Should Christian Wood be almost untouchable...or what?

Christian Wood is a nice skilled big man. He isn't really a star. Or at the least not a #1 guy. If there is a trade where he is involved that can get a #1 guy then move him -- otherwise yeah.

I feel the exact same way about KPJ. I think these guys are #2/#3 guys either or. Hope they prove me wrong.

Also very concerned about the ego of these two. Maybe KPJ is in redeem mode, but his history suggests otherwise. Wood has had numerous complaints about being a black hole in his previous stops.

 

I love Wood's game. We definitely got a huge value player, and a total steal at his contract price. But he also has a lot of limits to his game. At the current record and where we are in the development process, what you don't want to do is enter the last season of his contract and lose him for nothing. If we're still rebuilding next year, then it's unlikely that you pay him max dollars at the end of year 3 to stay. And so I think this coming season is a crucial one, and you have to keep your eyes open for someone willing to really overpay for Woods - if a deal like that comes around, you take it imo.

 

he's a nice piece but he's not the #1 guy, not even the #2 guy. we can't win unless we find a #1 and #2. our best chance of landing our next franchise duo is through the draft since apparently no one wants to play here anymore. so, yes give me another swing at developing a top young prospect into our next franchise player instead of fawning over wood's box scores while he leads us into the lotto again.

best case this summer is we land cade. or one of the other top 4 guys. when will they hit their prime? around 23-24 years old? will how old will wood be then? 30? is he really even on the same timeline as these guys? when our future franchise player is ready to win championships wood will be on the decline. I'd rather 2 guys from this year's draft class who hit their primes together.

furthermore, what is so bad about a second lotto pick being worse than wood for the next 3-4 years? does it really matter that we are less talented during those years? I want to be bad in 22 and 23 to tank for our own picks. I want to prioritize minutes and shots for our lotto picks in 21, 22, and 23 because those are the guys with the potential to lead us to a championship. I don't want them taking a backseat so wood can get 20-10-2 in meaningless games, and I don't want him winning extra games when we need to tank the next two years anyway.

think long term, big picture. our best chance to win is by drafting a top 4 pick through 2023, wait 3-4 years for them to hit their primes, if we hit on our next 3 picks were looking at 26-27 as the earliest chance at title contention. wood is 31-32 years old then. he's totally unnecessary as his best years happen to overlap with when we should be tanking. as such he should be available for the right price. and the best time to move him should be this summer or next trade deadline before he enters his final season under contract. he'll be looking for a big raise and it may not be worth it for the rockets to lock in long term on big money. it would be a mismanagement to let him ruin our tank the next 2 years, or to overpay him as our #1 to keep him after 2 years, or to let him walk without getting anything in return in 2 years. the best way forward is a trade.

you might think its idiotic to trade him, but I think its idiotic to hold onto him for no reason. saying there I said it doesn't convince me keeping him is our best option.

 

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I agree we should move him for the right price and that price to me is top 4 in this draft. Every year people fall in love with college guys who haven’t proven anything. Remember when we traded picks to move up and get Griffith. Wood has proven over the last two years that he can be a viable star (not superstar in this league). Why trade him now for a middlin pick without seeing what he can do next year. If you get a top 4 then sure trade him. He is a 20-10-2 guy who hurt is ankle and had to sit. I also believe he could have played more than he did, but it made no sense to bring him back when we were tanking.

Say we get Cade or Green and re-sign Olynyk or get another solid big later in the draft or with the MLE. Won’t be great for the tank, but KPJ, KMJ, Cade, Wood could be a very solid core to build around. People are also saying we need to take these blind shots to find a superstar. Why is that better than taking that same shot with KPJ and Wood?

 

Nobody is untouchable on the worst team in the league.

