[Chron] Rockets must get smart about options, money

If it wasn’t for Wade’s supporting cast, he wouldn’t have even made it past the first round against Chicago. Wade was dominant against the Mavs. Definitely carried that team to victory in the finals. Probably could have won that series no matter who his supporting cast was. But that was one series. Championships are not won in one series. He was hardly dominant against Chicago in the first round. Hinrich and Gordan gave him a lot of trouble and his shot was off the whole series. Without his role players stepping up, Miami is gone in the first round.

Even the greatest of superstars are bound to have a bad playoff series every now and then. Who’s going to pick up the slack when that happens to the Rockets? You can expect Yao and Mcgrady to play great ball most of the time, but you can’t expect them to play great ALL the time, which is what’s it’s going to take if this supporting cast is not significantly improved. Mcgrady and Yao can only carry a team so much.

 

True but giving him a trade-kicker is bad news. Then everybody wants trade-kickers and your team holds you hostage for making any further moves in the future. Bad news. I don't blame Les for rejecting the trade-kicker.

The same was said about Chuckie Brown and Kenny Smith ...ironicy playing the same positions.

Kenny Smith > Rafer.
Juwon >>> Chuckie Brown.

If Yao and/or TMac have MVP like performances, we'll be fine.

A lot of teams address their problems and it only works out for one of them. You never know how things will work out so just relax. The sky isn't falling.

 

That team had Horry starting, Chuck Brown was in Chuck Hayes role, only Brown was better.

Yao << Hakeem
JHo << Horry
Battier = Elie (generous to give Shane the tie at this point)
Tmac > Clyde
Alston << Kenny

--and this Rocket team had a guy off the bench (Sam) better than any current starting Rocket not named Tmac or Yao.

That Rocket team had not just an MVP playoff performer, but a class above MVP playoff performer we really can't even dream (no pun intended) Yao or Tmac could duplicate (no one today in the NBA is close to what Hakeem was then), and had a far better supporting cast through 8 men deep. Even the one edge the current team has Tmac (if healthy) over Clyde, the edge isn't that big.

 

once again, you're giving our management a complete pass.... totally devoid of responsibility. If yao is healthy, if mcgrady is healthy.... blah blah blah.

once againthe rockets front office is banking on being reactive instead of proactive. wait and see if our guys are healthy, if not then we'll make a move.... bullsh!t. so far this offseason we've had several opportunities to improve this team dramatically and the front office braintrust has dropped the ball each time.

 

there's noway we can win without taking risk at big contract
unless Head suddenly turn into Wade and Novak turn into Peja
what's the chance?
0.001%
the chance is much smaller than Gay turn into something special during his rookie season
since the trade is not official
let's just take back Gay and Swift

 

Oh, where to begin.

First of all: Look, I am generally fine with Johnathan Feigen's writing - he is a nice beat writer. BUT COME ON. There is not a hint of skepticism or balance here.

You know how waiters make like $2.10 an hour, but are expected to compensate with tips and whatnot? I think a select group of Chronicle sports writers make like $14K per year base, but pick up the real bucks in huge payouts from the PR staff. They must. Dude - do the PR interns buy your groceries? Stop reading Armstrong Williams' "How to Suceed In Journalism Without Really Trying" and strap on a set. Just throw people with some sort of independent critical thinking a bone to show that at least he knows that we know that he knows that he is full of crap. Otherwise, it's just as bad as Fran Blinebury blowing smoke up Hakeem's netherport on a weekly basis. Well, not that bad, but still bad.

Secondly - I say we get over Mike James and Rudy Gay sometime before the weekend and start talking about the stuff we usually talk about - McGrady's back, the uniforms, trading for Kevin Garnett and each other. I like Mike James, but this is too much. His market value was high, probably too high this summer, and it was close, and you can argue it reasonably either way, his side or ours. WHATEVER. He would have been nice. He's not Tracy McGrady, he is not Yao Ming, he's not Steve Nash, he's not even Shane Battier. I deep in my heart, think we will survive this frosty winter in which we let a 31 year old Mike James slip through our fingers. We get all "stockpile-ish" in the offseason, dreaming that Mike James and Rudy Gay are the next coming of Lewis Lloyd, but black magic is not going to walk through that door. neither is the whopper, the dream, the stick, the chicken man, the shark, bobby joe, mad max, the jet, or the freight train. life goes on. is it the actual mike james we mourn, or the dream that all our problems are solved that we are mad about? Rudy Gay? Honestly, lets save our strength for when there is an actual problem.

But to address Feigen's point that MJ's "request for a trade kicker is ridiculous not even Yao has that" is nutty. I can absolutely respect a man with a family who wants a trade kicker, espeically given this situation. Anyone here ever uprooted a kid from school and a wife from her friends against his will, because your boss thinks someone else can do your job better, and then moved BACK to work for that company? I bet precisely zero people can relate, and having a bunch of $ does not make relocating a child and probably b****y wife any more fun. I think his demand for a trade kicker is a 300% reasonable way to address the mondo-bizarro fact that we are begging someone to return to our team who we shipped off nine months ago. I totally get that, and Minnesota

I'd be more inclined to pass on Mike James because a) that is alot of years for a guy with a good season or two on his resume and b) he is not actually THAT great a fit. Yes, we need a third scorer. Yes, we need a solid point guard who can jet an offense. But as inconvenient as it is, we might need NOT to fill those needs with the same person. MJ went on a six hour televised tirade about him not being a pass-first PG and so forth last year, and I am not sure he is the man we want running the Yao and McGrady show for years to come. Just becuase he is a convenient semi-solution to two problems does not make him a perfect fit for either, and I really think the franchise will live without him. I like him, but whatever.

