Wallace is easily a better player than Batum, and one of the best rebounding and defensive small forwards in the league. I'd be eager to get him no matter who we had at the small forward spot. I think Batum better suits our purpose as the 4th or 5th option on offense, because he's a solid 3 point shooter, and he uses his length and laterally quickness well to be a solid defender. I don't think he is significantly better than Budinger A flip would be just a slightly above lateral move. I just think he's a much better fit with the current rockets squad and Mchales new offense.
OK. He might be slightly better than Bud but I agree he is not significantly better. I would like our trades or aquisitions going forward to be less of a latteral move and get us someone that is going to take the team to the next level.
Well, I actually asked about his potential price, not about his real worth. He looks a lot like a player that every NBA team wants for his project. He will be an elite defender at his position for he next decade, will improve physically, will improve his shot, has a high basket IQ, is a very good team defender (not only one-one)... he looks like a potential championship caliber SF for any project you say. I definitely can see one team (is enough) putting 7-8 on the table for him. Chase hate? You won't see me bush him because I like him a lot. He's not strong nor a supertough player, but he's a winner player in my mind. I'm really appreciating his effort to improve defensively. I've always appreciated his positioning, his play off the ball, high basket IQ, his shooting... and with time looks better as a competitor. I have absolutely 0 complaints with Chase, but at the end of the day, Batum shares some of these strenghts having a much higher defensive potential. Still, first option for the Rockets, and 2nd and 3rd, will be to get a superstar, obvious. But if we can't get one I can see Morey interested in Batum, of course not offering him 8 per year, probably MLE money or as much as 7 if he sees very good chances of getting him. The problem is that there will be one team offering more. About Wallace, he's playing currently like an all-star, Portland won't let him go unless somebody overpays him quite a bit (talking about near max money).
