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Starting PF: "There's better players available through trade."

Discussion in 'Houston Rockets: Game Action & Roster Moves' started by BimaThug, Jul 1, 2007.

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  1. BimaThug

    BimaThug Resident Capologist
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    These were Daryl Morey's own words in today's article in the Chronicle.

    So, going over other teams' rosters (i.e., players under contract for next year), looking for decent to high quality veteran power forwards who are true PFs and not combo forwards (which describes the particular type of player the Rockets are looking for), I've come up with the following list:

    Shelden Williams (3 yrs., ~$11M remaining) - not a veteran, but I like his rebounding and shot blocking
    Drew Gooden (2 yrs., ~$16M remaining) - distinct possibility if Cavs re-sign Varajao
    Marcus Camby (3 yrs., ~$33M remaining) - likely have no shot at Defensive POY
    Nene (5 yrs., ~$52M remaining) - large salary for not-too-productive but promising PF
    Rasheed Wallace (2 yrs., ~$25M remaining) - long-shot, only if Detroit wants to dump him
    Jason Maxiell (2 yrs., ~$2.8M remaining) - more realistic Detroit option if Pistons keep Amir Johnson
    Ike Diogu (2 yrs., ~$5.5M remaining) - already discussed, for Luther Head?
    Kwame Brown (1 yr., ~$8.3M remaining) - talented knucklehead with expiring contract
    Brian Cook (3 yrs., $10.5M remaining) - good shooter, but not worth Luther Head straight up
    Stromile Swift (3 yrs., ~$19M remaining) - just kidding
    Udonis Haslem (3 yrs., ~$19M remaining) - would be nice addition, but would Miami give him up?
    Jason Collins (2 yrs., ~$13M remaining) - uh, no thanks
    Josh Boone (3 yrs., ~$4.5M remaining) - again, not a veteran but good young PF who I like
    Cedric Simmons (3 yrs., ~$6M remaining) - another young PF who could also grow into being a backup C
    Malik Rose (2 yrs., ~$17M remaining) - again, no thanks
    Tony Battie (3 yrs., ~$16.2M remaining) - solid veteran, good defender
    Steven Hunter (3 yrs., ~$10M remaining) - young, shot blocking PF/C
    Kurt Thomas (2 yrs., ~$15M remaining) - tough, aging veteran
    Raef LaFrentz (2 yrs., ~$24M remaining) - outside shooter, shot blocker, too pricey
    Kenny Thomas (3 yrs., ~$21.4M remaining) - decent rebounder, but not at that price
    Shareef Abdur-Rahim (3 yrs., ~$18M remaining) - good offense, bad defense
    Chris Wilcox (2 yrs., ~$17.75M remaining) - upgrade over Stromile, but still not highly motivated
    Nick Collison (4 yrs., $26M remaining) - good rebounder with great motor
    Jarron Collins (2 yrs., ~$4.5M remaining) - okay as backup PF/C
    Etan Thomas (3 yrs., ~$20M remaining) - high motor guy, but not that talented


    Of these guys, the most realistic options appear to be:

    (1) Drew Gooden - the Cavs want to bring back Anderson Varajeao without going into luxury tax territory. This makes Gooden expendable. A quality low post scorer and rebounder, he'd be a good fit next to Yao. If he could just keep his ego in check, he'd be a great fit.

    (2) Ike Diogu - the way Larry Bird keeps talking about the Pacers adding "one of the league's best shooters, although he may not be a household name", you'd think that there are legs to the Diogu-for-Luther Head rumors. Even if something else needs to be thrown in on the Rockets' end, Diogu could be worth it as a big, low-post scorer and rebounder. Think of him as a poor man's Elton Brand.

    (3) Brian Cook - for Luther Head, no thanks. But the rumor has legs. Morey, please don't do that unless the Rockets are getting a future first rounder from the Lakers.

    (4) Tony Battie - the Magic are trying to clear as much cap room as possible to get Lewis and re-sign Milicic. With Dwight Howard and a re-signed Darko, the team could look to ship Battie elsewhere. A package involving Bob Sura's contract would accomplish this goal for Orlando. Not a gifted scorer, Battie has been Orlando's best post defender for the past few seasons and would give the Rockets a legit weakside shot blocker next to Yao.

