How about Howard+small TE+filler for Boozer? I know his contract is horrible, but if we are all-in, we might as well go for it.
Please people learn right now and for good that Te's cannot be packaged with players get through your heads it cannot happen ok got it!
I dont think we need a legit PF. They cost too much. In'95 we traded our legit PF, Otis Thorpe, for Clyde Drexler and Tracy Murray. We all know how that turned out. Considering the outrageous contracts given to Ben Wallace, Tyson Chandler, Nene, etc, I think the Rox are better off spending their limited funds on quality guards.
Yeah, but we had Robert Horry to play power forward and Mario "Junk Yard Dog" Elie to play small forward. Clyde Drexler at shooting guard and Kenny 'the Jet' Smith to play the point! What's the best case scenario with the Rockets this year? Yao - C, Battier - PF, McGrady - SF, Mike James - SG, Rafer Alston - PG. That's a decent starting line up, except for the fact I think there's at least two guys playing out of position and the all around quality of the lineup is inferior to that Rockets team.
Sounds nice, but I think he is out of our price range unless we unloaded a lot of players. Also, I'm not sure he fits into what we need. Yao isn't a great rebounder and he tends to get himself into foul trouble being the only defensive presence once everyone blows by Wesley. I think the Rockets need a rebounding/shot blocking "big" PF to really complement Yao so he doesn't get into foul trouble as much and we don't get killed on the boards every game. I like a guy like Mohammed or Pryzabillia but I think we can't afford those guys either. As for who we could feasibly get...I'm really at a loss. They guys out there on the FA market right now are only marginable upgrades over undrafted guys who aren't currently in the NBA. I think the Rockets probably look to start Howard and back him up with whatever scraps they can find - maybe Alan Henderson or Kelvin Cato if they go FA but given the relative quality they found in picking up Chuck Hayes they might just go cheap and grab another undrafted guy playing overseas and hope Lampe "gets it" this year. Unless they are willing to find someone who wants our sloppy seconds(mostly Sura) and probably Head too(since he is our only other piece of value), it doesn't look good for the Rockets. We will probably look to have PF by committe this year with the Rockets being forced to pick up a guy who maybe isn't that good but at least doesn't make mistakes - someone who helps by not hurting us. Here is what should infuriate us Rocket fans. The Rockets haven't had a true PF since Thorpe yet their yearly want list always includes a decent PF. With that in mind, how is it that we annually end up with the worst PFs in the league for the last 10+ years? Seriously. I know we had Barkley but he was really a SF who rebounded well. We have gambled on a few true PFs, but lost every time. When do the Rockets finally give us a guy we can count on?
Hello? Maurice Taylor! I think the ideal has slowly shifted from "banger" PF, to PF with range. A PF who can step out to 18 and beyond forces his defender out, which leaves Yao alone with his defender at his mercy. On the defensive end, you are right. While Yao has improved his rebounding this past season (10.2) some extra help can never hurt, which is why i am not a big fan of Vladamir Radmanovic or Tim Thomas. There is a PF who has legit PF size, 6'11, 245lbs. Peaked as a 39% three point shooter and averaged 10 rebounds a game last season. We've all mentioned him, Troy Murphy. HE is the power forward we need. He is not a shot blockcer, or a defender, but his size is a bonus. You are correct in saying that what we can afford doesn't really equate to starter worthy talent. So we'll stick with Juwan and hope that he can do just enough for us to get by, i know now that he'll most likely be our PF next season, hopefully the greatness of T-Mac and Yao can take us to the next level regardless.
Thanks for the Mo Taylor joke - he crossed my mind but I thought he was too easy a target for ridicule and besides - I actually felt bad sending him off to NY. ...I like Murphy a lot. He started his career a little undersized and overmatched but he really worked on his game and bulked up. I would consider us very lucky to have a shot at him, but I don't see the Warriors going for it since he is one of the few true assets on that team. Maybe they will bite if we trade them Juwon & Sura and GS wants to make a splash in next year's offseason by adding a player who comes off the books next year and another who will be in his final contract year(for trade bait). They might even bite on a Head/Juwon trade so they have a serviceable backup for an injury prone Baron Davis. I wouldn't mind taking Ike Diogu either - he's young and inconsistent but he might be a gamer down the road.
id like drew gooden, but i dont know how we could afford him...or maybe by way of trade, magloire (since the bucks just got villanueva) or boozer perhaps there is no way id be happy if battier was the starting 4 it should be yao 5, anyone but juwan 4, battier 3, tmac 2, rafer/mike james? 1
3 words - Who's Chucky Brown? Now I know that Howard is no Chucky Brown, but maybe Hayes is. I think we have more pressing needs.
