http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/playoffs/2014/story/_/id/10863760/next-moves-houston-rockets It's a great read if you need some optimism. While Kevin Love is my Plan A, Paul Millsap would be an excellent B and I'd prefer him over Melo since he's more of a true PF and not nearly as ball-dominant. Melo/Harden doesn't seem like an ideal fit and doesn't improve the half-court defense. Screenshot of article: Spoiler
Josh Smith is interesting. He'd be a great player if we get a coach that is going to stay on him and get into his head that he can be a great player if he stops thinking he's a SF. If you get into his head that he's a PF and should play down low he'll be a fantastic player for you. He'd guard guys like LMA too.. Call me crazy but I think Rondo is the best fit for the Rockets. He's a tough guy and he's super competitive. He'd bring a edge to this team that they don't have and look at his track record in the playoffs. He ups his game, triple doubles, hitting shots, he's a big game player. He's a defensive anchor. He's a smart player.
Josh Smith would be absolutely horrible. Dont bring him anywhere near us. All he does is take 3s that he has no business taking. He would be a good player if he played to his strengths which is in the paint, but he thinks hes Melo. I'm all for Paul Milsap and an upgrade at the PG position.
Yeah I can't agree with Josh Smith. Did he not see how well JS and the Pistons did this year together? He's literally a black hole. That's an awful contract. Millsap though, yes please if Love not available.
Smith is a guy who needs to be well coached to become effective, and since we don't have a good enough coach, we should stay away from j smoove at all costs. Millsap is incredibly intriguing, but I have no idea how much Morey will have to pay to pry Atlanta's only uninjured all-star away, especially if they make it to the 2nd round and steal a few games from the Wizards.
Exactly. Josh Smith will have a Z-Bo/Sheed Wallace career if he ever gets a good coach. That guy is too athletic and too skilled up. Pistons basically told him to be a SF...that's a disaster.
I would consider Josh Smith if he came equipped with a shock collar to zap his ass anytime he contemplated shooting more than 4 ft away from the basket.
Thanks for the article. I love Millsap (no homo) and he would fit like a glove for us, almost as good or better than Kobe because the former plays defense. Morey should do everything Iin his power to bring Millsap to Houston. Lowry should be Morey's other target. We are projected to have many battles with the Blazers over the next few years. I want a real two way player who is tough as nails super competitive to go head to head with Lillard. Dream starting lineup for the 2014-2015 season: - Howard - Harden - Lowry - Millsap - Parsons With these changes, we improve tremendously on both sides of the ball. Morey should do everything, including picks to get the above done as Howard is not getting any younger.
Josh Smith is a conundrum. Obviously very talented. Obviously a terrible, terrible perimeter shooter. If our coaching staff instilled a more disciplined style of play for our team I would trust him to play only to his strengths on offense. In Detroit he was forced to play out of position as a SF on offense. He can definitely guard SF's on defense but using him as a "spacer" to give Monroe and Drummond room to work inside was a terrible idea. Joe Dumars should not have signed him without having a plan in place to move Monroe while still on his rookie deal. As a PF he presents all of the benefits that TJ brings to the table on offense (ability to beat PFs off the dribble, finishing ability near the rim, etc.) without the terrible defense. As a bonus JS is a great passer from the high post. One of the pet plays Atlanta ran in his last year with them was a 4/5 pick n roll using Smith as the ball-handler and Horford as the roller. This play would be a great wrinkle for us to add to our half court offense. (Truth be told we could probably try to run this with our current 4/5 combo of Jones and Howard) <iframe width="640" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/jNDDedgbxxI?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> I wouldn't be so opposed to a Josh Smith acquisition IF Detroit threw in some picks in order for us to swallow his contract. JS is one of the few people I would trust to put on an island against Durant, Dirk, LeBron, even Blake Griffin. I'm not saying I full heartedly want us to pursue him but I wouldn't be in too much uproar if he ended up here. God knows he would improve our defense.
I think it's important to not over-react to the loss and understand how evenly matched Portland is with Houston, and how close Houston is to being an elite team. We have two good players ion Harden and Howard that pretty much carry the team with a good SF in Parsons, despite his up n down moments. While Parsons will never be a star he's a damn good role player who fits what we're trying to do on offense, which is to score in transition. The problem with the Rockets is the lack of bench and half-court struggles, particularly when it comes to play-off time. So what's the fix? Certainly the answer isn't to ship out your best players. No, you address the team needs and improve your match-ups with the other elite teams in the Western conference. First, you sign a PG that can play some D and doesn't make silly TO's. Second, you find a guy another sharp-shooter or two to improve the bend contributions. Thirdly, you find a quality low-post defender that can slow-down guys like LA and Griffen. Having said that I'd take a long look at several guys: Anthony Morrow - terrific 3 point shooter Boris Diaw - proven veteran that can defend the low post and step outside for the 2 or 3 Nate Robinson - can play the point, score, and play some D Thabo Sefolosha - another long athletic guy that can defend and shoot the 3 Jason Smith - a 7-footer that can consistently hit the mid-range jumper, something Asik can't do Darren Collison - plays hard on D, despite his size, and can get it going on offense. Seems to burn the Rockets every time we play the Clippers. Rather have him with us than against us. Ray Allen - under-rated defender that can still hit the big shots and get to the basket when it counts. If I'm Morey I'd would do whatever it takes to unload Asik and Lin. I'd get rid of Garcia, Casspi as well to make room for another FA or two. I'd upgrade the PG and PF spots with some solid defenders down low, add another sharpshooter and be done for the off-season. Do that and you probably get past teams like Portland and the Clippers, the two biggest threats to Houston right now.
