I wouldn't mind him because we desperately need someone who is an offensive threat and can stretch the floor for our guards. But like everyone else I agree he wont push us over the hump. Not worth the signing
oh god no. big al is very inefficient and is very lazy on defense. there is a reason why jazz fans wanted his ass to be shipped every deadline. i hate big al and he will be our worst acquisition if we get him.
Did everyone forget that game where Lin was running right by him for layups? He makes Harden look decent on defense in comparison.
Highlights to watch: Harden's hammer and Lin's hoop and harm http://www.nba.com/games/20130128/HOUUTA/gameinfo.html#nbaGIboxscore
Correct me if I'm wrong, but we get to keep our players if we get Jefferson but don't if we get Howard? If so, then you gotta ask yourself - what's better: Asik and Jefferson or Howard and Greg Smith?!?!?!?!!!! I don't want to gut the team for a guy you can't even depend on in the clutch because of his horrific free throw shooting. We've got some good pieces here.
who says we have to dump asik if we get howard? even if that is the case, there are more viable and better FAs than al jeff. Id rather have Josh Smith and his low IQ but above average defense than al jeff's lazy defense and inefficient offense.
By inefficient, I didnt solely base it off his FG%. If youve seen him play regularly, you'll notice that the guy settles alot and rarely passes out of the post once he receives the entry pass. I hate him. What we need right now is a 4 that can play pick and roll (and/or pop) and hold his own on defense. Al Jeff is certainly not that guy.
Jefferson is basically Zach Randolph before the Grizz. Very talented in the post. Range on J. Will get eaten up on D by good big men, while only providing average rim protection. Slow feet - not great on the PnR or defending it. Great rebounder, decent passer, but not very mobile in transition. On a bad team, which exaggerates his flaws while hiding his strengths. Randolph's success comes from him being a team that really hides his weaknesses on D and transition and allows him to go to work in the post. Jefferson can be as impactful as Randolph if he is in the right situation. If he comes to Houston, Jefferson will give us the ability to dump it down to a legit post player and play Inside-outside. He will give us another big body to clog the lane and let us dominate the boards even more. He also can stretch the floor and give us a Mid-Range option that we've been missing. A downside is that he'll slow us down in transition, but we can always go small if we want to run. Jefferson won't hurt us in Post Defense, because our PFs are as bad or worse at defending legit PFs. He WILL hurt us on PnR defense and help defense, although the extent will have to be seen first hand as his horrific D this year was largely in part due to the Jazz being an awful team. If we can't grab Dwight, I say that we make a run at Jefferson. It is likely that he'll price himself out of our range, but I'd be willing to go as high as 15 mil for him.
I think you're letting your hate blind you. If you're worried about guys "settling", then how can you seriously want Josh Smith? He makes some of the worst shooting decisions I've ever seen. First of all, why isn't he that guy? He has a solid mid-range jumper and a big body. If he wanted to, I'm sure he'd be an effective pick and pop player. Secondly, why does it matter? You can run an offense through him in the post so picking and popping isn't necessary for him to be effective.
Because Josh Smith brings more to the table than Al Jeff. I concede that Josh has very poor shot selection but I think that can be minimized by giving him less touches and have him score mainly in pick and roll situations. In ATL, he;s asked to do more than what he could handle. Apart from help side defense and highlight plays, Smith is also a very capable wing defender. He may have a few stupid moments but imo, the good by far outweighs the bad. Al Jeff isn't the guy we need because we need a good help/team defender. Our offense is fine. It's the defense that keeps killing us especially when Asik takes a seat. Yes, he is a superior player on offense because of his wide array of moves down the low block but his greatest flaw is one that we are trying to correct with our current team - defense. Al Jeff sucks on defense. He has poor instincts and rarely provides good help defense. We need another anchor on defense because when Asik takes a breather, our defense plummets so bad it isn't funny. This was magnified in the playoffs when Greg Smith took the floor and fouled lazily and could not grab a ******* rebound against Collison. As to why having a pick-and-roll big matters, our main guys are pick-and-roll players. James and Jeremy are at their best playing in that system so its only logical to maximize their potential rather than reshape their whole game into spot up shooters waiting for a pass from the post. No doubt we will improve if we get Al Jeff but I honestly think we can improve much more if we can get a player that fits in our system and fix our problem on defense.
