I was feeling fairly optimistic about the baseball game until that 4th inning, now we jinxed Huff specifically (the error) on the pregame show. I miss basketball season. Does anyone know the status of Latrell Sprewell? I know I know... But I would seriously take a look at him if we could get him for 2-3 mill for 2 years. I feel sad about this offseason. If we would have gotten Mike James I would have felt better. I do think Battier is going to help, but I will speak of this later. Snyder is just such a "inknown commidity" And I would hope that Latrell, if in shape and rested, could give us 20-30 min a game. I dont know if we will end up having enough scoring from the perimeter. I would love Bonzi but personally, I am convinced the Rockets are in some sort of cost cutting mode for whatever reason. It is arguably a weak FA this year, but you lose out on one of the top three prospects on the market, over a trade kicker ( that should be considered by our management the equivalent of make up sex). Which leads me to my next point about Battier. Shane Battier is going to make us a better team in the half court offensively and defensively. While IMO he is not the ideal perimeter defender, he is probably the best defender on the team as of now. I think the probability of him being a key on the WC team is a testament to his ability. 1 of the top 10 or so "Team Players" in the US and maybe World. Remember the US team is now ran by very smart NBA people as far as the selection goes. It is obvious what Shane brings to the table. Will he be our 3rd creator and get 18 a game? I doubt it, but I do like the idea of him being on the floor for 40 min and being an orchestrator in what could be a great half court offense. I do not think Swift was a deal breaker in that trade. I think we should have kept him. Being the smart boy he is, Shane should have piped up if he thought Stro could help. Or maybe he did pipe up, and thought the opposite. I feel sad that I am kind of afraid to lose Juwon for nothing. If Yao explodes, then the game will come much easier to everyone. Battier and James (interchangible depending on opinion), or Battier and Wells ( same thing) as your 3rd and 4th best players is a championship roster, considering our other pieces. But I still think we have to add one top 6 guy to really compete. But I admit, that we may be good this year. It will be interesting to see about CD and his trade comments. Personally, I think they will do nothing, or some minor, minor move. But I hope we can pull off something good. I guess we get a little incentive now, with Battier on the US roster and if Yao plays, there is that to watch/fear. So lets wait to watch for the "Battier effect" and our next move. Which I think are the only 2 things that can really justify this offseason. The astros are getting hits and scoring runs. Grand.
I still think there so some moves left this season. I think the TE gets more valuable in season when teams see they are not performing up to par or are not gelling. Cap relief seems better once the season has started. We still have what we didn't use of the MLE left from signing Kill Bill. Maybe enough to pry a Melvin Ely type, nothing big. I admit i am scratching my head alittle bit about the roster. Where exactly Battier will line up. Defensively he seemed to be a roving, smart great team defender. I wasn't so sure he was a lock down perimeter defender. I think the 4 position is in dire need of help. Hayes, Howard and spot minutes but Battier and rookie Novak to not speak well. There isn't even 1 guy there that at least has the size to make it work. At this point i'd take Kwame Brown, his defense has gotten better and he at least has the size. (not that he is on the table) IO'm also not a proponent of a win-now attitude, there are enough roster spots to have a perpetual rebuilding/win now attitude. CD doesn't take advantage of alot of the rules the NBA allows. Ditching James cause he might bolt, when he knows he could probably facilitate a sign and trade and at the minumum get back a decent trade exemption.
I just think that at some point, we are going to want to play a bit uptempo. We need one more uptempo type option. I would prefer a tall shooting guard. (Bonzi, Stephen Jackson, Ricki Davis or someone like that. Again, we need a talent upgrade wherever we can get it. I imagine I will be pleased no matter where it comes. We could definetly also use an inside presence, ala Ely, Wilcox, or Wright.
I keep hearing the notion that James was traded because the Rocket's didn't think they could keep him, but has anyone fromt he rockets ever saiid that was the main factor. I think they saw Alston as a better fit at the point for this team than James, and they had to give up James to get him. He was one of the few valuable trade pieces we had at the time. While signability may have played a part, I don't think it was the primary factor. When he was hear he was a good scoring option, but he never fit as the run the show point, and probably wouldn't have if he resigned here. He would have been a score first third option probably seeing time at the 2 quite a bit.
Just to clarify, do you mean a top 6 guy in the league or just a guy worth being in the top 6 in our rotation?
Top 6 in our rotation. I think Battier could be the perfect 4th or 5th (probably 4th) best player on our team. Or at least someone with a proven scoring punch. Again, if it is staying put vs Sprewell. I hope they at least call Spree.
Wherever Spreewell is, I want him to stay there. If JVG brings Spreewell in, that will literally push me over the edge. I can't be held responsible for what happens after that. Oakley, Spoon, Strickland, Ward, Ewing, no not another "over the hill" Knick. How much more can Rocket fans suffer?
I'd rather stay put, give those minutes to Kill Bill, Snyder and Head and hope someone can develop vs a one year stop gap.
I think if we went back to threads like 7 or 8 years ago and replaced "KJ" with "Sprewell," I seriously think we wouldn't need new posts.
Francis 3422 - what do you want for your Yao bobblehead? email me at dchang@chevron.com or respond here.
