Rockets acquire Suns picks, return Nets picks to Brooklyn

Beal is an overpaid player that is getting underrated due to how much he gets paid. Beal is a very good player and I think he could serve that team really well. Ivey is out the rest of this season and may not be fully healthy at the beginning of next season due to the severity of his injury. I think Beal's problem is that the last 3 years he's played an average of 47 games. This year he has already missed 9 games I believe. I get it, he makes a lot of money, but as long as Detroit is not sending out any of their better players, I actually think it would be wise to rent out their cap space for the additional two years after this one, if they can get Beal to waive his NTC if he is trade there. They can then get Phoenix's unprotected 2031 pick for taking on Beal's contract, plus whatever 2nd round picks they have left (plus maybe even squeeze out one SRP from Miami).

Personally, I wouldn't be 100% opposed to it, but understand your point of view.

 

The #22 was rerouted to Indiana in exchange for #31 and Aaron Holiday. The way they structured the deal, it ended up being a 5-way trade, but only because they combined a bunch of deals after the league year opened. It's identical to how Stone flipped Jarrett Allen to Cleveland for a first, and Caris LeVert to Indiana for Oladipo. If you want to grade what the Rockets got for Westbrook versus what the Wizards got from Los Angeles, you have to just compare what the team was sending out, rather than the subsequent moves like flipping the #22.

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/42...rds-agree-to-russell-westbrook-trade-sources/

As to the idea that the Rockets traded for Wall with the intention of tanking and protecting their draft pick, the timeline just doesn't add up. By all accounts, Harden requested a trade in November 2020, then Houston panicked and dumped Westbrook on December 2nd to try and appease him. Subsequently, Harden held out of training camp, showed up out of shape, had his 8 game cameo, and dropped the "it can't be fixed" press conference on January 12th that forces the Rockets to trade him.

If the Rockets had really intended to tank for the chance at a top-4 pick, then the plan must be to trade BOTH Harden and Westbrook, since either is likely good enough to at least get you out of the bottom 4. If you're going to move them, you really should do it pre-season, when rosters are much more flexible, and right away, before word gets out you're selling.

The Harden deal was a very good move for Stone under some very bad circumstances. The Westbrook/Wall move was just bad process and bad strategy that got saved by coaching incompetence and ping pong ball luck.

 

So you overpay?

 

The too good thing, can be suppressed by the org though. Cavs was able to tank with Allen the year they got the 3rd pick for Mobley. Same with Thunder, shutting down SGA, to get a Chet.

A lot of this is water under the bridge, while the what-ifs can play into different paths, we actually saw teams tanked just fine with good players.

And on the scenarios where even if we ended up with Sengun and Jabari (still BPA during those years). Stone could have gotten a haul with Allen, if Allen was properly flipped.

Anyways, past is the past.

 

Allen wasnt an all star back then if he was worth a lot he wouldnt be a throw in. He was also an expiring contract so not sure what haul you were expecting.

The Rockets werent the ones who traded him IIRC Nets were the ones who negotiated with Cavs for him and Caris Levert. So Rox, Nets and Cavs all thought he wasnt worth a haul.

 

Back then there was a debate on whether Allen was a 20m per year. Those of us who lobbied for him, even before Harden/Westbrook asked to leave, said yes get him. Stone had a chance, but it slipped under his nose.

GMs have hits and misses. He missed on that one.

 

But why would he be worth a haul though? He is an expiring and its a debate if he is worth 20M but he would be worth a haul? Rox got a FRP from him which is the most an expiring non all star can get you.

I dont agree its a miss you dont get a 26 yr old if you want to tank for 3 yrs. Edit: My bad he was only 22 yrs old but the point stands Rox wanted to be bad they dont wanna commit salary to good players they wanna accumulate assets instead. Rox were in danger of giving their pick to OKC if they werent bad enough Jarett Allen might have meant we just walk away in 2021 with Jaret Allen and 3 busts.

 

I'm expecting the 2025 pick to end up 10-14. Granted, I also expect Durant to miss a few more games being old.

 

That pick was the Bucks 1st rounder which was as close to the worst 1st round possible. For reference, that pick landed at 28. The Rockets traded expiring Christian Wood for a 26th pick. So essentially you're saying it made sense that one season of Jared Allen was worth less than half a season of Christian Wood.

 

All it might take for it to end up being high lottery is KD and Beal both missing extended time in the tens of games, which would not be surprising at all given the recent history for both players and due to KD's age. Booker is a good player, but he's having a relatively poor season and he is not good enough to carry that supporting cast of scrubs to anything approaching .500 basketball.

 

Let’s say by some miracle we got #1, how does he slide into the roster? Can the best prospect since Wemby come off the bench his first year or do you move on from Jabari?

Can we bring Amen up to speed fast enough to run: Thompson-Green-Flagg-Smith-Sengun?

 

Having too much talent is never a problem, particularly if you are trying to find a superstar. In basketball you can play 7 or 8 players big minutes, the cream will rise.

Worst case scenario, if you can even call it that, you consolidate young talent for a better individual player in a trade.

 

I think Flagg starts day 1.

I'm guessing it would be FVV-x- Amen- Flagg-Sengun.

Not sure who 5th start is. Green is if he is consistently good rest of season.

I think 2 of Cam, Brooks, JSJ, and Tari are on trade block.

 

I wish we’d give Amen more run at PG. I feel like we’d really maximize the talent on the floor if he ran the offense. I would think we could decline FVVs option then and either bring him back on something more friendly or just move onto a PG rotation of Amen/Reed if Reed makes some progress this year.

Amen-Green-Flagg-Jabari-Sengun with Reed-Whitmore-Brooks-Eason-Adams/new big off the bench.

 

Flagg's outside shooting may take a while to develop. If the shooting of Sengun and Amen does not take a leap, that'd be three non-shooters in the lineup. Even if both guard spots turned into elite shooters, there would still be spacing problems.

 

There would be spacing problems for the Rockets. That would also likely be defense that holds teams to fewer points than the spacing problems cause the Rockets.

 

if we get number 1 we would use it in a trade. #1, Jalen for some major pieces like Anthony Edwards

 

A lineup of Reed-Green-Whitmore-Flagg-Jabari would be an offensive juggernaut as they got older.

I’d be hesitant to trade Flagg, maybe if we got another pick from #2-4 but Flagg could be the main guy on a team.

 

Is it me or the class after the top 5 is quite meh? And we cannot trade our pick due to Stepien rule?

 

Seems normal after Top 4-5. Fleming is a guy I could see if the Rockets keep the pick and it is late lottery. A 3-D PF.