Rockets will pick 24th or 25th in NBA Draft (UPDATE: Tiebreaker lost, pick #25 it is)

I can see francis and woods getting cut.

 

Francis isn't going anywhere until the Rockets have had a chance to see him in action. If he's returned to form, they are keeping him. If he is the same as this year, yeah he could get cut.

 

Landry only makes $400,000?

Get that kid a raise!

 

Draft Courtney Lee, maybe not at 24, then get an early 2nd round pick from Portland or Minnesota and get him there.

 

I'd like for the Rockets to draft a 7 footer in the first round. NBA Draft has the Rockets picking Hibbert. I honestly don't think he'll be available that long, but if he is, he'd be a solid pick. Robin Lopez is project to be picked at #15, but I think that's too high for him. If he slides, the Rockets should consider him. Also does anyone know if Hasheem Thabeet is declaring this year?

 

We should draft the best free throw shooter available and I don't give a rat's a$$ what position he plays!!

 

http://www.draftexpress.com/article/Nike-Hoop-Summit-Report--Day-One-/

Serge Ibaka is the only player at that Summit who is being projected as a first round pick in the upcoming draft.

http://www.nbadraft.net/admincp/profiles/sergeibaka.html
http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Serge-Ibaka-1302/

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Augustin, Collison, and Lawson are also coming into the league. That should even things out.

 

Looks like he has a nice mid range jumper and can dunk, but I didn't see much of a post-up game in that video. Does he have a post game?

 

U guys realize that had we won the game against the kings we'd be 25th for sure and still playing the jazz with home court advantage?

 

I think Morey/Adelman will use the first round to pick a backup C.

Morey will use his shadow magic to find us another Luis in the second round.

We need to stick with Stevie for a bit; he seems like a player who never wants to leave Houston. He just latches on. He is a pretty decent PG in all seriousness.

 

Why is everyone looking for a big man?

Isn't it basically a known fact that all non-undersized big men are bound to be picked higher than their skills indicate? 2nd round big men gems are pretty much all underszied.

I really want a swingman with our first pick, assuming we don't pick one up through trade. We don't need another PG to develop when Brooks is already here. And we're not going to find Yao's backup either. OTOH, we could use someone who might fill in on days when T-Mac is not available.

No more Head starting at the SG spot.

 

I agree totally.

Enter Brandon Rush.

 

Because it makes the most sense, IMO. If Deke retires and Hibbert or Thabeet are available how do you not take one of them? True centers are a dying breed.

There are Brandon Rush's everywhere. Draft, free agency, trades....it's always much easier to find somebody like Rush (basically, your typical swingman) than it is to find a quality 7+ footer.

Don't get me wrong, i'm not dismissing or demeaning Rush in any way. I think he would be a great addition considering his versatility, NBA readiness and upside. I'm just saying when push comes to shove i'd "gamble" on a guy like Hibbert or Thabeet before i'd take a dime-a-dozen swingman.

 

^^^^^^
Agreed, crap load of good guards in NBA. But you will struggle if you want to find a crap load of 7 feet centers.

 

You need to check out the draft record of teams drafting tall stiffs. You also need to see how long it takes to develop big men taken late in the draft, as opposed to wing players. Our window of opportunity with Yao/T-Mac is not very long.

If it's so easy to find, then why were we starting Luther Head at SG when T-Mac went down? Why was NO willing to swallow Mike James' contract in order to obtain "dime-a-dozen" Bonzi?

Swingman is a position of need on this team, probably more so than a backup center. It's also a position where a 24th pick is likely to have an impact. Take both into account, and I don't see why the Rockets WON'T take one during the draft(assuming they don't get someone like Mike Miller in trades).

 

How is this relevant? There's like 3-5 seven footers in the draft every year. That sample size is too small to compare that select group to the 10's of thousands of 6'5"-6'8" swingmen you see in every draft.

Seven footers taken in the first round of the last three drafts:

2005: Andrew Bogut, Andrew Bynum, Johan Petro
2006: Patrick O'Bryant, Saer Sene
2007: Greg Oden, Spencer Hawes, Jason Smith (I didn't include Yi since he's not a C)

Now, take a look at the potential first rounders for this year:

2008: DeAndre Jordan, JaVale McGee, Brook Lopez, Robin Lopez, Roy Hibbert, Hasheem Thabeet, Ante Tomic

This is the year to take a center! Deke retires thus creating the need. This is the year we probably should ditch the BPA approach and take whichever one of these guys we have highest on our board.

Why are we starting guys like Head and BJax at SG? What's the alternative? Our two tallest perimeter guys are T-Mac and Battier. There's nobody else in the event of an injury. Clearly, that's not ideal but for the time being it's all we got.

I think it's both comical and blatantly stupid to disregard the need for a quality backup center. For a team that features Yao, a guy that's missed roughly half of the past two seasons, clearly we have a need for a guy that can step up in the event of an injury.

Deke has been great at that role but he can't play forever. I don't like the idea of masquerading stiffs like Tsakalidis, Woods and whoever then pretending like that's adequate.

 

So, assuming Yao is healthy you use your #1 pick on a guy that gives you 8 minutes a night?

At 24 I guess that's really all you can expect. Making effective lottery picks is so crucial in the NBA.

 

I don't.

Why would you take a guy that is obviously going to play behind Yao?!? And if Yao gets hurt are you going to go to a raw rookie to take his minutes? No and No. We need a veteran backup center. Deke and Raef Lafrentz fit the bill when Raef gets bought out next season.

 

Morey obviously looks at Draft Picks as trading chips. So he gets the best player no matter what in the last 1st rd or 2nd rd. Forget getting a guy who's big that fits your team. He's after the chip. The reasoning is that late 1st rounders and 2nd rounders rarely pan out. So might as well get the most you can with your draft pick and use them for trade bait. Maybe by some miracle you get a Landry which I'm betting Morey was not prepared for but then there you go. A diamond in the rough and Morey lucked out.

If they don't work out, then you got a cheap player you can just waive or you'll be able to trade em for someone really good later on. It's all about making the numbers work.

Loren Wood is on the team as a big but he's not gonna contribute much to the playoffs. If anything Loren Wood is trade bait next year or he'll be waived. Doubt very much that Bobby Jackson stays either. Harris? He's up in the air. Don't know if we are going to be willing to keep him. Deke? He might just retire. Rafer Alston? I think he's gonna get traded. Francis is a wait and see. Brooks they are gonna keep. Head I think is a goner to make room for another guard. Definately keeping Scola, Landry,T-Mac, Yao, Battier. Hayes not sure but probably keep him.