Source: Harden will demand a trade if Westbrook leaves the team

Who is making the picks? Can this organization build a champion?

 

In terms of scouts and talent evaluation, Yea will need to employ those individuals. Generally with lotto picks pretty straight forward. There are the rare scouts/individuals like jerry west but most people agree on top 5 for the draft with equivalent hits and misses. That really is the only way, don’t count on FA coming here with this fukcstick as owner

 

You better hire the right people. Morey is beloved here and has 0 titles in 13 years. If a Championship is the goal, “Trading Harden” isn’t all you have to do. You have to Have an organization with a vision and on the same page.

 

I saw an online news item by some sports journalist on him. He is practicing hard and seems fit.
He was advocating him to re-join GS.

 

His wallet is empty

 

its actually a vacuum, dude is leveraged more than any other owner in sports

 

I really hope they trade Harden & everyone for younger assets / picks and just start rebuilding now.

 

If we could somehow trade for or sign a big that can grab rebounds and shoot, I'm ok with run it back with Harden and Westbrook.

 

Rockets should go all in this year and pass luxury tax,maybe aim for christian wood,if it all fails then Trade westbrook to the knicks for knox, picks and filler,trade harden to the nuggets for murray,mpj and 4 first round picks and filler/player.Trade pj for a first to a random team ,trade covigngton for a 1st to a random team.Let the rebuild start

 

I know ESPN comes to clutchfans for dirt on rockets stories. I can guarantee someone reads this post and makes some report on it. And boom All the media outlets get breaking news in seconds. “Breaking news: harden begs Fertitta not to trade Westbrook, if he goes I go”.

 

Yeah on the one hand you gotta rip the band-aid off and tank, hope to rebuild on the fly or at least a rapid turnaround like Memphis or Oklahoma City (though to be clear, neither are anywhere near championship contention; the next few years of those franchises will be fun to watch however).

The very worst case scenario is being the Knicks, Kings, Timberwolves, late-90s-to-mid-2000s Warriors, Suns (at least before their bubble breakout), or god forbid the Clippers before Blake Griffin.

And just looking at how competitive the West is...it's not looking too bright.

Bleak? I wouldn't say that. Bleak would be the team mired in loses year after year with no end in sight, like the teams above.

We've all been spoiled by how great -- but not great enough -- the last few years have been with Harden. Yet it's pretty clear this team as-is with scant options to improve is not capable of winning a championship. That's unfortunate, and we're likely looking at a team that will lose in the first or second round in a supremely competitive conference.

They'll be one of the better teams in the league, but not elite -- probably a lot like the mid-00s Rockets with McGrady where they were never quite good enough to defeat a top team in a 7-game series.

I think the question is would you rather roll with what they have even if the outcome is guaranteed no Finals appearance? Or blow it up and risk being irrelevant for years?

Personally I'd prefer the team not end up like a Detroit or pre-Doncic Dallas, but that might not be an option. I think what's most unnerving is the lack of clear direction. Morey at least brought a sense of ease in knowing the best moves were exhausted. Whoever is the next GM will have big shoes to fill.

Not having a proven coach and questionable ownership brings further doubt to the future.

And I do hate to say it, but the team has been, for the most part, lucky to have key players healthy, or at least averting major injury during the season (obviously the elephant in the room is Paul's hamstring and Westbrook's quad during the playoffs).

The worst case scenario might be running it back next year and one of Westbrook/Harden suffering a major injury which not only hurts the chances of contending (or even making the playoffs), but also tanks hypothetical trade value. I hope it doesn't come to that.

It may be frustrating to see a team like Dallas overtake Houston and be the media darling. And **** it all if they end up somehow getting Giannis.

Then there's the Spurs which have their own questions; they may be in a worse position short-term than Houston, but I would definitely be deeply frustrated if the franchise player (Leonard) single-handidly blew up a contending team AND demanded a trade which tanked return value.

___

On the other hand, it's true there's never going to be a time where trade value would be higher. I would at least listen to any and all trades that could bring in 1) a young "star" 2) a solid rotational player or two 3) multiple draft picks to restock the cupboard.

Anything short of that then it's not worth the gamble. Use next year as a gap year to bide time and see what options arise during the season or next off-season. Harden is still one of the best players in the league's history and that's nearly impossible to replace. Maybe he'll come to his senses and be willing to part with Westbrook once he can see it's his best option to win in Houston.

Having said that, I do hope loyalty is rewarded and somehow Harden + Westbrook lead a time to a title next year.

 

I would too but that doesnt even seem like enough to beat bron and AD 4 times. We would have to get someone like cousins on the cheap, hope he can still be a star, plus stay healthy, plus still need more depth tillman cant afford. If just feels like we are really far away from a title at the moment. Its looking like we will have to blow this up. If not this year fot sure next year, and if its next year id rather get it over with now and not waste another year for james.

 

We need to sign Both Greens Jeff & Gerald.
Then get a 3&D centre at MLE

Then run it back for a Year.
If we still get knocked out of the 2nd Rd.

I'm down for a full rebuild.
Trade Gordon Westbrook and yes Harden.

Total rebuild. We can not suck in 2024-2026.
I Really don't want to be the Brooklyn nets of the 20teens.

 

Gasol is going to Barca

 

Good. Sounds like an opportunity.

 

You are confused of what your perception of what Morey ball is and are trying to project it on others as fact. Lakers executed it better. 6-5 centers is what you get when your cheap and have MDA as coach. Morey ball is not small ball. We were doing Morey ball before went extra small. MDA didn't help the situation by having bad in game management. AD is no center even though he is listed as such. Morey never said to not shoot 2's. You just better make them. Hard is a excellent mid range shooter. No one is holding a gun to his head to not shoot three's. Like I stated before it's the players poor execution of Morey ball that was/is the problem. The whole NBA uses Morey ball even if they don't call it that. Being extra small under MDA compounded that fact. It's easy to sit back and subjectively point fingers. People blame Morey for the barrage of 3's, fine, but Morey is not on the court. If Morey has to be the Coach too and tell the players to not takes dumb ass contested shots and to look for open 3's. I see why he would not want to leave. If people like you or the players haven't gotten it by now, you never will learn.

 

Production output isn't that vastly different. Harden may be the lesser of the two stat wise but he is not that far off. A baby Lebron if you will. Harden has definitely not had the help and scenarios Lebron has been coddled to.

 

Not sure when we can sign Gerald back given that from what I recall, we can't re-sign a player we've traded for a year from the date of such trade. But otherwise fully agree with this.

 

Why do most people on this board believe Lucas is not the right guy for the job? Words have been used on this board such as “worse coaching hire” and “incompetent”. We are not privy to what was discussed in these interviews. But they probably discussed offensive Philosophy and how to utilize the two stars. Maybe they like what they heard from Lucas and he showed them knowledge and wisdom of the game. Maybe they like the fact thar Lucas is a pg and can make Harden even better. Maybe they like the fact that he has a great relationship with players and is a trusted mentor and teacher. What I am hearing is a lot of judgment from a lot of people on this board some of these advocate JVG who have not coached in 14 or so years compared to Lucus’ 17 years as head coach but lucas has been an assistant and player development guy recently. Comparatively He is more plugged in and in tune with the beat of the players being around the game more than JVG and as a player development coach. I don’t know if he’s a tactically sound coach or whether he will succeed but I wouldn’t rule it out and judge too quickly. His Head coaching body of work is limited but his resume, wisdom, and relationship building skills are superlative and extensive.

 

Too much unknown. mysteries.