The team has been heading in a new direction since Daryl Morey took over as the general manager.. There have been a number of moves that you could look at as evidence that the Rockets have shifted their focus from the 'here and now' to one that is more concerned with the future of the franchise. It started with the end of the Van Gundy era and the hiring of Rick Adelman. That move showed me that Morey was no longer confident in Van Gundy's philosophy of building strictly around the aging and oft-injured Yao and tracy Mcgrady duo. By bringing in Rick Adelman, Morey put his faith in the idea of building a team that can function offensively without depending on dominant play by one or two individual players. That philosophy depends on playing at a faster pace and putting guys on the floor with the quickness and athleticism to create offense for themselves and for others. This means acquiring and playing younger players which could sometimes be detrimental to your defense and your overall execution. The major benefits of this philosophy is a more exciting brand of basketball that is more pleasing to the fans and in a way it makes you better equiped to deal with injury. In just two seasons, the Rockets have made a number of moves that have reflected this new philosophy: Starting the more offensive minded PF Luis Scola over the defender/rebounder Chuck Hayes, giving the starting PG job to Aaron Brooks, playing the young and athletic Carl Landry heavy minutes, trading veteran rafer alston for the younger and quicker Kyle Lowry, playing smaller lineups when Yao goes to the bench, giving a guy like Von Wafer an opportunity to crack the rotation. All of these decisions made by the coach and the GM seem to indicate that the Rockets are interested in building a team and a system that can produce wins not only now, but in the future as well. All these moves have been great and I think we all can appreciate the direction this team is headed in. However, There is a particular issue that has not been addressed and it will probably carry the most weight in determining the future of the Rockets. That issue is whether or not we decide to extend Yao Ming's contract. Extending Yao will likely take up alot of our resources and in a way it contradicts the philosophy of getting younger and more athletic, but the way I see it, this is Yao's team. I know that there are tons of questions about his durability and whether or not he can be the main guy and carry a team especially in the playoffs, but he will have an excellent chance to answer those questions this season especially now that Mcgrady is out of the lineup. I think the emergence of all the young guys and the drama with mcgrady/artest/rafer has really overshadowed how well Yao has played this year. He has been our rock, and when he plays well, we win. When mcgrady went down, Yao picked up his scoring and his defense. On the offensive end, He is reading defenses well and creating double teams and open looks for his team mates. His FG percentage is ridiculously high for a guy who averages 20 ppg and despite what alot of people think, he has made alot of clutch plays this season with the game on the line. On the defensive end, he has been more physical and more aggressive in the paint. Its been a really tough season to this point, but Yao has been the one constant throughout it all. You have to remember that he has done all of this just one year removed from major surgery. There is no doubt, Yao has physical limitations and he has durabiltiy issues, but you can't question his commitment to the team and his commitment to winning. When he is healthy, he is one of the most consistant and productive players in the entire league. He's unselfish, he's commited to winning, he's resilient, he works harder than anyone, and he's an embodiment of what this team should be about. I don't know about you guys, but I want guys like that on my team. These 3 or 4 months are very important for Yao and if he continues to perform and stay healthy, I really hope Morey and the FO make it a priority to extend his contract ASAP. He's the heart and soul of this franchise, and the thought of him playing in another uniform bothers me.
The Rockets management has done a fabulous job since Morey took over. They are rebuilding as well as keeping a team that is a contender. We have picked up young talent in Wafer, Brooks, Landry, Dorsey, Lowry, and at the same time have the ability to lock up Yao and Artest long term in the next two years.
I think we have a little less control over that. We would depend on other teams and their needs and what theyre willing to give up. Extending Yao is a step that we could make that wouldn't be as difficult.
