We all love all the Rockets. But unfortunatley, if we want to get better somebody has to take a hike. This is who I say should be guranteed a stay: <div align="center">Tmac Yao Juwan Howard Dikembe Jon Barry</div> Tmac and Yao are no brainers. Juwan Howard is way too consistent to cut. Padgett is a rare PF who can consistently hit 3's and stretch the defense. Dikembe is the man behind Yao, but if we can get Chandler then it'll be interesting. I like what Jon Barry brings to the team, energy, heart, hustle and he's also money from the outside. This is who needs to take a hike A.S.A.P: <div align="center">Clarence Weatherspoon Ryan Bowen Moochie Vin Baker Charlie Ward Torray Braggs David Wesley</div> I like Weatherspoon, but he's old, and UNDERSIZED. Ryan Bowen did a GREAT job in the playoffs, but we need strength, SIZE and quickness at PF. Moochie is a no brainer. Vin Baker should of never been on the team in the first place, the same for Charlie Ward. Torray Braggs is a good energy guy off the bench, but he lacks SIZE. Alot of ya'll will hate me for cutting David Wesley, but he's too little at SG. For all the things he does good, he lacks SIZE and he can't finish the fastbreak (dunk the darn ball David). The next two guys probably should be back, but if the opportunity is there, they should be traded: <div align="center">Mike James Bob Sura</div> Mike James probably should be back, but if we have to give him up to get somebody like Antonio Daniels, then holla back. He's a spark plug off the bench, but he's proven that he won't give Yao the ball consistently. Sura is one of my favorite players, I would most certainley keep him. BUT, he's trade bait for other teams. Like James, if the opportunity comes to get somebody like Artest, Daniels, or Chandler then Sura can be traded. (Other teams would love Sura). I think if the Rockets read this thread (which is not going to happen) they will put together a contender next year. If they keep all the UNDERSIZED players, we will get dusted by the athletic teams like Phoenix, Dallas, San Antonio, and Memphis. We also need players that can play 40 plus minutes a game. Dallas killed us with there athletism. The only reason the series was close was because we had more HEART. But in the end, only having HEART isn't enough. I just HOPE Van Gundy doesn't chase down these Old Knick players instead of going after talent. This offseason is CRUCIAL to the Rockets future. What direction do ya'll think we should go in? Who do you think should go and who should stay? and WHY?
Obviously our two studs are going to stay. Deke and Barry should be here also. They have been fantastic Role players, and sometimes they make stupid mistakes, getting offensive fouls, throwing the ball away, and all that, but still, they have been diamonds in the ruff for us, and it is imperative that we hold onto both of them. If someone wants Howard's contract, then the Rockets have to trade him. I don't know why everyone is so giddy about Daniels, I know I was last year, but we need a spark of the bench, and until we find another source of that, James should stay put. That being said, some of the things he does remind of the bad Steve Francis, the one that dribbles and dribbles and dribbles. Yet some things remind me of the good Steve Francis, the one that actually had an idea with what he wanted to do with the ball. Sura, and Wesley, hopefully will be traded. I'd like to get younger, and more consistent. Sura, can be traded, and some people disagree because JVG praises him so much, but if you remember what happened to Jim Jackson, JVG loved him, but he got traded. IMO, we should trade one of our 3 Trade Exceptions, for an early Second Round, or a late First round pick and grab Francisco Garcia. The kid can play 3 different positions and is extremely versatile. I got a gut feeling about the guy. Just my 2 cents.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting magnomonkey:</div><div class="quote_post">Obviously our two studs are going to stay. Deke and Barry should be here also. They have been fantastic Role players, and sometimes they make stupid mistakes, getting offensive fouls, throwing the ball away, and all that, but still, they have been diamonds in the ruff for us, and it is imperative that we hold onto both of them. If someone wants Howard's contract, then the Rockets have to trade him. I don't know why everyone is so giddy about Daniels, I know I was last year, but we need a spark of the bench, and until we find another source of that, James should stay put. That being said, some of the things he does remind of the bad Steve Francis, the one that dribbles and dribbles and dribbles. Yet some things remind me of the good Steve Francis, the one that actually had an idea with what he wanted to do with the ball. Sura, and Wesley, hopefully will be traded. I'd like to get younger, and more consistent. Sura, can be traded, and some people disagree because JVG praises him so much, but if you remember what happened to Jim Jackson, JVG loved him, but he got traded. IMO, we should trade one of our 3 Trade Exceptions, for an early Second Round, or a late First round pick and grab Francisco Garcia. The kid can play 3 different positions and is extremely versatile. I got a gut feeling about the guy. Just my 2 cents.</div> Francisco Garcia? Who?