Howard has not progressed as a player...can't hit free throws, no post moves in his arsenal, mental midget..he is the real human version of Tinman cause he has no heart and only rely on brute force to play the game...He is physically breaking down year by year. Al Jefferson was the same type of player when he first came out of HS but he evolved his game and can hit the 15 ft and has several post moves. I do not get the logic on this board y'all would rather pay Howard 18 million a season when he puts out the same production as someone (Asik) who only count for 8 million a year...that's ten million saved to go get quality bench or retain the players already here. Get some logic please!!! Asik and Howard was on par to have the same amount of double double this season but how many games did Omer sit the 4th quarter do to blowouts this season. Omer is our center PERIOD END OF F'N STORY!!!! STOP WITH THIS HOWARD BS!!!!
What do you think is a fair salary for the type of player you're describing? Maybe 10mm per year? And how much do you think Josh Smith wants? Our offense is far from fine. When's the last time a championship team didn't have a post threat? At the very least, Jefferson is another big body to clog the lane, and that in itself will improve our defense. And I do think that he'll play with a stronger motor once he's reunited with McHale and playing for a team that actually wants him. Good thing Jefferson is a good rebounder. What're you talking about? Our current roster is already full of spot-up shooters. It doesn't matter if their shots are created from pick and rolls or from the post. Having a guy like Jefferson who can shoulder the offense would allow Harden to get more rest. It would be incredibly easy for them to co-exist. Our system is gimmicky and flawed unless you add a post threat into the mix.
Okay this line is wrong. "if he does we have to strip our whole team to accommodate him." FORGIVE ME We have to dump DELFINO, GARCIA, BROOKS and Thomas Robinson to acquire Howard. If we go after Howard. And we still need a PF. Get it. We are not going in next year with the 3 rookies starting. Are number one weakness is the 4 not center. We need a PF and if we go after Josh Smith who many seem to think we can get with Howard we have to dump Asik, Lin maybe more. That's stripping a team that could 've beaten OKC if we just a little smarter play and experience. FORGIVE ME FOR NOT BEING CLEAR! If just go after a PF we might only have to lose Garcia, maybe AB too. But that's not my point... Everyone seems to be missing the f$3@ing It's a question that I am not even sure of the answer what I am also not sure of.."Is the difference between Asik and Howard worth getting Howard? Wait let me be clear ? I do not believe Asik is better than Howard. Not at all. What I do believe is this year Asik has closed the gap of difference tremendously and I also believe Asik is very Young basketball wise and will get basketball smarter and get better at free throw shooting and shooting in general. Also my gut says this kid has the heart of a champion. I loved the way he threw Perkins off of Garcia. He will do whatever it takes to help this team. That's a variable I do not see in Howard and is difficult to measure. So that gap will only get smaller as Howard has reached his peak. So my underlying question is are we better with Howard and upgrade PF and gutting the team or keeping Asik and just upgrading the PF. I answered that already for myself because I think Asik has more long term value and we can we a championship with him now. You can disagree with that but I am not here to debate that... (100's of threads already doing that) What my question ? Al Jefferson anyone for PF and keep Asik. Of the possible choices we have for PF in free agency, Milsap, West, Josh Smith, Al Jefferson I am just suggesting "AS A QUESTION" posible Al Jefferson. I am watching as much footage on Jefferson and I like what he brings. Of all of those possibilities he is the only one that commands double teams. He has a low post game like few in this league. He is the best rebounder of the bunch and shoots free throws at a 75% clip. Has a mid range jump shot like PPat. And the biggest plus IMO is he can play backup center for Asik. So with him we get an upgrade on 2 positions. That's really what has me intrigued. Yes I know his weaknesses. He is not fast. I would argue he is very explosive but agree he is slow by NBA standards and is not a great defensive center. So if it was a choice for him over Asik I would throw him out for that. But at the 4 he will have Asik and he is better defender than any of our