[Chron] Instead of a quick fix, Rockets might play the waiting game

I don't have a major problem with this approach, but I always felt outside Tmac, Yao, and Scola anybody should be tradable and there are trades out there we can explore with our pieces.

 

That's where I am. There should be a poll about Scola:

A: Pops barfed and we got an asset.

B: Despite Scola's 2nd half play last season he's just another 10 & 5 unathletic white guy who didn't thrive 'til Yao went down.

C: Even idiot "Euro-lovers" won't even give us a low lotto pick for this guy.

D: He's 28 and peaked before he came here, or...

E: We need to keep him another year just to make sure we don't make a horrible mistake.

My best guess is most here think 'B'. I obviously think 'E' unless something really screwy happens that doesn't benefit the NBA's ratings.

We really need to have another epic NBA Finals pitting Kobe's will against inexcusable pathetic GM's. And losing. Sigh.

 

I think Bobby J and Chuck Wagon will be headed to Milwaukee for a younger Bobby J or a Mike James in a contract season. Could be a spark plug of some sort knowing Adelman.

As for Milwaukee, they get Bobby J in a contract season lolz.

That is just 1 option.

I can think of 2 more before that, well which ever is the one we like most and/or which ever is most likely to bite first.

During the course of the season though.

I dont expect to see VC in New Jersey and/or Ron Artest in Sacramento.

And depending what happens with our season, it will be time to move on and think about extending the window if nothing can be done or injury. New Jersey also fits this description.

Who ever has Iverson, Marion, Odom, LaFrentz and what other big contract on their roster after the deadline, then i expect that is where Artest will ink himself after the season's end. Iverson though will be on a contending team for sure put your money on that.

Marion i dont expect to see him around and who ever trades for him will be after Iverson which will be a contending team anyways. As far as last year goes, expect the same Marion move some where. Remember Suns only made the move because they feared he would opt out and demand more.

It's like a chess board and you have to think in advance.

Carmelo Anthony has a pretty good shot at not sticking in Denver. He requested a trade already and as for the team in general it's best to move him anyways (financial reasons and under achieving). If he is moved though, how is it possible being BYC? Maybe another team is giving them the money up front i dont know.

I was storming a Spurs forum and came across a rumor with no link that Scola is thinking about going back to Europe?

 

I'm not saying this because I think of fantasy hoops or X-Box. Hell I'm not even sure if the call was ever made or will be made. After the season and right around draft before and after, I really look at depth charts, contracts, and games I have stored on my cpu. Why doesn't a guy like Al Harrington fit what the rox want to do?

I've brought the guys name up because of a couple things that has happened, and the fit as a player as well as contract flexibility and compensation.

First off, GSW lost Davis, and drafted Wright in 07, and Randolph this year. They have to pay Ellis and Biedrens this yr or the next. Its clear they are going to retool. Harrington makes 9m in 08 and 10m in 09.

Enter the rox. The rox can get a 6'9 3/4 that can shoot the 3, put the ball on the floor, defend a ittlle and rebound a little. He's 28 and has been the man on the team before, but he's a guy that can get u 15 ppg. He could start at 3, then when Scola comes out, he can can slide over and play the 4, which in turn u can let landry walk. When the Rox play the Odom types or even the mobile 4's, they have a guy that can guard them from a quickness and size aspect. Top that off, he would only cost u probably Jackson,Francis, and either Head or Hayes.

Is he a great player? No, but he helps ur team a lot now because he can play multiple positions, ge his own shot, and is a good locker room guy as well as that 3rd scorer. He also keeps u in the class of 03 sweepstakes because his 10m comes off the same yr as rafer,tracy, and scola. That's killing 2 birds with 1 stone and u could get him now.

 

No, I was talking about the Morey's stated philosophy and the type of summer players he is targeting, i.e. Brent Barry.

 

I either don't understand the question or you don't understand the LTax.

6 of 30 NBA teams are clearly over the LTax. NYK, DAL, CLE, DEN, POR & LAL. 3 others...BOS, PHX & IND are hovering near it. The Rockets are in @ #10.

So if you're telling us that teams over the LTax never sign FA's, that's flat out incorrect. The Mavs are looking to bring back DeSagna Diop, the Knicks just signed Chris Duhon and the Suns have contacted Brent Barry. IOW, teams over the LTax sign FA's all the time.

 

Shhhhhhhh! You will wake up sleeping fans! Na na na na na na na, I can't hear you! Hard core truth is not welcome, be very careful.

 

No they signed it with part of their MLE, each team gets around 5.6Mil to sign players each year without going into the luxury tax. I am talking about teams actually paying the luxury tax to sign players.
Like the rockets are using part of their MLE to try and sign Landry and Barry, if they are able to fit both players under 5.8mil they don't have to pay luxury tax.

