OK, everything Mike Harris and alternate views on roster limitations/scrubs whatever are interesting. Indeed. Now, in a real world (as if the NBA is a real world) what is the possibility (and this is not rhetorical) that if a roster spot opened and Harris were whisked back from China that he would see any court time this season? My guess is close to 0%. My guess is he would be 'developing' towards a full season contract for '08='09.
Did Yao get the kiss of death? Did Battier? What about Boki? Maybe Nash? All of these players are ones I liked pre NBA..... There are lots of cases of players that don't get a contract right away, for whatever reason, that does not make them a scrub. Mario Elie, was he a scrub? Sometimes it takes the right time and right place for a player to find his spot. Mike Harris is NBA ready, and Rick Adelman even agreed, but I am sure you guys calling him a scrub know more than our head coach. DD
This is exactly why I wanted him here this year, so he could basically be our younger version of Bonzi for the future. I do like the team's future with Scola, Landry and Brooks, but it couldn't hurt to have one more skilled, young, hungry player. DD
Yes it can, especially if you are playing to win a championship NOW. It's all about risk vs reward. Before the season, Bonzi's risk was relatively low. He has proven he can play in this league. He knew Adelman's offense and is a legitimate option in the post. He creates mismatches with his size and he is a Spur killer. To anyone with a reasonable mind, this showed a lot of reward before the season started. The same cannot be said of Mike Harris. Sure he could be a younger Bonzi, but that's a lot more risk than having the established "Bonzi" already on our team. If we are trying to win now, we shouldn't be occupying a lot of spots with rookies. We already have 3, and they're turning out to develop just fine. I think we have enough. Hindsight is 20/20, and that's all you really seem to look at. Your opinions change every freaking 3 games.
Uh, I have been saying this all year long.....no hindsight necessary....I wanted the Rockets to keep Harris from the get go. My opinions are consistent. DD
Including Nachbar in a list that includes a two-time league MVP (Nash), a former number 1 draft pick (Yao), and a former NCAA Player of the Year and lottery pick (Battier) pretty much proves my point.
The point is that none of them are scrubs....each player will rise to their capabilities, but that is well above scrub status. If you think Harris is a scrub because he is not in the NBA, then I believe you are sadly mistaken. There are plenty of NBA quality players playing around the world in different leagues.... Mike Harris is one of them. DD
I, for one, am glad that Bonzi has realized that he has been settling. I expect him to pick up his play from now on. Mike Harris, meh. He would have been good to develop, but I doubt he would have cracked the rotation even if he was on the team. He's basically a smaller Landry, or a younger Bonzi...take your pick. Either way, he was a redundant player, and the Rockets would have wasted his potential had he made the team.