David Aldridge predicts Steve Francis for Ray Allen

a) this would be a trade i could get very much behind. ray fits in with the whole inside-out thing much better b/c he can shoot and he still has enough pure offensive power to be a very good second option (or 1b) so we're not hitching our wagon to yao prematurely (which everyone here already does)

b) when someone said he was 30, i was a little worried. when it turned out he was 28, that made it much better.

c) if by some miracle this happened, i wouldn't trade cuttino. i'd play cat at pg. "WHAT!" everyone says. cat doesn't pass enough or very well. ok, true, but so the hell what. you don't need john stockton for the inside-out game. you need derek fisher and kenny smith. and guess what, cat actually plays D and can create his own shot if need be, making him more valuable than them. plus, he has speed to spare when it comes to guarding quick pg's. cat can shoot, and if we get rid of steve, i absolutely do not want some eric snow type, i want a guy that can shoot and spread the floor. it's the only way the makes sense.

d) i like having lettered responses like this.

e) get rasheed wallace in the offseason if you do this and don't trade away mo if you can't get him. i'm not watching cato let the defense collapse if i don't have to and i'm not letting padgett be the alternative. if we get rasheed, get rid of mo. if not, moving mo for a pg (especially one that can't shoot) would be idiotic.

f) with sheed and allen on board (let a man dream) and cat at point, i'd put all four of those mofo's at the 3 point line and dare teams to double yao, or front with a man behind. robert horry has been so essential on two different championship teams b/c he's a PF that could guard the post but still not allow any weakness in the inside-out game b/c he can shoot. rasheed is one of the few pf's (at least that we can get) who offers this same opportunity. he only shoots 34.1% from 3 but that's enough (and he can shoot inside of 20 easily) and actually isn't much worse than what horry shot for us. if we could somehow get allen, not be dumb enough to not at least try cuttino at pg again (or at the very least get a shooting pg), and get rasheed, we would be a very, very fearsome team.

g) too bad it will never happen.

 

If Ray Allen can stay healthy maybe it can be ok. I've started to go from a Steve defender to be ok with parting with Steve for the right package if it come along. Don't get me wrong, it would be most ideal if Steve can develope into that great home grown product, but he needs to improve instead of going downhill.

It's sad if we just want him to play like did his second season in his fifth. Now I wouldn't even mind if he was traded for a SG.

Question: Who was the last PG to start a playoff game for the Rockets as a rookie?

Answer: Cuttino Mobley, in a big man oriented offense, Mobley can run the point as well as Steve, so I wouldn't be to adverse to trade him for a SG.

 

If we could get Rashard and Lewis from Seattle shipping Francis, Cato and filler (Pike, Nachbar, Padgett, Griffin) , and trade Mobley to the Sixers for Eric Snow... and manage to keep Mo Taylor... this team would look SO good...

Yao/
Taylor/Spoon/
Rashard/JJ/
R.Allen/JJ/
Snow/MK

Fill the blanks with the role players.

Hey, I can dream, can't I?

Maybe Mobley for Barry instead of Snow?

Francis for Allen alone is a no-brainer!

 

I really like Ray Allen -all class. He is under rated.

Many on this board would rather have Rashard Lewis than Steve Francis. I do not think Seattle will part with him. We can only get Rashard when he becomes an unrestricted FA, or if Mr. Lewis really wants to live in Houston. He has a lot of bitterness being passed over/ overlooked in the draft years ago. CD would be the only one left from that time and I suspect will be gone in the next year to 18 mos.

If Rashard has an opt out clause in his contract in a couple of years we might think long term about aquiring him. I am nuetral on this- it would fill our small forward slot. We have no talent there-Piatowski and Nachbar both blow. Jim Jackson is better suited as a shooting guard to alternate with Mobley.

My favorite scenario would be to trade Steve Francis to the LA Clippers for Elton Brand. The Clippers will never do this, but it fills our poward forward spot for years. For a point guard -trade for Marco Jaric - tall point guard at 6' 7" -ALTHOUGH 2ND TIER this would complement this team well.

Iwould rather have a powerful front court with Elton Brand muscle to complement the finesse of Yao Ming.

This will never happen though.

We need to save that trade exceptioin for the off season - we will be a contender then.

I want an effective power forward. We need power in that position to help Yao develop and be effective.

 

both of these may go away this year

SAR in Portland is a good fit IMO

Rocket River
just like SF in houston

 

I am sure they were just throwing out possibilities just for talk sake. I dont see ANY Rockets deals getting done before the deadline. All bets are off in the offseason though!

As for Allen, I agree with Clutch, the best time was to get him last year. I was really pissed to see the Bucks deal with the Sonics in that deal. Anyone with a brain knew that Payton was not going to re-sign with the Bucks and basically it was a Allen/Murray+1st rounder for Desmond Mason deal. Talk about a rape job! Just Allen for Mason was bad but now in hindsight to see Flip Murray and a 1st rounder in that deal is just ridiculous!