current 4's and Delfino. Okay you can debate that but I have watched a lot of footage and this kid has length and size and you are not going to easily move him down low so you are left with trying to speed around him from the top. That could be too much of a flaw to deal with. But no one just say that without watching more film on him and more importantly comparing it to our other options. And again this is a question I have come to a decision on. I have had the luxury of watching Josh Smith in the playoffs and I was hoping he would seal the deal for me. But it has been the opposite. He had a couple of good games but when they needed him most he showed up the least. His 3 point shooting is bad in the season to pathetic in the playoffs. And that's not just this playoffs that's all playoffs. He is not a stretch 4. He does not have a great mid range shot. He makes most of his baskets driving to the basket like Harden and taking a lot of 3's and shooting free throws. I believe his game is so much like Harden you have to ask yourself how would he fit with Harden. IMO it would be hard. He wants the ball thats how he plays he drives and creates. He plays best with the ball in his hands. But so does Harden and Lin and Parsons to a degree. Is he going to buy into ball movement. And will he be as effective that way. You have to ask yourself why Korver did not lead the league in three point shots. Is it because too many times Josh got the ball and stopped moving it. As for the other centers they have even more questions. I really like David West but he is 32. Milsap is just to undesized for the PF spot. I think Robinson could do better than him in time. The best answer is Kevin Love but Flip Saunders is too smart to trade him. I was thinking Ilyasova but he is not a free agent and we would efinitely have to give up some asset to get him. TRob plus something else valuable plus money. All that being said I do agree there is still an argument for Howard over Asik. And while I am in the camp to keep Howard I can understand the argument for Asik. I just hate it. I hate that we keep gutting the team every year. I think we are just Kevin love away from a championship and since Love ain't coming I am just trying to figure out what other one player might be good enough to help. I wanted that guy to be Josh smith but he is just not working for me. He is so athletic and a pg in a PF skills but what I really want is a defensive minded stretch 4. Can he be that. I doubt it but maybe he can. Al Jefferson isn't that either but what he is may be a better fit for this team. These are all questions I have. I know some of you have these questions as well.
Didn't Josh Smith say or at least insinuate that he's not asking for the max contract but rather he'd accept the most that he will be offered? He definitely wants max money but I think only a stupid team will offer him that much. Last year's Miami team didnt have any legit post threats. Bosh is more of a face-up guy that has a couple of moves but thats it. Smith is also that type of guy. He's a face-up forward that can hit shots around the rim and provide very much needed defense. Al Jeff played the same way when he was in Minnesota with McHale. In fact, I think he was worse because his black hole tendency was at its peak at that time. If having a big body is all we need on defense, we should just play Dmo instead. A 7-footer with great motor and solid post game that can stretch the floor. But we need an intimidator. We need our own Ibaka. Ibaka may bite on alot of pump fakes and is definitely overrated on defense but the amount of shots he changes when our guards drove the lane was a game changer. Smith can fill that role with his athleticism while Al Jeff can't and would probably do his best David Lee impression instead. Good rebounder, yes. bad defender, also true. The pick-and-roll presents more options and scoring opportunities than dumping it on the post especially since Al Jeff doesnt even command a double team to create open shots. You could use the same argument for Smith. In fact, it'll be much easier for Harden if Smith was acquired rather than Al Jeff because the former is a better passer and play maker. Oh and he can also play in the post. Not as good as Al Jeff, but he can certainly hit shots around the rim. Even if we consider our offense as flawed, it still doesnt mean that our defense is less of a problem. Defense should be our main priority. There are other ways to impact a basketball game other than scoring. Josh Smith presents the qualities that can make such impact. As do Dwight. Al Jeff, on the other hand, not so much.
