Will Morey chase some MId-Level exception Free agents in the summer?

Because he's a walking injury risk.

 

Morey has said in the past that using the MLE on one player is general a bad move. Then he signed Ariza after that. So I guess he has exceptions but I think he would prefer to spend money on minimum contract player/s that he can lock in bird rights with multi year deals that benefit the Rockets more than the players.

 

I don't think he will do that at all.

 

I think Morey's plan is to accumulate as much talent as possible and become a place that the next really good up and coming free agents always want to play. I think he's thinking long term meaning the next ten years of constantly having young up and coming stars by outsmarting most other gm's. He's single-handedly responsible for turning the business of basketball into a chess match that he's very good at. Not much different from Pat Riley and Larry Bird that knows it's all about putting together great teams by accumulating talent.

 

I don't believe Morey will make a Swift/Ariza type signing. But that doesn't mean you can't find ways to keep flexibility while making the team better. For example, suppose the Rockets want to add Llul. They can offer a contract like this.

2yr/$11mil deal. 2nd year partially guaranteed for $2mil. If the Rockets can sign someone like Love or Aldridge, they trade Llul next offseason to another team. At worst, it will cost the Rockets 1st to get rid of him. Likely though, assuming he plays well, the Rockets can probably just unload him to a team with cap aiming to keep him. For Llul, ~$7mil guaranteed for one year of work should be quite enticing, given the contracts most Eurostashes tend to get.Also, every year there are the Delfino, Bellinelii, Dunleavy types you can pick up at MLE without having to resort to more than a 2 yr deal.

In addition, unless the cap goes way up, the Rockets won't actually be able to keep Jones and DMo beyond next year should they clear for a FA. So anyone you sign can easily be packaged with Jones specifically to a team that would love to have Jones for essentially free. Plenty of bad teams will have tons of cap next year. You think Hinkie wouldn't jump at the chance of taking Jones at the cost of taking our MLE signing for an extra year or two? Of course he'd be ecstatic.

In short, the Rockets HAVE to give up assets in 2015 FA anyway. They can't make their own 1st round pick(unless it's a stash). Nor can they keep anyone beyond Parsons/Harden/Beverley/Howard. Everything else that can be an asset can be packaged to dump any unwanted deal.

So yes, I do expect Morey to make noise in the FA in the offseason. He just have to find the right player and give that player a flexible contract.

 

Seems like Marco is making about half of MLE money for SA - is he not a difference-maker? I don't understand why we're so averse to trying to win at this moment. Why do we need to wait until we have an all-star starting lineup before we worry about winning big games? I'm not sure how Lee and Bass don't put the Rockets right there with everyone else. And we're worried about 2015 for some reason? How did waiting for big free agents work out for the Knicks? Mavs? Nets?

 

Its wait and see. I like the starting five constructed but Jones is unproven in the playoffs. Asik and Lin could be dealt for specific draft selections or too just strengthen the bench in other areas.

I see no problem spending either exception especially if Parsons emerges as a third all star. Morey has a very high success rate hitting both in the draft (Jones, Lamb, Donatas, Brooks, Landry, Parsons, etc) and finding serviceable undrafted free agents or players out of the league (Bev, Lin, G Smith, Covington, Daniels)

I don't see Love shunning the Lakers. If Rockets really felt Parsons wasn't a third star, he'd still be an attractive enough piece paired with Lin/Bev, Asik, Jones, picks etc. too land that proven third star.

Using mid-level exceptions and bi-annual exceptions on proven vets who can either solid starters or high level bench depth softens the blow of losing young inexpensive talent like Parsons or Jones.

It's more likely rockets develop or acquire via trade a third star than sign one outright.

 

Ummmmmmm...nobody has mentioned Llull yet. Methinks that the first player Morey goes after with the MLE is Llull. But that will be after investigating the trade scenarios involving Asik/Lin/etc. It won't be the first thing out of the box on July 1. But I can't see Morey not at least try to get Llull over here with that money.

 

Ariza was a terrible move, Morey was still learning the job then, he quickly corrected that dud by getting rid of Ariza the next summer.

Morey is a fast learner.

DD

 

Marco is contributing, but plenty of guys don't at the mid level. I'm not sure how Lee plus Bass minus Asik puts us up with everyone else.

As for waiting for big free agents, how is it working out for the Rockets? Not so bad, I'd say.

 

One thing that is never mentioned, is that Bosh has a player option. It would be interesting if he declined it, there are always reports that he doesn't mesh with Lebron and Wade off the court.

 

**not saying Bosh would sign a mle ha, just didn't know where else to post my random thought.

 

Are you implying that he would sign for the MLE? Leave the life in Miami for a MLE deal here SMH

 

Read the post before yours.

 

Bosh would fit in so well here, I'd give up anybody not named Harden or Howard if it meant we could nab him.

 

The Rockets have been close to up with most teams and haven't had Asik for pretty much the entire year. Marco isn't making MLE money either. Plenty of rotation players on good teams don't. Just look at Patty Mills on the same team.

Dwight was pretty much one of the only players in history that willingly took less money to sign with a different team. You want to plan on that happening a second time to the same team?

 

Maybe you're not familiar with the Miami Heat?

 

Ariza wasn't a bad signing. MLE is role player money. The Rockets hoped he could develop into a star. Even gave him the role of no.1 option on offense. He was one of those high risk gambles Hinkie went in length about in interviews when he got the Sixers job.

 

If Bosh was available because he isn't happy in Miami, I think we would be the first in line with Asik and/or Lin. A legit big is their biggest hole.

 

LBJ and Bosh both got signed and traded, allowing them to get an extra guaranteed year at the max. That's no longer allowed.