actually five players need to be cut. likely: Sura, JLIII, Landry, Reed, and either of Harris/Novak. everyone else (except Novak) is capable of making a rotation on some NBA team. 1. Yao 2. Tmac 3. Francis 4. Bonzi 5. Battier 6. Scola 7. Hayes 8. James 9. Snyder 10. Head 11. Brooks 12. Deke 13. Butler 14. Rafer 15. Novak
Why does it have to be Alston? Why not Snyder? Snyder and Harris are the same type of player. If Harris stays then Snyder should go and vice-versa. You don't cut the only true PG on the roster, especially if you have the option to cut a guy who doesn't really do anything productive. Not to mention that Snyder's a dumbass.
dumb? what do you call getting arrested twice in a week? sure, he might be innocent, but whose fault was it that he wasn't able to stay out of trouble? Adelman's system doesn't require a true PG not unlike Phil Jackson's triangle offense. also all 3 PG's on the Rockets have very strong personalities/attitudes. i don't see Francis or Mike James being satisfied with anything less than 25 mpg. one of the (3) heads of the PG monster has to be sacrificed or no one's going to be happy.
While I agree with most of your points, I can't agree with your assumption that Justin Reed has not performed well in training camp based on a lack of coaches raving about him. First of all, Adelman didn't say one word about Mike Harris until he was ASKED about him. No one has asked anyone (as far as I can tell) specific questions about Justin Reed's performance. I have heard unsolicited comments from Rafer, however, that Reed has had some good scrimmages in camp. The fact of the matter is that no one on this BBS or in the media cares about Justin Reed, so no questions are being asked about him. I bet Adelman would say some complimentary things about Reed if he were only asked. That being said, I wouldn't necessarily bet on him being a part of the team this season.
Butler will stay, I;m sure. We can be also sure that Novak, Sura, Lucas, Harris will be out. That's easy. Now we have a great roster so these players even if the stay they won't play.
i am not sure who else would be cut at this point, I think it is still too early to make any assumptions. However, I can guarantee that Butler will not be cut, unless we get another backup Center. Yes Hayes and Scola will be playing some PT at the 5, but given Yao and Deke pass health condition. Yao will need a backup and I am not sure if Deke can still man the 5 without his own backup to balt him out. we are thin at the 4 after scola and hayes. Scola has everything to become the next Duncan, but he is still a rookie and he will require some adjustment periods. We couldn't get a decent backup 5 during the summer, or else we wouldn't sign deke. as we knew for sure that we would need another backup behind deke. I think rockets was trying to get a decent backup for 5 so we don't need a "1 for 2" package on deke. Bulter is a save bet to stay unless we get a better backup center elsewhere.
The only three we can be sure is out are Lucas, Reed, and Sura, even then Reed has a small chance to make it. I don't think Harris will be cut. Yes Adalmen didn't mention him untill asked, but thats what he's suppose to do...answer the question when asked. The only players I heard him actually mention was Head, T-mac, and James. He didn't even mention Yao until asked, so I wouldn't take that away from Harris. Novak and Snyder have value still, and Sura's contract is still an expiring one, so he's also a trade possibility. We will not cut Novak or Snyder, if they're gone it would be via trade.
I think Butler's a good possibility to be cut. If the indication is that's he's only good for six fouls, we could certainly have Landry do that. Size means nothing if you can't contribute. I was hoping he would return to his level from the knicks, but I'm not counting on it. And we need to give JL3 some burn in the 2nd half of the preseason games. He's a lot better than he showed last year. Give him some PT and we may actually get a 2nd rounder due to increased interest. I'd like to see more of Harris. He looked great in the summer league. If he impresses in the preseason I'd love to see him backup Battier at the 3. We don't have a true backup SF (besides Tmac), so Harris' energetic play could be a boon if he's got the skills.
Here's how I think the bubble looks right now, and I have no justification for this: Butler Snyder Harris Landry ------ Novak JL3 Reed "Sura's contract" I think Reed has to go. His contract (~3M over two years) would be more to swallow than someone like Novak's or Landry's, but these are NBA owners we're talking about here. In cases where the millions can still be counted on one hand, most NBA owners will rule on the side of what's best for the team (except for the Knicks of course, who have no monetary accountability whatsoever). Anyways, just saying that if Reed is the odd man out performance-wise, his salary will not be an issue. If Harris clearly outplays his competitors for that last spot, then he will get it.
1.Lucas- this is obvious considering he's the fifth string point guard 2.Reed- i think this is obvious. this guy is definitely cut before Snyder 3.Sura- can't play literally, so an obvious cut it gets hard after that... 4.Landry- he's just an unproven rookie 5.Harris- despite lots of praise, i think he's just a Chuck Hayes clone that leaves us with a 15-man roster question: how does sending players to the D-League work? are players that are sent there count for a roster spot anyway? do they take their contracts with their respected teams with them? are they open to sign with other teams when they get there?
Sending a player to the D-league means that they are part of your 15 man roster, but they play instead of sitting at the end of the bench. If we release someone, they are free to sign with any D-league team, unless they were drafted by that team originally like Chuck, then the team that drafted them get first rights. Otherwise the contract is voided by the rockets per the terms and they are considered a "free agent" At least that's how I understand how it works... experts feel free to correct.
Yes, they do count towards the roster spot. I think Harris will probably end up sticking around. People who say he's a Chuck Hayes clone are probably not entirely accurate. He seems more of a Ruben Patterson clone to me, but with a couple of inches' advantage. It's not hard to imagine him getting close to 10ppg if defense leave him open like they did with Hayes. The difference between Harris and Hayes is that Harris can hit a J, while Chuck probably has better hands and a nose for the ball. Snyder getting cut is a possibility. He has athleticism and can slash to the hole with abandon, but ultimately, he doesn't do anything that Bonzi doesn't do better. If Bonzi stays, and by all account he should be staying barring something imploding in his head, Snyder just MIGHT go. You know, I retract my earlier statement about Butler. All things considered, he just MIGHT be on the bubble too. Fact is, he's still raw, but he's had a couple of years to develop now, but he hasn't shown more than Stromile Swift did. That alone should relegate him to the end of the bench, or maybe even out of the team. Scola could possibly cover at the 5 in the unfortunate (touch wood) case that both Yao and Deke break down. So who knows. If Butler sleepwalks through training camp like he sleepwalked through San Antonio, chances are he's the 5th guy getting cut. Novak is probably a lock to get cut. He's billed as a shooter but he can't hit a shot when it counts. What good is he for then?
I think that Novak is staying in Houston at least to prove that he can play better,and I think he would fit fine in Adelman's system.
His inability to get his shot off against NBA players had nothing to do with systems. Likewise you guys are writing off Landry way too quickly. He was taken with the first pick of the second round and was a guy the Rockets(Morey) felt was among or the top PF available among the non-lotto players.
Im sorry but novak needs to get cut. We have no use for him. This is not jvg's system where someone can just camp out at the three point line and jack one up. We dont need specialists on this team anymore who only do one thing, we need a different type of system guys. I dont think anyone can give a legit reason why he should be here this season. Sura, JL3, and Reed need to be cut for obvious reasons. The 5th cut is gonna have to be landry, mainly because harris is just better. Landry also gives us another power guard who can replace 3 positions in case of injury.
