Spurs in '03 had 3 stars? Really? You're counting that? Heat had 3 "stars"? Bosh was a star? Can you explain please? A big contract doesn't automatically make you a star. Bynum was a star? Don't you need to at least make one of the 3 all-nba teams to be considered a star? Boston had 3 stars? How was Ray Allen a star when they won a championship? What did he do that Parsons isn't doing right now? Don't see 3 stars in any of your examples. Sorry. None of the examples you listed are in any way similar. What am I trying to emulate? I still don't know. The Spurs won the title in '03 and Manu was a rookie averaging 7 points a game, yet you say they had 3 stars. None of your examples have 3 guys on the all-NBA team, which I would think would be required if you wanted to be called a "star". Why do I have to emulate anything? Is Morey getting paid to copy other teams? I thought teams were supposed to be trying to copy him. Lebron did disappear. That actually happened. However, they made the Finals. It's not a given that this team makes it out of the first round. That would be a complete and total failure if they didn't. It is possible that Morey is wrong sometimes. That really is a possibility, as far-fetched as it may seem. So Dallas and Detroit, two teams that you conveniently label as "exceptions", just happened to "get hot at the right time". They couldn't possibly have legitimately been the best teams in the league. That's funny!
When did Courtney Lee ever have the best defensive player/goalie of all-time backing him up, like Maxwell did? When the Rockets won the title in '94, Maxwell's TS% was 48%. That's with Hakeem giving him wide open looks all game. Even so, that's not really the point of the thread.
Not knee jerk at all. If DM can trade Asik by the deadline, the question should be why couldn't he have done that right after signing Howard, when Asik's value was much higher. The Rockets should be in win-now mode - how is it knee-jerk to wonder why they're content to let this team continue to play short-handed instead of position itself for more success this year?
By playoff time in the first championship season, Maxwell was maybe our 5th best player. He was just a guy. Just a guy who is better than Courtney Lee, though.
It's knee jerk because of your selective memory. I know you remember Courtney Lee's days as a Rocket. The "defensive specialist" that was essentially a +/- wash whenever he subbed into the game (for Kevin Martin, of all people). In theory, he's a good bench player that fits the 3&D mold; but for whatever reason, he just never got any better and has always produced middling results throughout his career. $5-6M is a lot of money for such an up-and-down player. Yeah, he's hot right now, but his shooting percentages will average out at at some point. Remember O.J. Mayo last year? Same story; only he was able to dupe Milwaukee into an $8M per year contract. Lee is a cheaper version of Mayo. Useful? Yes. Worth the price tag? No. He wasn't going to put us over the top and has a contract that inhibits potential 2015 plans. I think it's entirely possible for us to improve significantly without touching contracts that extend beyond next season. Unless DM is able to hit a homerun, I expect whatever roster moves we make to follow along that direction. That said, I'm with you on the something-needs-to-happen train regarding Asik. If this bizarre situation lingers on into mid-February without some sort of decision (one way or another), this will mark my first official gripe with DM. The status quo is unacceptable since, I agree, we should be trying to win right now.
I don't disagree with your premise Freak. I do however have to opine that as much as I loved MadMax, I think horry, cassell, Thorpe, and elie could easily all have been 2 through 5 with max coming in 6th behind them all.
