There is also a big difference in being closed out by 6'9" AK47 versus 6'3" Deron Williams Les is probably THE stingiest owner in the NBA. I doubt he will give Daryl Morey a inaugural gift by paying the luxury tax. And if against all odds he decides to do so, I definitely prefer Billups than Bibby.
Billups is an unrealistic pick up because he has been getting small contracts and has won a championship and could very well win another one this year. So he is already considered among the top 3 point guards in the league and now wants to get paid. Bibby has been cleaning up contract wise but has not been winning. The next step for him is to start winning and then be considered a top tier point guard based upon those wins. If he could sacrifice the money he could potentially make and decide to start winning I could realistically see a veteran's exception or something in that mid price range happening. That is only if Bibby were willing to give up money for a chance at a ring.
We will have to get over the salary cap to get either of them. If we are to pay the luxury tax, why not pay a bit more to get Billups by out-bidding the pistons, and have a realistic chance of winning the championship? As to Bibby, if he agrees to settle for less money, would Miami be a more attractive option for him? Gary Payton will probably retire, Jason Williams is getting old and injury-prone, and the East is so much weaker than the West. This worries me.
Finding a PG via the draft may be the way to go. Many of the mock drafts have Jvaris Crittenton going just slightly higher than where the rockets are now. His profile is as follows: NBA Postionoint Guard Class:Freshman Ht:6-5 Wt:195 College Team:Georgia Tech Hometown:Atlanta, GA High School:SACA NBA Comparison: Steve Francis (this doesnt really match with the too unselfish and good passing comments) Strengths: Tremendous combination of size, athleticism and playmaking ability ... Quick first step ... Excellent vision and passing skills ... His size allows him to see over defenders and make passes that the average 6-2 PG could not ... Shows great heart, very competitive. Wont back down from a challenge ... Very quick, an elite level athlete ... Loves to dunk on players ... Excellent body strength ... Rhythm shooter, with good slashing and scoring ability ... His huge hands give him excellent control of the ball ... Very unselfish player ... Excellent foot speed, overall quickness and effort makes him a tough defensive player ... Works hard to improve his game, very coachable ... Has a great attitude, confident but not cocky ... Weaknesses: Needs to improve upon his outside shot, which is solid but can improve ... Can be too unselfish at times trying to get everyone involved when he is the top scoring option ... Can be too aggressive defensively and get caught reaching, picking up unnecessary fouls ... Needs to prove himself on the college level. Become a great decision maker and learn to lead a team on the next level ...His ability to play the point guard position is very good, but he can continue to improve upon dictating tempo and learning the nuances of the position ... No matter what we need more athleticism in the draft. The sad fact is that over the last 10 years the only draft picks still in the rotation for us are Yao Ming, Hayes and Head. Head and Hayes are average role players at best, and below average starters. The contending teams get picks like Manu Ginobili, Leandro Barbosa, Josh Howard, ect out of their later round picks. We haven't.
Exactly. Rockets' coaching and management have built a team of players who only have value in Van Gundy's system. But as bad as he is, Rafer Alston would be a passable PG on a team that committed to running the floor. For reasons I find utterly baffling, Battier and Hayes both walk on water around here. Their respect far exceeds what happens on the court. (If you have to go to the Lenovo Stats or 82Games to support them you're not paying enough attention to reality). Getting rid of both of them, moving McGrady back to SF and getting the highest octane PF AND SG available regardless of experience goes a long, long way to hiding Alston's flaws.
That's why Acie would be a great fit. He has an awesome mid-range shooting game something no one on the Rockets seem to have. He will also slash and pass going to the basket and play lock-down defense. When I was watching Rafer getting burned by Deron I could imagine Acie out there. Acie is the "anti-Rafer". But I seriously doubt Acie will fall that low in the draft.
I'm gonna be completely honest,i say rafer is good where he is now. We just need to get rid of bonzi's contract and sign a decent sub for alston. Head wont cut it. Head,shuold be replacing the 2. Alston is great where he is man. The guy is top20 in steals. I dont know what you guys dont like about him. His shot selection? That would all change if we get a different coach. Our lineup is good, our bench needs tuning Keep Alston. Work with what we have now.
Ideally Rafer should BE the backup on a good team. He takes more heat than he deserves perhaps since he is a running fast break pg and the rockets rarely run. But that being said he is very poor at penetrating and creating his own shot or creating shots for others. He does a great job at keeping his turn overs down and shoots a decent % for the volume of shots he takes from 3. His defense is also OK considering most of the time his man scores it is via pick and role and Yao being unable to step out and help fast enough. He is an average point guard, nothing more or less. That being said we need an above average point guard or an above average power forward to take the next step. Point guard being more priority because we are really lacking in players who can create their own shot. We have Tracy and that is it for the team.
I would give up Battier, Alston, and a first rounder for either billups or bibby. I know that is not fair value but no team gets fair value in a sign n trade.
Sorry yall but Bibby isn't going anyhwere. He's milking Sacramento for every penny they have. His contract is the reason why Sacramento sucks so much right now, but hey i doubt he's complaining. Why would he want to go somewhere else and make considerably less money?
You're saying Detroit can't sign and trade him? I don't think there's any way we can get Billups. My guess is Francis (if bought out), Mo Williams or Mike James (if JVG stays, which is unlikely).
humor me. We're spending 10 mill on the point postion???? (sura, vspan, & rafer) That has to be the absolute biggest waste of money at the point position in the entire league. Just think, nash is about 10 mill. Buy out all 3 contracts if you have to. 10 mil buys a decent pg. We can get someone for vet min. to backup whoever we pick up. We need to buy out juwan while we're at it. He's not worth vet. min. So if we buy out juwan and all 3 pg's, and if bonzi leaves... we have about 18 million in cap space right? then we can get francis for vet min. (backup point) spend 10 mill on a starting point. resign hayes for min. that leaves about 7 mill for a decent starting pf. and we're out of money and stuck w/ the worst bench in the league. ok then we redo tmac's contract for 60 mil over 5 years which frees up about another 7 mill. We spend that on a 6th man - g/f that is fast athletic and can go to the rim at will. while we're at it get rid of Battier. WHO CARES if he can take a freakin charge. We need some athletic OFFENSE.
I would do whatever it takes to land bibby. I would give up any player (not Yao or tmac, maybe shane), and any amount of draft picks.
Glad to see some realistic Rockets fans. Billups isn't going anywhere which is why we let Ben Wallace walk outta motown. You can also forget Acie Law too cause we'll get him right before it comes time for you to pick
if you mention chucky atkins should also look at steve blake, luke ridnour, mo williams. doesnt billups want to play with Micheal Redd? his best friend.
Atkins seems the only likely prospect.Mo Williams may get more than the MLE. Steve Blake is a possibility. I doubt if we can get Mike James for Howard/Hayes after what we saw in the playoffs.
We have ZERO shot at Billups or Bibby. Bibby will opt for his last year at $14.5 million and Billups is going to command TOP dollar - something we don't have.