 

Personally, the bolded part is where I currently think the Rockets are. Wood, Tate, Wall, Gordon, and Olynyk (who I think will be brought back) are all in their primes. KPJ, Brooks, Martin and the rookies all will play supporting roles on the current team (unless the wheels come off in which case the tank is back on). This way the team stays afloat while the young guys get to learn the ropes from the vets. As time goes on the younger guys become more the focal point of the team as the current vets are phased out, traded or released. Unless the rookies they bring in hit the ground running like a motherf***er then I suspect that the Rockets end up missing the playoffs and score another lottery pick next season to go along with the Miami and Brooklyn first round picks. 6 first rounders in two years added to KPJ/Martin/Brooks sounds good for the rebuild. In the 2023 draft the Rockets have their own first rounder as well as Milwaukee's and a chance that the Washington and/or Detroit picks convey. So we could be looking at as many as 10 first round picks over the next 3 drafts.

 

Very unlikely to keep all 10 FRP the next 3 drafts.

 

Not untouchable but in no rush to get rid of him unless someone makes a great offer. Last year was his first year in an expanded role and he did very well, lets give him another year to see if he can stay healthy and get any better.

 

I'd trade him to Boston for Smart, 2022 1st and 2nd. Let Smart build up his trade value throughout next season and trade him during the deadline for another 1st. We need more picks/chances to hit in the draft.

 

Agreed. If I were Stone I would look to draft 3 firsts this year and obtain 2 seconds (for players we have discussed elsewhere that would spend the season in the G league). The 2022 draft I think the Rockets are probably looking to select somewhere around 8-12 so I package picks to move up. So, going into the 2022/2023 season the Rockets rebuild would be based around Wood, Tate, KPJ, Martin, Brooks, Thomas, Cade (fingers crossed), Garuba (pick 23), Bassey (pick 24), Hyland (2021 2nd round), Lewis (2021 2nd rounder), & Patrick Baldwin (MPJ clone drafted in 2022).

2022/2023 Roster

1 - Wall (32, to be traded) / KPJ (23)/ Thomas (27)
2 - Cade (22) / Brooks (25) / Lewis (22)
3 - Tate (27)/ Martin (21) / Baldwin (21)
4 - Garuba (21) / Olynyk (31)
5 - Wood (27) / Bassey (22)

Thats a young, balanced team that can add a max level free agent in the offseason (or at the deadline by trding Wall).

 

If we don’t get a top pick, I’d trade him for anything we can get of future value. Because the next two years aren’t going to be competitive if we don’t get a star in the draft to immediately start contributing and by the time we do get pieces he will be ready to win a ring and I can’t imagine him staying to see how we improve.

 

He's a solid player, but nobody's untouchable until we're back in contention. And that includes any high draft picks or players. Now, you wouldn't give him away for nothing as his skill set is great for the modern NBA, but if the offer's right you take it. Forget timelines and everything else, right now should simply be about improving the roster as much as possible. If that means flipping Wood, then so be it.

 

I agree with the sentiment that selecting Mobley would seriously dampen the prospect of Wood staying with Houston. I just think his value as an asset to be moved begins to seriously outweigh his value on the court if Mobley is in the fold. With Cade, Green or Suggs (or the 18th pick) I think the Rockets would need to be bowled over by an offer to move Wood in the next year. I guess we will see soon...

 

More likely than not Wood will be with the Rockets for part of or all of next season -- save for a couple of circumstances:

• Houston is bowled over with an offer that's too good to pass up (Golden State offering a combination of Minnesota's pick and/or Wiseman)

• Houston's lottery pick this year being outside of the top-4 and conveying to Oklahoma City may put more mutual desire to part with Wood (though for less in return than if Houston had more leverage by keeping their top-4 pick)

The weeks after the draft lottery will be interesting to watch, leading up to the draft. Decent chance Wood gets traded on draft night.

 

I think KO and CW both should stick around with the Rocket. They both can knock down 3s for a C/PF and also decently rebound. They both hustle and are unselfish. I am not saying they will be the core stars for this team but if Rockets are able to land a hopeful star at PG/SF in the draft then they both make a good fit. I do not think anyone should judge CW based on this past season which was simply injury and drama-plagued.

 

Boston is another good trade destination for Wood.

 

People questioning whether our wood is touchable

tell them the truth @Jontro