Clippers tried to acquire Harden this month

Thanks @Nook , to everybody using it as an excuse go live somewhere else for a bit. I miss Houston. Used to b**** and moan constantly when I was there but it’s one of the top cities in the country for a reason.

Oklahoma, Memphis, San Antonio, Phoenix, Milwaukee, minny, Indy, Detroit, even Dallas...none of these other places can compare. Yet people on this board wanna sit here and use that as an excuse.

Another money post. The simplest explanation...

 

Houston only falls short as an NBA player's city when compared to California cities, Miami and NY for some. That's it. However, when the pool of really good free agents is so small, that is a real issue.

 

Its not a better city than LA or NY like you said, but its not OKC. The answer lies within developing a better FO and system for players. The rockets are a whiny gimmick in the eyes of a lot (whether it's true or not that's how the media portray them). They also don't help themselves with a cheap, ruthless, cold calculated perception.

 

This is the point I was making, but certain individuals get hung up on the wrong things and try to derail the conversation. Think of the FA superstars we pursued and where the ultimately signed:

• Bosh - MIA
• Melo - NYC
• KD - Warriors
• LBJ - LA
• Butler - MIA

Let's take a look at some of the superstars this season:

• KD - Brooklyn (basically NYC)
• PG13 - LA
• Kawhi - LA (even left a team he won a ring with!)
• Butler - MIA (definitely not for winning)

 

You may perceive it that way, but the Rockets haven't had an issue adding talent. They've only lost out to the cities I named. Chris Paul chose Houston over San Antonio which I'm sure you think has a better rep. Westbrook wanted to be here over Miami. Rivers chose us over other teams, apparently including LA.

We will never be an automatic choice like the LA teams, but I think we do as well as could be expected at attracting top talent, probably moreso. It's pretty crazy that in the Morey era, Dwight, Chris Paul and Westbrook have all CHOSEN Houston as their preferred destination. Three hall of famers, 2 in their prime, one at the end of it.

 

Having traveled to LA so many times to have lived there for close to a year. We are not talking OC here we are talking rat infested **** show. 2 hours on Thursday night in traffic to get to dinner. LA sucks.

 

KD is probably unfair to include because his move was simply about joining the best team, but the rest are obviously accurate. Shows the one disadvantage we can't overcome. If they want that life we just won't be the choice. But we DO offer something in between. No, we aren't LA, but we aren't Milwaukee. We're a historically well run organization that wins at a high level, has a good city with warm weather and no state income tax. Our negative as a city is simply what we aren't, not what we are. Players like Houston they just like LA or Miami better. Players (for the most part) don't like Milwaukee or Oklahoma City or Charlotte, etc.

 

Important to remember we aren't talking LA we are talking mega millionaire LA. They get to hang out with celebrities, have super models at all of their parties, eat dinner with movie producers, etc. etc. etc.

If you ever watched the movie "The Family Man" there is a quote where his character says something like "If I were living in Roman times,I would live in Rome." For celebrities that's how they feel about LA.

 

I am not saying we are a **** city, just that our city is not a huge selling point for superstars that CAN get max money anywhere they go and that is a fact. Players come to us because of Harden (certainly wasn't because of Parsons or Lin) and to a lesser extent, Morey. They know (despite what the vocal minority here thinks) that as long as the Rockets have Harden and Morey, we will be contenders every season. They know as long as the Rockets have Morey, we are a team capable of becoming a contender without ever having to tank (though you can make an argument we were preparing to when we ended up with Harden) through a very competent FO. Certainly H-Town is better than Milwaukee or Dallas or OKC, but in the world of limited commodity that is superstars, we are very much behind the 8-ball against teams that can score a serious interview no matter what simply by virtue of the city they are in.

 

I definitely get what you are saying which is why I made sure to delineate the difference. If you are chauffeured and pampered you can isolate yourself in gated communities away from everyone else.

 

Yeah... commoner's LA and rich people's LA are totally different things. Same with NYC and to a certain extent, MIA.

 

Let's not forget Harden basically choosing us as well. He could have played his original contract out, and left just like any number of stars. Instead, he doubled down, signed extensions, and made sure this is where he plays the rest of his career. Also, the cold calculated perception is a bunch of garbage being thrown out by dumbass writers who love to create spin. Obviously we churn and burn our roster looking for the best talent, but who doesn't?? The fact is that guys like Gordon, Tucker, Capela, Rivers, GG, PatBev, and any number of others LOVE/LOVED playing in Houston, and have been incredibly vocal about that. This organization has made a home for a lot of guys, and done right by them. Of course there's going to be roster turnover....if you're not doing that, you're not looking to win.

 

Harden has definitely proven to be loyal and has really made a home in H-Town. Same with Dream, Watt, and Altuve.

 

This is why I miss the old days, when players stayed on the same teams for the majority of their careers.

 

Harden wouldn’t have enjoyed it on clippers anyways. Leonard one of the biggest divas and most selfish guys around.

He beat a damaged warriors team with a team that won 17-5 without him. Whoop dee doo.

His mentality is he’s the golden prize and anyone who doesn’t abide by his rules can **** off. Dude is a glorified pippen at best

 

Idk...I like player movement, I think its pretty great for the league. Morey thinks so as well. I think the era of 2 super stars but no super teams is great for the league.

 

lol, this is hilarious. just as we got past the issues with CP, they expected us to take back some of the players we gave them to get CP in the first place?

 

Exactly.

I feel the same way with the people who want to b**** and moan about members of the org being loud on twitter and “embarrassing” the franchise.

These players pay ZERO attention to this. The only people who find it to be an actual “thing” are the same negative Nancy types who are always looking for the negative angle. I’m my opinion at least.

 

I like players staying as the face of their franchise. When I was a kid, Dream was the Rockets and Rockets were the Dream. Same with Jordan and the Bulls, Magic / Kobe and the Lakers, Thomas / Dumars and Detroit, Bird and Celtics, Robinson / Duncan and Spurs, Stockton / Malone and Jazz, Kemp / Payton and Sonics. We had the chance to build up real rivalries, not any of this artificial media BS feuds that we have today.