I'll be honest but I rather Houston go after lee than bosh. Yao needs a player that compliments him. Bosh isn't that player but I don't see either of them playing for the mle. Plus in order to get bosh it'sore likely giving up key guys. I'll pass
The only way I can see the Rockets going after Lee is if they can get him with expiring contracts. The Knicks might do this to tide them over to the 2011 free agent sweepstakes.
Would be interesting if they asked for their picks back in exchange for a SnT. Then it would be McGrady/Landry for KMart, Hill, And David Lee essentially.. not a bad haul.
I'd give them their picks back along with Jeffries, Andersen and other small scraps for cap filler. They can get some of their loss back from the trade to clear cap room that didn't go over so well and get some bodies back to fill in the 2010 roster and still be a FA player again in 2011.
Should we miss out on Bosh, I'd be very happy bringing in Lee at significantly lower dollars, provided that Scola is NOT a part of the deal. I do think they coexist, and Lee is a much better choice to slide over to center than Scola. Everyone keeps putting Yao back at his starting role, but I think you have to plan as if he'll be a bench player for most of this year. At worst, the dumbest thing the organization could do would be trotting him out there for 30 mins a night, begging for a reinjury. At this point, we also have to be honest with ourselves and realize their are nights and matchups in which Yao can be a liability with his lack of lateral quickness. Wait for them to realize that they've missed out on James and Wade, and then I'd offer them Andersen, Hayes, and Battier. They need to fill multiple positions, and will want flexibility to re-enter the market next year (all 3 are expiring). Lee/Yao/Hill Scola/Patterson/Johnson/Jeffries Ariza/Chase Martin/Taylor Brooks/Lowry Picks? Plural? Not a chance in hell. Far too valuable, especially with them whiffing in free agency. David Lee isn't worth two lottery picks that could both be top-7.
Specifically - Pick and Pick-Swap. Only one 1st round pick (not guaranteed to be lottery) is actually sent back to them. The other was a pick/swap. Personally I don't think they are done trading. And I think next year their pick will be a 11-14 lottery pick at best as the east is skewed pretty bad to where you can be a bad team and still make the playoffs. I think they will be playing much harder to show that they didn't make a mistake. This past year they had no reason to win. Next year they may actually get Parker so that makes the 2012 pick - the real pick - worth even less. Take the bird in the hand. And I think NY will get much better offers than some Rocket left overs for Lee.
The more and more I read about Lee and see about him is that he is sort of Landry with size. On offense, he is great in the PnR, but posting up he is still learning. He has gotten a decent mid range jumper this year and is supposedly working on his range to 20 ft and the 3pt line. He is a better passer than Landry, but not from the post, more so from facing up at the angle, FT or on the fast break. Basically, he is a #3 or #4 option on offense, but not a #1 or #2. He defense is as bad as Landry's was most of the time, if not worse. He on a number of All No-defense teams on various blogs. He is working on his defense, and yes moving him to PF more "full-time" with a better system at Houston would help, but how much? We already a notorious horrible defender with Kevin Martin (who is also on a number of these lists), so we do not need another one. On top of that, he is not a vocal leader in the locker room. He is more of the laid back, go with the flow guy. Overall, for his price tag, he is not worth the money. Combine that with us having to give up assets in a SnT to get him. The answer is absolutely no.
I'd bet Lee is Houston's backup plan in case Bosh falls through. His game would mesh nicely with Yao's and his attitude fits in with the team's culture, too. He would be a good fit. My gut tells me Morey did a good job appealing to Bosh's ego and convincing him he shoud get the max and selling him on Houston, but that doesn't mean we'll actually get him. If we don't, I'll bet Lee falls into right into place as our backup option, and I think he'd be good for the team.
Is Bosh any better than Lee on defense? Last season, Lee's defensive rating was 108 while Bosh's was 111. As a reference, as a team NYK's defense was rated 27th and TOR was dead last at 30th. Career-wise, Lee is at 108 and Bosh is at 107. The worst at defense as a starter is AB0.
Not even close, Martin is easily the worst defender on the team. Brooks is not as terrible as people make him out to be.
It's not even close if you use on-off ratings for defense. Bosh Defense: Pts per 100 Poss. 113.6 115.6 -2.1 D. Lee Defense: Pts per 100 Poss. 113.1 109.8 +3.2 Translation - Bosh comes off, the Raptors give up more points, Lee comes off, the Knicks get substantially better on D.
I think people forget that Defense, just like the game of basketball is a TEAM GAME. In the NBA, you cannot rely on individual defense 100% of the time. Defenses are only as good as the HELP defense on the team. Last year, our defense was pathetic because we didnt have anyone taller than 6'9 in the paint to intimidate. Years before last, we were always in the top 6 in defense...all due to a 7'6 center who can clog the paint. I dont recall the Kings ever having a good defensive team since RA left the Kings... We also have to look at a new defensive stat with RA as coach... with his uptempo style, there's gonna be more shots to go around which means higher scoring games. The KEY defensive stats that needs to be looked at is the FG% and 3PT%. If you can hold your opposition to under 45% shooting...you're more than likely to be in the top 10 in defense.
makes since to me to go after lee---hes a beast--we need a rebounder/scorer like him--id be really happy to get him--keep scola--get rid of ariza--maybe a pic---look at bringing in someone like redick--its gona be houston vs--a team of allstars nomatter witch way we go--all them guys wanna play together instead of against eachother anyway--cause they cant handle the challenge of winning a title on thier own with role players--alla artest running for kobe"s nuts--after almost beating them the year prior---i think we are 1 or 2 smart choices away from competing with them anyway--a hard working well coached team that hustles can beat a group of allstars anyday--
