ClutchFans Rockets Draft Thread (Rockets select Luther Head at 24)

I live in St. Louis and I am a HUGE ILLINI fan, born and raised in Illinois. I have seen these guys play in person a 5-10 times a year, and for the last 2 years I only missed one or 2 games on TV. Luther was overshaddowed by Williams and Brown, but if I had a dollar for every time my friends and I (a bunch of H.S. and small college coaches) said we thought Luther may be the best player of the 3, Id be wealthy enough to fly to Houston to watch some Rockets games. He is an awesome athlete, and a very good clutch player.

 

I'll reserve my jugement on him till the end of his first year in the league. All of you who are down on him should give him a chance!

 

Sounds good, encouraging.

 

This is my favorite post about Head so far.

 

not saying he is terrance morris but wasn't the same said about him with his respective group?

 

By the time the 24th slot came around, there were only two players left on the Rocket's 'big wish list' - Head And Simien. Head appears more ready and capable for the immediate task ahead - a JVG kind of guy from head to toe. Additionally, didn't we just loose our only playoff round due to the absence of an oft-injured power forward? Size and resiliency are major knocks against the KU dude. That's why he fell to the bottom of the 1st round. Head also blew away everyone in the Chicago 'show and tell' and had two visits to Houston. Rather than besmirching management who got to see him up close, score a big three from beyond the arc for this pick. We are
getting there. Just hang on.

 

CD was speaking highly of both on the radio this morning. He said that Spanolis's and his team did well in their league reaching their finals and that Badiane has gained a lot of weight.

 

1) Actually Head will probably play at both the 1 & 2. I think JVG is looking for good, solid guards who won't turn the ball over, not necessarily pure 1s or 2s. 6'3" is average size for a 1 and a couple inches below average for a 2. But it's not like he's 6 feet flat. He's also got a long wingspan and strong enough to handle bigger SGs. I'm not that worried about his height.
2) I liked Simien and Taft talentwise, but they both have huge question marks. Simien has had injuries continuously throughout college, and even healthy, he would be an "undersized" 4. Taft has the tools but he seems to lack the motivation, which would be a big no-no for Van Gundy. You know he would much rather have a guy with half the skills but twice the heart & desire. Both of these PFs have good upside but moderate-high risk associated with them.
The thing about the draft is that the Rockets are a good team, looking to win now. They're not a lottery team that can wait on potential to blossom. They can't afford to have their lone 1st round pick in 3 or 4 years go down in flames. I think they're better off hitting a solid double instead of striking out while swinging for the fences.

 

Great post. I'd love to hear from more people who have actually watched him play in at least a dozen or so games, particularly this year. One thing I'm liking - I haven't yet heard any major criticisms of his basketball skills, either physical or mental, other than "needs to work on ball handling to play PG." When the "con" lists 6'3" size as being the primary weakness, rather than something like "competitiveness" or "defensive liability" or "needs to work on offense," I start to feel pretty good about getting good value with a late first round pick.

 

One thing about 4's the NBA elite group really exposes you there as we know by our problems. A rookie who isn't elite will really struggle to contribute against- Dirk, KG, Duncan, Marion, Gasol, KMart, R Wallace etc.

We are so weak there we need another solid veteran player at the 4 just to survive, a recovering J Howard is not enough and we weren't going to get a starter at the 24 pick.

 

I think this is a key point - I think most of us can agree that we are looking for the Rockets to make moves that help us take a shot at the title NEXT SEASON, not build toward a title run 2 or 3 years from now. Keeping that in mind, with a late first round pick, drafting a senior who has proven his mettle with tournament success, and who plays tough defense, makes a lot of sense because odds are he'll be far more ready to contribute right away than a freshman or sophomore (much less a high school gamble) who will more likely need a few more years to make a meaningful mark.

 

from Chron.com:
_____

Head said he expects to contribute as a reserve.

"I can bring a defensive effort. I like to play defense," he said. "Hopefully, I can come off the bench and bring some energy off the bench."

Head's 3-point shooting improved throughout his college career, and he made 41 percent of his long-range shots as a senior. More importantly, he shot 59 percent for his career inside the 3-point arc.
. . .
"He said they were excited about me, just like I'm excited about them. I used to watch them all the time. Getting Tracy (McGrady) together with Yao, I knew they were going to be special, so I knew I couldn't miss that."
_____

 

I am going to reserve judgement on this guy until he plays...Will reserve judgement on the Rocks until I see what they do in free agency...

So that leaves me with a basketball void until those things happen...one good thing about LH is the variety of good headlines he can create by playing well...

Rockets win by keeping Head in the game
or
Rockets stay Head strong
or
Rockets win by using their Head
or
Head-ing to the playoffs
or
Head is unconscious from 3-point land
or
Head goes insane behind the arc

 

I like this pick. He will be our PG in a year or two. Sura will be gone soon, he's too old & slow to keep up with point guards in the nba, thats how jason terry & co killed us. This is great, we got an athletic PG who is quick and plays pretty good defense.

I have a feeling Sura will be gone soon, we should be in pretty good shape with james & head at PG. Time will tell.

 

Just so long as he doesn't end up as a Reece Gaines type, I'll be happy. If he plays hard defense (which Gaines wasn't all that good at), knows how to run the court, and can at least hit an open jumper I consider this pick a success.

I'm not going to expect a #24 guy to become a starter anytime soon...maybe 3 or 4 years down the road if he progresses.

 

doesn't he remind u of a more defensive version of steve francis w/ less flash.... ????

 

weird... both casell and luter were our 24th pick.

 

hopefully that's a good omen.

 

Nope, he reminds me more of Eddie House's offense w/ Reece Gaines defense.

 

I guess I like the pick... just wish he was a few inches taller!