I would not give a lot of credit to Morey for getting rid of JVG and bringing in Rick (I thought Darel Morey had mentioned at one point that he would have liked to keep JVG longer. Can anyone confirm this?). I was actually not in big favor of getting rid of JVG, but I think I am now starting to change my mind on this. Based on the type of defense that we were playing earlier this year, I thought we would not have any chance of succeeding in the playoff. I am very happy to see that we are once again bringing our defensive identity back. I also think that Rick Adelman is better suited for giving enough chance to young players to grow. It seemed that JVG only trusted the veterans. I don't think that the Rafer trade would have happened if JVG was our coach.
where have you been? they've tried to extend him twice already and each time yao said he would think about it.
Our defense was 2nd in the league under adelman last year. I think the biggest reason why our defense suffered earlier this year was because Battier and Artest weren't healthy. Then you have mcgrady playing on one leg and that makes for very bad perimeter D.
Well they need to convince him to sign. I don't know how the negotiations have gone to this point, but they need to do whatever it takes to convince him to stay.
patience is a virtue. i think at this time it may be better for both yao and the team to leave that for this summer.
I agree with that. Yao needs to prove he can stay healthy a full season and he needs to play well in the playoffs.
Everything really depends on Yao really. If we're going to extend Yao and build around him, we need to look for players that can help us contend for the next few years. If Yao and the Rockets want to go separte ways, we need to start collecting young, promising players that can develop into great players. I think if we go back to rebuilding mode, we need to start trading away some of our veterans for younger prospects. Either way, GO ROCKETS!
Yao is still not at the form he was at back in pre surgury. It really depends on what Mcgrady is doing. IF he shows good rehab turns up to camp in shape, what should we do? What happens if his on fire? If he turns up, grumpy, out of shape and playing like crap trade his ass in the offseason or by trade deadline for some shooters.
We could never have had a supporting cast with JVG as i've always said because he refuses to develop young players. I'm starting to see the same in his brother as well.
Just take 5 million off McGrady's expiring salary and give to Yao. That still leaves us with 18 million with which we can extend our other young players and acquire one more big piece. I love the direction this franchise is headed in. Smart decisions, smart contracts, and players whose heart you can NEVER question. Morey might not have a stat that demonstrates the will to win, but he's certainly learned from this Tracy ordeal that you simply just don't sign or draft people with a particular psyche no matter how big the upside. I used to be afraid of the Rockets choosing finances over winning, manifested in the form of keeping Yao throughout his career even as a max player, but I've come around to the fact that Yao is one of the hardest working people in the NBA, and having him on our team even as a max won't hurt. It looks like we finally figured out how to keep him healthy too--look at how his minutes are way down, and how he has not shown any signs of fatigue late in games. Playing him 37 minutes a game was just a recipe for disaster last year, and sure enough it manifested as a stress fracture in his foot. So let's just hope and pray that his injuries are done with him, like Ilgauskas after he had his foot procedure.
Yao will sign an extension only if all of the Yao haters on this board will be banned permanently! Here is the list so far: Redao Thacabbage Summer Song Giver Mister pink WNBA Ncagg42 Bob718 Need some more names.... if anyone knows some more Yao haters, feel free to contribute! The Half Blind Zoro.
The talk that a dominant center could not carry a team has gone. I need Yao + Artest, plus a star player. Then we will be good in years Defense first Offense 2nd We are winning
i like yao a lot, he's a heck of an advantage to have every night, and im sure les wants to keep his deals in china. however, resigning him isn't a given. it may not even be in the teams best interest. he's never been a guy you can go to down the stretch. he's a turn over machine. now he still has a lot more pro's than con's, but i dont think he's a superstar player. he's close and his popularity puts him in that category. if the warriors or the bulls make a great offer you have to take it. i think if we could trade for biedrins and ellis we'd draw even and have many more years of upside.
I agree partly. I don't think we'll get any high first round draft pick for Tracy's contract. But, we can still get some young productive role players. Knicks tried to trade Nate Robinson to the Kings to get some cap relief. Knicks gave away Jamal Crawford and several players. With Knicks getting so much cap space, I will not be surprised that the other teams will also go the same route. Extending Yao would be easy, unless Yao bolts us like Elton Brand...
