Cato would have gotten the max this year

so now are we saying the rockets got a bargain???????

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But Tim Thomas is only being offered a ton of cash because the Bulls are desperate.
It is fun that even Thomas won't play for the Bulls!

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Oakdog I think your 100% correct the rockets got Cato on the cheap. Watch and see what Brad Miller is getting ready to be offered by the Bulls.

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hell yeah, Cato was a bargain. Now yall see the brilliance of the Rockets' planning?

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treasurer of the moochie norris fan club

 

Does that give Cato more trade value then. I mean, I know the Blazers are trying to get Crawford AND Fizer for Jermain Oneal. While I owuld be conempt with just FIzer for Cato, does this escalation of paying FA's, and CHicago's failure in attracting them give Cato more money. Let say, for some reason a Oneal for Crawford and Fizer deal doesnt work out, but that same offer is on the table for Cato and Bullard or Los, beacuase otherwise the Bulls may have to pay the same or more money for someone like Brad Miller--yuck. We would have to be nuts not to take that. Replace Crawford with Artest and Im still happy.


But I am beginning to agree. Cato's deal is starting to look like good planning.

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When I die I want to go peacefully like my grandfather. Not screaming like the passengers in the back seat!

 

This is the exact reason why I am glad the Rockets extended Cato early on. As early as the pre-season, there was talk that his former college coach Tim Floyd would be interested in them re-uniting in Chicago. If the Rockets had not extended him, the Bulls would be sitting with an open check book.

I'll be content if the Rockets can get just Fizer for Cato but both would be sweet. Bob Whisitt is being a little to greedy asking for both, and I think its going to come back to bite him. If the Bulls were willing to deal both and liked O'Neal that much, they would have been better off offering the Clippers the 4 and 7 picks for Miles on draft day and signing O'Neal last yr when they had the opportunity. I still think to a certain extent that some of this O'Neal stuff is talk b/c Krause had the chance to give him a long term deal last yr and did not. I understand they were trying to save up for this summer's class, but if he liked O'Neal THAT much to trade his entire lottery draft for, then I think he would have committed to him instead of only offering a 1 yr deal.

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I also think a lot of the Jermain Oneal stuff is just talk, mainly becuase both sides just dont have any idea what thyer doing. THis while cat and mouse game between Oneal and the Bulls has been going on for quite some time. And besides that, if Brian Grant leaves (doubtful unless knicks up offer of just LJ-cmon) and with Sabonis aging the Blazers may acutally start to use Oneal more and more.

That could play right into our hands. Cato plus a Bullard or a los plus some or all of the trade exception for Fizer and Crawford doesnt seem too too ridiculous, especially if we also take Hawkins off their hands, as it would free up some more cap space so Chicago can try it again next year. But it is still unlikely. I just get very excited when thinking about the possibility of the 6'3 Francis and the 6'5 Crawford in the same backcourt together running the fast break. Can you imagin the athletic ability on that team.

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When I die I want to go peacefully like my grandfather. Not screaming like the passengers in the back seat!

 

Cato's contract is only a deal if he starts producing.

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I am so exasperated that I could expectorate.

 

The Jermaine O'Neal stuff made sense when the Bulls had a chance at landing Tim Thomas, or McGrady (both friends with O'Neal). Now, it is just ridiculous.

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If the Rockets can get Marcus Fizer, it would be a testament to exactly how good this front office is. Can you imagine getting back to back top 5 picks via trades? It would be an amazing feat to say the Rockets got the 2nd overall pick in 1999 and the 4th overall pick in 2000 and did not have to tank to get there.



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Remember last year when it looked like Chicago was going to be the front runner for Timmy & Grant? And how everyone was saying fat man would be a hero of a GM if he could get them both...And how it was impossible anyways?

Oh how the mighty have fallen

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Who's ya daddy?

 

The Rockets would be stupid to trade Cato for Fizer. Cato will be a serviceable center in this league for years to come and I expect to see him show that this year. Granted, Fizer is a legitimate PF with great scoring ability and he has good size. But I am sorry to tell you that if you do not have a center to guard Shaq then you will not be winning any championships anytime soon. I don't care how tall Collier is because he will just end up in foul trouble all the time because he is so slow. Cato IMO put up a nice defensive challenge against Shaq considering no one in the league can outright stop him from doing his thing. That alone warrants his contract and the fact that we got him at a bargain. And for those of you who are saying that we should trade Cato and hope to pick Eddy Curry in next year's draft, that makes no sense. Because you know he will probably be the #1 pick barring injury and no team in this league is going to trade away their chance to draft a guy being labeled "Baby Shaq". And that is absolute truth. We all know the Rockets are not going to have the worst record in the league and we probably won't even be in the lottery. Hell, even if the Lakers ended up with the first pick in the draft through some weird twist of fate they would not pass on Curry. Mark my words, if the Rockets trade Cato they will toil in regret for a long time.

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