[Draft Express] Houston making "major push" to acquire #4 pick

I wouldn't worry about that. It depends on him what kind of player he becomes.
We've got a good environment with our coaches. and Hakeem.

 

Cousins is going to be a a very good player in the NBA. He has all of the physical tools, he has a very good stroke out to mid range, and he knows how to use his size in the paint. If we were able to get him in the draft we would be set for the next 10 years. All of this talk about he sucks is ridiculous, so just stop it. Ok, so he doesn't have the demeanor of Dream. So what? He has a mean streak that this team could use. Not sure what we will have to give up to Minny IF this rumor is true, but I trust Morey and his decisions on players. Having cousins come off the bench next year behind Yao would be a really good thing.

 

Cousins might end up being the next Moses Malone.

 

If the Rockets are doing this they should go all in and try to get both the pick and Little Ricky. That would probably take two first round picks, Brooks, and either Chase or Hill. If Yao can't come back, Cousins and Rubio would be the new foundation, a new era, and probably the start of a two or three year rebuilding plan.

PS, If the Rockets are seriously trying to do this, it indicates their lack of faith that Yao will ever fully recover, because that number four pick is going to be costly.

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If it is Cousins they're going for, I bet it's the fact that he is apparently good at drawing fouls and getting to the line that makes him attractive to the Rockets.

Much like walks was the key stat for Billy Beane, Bill James etc and the early "moneyball" types in baseball. I think we've found a parallel in fouls drawn.

I think it's currently anundervalued stat that Morey et al have correctly identified as something that the league (and casual observers) tends to collectively undervalue, which is why he was able to snag a guy like Kyle Lowry who exceeds in that category for essentially old junk in Rafer Alston.

 

The problem with collecting guys who draw fouls is that, unlike baseball, where each hitter can walk, in basketball only one guy can be fouled at one time. If every player who we acquire had a high usage rate and high fouled rate, you can't just add their foul rates together and expect us to get fouled that total % of possessions. Really, we're only going to get fouled as much as the highest foul % of the group because he's going to get the ball the most. There is a severe amount of diminishing returns with fouls drawn in basketball as opposed to walks in baseball, and it's also dependent on officials being fair, competent, and unbiased. And we all know how good NBA officials are.

 

cousins makes sense if he is flipped for bosh.

i don't think he can play with yao.

 

That and he's an awful FT shooter. He only hit 60% from the line at UK last year, and some games he was freaking terrible.

 

I have my doubts on that as well, but if Yao is held to 30 mpg tops from here on out (and probably 25 next year), there's room for a 30 mpg big off the bench (Cousins) who would get the majority of his time with Luis and not Yao.

 

Likely trade pieces...
Jermaine Taylor
Trevor Ariza
Shane Battier
Chase Budinger
Jordan Hill

*The Wolves might like Trevor Ariza (Laker and Rambis connection/Knows how to run the triangle...)...
*Kahn has been adamant about adding veterans so Battier could be moved as well.
*Kahn would love to have Hill to throw in with Al Jefferson and Kevin Love, He contrasts very well with those two players. I would be surprised to see Morey trade Hill.
*Budinger and Taylor would give the Wolves more young wings with potential, which is what they are looking for.


That leaves us with...

1. Aaron Brooks/Kyle Lowry
2. Kevin Martin
3.
4. Luis Scola
5. Yao Ming/Demarcus Cousins

If they want Paul George at 14, and they have Brewer developing nicely, my guess is that they don't really want our expensive SF's, and could really use a cheap player, like Chase Budinger.

Essentially, the deal would be Chase Budinger, Paul George, 2012 Knicks Draftpick, and Cash for the rights to the 4th pick Demarcus Cousins.
(Maybe the rights to Sergio Llull as well?)

That leaves us with...

1. Aaron Brooks/Kyle Lowry
2. Kevin Martin/Jermaine Taylor
3. Trevor Ariza/Shane Battier
4. Luis Scola/Jordan Hill
5. Yao Ming/Demarcus Cousins

Perfection...

 

60% from the line is better than Budinger anywhere except line.

 

Yao won't be around much longer...

 

I like how your opinion is stated as fact.

 

In the post trade interview, Morey specifically mentioned Martin's ability to draw fouls as a benefit to Yao and the team -- it means that the team is more likely to be in the bonus earlier. If the opponent then has more fouls on their bigs and has to go deeper into their bench against a frontline of Yao, Cousins, and some amalgamation of Scola, Hill, and Bosh, that can only mean good things for the Rockets.

 

Going after Cousins makes NO sense if we're just going to turn around and trade him for Bosh. We are NOT going after Cousins to trade him to Toronto -- Houston would 100% keep him.

Though you are right, I have my doubts on how he and Yao could co-exist.. which leads me to believe that Yao's days might be numbered.

 

Thanks, rep me... :grin:

A legit center to limit Yao's minutes could really extend his career.

 

I agree that drawing fouls doesn't stack as well as walks in baseball, but getting to the penalty is still very important. Also, drawing fouls on centers is very important considering it can drastically affect how well Yao can be guarded.

 

Just look at the most recent game 7. Every Laker was drawing fouls. The refs don't swallow their whistles in the playoffs. Plus, our main guys draw fouls in different ways. Lowry in transition and offensive rebounds, Martin in face up isos, Yao on the block. It's good to know that no matter who is on the bench, we can still be aggressive and put the other team in the penalty quickly.

 

If it goes well, Yao can save his energy for the playoffs. Perfect fit for the situation. They don't have to play together often.