past two seasons, but the opposite might be true in the long run due to their defensive projections -- which is reflected on teams' draft boards. "Clingan's defensive range, his ability to cover ground, is more attractive in today's NBA," one front-office executive told ESPN. "His ability to get up more and also recover is much better than Edey, and at a younger age. If you're in the playoffs expecting [Clingan] to get out and contest shooters and get back into the play, I don't see that happening. But he does have much better mobility and upside in that area, inside 15 feet." Edey's unique efficiency and power around the rim -- he shot 62% from the field in four college seasons, while rarely straying outside the paint -- and ability to draw fouls has earned him fans among league insiders, although there's more divisive opinion on what his future holds. Teams hope he can succeed as a rotational option, although it might require a slower-paced offense with a focus on throwing him the ball to fully optimize him. Defensive concerns make him a more situational player than a full-on starter, barring unexpected improvement. "With Edey, the fear is with his ability to guard in space," the executive added. "When guards turn the corner on him, his ability to recover and get back into the play. You might have to commit to gimmicky defenses and station him around the basket to really take advantage of his rim-protection." While a wave of intriguing center prospects in a thin draft might not signal a stylistic sea of change for the NBA, teams are intrigued to see how Clingan and Edey fare after taking over the college game by drastically different means. If nothing else, their careers will serve as a useful litmus test as to just how good a 7-footer has to be to stick in the NBA these days. "I don't know if the big man is back, but I think Clingan and Edey were just dominant, and it stands out. In a deeper draft, maybe they each get picked 5-to-10 slots later," one general manager told ESPN. "But it's an interesting comparison, the two best bigs in college basketball -- they're just very different. But they both play hard. They're going to give it their all, they compete, they're physical, can't deny that."
Under my scenario, neither would be thrown into the fire. Brogdon is your Jalen insurance, which I believe should be the no.1 goal for the Rockets this off-season). Most everyone believes there is not much more than a hair of difference between the top 10 picks in this draft other than Sarr. I’d prefer the no. 7 and a ‘25 lightly protected pick to 7 and 14, but I don’t think anyone is willing to give up a lightly protected pick in either of the next 2 drafts. We will see how the guys that are professionals at this draft feel about Sheppard by how many make solid offers to move up. I think it’s about a 75% chance the top 3 teams keep their picks and 99% chance if Sarr and Clingan are gone. If we keep the pick, I agree it should be Sheppard.
So you get a 32 year old who can't stay healthy as "insurance" for a draft bust, and you trade DOWN in what you are calling a bad draft and let several other teams get their pick of the best and take whatever is left....rather than just picking whoever you think is the best guard in the class? It still doesn't make sense. I get pretending you want to do that in an attempt to prevent others ahead of you from trading down, but if they actually want to do that, they should be fired immediately.
You are assuming you are right about Sheppard. You take all other possibilities out of the equation. My reasoning is that there is very little consensus on who the top 7 players are except for Sarr. Trading down and getting a useful vet and maybe a future asset as well and getting in all probability just as good of a player seems fairly shrewd to me. If you are right and Sheppard is all that, I hope they pick him and I will give you the accolades. Just don’t be surprised if he doesn’t see more than 10 mins a game (if that much) prior to the deadline and all year if they still have Jalen and Cam.
of course it does But not as much as 1 down year and then a breakout after we sign him to cheaper extension
Well, yes, I do assume that both me and some of the best NBA draft guys are right about Sheppard....why wouldn't I assume that? I mean, even if I wasn't high on Sheppard, the guys who are would have persuaded me to give him another look, they are right that often. I don't think a constantly injured 32 year old guy is all that useful to a young team...and in many ways he'd just take away minutes from more deserving young players. I don't think a future bag of magic beans is all that useful. I've said since the start that Sheppard would come off the bench behind FVV the first season and replace him the second season. I think he'd get more than 10 minutes a game though. There's 48 minutes in an NBA game, I think a 30 year old FVV should get about 30, leaving about 18 for Sheppard similar to Cam or Amen last year.
Cam and Amen didn’t get their shot until midway through the season. I’m not all that crazy about Brogdon because of his injury concerns, but since Caruso is already gone, there aren’t many other guys available to be the insurance for Jalen. I think it is imperative that the Rockets make the playoffs this year and Ime is not going to rely on a rookie to back up FVV who definitely needs to be limited to 30 mins a game. Substitute Simons if you like, although he doesn’t play defense as well as Brogdon. I picked Portland, because they have the assets to make the trade without us giving up core assets. If there is a better option then I’m ok with it. I’m also ok with keeping the pick and finding the Jalen insurance another way if it does not entail giving up any of our core players or the 25 or 26 Net’s picks. Good luck on that. Your whole premise, is that Sheppard will defy all odds as a rookie and step into the backup PG role. That’s not happening.
