I see a ton of buzz surrounding Josh Smith and I get that he's the sexy pick, but what is the downside to looking at Paul Millsap? His contract is more manageable and would offer the Rockets a bit more cap space to bolster their bench, his PER rating is higher ( Millsap is 30th in the NBA at 19.89 to Smith's 17.82, which is 64th), and his shooting percentages (FG, 3 PT, FT) are all greater. Also, he's one hell of a player coming out of a pick and roll. Who else loves the pick and roll? Oh right, Dwight Howard and James Harden. Compare the two salaries: Millsap: 28 yrs old, 4yr $32m Smith: 27 yrs old, 5yr $58m Now, granted, you take whoever you can get at the position and if you are guaranteed that Dwight Howard will sign only if Smith comes along, that's the move you make. I just think Millsap fits the Rockets mold better and am surprised we haven't heard about the Rockets making a run at him. Thoughts?
Because Dwight and Josh have been buddies for a very long time. http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/sports_magic/2010/03/q-a-josh-smith-talks-about-his-friendship-with-dwight-howard.html Plus Atlanta has expressed interest in Asik.
Defense and transition. They want to dominate the paint defensively and they want to get dunks in transition. Plus they're good friends so it fits.
Numerous metrics(and eye tests) have Smith as one of the best defenders in the entire NBA. Some years even DPOY material. Millsap? Mediocre on defense at best.
He also matches up extremely well against the Thunder, Spurs, Grizzlies, and as good as any against Miami. Millsap on the other hand tends to get punked by the gang of 4.
JSmoove... period. Does Millsap have a nickname?!?!?!? If your a good player, you suppose to have a nickname.
Milsap has better offense, Smith better defense. Right now we're in need of D. But who knows who would actually be the better fit playing and chemisty wise? I personally would rather have Milsap, but its not my choice. Just hope we end up with either one. Both are so much better than what we had last year.
I would rather have Ryan Anderson than either of them. But honestly, any of the three would be nice fits. Keeping Asik would also be fine by me. We have plenty of good options should Dwight sign--always a nice place to be.
smith fits our system aalot better than milsap. plus way better on defense and passing. milsap does have the stretch 4 edge tho im not againt milsap, and think he should be on morey's 2nd tier fa list.
JSmoove certainly didn't get that name from his shooting ability. If he can stop taking ill-advised shots and display maturity, I'm all for it. To me, Smith and Millsap are the polar opposites of each other. Smith has always relied on his other-worldly athleticism, and is without a doubt a solid defensive presence, but has suffered from poor shot selection, a questionable attitude and middling work ethic. He is not a player you want on the court when you're down two or three at the end of the game. Plus, his free throw shooting is atrocious, at 51% this season. Wouldn't we be getting a similar issue with Howard? Millsap, on the other hand, is slightly undersized and can't jump out of the gym but knows his role and possesses the motor and attitude coaches love. He won't jump out of the gym or protect the rim like Smith, it's true, but he's one of the more underrated players in the league. And he's not a liability on offense that will throw up brick after brick. Like Chris Bosh, he would force his defender to come outside out of respect for his mid-range shooting. I went back through some of the threads and found some solid links, courtesy of 2016 Champions about his defense. I'm not saying I'd throw a fit if we land Smith but I don't think the gap between he and Millsap, especially when considering how much each is going to demand in free agency, is that far apart. I think Millsap would relish the role as the third scorer but Smith's attitude and need to be a star concerns me a touch.
Offense is not a problem for us... Harden, Parsons, Lin Defense is where we are weak and Howard and JSmoove would be a perfect defensive combo.
I would rather have Millsap, but I must be one of the very few with that opinion. I see a JSmith/Dwight frontcourt not being so smooth. Plus, I think teams would love Smith to shoot outside jumpers all day and therefore would be more able to collapse on Lin/Harden/Parsons when they penetrate.