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Rockfan06:</div><div class="quote_post">Francisco Garcia? Who?</div> Francisco Garcia As for who has to go and who has to stay, I'd like to go against popular opinion and say Barry. Yeah, he looks good with the fancy passes and threes, but what I don't like about him is how his passes go awry half of the time, and he is not much more than a stationary three point shooter. He is not a great defender, can't create off the dribble, and is just used to stretch the floor. But do we need him to? Wesley is already doing that as a starter, and James off the bench does it. I just don't like seeing Jason Williams-lite trying to take over the spotlight in Houston. Wesley I'm on the fence about. One part of me wants to see someone bigger and more mobile at shooting guard, but another part wants to see David's die-hard defense put to work every game. The thing is we're not going to trade him for any equal value right now so it could be wiser not to. Garcia IMO will just be a Jon Barry, so I guess my feelings about him is known.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Francisco Garcia? Who?</div> I'm guessing you don't watch college ball. The great swingman from Louisville that can shoot and has good basketball IQ. Anyways, its obvious who Houston should keep. Basically keep McGrady, Yao, Dikembe, Barry, and Mike James. Keeping the two stars is pretty obvious so I won't go into detail with that. However, both Barry and Dikembe have been great role players for Houston and although they are a year older next season, I guarantee that they will still bring the same swagger and attitude they brought us this season. I wouldn't sign them long term since they are free agents this offseason, but I would say probably like a one year deal because both the guys are pretty old. I say keep Mike James because he is a great spark off the bench and really puts momentum in Rockets favor. There were countless times Houston was down but Mike James just came off the bench- made a couple steals, assists, and big buckets to put us on top. Plus, he's probably one of the only guys under thirty years old besides Yao and McGrady. Everyone else is tradeable to me if presented with a good deal. Sura and Wesley are both pretty old guards that just won't hold up that well for long in the Western Conference with guys like Terry, Nash, Stackhouse, or Richardson running around. Sura is too injury prone and slower than the guards while Wesley is too inconsistent and undersized. Meanwhile, for the powerforward position, I really think everyone should go. That means that if any team is willing to take aging Howard's four year contract, go right ahead. Sure he's been a great player for Houston but he's just too much a liability. However, a deal like that probaby won't happen so for the position, I'd take my chances on Howard and some rookie to hold up.
i dont know, i really think that we should get someone who defends, know their roles thats why i think tyson chandler would look like a great fit here, but maybe thats far from teh possibilit of getting him, i dont think we should get rid of wesley, because he is a good player, its just sometimes his shot does not come into play. for those who i think shuld go would have to be ward, and baker, and weatherspoon, its past their time.
I'm not sure if I agree. Yao and TMac are obviously here to stay but everyone else on this team is expendable to SOME extent with the exception of Bowen. He should stay to, this is why. Bowen brings us good hustle and does his role. Since he is not very good trade bait, he is not worth trading, so we should keep him and use his abilities. Barry and Deke have been great for us, but they're old. I think Deke is more valuable to us because its harder to find a player like him who can come off the bench and bring us brilliant defense and hustle on the boards. Barry is great for us, but can be easily replaced by similar players. Juwon Howard is the same deal. He has been good for us late in the season, but once again, we could find other players who do the same job he does. I doubt he would make good trade bait with the contract he has, so I guess we should just keep him and play him off the bench if we can get our dream PF such as Chandler or Marshall. Sura and James should stay, but are both great trade bait. If the price is right, we should trade them, but under most circumstances, they should stay. Padgett should go. He is too inconsistent. There could be teams out there that like him, so I think we should shop him around until we find a team who will offer us something tasty. Ward, Mooch, Weatherspoon and Baker are excess baggage. They are all basically expiring contracts, so we should trade them for some good players who are in a struggling team. Like Baron to the Warriors, we could strike a great deal. Torraye Braggs is no thing special. I think he's a FA, but we could sign him to the league minimum to fill out our roster and provide some assurance incase there are injuries. He could be waived any time and will not weight us down financially.
