Believe me but we have to keep him if we want to make a deep playoff run. Why do we need to keep him? Omer Asik in my books is a top 5 centre and is a double double machine. According to ESPN he wants out but its not 100% true. I'm sure his disappointed but the Rockets must keep him. Some teams don't even have a true centre i.e Miami Heat. This is the reason why centres in the NBA are overpaid because there rare and there like gold. Look at Zaza Pachulia his 30 and his a backup centre and i believe his no wear near as good as Asik but he just signed a 3 year 15.6 million dollar contract. Look at Nikola Pekovic who i think Asik and him are very similar but i'd take Asiks defence is about to sign a 4 year 50 million dollar contract. Now 3 years 25 million for Omer Asik is a bargain. Another great example is Marcin Gortat who is a top 10 centre and the Suns and do you remember him before the Suns? Probably not but when the Magic made the NBA finals in 2009 guess what Gortart was the back up centre for the Magic. This is why its a must to have Asik, yes they both are to completely different players but Morey needs to convice him to stay. I still believe he can get 20-25 minutes a game depending on match ups. Flaws what flaws? Howard played 35 minutes this season lets say he plays 34. Thats a definitely 14 minutes for Asik and i can see 8-10 minutes a night for Asik and Howard to play together. Yes they're terrible free throw shooters and the hack asik and howard might come into affect. But there both could enough free through shooters to knock a split down. Yes they may clog up the lane, but lets go the strengths, teams WILL not get offence of boards simple as that when you have two 7 footers and that weigh 275lbs theres no way the other team can get boards. They will also not allow layups and dunks as they clog up the lane and protect the rim. Not every team has a stretch 4 and so i can see them both playing together. I was reading some of the posters on here saying offensively it will be a nightmare etc. Umm no it won't. You guys think that they will just stay on the opposite blocks but NO! When there both on the court, one of them will set a screen on Jimmy Harden or Lin to run a pick and roll so e.g if Asik comes to set a screen who i believe is the best screener in the NBA that means Dwight will be on the block so Harden can draw the defender and give the ball to Dwight so where the problem here? the spacing is fine. Also Dwight wants more touches down low so when Dwight catches the ball on the block Asik can stay on the baseline or the other block and Asik can goc crash the boards when he shoots? if they choose to double Asik can just finish. Summary: Keep Asik his value is high and Centres dont come around often, maybe just try it until the all-star break. I would only trade Asik for an all-star 4 man. Believe me Asik 4 Anderson i would not do.
Top 5 center? No way. These seven players are clearly better than Asik: Dwight Howard Joakim Noah Roy Hibbert Marc Gasol Larry Sanders Al Horford Andrew Bogut (if healthy) And I'd argue that at least 2 of these 4 players are equal or better than Asik too: DeMarcus Cousins Tim Duncan Brook Lopez Tyson Chandler Top 10 center is a more accurate description for Omer.
I agree with the OP. Recent reports have noted that they will try to keep Dwight's minutes in the 'low 30s', at least to begin. So if we are talking 32 minutes at C for Dwight, that leaves 16 for Asik + I can easily seem them sharing 10 minutes a game on the floor (or 2.5 min per quarter--thats only like 4-5 possessions a qtr, not that much). I think Asik might actually suprise us and use his mid-range shot more. He has good form and has busted out a mid-long range shot before, so I don't necessarily think that is an impossibility. I'm very intrigued by an Asik-D12 combo whether its a back up role or twin towers scenario. That could ultimately be our 'x factor' and help down the stretch on the march to the playoffs, help provide redundancy in the face of injury, and more importantly anchor the Defense of the Rockets for 48 minutes!!! That is HUGE. I think its been mentioned that the upside a 'solid stretch 4' will provide in a hypothetical trade for Asik is low compared to the stretch 4s we already have, vis a vis the 'luxury' of having 2 top Centers on the team. I don't necessarily consider it a luxury (how good was our D when Asik sat last year??--answer: terrible) when defense wins championships. Finally, given the fast paced-break neck speed of the Rockets offense, since a lot of points are scored in transition, having all 5 players set for each play is not necessary. We score early and often, that means transition basketball: opposing team misses, Asik & Howard crash the boards for the rebounds (top 2 rebounders in the league!!!!), one of them throws the outlet pass, the other blocks out their man, and we are off to the races for a transition 3 or Harden/Lin drive to the hole. We don't need our big men to set up on every play. I could EASILY see this happening 3+ times a quarter. So even if the twin towers share 10 minutes a game, there is a strong probability one of them will get the rebound off the miss and allow the wing players to run & gun. I'm for trying it out, give it until at least the trade deadline and if the experiment doesn't work out, then trade Asik to some desperate team for max value. Even in a bench role, I don't think Asik's value will diminish. Like the OP stated, 7 foot tall, double-double centers making $8/yr don't grow on trees. He will be a super hot commodity & has proven himself already in the starters role. No debate needed.
The real omer seemingly wants a trade. I hope they stick it out with him for the year. He is our x factor.
definitely think we should keep him, like Morey said 15-20 minutes of Omer > upgrade at 4 but if hes unhappy, theres nothing you can do...hes young, hes still playing for that huge contract down the line...he saw that pek got 50 mill...i really hope they can have him buy into a back-up role...come on coaches, it's up to you guys to find the right rotation
Lol well someone is biased with a username like that. Anyway, its funny how u say its not true when Asik himself said he wanted out...I guess you know Asik better than himself?
Duncan isn't second tier. I think more accurately, Asik is in the top 5 when it comes to defense. Offensively, he isn't even in top 10. That said, a lot of teams value a defensive center a lot. Centers like Asik are prime commodities. His offense is just an icing on the cake especially with Howard. I've also seen Asik have a midrange game that's better actually than his post game.
Your list is really inaccurate. Re-watch all our games from last season. Watch how Asik guards all the "centers" you've listed before making a comment.
He did not want a trade, he requested one to avoid conflict..asked Rockets FO and got a NO as answer. Move on from there.
I think that whether or not we trade Omer at the break has more to do with how Terence Jones plays during the first half than any sort of insurance policy or the offers available.
Your second tier largely consists of centers that are better than the first tear. Every one of those guys you listed is better than Omer, and Duncan, Lopez, Howard, Noah, Hibbert, and Gasol are *way* better than Asik. I mean, how the hell can you even begin to say that Duncan and Lopez - both of whom recorded 25+ PERs this year - are only "probably" better than Asik? Cousins and Chandler are clearly way above Asik too, far more than guys like Horford.
Duncan was on the freaking All-NBA 1st team. I don't have a problem with the main thrust of your post - that Asik isn't a top 5 and probably not even a top 10 center - but the stuff you added on is some of the most ridiculous judgements of player ability I've seen.
