Win games in the the regular season Thabks for clarifying Of you consider squeaking into the playoffs at 7th or 8th seed and getting bounced out making noise then so be it
As others have mentioned our greatest need is a 2nd star. Our backup unit would look dramatically different if you had Gordon and someone like Cousins to carry the load. Short of that, the main issue with our bench is spacing... 3 Point Shooting Gordon: 40.3% KJ: 29.4% Ennis: 0% Dekker: 42.1% Brewer: 12.5% Nene: 100% (1 shot) The problem is that you really want to stick Gordon in Harden's role when Harden sits, but Gordon doesn't have Gordon, Ariza or Anderson to pass to. Instead, he's passing to far inferior shooters who can't pull the defense away from the paint to open up driving lanes. That will get a little better when Beverley returns but it still leaves you short in playmaking and frontcourt shooting....which is why DMo is so important. DMo solves the problem of not having enough playmaking with the second unit. You can survive with a non-playmaking guard like Beverley if you have someone like DMo that can throw lobs to Capela or hit slashers in-stride like McDaniels, all while still providing floor spacing. Here are a few options for the 2nd unit with Beverley and DMo back... Beverley Gordon KJ DMo Capela Beverley, Gordon and DMo provide the spacing to open up lobs to KJ and Capela. Beverley Gordon KJ Dekker DMo DMo in the post surrounded by shooters for kickouts and slashers for backcuts, lobs, etc. Beverley Gordon KJ or Dekker DMo Nene Two bigs that can pass and create movement within the offense. None of that kind of spacing or playmaking is available right now. The bench lacks all of the inherent advantages the starting/closing unit has (i.e. Gordon, Harden, Ariza, Anderson and Capela/Nene). Once Beverley gets back and assuming DMo signs, there won't be a pressing need to fill a hole. We will have enough shooting and playmaking to keep pace with other bench units, but that still falls well short of what we could be with a 2nd star.
No, I don't. I don't care if we get swept even. Because 4 games or 7 games or even second round, it is a whimper. This team, no matter what we did last summer, was not going to win a ring. With or without Anderson and Gordon and Nene. There were no trades or signings AVAILABLE to us that was going to change our fate for this season. The only way it was even remotely possible is if Howard and Harden had some miraculous moment that transformed their relationship along with Howard's relationship with MDA. Suffice to say, that was not likely. This season doesn't matter except as far as re-tooling the system, reviving some of the trade value we lost, developing young guys and seeing what Harden can do. I am very much enjoying watching: - MDA coach the f*** out of this offense - Bzdelik working like a maniac to tackle an almost impossible task - Harden playing like a god with real 3pt threats spreading the floor - Young guys showing they can improve and have improved Are you seriously arguing for turning in some trade chips just so you can feel emotionally better about how badly we lose in the playoffs? I honestly feel like I might just be misunderstanding your tone. I don't know about you, but for me it's about championships. We have 2, and we have a chance to get another one next season. This season is what it is, and I feel like lots of people wish we were one player or a great bench away from contending properly. We're not. We're far. The second best player on this team is Eric Gordon. The highest potential player on this team is Clint Capela. The 2nd best defender is Beverley or Capela. This is not a good team and it's not supposed to be, our hands were tied this summer. We didn't have to sign Anderson, but it doesn't matter as long as we keep our pick and our young talent, because when the time comes that a star wants to come here, if Anderson's value really falls, THAT'S where we should use the pick or young talent. Not to improve the bench in a pointless season. Be patient. We are on the right track. It's just that our road is longer than we'd like.
No I am not suggesting that we trade anything significant just to bolster the bench, but lets say jrue holiday becomes available for next to nothing, he is in a contract year on a tanking team and i say you pull the trigger on that. The rockets have one of the worst benches in the nba. This thread is about identifying our weakest player coming off the bench and possibly making suggestions on how we can improve that without giving up much. Is there another beasley in china?
If Jrue Holiday becomes available for super cheap and he's willing to spend his time on offense being a spot up shooter, then sure, by all means let's go for the dream scenario. But that's not a good example of the main topic because Jrue Holiday is a starter on this roster, not a backup. He's a very good defender, a pretty good passer and a pretty decent 3pt shooter. An upgrade over Beverley and it leaves us flexibity this summer with regards to keeping or trading him (I believe we would retain his bird rights). The other problem here is, what on earth could we offer for Jrue Holiday? Almost every team would be bidding against us and the Pelicans are not tanking. In fact, Holiday is one of the only decent pieces they have beside Davis. The only way this would work is if Holiday said he is signing with Houston in the summer no matter what, and why the heck would he do that? EVEN THEN, Holiday is not going to change the fact that we will lose early in the playoffs. But back to the realistic side of things, I know we have a bad bench. The problem with giving priority to that is: we have a bad starting line up. You're thinking about the rims before the engine. I think you've made your point that you are desperate for a trade and impatient with how this season is going. I think I've made my point that barring a miraculous trade opportunity, the huge likelihood is that we are going to have a decent season and boosting the bench of an average starting line up is not going to make a ripple in the pond for us.
Power foward. Defensive rebounding is essential for this team to be able to get out on the break fast.
Nice to see some quality posts again. I would love to see us trade for a quality second star but I highly doubt that will happen. We can only hope for the best. The only moves this team needs to make are those that can improve our chances of getting a legit star and not a tweak or two for our bench.
Your point is understandable but how will we get there without better trade assets? The players have to fit together to look good so they will gain in value. The better the player looks the higher his value rises. Its like shopping dimes and maybe quarters verses pennies. I know dollars are the goal but change counts, too.
dont need to improve anything just have t play smarter. eg and kj can be the 2nd guards when bev or harden is on the bench. kj and dekker can backup 3. ariza, dekker, and harrel can backup 4. and center is good enough. good thin its only10 games. reducing ryan to a spot up shooter is a full r****d move, something rockets were skilled at last season. takes awhile to get that much metnal r****dation out of the system i assume.
Point guard will be fine with Bev/Harden/Gordon covering. Ennis was never meant to be anything but an emergency band-aid. I don't like giving all PF minutes to Dekker/Harrell. We need to get Dekker back at the 3, Brewer locked in a closet somewhere, and D-Mo playing the backup 4. I would also be happy with HP's solution of upgrading the starters and keeping any current starter as bench depth.
Tonight shows EXACTLY what it means to have a good bench. Teams don't spend much time scouting the bench players. The second unit can come in and pick things up bringing energy when the starters can't get it going. Teams will scout Harden, Anderson, Capela and Gordon. They know Ariza is a 3 and D guy who only needs to be guarded at the rim and the 3 pt line. They study how Harden is getting his assists and drawing fouls. But most teams in the regular season don't care enough to scout the bench. Sure, it will help greatly in the regular season but it can translate over to the post season as well. Especially if the other team has a weak bench. Right now the Rockets are a regular season team, so I don't see the point in not upgrading when you can, Mathloom. I think we need to upgrade PG the most to make Beverley a backup. Partly because he is better suited off the bench, and the other part is because Ennis looked horrible to start the season.
