you guys do realise that anyone we dont sign is prolly going to the lakers. expect tmac in a lakers uniform sometime next season. if ron isnt on the rockets, then i guarantee they go after him.
We absolutely should keep Artest. We should keep this whole team together at least another year and bring in a legitimate back up for Yao. Someone that has some youth and can be a spark off the bench like Zaza Pachulia or Birdman would be ideal. Also getting rid of Brian Cook, Joey Dorsey, and T-mac should be 3 main points that Morey should look at moving this offseason. We got to the second round without those 3 guys so they would be what we could use for some trades or to free up some cash. I would even be willing to let go of Aaron Brooks along with T-mac for a Nash/Barbosa trade. A clutch player like Nash and a good back up center for Yao like Pachulia or Birdman would take this team to the next level.
McGrady is worth too much to the Rockets as an expiring contract. No way McGrady goes anywhere next year. He is only going to be here half the season max and after that he will come off the books. The Rockets would be stupid to trade him and his expiring contract away because you won't get value back.
Why? He's 29 years old, and an absolute workout fiend. No reason he can't stay at this level for 2-3 more years. Artest's FG% in his last 2 seasons in Sacramento: 44% and 45%. While averaging 19 and 20 ppg. When Artest was first traded to Indiana, he averaged 41% from the field and 21% from 3P land. His next 2 seasons, 43% and 42% from the field and 34% and 32% from 3P land. When Artest was first traded to Sacramento, he averaged 38% from the field and 30% from 3P land. His next 2 seasons, 44% and 45% from the field and 36% and 38% from 3P land. He has a history of struggling his first year in a place before adjusting. Given the constant changing of the lineup structure -- and seeing his role go from #3 scorer to 6th man to #2 scorer to bizarro world minus Tracy and Yao, it's not all surprising that he struggled. Sure, it's a flaw that he doesn't just flow with whatever the situation may be. But get the lineup and rotation settled, and I'd imagine he would boost his FG%.
I hope you are right Nike, but I honestly see a player on the decline and not one that will get better with age. DD
someone finally understands basketball on here. I've been saying this all along. You keep him no matter what. Its a win win situation for both sides.
Yup, and I know Morey is well aware of it and there is no chance in hell they trade away that contract this year, especially the fact that you only have to deal with it for half a season basically. The last year of a contract is when a bad one like this become so valuable it's not even funny.
His points per shot is rather high. You forget to factor in that he also shoots 40% from the 3-pt line as well as the field. That is not bad at all. He WAS named to the all defensive team this year by a panel of EXPERTS. All this talk about decline is ridiculous. He is 29. He is an AMAZINGLY hard worker, and will come to camp in better shape than ever, because that is what he has done for his ENTIRE career. Ron is not dependent on his athleticism. Much like Shane or Bruce Bowen, He is dependent on hard work. He will last. You say Brandon Roy and Kobe destroyed Ron, which I completely disagree with. Brandon Roy used a pick 98% of the time, and abused YAO, not Ron or Shane. Shane did a great job on Kobe, and Ron did a great job giving him a breather when he needed one. You are lucky the Rockets did not play the Cavs or the Celtics, because those are the type of players Ron can shut down that Shane gets bullied by. As a third option in a slower Yaocentric offense, Ron is the toughness and determination we need. Ask Shane how valuable he is to this team...
keep artest because I dont see anyone on this team that can fill the void of his interviews: "that 5 dollar footlong song is hot" "i've been in the stands before" "lebron is a younger more athletic ron artest"
I'm with Nike on this one. Ron's never relied on his athleticism like the majority of players in this league and best of all he's not had any major injuries. He's got a LOT of basketball left in him.
Just because you sign him 4 years doesn't mean you keep him 4 years. Let's not forget that just because you sign a player for so many years doesn't mean you have to keep him for 4 years or that you can't trade him down the line eventually.
Tracys best season for Rockets- 43% from the field, 33% from 3. 25 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists. Ron this year- 40% from the field, 40% from 3. 17 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists. Shane this year- 41% from the field, 38% from 3. 7 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists. These are NOT bad numbers offensively. When we get all 3 clicking, I expect much higher field goal percentages from all of them. It is magnificently apparent that Ron gives a ton of bang for his buck. At 1/3 of Tracys salary, he can give you FANTASTIC production...
stop hating DD, he helped get the rockets out of the 1st round and got the city excited throughout this playoff run, we need to keep Ron
exactly, does anyone who come up with these figures actually pay attention to nba salaries? i'd say 8 mill is on the bottom range of what he should get........freaking NeNe gets 10+mill........Dan Gadzuric i think is getting 6.5 mill..............take a look at the market, ron is worth at least 8 with what he brings on both sides of the court.
Dude I was a huge Bullard fan too, but the Lakers simply can not afford T-Mac and their owner Jerry Buss doesn't like to go over the luxary tax and is not one of the riches owners in the league. He's a family owned owner that can't compete with teams that are corporately owned and he's would have to give up too many of their bench players to afford an injury proned McGrady. A Mark Cuban he's not so I would think Dallas, Portland, San Antonio or the Knicks would be able to go that far over the luxury tax or a team seeking a salary dump when he expires after 2010.
