The Houston Rockets Thread

[Modifly]

No way we swap Gerald Wallace straight on for K-Mart. Morey value K-Mart a lot more than Wallace.

And I don't like Nene, another undersized center who can score better. Who cares about a scoring center when we have Brooks, Martin, Scola, and Hayes anyway. (Yes, Chuck Hayes. Dude can put up 10+ points every game!)

[NovU]

My Q is whether the Rockets will trade Brooks or not. His contract is expiring and he hasn't been too happy with minutes he's been getting since his return from injury.

[shadowgrin]

They should trade Brooks the way he's bitching about not getting a contract extension while Lowry has and also taken his spot.

[rise]

Kevin Martin is a vastly superior player to Gerald Wallace. You're out of your mind if you think the Rockets would do a straight swap WITH a pick? Maybe if the Bobcats gave up their pick.

Yeah, I was talking about Bobcats giving up a pick. Sorry about not wording that correctly.

My Q is whether the Rockets will trade Brooks or not. His contract is expiring and he hasn't been too happy with minutes he's been getting since his return from injury.

I'm pretty sure Brooks will be traded somewhere. He's kind of expendable because of the way Lowry has played for most of the season.

[Modifly]

Eventhough Brook's been playing poorly and bitching about his contract and playing time, the Rockets should keep him in my opinion. The Lowry/Brooks backcourt combo works really well, and Brooks is capable of playing much better than the way he is right now. But if he is traded I don't think the team will be affected too much. Ish Smith is a pure point guard as well.

[Stress Fracture]

What the? Brooks and Battier traded?? Oh my..

[Modifly]

Me personally, I thought those trades were shit. Until Thabeet and Dragic proves themselves that they can "play" and contribute at least half of what Battier and Brooks did, I'm going to remain skeptical. The Thabeet for Battier trade makes a lot of sense since the Rockets desperately needs a true center to protect the paint, but seriously, Brooks for Dragic? Do you really think Dragic is better than Brooks? I don't think he's even half the player Brooks was last season, he's no where near Brooks' caliber and this trade had me going WTF.

It feels like shit to see Battier leave, Brooks not so much since he's been whining all season. Memphis gets an instant leader and veteran, just what they need. Meh.

And oh, Fuck You Morey.

[Axel The Great]

Morey probably couldn't trade for another big man, so Thabeet was probably a last resort. He comes in as a shot blocker, so now the Rockets' lane isn't an empty red carpet that other players can go through and dunk every time. I'm not too sold on the Brooks-Dragic trade, but given how much Lowry is contributing this season, I'm not too skeptical about it. Also given how poorly Brooks was doing this season, that probably made Morey less hesitant to give him up.

Parting ways with Battier sucks, too, but he was slowing down. I also don't like that the team parted with Ish Smith; I think he had a lot of potential.

In all, the deals the Rockets got are average imo, the main thing is they have a shot blocker. Only time will tell us how they pan out.

[Lamrock]

Morey is the master of making excellent minor deals and draft picks. He seems to win every trade and has stockpiled a myriad of assets. The problem with him is that he is unwilling to start rebuilding, and is unable to convert all of the assets into a star player. Now he is stuck with two legit starters, and ten rotation players that he is still unable to consolidate.

These deals he made were good ones as Battier and Brooks weren't coming back next year. He essentially traded nothing for two young guys with potential that actually play defense, along with a late first rounder (which they must have several of by now). Thabeet has a lot of potential, but after promising stints in his rookie year, he has looked more and more like Olowokandi as of late. Meanwhile, Dragic has just as much of a down season as Brooks, but his ability to defend gives Kyle Lowry a Kyle Lowry-esque backup.

But while he won these deals, it seems like he could have gotten more of these assets a year ago. He seems awfully prone to sitting on his hands, then selling low on his players, making himself look good when he gets more(y) value than he traded. Aaron Brooks was the MIP last year (though he didn't improve) and some thought he was a future all-star, and now Morey traded him when the return of a slumping Dragic and a bad draft pick is a "steal". Carl Landry is the exception here, but in that same trade, he dealt a McGrady that had played all of 46 minutes that season.

