Right mix of players contain ones who don't suck. Like Chuck Hayes, who is cleaning up other peoples mistakes instead of making them for others to clean up. Right mix of players does not contain your boy Jordan Hill. Last year's team vs. this year's team? Which version? With or without Landry? Which lineups? As far as I can tell, overall both teams are about the same. Last year's team lucked out in more close games than this year's bout they are about the same level.
I have to agree 100% with this. The problem is that coach and fans are so blinded with Battier. Battier in my opinion is done and does not contribute to the team anymore. We should have kept Ariza as he was more balanced on offense and defense. The real problem on this team is that we have too many one dimensional players: Battier, Hayes, Scola, Brooks, etc, etc.
Interesting, one would wonder if they are hosting a two man pity party....sometimes negativity can come between friends and it could permeate the team. Those are the kinds of things the front office needs to consider before acquiring players.... DD
I am fine with JHill grabbing some pine, he is not my boy, he is playing Center, and he doesn't have the sand in his britches to play there...he is too light. He is ok as a backup PF that comes in for 20 minutes of energy ball, but not developed near enough to be playing the roll he is playing now.... I don't believe they lucked out at all last year, I think they played together better, with and without Landry...that team played harder than this one. DD
I think it's the constant threat of being traded in a regime like Darryl Morey. Loyalty in the form of "untouchables" doesn't amount to much here. I'd say even less than other teams. Carl Landry was a team and fan favorite who had a great contract. If I was a player, his departure would mean I could go at anytime and that I should approach the Rockets FO business only. Once the trade deadline passes, we'll see the seasonal "post break bounce", if only because everyone's anxieties are off the hook and the thought of showcasing their stats isn't always on their minds. And once that bounce sets in, we'll think Morey's a genius again, if only because a streak after a terrible win-loss percentage is more noticable and dramatic. This is a pattern we've seen since Morey's a GM.
The problems with this team begins and ends with 1 thing. DEFENSE. All of the losses and close wins can be attributed to that. Daryl Morey thought he was going to get one of the top post defenders in the league back this year in Yao Ming. All signs pointed to him being healthy and making a comeback. That back fired. Outside of Yao Ming, there is only one true post defender left, 6'6" Chuck Hayes. He is one of the best low post defenders in the league but undersized. The rest of the teams abillity to play defense unfolds with the following approximated grades: (1 - 10) - (Of course this is just my opinion) 1. C - Brad Miller - 4 2. PF/C - Jordan Hill - 5 3. PF - Luis Scola - 3 4. PF - Patrick Patterson - ? (Has received too little playing time to determine his abilities on the NBA level but if I were to give a grade I would say 5 - 6) 5. SF - Shane Battier - 7.5 (And waning) 6. SF - Chase Budinger - 2 7. SF - Jared Jeffries - 7.5 (Does not get playing time) 8. SG/SF - Terrence Williams - 4 (Can't truly tell. Not enough exposure) 9. SG - Kevin Martin - 2 10. SG - Courtney Lee - 7 11. PG - Kyle Lowry - 8 12. PG - Aaron Brooks - 3 13. PG - Ish Smith - 4 So when you look at the ability to play on the other end of the court this team is below average not NBA Championship Caliber especially with our key players. I believe that its time to cut the fat, make some deals and upgrade one position at a time. If that means we can only upgrade at the 1, 2 or 3 defensively then do it. We need to close the driving lanes. That's a big part of our interior problem as well. Obviously we need someone tough down low but think about a guy like Ron Artest being on our team right now and harassing the back court of the other teams. We would have probably 3 - 5 more wins right there even with the a low post presence missing. Bottom line, in my opinion, we are not over stocked with quality. It's time to upgrade!
Some guy once said, "Things aren't the way they used to be, but then again they never were." This team didn't really have great "chemistry" last year. Off the top of my head, I remember the whole saga of Aaron Brooks freezing out Ariza. Those two weren't exactly on the same page in terms of who should be getting more shots. I think the schedule has a lot more to do with the success and failure of this team than chemistry and intangibles. After the poor start, this team has beaten most of the bad teams and lost when the schedule has gotten tough. While there might be some issues, I don't think it's a team wide dilemma. Aaron Brooks is in a contract year, and he's going to want to get paid. But he's always been a shoot first player, and I've never been a big fan of his shot selection. Terrence Williams maybe more than anyone probably feels a need to prove himself. When he gets in the game, he immediately is trying to make plays on his own. This doesn't really work within the flow of the offense, but a lot of his efforts are trying to set up teammates for easy shots. The problem stems more from the fact that the Rockets have a bundle of players who range from very good to above average, but not one great player. Morey is going to address this either during the season or in the offseason. I think he understands the issues, but no GM can just snap their fingers and fix problems instantly.
This is one of the toughest times that I can remember as a Rocket fan. We are completely without direction, hoping that Daryl pulls off a deal. Daryl deserves the benefit of the doubt, so I guess we have 1 more month of torture. Do any of you guys watch the games and pray that Patrick or Terrence get in the game? That's all me, lol.
I've been saying all along that at this time of year the team will come unglued. They did last year. Played their asses off until the trade deadline started to loom. This becomes a giant distraction. Daryl Morey has accrued some really solid players, and some of them DO deserve to start. Aaron. Courtney. Hell, Patterson will be a starter one day or another, although I'm sure he's not complaining about not starting, not as a rookie with Luis and Chuck in front of him on the depth chart. But the players and Adelman certainly know even better than we do that Morey has accumulated talent with a trade in mind. Unfortunately, a "Big Time Trade" might not present itself. So here we are with jacked-up rotations, distracted players, a coach who, frankly, is far too much of a player's coach (if I knew he was giving playing time based on Morey instructing him to showcase this or that guy, then I would take this back). The trade deadline can't arrive fast enough, you know? At least get SOMEthing resolved this season before we're without basketball next year.
