I think the Rockets should try going young, and according to Sports Radio 610, the Rockets are still in talks with the Sonics about a deal for Antonio Daniels. But yeah, young is what we need. Fisher is probably, no, is the best option we now have thats a FA.. We could get some NBDL player i.e. Tierre Brown, or Damon Jones, who looks good too. Dajuan Wagner also, though he is a shoot-first PG. Antonio Daniels isnt bad at all, he knows when to pass and when to shoot. Reece Gaines isnt a bad idea, but hes still to young, and he hasnt really performed well yet. I'd see him as an option though. But I dont think JVG would start him over Ty Lue if that was they were the only options left. Bob Sura.. though I totally hate him, for that stupid Triple Double incident. Hes nothing special either. Heard that the Grizzlies were looking to deal Stromile Swift or Battier? I was suprised at Battier.. but he cant play C.. Ah Charlie Ward.. The guy that snubbed us for SA, only to realise the limited playing time he'd get. I dont think he is physically able to keep up with Parker, Baron Davis, people we will be facing multiple times in the season. We have a pretty good line-up except for PG. I dont want to be like the Magic, who are using Francis, Cato, and Mobley in the Starting Line-up/Rotation. Lue will do good running the offense but what about when we're down by 4 with under 1 minute to go, and Yao has fouled out? I hope that never happens, but still. Obviously, McGrady will be heavily guarded, as will the 3 point line, so JJ might not be able to produce. Howard? Sure.. but what about the next possesion? What if Howard misses? I think PGs like Antonio Daniels, and Derek Fisher have proven themselves in those Clutch Situations.. I'm not saying that Lue cant, but will he? Various posters have predicted that the Rockets will go far in the playoffs, and when Yao is fouled out: Like against LA, we're gonna need the role players to step up. JJ already has, Howard is a veteran that can score, McGrady will be the guy we look to. But what about our PG? Can they step it up a notch and hit the 3 that will take it to overtime? Or draw the foul that stops the clock? Or handle the ball without losing it? What about taking the inbounds pass, and not giving it up to Kobe Bryant, then finish off the play by fouling him in the act of shooting when we were already in the penalty? What about a finger roll? Can he make it? Against the kings with under a minute to go, can he make a simple finger roll that potentially won the game for us? Or what about, on a 1 on 1 situation, will he stop and pop? Or try the spectacular 3 point play, ending up in getting called for a charge? What about the half court offense? Seriously, Fisher, maybe Daniels, are the only ones who can do those things. I'm having doubts about Daniels. IMO Fisher is the only guy we can now look to, unless we wanna trade someone. Sam Cassel, man... Wish he was with us. But he is aging, though he still puts up spectacular numbers. NVE, but he is a shoot first PG. Should we play Lue for a year and hope Spanoulis carries us through the playoffs?
^^^ why dont yall want Damon? i thought he was a character guy and played admirably in Ford's absence last season... anyways, I think its almost ESSENTIAL that whomever the Rockets tab for the starting PG spot needs to have 3-point skills. I think Jones and Fisher should be their two logical choices right now, and while I like the idea of Daniels, hes not a pure point in the mold of JVG. Jones has decent size at the spot and is a smart player. Fisher, well, we all know what he brings. I think if Fisher is brought in, we face a situation very similar to that of the Lakers' dynasty years: Yao + TMac with great role players in Mo Taylor, J-Howard, JJ and Fisher.
WOW.. we got stumped for the WARRIORS.. Ehh, 6 yrs/37 mill. Keep him till he's 36? That shows a lotta confidence. They even got NVE and Speedy.. WOW. I think we're working a trade here, because seriously, what does GS have that we dont better? I'm now sure that Antonio Daniels will be a Rocket next year. Fisher.. man.. he woulda done so much better here. Sure it was the triangle offense that he ran for so long, but still.. Trade is the only thing we have now. I really expect Antonio Daniels to be a Rocket. After the Tmac trade we went totally silent. Atleast from the fans perspective. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post"> think Jones and Fisher should be their two logical choices right now, and while I like the idea of Daniels, hes not a pure point in the mold of JVG</div> Quite right to it.. But Daniels really hasnt shown much, though he did start for some games, he was just "following the book," trying to do what he was told, not trying to run the game, just the offense. I think we needed a veteran, but not a old guy. Fisher proved to everyone how valuable he was. He was a proven leader, and now that I think about it, the only Laker that would talk to reporters before and after the press conference. Damon Jones is the same as Daniels, IMO. He showed us his stuff for a while, but never took the game "by the horns," he did what he was told to do. I was gonna say the West got weaker, but if you think about it, Shaq really doesnt out-do K-Mart, and maybe VC, Nash and Q-Rich, Baron Davis, Brent Barry going to the Spurs. I mean, the Rockets could finish worse than they did last year, bcus we had so much competition. The TWolves and Spurs remain threats, resigning Manu, and getting Barry. The Kings got weaker, IMO, for not doing anything big so far. Seatle got their act togehter, the potential of Shard, Collison, Swift, Ridnour and Ray Allen. And Utah. Whose done so much in a week. Okur, Boozer, resigning the other Carlos. Theyre looking pretty tough too. IMO the only teams losing out on anything is the Blazers and Kings. I'm pretty sure the Hornets arent gonna be in the playoffs. So, the Rockets, IMO, dont have a sure shot at the finals, hell, not even the playoffs.
Maybe the Rockets and Warriors will make a trade. What would you give for NVE or Speedy? I dont think we can trade Fish to you yet. Do you guys even have any good players after Yao and Tmac anymore. The only other decent ones you had before were Mobley and Francis right? I am not being sarcastic, I dont know...
If I had a choice between the 2 of them I think I would take Speedy. I am a resident of San Antonio and got to see him play a couple of games for the Spurs. The only thing that I would be willing to trade (not like it's up to me) is draft picks.
