What is the Rockets biggest need right now? And who in next year's draft class can satisfy that? I know it's too early to tell ALL of the big namers next year, but to me it's either an athletic SF who can shoot or a Pick and Pop PF who also can board and play D. One name i'm looking out for is Adonis Thomas. Can't wait to see this kid hoop next year and I think he would fit GREAT with Harden and Lin.....thoughts??
Biggest need right now is backup 1. Biggest need next season may expand to include backup 2. Of course, DM will draft BPA.
With all that we've drafted, some of which seem to have potential, our PF position, on the court at least (uh, McHale, a little time for the rookies), is considerably below par.
We need depth everywhere, so BPA as usual. Keep in mind, if the Rockets make the playoffs our 1st round pick goes to ATL via Brooklyn (T-Will trade). If we miss the playoffs, depending on who's available when we pick, I wouldn't mind trading back to acquire more picks or players to really get some good depth on this team
Exactly, that's why Morey has to continue what he started. Ending the 6'9 Tweener Project would be him admitting defeat.
I'm thinking a margarita and maybe a Euro stash if the Rockets have cash left to buy a draft pick. I think Morey makes a deadline deal to get Rockets into the playoffs costing them the lottery pick. If the Rockets don't make playoffs, I expect they may look at C.J. McCollum looks like the Moneyball type of pick. He's a PnR PG/SG. He gets inside easily and draws contact. I know FTAs does not always translate to the NBA, but he will be a good NBA player if he can get to line anywhere close to what he did in college. Rebounds well for position. Decent 3 point shot, but will need work for NBA range. Competition is a bit of a question mark as it is difficult to see if he is real deal or not. Not the best creator for others.
I'm honestly not a big Asik fan. I think he just ain't starter material just because he's completely inept on offense. I think the Rockets biggest need is definitely a true big man. Cody Zeller would be nothing short of perfect for the Rockets, but he'd require a top 3 pick most likely, and that might be out of reach for us. After Zeller, I think a scoring wing opposite Harden would be ideal, as it would take some pressure off of Harden as the obvious scoring threat on the team.
It's difficult to say which position we should target. We could use a prospect at C/PF, but we've invested a lot of $ in the starters at both spots (though neither is a star). SG is a no-no, unless we grab a project to develop. PF is a position I can see us going after in FA, but it seems pointless to add another young PF to our roster. SF may be a possibility, but we do have Parsons and Morris (who I can't stand), but the FO seems to have something invested in both. I do some draft rankings from time to time...here are some of the top guys at each position (with overall rank being the number before the name). I didn't include some freshman. POINT GUARD 10. Lorenzo Brown | 6-4 185 | NC State | 21 16. B.J. Young | 6-3 180 | Arkansas | 19 20. Myck Kabongo | 6-1 165 | Texas | 19 22. Isaiah Canaan | 6-0 195 | Murray St | 21 23. C.J. McCollum | 6-3 185 | Lehigh | 20 30. Phil Pressey | 5-11 170 | Missouri | 21 35. Ryan Harrow | 6-0 165 | Kentucky | 21 38. Trey Burke | 5-11 180 | Michigan | 19 SHOOTING GUARD 1. Shabazz Muhammad | 6-6 225 | UCLA | 18 18. