I don't see him active on defense as much as I saw when he was in L.A. But, just give him some time people. He'll improve and be better next season or years to come.
We just wanted to make sure we won the category "Most airballs per 48 minutes". I really liked the Trevor signing, but I must admit it is finally starting to piss me off. I like his defense, but I cannot understand why he shoots so many times during a game. I mean, he is a good passer and he drives the ball to the hoop pretty well too. But he is a terrible shooter, even when wide open. And he gets pissed off when teammates do not give him the ball. I really hope next year he proves me wrong and becomes the ideal complement for Yao.
1. I think cause of Yao and T mac basically lost for the season, Morey wanted to make a little buzz to make the fans excited. 2. Morey got fooled by fool's gold by Ariza's play in the playoffs last year. You don't give someone that kind of cap killing money if he never averaged 10 points in his career. I but Arzia in the same category as Robert Horry, James Posey. Ariza's has good numbers, but he's forcing the action and trying to create when thats not his game. He should of signed with the Cavs so we would been able to keep some of our cap space.
age and athleticism, impressed DM in the '09 playoffs (everyone was impressed, can't blame DM), thought he could become a star (or an offensive force at least).
we are not trading him. ever. if we trade him, a part of my Rockets-fuelled body would have died. ariza is the real deal. trust me. Morey signed him because he is a star, esp on that MLE salary. Chauncey Billups. Chauncey Billups. Thats right. Thats what Ariza will become in regards to that MLE signing. If it meant giving up Ariza to get Iguodala, then its a no deal
C,G are the most plausible. F,H are very popular choices, but I do not see Ariza at any point in his career being 40% of the defender that Battier is, even in decline. He lacks those intangibles and knowledge of situational defenses to do what Shane does. Also, I do not ever see him becoming what Joe Johnson is. Johnson has outstanding great skill set and is a slightly above average outside shooter. Ariza just doesn't have the same kind of potential JJ had at the same age, and lacks the efficiency of him as well.
No way. His contract isn't "fat" by NBA standards, especially considering how much he plays. I think morey thought there was a slim chance Ariza could develop into a 18-20 ppg guy in the right role, with the right coaching/environment to support him, BUT i think morey knew that was a small chance and the pay off would be Ariza being more of a 13-15 ppg player. that's a very realiztic expectation of Ariza if he's getting significant minutes with other scoring threats. A couple threes, one or two breakaways, some slashing buckets. Nothing too difficult for Ariza, just needed to play more.
No one will deny or ever argue he has been horrid his first games as a Houston Rocket. But its not like his contract is complete poison. His jump shot can be improved with dedication in the gym this summer. Having Yao drawing teams leaving open shots can't hurt either. He's young, I'm certainly not ready to give up on the guy.
for those questioning Morey's move, how about taking into consideration how bad Ariza looks in this role that is NOT for him? Things won't be like this if he had Yao or a tmac plike talent to play with. I cant believe some fans dont realize this. I mean, even chuck hayes looks like chump when he gets too many minutes at center and is expected to be involved in the offense signficantly, yet he looks great in a more limited role. If chuck was forced to shoot more because he got thrown into a similar role, we'd hate him too.
I think this is complicating things unnecessarily. In Morey's own words, he felt A) Ariza's overall ability is worth the full MLE. B) Ariza has potential for growth which would then make him a bargain. Basically, Morey thought Ariza's floor was MLE, and ceiling being higher than that. You can argue if Ariza's play this year is worth a MLE contract. But you can't argue that Morey thought before the year that he was worth it.
It certainly does explain some of it. There are two categories of people who might vote for this: those who still believe it and are being patient, and those who changed their minds after seeing his play. I don't necessarily disagree with the latter though, as I am losing some patience with him myself. As I said, even a better version of Pietrus would be a great addition to a Yao-centric team. Pietrus was such an effective 6th man for the Magic last year.
This is true too. We have definitely been spoiled by the current group of players and their production/salary. For all the people that are saying he's not worth his MLE salary, I think we have to adjust our idea of how much production should be expected for some salary. The group we have now is a complete anomaly. But for the second point: by arguing that he is not worth the MLE contract after 3 months play, you have to consider the signing as a DM failure. Right? Though I admit that Ariza hasn't shown much development, 3 months is too soon. DM has not failed yet. If you credit Morey with being calculating and analytical, I think you have to credit him with looking into Ariza's career numbers showing some trend warranting his MLE/fat contract, not just Ariza's play last season&playoffs.
Not just bad, It's VERY BAD..... We are gonna be screwed by this guy for FIVE YEARS.... I mean, literally, FIVE YEARS!!!!!!!!!!!
He is getting more money than Landry, Aaron, Lowry etc, do you think he deserves it? When you get paid more, you assume more responsibility, that's why a lot of people choose that..
See, these are the most popular options. The first one makes sense. But I don't see any indication that Trevor is Battier's replacement. Do they play the same position? Yes. Are they both known for defense? Yes. Are they both 'intangibles' guys? No! Battier is the glue-guy organizing team defense and plays spectacular individual defense. Trevor just plays passing lanes, and is an above average person defender. Can he organize defenses? Not yet, but he could well learn. And that is the point of getting him I think. He can learn from Battier over the next 2 seasons, but that has nothing to do with our championship push with Yao, or replacing Battier in the immediate future. Next season where I expect to have both Shane and Trevor, seems to me like the best chance to push for a championship, under the model we had last year: 2 nice wing defenders
i dont think it's that literal...it just means ariza will be taking on the same role Battier had on the court. He can still do that without intangibles and leadership that Battier had. I think Morey hopes the other player(s) he acquires will have leadership capabilities and glue guy mentality. We already have some though in lowry and chuck. Landry could develop into it. So it's more about Ariza being a defender who can feed off of what the "stars" will create. He's not as good defensively overall as battier, but i think morey decided he's good enough with some extra offense.