    (5) Steve Hunter - see Battie above. Hunter is a cheaper alternative but without as good a head on his shoulders.

    (6) Shareef Abdur-Rahim - if Adelman liked him in Sacramento, he might be a decent addition as a scoring PF for the Rockets. Not the best defender but could be good splitting time with Chuck Hayes.

    (7) Nick Collison - This is a guy I'd love to have on the Rockets. He can rebound, block shots and play backup C as well. I doubt that Seattle wants to lose him, but it'd be worth a shot.


    Any thoughts?
     
    #1 BimaThug, Jul 1, 2007
  2. steddinotayto

    steddinotayto Member

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    Alston
    Novak
    Landry or Bonzi

    For

    Haslem

    Done deal
     
    #2 steddinotayto, Jul 1, 2007
  3. Barkley

    Barkley Member

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    SOme of these players are really interestin'. We should think abuot them and I'm sure we are doin' it now
     
    #3 Barkley, Jul 1, 2007
  4. Sooner423

    Sooner423 Member

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    Battie would be perfect. He's a great defensive player, he can hit that mid-range j, he's a solid rebounder with good athleticism and a deal for Sura's expiring and a pal (Billy, Lucas, Snyder, Novak) might get it done. That's a solid idea.
     
    #4 Sooner423, Jul 1, 2007
  5. Rookie34

    Rookie34 Member

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    Three players for one player??? Are you f*cking kidding me? We are talking about Haslem, not Camby or Sheed ...

    Ike Diogu straight up for Head would be awesome and I would benefit both teams, so why wait Morey?
     
    #5 Rookie34, Jul 1, 2007
  6. Like A Breath

    Like A Breath Member

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    Try to get Gooden or Diogu, and then try to trade for Hilton Armstrong or Cedric Simmons who are young(probably expendable) lottery picks from New Orleans.
     
    #6 Like A Breath, Jul 1, 2007
  7. Rookie34

    Rookie34 Member

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    I agree 100% ...

    New Orleans Hornets
    Incoming Players

    John Lucas
    Salary: $700,000 Years Remaining: 3
    PTS: 3.3 REB: 0.8 AST: 0.7 PER: 11.77

    Luther Head
    Salary: $1,048,800 Years Remaining: 2
    PTS: 10.9 REB: 3.2 AST: 2.4 PER: 13.73

    Outgoing Players: Cedric Simmons, second round pick 2008

    Houston Rockets
    Incoming Players

    Cedric Simmons
    Salary: $1,515,480 Years Remaining: 2
    PTS: 2.9 REB: 2.5 AST: 0.3 PER: 8.02

    Second Round Pick 2008

    Outgoing Players: John Lucas, Luther Head

    Houston Rockets 2007-2008:

    PG: James/Alston/Brooks
    SG: Bonzi/Snyder/T-Mac
    SF: T-Mac/Battier/Novak/Reed
    PF: Simmons/Hayes/Landry
    C: Yao/Deke (?)/ Jake (?)

    Simmons (pick #15 in 2006 Draft) has the potential & talent to play great next to Yao.
     
    #7 Rookie34, Jul 1, 2007
  8. drpepper

    drpepper Member

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    here's my fav.

    link
     
    #8 drpepper, Jul 1, 2007
  9. CriscoKidd

    CriscoKidd Member

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    Good post.

    I always liked Battie when he was with the celts. I don't know if his game has changed any with age/injuries, but I think he would be a good tough pf on the cheap here.
     
    #9 CriscoKidd, Jul 1, 2007
  10. #1draftpik

    #1draftpik Member

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    Rafer ($4,200,000) + Sura ($3,840,000) for Marcus Camby ($8,800,000)
    Nuggets are in the luxury tax and need to get rid of one of their front court players. Nene (younger), K-Mart (injuries make him untradeable), Najera (low salary), Evans (low salary) are all in and makes Camby the odd man out. They will lose Steve Blake to free agency and JR Smith is up in the air with the recent auto accident. They need a solid backup and Rafer fits their need. Sura gives them the salary relief they need to get under the luxury tax.
     
