Ever hear the phrase "Defense wins championships"? And your overexaggeration over the lack of offense when Harden, Howard and Terry are on this team is weak. Especially when Smith (and/or Ariza) are very comparable to Parsons' offensively. Houston got better this season, and have continued to improve with the recent additions of Brewer, Smith and even Shved. Only the most depressed of fans cannot appreciate a 20-7 record.
Get guys easy buckets as Rick the Ruler would have said and Ariza, Smith, Brewer, Shved and what their names are can score We probably have to get rid of either Black or Dorsey (offensive blackholes)
True J. Smith hasn't had the best performance these past 2 years, but I think you're overrating our current PFs quite a bit here.
You don't really need flexibility to sign Smith, do you? Unless it's like what Plowman suggests (that there's some under the table transaction going on), the Smith deal is just totally out of the blue. I am sure Morey would have no problem admitting that. Think about this, if instead of signing the guy for 2M without giving up anything of value, Morey traded DMo and some other assets for the guy, would everybody still be celebrating? I am sure there would be a heated debate on whether it was worth it.
Very good thread and catch here -- great job. Here's a graphic visual... Flexiblity is key. While Parsons has control on Dallas with that player option in a year and a half, where his salary goes to over $16 million, the Rockets have Ariza on a contract price that trends down while Brewer and Smith expire. Better value now, better flexibility moving forward.
DD's worries are somewhat valid We got to get them into good scoring positions to generate the same good efficient Offense. Probably don't play Smith and Howard all the time in the 4th of a close game.... Mix it up in the regular season
I would say that the offense could improve because this defense will cause more turnovers which leads to easy buckets. Also, the deeper bench means that guys like Harden and Ariza will have more energy to regain their shooting form. Finally, DMo can be the leader of the second unit from the post.
