The reason Chicago traded him is because they have one of the worse GM's in the league. This the same GM who ran Phil "I got enough rings to fill both hands" Jackson, and Michael "basketball god" Jordan because he let the championships get to his head. I would hate to lose Cat though, since although he plays stupid sometimes. He has the most heart on the team and signed with us for less money because he likes it here.
Here we are again. Oh, if only there's something to it. We could add Collier to the trade and it would still work. If we could get them to toss in Cherokee Parks, his contract would also disappear at the end of the season. Like Will and Clutch said... probably too good to be true.
While Brand would be a huge upgrade...we need him as much as I need a vd. He would demand shots that we do not have to give. In addition.....his max contract would hamper us in giving Yao his max in a few years. No team can afford 3 max contracts. would you rather have Brand than Ming? No.
That is not true. If you look at the Lakers. Kobe and Shaq make the equivalent to more than 3 max contracts.
What if a 3rd team was brought into the mix? How about this deal? Houston sends Mobley/Griffin/draft pick or picks? to the Clippers. Houston sends Taylor/Moochie to Seattle. The Clippers send Brand to Houston. The Clippers send Andre Miller to Seattle. Seattle sends Kenny Anderson/Barry to Houston. Seattle sends a draft pick or picks to the Clippers. The Clippers get Mobley to team up with his friend Odom, an up & coming PF in Griffin (that's under contract & won't command a max salary), & additional draft picks. This trade would allow them to put Jaric at the PG position. Seattle gets a very good, & young, PG in Miller, the PF they wanted at one time & now need (I don't know if they still want him though), & a good/flamboyant backup PG in Moochie. This trade would allow them to trade Payton for a King's Ransom. Houston gets the PF that adds the final piece to the puzzle, a solid SG to replace Mobley, & a veteran backup PG to replace Moochie. Anderson's contract, also expires at the end of the year. However, Seattle might want to keep Anderson's expiring contract. So, this deal might be more to their liking. Houston sends Mobley/Griffin/draft pick or picks? to the Clippers. Houston sends Taylor/Moochie to Seattle. The Clippers send Brand to Houston. The Clippers send Andre Miller to Seattle. Seattle sends Barry/Booth/Forte to Houston. Seattle sends a draft pick or picks to the Clippers. Our new lineup would be: C: Yao/Cato/Collier/Booth(IL) PF: Brand/T-Mo/Collier SF: Posey/Rice/Nachbar SG: Barry/Hawkins PG: Francis/Maddox or FA? How far in the playoffs could that team go?
I just heard this on the radio and decided to pass it on. I didn't say it was true, but it is possible. That whole team(Clip show) is unhappy and got talent to spare. I can't see why they wouldn't do this. They think the problem is the players, not the staff. They've done stupid stuff before and will do it again. The question is, will it involve the ROX?
From reading some of these posts, I'd say without hesitation that Elton Brand is the most underrated player in the entire league. Guys, this man is dominant inside, on offense and defense. He pulls down a gazillion offensive boards, and he knows how to finish. Some of you were comparing him to Mo Taylor. The difference is MO is a p***y and BRAND is a MAN. His production would negate anything from the other west forwards, and with him and Yao on the front line, Francis with Mobley or Posey in the backcourt, with Terrance Morris at the three (or anyone else), it's over. Ballgame. Done. Rockets win.
Something that strikes me as strange about this rumor, didn't Jeff just make a thread saying that it would be tough to re-sign James Posey because of the luxury tax? So you trade for Brand who wants big money? And if the Rockets pass on signing Brand they lose the players they trade and probably get less then they want in a sign-and-trade with Brand. Seattle isn't going to take Taylor, he just came off an injury and they're cutting their cap to get under the luxury tax, no way they take Mo's huge contract. They won't take Miller for the same reason, unless they're trading Payton. There's just to many red flags for me to think this rumor is true, though I would love Brand. Like I've said for month, the Clipper have a ton of wing players, and they're trying to dump some salary, so why would they take ANOTHER wing player who is locked into a contract like Mobley? Maybe James Posey because his contract is expiring but no way I trade Posey. I don't know how Griffin's contract compares to Brand but Griffin and a first round pick? I wish the rumor named some players that were involved in a potential deal. I wouldn't think that Mo is rumored in a deal, is he?
bs... no team can afford 3 max...lakers can't either. look at their secondary players. If Shaq is making over the max..the team is sufferinf ala KG for the Wolves(most complete player in the league IMHO)
Why do people like Barry so much? He has been battling knee problems all year. I think tendinitis in his knees.