I am sure we were trying to dangle Cato and Mobley to get Allen, but I am sure like Clutch said, if Griffin's name came up we probably hung up the phone. It really is sad the kinds of players we could have gotten for Griffin. The loss of Griffin really crippled this franchise in terms of adding players!

As for Allen, I really like his game. He has good size for a SG and can shoot the lights out. He has shown in Seattle that he is more than just a good SG. He is a good passer and rebounder and a good leader. Quite frankly he is EXACTLY the kind of person that would mesh well with Yao. Ask yourself this. How comfortable would you be with 15 seconds remaining on the clock with the ball in Ray Allen's hands?

Allen for Francis. I would be very tempted at doing that deal. The only thing that scares me is Allen's ankles. He has had ankle problems in the past (loose tendons?) so I might be cautious with wanting to take him on if I thought he would be seriously injury prone.


For you dreamcasters out there, how about these moves.....

1) How about Ray Allen for Francis.
2) Then Mobley, Nachbar + (conditional future 1st rounder) + T.E. to the Hawks for a S&T Rasheed Wallace. Hawks do this deal because they don't lose Wallace for nothing and at the same time get "cheap" players that add value and since we use the T.E. The Hawks dont have to "take back high salaries" as the T.E. takes care of the difference. (FYI, this is exactly why the T.E. is valuable whereas Glen Rice's expiring contract would not be a factor at this point!)

3) Then we use our MLE for a PG. For the sake of argument, let's say it is Brent Barry. Then let's throw in the fact that Charlie Ward almost came to Houston because of JVG....let's say he decides this summer to do it.

PG: Barry/Ward
SG: Allen/Pike
SF: Jackson/A Griffin
PF: Wallace/Taylor/Spoon
C: Yao/Cato

I would feel pretty good going to war with that line up. In fact I think that lineup could go deep into the playoffs. Who in that lineup would you double off of to double down on Yao?

 

Allen works with Yao, Steve doesn't.

Done.

Make the rest of the moves later. Do this, now.

 

EXPOSED!

Another veiled attempt to prop up your boy SF. Sorry but the SAR-Francis parallels continue....

The Hawks were 31-19 and the 4th seed in the 1998-99 strike shortened season. The Rockets were also 31-19 that season - their last playoff season.

 

this is the trade Rox GM couldnt resist and shouldnt resist. Bring Allen, Yao need pure shooters to surround him at the back court, "Power" F to attack the rim and true PG to pass the ball at the right time and right place.

 

Don't get me wrong, I would love to have Ray Allen!! But I would hope that MoT wouldn't have to be part of the deal, he is our only big guy that is giving productive minutes.

 

besides Yao.

 

Why the hell are people saying Allen is 30 when he's turning 28 this year? He's at most yr and half older than Steve.

 

Ray Allen: He Got Game.

I'm all for it. Trade for Allen. Sign Rasheed in the offseason. Get a cheap pass-first PG.

It's all good.

 

I am for it.

Just don't think Ray is as good as T-Mac/Garnett/Duncan, etc.

 

I think the Rockets are indeed considered a joke in some circles.

 

Hey, that sounds a lot like the moves I made in this thread ;-)
1) Allen for Francis.
2) Wallace for Mobley, Nachbar, Conditional 1st, TE.
3) Barry with the MLE.

Speaking of the Hawks and Rasheed. Some interesting quotes from the Hawks GM yesterday.

I am not saying it is the best deal around. I am not sure what other teams could or would offer but we can put together a package that would satisfy ALL THREE things the Hawks are looking for:

1) Cap Space = Room provided via the T.E.
2) Young players under contract = Mobley, Nachbar
3) Draft picks = conditional 1st rounder.

Just something to think about.

 

I don't see why people are so hyped about Ray Allen. His teams over the course of his career are 296-296. He's been on exactly one NBA team in his 7 full seasons that won more than 42 games. Remember, last season we were all disappointed with 43. He's on pace to miss the playoffs for the 3rd straight season. His defense is subpar. He's an injury risk. He plays the same position as Mobley, so we'd have to get rid of him too. An Allen-for-Francis trade fails to fill our most glaring need, which is low-post scoring, and in turn leaves a gaping hole at PG to be filled by who? Mark Jackson? In the immortal words of RealGM,

TRADE REJECTED.

 

He's probably the equivalent of Steve Francis, so what's the point, just to shake things up. Doesn't work for me. Francis is more marketable than Ray Allen. So he's more valuable given that they are nearly the same player from a production standpoint. Francis also has more potential than Ray Allen as well. There's still an opportunity for growth given his athleticism. So I stay with Steve Francis and give him the chance to take the next step. Which by the way, we are about to do when we make the playoffs. Let him taste it. To see what it's all about. And then let him grow.

 

....lies, damned lies, and statistics...