As we search for our PG, I wonder if we've considered signing Bob Sura? He really came on and had a decent season w/ATL. He's 6-5 and is a mult-faceted PG. I moved to Japan, so if I've missed this discussion...just say so.
I’d be perfectly happy with signing Sura. He could be a solid starting point guard or he could be a nice sparkplug off the bench backing up both guard spots. I’m surprised Atlanta hasn’t resigned him yet considering how well he played for them. Especially now that they have pretty much no one in their backcourt after trading Stephen Jackson and Jason Terry away.
Avoid guys who never play on good teams that have chronic back problems EDIT: Unless they're two-time scoring champs.
Sura wants to play shooting guard. That's not going to happen with the Rockets unless he takes a massive pay cut and settles for the bench.
Sura is a terribly inconsistent shooter and player. It would like be having Francis with 1/3rd the talent (Sura has some talent, but he is even more inconsistent). Sura is an OK player on a terrible team where you need someone to occasionally do something positive and create, but he is not a good fit on a team looking for discipline and good shooting role playing PG. Jones or James were MUCH better options, Charlie Ward or Jon Barry (see if he can play some 1 minutes) are probably a lot better options too.
Personally, I wouldn't mind having Bobby as a change-of-pace, Vinny Johnson type off the bench. I just don't think the Rockets should rely on him as a starting PG for the long haul.
I think Lue and Sura make a good combo. Their strengths and weaknesses complement each other well. Lue is stable and a good shooter, but his size makes him a liability on defense and he's not that great at creating opportunities for his teammates. Sura has great size and is a very good defender. He's also a very good penetrator and is capable of scoring a lot of points and picking up a lot of assist on any given night. It's a nice balance at the point guard position.
Then maybe he would be a good fit with the Rockets. Lue will start, but Sura still gets plenty of minutes. Kind of like our Kenny Smith/Sam Cassell combo back in the days. Yao is not going to post up every single time on offense. So having a PG who can create a little isn't a bad thing.
Dude has a Francis-esk A/O ratio and is a career 32% 3 point shooter (over the last 4 years sub-30 even). Also with Detriot last year Larry Brown played him 13MPG and he shot 25% from 3 land (compare with Mike James who many on this board were not excited about). He did produce more with a completely sucky team, but that is his MO for his career. I suppose for the veterens min Sura is OK to fill a roster spot, but he really isn't a guy I want in the Rockets short or long term plans. I'd rather sign ward for the min or have Jon Barry try to play Kenny Smith's old role than take Bob Sura. Mike James or Damon Jones would have been immensely better short term and medium term signings than Bob Sura.
Uhm, to be honest, if it came down to Bobby Sura or nobody I would rather take nobody. Point being, i'd rather give Reece Gaines minutes and hope he develops into a solid contributer than overpaying (which I am sure would happen) for some scrub like Sura.
Well let's compare their stints in Detroit. James averaged 1.6 turnovers in 19 minutes of play. He shot 40% from the field and 36% from 3 point land. Sura averaged .7 turnovers a game in 13 minutes of play. He shot 41% from the field and 25% from 3 point land. Sura turns the ball over less (even if you adjust his minutes to match James) and James shoots better from behind the arc, but I don't see either guy as much better than the other.
I don't know how we can overpay for Sura. With the Damon Jones signing, the market rate for a PG is down to half the MLE. I haven't heard Sura in any rumors so his value might be down to the $1.6 mill exception.
Several issues.... Sura is coming off of a $6.2m contract and he'll be 32 during the next season. Not that I personally know Bobby Sura but you'd have to think he has security (i.e. contract length) as a major concern. That rules out vet minimums and $1m exception. I'd have to conclude that Sura wants a 4 year MLE deal. The question is....at what starting price? Half of the MLE gives Sura a 4 yr, $11.5m deal. IMHO, Sura is one of those players whose stats aren't very impressive but they are fundamenally sound and good defenders. Also IMO, the more we would pay Sura, the less we have for a backup C. Splitting the MLE between Sura and Keon Clark wouldn't bother me a bit but I'd have to think Sura wants more than $2.5m.
you would think he was one of the Rocket's second round draft picks a comment on Sura - he sounds like a poor man's Brent Barry - little better defense, not as good shooting. I think that Pike for Motumbo might be close to a done deal, which means that the Rox COULD sign a PG since Seattle may not be a willing trade partner anymore
Sura is overrated as far as I'm concerned. He is a streak shooter,prone to playing out of control at times.(bad decision making) Bobby's defense is also sorely lacking. I see him as more of a 2...can't handle the ball well enough to be an effective 1.(not that we need a prototypical PG) ...and there is the aforementioned history of injury problems due to his style of play. In a nutshell...NO.
