I don't mean to call you out xiki, but I keep hear people repeat the dogma that we need a better starting 4 than Howard. Name seven non-max power forwards that are better than Juwon Howard. Now cross out anybody on a rookie contract, coming off a big injury, or over the age of 35, and ask yourself who the heck is really available? Howard is a HUGE upgrade at PF over Cato. We'll miss Cato's minutes at C, but that can be replaced. The grass is always greener guys. This isn't fantasy basketball, it's the NBA. I agree!!!!!!
Ward might put a decent effort but he will be going up against Parker,Nash,Bibby,Jason Williams,Bobby Jackson, Barbosa,Miller, Boykins,Kidd,Baron Davis, and Steve Francis. Lue can't stop them and he is far better than Ward at this point in time.
In reverse order... -You're basically saying you just want this team to grab some headlines again. Great. I think it was Stein who made the comparison of Dallas' offseason last year (Toine and Tawn) to a running back who jukes 2 defenders, spins this way and that, freezes another defender, but despite all the flash, the play only got him 2 yards. The only thing that can overshadow TMac is Shaq, and he left our conference. -We don't have the assets. Teams want young talent and/or capspace. We can provide neither. Sure, Gaines and Boki are top 15 picks and may end up as starting caliber players, but neither have had success in any capacity at the NBA level that say an Al Harrington type, or Jermaine O'Neal did. As far as contracts, we don't really have any significant contracts ending after this season. Next year, we may find Weatherspoon's 6+mill expiring contract to be much more mobile. Our best asset is the TE, but it's not enough to acquire guys making the money that Kidd/Bibby are. If you want Eric Snow or Alvin Williams though, that can be done, but why pay a hefty price for 30-something injury prone players with major (shooting) flaws? If we had held on to Francis, you'd probably hear the Francis for Bibby/Kidd rumors by now, but I'm much more happy we got the 2-time scoring champ that's significantly younger than both instead. -Hinrich is a pipedream. You think the Bulls want MoT that badly? Or want to get rid of Eddie Robinson that badly? Not badly enough to give us Hinrich for taking him, that's for sure. I don't even want Crawford. We could probably get him for the TE, picks, and swapping bad contracts, but why bother trying another square PG peg in the round PG hole? Ward doesn't thrill me. But odds are, we get him at a MAX of 2 years, and a MAX of the LLE (1.6 mill). People seem to think we need another guy to play 40+ minutes a game like Francis could. The difference is, Lue is a decent player. If he had opted out (he's probably kicking over that considering what guys are getting), he would get a lucrative contract. Lue's probably a slightly below average NBA starting PG, but well above average for a guy coming off the bench. If you platoon him with another guy of a similar ilk (Charlie Ward, Damon Jones, Mike James), and with a little hope Gaines figures out why he was drafted 15th overall we can survive. Lue is a heck of a bargain at 1.6 mill- people are praising Arroyo over only getting 4 mill per, and his numbers aren't really much stronger. The difference is, Jones/James will probably sign 4+ year deals. Ward won't get more than 2 years. I don't see the difference in play between those guys being significant enough to sink major $$ into it. The window for Yao/TMac is incredibly long, but they'll need time to gel. We don't need to make "closing window" type moves like panicking and taking an Eric Snow. BTW Jeff- Fisher/Barry won't make anywhere near $14mill in a single season. Still, 7+mill at that age is ridiculous.
Jeff, great post as always; however, it is a fact that we need more inside help. I think many of the games we lost last year were in the front court. Yao gets winded, our 4's are soft, so who is going to be the iron-man inside? When Cato went out last year, we looked like a bad team. Don't you agree that we need a solid defensive big-man to really assure ourselves of a great season? I just don't think that it's all roses. I can deal with us not signing anyone spectacular, but we still have some major holes, and I don't agree that they're not a big deal. Look at the depth the rest of the west has. Our PG signing will be the least important thing we do this offseason in my opinion.
Last year, before Ward got sent to the Spurs he was starting for the Knicks and playing well. Sure, he split a lot of time with Eisley, but he always started and got more minutes. If he came to Houston he'd probably be splitting a lot of time with Lue as well. Numbers last season w/ the Knicksbefore he got traded: MPG: 23.6 PPG 8.7 APG 4.9 SPG 1.3 RPG 2.7 FG% .442 3PT% .428 TO 1.9 I think those numbers are pretty solid for what we would need out of a starting PG. Plus he's familiar with Van Gundy's system, which is very important, especially for a PG.
I also think Howard is an upgrade from Mo. My concern, as it has been since OT left, is that tall and/or athletic 4s kill the Rox. Duncan, KG, even Malone @40. No one stops the 1st two -- except each other? I have a rooting interest in LaFrentz because I think he'd be an effective, albeit expensive, 4/5. If he (and Atkins?) came over for Mo and Spoon or whatever I believe Rox would be upgraded. All that said, since my ideal 4 was a bust and was busted, I want other upgrades to counterbalance shortcomings. Starting with an effective 1. TMc will do for Rox all, or more, that Clyde brought to the court -- overmatching 1s and 2s, scoring at will, demanding doubles and so forth. I am not pessimistic about the season, I am concerned. There are few teams certain to be in lottoland in the West. GS and Seattle and Clips? Any should be in the playoffs in the three deep East. We could be #2, or we could ka-plump into Secaucus.