The point is that we need stars. You can teach chemistry but you can't teach talent. I remember you repeatedly saying that the Heat would have chemistry issues and that there is only one ball. Well guess what.. They won like 22 out of 23. And Bosh is a star but not a superstar. He was playing great until the recent injury and had climbed up pretty high in fantasy rankings. Did you see him abuse Pau in their last meeting?
An excellent observation. DM talks too much about it, he should be a little more encouraging and complimentary of his players etc. The way the Rox are run right now, the lack of contract extensions all reeks of a business rather than a team concept. And players realize this too.....and excellent point. DD
This team's record is about the same as last season's lottery record. Aaron Brooks and Budinger's injuries didn't do the Rocket's any favors, this season.
BTW - when I looked at the standings last night guess where the Rox would be drafting in the lottery. Yep - 14th....lol...ain't that a kick in the nads. DD
DM gives out props to players via twitter frequently. This is a business. Horry got traded after a championship run. So did OT.
Sammy have you ever managed a team of people? What do you think would happen if you were managing a team (could be anything not necessarily sports) and all you were doing was saying to the media. Yeah, I like our guys, but I am always looking to upgrade, so any of them could be traded at any minute. And when one of them wanted a new contract you refused and said...go out and get an offer somewhere else and we will decide whether you are worth it. That is part of what I am talking about, it is piss poor people management. It makes any tweet you do, seem disengenous, because the players know that they are not valued all that highly at the end of the day. It matters, it matters a lot. DD
I've thought about it, but if you think on the expectations at the start of the season, this was still Yao's team in Morey's mind. And we were suposed to be >50 wins team, in his mind. As you say, when you have a deep roster but at the same time you're winning games, is easier. Yao is out. Terrence Williams wasn't on the roster in October. AB was suposed to be the starting PG (contract year, coming from a MIP season) but he has lost his starting spot... And Jeffries, the player with more reasons to be upset at this moment, is the one who's showing more profesionalism... The current situation is far from what the franchise expected for the season. Obviously changes are needed, once again things have not happened as expected in Houston. I can't blame Morey for it because I recognize I had the same things in my mind for this year. Maybe you can blame him for not considering in perspective the worst case scenario... Anyway, he has not been able to operate since the problems emerged, it's almost imposible to make the moves that we all are demanding at this moment of the year; so I will wait until the deadline. Right now, I can't blame him for nothing. Well, if anything I think he overlooked the defensive level of some guys, but apart from that I have no moral courage to reproach him for anything else. I think the T-Will move, his only move so far, it was another very good operation.
Anchel, However, the roster is unbalanced and there are big men out there to be had. Sometimes you may have to lose a trade in the talent department to upgrade your overall team. We could lose 2 or 3 guys and still have the same team, but if those 2 or 3 guys net you a Chris Kaman, or a Javale McGhee, or a Samual Dalembert etc...now you have a better overall ROX team. I do think they are waiting for the trade deadline, but in the meantime they are killing this season, and I expect the fans to start drying up at the Toyota center very soon. To me, this roster is full of fail......got to make a move soon before the players themselves cry "Uncle" ...you can see it in the body language of some of them already.... DD
Last night, their draft position would have been 12th. 10th Pacers 11th Warriors 12th Rockets 13th/14th Suns/Grizzlies(coin flip for tiebreaker)
This team is in desperate need of a leader on the court but even more the coach. RA needs strong players who can lead which he always tells us in interviews. He expects players to work things out themselves instead of telling them what to do. I don't know who the captain(s) is right now, but last year I think it was Battier and co-captain Hayes. It figures since both work hard on defense, lead by example, never complain and just do their jobs. Unfortunately, they are both not the type of players youngsters look at. Battier and Hayes are not the best players, though Hayes is our #1 defender. I think with our identity shaken, having Lowry / AB and Martin as all out runners and not the best of defenders and not having a go-to guy changes are needed. However, bringing in a guy like Carmelo is definitely not the answer - far from it! We need to establish a go-to guy, which should be Scola, and have 4 players around him who accept their roles. Hayes is doing that so without a real center we need him to stay. I am afraid one of our PGs has to go and if not this season then surely next season we need a replacement for Battier. Also, to me, RA needs to go as well. He's done all he can for us, has done a great job with the talent he was given but if Morey keeps doing what he's doing, we need another coach. Indeed the acquiring of assets and Morey letting it all hang on Adelman to figure it out is not how the way to go. Realistically there's no better coach out there but we need a leader on the bench who can instill an identity and lead when needed. Morey has failed to get us a good back-up center for 3 years now so I don't expect him to do something now. This means we will keep having a team similar to last year and this year. Some changes in leading scorer and bench but nothing drastic. This I think can only lead to a change in coaching staff.
Managing employees and managing professional athletes who have guaranteed money and who knew the business when they entered it are two different things If you told someone on the day you hired them "You are guaranteed X amount of dollars for the next five years but could be moved to another office in the country at any moment" then it would be a better comparison. Those people would have no reason to complain or let if affect their performance. The NBA has worked this way for decades so if these Rockets players have a problem with it then they need to be moved for guys who are more professional and mature. But I'm sure the Rockets are listening to a professional manager of people and expert deal-maker such as yourself. http://bbs.clutchfans.com/showthread.php?t=182182