But if he was going to be point guard, scoring option AND beat writer, then we could have talked about the four year deal. That would have filled some holes.

 

Nice post CBrown. Good to see you posting again as I always enjoy your perspective.

 

Let me use this post in illustrating the arguments presented here.

Before we do that, let's find a common ground - call that facts for a moment, although no one is absolutely sure right now - with the best of our knowledge: Rockets offered James 4 year MLE. James asked for a trade ticker, and a player option on his 4th year. Rockets refused. James picked Wolves.

Now onto scenario 1, what if he plays like crap, say in his third year? Well, in this case, player option is irrelevent, since Rockets has already offered 4-year. Now a trade ticker certainly won't help in trading him. Then, who wants a 34 years old guard playing like crap even without a trade ticker? This simply means Rockets will have James salary for one more year @ $6m, sort of like a Moochie for one year. For a team with Tmac's max contract and suspect back, is that too much risk to take?

Oh wait, you say, what if that happens in his 2nd year? Or he simply isn't a good fit? Well, ask your GM, Coach then, why do they place so much emphasize in signing the guy if they don't even have the faith the guy can help the team in the next two years.

In short, if you reallly want the guy, is a trade ticker too much an extra risk in being a deal breaker?

Now, onto Scenario 2. What is he plays fantastic throughout 3 years and wants to opt out? Well, I say let the 34-year-old test the market. Much like the first Mike James episode. Maybe Rockets already have some young prospects ready to take over, then you'd happyly let the man go; maybe there won't be any team who's under the cap interested just like now; maybe MJ does becomes inexpendable, then pony up, you already got the man for the bargain price for 3 years if he's that good. So again, how's a player option on a 34-year-old hijacking the future of the franchise?

Now, more on trade-ticker and bad precedence.

Trade-ticker isn't as rare as some of you make it out to be, as many people have already pointed out in another thread. Tim Duncan doesn't have one, yet Malik Rose had one, so what?

Will MJ gets a ticker set a bad precedence for Rockets so as every FA from now on wants one? FA negotiations are about leverages. Right now, Rockets doesn't have leverage, MJ holds all the leverage. However, it doesn't mean Rockets would have to give ticker to every future FA. In fact they may gain some leverage in the futre against MJ and persuade him to waive the ticker - this happens often enough. I don't believe giving him one now will hinder Rockets ability to sign future FA.

In basic labor theory, you want to sweeten the deal to ensure royalty, pay relatively extra when productivity is low to ensure he works extra hard when productivity is high- what's called efficiency wage. You give them options if it motivates them to work harder. Oh well, I guess CD doesn't have a PHD.

 

They screwed up and overpaid for battier. Doesn't mean they have to do it with James too....

 

CBrownFanClub, did you really just let him get away with that? All that Mike James stuff you just talked about and nary a word on the real issue here?

 

That's BS. I'm not giving them a pass. I didn't say they've made all good moves ...just the opposite. That being said, all teams make moves and all teams make some good and some bad. Nature of the game.

That being said, virtually all good teams have a dominant player or two. As fans, we need to take solice in the fact that Yao and TMac can perservere DESPITE what management does.

If neither Yao or TMac ever mature into an MVP candidate 99x outta 100 that means we will never win a championship ...whether we have Mike James, Battier, Rudy Gay, Stromile Swift or whoever.

 

When did Chuckie Brown average 17/7? TIA.

 

I'll chime in next time JHoward has karma so powerful that it either destroys or saves an entire organization.

 

uh compare the heats entire roster to the rockets.

 

No, Chucky Brown started PF. Horry started SF. Drexler SG. Smith PG. and Dream[/QUOTE]

Perfect example of two stars carrying a team. Once Yao and TMac mature enough and they stay healthy, they can do the same. Not unlike Shaq and Kobe that were also surrounded by a below average team.

 

I think James may score 30 plus each time and each time the Rox still win. Yes he did get better last year, but scoring 20 points on a terrible team in your contract year doesnt exactly make me a believer.

I understand James not wanting to be traded and not wanting his life to be disrupted. However, that is just not a right you get to have when someone is paying you 5 million a year to play a game.

 

I'm thinking the ethics of MJ all of a sudden bringing it up probably turned heads the wrong way. It's like buying a car and all of a sudden the dealer tacks in some extra costs. (sorry or the bad analogy)

 

The front office was not reactive when they went out and traded three starters for Tmac. Last year the front office was also proactive. They didnt sit on their hands after a 51 win season. They went out and got Stro and Derek Anderson. Most people, including the experts, thought those were good enough additions to put the Rox over the top and at least be the 2nd best team in the west. Some moves work, some dont, but you cant say the team sits by with the same team every year.

This year they did their best to get Roy and seemingly had a deal in place until the Blazers jacked things up. When that failed they went after a player that most people think is a great fit for the Rox and gave up on two players they clearly feel were not going to help this team. Of course we have to wait and see about Gay, but for whatever reason the Rox did not see him panning out and were never going to have him on the roster.

 

So now we probably have a lame duck coach, a lame duck GM, and a lame duck owner. What fun.

 

It's also very hard to move a max player, especially if he's injury prone. So T-Mac and Yao have what amounts to a 99% no-trade clause in their contracts.

Agree. I think the negotiations boiled down to this: that MJ did not trust CD and JVG. I don't blame him.