If the rumour that it was Adelman who axed the Amare trade is true, I won't be surprised if Adelman told the organization he didn't want to deal with Wafer for another season. Superstars win player vs coach fights, not subs.
DD, you're going off the deep end man. I can't believe you just used Von freaking Wafer in the same sentence as those HOF's and potential HOF's. Yeah Von is only 23, but he's been in the league for almost 5 years and has flamed out everywhere. You do not give a guy with that reputation with one arguably good year under his belt a $3 million dollar contract, especially after he just showed less than 2 months ago that he is still combustible by getting sent to the locker room by his coach because he lost control in the middle of a playoff game. Right, all we want is Wafer to stay in the game at the most important time of the season. He failed......again. I agree it is silly we are holding the maturity issue over Von's head, but people have been trying to teach Von this simple concept for going on 5 years. We are (or at least were) trying to win now. We don't have time to manage the immaturity of a 5 year vet, especially one that is a journeyman!! You're a great poster DD, but this love for the Spanoullis' and Wafers is pretty strange.
First off, contrary to what some others think, I believe he was let go for purely basketball reasons, not for throwing a tantrum. Adelman is a players coach, who has dealt with worse. I highly doubt he holds anything against Wafer. I believe he was let go simply because, in a read-and-react offense, he can do neither. The whole point in Adelman's offense, the aspect that you yourself claim to LOVE, is its unpredictable nature. And Wafer, he is the apotheosis of predictable. Secondly, letting go of bad seeds IS part of managing people. Coddling to employees with impunity is called Communism.
The keyword is had. There is no way the Rockets are signing Wilcox after paying million to acquire Anderson. As Feigen said the Rockets are offering half the MLE to Anderson. Taylor and Budinger will use up close to a million of the MLE leaving about a mil left for Wilcox I am sure Morey didn't offer Wilcox 1 mil to Wilcox's agent. He would never listen to anything Morey had to say again. So my guess is this news is old and that Morey after about the same contract as he offered Gortat leaving room for signing the Rookies. Now I know you don't have to use the MLE to sign rookies but that is Moreys M.O.. Sign your 2nd round picks to 3 year deals with a team option on the third year using MLE money or ship them overseas until they can contribute. They didn't do that with Landry and paid more for it. But they rectified that with james White only giving him a non guranteed 3 year deal which gives the Rockets all the advantages. White has to earn a spot every year and then he is locked into contract. So whatever was on the table for Wilcox is off. Also Anderson until today to backout of his euro contract. That is why this deal had to go down so quickly and almost as assuredly the Rockets have already made him an offer he has agreed to.
If Von does play for another team, I'm gonna laugh when he comes to bite our asses later. He isn't the greatest defender but I think he does try. New guys like Budinger and Taylor have not even stepped on the NBA hardwood yet and Von has proven that he can be high energy and really efficient when he's on the floor.(Look at his #'s on nba.com, anyone who doesn't think he is efficient should be shot) I see guys on here saying how he doesn't pass the ball or create for others... well I think he does what he is told to and thats score because Von was instant offense last season. He doesn't pass or create a lot but he can do it when he has to. If he does go to phoenix and gets a bigger paycheck well good for him. Though I am really hoping he stays with Houston and I know he likes being in Houston too.
Good fit for Von in Phoenix. Sadly, this will only make the Rockets decision to let him go look worse, as Von will have inflated stats there.
I like Von Wafer, and loved his instant offense ... loved his passion and athleticism ... and it's hard to believe that Morey would let a "player asset" walk, without anything in return, unless he felt that money and playing time could go elsewhere for more value or need. One has to assume Morey has other things going on that are bigger picture, since he's the master of player asset management. ... but, at the moment, we are operating without knowledge he has, so it doesn't make much sense to us yet.
Stop harping on this. One of the stupidest things someone can do when arguing ON TEH INTARWEBS is say something to the effect: "I have more real life experience in this, so my argument on teh intarwebs is more valid than yours." Not only does it insinuate that you think someone else's argument is invalid, but it also shows you assume no one has had the same or more experience than you which is simply not true -- anonymity hides everything.
I agree that we should try and sign him. Hopefully, there is truth to having an offer on the table from both clubs...and he chooses to stay w/ us. I really enjoyed watching him come onto the court last year. It was a unique excitement... However, I do want Sessions. Maybe we can sign sessions, trade brooks+battier to Portland for Fernandez+Outlaw/Aldridge. I could live w/ that.
To me, Von Wafer's skills, while explosive and exciting, are a dime a dozen. Jermaine Taylor brings the exact same thing to the table, except all accounts in the Summer League say that his court vision and passing ability is actually quite good, something that we know Von doesn't have and hasn't developed in his 3+ years of professional basketball. We also have Chase Budinger to fill the void that Von would leave if he went elsewhere. The Rockets do not need Von Wafer from a basketball perspective. Period. It's too early to say if Taylor/Budinger will produce like Von did last season, but it's also too early to say Von would produce like that again himself. If you say Von Wafer could grow into a star, why can't you say that about Taylor/Budinger? At least the two rookies haven't spent several years in professional basketball failing to do so. Taking a spin with our rookies is a cheaper and better way of creating talent for the future.
People on this board act like they were never 23. Its not just that, people will marvel at what a explosive guy like jr smith can do, yet we have a version of him and people dismiss it as nothing. This is a team that has always had trouble scoring in the playoffs. Chuck hayes outscores mr intangibles in a game 7, yet they let their most efficient perimeter player walk. Good luck with that lie. Adelman coached one of the most immature teams in the history of basketball in portland, yet people want to make it seem as though he couldn't handle wafer? Good luck on that one too.
Hey Guys I just got this Twitter just reaffirming the Von rumors...Its a twitter so take it for whats its worth. http://twitter.com/NBA_Rumors_News/statuses/2654126878
JR Smith is a chucker, a bonehead, and a loser. The last time I marveled at him was at the atrocity that is his shot selection. So in other words, yes I agree we had our own version in Wafer. With that said, stunningly, Smith still has much more passing ability, and probably basketball IQ than Wafer. As in I've actually seen JR pass.
Forgive me, But I don't remember Von ever coming in cold off the bench and hitting 13 three pointers in one game. JR Smith is ridiculous, albeit a punk.