So Morey did what he always does, winning trades as he does and stockpiling bench players. Unfortunately, in the NBA, five nickels (Courtney Lee) do not equal a quarter (Melo).

[Modifly]

Morey is the master of making excellent minor deals and draft picks. He seems to win every trade and has stockpiled a myriad of assets. The problem with him is that he is unwilling to start rebuilding, and is unable to convert all of the assets into a star player. Now he is stuck with two legit starters, and ten rotation players that he is still unable to consolidate.

These deals he made were good ones as Battier and Brooks weren't coming back next year. He essentially traded nothing for two young guys with potential that actually play defense, along with a late first rounder (which they must have several of by now). Thabeet has a lot of potential, but after promising stints in his rookie year, he has looked more and more like Olowokandi as of late. Meanwhile, Dragic has just as much of a down season as Brooks, but his ability to defend gives Kyle Lowry a Kyle Lowry-esque backup.

But while he won these deals, it seems like he could have gotten more of these assets a year ago. He seems awfully prone to sitting on his hands, then selling low on his players, making himself look good when he gets more(y) value than he traded. Aaron Brooks was the MIP last year (though he didn't improve) and some thought he was a future all-star, and now Morey traded him when the return of a slumping Dragic and a bad draft pick is a "steal". Carl Landry is the exception here, but in that same trade, he dealt a McGrady that had played all of 46 minutes that season.

So Morey did what he always does, winning trades as he does and stockpiling bench players. Unfortunately, in the NBA, five nickels (Courtney Lee) do not equal a quarter (Melo).

Great post. Just spot on.

[Stress Fracture]

It's Budinger's time. And where is Ish Smith now?

[Lamrock]

Memphis?

[Stress Fracture]

Was he a part of the Battier trade?

[Lamrock]

Yes.

[Axel The Great]

I think Battier leaving was a positive thing for Budinger. He went for a career-high 30 at Cleveland, and then scored 27 last night. Saw the game against the Nets yesterday, and though we didn't utilize the new players much, I like that Battier's departure (not saying I like that he left, though) gives Terrence Williams more playing time. And since Budinger gets a lot more playing time, a duo of him and Martin can run the fastbreak very well. That can lead to this:

phpBB [video]

May have been posted in the dunk thread. Sorry.

I also liked the comparison Bill Worrell gave to Thabeet saying that he can be a poor man's Dikembe Mutombo.

[marinmarin]

You guys have the best GM in the league,you'll be alright

[Modifly]

Battier's departure did open up opportunities for both Budinger and T-Will, but the duo of Martin and Budinger equals zero defense. That's what worries me.

[Stress Fracture]

Oh yeah, definitely. Who will defend Kobe?

[Axel The Great]

Courtney Lee?

[Stress Fracture]

Courtney's smaller.

[Axel The Great]

So is Raja Bell, the supposed "Kobe stopper".

A great blowout win against the Blazers yesterday. That puts us at .500. Winning against the Clippers tonight would put us over .500 for the first time this season.

[Modifly]

And we lost to the Clippers. Meh.

[Stress Fracture]

Oh great. But only a close game.

[Axel The Great]

Nice triple-double by Lowry to win against Utah. Looking ahead, we've got some tough opponents coming up, like the Spurs and the Mavericks, but hopefully homecourt advantage will help us in those games. Also face the Heat at Miami but other than that, just teams like the Kings and the Nets are ahead. The eighth seed in the West is definitely feasible.

Meanwhile, the Grizzlies, one game and a half ahead of Houston, have a somewhat tough schedule ahead, including Chicago, Boston, and San Antonio. Losing those games will surely help us in the quest to the eighth seed. Playoffs or not, I hope the Rockets at least get another winning season.

[Stress Fracture]

CHUCK HAYES!!!

He just had his 1st career triple-double!