I am talking about any team actually paying the luxury tax to get a player.

I think you just got it confused.

 

Does it result in a championship? That's the main thing. For the last decade, I think most of the teams, almost all maybe?, that end up winning the championship are teams are just below the luxury tax, Celtics, Spurs, Lakers, Pistons. It seems the good teams avoid those big albatross contracts. The Knicks, Mavericks, Nuggets, Timberwolves have done pretty bad. Fascinating.

 

No big deal,no rings,for ROX.

 

Yea looking back at my original quote I think you just misunderstood my comment/slightly confused by the NBA salary cap. What I said was that I don't think any team paid the luxury tax to sign a free agent.
For example lets just say we signed Landry for the full MLE: that 5.8 mil would not count towards our salary cap because it fit under the MLE. After that signing we offer Maggette 9 million a year, that contract would fall to the luxury tax and the team would have to pay a dollar for dollar amount.
Some of the other posters did a very good job of explaining and providing links of how the salary caps work and stuff here link.

Also only the Knicks are currently paying a significant amount of luxury tax, and I don't believe they went over the threshold through signing free agents.

Link

Or are my confused about your comment?

 

Your mistaking the salary cap and luxury tax. The MLE, LE, and other exceptions allow you to sign players if you are over the Salary Cap, which most teams are. But no matter how you sign the player, their salary will be calculated in to determine if you pay the luxury tax.

All the Exceptions allow are for a team to a sign a player they otherwise would not be able to. They do not allow a team to escape the luxury tax.

 

Ok I see, I got two mixed up.

Any how that wasn't the main point regarding my original post.

Thanks for clearing it up rpr52121.

 

We first round exits to show for not going over. We would settle for anything to get out the first round.

 

What part of the Lakers and Celtics being over the LTax are you failing to comprehend? They respectively have $75m and $71m committed for 2008-09.

The 2008-09 Pistons have over $60m committed to 10 contracts. 4 of which (Rasheed, Rip, Chauncey and Tayshaun) exceed $9.5m/year.

The Mavericks and TWolves doing poorly? They have both been out of the 1st round in the past decade. In fact, they've both been to the WC Finals.

$Ball is about minimizing risk. With Daryl Morey you are ALWAYS going to get the consistency of low money contracts. The focus is NEVER going to be the vision of player potential. It was ALWAYS be about minimizing downside risk. Meanwhile, 29 other teams are taking the risk. Only a few of them need to be successful to derail your risk averse tactics.

 

I think there is also a misunderstanding about the luxury tax. The luxury tax does not allow you to go out and sign free agents as long as you are willing to pay the price. The salary cap prevents that. The Rockets can only use their exceptions to sign free agents. They couldn't go out and sign Elton Brand for 15m and pay 15m in luxury tax. You get over the salary cap by re-signing your own players with Larry Bird rights and utilizing the exceptions, all of which count when calculating whether you will have to pay luxury tax.

 

I like Greene, but wasn't Gay and Brewer rated as higher prospects than him? I mean doesn't Outlaw have a higher grade than him? One minute the Rox are half assing winning now, next minute they building for the future. Pick a lane and stay is what I always say.

 

waiting again?

lets see, last season, at deadline, rox traded away Mike james, bonzi, synder for BJax and Green who was later cut.

The year before, rox waited so long that the contract of Sura was never traded.

Tell me again, why are we waiting? Its not like rox have a huge contract that will entice someone. All rox got is Bjax, head and SF3, which will total up to 10m, but who will trade a quality player just for some salary space next season?

Rox do not have good quality young players waiting at the wings, or a young european stash somewhere.

Jason kidd was traded for cap space and Devin Harris.
Pau was traded for cap space and Marc
Ray Allen was traded for the 5th pick
KG was traded for that big guy which i cant remember the name now.

Point is, Rox do not have a large contract that will expire soon, and Rox sure do not have any asset that can be traded along with whatever expiring that rox have.

So why are rox waiting? Just do the trades now, where everyone is optimistic about the new season, and more acceptable to changes. As when they are desperate, everyone in the league will know it, and someone will offer something that is better that whatever rox could offer.

 

exactly right...............

we will wait and get egg on our face......and play thru another decent season and first round exit


its like a broken record..................

I for one m personallt gettin sick of it...............

 

All the scenarios you've described are people being offered exception money. Duhon and Diop are being offered MLE (or part) and Barry is being offered the LLE from us and the veterans minimum from the Suns. In that sense we are going after free agents you know Landry and Barry. Those are the only way a team over the cap can sign FA. What you're suggesting is that its at the owner's disgression to come out of pocket if he chooses, as long as he's willing to pay the tax, and that's incorrect.

This isn't baseball were there is no cap, and the Yankees can just continue to offer Max money to whoever becomes available.