We clearly need a point guard. The Beard at point guard scenario sounds good on paper; still think we need a playmaking pg that can shoot. The first team that comes to mind is the T-Wolves: Tyus Jones, Rubio, the rookie Dunn, and Lavine. Then you have the Celtics: Smart, Isaiah Thomas, Rozier, Bradley, and Demetrius Jackson. Lastly, there's the Suns: Bledsoe, Ulis, Knight and Price. All team with 3 or more point guards on the roster. I remember when Tyus Jones was linked to the Rockets during the draft. He recently won Summer League MVP...while undersized, he's a great shooter and playmaker. I think with the rise of Dunn, one of the guards will see the door. Do you guys think the Rockets will pull the trade trigger for a pg on any one of these teams? We are heavy at the forward position and could potentially use one of our "assets" in a trade. Thoughts?
We don't really have anything to offer. I think we'll be in a better position once/if Brewer improves his value from negative to worthless. That will open up more possibilities IMO.
See Ty Lawson trade. Trading anything of value for a PG to play next to Harden is going to be a massive risk because it will take the ball out of their hands, and make them a floor spacer/secondary creator off the ball. Sure there is a need for a secondary creator to MASSIVELY upgrade the lack of playmaking from Bev/Ariza, but I would argue a more effective upgrade would be a 3 spot since in their offense the last person to touch the ball when it has to move usually is Ariza. Having a secondary playmaker at the 3 (like Parsons was) is more important IMO than upgrading from Bev to whoever mediocre PG you think you can get in a trade who probably does little to help. If Dekker can play this year it will be a huge upgrade to the team. He's got just enough ball handling and play making skills to really open up the offense for the Rockets. The major questions though are can he shoot, stay healthy, and defend the most athletic position in professional sports. Not a great answer for you OP, but the one thing I would question you on is to not just think about upgrading the PG spot, but open your mind up to think about our offense, and where the most most effective spot is for a secondary creator in the offense. Go back and watch footage and look at how many times the ball ends up in Ariza's hands and then the possession stalls out. That's the evidence I need to suggest that's one of not the major problem area to address.
With Beverley, Harden and Gordon all able to handle the ball, I don't understand the obsession with getting a another PG. I'd rather get someone who can create from the 4 or in the post. Or get DMo healthy.
This. Of course you always have to balance defense/offense. Ariza was an upgrade defensively, for sure. Last year that didn't prove out, but on the whole Ariza > Parsons, defensively. But if Ariza can't return to an above average wing defender capable of guarding, successfully, multiple positions, he needs to be moved and you need to find someone at the SF that either gives you more offensively, or can be that defender. Unfortunately the Rockets are devoid of assets currently.
I'm still pissed off we passed on Tyus Jones to get "marketable white boy that loves runnin his mouth on Twitter boy"
For me Tyus Jones is underrated. If we traded for him and he should not cost much, he would be the best point guard on the team. He has high basketball IQ, he is a good shooter, he is clutch, he was a point guard that we were expecting to draft last year as a potential starter and was just summer league MVP. Have him come of the bench and let Pablo be a part time coach. At least at that point we have young talent upgrade, that's young and is capable of plying starter minutes if PB or PP get hurt.
Yeah I mean the main thing to me is that the ball almost always ends in Ariza's hands either by the Rockets or the opponents design. Ariza was an upgrade defensively two years ago, but for whatever reason offensively they still worked with these things working in their favor that year - -Ariza shooting the ball well -Howard when healthy being more of an offensive threat -D-Mo's emergence as a low post/high P&R playmaking big when Howard was out -Harden's MVP campaign when he was out of this world incredible With all four of those items (plus some others) slipping last year it made Ariza more vulnerable and more apt to produce offensively on a nightly basis which he wasn't capable of and actually had a down year shooting. Maybe with him shooting better it will simply improve based on that, but look at all the other factors that made Ariza a good fit. Those reasons are kind of moot now for the most part. We can't expect another MVP season, peak Dwight isn't coming back, and we don't know what we have in D-Mo if we even have him at all. Maybe Anderson & Gordon help cover Ariza's weaknesses. But true upgrades at the 3 spot are going to be just as hard to find as at the PG spot, and there is a reason why a guy like Parsons got a max contract this Summer. So I don't think there is an easy answer here too other than the best case scenario/pipe dream of Dekker overtaking the spot from Ariza/Brewer/KJ.
Why wouldn't I? Its the best example to exercise caution against spending assets for a PG who needs the ball in their hands and will be playing next to Harden. And I'm not even talking about the off the court stuff.
Why are people so stubborn? "PG must have ball. Must have PG create offense. SG must play off ball" It is clear the Rockets are not looking for a poor man's John Stockton. Look at their moves. That clearly is not a priority. Give it up.
1. Rubio will be traded. 2. I hope Rubio isnt traded to Utah. If he is he will torch us many times. 3. Rubio is the perfect fit as the primary playmaker next to Harden. Rubio is the ideal PG next to Harden because of his D and because Rubio is a true QB that sees the play unfold ahead of time and releases the ball before the shooter is even open yet, and he can make all the plays, not just the pocket pass and the alley-oop off the pick-and-roll. 4. James Harden is a scorer first and a playmaker second. He is most efficient and effective when he scores the ball a lot. He is least effective and efficient when he decides to make plays by passing the ball to teammates. James is the perfect secondary playmaker who can just chew backup units to splinters by simply overmatching them. 5. The acquisition of Pablo was for MDA. Pablo is the typical genius playmaker MDA wants facilitating his offense and moving the basketball. 6. James has known for 2 seasons he needs help at guard. What he hasn't known (and still may not know) is just how much help he needs at guard. . 7. While everyone likes Bev, even most casual fans realize Bev is a backup guard. Bev would not be starting for a single team with playoff aspirations. He starts here because we simply haven't had anybody else. Guys, it's obvious we need a starting point guard. Whether your preference is Bledsoe, Dragic, or Rubio....we need a starting pg. I happen to believe Rubio is a better player overall, not to mention the best fit next to Harden, of the three players I mentioned. We'll have to see what happens.
Agree dobro, and I think that's why we were after Bazemore. He fit our needs at the 3 very well. Problem is, 3s are much harder to come by than 1s.
"He is least effective and efficient when he decides to make plays by passing the ball to teammates." Disagree. When in shape he's one of the best at creating corner 3s and running the PnR.
half the time, you sound so smart on bball. the other half, you sound delusional. You're not going to turn James Harden into Rip Hamilton. Give it up!!!!
Didn't compare Harden to RIP. That's an insult to Harden. Harden, right now, is MJ BEFORE Pippen came along.
