In short, he's bitter about being traded and therefore didn't want to come back to Houston without a trade kicker. While I understand it from his perspective, I can't believe he said that Houston trading him "won't influence his decision" and then come back and whine about why he was traded. He knows its a business and made a business decision. Just don't say it "won't affect your decision." It clearly did and he admitted it. At least he didn't go to the Mavs - that's all I gotta say.
J.Will, Walker, Posey, Mourning, GP > Alston, Battier and Howard Fisher, Fox and Horry > Alston, Battier and Howard Smith, Cassell, Thorpe and Maxwell > Alston, Battier and Howard Notice all these teams had role players that can shoot, rebound and defend. Plus Hakeem was a lot better than Yao at this stage, so was Lakers Shaq, and Wade is better than the current often hurt T-Mac.
I always hate responses like this cause it's such a second guess, but I always hate giving the full MLE to one player. Especially a player that had ONE good year for a crappy team. I think they'll get more bang for their buck by splitting the MLE between Spanoulis and a SG like Eddie House or Fred Jones. Generally I like James as a player, but it always seems to blow up on us when we give that MLE to a mid level player. I remember missing out on Brent Barry and we got Sura and Charlie Ward. Okay, Ward didn't work out, but at least he didn't get a Stromile Swift deal. And Sura was better than Barry would have been anyway.
It's not a small thing. However, you have to see James's logic wanting a kicker. He does not want a kicker so that he can do whatever he wants. From what I can tell, the guy wants to win. You may say then why he choses Minny. Minny with McCants, Foye plus Garnett, Daivs, and now James, this is a pretty good team. They can give us a fight and we may not win everytime. He just wants a gurantee that he is going to be a key part of the team en route to winning. Now, a good coach should know how to manage personality. What James brings to the table will exceed his baggages. s
July of 2002 and this is your first post? Man Mike James just isn't worth that. Where were you in the is Dream done or theYao/Willams debate?
Hakeem surrounded himself superior talent, all-star Otis Thorpe, all-star Sam Cassell. playoff legend Robert Horry, another champion Mario Elie..A players coach like Rudy T There' was 1. Lots of Talent (Dream was so good, that the supporting cast didnt get the credit.. now we know that their clutch plays continued past the Rocket days) 2. Chemistry, Heart. Many of them are friends today. family. Hakeem found the perfect team and the perfect team found him. Faced with adversity and "CHOKE CITY" label for the city of houston, the Rockets came together and showed the World... the HEART OF A CHAMPION
Here's the important part: It make sense from James' side. The Rocket's cutthroat policies that are not player friendly are starting to come home. The Rudy era of loyalty had something to say for it. I had to have two things; only one team gave them to me," James said, without identifying the team. "Everyone gave me the same amount of money. I specifically asked for a player option on my third year and a trade kicker and they said 'no.' I had to have those two things. "After what they put me through, I couldn't sign with them without those things." James, who said last week that getting traded by the Rockets would in no way influence his decision, turned down the Rockets' offer to return to his adopted hometown. Players can begin signing with teams on Wednesday, but James said his decision was final. "End of game. I'm done," James said. "I want to get back to just me, get all the nonsense out of the way. This ain't fun. I'm not for sale. I've been telling people that from beginning all I want to be is a basketball player. I'm still not appreciated. I'm still young at this game. I still have a lot to prove. The thing I have to prove is you can win a champion with Mike James. "Carroll Dawson (the Rockets general manager) said to me a story about how bad he wanted to get me. When I left Detroit, he really wanted me, really wanted me This trade fell through, that trade fell through then he finally got me (from the Bucks in exchange for Reece Gaines and a second-round pick.) The only question I had was, 'then why did you trade me?' "I wasn't a bad kid. I'm family man, first one in gym, last to leave. That was the question I had. They can trade me. Whenever they're ready to get rid of me, they can get rid of me. You're in a rhythm, the kids are in school, and they say 'go somewhere else, pack up and go' with no repercussions to it. Another school, another place to live, another way to live. You have to go shopping because you were in a hot place and traded to Antarctica." James has played for six teams and won a championship as a back up with Detroit. But he was traded twice in less than a year, with the Rockets sending him to Toronto, making the trade kicker "a necessity" he said. "That was very important to me," James said. "The player option was very important to me. I'm not a full mid-level player now. I understand that game. But can I at least get an option after the third year. You want me to lock into a bad deal. A mid-level is a bad deal. Those were the only two things I asked for."
I'm defending it because 4 years is risky for James, and he definately isn't worth a trade kicker. The Rockets know which way they want to go. They weren't convinced that Gay would be a star, so they traded him. They obviously felt like Battier > Gay. I still think they gave up too much and I think it wasa dumb ass trade, but I don't think it has anything to do with "youth". They tried to get Roy. Just because you wanna win now doesn't mean you overpay James (the Mavs are closer to winning now than we are and they didn't want to give him 4 years either).
Yep this just solidifies what I have been saying since the Gay trade. It was a bad decision to go with the win it all this year aproach. Now look at what is available to us in free agency. Bonzi "thug" Wells and a bunch of hacks. Not that I ever thought M James was going top be a vital peice of the puzzle but he is/was the best free agent out there. Had we held on to Swift and Gay we may have been able to land more than just a role player in next years far superior free agent class. CD better get on the phones and hope some other GM has an Isaha moment or this team isnt going anywhere.
Rockets running for prescription of Plan B, or can you get it in any pharmacy over-the-counter nowaday? Why am I not surprised by all this?
Can't blame Minny on this one. Portland may have actually given us the business this offseason, by jumping in on our draft day plans. They may actually be my most hated this season. Funny, it used to be Utah, hands down, then, somehow, Dallas jumped ahead, and now Portland. I can't say I'm too happy with Memphis right now, either.
Oh, please quit fussing on 3 year vs 4 year and the trade kicker. James is what we need and we give up one more year MLE? WTF? We are not talking about huge contract like Shaq's. We need James for at least two years. Even he is going to be complete useless after that, which I think he will still be better than Moochie, he is still worth pursuing. Well, it all moot now.
Yes, when you include the bench players. I already stated our bench is weak. Battier can shoot, pass and defend. Howard can shoot. Alston can't shoot but he is a playmaker. These 3 players do not suck. They are solid roleplayers. We do need more but the summer isn't over yet. It's still up to Yao and Tracy to get it done.
MJ is acting like teams give "trade kickers" all the time, saying it's the only 2 things he asked for. Here's the bottomline: He is still Mike James, he's not Lebron, he's not Yao, he's not Wade, he is a 31 year old Mike James, a player that the Championship Pistons dealt, the Bucks dealt, and then the Rockets dealt. If MJ is bitter that we traded him, that's fine. But going on the radio in the middle of the season and saying you will absolutely opt out for more money is a PERFECT reason to deal him for a player that will be on the team for longer. If he is going to leave, you might as well get something in return, MJ has to understand that. I wanted Mike James because I thought he was the best FA available to us. But I'm glad the Rockets didn't give him everything he wanted because one thing is known, MJ WILL run his mouth whenever he wants and he will always look out for himself before the team.
