People need to stop drinking that haterade and understand that Ariza was a move for the future. He will be a very solid player once he can rely on a shooting guard who can create.
Brooks/Landry/Ariza Trading Battier for expiring contract + 1st round pick. Battier has a higher salary than Ariza. Trading him can have more salary space.
Such a tough question. No doubt about it, Yao, an MLE FA or McGrady return, combined with Brooks, Scola, Battier is the most competent championship lineup. The new style has some of you forgetting how good Scola is alongside Yao, and how important Battier is when we can actually protect the defense boards and play efficient offense. I almost want Scola, Landry, Brooks too (not an available option). Ariza is solid off the bench or as trade fodder (although his contract is constraining no?). Definitely don't want Ariza that bad. Lowry who I love just isn't that good compared to the others. So give me my veterans, Scola/Battier, and the feisty Brooks, let Yao come back, and give it once more chance.
"You're killing me, Smalls!" This was very hard for me... A - Aaron is more talented than Kyle - But Kyle is a more typical point guard, B - Trevor is younger (more years to give) than Shane - But Shane is a better leader and has great BB IQ, C - Scola and Landry are part of the Fours against the World! I want to keep both! Sigh... My choice ends up being Aaron, Shane and Landry... Aaron, because I believe he has the potential to be more than he is - Shane, because I think he will be cheaper for the next five years and they offer the same thing - Landry, because he plays well both with and without Yao.
Brooks/Landry/Battier Ariza was a move for the future but I think every team needs a role model, which may or may not be the leader or captain on the team. That being said I think the Rockets are becoming Brooks' team, but Battier needs to be here until all the talent evolves. I wouldn't want to give Ariza away, but right now and for the next year at least I would find it hard to see the Rockets playing as well as they are without Battier. Brooks and Landry are a given, to me they are 1,2 untouchable on the current roster.
Lowry Landry and Battier Brooks is great, but Lowry is serviceable in this offense, and Brooks can get so much Same situation with Landry and Scola...EXCEPt for the age thing. At some point, Scola will slow down...and it's likely gonna be sooner than later. I'd rather stay young where we can. At the same time, Battier vs. Ariza. I like both similarly, but Battier's heart and leadership outweigh the age issue for me. Plus I think Ariza's trade value might be equal to Battier's given his relative bargain contract and the fact that he's young and locked up
If the Rockets want to play for all the marbles starting next year I believe the players they need for the championship run, if they are made to choose, are Lowry, Scola, Battier and Budinger. Landry has already been exposed by the other teams including the doormat ones so his value will rapidly diminish over time. But this is the time to get a better player for him while he is still playing relatively well. Brooks, as I have often posted, is not a PG. His scoring is inconsistent, he does not have a good court vision, does not pass well, does not run the fast break well, and can easily be trapped in the half court. He is a Shooting Guard except for his relatively diminutive physical structure. He did have a good game with assists when his shots were not falling last game but these are few and far between. When his shots are not falling he is practically useless on the court. The other teams have also figured his game out by roughing him up while dribbling and/or driving. Ariza is, well, Ariza. The would be TMac without the talent, skill and bb IQ. I think the context of "value" in the current Rockets sense should not necessarily be the players' trade value, but rather, their value to a championship team which the Rockets are not that far away from, should Yao come back fully healthy and playing at par with his last stint in the playoffs last year. Young good players are valuable for a team several steps away from being a championship contender. The Rockets with Yao next year are not that far away, in fact, given the right circumstances similar to the previous Rockets championships, they could make it all the way next year, again, with Yao, and the core of the current Rockets as I mentioned above.
I voted for Brooks/Landry/Battier, simply because I like Battier's attitude so much. Realistically, I see Lowry, Landry, and Battier as trade bait though. I can see the possibility of Lowry and Landry being moved this season and Battier being moved next season as an expiring deal. Brooks or Lowry - - Brooks-has another year left after this one on his rookie deal and we have to face facts, he is a better player than Lowry. Lowry is great, he does a lot of things well. But he will never be Brooks. And Lowry's deal is expiring and he is fixing to hit the free agent market. You are looking at $4 million+ starting salary for him next season. Brooks is the more tradeable commodity due to his low salary and production and the fact he has another year left on his rookie deal. But I would not trade Brooks without getting back a superstar point guard such as Chris Paul. Landry or Scola - - Landry is younger, and has another year left on his rookie deal. Scola is a pending free agent and is older. Landry has way more trade value to other teams right now. He is likely to be traded if we could land a Chris Bosh or perhaps Amare. Scola is, because of his age, and pending free agent status, not considered to be a building asset for a team that is trading away a major talent. I think it is most likely that of the two, Landry is the one traded. Scola can still be very servicable and decently efficient on our team. Battier or Ariza - - For the long term, I would prefer to keep Ariza if we could let him run the wing without creating. He needs to be running with a Kevin Martin type at the shooting guard that will get the bulk of the touches and handles and put Ariza in position to catch and shoot or cut and finish. And Battier expires next season. I would expect that if one of them is traded this season, it will be Ariza that is traded since he is so much younger and would be considered an asset to a rebuilding team that is giving up salary. If they are both still on the team going into the offseason, I would expect Battier to get traded during the offseason or before the trade deadline next year.
