When are we going to start criticizing Rafael Stone?

FIRE HIM!

 

Rockets rebuild needs to be rebuilt.

They have no starter quality guards.

 

Worst team in the league for three years running and going to go into next season with zero changes lmao

 

Extend Gordon

 

I have a strong opinion that the tide will turn at the start of next season .... and Silas will be viewed much differently than he is now.

They don't have to do a whole lot to be a playoff team next season - FA targets will depend upon the draft. (PG / C) and they should acquire a quality talent from both.

It's been well known from the word go that their timeline to compete began the moment John Wall's contract comes off the books. That happens to coincide with a 3rd early lottery pick.

As for Silas - He has this young roster at #4 in quality of shots attempted which is absolutely crazy given their level of experience, a group of 8 rookie and 2nd year players taking the vast majority of the minutes.

The real issue is that this is a very poor shooting team - They are dead last in the league in shooting percentage at .442 and 28th out of 30 in 3 point percentage at 32.7%. Getting quality shots, just not making them.

Despite the fact that they are the worst shooting team in the league, they only allow opponents to shoot 0.6% better than them for the season .... That's pretty significant and shows they get after it on defense.

$70m in cap space and a top 5 draft pick .... things will change for the better and I expect them to comfortably make the playoffs next season.

I think we should be thankful that Tilman has allowed this rebuild to go the way it has rather than forcing mediocrity upon us like Les did. Those years of being stuck in basketball purgatory were less fun than EG is having right now .... picking 14th with little hope of drafting an impact player while other franchises draft future stars ....

Now if things don't turn around to begin next season, then you can pull out your pitchforks and run Tilman, Stone & Silas out of town tarred and feathered but until then, they deserve the benefit of the doubt.

The timeline has always been 2024.

 

In my opinion we get rid of Ego, Tate, KPJ, and Nix.

But because SIlas has this r****ded love for KPJ, and because KPJ might throw out a 50 pt game once or twice in a losing season, we'll probably play out the rest of his contract, always hoping that the next year is when he somehow puts it all together, or we find the pieces to put around him.

 

You know, watching the team, I'm almost under the impression that we were constructed without any real intent to actually win games this season.

People are somehow still confused by this.

 

There's a difference between having low expectations for the team (i certainly do/did) and the reality of seeing them steamrolled by a horrible Spurs team (also designed to lose) for the second time in less than 10 days.

The Rockets team is supposed to be bad but organically improve over time and it's hard to say that they are doing much of that recently.

Then you put it together with the articles about how the Rockets feel about their " core" and the disconnect between what the teams executives " see" and the garbage we regularly see is... substantial

 

Which players would you like to see $70M and a top 5 pick turned into in order to turn this around?

 

he can draft talent and keeps everyone happy. that's good.

he cannot make tough decisions quickly and keeps everyone too happy. that's bad

 

lol whats the high fuss about making the playoffs...? making playoffs in today nba is as easy as it has ever been...

its not some huge achievement...they could have went to playoffs or even won it all 2 years ago.....

if you stop playing real bb for 5 years and go for accumulating talent you better reach the finals 5 times in the next 5 years....

 

Stone gave up 2 first round picks to draft Sengun.

SOFs: Fire Stone!! Grrrrrrrrrrrr!

 

Again your brain is like a squirrel. 2 weeks ago we were beating the Bucks, Sixers, Suns etc.


The fact that you think we need to rebuild again and just forget Jalen Green a 20 year old is absurd.

The fact that non Rocket fans have significantly higher opinions of the kid than you should say a lot.

 

He has a spaced out notion what a good ball handler is.

In his mind KPJ is an elite ball handler and decision maker.

Gordon and Nix are also high on his list.

Stubborn and smiling Donkey.

 

I am beginning to have doubts he will still be here next season.

 

Sorry, but everybody knows it is the next season where you actually try to build the team with the 40m cap from Wall.

Silas is the puppet for the given situation.

So far I can only blame Stone for renewing KPJ contract after everything... Everything else he is doing fine.
Coaching wise is where I am pissed because we should have seen some progress already. But then again, I can't tell how much is really being bad or intentionally losing w/o blablantly quitting

 

Stone made the statement that the NBA "punishes the middle". You have to be really good or really bad ( To get elite, superstar talent ). If these rotations, minute allotments, Nix, Silas or whatever is because he wants a shot at Wemby or Scoot then I can live with that. As painful as it may be to watch.

