Indiana continues search for PG (Update: Pacers sign Diener)

Let's see. At PF we've got Scola, Hayes (almost assuredly will sign), and Landry. At C we've got Yao, Butler, and Mutombo (almost assuredly will sign or retire). Where does that leave minutes for Ike? Sure you can dump Landry in the D-League but even then, Butler and Ike need prime time minutes to develop into reliable rotation players. That's hard behind vets and capable backups like Chuck and Deke.
I'm not against getting Ike, I'm for it. Just want to keep an open mind about the player's personal development as well. Not contributing what you're capable of can cause many players to get steamed.

And having Deke is not a liability. As I mentioned in another thread, he would serve as a situational backup against like-sized bigs such as Shaq, Curry, or Howard and as a purely defensive specialist in crunch time situations where you certainly want Deke protecting the paint in a game time decision than Yao.

 

Agree entirely.

 

Ughhh... It's another BlackNthday thread... I'm not looking, I'll just throw a wild guess on what he has to say. Trade Luther Head/Rafer Alston, put Snyder into the rotation, use Harris and Landry and don't resign Chuck or Deke... Rambles about players not having an offensive game... Thinking that somehow a 6'5'' tweener is going to solve all our problems... Trying to trade for that potential star, raving about people who have great bodies and minus basketball IQ..

Um, I hope I'm wrong on this.

 

only trade rafer if you can sign steve.

if steve is signed then rafer and luther for jeff foster would be great.

if steve isn't signed, then keep rafer and trade luther & lucas for diogu.

 

The Rockets should consider offering Alston or Brooks + Head for Shawne Williams. Williams is a young 3/4 who has a world of potential. The Pacers like this kid but might part with him for need.

Why Shawne Williams? Diogu is just another short PF and the Pacers value Foster. We have short PFs now in Landry and Hayes and an athletic PF in Scola. However, we havely only T-Mc in the T-Mc mold. If we acquired Williams, we would not be in such a bad way if McGrady's back goes out. They are very much the same player.

There would have to be some Pacer filler to make it work, but IMO the Rockets would be strengthened.

 

I'm actually fine with having a backup FC that has no offensive game whatsoever but hustles, boards, and defends like his life depends on it. Foster is a smart player who knows his role. With decent pt, He'll give you close to 10rpg and at least 1bpg while anchoring the defense for that 2nd unit while Yao is out. He is the perfect compliment player to Yao both with Yao in or out of the game.

Anyways, back on the topic, I think we should wait and see before we do anymore trades involving Mike James. I'm torn between him and AB actually. It seems like AB is a smaller, slightly faster version of Mike James. They're both scoring PGs and I don't know if they can play together on the court..

 

Chuck Hayes

 

Trade Luther Head? Trade Aaron Brooks? For who, KG? Hell no. I'm not trading Luther for Diogu or whatever "potential star" there might be! Unless the guy's at least on Sean May level, now that's something to consider. Why would we trade AB?

 

As much as I love Chuck (6'6 FC), he's not Foster (6'11) who can do at least the same, if not better, job of rebounding than Chuck. Foster can also match up better defending against the other bigs in the West.

 

Chuck Hayes is a much better PF than Jeff Foster. He's at least as strong and much, much quicker. Foster is a better center, but I don't know how that is relevant.

 

That might be true, but I value Foster more because of his ability to back up the C position when Yao's out. He can easily play a solid 20mpg+ for us at both the 4 or the 5.

Anyways, I don't think this Hayes vs. Foster debate is really necessary. I just wanted to point the fact that Foster would be the perfect compliment player to Yao and we shouldn't quickly dismiss him. By the way, Foster is owed over 11mil for the next 2 years and I don't really see Indiana giving him up especially since JO is rumored to be on his way out.

 

Yeah, What he said! ^^^^

 

I don't see why we need another backup C at this point. We'll probably re-sign Deke, and we just got Butler who is a respectable back-up C as well.

I'd much rather keep Hayes' speed and strength, not to mention his offense which is underrated. He's shot 57 percent from the floor for his career and averages 5 points a game for the 20 minutes he plays. He's strong on rebounding and defense, and respectable on offense.

 

The Rockets could try to trade to the Pacers JL3, Sura's expiring contract, and Snyder to the Pacers for Jeff Foster. Foster is a big man who can board and plays very physical. He can match up well against other big men in the West for stretches in a game. The Pacers would get a backup PG and a wingman in Snyder. Then the Rockets could attempt to sign Francis, or another quality player, to part of the MLE.

 

So what you are saying is you want to wipe out our amazing depth with one swift motion.

No Hayes! Idiot if you think he is not back here or should not be. Who is going to come in at the 4-spot to rebound. These are the little things that a coach thinks about but a dumb fan cannot pick-up on.

Kirk Snyder as the backup 2-guard, as our roster stands now he is not even good enough to make the cut but you want him getting Mac's downtime minutes.

A frontcourt with not one guy who has ever been an NBA starter in his life other than Yao.

If yuo honestly believe this is the way to go you are an Idiot. I like to Ike as much as the next guy but come on this is not even a lateral move but rather a backward move.

 

Foster's rebounding is much better than Chuck's, which is Chuck's calling card. His post defense isn't too bad either, and he can play either PF or C with an emphasis on the latter. He'd be a solid addition. There's no guarantee that Deke still has anything left in the tank, nor that Scola is going to be a starting PF we've all been waiting for. Foster can help pick up the slack should either one of them falter. And Butler should not be counted on for anything.

But I'd rather have Diogu. I'm high on skills and he got every single valuable skill that you want in a big man. Post offense, good jumper, rebounding, ballhandling, and passing; he's got it all. He's just got to play some better defense. He's still playing like a rookie, but his per 40 stats are 19pts/10rebs. You're not going to find another promising young big man who puts up that kind of production in limited minutes. Get him if he comes at a reasonable package.

 

Like MrButtocks said, Deke might not play the same way he did last season. Hopefully it's not a fluke, but there's a good chance it is given his age. There has been no prrof that Jackie Butler has been a respectable back-up C thus far. His career average is 5ppg, 3rpg and 0.5bpg. Two seasons in NY and 1 season in SA. Now if he can't even do a decent job in the WeakEast, how do you expect him to do a respectable job out here in the West? Granted he's only 22 and is entering his 4th year, but you can't outright say that an proven Butler + Hayes easily outweigh Foster.

By the way, most of Chuck's points came from putbacks or slashing into the lane off a set play (which most any player can do). Jeff, in my opinion, does a better job offensively, defensively, and rebounding-wise. He might not be as fast or athletic, but he's not exactly a slow immobile Center.

 

As exciting as the Scola trade is he's unproven.

Earlier on when they were still expecting an over the hill vet. Morey joked/casually mentioned that whoever they signed, Hayes would've probably won over the starter role as the season progressed.

If they had gotten an NBA vet like Joe Smith then Landry would still make sense but now... Scola could possibly need some time to adjust and bringing along two rookies behind and relying on Hayes for 30+ mins is far from an ideal scenario.

IMO use Landry as trade bait for a vet PF still capable of starting.

 

I'd steer away from Diogu as an option. I live in Northern California and the Bay Area sports talk shows routinely questioned his basketball intelligence and ability to understand the Warriors' playbook.