If the trade results were the same regardless of who you traded, then you keep Brooks, Landry, Ariza as they are all young and under contract for several years. I think specific trade scenarios for each choice listed would make the poll easier to compare what you might be getting in each situation. Otherwise it is hard to say what Brooks potential trade value is giving you back in return in comparison to Lowry for example, or Landry vs Scola.
Brooks, Shane & Scola As much as this is for the future, I putting a sharper eye on next season. Yao, Scola, Shane, (Tracy trade) and Brooks seems to me the group than can get it done next year. (this is me somewhat betting on the AI/SD trade)
The question misses 'who would bring back the best booty' as Lowry probably brings the least back, but should cash in nicely (for himself) this summer (4/$18mm or better?); Landry probably the most (with next season @3mm + Bird). So, what is the matrix point of return? My guess is, depending on the team, Scola or Ariza will net the best return and therefore I am most anticipating one or both to be included in the one or two big deals 'we all know' going down within the next month.
Lowry/Landry/Ariza All three are young and developing, so the tough one is Lowry vs Brooks. First of all Brooks has higher trade value, and then Lowry's efficiency and game impact is so great that you can even argue he's better than Brooks as a complete player(rebounding, hustle, defense, assist, drawing charge and get to the foul line minus his shooting is worse than Brooks). So my point is that their true values are about the same, but Brooks will cost more to sign and has higher trade value. Personally I just can't bear with Brook's finishing ability. I watched every minute of every game, and I'm confident to say that Brooks' ability to finish around the rim is one of the worst in the NBA. 9 out of 10 times he'll get blocked or miss his shots unless where he beat the opponent in speed and timing(like after a pnr the defender is out of position).
Cant trade lowry ,battier,anderson,budinger because they are at lowest value now. buy low sell high You have no idea who are you getter back. If CLutch says brooks for bosh, id vote it. But if clutch says brooks for iggy i say no. So there is no way of knowing whats on the table. However brooks,landry values ARE AT THE HIGHEST they will be for some time now. Unless the rockets get far in playoffs, the value will stay the same or go down. Battier will have more value as a expiring contract next year. If you wanted to trade battier and lowry should have done it right after lakers series when teams were enamoured with the rockets playoff run. sell high : landry brooks ariza scola hayes (wait thats the whole team) dont trade,selling low: anderson,lowry,battier,budinger so trade landry brooks for bosh and get on with it
I think Lowry would be a better fit than Brooks if the Rockets are able to obtain a high scoring SG. If not, I say keep Brooks.
Brooks, Landry, Battier Brooks is almost all-star now and his outside shot would fit a lot better with Yao than Lowry. Landry over Scola because of the age difference and the fact that I think Landry can provide a little Shot Blocking and better offense. (This is the hardest call IMO.) Battier over Ariza because his outside shot is more consistent than Ariza but mainly because I think Battier has such a tremendous and positive influence on guys like Chase Budinger. I envision Chase being the starter at the 3 spot in another year or two anyway and I am not just real thrilled with Ariza as a starting 2 guard. Ariza has very good trade value IMO with his defense and very good contract.
Brooks over Lowry - Brooks is our best outside shooter, and as far as I know the Rockets are still building around Yao, which requires good shooting guards to spread defenses. Trading Brooks would require us to obtain a bonafied offensive powerhouse, and I think that's too much too ask for the purpose of this exercise. Scola over Landry - Like someone already mentioned, Landry has to over achieve night in and night out. You can already see cracks in the armor the past few games. He's also not as reliable of a rebounder or defensive player as Scola. Also, I feel like even with Scola's age he relies so little on athleticism that he still has a number of good years ahead of him. I just feel Scola is a safer bet over the next three or so years. Battier over Ariza - Simply put I have seen nothing from Ariza that makes me want to keep him. I think Battier has at least one more good year left in him, where we could try to make a run at the championship. After that season his contract is up and maybe we can use that money to find a better player than Ariza, which shouldn't be hard.
Sorry I am in the low poll here. I think Brooks and Landry would be good trade sweeteners. Scola for the most part, probably 9 outta 10 games is consistent. Using the trade sweeteners to get some star power, I'd use Lowry as my pass first point guard. Will need a pass first defensive stopping PG once we get a star in here. So Lowry, Scola and Ariza. Ariza and Battier, playing the same basically atm. Sucky. But once his role declines I think he will get better. Not only that, being younger, he will and can only get better while EVERYONE can agree that Battier is on the big decline.
why not do both bosh and iggy trades? landry/brooks//battier/cook bosh tmac iggy/dalembert let scola walk at end season lowry/viper call up(guy from preseason) iggy/von wafer budinger/ariza bosh/harris/dorsey yao/dalembert/hayes/anderson i like that team better than now,weaker bench,but my god the starting lineup would compete with the lakers finally.
