Ariza dribbling 3 times in one place and trying to create his own shot is the reason why Lee will always be better
I've said it before and I'll no doubt say it again: Putting a great team together is like making a pizza -- you want the ingredients to work well together and bring out the best in each other. Ariza was the peanut butter of last year's Rockets pizza.
This. he woulda benefited from yao behind him. dont forget, he already woulda had 1 year in our system, with more familiarity with martin and brooks (unless they really had strong disagreements). i dont think the trade was a mistake, i just dont think its as lopsided in lee's favor as it seems. lee will both awe us with his speed and defense (gambles a lot less), but also bum us with his adjustments to our system and lack of height (i thought ariza had a better chance of annoying kobe than lee). but ya lee's a more consistent player, and we really need battier to qb the defense in the first unit. not worried at all.
Based on pure on court performance, I think it was essentially a wash. Ariza has more versitility and length. This allows him to make some plays that very view others in the league could including courtney lee. The issue is that in all his years in the leauge he has never learned to harness this versatility into a consistent weapon. Nothing is more frustrating to fans than a player who fails to maximize their abilities. Courtney lee is a quick guard with enough handles to be trusted with the ball and to make some great plays in the open court. I think it is clear from the way he has been used so far in the preseason that the rockets are trying to mold him into a psuedocopy of kevin martin. That way when Kmart checks out of the game or god forbid gets injured, the team can just plug in Lee without any change in the offense. The decision however is not just made based on what happens on the court. Personality and finances also play a role. Courtney Lee is significantly cheaper and more willing to play along. When you take into account the TPE we gaind in the trade, the deal turned out to be a steal for the rockets.
I voted for Lee for this year's team although last year I was sympathetic to Trevor and was rooting for him to play well. Trevor is like a time bomb, you'll never know whether he would explode or implode. It would be difficult to switch him to the 2nd unit or give him less minutes or touches--the Rockets didn't want to deal with possible discontent, so they decided to move him.
I'm happier to have Lee here because of the money savings. Ariza is a great 4th 5th option on a contender and we'd have been throwing away money because we aren't contenders.
I miss Trevor Ariza, strangely enough. As a starter on this team, I think we miss his rebounding and versatility. He was absolutely incredible after we added Kevin Martin last year... I wish we would have kept him...
you already know the answer. ask that question again after a full season with lee. right now, people are just gonna vote against ariza, not really voting for lee.
i don't know...Ariza was a pretty good finisher...not saying he was a better player though for this team.
What? LOL - says who? Lee > Ariza..... Ariza sucks without someone setting him up, he is like Robert Horry, a crap individual player, but if you put him in the right situation, he can succeed. DD
i am going to say Lee because he is a unknown. i know what i got out of Trevor and i did not like it at all
Ariza, simply because I don't see Lee playing much this year unless there are injuries (which is a distinct possibility). Martin will probably get the most minutes on the team by far, and I'd prefer the Rockets go with a small lineup of Brooks and Lowry when possible. But yeah, I would have liked to see Ariza play on a more fully formed team before making the move. He was one of the two athletic and long players the Rockets had. I'm also not looking forward to Battier's scoring line of 0-5 points playing 24+ minutes.
