Out with old, in with new. Most of these are trade worthy. However... I would be hesitant to part with Shane because I think his leadership is underrated. I would trade Chuck if it meant improving rather than Shane.
I doubt another team would give you an either/or option. They'd probably want one or the other of them in particular. So if the Rockets really want a particular player, the choice between giving up Budinger or Hill really isn't theirs. Of course, they could choose to give up neither.
I agree Ariza is vastly overrated... he plays good defense but he is a huge liability on offense jacking up all those ill-advised shots... I don't necesarily think he's bad just that he is overrated and overpaid. With that said however we do need some defense on the floor with Brooks and Martin. Bottom line: I cringe whenever I see Ariza shooting and I would rather play Battier.
He has a spot in the league, his combination of length and athleticism are great assets to have. But his lack of basketball skills means that he should be a situational player, not a full blown starter. Even the Lakers knew this, he was not a full time starter for them either, he was a 20mpg player, a defensive specialist. That is what he should be for the Rockets, but paying $6+ million a year is nuts.....and now we have THREE MLE contracts on the roster....who are specialists. Trevor Shane Jared Jeffries You could afford one, but THREE? No way...... Some would argue that Shane was overpaid, and they have a point. Trevor and Jeffries are also overpaid, as one they are not a liability but with 3 of them, it hinders the rest of your roster. They are $3-4 million players tops.......IMO. DD
I'd definitely trade Bud if forced to choose, but I'd rather keep them both and trade Ariza (my first choice if at all possible) or Battier (more likely but less appealing). It's pretty clear that our need is at PF/C and our surplus is at the wings.
Trevor Ariza averaged 31 minutes per game in the playoffs...and he got offered the same amount of money from the Lakers, a lot of money for such a situational player... Just saying....
Trevor did not ride their coattails he was a solid contributer to that team last year. After kobe and pau he was the most significant contributer to that team. He came up with some very timely steals in the playoffs at crucial points. The guy has proven he can step it up when it really matters. No i dont love his shot but in our starting lineup next year he will not have to many shots or many contested shots. His shot will come after brooks, martin, yao, and scolas. Hopefully he slashes early and can gain confidence in his shot. Dakota you say how chase can improve bla bla, you dont think trevor can improve his 3pt shooting? Last years playoffs he shot 47% from 3pt land and almost 50% overall against the best competition in the league including 7 games against our beloved rockets He can get back to doing what he did in 08-09. Dakota you bring up he was fringe starter last year, starting only 20 games, you know what else he started...every single game of the playoffs. How did that turn out? http://www.nba.com/playerfile/trevor_ariza/career_stats.html The lakers did not let him walk they offered him a contract he declined so they went to option B, Ron Ron. What has happend this year with the lakers? They definetly dont seem as dominant as they did last year? Can you put that on the loss of Ariza and his team play? Maybe? Is it because Kobe is aging? Not sure...Maybe Ron doesnt fit as well as Trevor...I dont know its all speculation. If they dont win the ring this year who will you blame it on, not kobe or pau because apparently they didnt need help last year. Anyways I think Chase is great but Im fine with riding it out with our proven vets at the SF position. I question our frontline more and really think we can use what a jordan hill can possibly bring, we dont have much else for 4-5 spots. Really all we can count on is Luis, other than that its all question marks.
Coach K and the Olympic team dislikes this post. Ha, but yeah, you would trade Budinger first, if it came down to it. In the chance that Yao sits out, or something to that effect, Hill can play the 5. You could argue that Bud can play 2/3/sometimes 4, but Bud is a shooter by nature. Plus, as someone already said, big men are hard to find, and Bud is a dime-a-dozen player.
