I don’t mind Cam’s attitude one bit. He wants to dominate and destroy people. I look across the NBA at all the other young wings and really struggle to find scorers that I would trade Cam for straight up… maybe Jared McClain or Podzimski or Brandon Miller. Young players suck. Cam, by WS48 and BPM has been an above average NBA player - he hasn’t sucked. I hope all the trade rumor noise is about teams trying to leverage Cam out of Houston and not the Rockets front office giving up on him because of attitude.
Great take. This is where I am. I'd love for Cam to put it together and prove all the naysayers wrong. Me included. But if the off-court/locker-room/maturity stuff is a negative, this is another case of addition by subtraction. The roster has some needs, and if Cam can't fill them, let's move on.
I’m someone who likes Cam’s potential and doesn’t think he should be traded just yet but I’m not against the team doing it for the right value/player. That said, let’s not pretend that Ime is the only person that wants to win now and win fast. The owner wants that, the organization wants that, the players want that, and I’m pretty sure we as fans want that. Saying that Stone and Ime should be fired if a player pops off somewhere else is ridiculous. It’s been 5 years since we were regular contenders and the majority of those players were 1–3 year prospects that had to be somewhat redeveloped by Ime and his staff after what Silas did to them. Ime’s basically damned if he does and damned if he doesn’t. If he wins but not with the players some fans want, he’s a failure. If he loses, he’s a failure. “We’re not gonna win the chip anyways, so he should be developing so and so” “if he can’t win with all these young players with potential, he needs to go” (the hypothetical reaction if we would have missed the playoffs/play-in this season) There are clearly issues with Cam’s development—whether there is miscommunication or a misalignment of expectations—that you can’t solely place on Ime. It’s a two way street. Every other player on the roster understands the assignment.
I said this on another thread a bunch of times, but it's impossible to hold on to elite players for very long in this era. It makes all kinds of sense to go for it rather than settle for an expensive team that isnt good enough that you can't keep together anyway
Yes, turnover is inevitable - but you have to make the right decisions on whom to turnover. I would flip, Bari and Tari before I got to Cam. DD
Unless your genius is named Presti-ge.....then you can or you are the Lakers that is getting Luka on a silver platter. That said, the goal is still to increase your window to at least 4 years if you can. The positives about the NBA is that it is fluid and you are not sure if that 2nd Apron stays for more than a decade.
I agree with you. I feel TF might think one more solid addition with the NT-MLE plus KD and the rest of the core can propel the team to a championship like OKC. I think the Rockets are in unchartered waters, and they have a long way to go.
I'd really hate to let him go. He's SO young. He has two seasons under his belt, but he's still only 20. He's actually a month younger than Reed. I think you basically know what Jabari and Tari are at this point, although Bari may have more upside as he's very young as well. Cam could still be anything at this point, from total bust to future all star.
Tari is that he is a great role player, but not really starter level - and his injury is concerning - he will always be a 2nd string player but his archetype is coveted around the league so he has trade value - and Amen Thompson does all of what he does and more so he is a bit redundant. Bari is stiff, he just is going to be a stand up shooter, a good one, and a decent defender, but he isn't a super athlete and is trending towards a 13 pts a game role player. He is due for an extension, and I think some team might overpay him. I like them both, but if you have to flip anyone, those would be the two who bring the most and are closest to a new contract and are at their ceilings or near it. DD
Udoka’s job is to win basketball games, now and in the future. There are some players that no matter how talented you may feel they are, that either won’t or can’t do what it takes to win. The Rockets and Udoka have had Cam for two years - they have a good idea of what he isn’t and isn’t at this point in his maturity. This isn’t romper room, you can only hold their hands for so long - some guys like Green get more rope because they work hard, others are just bad people and stupid (KPJ) and others just may not have the maturity or mindset. Once a team reaches that conclusion, you move on for the good of the team and players.
Cam needs to watch some Detroit Vinnie Johnson, Lou Williams, bench DRose video and buy into that instant offense off the bench role. If the maturity comes he could become a starter in 1-2 years. That might be here or a good trade piece down the road.
I can’t believe I am saying this but I agree with DD. Absolutely AMAZING the pass that Eason gets from Rockets fans. He choked as much as Green in the playoffs and proved during the season that he may be the lowest iq basketball ball player in the league. Dumb foul after dumb foul and did it again in the playoffs that cost us a valuable game. He couldn’t even make free throws in the playoffs. He’s also injury prone and has an absolutely dangerous loon of a mother. He needs to be traded asap for Kuminga or someone and we need to keep a major young prospect who can score buckets in his sleep in Cam!!!!!
After last season, it's clear as day that Cam has rubbed Ime the wrong way, for whatever reason. I would be surprised if he's not traded before the season begin. While I have my criticism of Udoka's coaching on offense, I'm not a Cam fan either. If he can't gain the trust of the coach, he has no future on this team. He still has the potential tag on him that will interest teams. I just hope we can get a solid player or a high valued future pick back.
