Great trade. Gay is gonna be an average player at best, and Battier is the missing piece of the puzzle. Our three best players are equal to or greater than any other team's top 3; the only question left is how good is our depth.
I was pissed on draft night, but after seeing him play on the USA team it made me feel better. He is a lot quicker than I thought he was, and he can play pretty good 1on1. For some reason calling him a "10 and 5 guy" just doesnt do him justice. It makes him sound average, and my view on him after seeing him play and hustle on the court is he is an above average player. Great Trade.
while i like battier, i still believe we could've gotten more. not getting their 1st rd pick or another decent player was an awful non-move for a team needing depth and athleticism. so my vote is No.
I like Battier, but too much was given up in the deal. Gay for Battier was basically even. They could have had Rafer or Howard to match salaries. Once Swift was in the deal we should have gotten their pick (I'd taken Farmar, but Ager or Rodriguez would be interesting as well) or a future conditional 1st. Seeing the deals for Nene, Wilcox, and Gooden, it is quite clear Swift had a good contract relative to his production/upside/limitations. 4s and 5s who are decent, even with substantial flaws, are not cheap. But if JL3 becomes our Farmar/Lowry (though I liked Farmar better than Lowry, thought Mem blew that one) I guess we won't miss that pick, but in terms of trade value equity, we should have got that pick.
well it looks like battier finally got his shot together in the last W.C. game. as much as I bash the trade, like everyone else has pretty much stated, battier really isn't the problem. battier is a nice role player but he is already currently their third best player. even if sura is healthy, battier is still their third best player. that's not a good situation for the rockets as a team. if the mike james deal would have worked out, the way CD got worked in this deal would be easier to stomach.
You have a problem with Battier as "the third best player'"?Don't you think we're do for a bit of a drop off after OUR 1 and 2?Anyway,basketball's a team sport. Not only can Shane spread the floor with that J and D up like a mother,but he's good enough to be on the Olympic team....and be a difference maker.Yeah we could use a role playing PF that can hit the boards and play some defense getting about 20 - 23 min. a night and some backcourt help....Rome wasn't built in a day though!
And I don't want to here about him only being there because of Coach K.The dude is a winner with the talent to do more than the dirty work,but he long ago subjogated his game for the good of the team.I'm really glad that people are getting a chance to see what we've got....Swift,Gay......C'mon give me a break.The Rockets picked up a true pro.We're title contenders if we're healthy NOW!
I think we must concede that Blinebury made a decent point in his column today-- With all the unproven players that the Rockets need big contributions from this year (Snyder, JL3, Hayes, VSpan and that 3-ball whitey), another rookie in Gay wouldn't have been a great idea for the Rockets this season or the next. The Rockets wanted a player that they knew was a legit NBA starter right away, and Battier is certainly that. We gave up a lot, obviously. But Memphis traded a skilled starter for a career backup and a guy that MIGHT become a starter two or three years down the line and MIGHT become much more or much less than that. Though they know what they're getting with Stro (nothing terribly exciting), Memphis definitely took a gamble on Gay. Will he be worth giving up Battier? Time will tell: He has the potential, but lots of guys come into the NBA with potential. Clearly Memphis demanded Stro in order to hedge the fairly large bet they're making. West certainly has enough of a track record that his team trusts his decisions. The fact remains, however, that the Rockets are getting a known commodity, a legit starter who can play three positions in the ultimate "support" role, while Memphis is getting a backup power forward and a question mark. Gay appears to be a pretty exciting guy, but he's certainly not ready to play on the U.S. National Team, put it that way. Against my better nature, I'm constantly optimistic about the Rockets. Last season was an abomination, no question; but then again, you have to swallow the bitter to truly taste the sweet (Swisher or otherwise). What we clearly needed last year was more legitimate starters to support the stars. Well, the Rockets were hellbent on adding one through the draft, and they did. Mike James was a big loss, and now we're going to have to test out four serious unknowns playing real minutes. Since we did not get James, would adding another rookie in Gay really have been a better decision then Battier? Certainly not this year, probably not the next. In the future? Well, he could become the next Dwayne Wade or the next Eddie Griffin. Here's hoping it's the latter. Hope is pretty much going to be the name of the game this season.
battier wouldn't be the third best player on most teams. its not just because the rockets first two are so good. the Heat have wade and shaq, and their third best is antoine walker. and he didn't even need to start. spurs have duncan, parker, ginobli. dallas has more even talent after dirk, but have considerably more depth. if the rockets had depth, than shane being your third best player wouldn't be an issue. incidently, jvg was talking on 790 about the rotation in the back court, how kirk snyder would get a lot of playing time. he mentioned how the back up two was head, he said something about rafer, and mentioned nothing of bob sura.
I don't think that adding battier is going to be the key to rockets' success. The problem with rockets is the depths of the bench. Looking at some of the other great teams in the west like dallas, suns or the spurs, their bench players can be potential starters on other teams like Jerry on Dallas. Rockets needs some decent players off the bench.....if they were to be a serious championship contender....
I am not sure Battier overall isn't as good as Walker, or wouldn't be just as valuable to the Heat. But Haslem and Posey are pretty much as good as those two as well--so they Heat really have 3 Battier type vets around their big 2. And JW/GP though not great, are experienced and better than our PGs. We really need some young backcourt players (Snyder, VSpan, JL3, Abuz, etc) to emerge as excellent and reliable players to compete for a title.
You're right. I would never give away two guys with tons of talent who have consistent questions about their heart and motivation and contantly leave you frustrated for a guy who is a team player, proven winner, does the little things and makes those around him better. Cato, Fizer, Curry, Olowokandi, Swift, Kwame Brown- all big men with loads of talent and questionable effort. Could Gay be next?
I tried not to make eye contact with Van Gundy, but he kept staring, and all I kept hearing was "Battier is the missing piece. Battier is the missing piece. Battier..." Next thing I know I woke up in a Battier jersey with season tickets in my hand. Still don't know how to pay for those. No really, you need that kind of player on the team. You have to have those guys. The Bowen's, Mario Elie's, Horace Grants, Etc. They are the guys who don't need the spotlight, they just help you win. Everybody keeps jocking Swift's potential, but what has he done. Well, he didn't get a chance in Houston? What about the chances he got in Memphis. He's been in the league 5 years. He's never been more than he is. To me a guy like Gay is just asking for the same thing. A takented guy if he'd just put forth consisten effort. Maybe if you signed them to one year deals and made them pay for their money every year.