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope | 6-6 205 | Georgia | 19 19. Archie Goodwin | 6-4 195 | Kentucky | 18 24. Wayne Blackshear | 6-5 220 | Louisville | 20 27. Alex Abrines | 6-5 190 | Barcelona | 19 40. Reggie Bullock | 6-6 200 | North Carolina | 21 SMALL FORWARD 6. Alex Poythress | 6-7 235 | Kentucky | 18 8. Dario Saric | 6-10 230 | Croatia | 20 12. LeBryan Nash | 6-7 240 | Oklahoma St | 20 17. Adonis Thomas | 6-7 230 | Memphis | 19 21. Otto Porter | 6-8 210 | Georgetown | 19 26. Kyle Anderson | 6-8 225 | UCLA | 19 30. C.J. Fair | 6-8 215 | Syracuse | 21 39. Doug McDermott | 6-7 220 | Creighton POWER FORWARD 5. Tony Mitchell | 6-9 235 | North Texas | 20 9. James McAdoo | 6-9 240 | North Carolina 11. Isaiah Austin | 7-0 215 | Baylor | 18 14. Mason Plumlee | 6-11 225 | Duke | 22 15. C.J. Leslie | 6-9 200 | NC State | 21 25. Patric Young | 6-8 255 | Florida | 20 32. Mike Moser | 6-8 225 | UNLV | 21 33. Andre Roberson | 6-7 210 | Colorado | 20 34. Jarnell Stokes | 6-9 255 | Tennessee | 18 37. Rakeem Christmas | 6-9 240 | Syracuse | 20 CENTER 2. Cody Zeller | 6-11 235 | Indiana | 19 3. Nerlens Noel | 6-11 220 | Kentucky | 18 4. Steven Adams | 7-0 240 | Pittsburgh | 18 7. Rudy Gobert | 7-2 235 | France | 20 13. Alex Len | 7-1 240 | Maryland | 19 29. Jeff Withey | 7-0 240 | Kansas | 22 28. Alec Brown | 7-1 230 | Wisc-Greensboro | 20 36. Gorgui Dieng | 6-11 225 | Louisville | 22 As of right now, Lorenzo Brown would be my top target, assuming we pick in the 10-15 range. He's smooth, athletic and unselfish, with size and playmaking ability. There should be plenty of Cs available this year, so it might be a good idea to grab one instead.
Morey will draft BPA (= 6' 9 PF), but if Parsons won't be able to improve his shooting, I'd say the biggest need is a SF who can stroke it and defend. Putting a shooter next to Harden (and Lin) would help our offense a great deal. Dario Saric isn't necessairly know for his shooting, but nevertheless he's a very intriguing prospect. I think Adonis Thomas is going to be a pretty good player and I like Reggie Bullock, though similar to Jordan Hamilton, he might have to play SG in the NBA.
Saric can shoot. He actually reminds me a bit of Gallinari, but with less 3-pt shooting and more grit.
It is very early and Morey will more than likely make a deadline trade, so right now I'm looking to see how SF Alex Poythress or C Isaiah Austin develop throughout the season, but if we make the playoffs they'd both be out of reach anyway!
You're right. I haven't seen Saric play much and his %-numbers haven't been all that in high level competition, but his form looks good and he's shot the ball pretty well against competition his age. I've heard nothing but good things the kid. Euro scouts and bloggers I respect all love the guy. Some of the numbers he has put up against guys his age have been impressive to say the least. Looks good on youtube highlights, too. I think he's a good rise-candidate and very well be out of our reach come draft time.
Scoring Centers are overrated. If you had to choose a one way player to play Center, you go with the defensive anchor every time. I would like to have a scoring Power Forward with range, but I'm fine with Asik as our Center. His defense is great, and people overrate salary to how much offense you have. Defense wins in every league, yet people never want to pay for it.
Asif and Aldrich are here to stay- they are not the weakest link. The Rockets have too many 4s to draft another one. They already gave Scola away for nothing this year. They won't draft a PG because then Morey would be exposed on Lin. So it looks like a #3, obv someone who can defend. An MKG type.
Defense is key no doubt,but we have been spoiled by the Dream. Yao started as a scoring center,despite his injuries and inconsistencies.We needed that. With time,he surprised everyone by becoming a good defensive center too. The more tools you have,the easier it gets.
I really like Alex Len, big 7'1 center, with a long wingspan and very good mobility. Givony of draft-express even compared him to Jonas Valanciunas.
Caldwell Pope would be intriguing as a guy to spell Harden. Saric has been on my radar for a spell too. I'm thinking wing is the way to go given at best we'll be in the back of the lottery.