    #10 #1draftpik, Jul 1, 2007
  11. rn_xw

    rn_xw Member

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    I'd love to see Battie on the Rockets.
    He'd be a perfect fit under JVG system tho.
     
    #11 rn_xw, Jul 1, 2007
  12. steddinotayto

    steddinotayto Member

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    You DO know that when you make a trade, you have to get all the salaries to pretty much be within eachother right? Haslem ain't exactly making the veteran's minimum. And it's Alston, Novak and Landry we're talking about...not exactly a star-studded mega-trade. AND this is something that can benefit Miami while we have nothing outside of McGrady and Yao that Denver and Detroit would want.
     
    #12 steddinotayto, Jul 1, 2007
  13. hooroo

    hooroo Member

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    Haslem
    Gooden
    Murphy
    Moore

    In that order they're the PFs who I think would fit well on the Rockets.

    Rockets don't have pieces to get Haslem.

    Gooden is similiar to Udonis in that they can hit the mid range shot at a good clip. Both are good rebounders and athletic. Gooden is an ordinary defender unlike Haslem.

    Murphy has a bad contract but can score anywhere on the court. He's got the best range and rebounding of the lot. His rebounding was down last year because of a broken nose which is understandable. Those elbows will keep on flying. He's also slow whereas the Rockets are looking for the opposite.

    Mikki Moore numbers seem good but I'd be worried about the journeyman player performing for the first time in a contract year at 32 years of age. Ordinary rebounder.
     
    #13 hooroo, Jul 1, 2007
  14. Sooner423

    Sooner423 Member

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    Yeah, man. It just makes all kinds of sense. There going to give Darko big money, so you can expect him to start and you can expect Orlando to be looking to clear some more cap space considering they may be giving Rashard a max contract and Darko close to that. There's some rumblings that Vazquez may be coming over and he has to be about as NBA ready as you can be. That's not going to leave a whole lot of minutes for Battie. I love the idea.
     
    #14 Sooner423, Jul 1, 2007
  15. hooroo

    hooroo Member

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    That rumor has already been killed by Vazquez. He's going to head over in two years time when his current contract ends.
     
    #15 hooroo, Jul 1, 2007
  16. SmitingPurpleEm

    SmitingPurpleEm Member

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    Camby is the reigning DPOY and has finally begun to stay healthy... so I don't think we can get him for just Rafer and some financial relief. We'd have to throw in more stuff. We have draft picks, but beyond that I don't know what we have other than Battier, Yao or McGrady. Maybe we can con them into taking Spanoulis.
     
    #16 SmitingPurpleEm, Jul 1, 2007
  17. rocketsfaninsa

    rocketsfaninsa Member

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    Our next PF should be Lawrence Roberts from the Grizzlies. they declined to make qualifying offers to them, so we need to make an offer. They supposedly are not going to match any offers. Roberts has looked good against the Rockets in the past, and will look even better next to Yao, and even coming off the bench as a back up center. Mainly PF though. GET HIM!
     
    #17 rocketsfaninsa, Jul 1, 2007
  18. Sooner423

    Sooner423 Member

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    I wasn't aware of that, but they still might look to dump Battie for cap reasons.
     
    #18 Sooner423, Jul 1, 2007
  19. RedRowdy111

    RedRowdy111 Member

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    I would like to:

    Sign Jamal Magloire with the LLE
    Sign Francis after he gets cut
    Trade for Battier for Lewis/Wilcox
    Trade Head for Cook/Diogu
    *Keep Alston
    *Resign Mutumbo
    *Resign Chuck Hayes
     
    #19 RedRowdy111, Jul 1, 2007
  20. leebigez

    leebigez Member

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    Why not kill 2 birds with 1 stone? Rafer,head,v-span and snyder for etan thomas and antnio daniels. Daniels and thomas start in a lineup with yao and tracy. use battier and sura for sign and trade for lewis. daniels,mcgrady,lewis,thomas,and yao as starters with james,wells,mle,hayes and novak off the bench. It gives wizards a backup pg and 3 players in the last yr of contracts. the rox get a shotblocker/rebounder with size, a pg and they're in the age range to help the rox compete for a title for the next 3 yrs.
     
    #20 leebigez, Jul 1, 2007
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