"Full time" is not the key term. But Battier certainly can D-up against most of the power forwards on the elite WC teams--Marion, Diaw, Josh Howard, and Dirk (the trend for Dirk is to play him with quickness over size--a player like Battier or Tmac, not Howard). The exceptions are for Duncan--but the Spurs in playoffs mainly used him at C and may lose both are there other Cs, and Brand--the Clips are a good team but not really who we most concern ourselves with. So yes I think our best team for most scenarios will have Battier at the 4 and Tmac at the 3 (Tmac is a very long 3 as well)--it makes the trade make a lot more sense (with Yao, Mike James, plus the hottest other guard be it Head, Alston, Bogans, etc). JH will get plenty of minutes, maybe even officially start, but will not finish most games or be as key against our key playoff opponents when we have to match them athletically for the most part (Suns, Mavs, Spurs going small).
Nice post, pls keep it up! I think you will only be flamed if you mention something like, Yao Ming SUCKS, Tmac is a loser, or CD is the best GM in the league, & that JVG should be coach of the year!
Because management(Carrol Dawson) has said he will be probably be our 4 and we have enough depth now in our frontcourt and we are looking for a starting 2 and a backup 1. There are plenty of these type's of 4's today that Battier will and can guard better than Juwan. While Battier would have trouble against Brand, Duncan, and probably KG he will still probably be better than Juwan at guarding these guys. He is stronger than people give him credit for. Also, he will be a better rebounder than he is when he plays the three because he won't be on the perimeter as much. Personally, I think he will play the 3 and the 4 depending on the matchups but we still need a starting caliber 2 rather than a 4 right now. A solid 4 would be great but I just don't know if we can get that game-changing PF this year with the assets we have.
Guys, we don't have the $$$. Think of going to the grocery store because you need some eggs to make a cake. You only have 3 bucks. Just cause you are hungry for some sushi, doesn't mean that you buy a california roll for seven bucks. A. you don't have the money B. you don't need sushi to make a cake Sure, it would be nice if you could buy the sushi and have a snack. It would make the afternoon a much happier experience. BUT YOU ARE BROKE and don't need it for the cake. Just go buy the eggs and be done with it!
This is the lineup I think we will go with most of the time. It does look akward but lineups throughout the whole league have players playing out of position. That is what happens in the playoffs as well. I think if this lineup works we will be a very dangerous team. James would be another undersized 2 guarding great players but he would be able to cause quickness mismatches on the other end as well. I am glad the Rockets are finally realizing the NBA is not about positions anymore but "Can you play ball"? We have been lacking overall talent the last couple of years and now Battier and James give us that talent on both ends regardless of their postion. BTW, let's hope we get James.
If Rockets sign James they still don't have a starting 2 guard. Unless Juwan is traded, the Rockets will just pick up Lonny Baxter since he can cover PF and C.
would you trade Juwan+Next Year's 1st Rounder + Cash for DMiles+BRoy? we'd make out like bandits, but next year's draft is supposed to be awesome. portland effed up our draft plans, so it's unlikely they'd do this, but at the same time, they'd be unloading miles' contract, sooooo... what say you?
The contracts being given out to power forwards these days is ridiculous. Ben Wallace at $60 million for 4 years????? That is totally insane. Kenyon, Boozer, these guys just simply aren't worth it. And there are only about 2 or 3 teams that could pay Wilcox more than the MLE. The Hornets are out after spending their wad on Peja and BJax. Chicago is out, they are loaded at the 4 and looking to move somebody out. Toronto is maybe under but they aren't under by much so they can't offer much more than the MLE, just slightly more maybe. And they just drafted a 4 and are wanting to run and gun. Charlotte is loaded at the 4. So, that brings up Atlanta. I think the major players for Wilcox, if there is indeed a market for him come down to Atlanta and Seattle. And Seattle is in cost-cutting mode. So, it would be interesting if we completed a trade for James, to see if we threw the MLE at Wilcox. That is what he is worth, at most. We do not need to pay $10 million or more for a PF. There's too many of them out there now that teams are trying to move in trade. For their contributions, they are way overpriced. We could help Seattle re-sign Wilcox, if they really want him, by taking a player like Damien Wilkens or Nick Collison off their hands with the part of our TE. And I really think that we are better off just waiting, waiting, waiting because these teams are busting at the seams with salary. If we held our TE into the season, I wouldn't mind. Because somebody is going to want to unload at the trade deadline. If we net James with either the MLE or through a trade agreement, we are setting in good shape. There are a whole miriad of moves that can push us even further towards championships.
