I don't like it because our defense would kinda suck on the wing.I like it because since we paid miller lowry n scola alot,losing ariza gives us more money to spend in the future..and keep in mind that melo will be a free agent next season,so maybe morey is doing this deal for the future..we won't be better,but I think were not losing so much,and it might be better towards the future
I'm pretty pissed, shoulda seen the whole roster play together first before making any moves. But at the same time, maybe Morey's saving up some money to get a superstar
although i will have to admit, ariza will definitely shoot MUCH better next year playing next to chris paul.
I don't mind the trade, Ariza's skills are redundant with Battier's. Morey thought Ariza could be more, but last season showed that he couldn't. Lets not kid ourselves about Lee either, he's JAG and will might have problems getting playing time. This is a straight up salary dump, but it shouldn't affect the team too much as long as Battier stays healthy.
please someone explain to me how this will give us money to land a superstar!!! Ariza would have been that guy that could make salaries match in a trade to land a superstar. Dont think this is a bad trade either but just not going to make us better right now!! Right now we are better with ariza.. but oh well. Maybe this is for the future.
Don't like the trade. Defense suffers, size suffers, and JT has been developing well. Battier is old, can C-Bud play 3 and step up his defense? I doubt it.
It's possible that with the extensions that Lowry and Scola signed, and with the BMiller deal, Les would not have allowed Morey to dump expiring deals (Jeffries, Battier) for an established star with a big contract.
Signals to me that Morey doesn't have confidence the team can compete this season. I don't have a problem with trading away Ariza, but trading for yet another rookie contract means Morey is building for the post-Yao years, not for right now. If Ariza needed to be traded, I would have liked to see him in part of a big trade for a star, or at least moved for another veteran player who doesn't need any developing.
Does this move mean we are not going for an "all star" this season? I think we should have saved him for a package deal that could bring us a Carmelo or a another superstar.
Actually Ariza was a mediocre to sub-average team defender. His length allowed him to play passing lanes and get a lot of highlight reel plays, but his lack of fundamental soundness and discipline caused him to be caught out of position very often, leading to easy scores, fouls or angry teammates like Battier having to hustle extra hard to cover up for his mistakes. That's one reason why despite all the break away steals and dunks, the Rockets were still a terrible team defensively every night. I expect Lee to be much better than Ariza on the defensive aspect, in both individual and team defense.
Good Trade. I know that Ariza is pretty polorizing for Rockets fans and Courtney Lee is no Kevin Durant but here are my reasons why it makes us better. Positives= -Opens up playing time for Budinger. (think about 09 Alston trade) Budinger isnt quite ready for Starter minutes but will be a much better player than Ariza after this season. -Courtney Lee is a solid Backup to Kevin Martin and should be consistent in case of an injury to Martin. We all want Taylor to be great bet lets face it he is not who we want to be our starting 2 if Martin goes down. IMO Lee is a better player that Ariza, but that is besides the point. -Saves Les Alexander money in the future to go after big free agents and re-sign Brooks and Yao. This is a future money saver not just Les being a tight wad this year. -Ariza's attitude. Trevor was open at times last year that he was unhappy to have left the Lakers. Another year and another championship for the Lakers and a decreased role for Ariza could be a locker room disaster. It may have been that Ariza asked out anyways. Negatives- -Defense - honestly, Ariza was great at steals but he did gamble alot to get them. Battier should see solid minutes now at the 3 spot but he is better suited to fit in with Yao in the halfcourt. Thats about it. Only one somewhat negative thing to add about this trade. There are probably even more positives but the main thing I want to point out is... "Hey Bud, Let Party" (sorry, had to do it)
"Don't knock the hustle" people. That Morey, I tell yah! Yes, this move was made in part to get closer to the tax line and also to clear the glut at SF we had BUT don't sleep on C Lee and what he will bring to the team. C Lee is a good young player. He was in a bad situation last year with the Nets, but don't discount his ability. He is a good defender and is a team player. He is a player that can get to the rim and knock down the open jumper. Cant ask for a better backup SG behind Martin. Rockets fans will be very pleased with him by the 2nd month of the season (once they see what he can do). BOOK IT!
You do what the rest of us did last season: Wonder why the hell you paid money for that thing. I'm indifferent/pleased. Never could convince myself that the Rockets were going to seriously contend this year (Can Yao even run yet?), but I don't think this trade makes the team worse. Much as the Alston trade cleared the way for Brooks, this one clears the way for Bud. Don't know if he'll be starting on day 1, but I sure wouldn't be surprised to see him starting by the deadline. Would you? Also, $10 million is $10 million. That's just the savings this year. I couldn't quite wrap my mind around how the Rockets were supposed to be flexible when they were so far over the cap. Now they're much closer, with Yao, Battier, and Jeffries coming off the books after this season. "All in?" Not sure exactly how a team goes "all-in" after missing the playoffs. I'm glad to have Yao and Brad Miller playing this season, but I don't think they leapfrog us ahead of eight teams in the West. As for Lee, all that I know for sure is that he's a legit NBA backup to replace Taylor, who just ain't gonna make it. Apparently he can shoot a little, drive a little, defend a little, and run the break. Sounds like he'll fit in nicely at a position of need (yes, need).