Draft picks huh? You guys are not even going to be close to lottery so that is pretty much worthless. No players?
I really dont want an aging, trigger-happy NVE or an inexperienced Claxton...this sucks that Fisher didnt take our offer...right now, I'd be happy with a Jones/Lue/Wilks trio at pg... and to Warriorsfannc93, we got plenty of nice players left...Jim Jackson/Mo Taylor/Juwan Howard/Ty Lue...but none of which I think would be worth giving up for Claxton or Van Exel...
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Tripl3:</div><div class="quote_post">I really dont want an aging, trigger-happy NVE or an inexperienced Claxton...this sucks that Fisher didnt take our offer...right now, I'd be happy with a Jones/Lue/Wilks trio at pg... and to Warriorsfannc93, we got plenty of nice players left...Jim Jackson/Mo Taylor/Juwan Howard/Ty Lue...but none of which I think would be worth giving up for Claxton or Van Exel...</div> Jim Jackson used to be on the Warriors. I dont know much about Mo Taylor. Has he been an underachiever? The only one I would be remotely interested in is Juwan Howard and he cant be traded.
JVG would never let Jackson go - he's coach's favourite player. Mo Taylor.. underachieved since coming off surgery, he can score off the bench but doesn't play D well enough for JVG to put him in the starting lineup. I doubt GS would want him since they have Troy Murphy at the same position.
Well cross Lue and Gaines off the list right now because neither are worthy of the starting position. I recall Lue telling the media back in mid March that he isn't starting material and would rather play coming off the bench anyways. Speedy Claxton isn't going anywhere... At least I hope not. Rod Strickland is a FA, but he's too old. Kenny Anderson? Jamal Crawford?
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Ice:</div><div class="quote_post">Well cross Lue and Gaines off the list right now because neither are worthy of the starting position. I recall Lue telling the media back in mid March that he isn't starting material and would rather play coming off the bench anyways. Speedy Claxton isn't going anywhere... At least I hope not. Rod Strickland is a FA, but he's too old. Kenny Anderson? Jamal Crawford?</div> Talk about confidence... If Lue's not even confident enough to take the challenge of starting, then he shouldn't even be considered for the spot. I wouldn't mind Van Exel in Houston to hit big shots but he's not good enough of a passer IMO to play with T-Mac and Yao. Strickland, Anderson, Crawford.. pass on all 3. I'd like to see Chucky Atkins or Damon Jones perhaps.
You'll all see this year that the Rockets will be a tad bit better than they were last year. All you have if Yao and Tracy and nothing else, havent you learned by watching the superstar stacked Lakers fall this year. You need more than 2 players to win a championship.
I disagree. I think putting Juwan Howard next to a legit center like yao will really help his game.....Jim Jackson is the kind of hustle guy that every coach looks for to do the little things it takes to win....Mo taylor is a huge offensive threat coming of the bench. So I think if the Rockets sign Damon Jones and then sign Vin Baker to a short term contract we will be one of the better teams in the west.
i agree with clutchcity about Howard and JJ.. those are very good role players / former stars who have put up 20+ ppg in the past. Especially JJ, he gives the team those intangibles that's needed to win championships but vin baker?? damn.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">but vin baker?? damn.</div> At the start of last season, Baker looked like a strong candidate for the MIP. He was averaging a great 11/8 I think, a great improvement over his previous season. However, his alcohol problems got the worst of him and he was ineffective for the rest of the season. If we can get him to back up Yao and play a small role off the bench, I feel he could be very productive and might push Weatherspoon into an even smaller role.
we don't need another PF - Vin Baker is NOT a C (except in the Eastern Conference perhaps). I think Tony Massenburg would be a better pickup. Whoever the backup C will be - probably won't play very many minutes. I can see the rotation being.. Yao to start the game, 3-4 mins left in the 1st, Mo Taylor will come in for Yao, Howard moves to C. 3-4 mins into the 2nd, Yao checks back in for Howard and he plays alongside Mo. The only time the backup C and Spoon will play is when guys get into foul trouble and/or injuries.
I don't think the Rockets need a point guard to create for them and dish out passes. They need a PG who can hit the open shot, play excellent defense, and not turn the ball over. T-Mac gives them a luxury of having a player who can create the offense for them. T-Mac is a slasher and is great passing out of double teams. It will be interesting to see how he adjusts to a halfcourt oriented offense, but T-Mac will likely be the dominant ball handler for the Rockets. JVG wants to bring in Charlie Ward to play PG minutes, Ward is solid, but he does not have the foot speed to guard most of the PGs out there. Parker, Speedy, Bibby, Nash, will all have field days against Ward. I suggested Antonio Daniels in another thread, or how about trying to get Doug Christie? He played a lot of PG last season because of Bobby Jackson's injury. This year BJax is healthy, so Christie's services will be less needed. The Kings are looking to cut salary and at $7M, Christie has been rumored to be on the move. How about Howard & Nachbar for Christie? Howard gets to be reunited with Webber, and the Kings, and the Kings also add another perimeter shooter. The Rockets get a defensive stopper capable of setting up the offense and knocking down open shots. PG - Christie SG - TMac SF - JJ PF - Mo Taylor C - Yao Kings Starters PG - Bibby SG - Peja SF - Howard PF - Webber C - Miller
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting shapecity:</div><div class="quote_post">How about Howard & Nachbar for Christie? Howard gets to be reunited with Webber, and the Kings, and the Kings also add another perimeter shooter. The Rockets get a defensive stopper capable of setting up the offense and knocking down open shots. </div> No way in hell Knocking down open shots?? I seem to remember him airballing every time he was wide open. I would NOT give up Juwan Howard and Nachbar for that scrub.