But if Stone is serious about all of this then we may have huge problem. I will wait until this off season before forming any definitive judgements either way. He's either a sneaky genius or a damn fool. We will have a good idea come next July.

 

I think because his #1 job was to acquire talent for our rebuild, and he’s done that, is why he’s getting a pass. To others’ points, this roster was not constructed to win this year. And that’s okay because this is one last tank year.

but, the biggest concern is that our players are not developing as well as they should, and the team is not progressing. So why is this the case? Is it all Silas?

clearly Silas is responsible for a lot of the issues, but Stone hasn’t managed the roster well. We’ve got 2 starting SG, a 1st round SG that can’t even get on the court, a 33 yr old SG playing the 3. Gary Bird is getting minutes. I mean, how many shooting guards do we need?

the other problem is that Stone doesn’t seem to be able to carve out pathways for player development. He won’t consolidate and apparently he’s not great at making deals. So we’ve got a couple 1st round prospects that are just sitting there without pathways to playing time. And we’ve got other great prospects that aren’t getting enough playing time.

lastly it’s unclear why he is building the team around KPJ, but that’s what he’s doing. It’s not his fault that Silas doesn’t know how to use Jabari, Sengun, or Jalen, but but it is his fault that we don’t have anything more than TyTy on the roster at PG. Not sure why you’d give the keys to the offense to a shooting guard who doesn’t know how to get those guys involved. Not sure why you’ve extend a shooting guard on a contract 8 months removed from him driving home at halftime.

there’s no leadership or accountability on this team; that’s part of rebuilding too. Wood and Porter were the two cornerstones he started with? Two guys with attitude and maturity issues?

what the hell is Dashien Nix doing on the starting roster? Why is EG still on this team?

Stone is not the one misusing our players, but he hasn’t managed the roster well or created that team first culture we need.

if there is micromanaging around playing time or positions, then that is a bad dynamic that needs to be stopped. But if these are Silas’ decisions, most of the problem is with the coaching. If Stone doesnt address the coaching that’s another thing to criticize him for.

 

Stone will be judged by how good Jalen and Jabari look at the end of this season..... which looks like it will be enough to save him job....

....but boy... other than that, I don't know that Stone has really done alot to justify a big vote of confidence from Tillman. Especially botching the EG trade last year, and destroying your credibility claiming that you have multiple teams offering first round picks when that was BS, and the year before that claiming you have multiple teams offering first round picks for Oladipo and then that turning out to be BS.

-Then the draft picks themselves.... I LOVE Sengun. He's so easy to root for, but looking back at it, I don't know that with his limited upside if using two first round picks on him was the right moved.

-Then there is TyTy - Why the hell would you use a 1st round pick on a player and then play an overweight undrafted player PG who A. Can't pass without turning the ball over, can't play D, can't shoot, and again... isn't even in shape?? It's just a waste of a valuable first round draft pick at this point, and Stone needs to be pulling Silas asside and telling him to get over his infatuation with Lizzo Nix, and actually see what we have in our first round pick.

-Then there is letting KJM be in a situation where you don't free up a spot for him to showcase how good he is, and allow him to continue to ask for a trade because he can't get the minutes and role he needs. KJ should have been given the starting role at the beginning of the season just so they can nip that one in the bud, and that's where the GM has to step in and tell Silas that it needs to happen even if you think EG is the better player.

-Then there is the lack of accountability with Silas. We don't know what's being said behind closed doors, but it's obvious whatever it is, it isn't working. The players aren't getting better, and the team is not learning how to play winning basketball even though we don't need them to win necessarily. He's really really freaking bad at coaching as a head coach. Great guy, but horrible head coach. Let Hollins finish out the year so the players actually get to experience a real head coach for half a season.

.......

Overall not a great early showing for Stone. Mostly because of his arrogance, and BS about trades for first round picks. I hate that he did that two years in a row. There's nothing people like dealing with less than someone who is both arrogant, and dishonest.

BUT.... from what I've seen so far with Jalen and Jabari, I think that's enough to give Stone one more year... with a new coach of course. Silas has to go sooner than later.

 

Even crazier that this same team was able to beat both PHX and MIL in between these two terrible SA losses. What do you make of that?