It's not so much what Morey did, but what he didn't do; drafting 3 players in the second round nets the Rockets draft rights--assets--without locking them into any guaranteed-money contracts--liabilities. What all that translates to is more cap space and more roster flexibility. Cap space is like gold right now, so why waste it on marginal 1st round talent for which you have no choice but to pay up? With 2nd rounders, the organization has all the leverage. If you don't think leverage is important, watch out the whole Ricky Rubio situation unfolds or just look up Steve Francis in the history books. The ultimate goal is to maximize the team's talent in order to win a championship. The Rockets need a healthy Yao at the very least--and probably a healthy T-Mac, too--to have a shot. The best strategy, then, is to improve the depth and talent around those two players. Even if they're set on trading McGrady, they don't want to take on excess salary, especially in the form of multi-year contracts. Nor do they really want to lose Landry or Brooks--two of the team's best assets. What it all comes down to is this: the best way to build a championship team is by using your assets to acquire exceptional talent. The difficulty is in finding both the right talent and the right assets to get you that talent. The more assets you have, the easier it is to get that talent when it comes along. If any of these 3 draft picks pan out, for example, you can either use them in a trade or use them as a replacement for another player you use in a trade. Another implication of this draft that folks have alluded to is it eases the pressure to re-sign Von Wafer. This gives Morey the upper hand in negotiations, which translates to more cap space and flexibility. This same logic applies to all potential trade partners and free agents (including Artest). The Rockets have enough talent right now to compete for a title. There's no reason to rush into any risky gambles that will only marginally improve their chances, when they can use their position of strength to take advantage of the real golden opportunities as they come along.
You do if you have first round talent evaluations on them. New York paid 3 mill for one player. We paid 6 for 3 players, admittedly one is likely to never make it over. But if it doesn't count against the cap and you can make the moves with cash to get what you want, go ahead.
I would rather the team pay it on established NBA players that can help now...rather than guys who might never even sniff the floor of an NBA gym. DD
DD, aren't you assuming that these moves preclude the Rockets from spending more money elsewhere? As long as these draft picks don't preclude the team from pursuing other free agents, I'm more apt to wait and see what comes up in July. These moves don't impact our ability to use the MLE or re-sign Ron and/or Von. Maybe the players never sniff the court, but what's the harm of bringing them in if Adelman or Morey feels that they'll fit into the system and have a chance to contribute? If Budinger can step up and knock down shots when Sugar Shane isn't hitting (or more likely isn't taking shots), I think that's a value pick. If Taylor can provide some scoring and shotmaking ability in the absence of McGrady and Wafer, there's value there as well.
