<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>@<a href="https://twitter.com/jkmalthorpe">jkmalthorpe</a> A little of both. His regular-season performance was strong on a per-minute basis. Was also impressed in person.</p>— Kevin Pelton (@kpelton) <a href="https://twitter.com/kpelton/status/341055728234143744">June 2, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Indiana are going to run into trouble with Hibbert max, George (super)max, Hill $8m and West $10-12m? Golden state on the other hand should be able to maneuver all their players into a nice cap spot.
IF we are talking about who the championship contenders will be 2-3yrs from now, my list would go: 1. OKC 2. Houston 3. Cleveland Frankly, if Cleveland weren't the worst market in the NBA then they would be a huge draw. Lebron's hometown, his homecoming to be with Kyrie Irving, is a definite possibility. Miami is falling apart right before our eyes. Wade's years and years of steroids abuse *COUGH* hard-nosed play are rendering his joints mere shreds, thin fibers that are ready to and are actually snapping at every movement. Bosh also is showing signs of an impending expiration date. Lebron will move after 2014, the only question is where. This is the NBA, and it's all about superstars now. The rankings should exclusively be based on which teams have the highest likelihood of wooing and keeping their superstars as well as building an appropriate supporting cast around them. Mark Cuban might swing for the fences every year, but he's effectively starting from zero because everyone knows that Dirk Nowitzki is done as well. And he's not gonna be able to start from zero until that Marion contract comes off the books. We won't have to worry about them for a bit. San Antonio and LA will always be threats on account of superior management and David Stern's rigged league, respectively. But for the immediate future, we also will not have to worry about either of those teams, if we are seriously talking about a championship in 2-3yrs. Things are looking up for us.
Up to number two, behind Miami [rQUOTEr] Don't you love it when a plan comes together? Daryl Morey sure does. The Rockets' GM saw his pursuit of a superstar yield not one but two (James Harden and Dwight Howard) over the past 12 months, pushing Houston from 13th in the Future Power Rankings to the lofty status of No. 1 challenger to the Miami Heat. The Rockets still aren't a finished product. They have to figure out the right complement to Howard in the frontcourt from a large group of contenders, including incumbent center Omer Asik (a possible trade candidate) and sophomores Terrence Jones and Donatas Motiejunas. Houston also must determine whether Jeremy Lin is the answer at point guard or defensive-minded Patrick Beverley fits better next to Harden. Our panel has faith in the ability of Morey and head coach Kevin McHale to answer those questions; the Rockets ranked fourth in management. And even if it takes a year or two to find the right pieces around Harden and Howard, Houston has time because its two stars are 27 (Howard) and 24 (Harden). The Rockets have all their own first-round picks and a chance at cap space in 2015, when Asik and Lin become free agents, giving Morey plenty of flexibility. This is one contender built with staying power.[/rQUOTEr]
It all depends on whether Dwight buys in. If he does, I'd put the Rockets at number three in the West, perhaps top five overall.
We should be #1 in management. (unless that considers coaching) OKC's management is just bad, and Miami is riding the "decision". Spurs have a case, but they havent made any slam dunk FO moves since drafting Parker/Manu.
Any idea of how the management scores are determined? How does an organization positions itself and land TWO elite franchise players in less than 12 months (catapulting its Future Power Rankings from 13th to 2nd overall in the process), and yet its management team only ranks 4th? Somewhat confusing. According to ESPN, the management team that clearly won the Harden trade is ranked behind the management team that clearly lost it. Not only did they lose it, but they've restricted themselves of future cap flexibility by refusing to amnesty Perkins. Meanwhile, the management team that brilliantly managed its cap flexibility just went out an landed the biggest fish on the market in Howard without giving away assets. But the Rockets' team management still ranks behind Presti/OKC? The only allowable explanation is that the Rockets' current management ranking of 4 is due to the recent turnover (losses in Hinkie, Rosas, etc). That said, I'm still not convinced the gap is as wide as ESPN believes (OKC 75.8 | HOU 67.7). I'd love to see their formula/criteria is making such an assertion.
ESPN loves overlooking Houston. Hopefully that will change now, but the lack of understanding most of their "analysts" have toward our team is at times astounding.
let's do something before crowning us champs (even in management) based on paper. If "the decision" ended up flopping I guarantee you Miami would not be #1 right now. I'm fine where Houston's ranked and if we improve on it from last year that means management made the right decisions, everything's tied together.
