What are the cap implications of buying out Franchise? His value was always because he was an athletic freak, not his skills. Age, weight and injury make any hope of him ever being a rotation player doubtful. Has he shown up at Fonde?
Our situation as I see it. Players who no longer fit in with what we are trying to do and should be traded or cut - Chuck Hayes(Love his defense, but Dorsey is going to take over this role) - Steve Novak(We have enough shooting now with Barry and Green..Its a shame all Steve can do is shoot the basketball) - Steve Francis(Damaged goods....still a ball stopper) Players who need to step their games up or get shipped out - Luther Head: An undersized 2 guard with no experience as a distributer. He has proven that he can be a valuable scoring option off the bench, but sometimes his poor decisions and terrible D negate the points that he puts up. I don't mind keeping him around for his three point strole, but if we could package him in a deal for a veteran PG that can run an offense, I'm all for it. If we do keep him, I would understand because his contract is not all that bad and theres only one more yr remaining on his deal. He can still get open and shoot the three, and so long as we run our offense through Yao and Tracy, we will need long distance shooters like Head. -Aaron Brooks. Extremely Fast and quick PG. showed some nice flashes as a rookie, but when it mattered most he in fact played like a rookie. Needs to work on being more consistant from behind the arc. This is critical if he wants to some day be a starter. AB also needs to improve his assist to turnover ratio. Wouldn't hurt if he Added enough bulk to occasionally finish shots inside. He is able to get to the rim whenever he wants using his speed, but he doesn't always make the right play once he penetrates the defense. Valuable Role players who can come off the bench and produce - Brent Barry. So important to have a veteran who can come off the bench and play some good minutes for you. His shooting and his awareness on offense will fit right in with what we're doing. He is going make life so much easier on Yao and Tmac on the offensive end of the court. - Carl Landry. He is still a question mark, and it's very possible that he may not be a rocket next season. He obviously wants the MLE which is a little steep, but he showed why he was well worth it before getting banged up last season. So many times his energy, his ability to finish and his rebounding off the bench gave the Rockets the boost they needed to win games. I would welcome him back to our bench provided that his knee is no longer an issue. - Joey Dorsey. Dorsey can do alot of the things Landry does, and then some. His hops are off the charts, he has very long arms, and he is very strong inside. I really like him as a physical enforcer who can complement Yao down low. He can cover alot of ground with his athleticism, and he will affect alot of shots in the paint on the defensive end. By contesting shots in the lane, Dorsey will allow Yao to focus more on grabbing defensive boards and less on helping out on quick perimeter players which is usually a foul waiting to happen. - Donte Green. Simply put, this guy knows how to put the ball in the basket. An excellent sub for Battier when we need more scoring. He is smooth pulling up for the J and he is smooth as a finisher in the paint. Green gives us a perimeter player with size, length, athleticism, AND SHOOTING off the bench. It's been a while since we've seen a guy come off the bench with all of those attributes. Green has all the makings a big time scorer in the NBA. Like any other rookie, he has several holes in his game, but he should still be a valuable offensive weapon off the bench. Some day down the road he will develop in to a star on our team, but for now , I assume his role will be to simply come in and put some quick points up on the board. - Mike Harris. Hard nosed player who knows how to play the game. Undersized, but he has some hops to make up for it. Good rebounder, decent finisher inside. His size makes him a liability on defense so his playing time will be limited barring injury. Trade Bait - Bobby Jackson. Big, expiring contract. Decent PG off the bench, but there are probably some cheaper options out there. Jackson will be gone by midseason. If we could somehow package him in a deal to get a quality PG, that would be nice. - Justin Reed/Jackie Butler. Who are these guys? Expiring contracts. Veteran vocal leaders - Deke. Hopfully we resign him and he gets his spot back on the bench cheering on Yao and occasionally blocking shots - Rafer. Classic New York PG. Not a huge fan of rolling with him as the starter again, but he is our best option at the moment. If he continues to improve his 3 pt shooting, he could be an adequate starter for us. I just wish we could bring in someone with a little more scoring ability to take the