(CHRONIC) Point guard wishes Rockets would extend contract to match his growing value

Yeah, the Lakers got BETTER and we are still the same unless you count Bud, Hill and Pat as major improvements.

"me" basketball IQ is fine. Keeping a player based on a "potential" match up that you CAN'T control unless you are trying to get a low seed in the first round is absolutely Stupid. and for every old PG that AB goes against and smokes there are 10 PG that smoke him. Collison, Nash, Williams, Hill, A. Miller, Westbrook...the list goes on and on.

But NOOOOOOOO, you have to keep him because he beats the Lakers

I don't hate AB but he's not a PG and I'd like to have a PG that can actually PASS THE BALL in the post to Yao on occasion.

 

"Hey all you free agents out there or guys looking for new teams - come play for the Rockets, where we promise to remain flexible and will think about extending you when your contract is up, depending on what the market dictates at the time!" How has that pitch not been working so far?

 

That's kind of the question, though. Does it benefit the team more to (a) show "loyalty" to their guys by "taking care" of them-- i.e. by extending contracts earlier and paying them in the upper range of expected market value, or (b) always act rationally by paying no more than the market would, don't extend contracts unless it benefits the team, letting guys go if they get too expensive?

I can see merits to both approaches.

On one hand, being "loyal" is apparently what Pat Riley sold the free agents on. On the other hand, I am not sure if that's really what matters to these guys. Does Carlo Boozer or Chris Bosh really care that Chicago "took care of" Hinrich and Deng financially? Toronto didn't manage to keep Vince Carter around by showing loyalty to Antonio Davis and Alvin Williams. Melo apparently want to go to NY and there are complaints about the organizations' lack of loyalty from the likes of Ewing and Oakley (Dolan is apparently only loyal to Isiah).

Also, wouldn't a team being economically handicapped by "loyalty" be less attractive to a star FA who want to win?

Morey, I think, has reasons to believe that most players and agents act in the players' best economic interest and being with a "loyal" organization doesn't necessarily improve on that.

 

It does suck for Brooks, but I hope he proves to not be the sort that will start playing badly because he has gotten a extension.


... Shout out to Dunta Robinson.

 

You're on fire today. Well played sir

 

As opposed to the Rudy-Carroll regime that you still pine for...?

"my god, 6 blocks in preseason? Mr. Cato you are our center of the future!"

"Hey that Brent Price is a nice little player, let's lock him up for SEVEN years!"

 

How good is Kirk in your opinion? Pierce is 6'6 and kirk is 6'3, kirk does guard pierce well though. Even if you took the money out, where do you see him as a good starter?

 

On pure ability, on his own, I'd say he's a middle-of-the-pack to below average starting PG in the NBA.

However, his package of skills is perfectly suited to be a fourth starter on a championship-caliber team. As a complementary player (rather than as a go-to guy), he is well suited to be a Derek Fisher type, only better.

 

you insist in making it Kirk vs Aaron....at least from my point in a WORST CASE SCENARIO (the actual Kirk, not the potential best) was Kirk+Iggy >> Brooks+Battier ....so why insisting in Kirk alone?

OTOH, about Hinrich in a vacuum....he's very underrated because somehow he got eclipsed since the arrival od Derrick Rose...he got relegated to bench and played many minutes SG......I don't think a team laike the Wizards would give him motivation again....

But remember, he showed talent earlier in his career, he even made it to one Dream Team....that's why he got such contract mainly, becuase the talent he showed....he has been underachieving these seasons, but I'm pretty sure the talent is still there....

A team like the rockets, with such team chemistry, with many intelligent and hard working players, it's an ideal place for him to feel motivated and blossom again...I don't think it's that late for him...

 

That assessment of the Rockets is horrible. Aaron Brooks TORCHED the Lakers last season. He consistently gives the lakers fits more than any player. Without him we lose our quickness advantage. Also, your comment about Brooks getting smoked let's me kenow you don't watch many games. I know for a fact he had his best games against Billups & Nash last year. He even played well against Paul.

You have no idea what your talking about. If the team took your advice we'd be a mediocre team lead by Kirk Hinrich

 

Brooks averages last season vs lakers:
42.4% FG 23 ppg, 5 apg, 3.67 rpg, 1 spg, 4.5 TO pg

Brooks averages last season:
43.2% FG 19.6 ppg, 5.3 apg, 2.6rpg, 0.8 spg, 2.8 TO pg

rockets 1-3 vs the lakers last season

Yes brooks did score nearly 4 more ppg against the lakers but shot slightly worse and his stats across the board are more the less in line with his seasonal averages except for turnovers where he averaged nearly 2 more turnovers per game against the lakers. I wouldnt necessary call that "torching" a team when you score more but shoot a lower percentage when doing it and make more mistakes.

The lakers can start putting kobe on brooks at stretches if they have to much like how they did with westbrook last season in the playoffs to slow him down. they can get away with fisher or blake guarding Battier or chase in those moments as both are either spot up or off the curl type shooters. fisher has the art of flopping off curls down and blake is still fast enough where he can keep up where the lakers wont be too hurt with either of them guarding chase/shane at stretches. and if you expect to beat the lakers when chase or shane become the main offensive threat, then the lakers have already won.

IMO last season it was always Scola, Landry or Andersen that gave more problems to the lakers than brooks did, big guys who can shoot the midrange always forced with gasol or bynum away from the paint which they hate to do and opened up a lot of the floor for everyone else.

 

That is why we should go after Randolph. For a big man, his mid range game makes the defense honest and he stretches the the floor and creates plays for Yao in the post.

 

Hill and Scola have decent mid range games

 

Scola yes. Hill not quite. I think Patterson probably has a better midrange game than Hill. But neither young guys has done enough to show one way or the other.

 

Martin is what 12 mil and brooks is better so give the guy what he deserves 13 mil all yall sayin 8mil really? remember most improved player of the year the guy will get better not worse remember the clutch shots @ denver and celtics

 

The Rockets team operates best at an up-tempo game these days. Brooks is a better up-tempo PG than anyone else being mentioned. If the team was a slow it down all half-court team, maybe I'd agree, but the up-tempo game is what suits are team these days.

 

The Rockets up tempo game has taken them to the lottery. How good is that?

 

cool, because guess who the fast break PG is?


Kyle Lowry.

Lowry runs the break better than AB. creates better in the break than AB. Brooks does all his work in the half court set. Lowry pushes the tempo,

 

Morey either trades Brooks by the trade deadline or he lets Brooks walk in Restricted Free Agency. Either way, Brooks is not coming back after this season. Morey is too smart for that. Brooks just isn't worth the $6+ mil per year somebody is going to offer him next season for sure.

Here's hoping Morey can find a taker for Brooks. I know it will be very hard to move Brooks, given that he'll be a RFA and way overpaid after this season if the MLE survives the new CBA, but there is always the chance Morey will work a miracle and unload Brooks on some unsuspecting scrub GM.