Would a full season lockout be good or bad for the Rockets?

I think that our best chance of landing the superstar we need is going to be similar to how the Nets landed Deron Williams: a deadline trade. If there is no season then this is not possible. I doubt any of those guys would want to come to Houston in free agency simply because this is not a very flashy team or city (although, IMHO, it does happen to be the best city in the world). So I think a lockout would be extra bad on the Rockets.

 

We are better at trades than free agency. It's bad for us. And SnTs don't help much either, because the player is still in charge.

plus, look what happened in the NFL: these squashed an entire season of FA signings into like 4 days. GMs and agents for top-tier FAs will find a way to talk together during a lockout, if the entire season is lost.

that said: It's probably worse for the older teams who are trying to win one last time. And it is probably worse for Orlando, as Howard could just sit around thinking about leaving, rather than possibly getting to the Finals and deciding to stay.

 

Bad- new roster, needs time to gel.

 

versus mature teams whose window of opportunity is closing fast, and lose a year of a superstar's prime???? Imagine if there were a lockout in 1994. Or had the lockout been 2010-11 and Nowitzki lost the whole season. It's definitely worse for contenders.

 

Bad, not worst. Bad relative to all teams, not measured only against the few teams whose window of opportunity is closing fast.

 

Dunno, but it would be horrible for me.

 

This. Plus, the team played well towards the end of last season. It would be hard to continue that play after being off an entire season.

 

Everything depends on how the draft system works out. We need that top 5 pick bad. Or at least two top 10 picks by somehow the Knicks get a higher pick through some weird lottery.

I noticed that teams over the salary cap tend to share this peculiar quality. Now isn't that an amazing observation?

 

imo we are much better at trades that using salary cap exceptions in free agency (including SnTs) relative to other teams (most teams are over the cap).

 

Very, very interesting thread Lars.

Dwight becoming a FA is very interesting.

(Come on Dream!)

 

Barring any bizzare player option pick-ups, the Rockets will have the following in the 2012 offseason.

Lowry
Martin
Scola
Patterson
Budinger
Donatas(perhaps unsigned)
Morris(perhaps unsigned)

And $20+ mil in capspace, maybe a little less if they pick up Hill and TWill's options and give Lee a qualifying offer.

If the Rockets can't do major stuff in FA next year, Morey should be fired.

 

The majority of posters here believe our best bet to drastically improve is via trades and draft, not FA.

So, if we lose the whole season of trading, and our draft position is frozen (for example), we are hurt vs the league...if you believe trades and draft are our best bet.

Most posters don't believe elite players view us as a contender and a team to sign with as a free agent. Morey can only do so much to persuade an elite player to sign here: It's the player's choice at the end of the day. All you can do is offer the max. We haven't pulled off an elite SnT in like forever.

 

Umm... Clutchfans posters don't run the Rockets. Morey does, at least within the constraints put on him by Les.

Morey purposely set up the 2012 FA. He made sure just about everyone expires in 2012. That the Rockets team literally starts with a clean slate in that year. The last Rockets player signed for the Yao era, Brad Miller, expires next year too had the trade not happened. Everything he did pointed to 2012.

So yes, I do put Morey on the spot for the next offseason. Those who I bicker with on this board generally feel I'm a Morey fanboy who worship the ground he walks on. But that's only because I feel he has set up the team well given the circumstances. Starting in 2012, Morey will be working with a perfectly clean slate. We'll have no bad contracts, plenty of cap money, and likely a lottery pick + a mid-1st rounder.

If Morey cannot produce given such a clean slate, then I do hold him accountable. At the very least, he needs to start building a contender. I don't expect a finished product, but I want to see major progress towards that goal.

 

Bad, we have young players who need time on the floor to get better.

DD

 

BAD....we need to get a higher draft spot........

 

Wow, is it that hard to understand that I was referring to the fact that the majority of Clutchfans want Morey to do what he does best -- trade and draft. Thus, we can assume most people agree that Morey will have less chance of "producing" if we have a full season lockout, where there's no trade deadline and no means to improve draft position by using the year as a development year. That's all I'm saying.

So we have: (1) impairing Morey and (2) a young team that needs development, as two reasons a full lockout would be bad. But we aren't in as bad a boat as the contenders with closing windows of opportunity. At least we aren't facing that nightmare.

 

Bad. It would be crushing for our young players because of the lack of development. We would be stuck with a middle of the road draft pick as well.

 

Indisputably bad. We have a young team with a lot of strategy still up in the air. New coach, a couple of question marks on the roster, a couple of starting spots potentially up for grabs. Our best players are in their primes and aren't going to benefit from taking a year off. Even a shortened season would suck for this Rockets squad.