Man, that was a great way to present the argument for those of that think it's not the end of the world if we don't make any more big changes to the roster. Everyone knows that our 2 most obvious needs are PG and back-up center, but Jeff makes a really convincing argument on why it's not as bad as most people here paint it. Regarding the backup 5 position, name me 5 teams who have good back-up 5s? Most teams don't even have a serviceable starting center, much less a good back-up. Our previous wonderful back-up center (Cato) is returning to his prior role as a starting center, and we all know how well he filled that job. The reality is that good, tenacious, defensive-minded big men are harder to find than compassionate conservatives in a non-election year (sorry, I couldn't help myself). Most young guys who have that kind of size are trying to play like PGs and shoot 3s insteada of banging inside for tough rebounds and thankless interior defense. So, it's highly likely that we won't get a quality back-up 5, but that won't be that different from nearly every other team in the league. As for as the PG position goes, we'd all like to sign a young, up-and-coming PG with a high A:T ratio and a good 3-pt shot, right? Well, they aren't exactly growing on trees, and the ones that are probably in River Oaks or something. So, we maybe we'll have a below-average name guy playing the point next year. Management will make sure that whoever it is fits JVG's system, which should make him average. Meanwhile, we will have the clear advantage at the 2/3 and 5 on nearly every single night. No team has the advantage at every position. The PG's job will be to make sure that we run the offense through those 2 guys. Anyway, no need to go any longer because it's been stated many times. But maybe a post of sanity coming from the Clutch Crew will help bring everyone back to reality & sanity.
Very well said, Jeff! We want to build a contender. That might take a few more years, as they develop together. I think we need to gather other pieces around them "that fit," like CD said today (almost sounded like he'd been reading the BBS the last few months). If we need to develop them, then that's what we do. But, I sure don't want to lose our ability to gather more players in the future, because we paid all that money to Fisher. Barry, I really liked, although I thought we'd be able to get him for cheap. Well, that's not the way this FA seller's market worked. Barry could have made us contenders this year, and he'd have been worthwhile for 3 years. Maybe all the fourth year was, was extending his salary out. But, when he went for so much money, even though I really wanted him, I was almost relieved, so we didn't have to have that on our backs. Ward is probably sufficient, if he comes really cheap, with Lue. But, actually, I'd rather find a way to get Duhon from Chicago somehow and let him develop, and let Gaines take his best shot this year, and see if he pulls a Dwayne Wade, and clearly determine his value. If he doesn't, no loss. We can trade for someone during the winter, if Lue or Ward isn't enough either. I guess everyone's biggest concern is that they don't let the TE go unused, so the whole Rice trade turns into another debacle. But that was dealing with mistakes from previous years. It wasn't the mistake. The mistakes were signing Maloney, Cato, Anderson, Rice, Moochie, and Taylor to bloated contracts, and we'll make the same mistake if we panic and buy in a seller's market this summer. And, even if it isn't used, it's had value. They got under the luxury tax limit, and it enabled us to get Jim Jackson. It gave us leverage in the Mcgrady trade. I still believe we'll find a way to use it, but I hope we don't just take on more bad contracts. Maybe it can get us some draft picks, to facilitate someone else's trade. If it gets us some muscle in the paint, like a Jerome Williams, lets use it. Hopefully, we can pick up some talent we can grow, like a Chandler, Hinrich or Duhon somehow, instead of only thinking for this year. Let's support CD in not picking up any more big contracts. The TE has 2.5 more months of life, so they are going to take their time and find the best deals, regardless of our anxiety. We might not pick up a backup center until someone makes their finals cuts in pre-season. So, we've got to chill a bit. I agree wholeheartedly with Jeff, that we shouldn't panic and get so impatient with this process. We want to be contenders for many years to come.
Something is definitely going to happen before the start of the season. I truly believe the Rockets will be involved in a three-way trade w/ the TE. There are a dearth of players that are want to be moved, and there are players that GMs are itching to move. On 610, CD stated that he was definitely looking trade route for a PG, B/U C was the next position he was looking to fill. There is definitely substance to the Sonics as being trade partners with the Rockets, I think the details are which albatross big man contract is the team willing to take. The Soncis probably want to make sure Ridnour (sp?) is okay before trading Daniels. The kicker is which big man they want to saddle us with. As for the lack of action, do you really want to know what trades are being worked on? I mean we, the fans knew about the McGrady deal for two weeks and were dying for it to be over with. CD had to endure it for six weeks! I know the offseason is hard on the fans, but we have to be patient. Can you imagine how bad it would be if we knew there was a chance we could Kidd, Pierce, Lewis, Hinrich, or whatever other players have been mentioned on this board. We live and die everyday with news from/on this team, speculation is usually too much for us, the fans to handle. Lets just sit back and relax, enjoy the fact that we have the seeds for a dynasty. If its any consolation I think without saying it, CD let the fans know something was in the works, and it takes time to get a good trade done...its gonna happen, all we have to do is wait.
