Seriously, congratulations and best wishes to Mike James

I don't hold any ill will towards Mike James for his decision, but I think it was a bad one. I don't see how the Timberwolves are much better than the Raptors. Yes, Kevin Garnett is a hell of a player, but Chris Bosh is coming up on his heels and the Raptors also have the likes of Charlie V and Andrea Bargnani. Unless the Timberwolves make additional trades, I think their best case scenario is to be a borderline 8th seed and it's entirely possible they won't make the playoffs at all.

 

If I were Mike James, I wouldn't want to have to deal any longer with playing in Canada.

 

I wish Mike James good luck too....the guy is 31 and is tired of moving around the league. Plain and simple. Three teams offered him the same amount of money but only one went to contract to prove to him they were serious about keeping him(the trade kicker). This doesn't appear to be a financial decision at all. I truly believe the guy wanted to play for Houston not because of the team, but because it is his home and he would have preferred to spend his final NBA seasons here with his family. In the end though, Houston couldn't promise him they wouldn't trade him on the first day of training camp again and James couldn't take that risk. I can't fault the guy because I would have done the same thing.

...now as for the Twolves, I said it earlier - I think in the long term McHale(and James) made a mistake. In the short term, however, James is a great aquisition for him because if McHale doesn't get a guy like James in there, KG bolts as soon as possible. All McHale needs to do is placate KG long enough to get him to ink another deal. Signing James is a step in the right direction if the Wolves feel they are on the verge of contending(they aren't). Same thing with James - he comes in as the #2 guy on a team when he certainly would have been #3 guy at the very best(maybe even a bench player) on the other teams. It'll be a good season for James too....

The problem is, what if this Twolf team doesn't make the playoffs(and that's very likely in the West). KG comes to his senses and realizes James is a year older, Foye is Stevie Franchise incarnate(bad FG% lots of turnovers), Ricky Davis continues to do disruptive things and generally be a bad teammate(the rep that has followed him all around the league)....and KG jumps ship. All of a sudden McHale is playing 7mil for a combo guard until he's 36 AND it will cost him a mil to trade the guy on top of that. The Twolves turn into a rebuilding franchise and Mike James spends his final four years in the next NBA Siberia.

Think it can't happen? Even if KG comes back, the only way they seriously contend for a title is if they get lucky in one of their annual trips to the lottery. More than likely, McHale gets canned after another dissapointing year and whomever his replacement is comes in and blows the org up and trades KG.

The writing is on the wall in Minnesota and Mike James failed to see it. Poor guy...

 

No, even worse. Assuming he's not traded in this contract, best case for Mike James he makes the same money here in Houston that Minny gave him, 4 YRS MLE. He didn't skip Houston for more money. Less than that, he skipped Houston merely for more personal flexibility (player optional 4th year + penalty for trading him IF he doesn't want to be traded).

So Minny didn't even have to offer him more money, just more flexibility. This makes Rockets mgmt look even worse.

 

From the looks of things. Mike wanted assurance and a chance for $$$. The assurance is the trade rider and the chance is the option in the 3rd year. He wants to be able to leave if (a BIG if) he is still playing well after 2 years. He wants even more money than what he's getting now. BUT if we slips and is not the "hot" FA when he can become one, then he will sit back and collect on the guarantee contract. The classic cake and eat it too setup. More power to him for getting it done.

Rockets did not want to be tied down because trades happen. see Swift, James, Francis, etc.

The option is a killer in that if he is good, then the Rockets will have to pay more or lose him.

Bottomline, Mike did good.... at the expense of the GM in Min. Either way, it's not going to end well for the GM in a few year in this FA pickup.

BTW, did you see how fast Swift got traded once he showed the team he didn't have it. That, I'm sure weigh on Mike's mind also.

 

That's a good analysis, but look at it from the Rockets point of view. A Mike James who is looking to parlay a couple of good years into another new huge contract is not going to be a complimentary player to Yao and McGrady. There's a danger that he will go Teen Wolf and go off the reservation in search of personal glory at the expense of the team concept. It's not like he has some great repuation as a level headed person and he clearly has a chip on his shoulder about what happened during his first stint with the Rockets. Four years MLE money is about right for Mike. I can't be angry with him, but I don't think the Rockets are as idiotic as many of the knee-jerk crybabies on the BBS seem to think. Let's see what the roster looks like when the season starts before we freak out.

 

The Rockets did well. James was a top aquisition for Houston for two reasons only- he was one of the few FAs this year we could afford who wanted to come to Houston, AND because he shot well from the 3 point line last year. Yes, the Rockets are a better team with his shooting than without, but if they sign him they limit their possibilities down the road and you are still stuck looking for that big guard who can hit an open shot and who can defend 2s(as well as a defensive/rebounding PF).

Besides, McHale is a notoriously poor GM who's job security is in serious question after squandering away the TWolves opportunities as KG enters his prime. We shouldn't be dissapointed that a lesser GM gave a player more than we would. That's just shrewd business....

 

To some people, going against management is like going against the President and being called unpatriotic. It's easier to blame the guy the Rockets screwed first than to acknowledge how the Rockets do not correct their mistakes and pretend everything is a blank slate.

 

Flexibility to make more money in the option year.

 

I'm actually happy for Garnett. He's a class act, and doesn't deserve the losing he's endured at Minnesota. Hopefully this pickup will rejuvinate him.

 

I am happy for Mike, and I am depressed about the Rockets.

 

Dude! That guy is a professional, Mike James with a 4 year MLE was really Cheap. Well the trade Kicker was a surprise- but I guess more than anything else that guy did not want to move, what is the big deal if you offer 4 years with the trade kicker- if you were serious about the 4 years, then atleast dont trade him ( How Many such contract did we not carry in the past)- James would have been good for 3 years for sure!

 

You put it in so few words! Bravo! I concur.

 

yes, but more money that the rockets would not be obligated to pay him if they chose not to.

 

What do you mean haunt them? Isn't the contract that Mike James wanted from the Rockets in that window of opportunity for them to win a championship. How can you consider a contract bad when guy puts it all out on the court and competes, brings toughness that this team needs,being that 3rd scorer in a Win now Mode. He's worth that contract because this guy is dedicated at becoming the best he can be. Now the bad contracts the rockets gave out, those guys wasn't worth their contracts.