He doesn't have to be a star to be an important piece to a team. If I had to make a choice for which player I would want on the team over the next 7 years, I would take Tate of KPJ.
He's our Elie & Herrera combo: good defender, hustles, has a knack for rebounding, handles the ball, can play in the post, makes strong drives, but long term probably not a starter on a championship team. 3pt shot needs to improve.
I really like KMjr, but this isn't really fair... KMjr plays 0 defence except for weak side shot blocking. Tate guards the perimeter or the post and is extremely active and effective. Also Tate is an initiator on offence, KMjr is an effective finisher, but not a creator for others. I don't see any major similarities...
Right about the time Tate is doing his third quick pump fake in succession directly under the rim, I think He's not going to get it off this time. And every time, he proves me wrong.
I love Beverley but Tate has far better defensive fundamentals and positioning, there’s a lot of wasted energy and motion in Beverley’s defense.
We saw a lot more Tate as the initiator and I believe that's why our TOs were much more limited. That's the real reason I think he is a very unique player. His handles are arguably the best on the team other than Augustine.
It’s funny that Augustine gets all this respect on here, while Porter’s game was outstanding. Augustine has always been a journeyman and he is now over the hill. Must be all the tea-sippers on the board.
I'm a big KPJ fan and I do not think Augustine is very good but we are talking about JUST handles. KPJ has some pretty dribbles but he does lose the ball a lot. Compare that with Augustine who I don't EVER remember him losing the ball off the dribble. Yes his style is not flashy but there's a reason with a game as limited as his that he has been around the league this long.
Fair enough. I think Porter’s TO problem will improve when the rotation gets settled. There has been tons of love for Augustine on this board and he is clearly not the player he once was. I would much rather seeing Jaygup getting those minutes or letting Tate facilitate and let KJM get a few more minutes at SF when Porter is out.
I think if we're patient Stone will free up minutes at the trade deadline. It doesn't make sense to bench the assets for trades right now as frustrating as it is not see the young guys get run. Gordon/Nwaba/House being shipped opens up a lot of opportunity.
He is a solid role player - a lunch pail guys that teams that are trying to win, really count on....PJ Tucker, Mario Elie etc....but he is wasted on this Rockets team - because he is taking time away from guys who have much more upside than him.... Still he is a joy to watch, so at least he gives you a hard hat cheer for kind of guy. DD
Tate is 26, KMjr is 20. You are right it isnt fair because you are comparing Tate who is as old as Cwood and got lots of experience vs Kmjr who was playing in AAU just a couple of years ago. 6 yrs from now Tate is likely out of the league or a tertiary role player while KmJr is gonna be better than Tate is right now thats why it makes more sense to invest time and resources in Kmjr rather than Tate.
cmon its penny pinching... you spending all the playing time desperately needed for player development to save a couple of 1st or 2nd round picks...its not a good business... youll get better return developing players ....a single young player making a significant progress can recoup you all those picks.... everybody in the league knows the value and minuses of gordon house theis ...the difference between what youll get for them if you play them (and they play this bad LOL) and what youll get for them if they dont play is minuscule and negligible
I don't think Nwaba is traded this year , Silas seems to love that guy and the young players do too .... Augustin , EG and House I can see being moved .... Augustin & House much easier than Gordon. You might be able to get a #1 from a contender that needs 3 spot help for him if he starts playing half decent. I don't know what Augustin nets you , maybe a #2 ? Even taking back a poor contract likely doesn't get you a #1 pick as $8,750,000 is the most you can take back in a trade for his salary. EG is playing his way out the door but its still not real easy to move him and not take back a a player (roster spot) or contract you don't particularly want - unless that team has cap space which no one but OKC does. You'd have to take back a minimum of $14,575,054. to move Gordon and preferably that being in the form of a single player , not multiples where you have to clear a roster spot to facilitate that trade. There's really no one you want to cut at this point. With EG's contract you can take back "Up To" $22,873,522.5 so that's your range of a single contract - $14,475,054 to $22,873,522.5. Probably someone you intend to buy out , waive or have ride the pine. There aren't a whole lot of contractual matches out there for EG, it will likely take a multi team deal to get him out the door. OKC is going to have to take on some salary by the last day of the league year as they are well under the cap floor It's not penny pinching , its maximizing assets. You can have both the picks from those established players and the growth from the young guys .... with a little patience. December 15th is when players who signed contracts this past offseason are eligible to be traded , that opens up a lot of new options for GM's looking for guys like EG , Augustin or House. Then you let the kids run wild the rest of the season ....
I disagree. I think Tate could be really good. Not many players have Tate’s combination of size, handles and speed.
