[CBS Sports] Did the Houston Rockets get better by subtraction this summer?

We added Trevor ****ing Ariza. How any of you spin this into a success is beyond me.

 

This loss is underestimated but we could be wrong. Maybe Pat Bev is ready to create more or Ariza will create and attack the basket? If not the Rox are in trouble and the defense will collapse on Howard with less perimeter threats. The way I see it, Harden has a huge burden on his shoulders.

 

The only players on the team that are irreplaceable are Howard and harden... And oh wait they're still here!

We will be ok.

 

T. Jones is the third playmaker, also a rim protector on the other end his touches should be there this season. Eventually the PG position will upgraded, honestly I would be fine with starting the rook Johnson...he is comfortable playing off ball, and his athleticism is a dynamic that changes the game. He is more ready than people might think. He is more talented than the other PG's on the roster, and in EVERY sense of the word, he is a "playmaker."

 

Did you just compare a bad playoff Harden to a worse playoff Lin?

Your point is?

And btw, your stats are the same as I am using.

How can Harden get more than 2FTs within 3min while he's only 1.2 FTs within 5 min!

What stats are you using? Look up under "Clutch" of stats on NBA.com. I am using Last 5 MIN <= 5 PTS
I don't know what stats you are looking at.

 

Don't call them wrong unless you can prove it.

 

Bev's play making is shown from his 2.7 ast over 31 min. Dude is a great compliment to Harden and provides the much needed toughness, but really haven't shown much of play making. Ariza I think is on the same boat. I think the two will fit Harden very well, but our offense will be very one dimensional and predictable. Harden ISO or Howard post ups.

I hope Bev has that play making ability in him, but he doesn't seem to have the vision and passing ability for it.

I hope TJones and DMO mature fast next season, they can potentially add variety in our offense. But our bench looks really shaky.

 

Dude, look:

(somewhat large pic)

Spoiler

I'm not going to go back and forth anymore, 'cause this is way off topic.

 

denial is more than just a river in Egypt... lol

I hope Cannan is the next coming and DMo turns into a beast (both based on some people's view), but I'm not seeing it... hope I'm wrong...

 

Not a success, but not as bad as overpaying Parsons. If you look at each decision the Rockets made this offseason. Each of them makes sense. They gambled and lost, but overpaying in a moment of panic would have been a disaster.

I'm worried, just like everyone else, that Ariza was playing well in a contract year, and won't keep his production up, but it's a calculated risk. If he plays like he did last season, I think the starting five will be fine. It's the bench that is going to hurt the team, because Morey won't burn assets or cap until he gets that third guy.

And as much as I liked Parsons, I'm not sure he was ever going to be that Third Guy. I think he's good, and might get better, but I completely understand why the Rockets want a legit third star. For all the talk about the Spurs chemistry, it's easy to ignore the fact that they have a lot of talent, and overall talent is still the best formula for success. It's easy to talk about chemistry when you have perhaps the most underrated star of his generation in Parker, a fresh up and coming star in Kawhi Leonard, perhaps the best bench guy ever in Manu Ginóbili and arguably the only big man in the post Dream era who you might choose over Shaq.

This has not been a good offseason for the Rockets, but neither has it been the disaster it's being made out to be.

 

During regular season clutch(within 5pts, less 5min left) time,

Lin commited 3 TOs, had 11 Ast, as 2nd scorer/playmaker
Harden commited 17 TOs, had 22 Ast, as 1st scorer/playmaker

 

If our unproven guys on the bench such as Daniels, Canaan, KPap, and others like Dmo can produce even a little bit and our defense improves I think we indeed did get better by subtraction although our losses still hurt.

 

How did Harden average 6 min over last 5 min of the game?

Anyhow, let it rest then.

 

Would you rather have Parsons w/ Casspi behind him or Ariza / Pap?
I dont think the rockets had a horrible off-season like everyone else. They missed out on alot tho. Im not saying the are way better now, but i like the defensive mindset this team should have next season.

 

This article, at this moment. Is wrong.

They can still make some moves. But losing the second best defender on the team and not replacing him hurts. To me Ariza and Parsons are a wash so that evens out.

But losing lin means you have one less proven player off of the bench. Sure Lin had some terrible games, but he was ok a times and was clearly our second best player off the bench, next to Asik.

I appreciate the optimism, though.

 

Losing your second best defender is a lot easier to deal with when he missed half the season and averaged 12 mpg when he did play. It's not like the guy was a stud for us last year. We had to play a lot last season without or "second best defender", and we handled it fine. Don't see any reason as to why it would be different this year when overall we have better defensive talent.

 

I have no idea what you're arguing nor do I care. But I'm guessing that the >5min stats are due to OT games, which they probably count here.

 

It's called a lateral move, after Parsons left. Any combination of statistics suggests the same.

 

I think the author overrates DMo's ability to stretch the floor. What we saw of DMo last season was a PF with a nice arsenal of post up moves but a below average 3PT shot. I'm not sure why folks keep classifying him as a stretch 4.

His post up moved, incidentally, were often rushed and off the mark as a result, but in the stretches where he got consistent minutes, he was able to slow down his moves which resulted in a lot better accuracy.