Conor Orr: Billy says what Houston did yesterday doesn't affect what the Nets may want to do. 4 minutes ago Read more: http://hoopshype.com/twitter/media.html#ixzz1z0NfxTre
I feel like the ugly girl in school who is in love with the HS football QB. Except this isn't a movie so the rockets are not able to just get a change of clothes, take off their glasses and let their hair down to become attractive and desirable.
I'd settle for Gordon and Smith. If we can keep some rookies that'd be great too. Maybe somehow get Andre Drummond as well and retain Dragic + Lee, this team's got major potential.
The worst thing that could come of a DH trade is that he comes here and signs a max contract and then keeps on having back problems. We would be stuck with an injured player with a max contract. Sound familiar? I was all for DH even as a rental until he started having back problems. I have had two back surgeries for ruptured disc and can tell you from experience he will never be the same.
this guy has no cojones. let his bff jerk him in crooklyn. Unless your some white chick looking to make some easy $$, I don't see how you can like this B.
...2 minutes ago......Stephen A Smith echoed those same Brooklyn no matter what sentiments..... Skip Bayless actually said it would be better for Deron and D12 to go to Houston though? Made that case??? who knows....
I pretty tired of players wanting to grow their brand by moving to a particualr media market. This is the age of the internet, good players become global stars regardless of where they play. It certainly hasn't hurt Durant and Westbrook, it never hurt Steve Nash or Yao Ming. Can anyone really say that Carmelo and Amare's stock is on the rise since they moved to NY? I think the Jeremy Lin thing is more indicative of what happends in big markets. Meaning a flash in the pan can grow in profile with a few people that don't follow basketball simply because he's in NY, but I don't see any evidence that established players widen their appeal. Your play is want grows your "brand" and makes your image a global commodity.
Sounds to me like he does not want to give up guaranteed money at any cost. He could have opted out last year and didn't because he didn't want to give up money. He can say he didn't want to go to Houston, GS or Dallas.. But he would have been there 2-3 months. Morey knows that Howard has no intention to give up guaranteed money.. Jerry West said the same thing.
I honestly have problems commiting max money to a player that doesn't win games at the offensive end. I realize his defense alone makes him a top 5 player, but what use is a guy who can't get his own shot at the end of a game? If you get DH you still need another player to close out games.
Howard has a lot of mental issues...he just wants to make a name for him self...Wants to stay away from the shadows of other primetime big men...ie LA, Houston The Nets were never known for a true big... I dont know about whats in the water in ORLANDO...but its making people say funny stuff...
This posts makes sense in some magical land where the right things happen. In reality, though, the Rockets should not be planning their future based on a game of chicken, and a "moral stand" to teach superstars to not be divas. Dwight and company don't have leverage because fans, owners and management kowtow towards their every demand. It's because THEY ARE THE ASSETS. It's a human capital business, but even moreso than most. Goldman can find a replacement for tenured managing director that resigns within weeks. Basketball teams take years or decades to get over losing a superstar. All sports are highly human capital intensive. Basketball perhaps more than any non-individual sports. The player is so so important. THAT'S why Dwight and company have leverage. And they deserve it. They (and sports players the country over) have negotiated and worked for their collective bargaining and free agent rights, and certainly have every right to do what's in their best interest under those rights. I don't know if the rumors about where he wants to go are true, bogus or in between. The guy just might not like Houston. He has a hard-on for Brooklyn. The reasons are obvious, but even if it was as simple a thing as he's just a Brooklyn kind of guy, that's not something to discount. There's places I prefer to live over others, too. So, let's think about this logically. Why does Dwight want Brooklyn: 1. Huge huge huge stage. No bigger stage in America. 2. Highest endorsement potential, which likely makes up for potential lower salary (if he loses his bird rights) and take home pay due to taxes. 3. Eastern conference team with no history of dominant center play - he wants to craft his own legacy. 4. Wants trade earlier rather than later so he can team up with Deron, while keeping his bird rights, fully maximizing his revenue and playing with another star. Why logically Dwight DOESN'T want Houston, or anywhere else. 1. Not a market or city that allows him to maximize his brand potential. 2. Western conference team with history of dominant center play. 3. No Deron Williams caliber player already on the roster.
Starting to think like other posters on here...Deron and Dwight want to play together and both know that the Nets have no shot at doing so compared to teams like the Rockets, Lakers and Blazers. So what recourse do they have? Put out a barrage of lines from "sources" saying that neither wants to play here or Portland or LA or wherever else to scare us and other teams off. We should be so happy as to call his bluff. Get er' done Morey.
I find flaws in your argument because of: 1. The China connection - This is overlooked way too often. Chinese companies like Li-Ning & Peak are major players in the shoe market, and have deals with many NBA players. Also, Dwight should be jumping at the chance to further expand his brand in China, one of the largest markets in the world (he is already very popular there). I think that the opportunity for a expanding his brand here, especially if we get Deron Williams (I will come back to that) has huge potential. 2. If Dwight came, as Alex Kennedy http://twitter.com/alexkennedynba/status/217664102993100800 stated yesterday, Houston would certainly get a place on Deron's shortlist. We would, in theory, have enough sign Deron cap to sign after a deal was done, so it is not out of the question. 3. I can say very confidently that IF Dwight is traded here, and IF Deron follows, Dwight WILL sign an extension. Looking at the success that the Big 3 have had and the marketing machine that they are, there is no reason as to why stars would not line up to form their own version of the super friends. It's the "in" thing to do now. At this point the agents are just trying to keep the Brooklyn dream alive (I will give you that Brooklyn would be bigger for the brand of D12, but not by the landslide that you're assuming it would be). As the hours pass the Brooklyn dream drifts further and further away from reality, and the Houston comes closer and closer to fruition.
In reality, the Rockets don't have a future as a championship contender unless they find a superstar player. The odds of Howard, who is one, staying in Houston are much more probable than the Rockets finding one in this draft (assuming they can't get #1). The moral stand is a side benefit. Yes - he wants Brooklyn NOW, because Deron Williams is already on the roster. Once Deron goes elsewhere, the picture changes - which it will by the summer of 2013. Brooklyn is still NYC, but find me a player of Dwight's caliber to sign away the prime of his career to play in a wasteland, all because of the "market". That's why LeBron didn't sign with the Knicks, and it's why Howard won't sign with the Deron-less Nets.
