To whomever posted this in my feedback: You should've just posted that here. And any trade discussions we have here have this caveat already built in. We all know it takes 2 to tango. I was simply showing you that we have plenty of salary to still make trades without going into the luxury tax. And.....pray tell we go into the luxury tax. Anybody that knows the truth about Les knows he won't mind playing the luxury tax for a TRUE CONTENDER. Dare I suggest .... adding Dragic and Wright and Josh Smith without giving up any of Dwight, James, Bev, Ariza, DMo...elevates us to true contender status. And by the way......I discussed Philly as a salary dumping ground here (http://bbs.clutchfans.net/showpost.php?p=9419282&postcount=19202) and suggested perhaps we may have bought a chunk of their cap space with this latest Turiaf and a second rounder going there for Shved's contract. Here's the key part of my post there that explains it. Spoiler
this is great - smith is basically tjones, but better at everything but shooting; however, he'll get plenty of touches around the rim when he has james harden throwing passes to him, which will subsequently improve his shooting. He's never played on a team with a guard capable of making good passes to him in the painted area. His defense will be critical to the rockets matching up more favorably with Memphis, San Antonio, Dallas, OKC, LA, Portland, New Orleans, Golden State, so basically everyone in the west. If he can play within the offense, this team is going to be scary good.
If Miami gets him ah well. They become a better mediocre team in the East that isn't beating any team that matters in the East in a 7 game series. Dallas getting him or any other west team getting him is what scares me.
LOL, Smith looks horrible! Lets not sign him! Seriously though, if you watch that reel, ask yourself, is Smith taking those shots with Howard and Harden in the game? Does Smith have the ball on this team with the shot clock going down? The answer would be 'no.' It's clear that Smith didn't trust his Piston teammates and wasn't used correctly. Smith has warts, but they wouldn't be as bad in Houston in my opinion. In Houston, Harden would control the ball. Just ask JLin! ;-)
If we sign Josh Smith would it just be for the rest of the season? Would he want a bigger contract when the offseason comes? or do you guys think it wont really matter since Detroit will be paying him anyway?
if he clears waivers wednesday he will be a Rocket. With the exception he just doesn't want to come here. Not likely. Trust me, this will happen.
I can't believe this is even an issue here. I've never particularly liked Josh Smith, but his talent is worth a hell of a lot more than $2 mil. NBA chump change. However this shakes out, not signing him on the chance that he goes to the Mavs or Clips, and hurts us is just insane. It's 2 mil. and a roster spot. Jeez...
The contract situation has changed since July. Before we'd have to pay him (and trade for) his $14M/year salary. If he didn't become a productive, important member of the team we'd be in huge trouble. Now we can sign him outright to a minimal contract. He wouldn't be relied upon here, he'd just be an option. Last time a toxic player like this was available was Andrew Bynum, when he signed with the Pacers for the minimum. It clearly didn't work out. Before that there was Tim Thomas, who the Bulls told to just stay home. He signed with Phoenix and ended up hitting the game-tying three at the end of regulation in game six against the Lakers in the playoffs. In both cases, there's zero risk. Why not sign Smith at this point when the price tag is so cheap?
This is a no brainer. I was actually trying to convince myself that he was worth 10+ just a few months ago. At 2 million per year this is a very low risk move that has major upside. Also Morey wants to get it done and i trust him 100%
There is two key points here which I think are the most important when it comes to decision making on smith to the Rockets. 1.) We currently are relying on Tariq Black and Joey Dorsey for consistent rotation minutes and neither of them should probably be in the NBA. Both contribute nothing offensively and rely almost entirely on Hardens penetration for easy dish/dunks/lay ups. Another rotation big with bigger size and athleticism is going to contribute more by default, just as a vehicle for the opportunities that harden opens up. 2.) Morey has shown that he really values guys with an elite skill. While Smith makes boneheaded offensive decisions, he is an elite defensive player. He is a prolific shot blocker and a great defensive rebounder. Now his production has declined over the past couple of years. He is not old or injured, which are the usual suspects for declination, so you have to conclude either he just doesn't care anymore or the circumstances in Detroit just didn't fit him. The key is, does a better situation with a more focused role, help or hurt his production? I think it helps. And if we snag him for an exception, this is a low risk high reward move. I think the bottom line is that if Morey is aggressively pursuing him, both today and in the past, then he has done his homework and really sees something there. Morey has earned our trust and we should support that.
One thing that leaves me optimistic about Josh Smith here is the Rockets emphasis on avoiding mid range shots as a team. Smith gets a lot of flack for the 3s but it's those long and mid range jumpers that get him into trouble. I can live with Smith taking 2 3s a game if he buys into no mid range or long jumpers.
Look, I've followed the Hawks and Josh Smith closely for many years. I'm somebody that's been very vocal in my opposition to both trading for and signing him. I think he's the second coming of Fatoine Walker. A talented bonehead that doesn't understand his limitations or play smart basketball. Generally speaking, he's the type of player I'd caution us to avoid. ....but it's a different ball game now. It's one thing whenever we're talking about signing him for the big bucks; let alone over a Millsap type or surrendering enough assets to facilitate a trade for a player making $13M+. Sure, in those scenarios I'm 100% against acquiring him. But for $2M? It's a no brainer. There are a number of reasons why we traded for Brewer with perhaps the biggest reason being we recognized the need for more fastbreak points. Parsons was always the one last year sprinting to the opposite end of the court after a rebound, and it's a dynamic that we're missing with this current group. Enter: Brewer. But Smith is another guy that excels in transition. He's one of the rare few bigs that can grab a rebound and take it coast-to-coast. A group with Harden, Brewer and Smith with our improved 3-pt shooting on kickouts stands to gain a LOT of ground in the fastbreak category. You sign him and keep him on a short leash. Restrict him to transition buckets, cuts, post ups and corner 3's (only if he can hit them at a respectable rate). I think this can work. Keep in mind also: we're the team that traded for Ron Artest, so it's not like there's not a precedent for us taking on risky personalities. For $2M, the reward far outweighs the risk. I can live with the worst case scenario here (he's a catastrophe and we have to cut Black or Dorsey). The other thing you have to keep in mind here: let's say we sign Smith for $2M and pull off a mid-season trade for Dragic. I think those two moves represent our best chance at significantly upgrading the team while minimizing long-term cap risks. P.S. Even Fatoine eventually embraced team basketball and ended up winning a ring. This is a total win for us. Get it done, DM!
im assuming he would try to get a bigger contract in the off season. But that would depend on how he would play here. So at the least, hes going to play his ass off this year to get a new contract. Not sure if we would have his bird rights or not though
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>It's a long shot, but Grizz have a roster spot, and hearing they've expressed some interest in Josh Smith.</p>— Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/ZachLowe_NBA/status/547149423164534785">December 22, 2014</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Fit there in Memphis isn't quite as clean as it is in DAL, HOU, etc, but any West team that can get him for the minimum should try.</p>— Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/ZachLowe_NBA/status/547149637426372608">December 22, 2014</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
