Please dont re-sign Dikembe. That man can even make a wide open layup anymore, and I mean that seriously. I love the guy but it's really time to retire. We need a more youthful and versatile back up center.
I think having him on the roster is fine if we really really can't get better, younger C to back up Yao. Also Deke is fine backing up Yao as long as Yao doesn't get injured for those 10mpg max. His age may be historic, but his reflexes on the post is still sharp. Of course, my ideal situation is to have a quick and defensive minded C to share the mins with Yao to prevent further injuries to the man. However it seems like our motto has been "undersized" for a few years now. So I'm not really too hopeful for a big defensive C coming our way.
Battier is a starter not 6th man. You need the 6th man to be a scorer which is exactly what the Rockets lacking right now. You don't use Battier to guard their backups.
Good discussion all the way around, and I couldn't agree more about adding Magette to ths team. I think he's the type of player or piece that could really put this team over the top. As for the argument about Battier starting vs. coming off the bench, I don't think it's as simple as it seems. I understand the view point of him guarding a teams top offensive player, but when you look at the Rockets generally a lot of their struggles are at the offensive end late in games putting the ball in the basket when the opposing team is bogging down on Yao and TMAC. If you have too many one dimensional players on the floor then it becomes easy for the other team to defend TMAC and YAO which IMO is what we have seen the last two years against UTAH. Looking at it, the starting lineup has TMAC, a scorer along with Yao, but Battier, Rafer and Scola are limited offensive players who really have a hard time creating their own shot for the most part. You have to give up something to gain something at one end of the floor. Where do you do that with the Rockets? I'd just prefer a guy like Magette on the floor offensively around TMAC and Yao, and use the matchup system during a game. If you are having that much trouble defending a 2, then bring Battier in. How many Kobe's are in the league? 6th man doesn't mean you can't play 30 minutes a game.
Another thing by the time we trade, then what do we do about our Battier type player? As if Battier has a problem coming off the bench or something same with Maggette. Im still confused as to what exactly does Barry bring to the table over Battier that so much more productive, because nobody can really name that either. As for Mutombo, he is still damn better then 80% of the starters and if we let Landry walk then so what its not like he is a All-Star tallent or anything or as if Mutombo cant produce defensively as to what Mutombo gave us offensively. We still have Dorsey and since when does Landry play defense?
He never could. He's there for insurance defense and shot blocking. Les loves the finger wag..brings fans in.
Every team is loaded at one position or another. Try putting a fantasy roster together and you'll see what I mean. Either you're guard heavy or front line heavy. It's very hard to put a balanced roster together.
It's the arch on his shot. It's not flat. Just the little bit I saw, I really think the back has a lot to do with his mechanics. It looks like in that video that is able to square up and push his upper body back before launching the shot and using his back to help him finish the shot going forward. I really think his back injury has taken away some of his mechanics.
I think the only glaring hole is a legit back-up swingman (not a 6"3 guy). Scola can play some center. If we get Landry we are pretty deep in bigs. Yao (C), Scola (PF, C), Landry (PF), Hayes (PF) + Dorsey/Woods/Deke. Of course I would always take Deke back without costing an exemtpion, but even he is only really needed as an insurance policy (really nice to have is Yao goes down). PG isn't great, but Alston + rookie entering 2nd year (who showed some promise) + vet Jackson can get us by. If we get Barry he helps here too. Francis is useless/gone. I would look to upgrade of course, either in the starter (say if we could get Hinrich somehow) or bench (say Watson or Ridnour + pick for Jackson; Critteton or Lowry for Head + pick)--but I wouldn't say we are desperate. The only place I am a little desperate is a quality all around swingman to give Tmac and Battier more of a break. Maggette is a pipe dream for an MLE (I don't think ANY team will get him for that), Pietrus is probably at the top for an MLE, but I'd be fine with Posey, Mo Evans, Barness or James Jones for a substantial chunk of the MLE (leave enough left to still cover Landry). Barry, Jarvis Hayes, Finley, Boki, Giricek, Ross are even lower/cheaper level considerations that could help swingmen depth. Barry is nice as the lower level (I am sure why we offered the LLE) because despite his limitations (is slow and can't really D up anymore) he can help at both guard spots, and you, and he knows, what you get and what you can expect.
I think Hayes and Harris are being severely underrated on this board as backup PFs. I'd sacrifice Landry in free agency if it meant upgrading the primary backups at PG, SG, SF. Use the MLE to go after any combination of Brent Barry, James Jones, Posey Pietrus, and Gelabale.
PG: ALSTON/BJ/BROOKS/FRANCIS SG: T-MAC/(Barry or Evans) (Francis and BJ can and did play the SG.) SF: Battier/T-Mac/Greene PF: Scola/Landry/Dorsey C: Yao/Dorsey/Mutombo (Scola can and did play center) Special reserve for specific Match up SF: Novak vs small soft teams PF C: Hayes Injury reserve. (but maybe use in a trade C: Loren Wood vs big teams like Lakers and Suns, but he maybe use in a trade) SG: Head (but he maybe use in a trade) SF/PF: Harris (injury reserve may be use in a trade) Other that can be use in a trade are: BJ and Francis contract. We just need to sing a good SG and we are set and very deep with a lot of versatility. Morey can still pull a trade to land a 3rd score via trade b4 the season or b4 the trade deadline.
I don't think using Battier as 6th man is a good idea, unless you mean Ginobili kind of 6th man. You don't play an all-around guy like Battier "situationally." He can defend and he can shoot with range. The only deficiency he has is creating. Unless you can get a guy who can play good defense AND can score better than Shane, he is going to play heavy minutes. What we need is a good scorer to backup T-Mac and Battier. Right now, Head is McGrady's backup. And McGrady is Battier's backup. Novak is too slow to play the 3. That's pretty bad. Maggette would be nice. Barry would be good. We have a bunch of PGs. But none of them is good all-around. If Rafer can shoot consistently, then he is the best of the bunch. Francis doesn't fit, even if he was healthy. Jackson is likely just a rental. Brooks doesn't look like starter material to me. I hope I am wrong. Scola is the starting 4. We either sign Landry and trade Hayes, or keep Hayes and let Landry walk. I'd prefer Landry, of course, as much as I like Hayes. Dorsey can be the poor man's Hayes at this point, and may develop into something better. Scola, Hayes, and Dorsey can all play spot backup center minutes. But none of them is ideal. A reliable backup big would be nice. It is not as urgent as the swing and the PG positions though.
For some reason the Rockets are obsessed with having a ton of point guards and also these undersized shooting guards and scoring point guards and etc. Morey has been no different at all from Dawson so far in this.
