Francis/Norris/Miskiri Cat/Pike/Hawkins Pike/Nachbar/TMo/Hawkins Griffin/MoT/TMo Yao/Cato There aren't very many more FA's out there that the rox could or should pick up, so just to fill the roster up I put in Miskiri, TMo, and Hawkins to make 12. I think they are good pickups and could be solid backups. Badiane's going back to overseas I think. The starter at the 3 is up for grabs, but all in all not too bad a team. This is of course barring trades and assuming we pick up those 3. I think this could easily be a playoff team with the right coaching.
After analyzing the roster we currently have, I believe we are just one back up point guard away from a championship drive. The '94 and '95 Championship Rockets had Hakeem and....Hakeem....and maybe vernon Maxwell in '94 and Drexler in '95. If you think about it, our new replacement for Hakeem is Yao, and our new replacement for Drexler/Maxwell is Franchise. Thats all we really need. Two superstars and a cast of role players. Eric Piakowski was a great pickup. His game is kind of similar to Mario Elie's when we signed him the year we one it all. (Except I doubt Pike would ever have a highlight dunk on SC). Otis Thorpe didnt strike fear into the hearts of opposing PF but he got the job done on the boards and in the hustle department. Griffin, if Van Gundy can bring it out of him, has the potential (there is that word again) to be that type of player. We don't need him to score a bunch, just hustle on the boards and block shots. I also wouldnt mind him bringing his game inside the 3 point arch and bang with the big boys. Mobley is a hard one to sell. He has game but no brain. If JVG can reach out and nock some sense into him then we should be fine this next season. I'm looking forward to this year. New coach, new stadium, new uni's, new players. Its going to be a sweet year. Eveybody just believe!
I hope we add him (can't believe we released him!) before someone else does. That was discussed to death, but I liked how he improved last season. Some guys just take awhile and he's going to be a good role player, imo. Why not for us? He cost us the pick.