David Wesley definitely has to go- hes a nice shooter, but is an aging, undersized 2-guard, and should not be relied upon as a consistent contributing factor for a championship team... I also think Weatherspoon, Moochie, Ward and Vin do not have futures with the ballclub, so they should leave in some manner, however finding someone to take their gigantic contracts would be a feat all in itself... The people who should definitely stay: Yao Tracy Juwan TMac Barry Deke Bowen James Sura
I'd rather keep David Wesley, we've been 42-20 with him, and we traded JJ and Boki for him, hes pretty sick 3 shooter and hes underrated and can play defence. I say one of the trades for him was one of the greatest in a long time. Juwan Howard also may take a hike because hes really old and we need a younger person like Ronny Turiaf for example, a Trip favorite, Wayne Simien and Hakkim Warrick arent bad picks either
I agree with most of your choices Rockfan06, but I disagree mainly with Juwan Howard. He is just a minor upgrade over Mo Taylor, and doesn't provide the defensive intimidation the Rockets need inside. Howard has always been a poor rebounder, and he is terrible at passing out of double teams. I'd like to see how good Yao could be if he had a physical 'body guard' type player inside with him. If the Rockets can get a PF capable of guarding the 4 or 5 on the opposing team and let Yao play the weakside, they'll be better next season. Tyson Chandler would be a great fit, but he's unrealistic. I think the Rockets should pursue a player like Reggie Evans or Udonis Haslem, maybe even gamble on Kwame Brown in free agency and ship Howard for a solid bench players. Howard for George Lynch and Chris Andersen from the Hornets for example.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">We all love all the Rockets. But unfortunatley, if we want to get better somebody has to take a hike. This is who I say should be guranteed a stay: Tmac Yao Juwan Howard Dikembe Jon Barry Tmac and Yao are no brainers. Juwan Howard is way too consistent to cut. Padgett is a rare PF who can consistently hit 3's and stretch the defense. Dikembe is the man behind Yao, but if we can get Chandler then it'll be interesting. I like what Jon Barry brings to the team, energy, heart, hustle and he's also money from the outside. This is who needs to take a hike A.S.A.P: Clarence Weatherspoon Ryan Bowen Moochie Vin Baker Charlie Ward Torray Braggs David Wesley I like Weatherspoon, but he's old, and UNDERSIZED. Ryan Bowen did a GREAT job in the playoffs, but we need strength, SIZE and quickness at PF. Moochie is a no brainer. Vin Baker should of never been on the team in the first place, the same for Charlie Ward. Torray Braggs is a good energy guy off the bench, but he lacks SIZE. Alot of ya'll will hate me for cutting David Wesley, but he's too little at SG. For all the things he does good, he lacks SIZE and he can't finish the fastbreak (dunk the darn ball David). The next two guys probably should be back, but if the opportunity is there, they should be traded: Mike James Bob Sura Mike James probably should be back, but if we have to give him up to get somebody like Antonio Daniels, then holla back. He's a spark plug off the bench, but he's proven that he won't give Yao the ball consistently. Sura is one of my favorite players, I would most certainley keep him. BUT, he's trade bait for other teams. Like James, if the opportunity comes to get somebody like Artest, Daniels, or Chandler then Sura can be traded. (Other teams would love Sura).</div> I agree with everything u said except for Ryan Bowen. He's a great hustler and he plays with heart. Keep him, he does the little things that count..
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Shooter:</div><div class="quote_post">David Wesley definitely has to go- hes a nice shooter, but is an aging, undersized 2-guard, and should not be relied upon as a consistent contributing factor for a championship team... I also think Weatherspoon, Moochie, Ward and Vin do not have futures with the ballclub, so they should leave in some manner, however finding someone to take their gigantic contracts would be a feat all in itself... The people who should definitely stay: Yao Tracy Juwan TMac Barry Deke Bowen James Sura</div> I totally disagree about Spoon Mooch Vin and Ward's contracts. They are extremely attractive next year. They are all expiring. Any team looking to free up cap space would love to get their contracts in order to lose them the year after. I think during next season (possibly near the trade deadline) the Rockets can make a huge trade and get an allstar or a rising star for no one.
