Okay, there's plenty of talk about a possible first round pick on this board, but as we all can see, the Rockets need multiple parts/upgrades to the roster in order to take the next step. So which players that fall out of the first round could the Rockets look at and who would fit with the team's needs? First, I think two major areas of need are: 1) a big man who can shoot and stretch the defense 2) athleticism off the bench and a defensive stopper This isn't all that the team needs, but we're not likely to find a starting 2 guard in the 2nd round/FA pool. For the first area, I would go hard after a guy like Steve Novak, from Marquette. He's got one of the prettiest strokes from the outside I've ever seen. He's a skinny 6-10, but we don't need a person in this role to bang. Scott Padgett x3, in my opinion. If you watched the skills competition on ESPN last night, you saw him in the 3pt competition and you know what I'm talking about. He'd be a great role player. A guy like Kevin Pittsnogle works here, too. For the second area, I think you can find a guy like James White from Cincy to be a defensive stopper, energy guy off the bench. He's limited in his offensive game and isn't a 3pt shooter, but I think he's an upgrade from Keith Boggans in his athleticism. The Rockets can't continue to rely on David Wesley to be their defensive stopper in the backcourt. He's on his last legs and isn't big enough to trouble big SG's anyway (last season's Dallas playoff series is an example as he couldn't contain Stackhouse). We keep hearing how the team wants to get younger and quicker...this offseason is the time to do it.
I'd love to have this guy... If he were a guard. I don't see how a 6'10" 3-point shooter fits into our lineup. Well, actually I do, because he can keep the help-side defense honest by roaming on the perimeter, but what I mean is that there are picks that make a whole lot more sense when you consider where the holes are on our roster and in our lineups.
Ah, yes, Hassan Adams...I'd love to have in the second round, too. I think he's definitely in the Rodney Carney/James White class of athlete. I remember about 3 years ago, when UT played Arizona and got destroyed. Zona had like a 6 man rotation, but they had guys like Hassan Adams and Andre Iguodala and they just dominated. What an athletic team that was. The only thing about Adams is that he plays out of control sometimes and is a bit of a gunner...traits that don't mesh well with the role he'll have to play on the Rockets. Hopefully, he's attitude problems have been worked out after his brief suspension. I'd rather have Adams over Allan Ray, mainly because Villanova lists Ray as 6'2", which is too small for what the Rockets need. We're trying to get away from having to play David Wesley that much, so picking a guy that's about his size doesn't address the need. I like Ray's game, though. Now, whether or not you take Novak with the 2nd round pick depends on what you did with the first. But the Rockets absolutely need to get shooters and they absolutely need to get more athletic on the wing. If they take a guy like Carney or Roy with the 1st pick, then Novak works great. If you take a guy like Redick then you still need that athleticism/defensive stopper in the 2nd.
Yeah, my bad...didn't read all of them before posting. Thank you pointing that out, as I'm sure you did it as a public service to all who read these boards.