pressure off of Yao and Tmac. Rafer scores, but it takes him a ton of shots to do so. Alot of his shots are good looks too. He should be shooting 44-45 percent. Scrappy/hustle players who do the little things that win games - Shane Battier. Like what he brings to the team an awful lot. Brings a competitive spirit every night. Does the thankless job of guarding other team's best player. Focuses alot of effort and energy in to defending. Goes after loose balls. A very smart team defender. Offensively he is limited, but he is still our most efficient three point shooter. Makes you pay for doubling Tracy or Yao. Very unselfish, team first player kind of player who inspires others to work hard and be team-oriented also. If I had to complain about the guy, I would say that he has little to no explosion when driving to the bucket and he has a hard time creating his own shot. Hopfully we don't have to rely on Shane to be a scorer for us, but if we ever do, we're in trouble. If he can give us 10-12 efficient points a night to go with 5 or 6 boards and his usual stellar defense, we'll be in good shape. Luis Scola. Extremely impressive in his first year in the league. Scola is a crafty power foward who is not afraid to mix it up downlow. at 6 10 230, he Has enough size and strength to hold his own in the paint. Possesses good hands. Plays with alot of energy and intensity on both ends of the court. Smart and unselfish player. Goes after every loose ball. If teams double off of him, he makes them pay with aggressive moves to the basket and a decent mid range jump shot. Has a tendency to commit silly fouls, but that is just a product of his aggressive play. Overall he is a very efficient scorer who creates extra possessions for his team by diving for loose balls, taking charges, and grabbing offensive rebounds. Should only get better after experiencing a full NBA season. Like Shane, how can you not love this guy? I guess if I wanted to knitpick I would suggest that he worked on his free throw shooting and his mid range jump shot. Both can be inconsistant. The Superstars - Yao Ming. A 7 foot 6 inch center with plenty of offensive skill to go with his massive size. Plays an intelligent game on both ends of the court. Understands positioning very well and once he gets the ball where he wants it, there is not much you can do to stop him. If you foul, he will make his free throws. If you double him, he knows how to get the ball to the open man. Single cover him on the block, and he will hook and fade you to death. Sets a mean pick. always attracts the attention of the other teams defense which opens it up for his team mates to score. His prescense in the paint on defense forces opposing players in to alot of ill advised shots. A good rebounder who can collect them in bunches as he wears down the opposing team's front line. Extremely hard worker. Sets an example for the rest of the team, especially the younger players. A great ambassardor for his country, and a great leader for the Houston Rockets. There is, however, always the threat of major injury with him. He hasnt finished a full season since 04 05. - Tracy Mcgrady. Versatile player who can do whatever you ask of him on the basketball court. A two time scoring champ who can catch fire and light up a scoreboard. At 6 8 he handles the ball extremely well. he can pull up and shoot over any one at any time using his length and his vertical leap. Has an explosive first step and can get to the rim whenever he wants. Drives left as well as he drives right. Excellent passer. Reads defenses very well, and uses his size to see over defenders and find the open man. Makes good decisions with the ball in his hands. Can be very good defensively when he sets his mind to it. Has the length and the quickness to bother any ball handler. Decent rebounder. Has a quick jump and when he extends his arms out he can grab boards with ease. Not always very aggressive on defense or on the boards. Sometimes falls in love with the outside shot even when it's not falling for him. Doesn't go to the FT line enough for a big time scorer, and when he does, he shoots only about 65 percent. No excuses for that. Overall, Tmac has the talent to be a top 5 player in this league. He's not the Tmac of old, but when he is healthy, he can certainly lead his team to alot of victories. Looking at our situation, I come to the conclusion that we are in pretty good shape right now if we are able to sign Landry. We will have a good mix of younger players and veteran players. Our bench should be alot stronger than it has been in past years. We are set at almost every position, with PG being our only potential problem. Morey is probably working on solving that problem as we speak. As is the case most years, If Yao and Mac are healthy, we should be able to make a deep run in to the playoffs. I'll match up our roster against any other team in the west.