Other than yao and tmac, i dont really see any reason to give a **** about anyone else. Barry and deke are great and i would like them to stay but if we could get someone younger than deke and more effective all aound than barry, it would be good. Howard isnt that great of a PF and someone who can rebound better would be nice. James is very likely to stay. HE is very effective off the bench and decided a lot of our games. The rockets are definetly going to make a big move before the draft because of that 2.2 million trade exception and JVG even said it. He is probably using sura and wesley as trade bait. And they might strike another trade later in the year like dakeem1 said, to loose those expiring contracts.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting bplld:</div><div class="quote_post">Other than yao and tmac, i dont really see any reason to give a **** about anyone else. </div> i dont think this is the right choice. If we change the team every season around yao and tmac then we will always stay in a rebuilding mode. Just look at what happened in the beginning of last season.. We should find the missing players that can fit in the puzzle right now, and hopefully we can have a set team after the next season.. About who should go and who shouldn't, i pretty much agree with everyone else that wesley should go. He is udersized, and he can be a major attraction to other team who is looking for a solid 3 pointer and good defender. Unless we can draft a decent PF and probably sign swift or other good PF, we must keep juwan howard. He is probably the most consistent rocket's player. However, im worried his injury will affect his game next season. Padgett can go also, besides his 3 point shot he is not much of a help. Keep mike james cause he can bring a lot of energy coming off the bench, but trade sura in return for a younger PG.
Did you guys not see the playoffs? Jon Barry was EXCELLENT in the season, and one the few brightspots against the Mavs in the playoffs. He basically took over for stretches in the 4th quarter. I remember him hitting like 3 trays in row with the game on the line. If I'm the Rockets, I keep Barry. All he has to do is pass the ball, and shoot 3's. Maybe play a little defense, and bring some much needed energy. But the bottom line is, Barry isn't a superstar, but he's GREAT role player with heart. He's also consistent unlike Wesley. As far Padgett, he should stay. Not many PF can hit 3's consistently. He struggled in the playoffs, but that's because we had him starting. He's a true back up. Given the right situation, I think the Rockets should make an effort to keep my man Scotty "The Body". Again, another role player that can bring shooting to a team that needs it. As far as Mutumbo, I LOVE Deke. But he might ask for more money, and if he does then we probably won't be able to keep him.
Some players we dont need are Moochie, and Torraye Baggs, Torraye Baggs only plays like a few minutes a game and Moochie needs to go well because we already are loaded wtih point guards, LOL, at the beggining of the season we need point guards but now we are loaded
Barry means good to the team, but he loves to play to the crowd a bit too much and his three pointers IMO are pretty streaky. Yes, he could hit three threes in a row, but he could also miss five in a row. His flashy passes could draw a lot of oohs and aahhs, but they could also throw away an easy two on the fast break.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">As far as Mutumbo, I LOVE Deke. But he might ask for more money, and if he does then we probably won't be able to keep him.</div> Nah, the guy is like in upper thirties I don't any team in the right mind would actually overpay for him. Besides, because Mutumbo's old, that means he has more desire to win a championship than actual money and what better what to do it than play with two superstars.
Jeez, rather than who has to go, who can they upgrade with? I still think the Rockets need some more inside defensive presence to keep Yao out of foul trouble when he starts getting tired or has to cover a weak defensive rotation. With Yao as the franchise piece in the middle and T-mac as the franchise piece on the wing, I think those are good building blocks for a contender. If a guy like Alonzo Mourning or Antonio Davis has anything left in the tank, they'd be a good short term option for power forward. The Rockets IMO need some more toughness and hustle inside, something Yao has been trying to work on, but isn't really built for it yet. At times Yao just plays like he's 6'6 rather than 7'6. The rockets could also use a good playmaker with shooting touch that can move the ball, dribble penetrate some, and distribute inside. Hopefully that point guard is also a good of a defender as Bob Sura can be, but not also turn the ball over so much. I kind of think the Rockets should lose Wesley and hopefully find a better upgrade at shooting guard or point guard or both. Sura/Wesley isn't a backcourt to cheer about in my opinion and I'm not sure if T-Mac would prefer to play at the 2 guard spot rather than the 3. I like the idea of a 6'8/6'9 shooting guard that can just pop it right over smaller defenders. Only problem is T-mac might struggle against the faster two guards.
Yes it may actually be a good idea to trade wesley and some draft picks for a solid startinf SF and shift TMAC to the 2-guard.