Jeff I absolutely agree with your sentiments on this offseason. We get arguably the second or third best player in the game via trade, we cut down our turnovers by five to six a game, we get a better power forward, and we have a more steady point guard that is willing to play defense in Tyronn Lue. Not to mention we get a talented number one draft pick at number 15 last year that happened to play for Rick Pitino. Im not sure what it is exactly because Im not a psychologist. However I can see that there are people in here whose glasses are definitely half empty. I can understand frustration because that will happen in life. But what about just venting just for the sake of venting? Aren't we all fans here? Not complaining babies that just whine because we're girlie men? WE HAVE YAO MING, WE HAVE TRACY MCGRADY, WE HAVE A POWER FORWARD WHO CAN CATCH, BOKI HAS BALLS, TYRONN LOCKED DOWN ALLEN IVERSON IN THE FINALS IN 2001, JIM JACKSON IS BALLIN', MO TAYLOR CAN STILL SHOOT. Surely we have enough good things to look forward to, rather than whining over a point guard that we haven't even received yet. Didn't we just get Tracy McGrady a couple weeks ago? Has the buzz already wore off?
Lue has never played good defense. That's been established. With trades, tehre comes the reponsibility of balancing out the roster if the team becomes weak at certain positions. We need a backup C and we need a PG. We have the tools to do it. Why NOT get it done?
Summer is just getting too damned looooong.... Can't wait to see Rockets in Shanghai or Beijing, hehehe. It's the only time I won't be envious of you guys here in the US.
A splash every two weeks should cure the ailments. Of course by the time the regular season starts, our team would be totally different.
Alot of the comments are based on the premise that we have Yao and T-MAC for years to come... to develop a roster around with sound pickups, etc... But, T-Mac hasn't signed any extension, and I am sure if the Rockets don't make the playoffs or don't go far in the playoffs, then he leaves again. If we make solid signings this offseason, then T-Mac might sign the extension before the season even starts. Though I agree that Lue is a serviceable PG, and Howard is an upgrade at PF, but did T-Mac get along with Lue and Howard in Orlando? But winning can make friends of enemies (a la Kobe and Shaq). I agree the sky isn't falling. We've made excellent strides this offseason, but as Detroit showed the Lakers this year, depth is a wonderful thing. We can wait, but we shouldn't rest.
The Spurs' offense is almost identical to the Rockets... * Low post entry passes, kick out if the big man is doubled. * PG drive and dish. * High PnR with the big man. Like I asked in my edited post...how much different is Popovic's offense from Van Gundy's? I am not sure what relevance Nachbar has in the discussion, but the playoff saavy and well coached Spurs signed Ward and didn't play him. And Ward chose SA over HOU because...he didn't think he fit SA's offense? Right. And the player who beat out Ward was left unprotected and is now in CHA. And the NY Knicks waived Ward because they had Moochie Norris. And Ward declined his option year with SA because... I'm not sure why you're a card carrying member of Ward's fan club, but if he didn't fit in SA, why on Earth would he fit in HOU? Dangerous shooter if left open? Incredible passing vision in a fastbreak? Lock down D? Anything over the $1m exception and we were robbed. And look for Gaines to eat his lunch by January.
I just read that small piece from today July 19th in the Houston Chronicle... I think CD just told us out loud that they are not going to pay someone big time money and not for more than 2-3 years... So its obvious that Jones is not coming, you know he wants to be loved "Show me the Money!!!"... I still think CWard will be in a Rockets uni... Like I posted on another thread about CWard... He just makes sense... As the starter or the backup... Most of the athletic PGs are now in the Eastern conference: Marbury, Francis, Iverson(not a real PG), Billups, Hinrich... Western conference doesn't have that big time athletic PG anymore: Cassell, GP, Nash, Van Exel(only Hudson is very athletic anymore and he's coming off an injury)... CD just told any and everyone that he's not going to pay another Moochie Norris contract... Simple... I agree with CD and I think most you do also... So unless someone wants to give us a decent PG via trade it won't happen... Don't think we have a chance for anyone but CWard... I can live with it as long as its 2-3 years(possibly the 3rd year being a team option) for NO more than half of the MLE...
we are not looking for anything fancy. And didnt he get traded to phx and then got waived. If he gets paid big buck i would be mad to. BUt he is not the bad player everyone is making him out to be. Ranks #10 in the NBA in Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage(0.408). He has a good 3 pt shot.
I agree. Clutch put a poll on the front page and all three (Barry/Fisher/Hudson) are gone. We lost them all and people are actually happy because "we did not sign them to the long contract". New FLASH: it is going to be more expensive. heck, the last time I check, agents are the ones who negoiate the contracts and they will definitely demand more next year. JJ signed with us last year because he was old (33). He is 34 now and I won't be surprised to see his stats drop significantly (e.g steve smith two years ago). We have one superstar, one borderline all-star, one 34-year SF, three overpaid medicre PFs and three PGs that can't make most NBA teams' rosters. We have no backup C, no starting PF, no backup SG, no PG, and no SF if JJ sucks next season.