From a team standpoint, if you can get Elton Brand, arguably an All Star, and he is willing to sign long term with the Rockets assuming they offer the max, you pull the trigger. History tells us that the team that trades the best player almost always gets the worst of the deal. My guess is that Mobley would have to be part of any deal simply because the Clips need players they don't have to re-sign and who will keep them under the cap. If the Rockets moved Griffin and Mobley in return for Brand and Piatkowski (for example), the Rockets make up for Mobley's socring easily while solidifying the defense AND offense in the low post. We also get a good shooter who can come off the bench and stretch defenses. It also allows us to move Posey to the 2 where he can guard most team's best player nightly and put Morris in the line-up until Rice returns. It would free up time for Nachbar and give us a damn crazy line-up for the future (Francis, Posey, Nachbar, Brand, Yao) plus a helluva bench with Cato, Taylor and Morris still over there. The only problem is it leaves the team with 3 guys to sign in the offseason - Brand, Posey and Morris. It would almost guarantee that the Rockets will be paying the luxury tax and they have, until this point, given every indication they are not willing to eclipse that. Granted, Les has never been one for stinginess when it comes to the team and I'm sure, if he believed getting Brand meant getting another title, he'd pay whatever was necessary to get it done. Interesting stuff, for sure. Hey, Feigen, if you are reading this, why don't you find out for us and run something on it in the Chron!
If the Rockets are over the cap when it comes to resign these players, would they not have to reliquish rights to at least one before invoking Bird rights? (i.e. if you relinquish Posey, then they wont be able to re-sign him for a period time) I might be incorrect here. I just remember hearing that before you invoke Birdy rights to sign a player to a max contract while going over the cap, that you had to reliquish their rights.
I still like my trade idea! Eddie, Boki, and Collier for Brand straight up. Obviously, Cat would better for the Clippers than Boki. But if the Clips really want to get better, why would they move Brand in the first place? Boki is much cheaper than Cat, so I see this as realistic for the cheapest franchise of all. After all, dumping Brand is all about money in the first place. What makes any of you think they want Cat's long-term deal in return?
Because he's shooting 45% from the field, 41% from 3pt land, & averaging almost 2 steals per game. The previous 2 years, he's shot 51/50% from the field & 42/48% from 3pt land. He's started 37 of the 38 games he's played in this year & is averaging 33.2 mpg. If he's battling tendinitis, then I can't wait to see him when he's healthy.
The answer to your question is no. If you own the Bird rights to a player that has you over the limit but he is not signed and you are trying to sign another player that you do not have bird rights on(with more than the mid level exception) then you would have to renounce that player. If you renounce that player though you no longer have bird rights on him and then you can only offer the mid-level exception or what ever you have under the cap. I believe the only player that could be effected by this would be TMo and that is if the Rockets wanted to offer him more than the mid-level exception. Theoretically the Rockets could offer Brand and Posey the max while offering TMo up to the mid-level exception with out renouncing anyone. Of course I could be wrong
If Les isn't willing to take the tax, he'll be taking a backseat to Cuban for the next 10 years. You can't tell me that all of the revenue Yao brings in from overseas tv viewership won't allow Les to spend more.
No, you acquire the guy's Bird Rights in the trade. We can give Posey and Brand (assuming we got him) max contracts if we wanted (not that we would). Elton Brand is a hoss. Period. He boards, he blocks, and imagining him next to Ming is downright scary. Furious Jam- Re: Mobley's contract. He's a 18-20 ppg scorer on a dirt cheap contract (comparatively for 20 ppg scorers) that runs long term. He's close friends with the player Sterling allegedly loves the most, Odom. With Mobley, the Clips. could let Miller go, and run Jaric at the point with Odom playing a pseudo-PG role. hottoddie-I'd try to get Miller too if they were trading him along with Brand. My dream trade: Andre Miller, Elton Brand, Eric Piatkowski, and Sean Rooks for Cuttino Mobley, Eddie Griffin, Bostjan Nachbar, Kelvin Cato, and the Chicago picks
No doubt Brand improves our team. However, Cuttino signed a $30 million deal here for one reason. He loves the Rockets. No matter what you might Cat haters say, but Cuttino is one of the best bargains in the NBA. And now to turn our back to him would be very selfish. I would hate trading Griffin as well. This team is finally clicking on all cylinders. Dont mess it up Rocks!
I am pretty sure you are right. So that should not be a problem if we had several max free agents. For some reason that came to mind because a few summers ago, the Rockets waited a long time to sign Mo to his max deal while they figured out what to do with Hakeem. I thought they had to renounce Hakeem's rights in order to sign Taylor. Luxury cap would be the only issue. However, with the new arena expenses that are going to hit Les in the next few years, he might very well be serious about not paying luxury penalties.
Just imagine how much easier it would be to sell out the new arena night in and night out with Yao Ming, Elton Brand and Steve Francis in the line-up. The team wins much more consistently, the new arena rocks, the new uniforms will be smoking and the fans will be spending money! Les will be a happy man. BTW, did the Fish really save Pittsburgh?
