Summer League Game 3: Rockets vs. Suns featuring Mike James

Rockets not focussed tonight. Expected

They all expect the Melo trade to be announced soon and are preparing for the big after party in Vegas

 

Troy must be waiting for the Carmelo trade like the rest of us.

 

Nanu- natural rebounder and defender, but a little on the slow side. Hasn't looked good. Another year in the D-League or trade him; not ready to play yet.

Joe Chee- very good defender, but also very raw; especially offensively. Nice stroke, but needs a lot of practice. Needs a lot of minutes in the D-League; probably 2 years away. Great long-term prospect; poor-man's KG-like talent. His combo of length and athleticism is rare; has killer instinct. Rebounded better tonight than the other nights.

Taylor - legit NBA PG prospect. Outstanding ball handler with excellent speed; takes care of the ball, very few turnovers. Also has talent offensively; key for him will be working on shooting. Best pure PG prospect Houston has had in years. He makes the team as the 3rd PG behind CP3 and Harden.

Oliver -I really liked what i saw; wanted to see more. NBA body. Nice 3 pt shot. Natural rebounder and defender. Looking forward to seeing a lot more of him in pre-season. Sounds like he's on the fast-track to make the team, but i need to see more. The versatility in impressive. He fits better than Montrez because he can actually rebound and defend and shoot from long range; he doesn't have to be around the paint to be effective. He makes the team as a reserve 4 on his defense and rebounding.

Harenstein -He looked better last night than he did tonight. There's talent to work with there. Versatile and athletic for his size; and he can shoot. He needs D-league or another year overseas.

Troy Williams -thought he played his best game of summer league tonight. He's a streaky shooter and i question his handles, but he showed he can score in a lot of ways and contribute in other ways. He's a legit NBA player; great spot-up shooter. I think he makes the team.

Chris Johnson -another versatile player who can play all over the court and shoot the ball; he's quietly played well all summer league. He's 27 and plays the same position as Troy Williams. One of these guys makes this team and one of them doesn't I'm betting Johnson is the odd man out.

I didn't really like the other guys enough to comment.

 

What about Ryan Anderson too, Troy? Don't you get excited about playing alongside him?

 

I agree with all you said. Shawn Long will prob get a camp invite. He put up good numbers in Philly last year when he got time. Good rebounder and has length. Can hit the 3 at times and hits the offensive boards. Just not a good summer league so far.

 

Morey did a pretty good job with mid-low 2nd rounders and undrafted guys.

To me Troy, Taylor and Oliver can easily make the roster at this point, teach of them would be the third guy in his spot, i have no problem with that tbh, some garbage time and some minutes when there's foul trouble here and there...i also like Zhou and Nanu but yeah, they need more time.

Yeah, i expected a bit more by him from what i got told, pretty underwhelming to me so far, looked kinda active but still pretty slow...i think he's more a Europe kind of player.

 

He will take all his 3's

 

You mean his number 33 jersey comprised of 11 threes?

 

I think Zhou is going to be with the main squad by the end of the year. There's too much about him that's special. Such an intuitive player. He makes plays with his brain just like Harden. We might have 3 or 4 basketball geniuses on this roster with Harden and Paul filling two spots.

 

Oliver can shoot 3s?

 

Thanks for sharing. Good shot blocking and outlet passing by Joe Chee.

 

Inb4 ZOFs

 

Oliver looked good stroking the three ball and rebounding tonight.. reminds me a little of Faried but can shoot.. I know it's only summer league but I think Cam Oliver and Troy Williams might have a higher ceilings than Trez and Dekker..

 

From the ClutchFans section of the Thomas and Mack

 

Wondering if the Knicks are just waiting for Summer League to end so they can have their pick of Rockets prospects.

 

Good breakdown Aruba. I add these two the above...

Nanu: Must work on his outlet passes!

Jochi: Shorting his name, because I'm lazy. Agree with what you said, but believe one year in G-League may be enough for him to contribute. He's a small ball 5 in MDA system and can already do some rim protection and rebounding. Needs to work on offense and I'd like to see what Dream can do with his post game. He's in a new land, with a new offense, but his unique talents and BBall IQ in this brief glimpse looks good.

Taylor: Vast improvement over last year, but he's dribbling way to high and carrying the ball on every possession. If he can correct these two areas and learn from CP3, he could be a really great addition to the team. His speed and quickness give him a chance to perhaps be even more.

Oliver: Agree, this kid has some real potential, but it would be good to see more. I like his demeanor on the court as well.

Troy W: This kid is like lightening in a bottle, he's so fast and decisive. He reminds me of the famous military strategy--Attack, Attack, Attack! Once he's able to control his super human abilities a bit more, he could be special.

Hartenstein: Another year overseas and then a year in the G-league. He's a 7' ft ball of clay that if molded properly could be an exciting addition.

Overall, for NO STARS this team was a lot of fun to watch and has some interesting prospects for us to develop, with Troy and possibly Taylor contributing some this year.