We wont, we'll just let Battier, Brooks and Hill walk then. Having CP3, Brooks and Lowry would create a logjam at the PG spot. I highly doubt the player's union comes to terms on a "Franchise Tag". It works in the NFL but it wont in the NBA.
The $58 mil cap is for 2010-11 season. They can just let Battier's contract expire with Melo as his replacement. Hill would still be on a rookie scale contract. Rockets would not sign Brooks and CP3 at the same time. In 2 years time, Martin might not even be a Rocket. He could be dumped like the Kings did.
If we get Melo and he signs an extension with us till 2013 with a player option for 2014, we would be instantly the favorites to land CP3 when he becomes a free agent in 2012, if he isn't moved by then. Assuming with or without Yao, we would be contenders for the next 5 years. Paul Lee Melo Scola Yao If Yao breaks down by then, their are some good free agent big men available in 2011. Heres a list that Morey could pursue. Perkins Horford Noah Chandler Collison Oden Pryzbilla
The media is supposed to be unbiased, so sometimes they will say positive things and times negative things about any team. I would be happy for the Rockets to be underdogs if it motivates the rockets to beat top echelon teams and get recognized.
Melo or no Melo this is a season that is worth looking forward to. Melo's prospects are really irrelevant for the Rockets who will play whoever they have in their roster when the season starts. All the Rockets need to do is upgrade the starting pg position and they will be a real force to reckon with this season.
The PG position is set. Brooks/Lowry is enough IMO. The reason to go after Melo is that it upgrades us in the position that we actually need an upgrade at. IMO, SF is the only position that we are weak in. PG position is set with Brooks/Lowry. SG position is set with Martin/Lee PF position is set with Scola/Hayes C position is set with Yao/Miller. I think we will still be a better team if we have to give up either Brooks or Martin because Lee or Lowry are capable of filling in.
In the long run this means squat. We will still post a better than expetced or given credit for of a season like always no matter the media. Still be a playoff team like they downplay us every year not to be. Still have a brighter future that cant be changed through their words or lack of words. That wont ever change like it never has. We will always compete for the Championships and playoffs like always.
Can you tell me at least one major issue the players union have won on? They've gotten small victories here and there, but every time the owners wanted something done they got it. All the owners have to do is suspend b-ball operations and stop paying salaries for a couple of months and the union will cave, as they always had and will always do. I'm sure if the owners demanded either a franchise tag or unguaranteed contracts the players will accept the franchise tag. As far as the cap room is concerned, please remember that the last time we had two max players, we only had room for 3 decent players (battier, J. Howard, Alston) and a bunch of scrubs/rookies/vet mins. If we somehow managed to obtain Melo, most of the expiring contracts and our assets will go towards getting him so what assets will we give to get CP3? We'll have to gut our entire roster just to get those two players, and while CP3 is worth it Melo IMHO just isn't up to par. Does a roster that has Melo, Yao, CP3 and virtually nothing else guarantee a ring? We'd be like the worse version of Miami, except we won't have Mike Miller and Big Z.
Well if we assume Yao is resigned for 10M a year the salaries will be something like Paul-16M Melo-16M Lee-3M Scola-10M Yao-10M ->This comes out to 55M. If the cap is 60M you got 5M left to get a bench lol.
I love how he mentions Houston as a "pretty good" team along with the Knicks and Nets...seriously? This was the worst team in the league last year and we're put in the same category as them?
If Yao makes it through the year injury free I guarantee he will demand close to the max, not Scola's salary. I know you are a well known Yao hater but there is no way he accepts that if he demonstrates durability. If on the other he doesn't demonstrate durability why would CP3 want to come here? Even with Melo this team wouldn't be any better than others out there without a healthy Yao. Like it or not, all hinges on Yao once again. Morey knows it.
Weird that I don't actually have much of a problem with the bolded part. What I do have a problem with is that the writer insinates that Kevin Martin is on par as a player as T. Williams/Murphy and Gallinari/Curry's rotten corpse. This is the reason why KMart has almost no chance of ever getting traded by the Rockets. Not because he's untouchable, but because few people except for stat-minded ones like Morey thinks much of the guy.
If they sign Yao for even as little as 10 mil, trade away Martin for Melo, and don't resign Brooks, they still only have about 8 million left for Paul, assuming the only other players on their roster are the rookie scale contract guys. I think the best thing to do is keep the team we have, don't trade any stars and try to get a second-tier guy like Iguodala.
The main focus of the story is how mediocre Melo is, and how he wouldn't be a savior to other teams.... ::11 pages and 11 threads later:: But YOU don't understand! Why does the media HATE us?!? Damn east coast bias!!
Cuban was hot for Martin, but they're rivals in "the stat thingy." Assuming we keep Martin (and I think we will) and he stays healthy, I see him scoring 20+ a game at a very efficient rate. That'll get him noticed.
I'm not a Yao hater but why will a 30 year old center with injury history get the max? JJ got the max and people are calling the Hawks morons for extending that contract, and JJ doesn't have the injury history Yao has. Yao might get the max from some desperate team, but it won't be due to his worth on the court, and I certainly hope DM lets him go in that case.
I know this makes me look like a homer but I wonder if he soured on the Rockets due to the criticism he has received on this BBS? I remember at least one (and I think it was two) occasions where his articles were criticized/questioned here and he came on and basically threw a fit and acted like a kid with his feelings hurt. He certainly doesn't post here like he used to so I wonder if any of that animosity is bleeding over into his writing?
