http://newyorkpost.com/sports/37246.htm "Obviously, Van Gundy had some say regarding the recruitment of his perennial pet mistake. Ward got $1.7M and $1.8M guaranteed with a $2.04M team option. Why wait, Jeff? Pick it up right now. Nobody else was offering more than a 10-day contract. But Carroll, who helped Rudy Tomjanovich assemble Houston's two title teams ('94-'95), has the (last) sway. Carroll has been groping since, overpaying ineligible receivers as if he were bidding against Warriors whiz Chris Mullin. Maurice Taylor, Shandon Anderson, Howard Eisley, Matt Maloney (on the Rockets' cap this season, his last, at last, for $3.237,250), Brent Price and Moochie Norris were all rewarded with senseless long-term contracts." OMG!! We could've gotten Damon Jones, he's thriving as a Heat! I agree with this NYC JVG hater writer that CD is a complete dumbass. Why make these scrubs (Mooch, Mo, WARD?? (Aging for 3 yrs) maloney haha (we're still paying him)) millionaires?? C'mon CD yur digging a hole so deep even yao ming cant climb over u suck! I don't think the wesley trade was completely bad in our part though..as long as we can get 3's from other players, I think wesley could fit in well in the rockets team.
::Shakes head:: Theres no doubt some management problems if you look at the trades we have done so far. However, ever think that we've done them to improve by adding some more trades. Perhaps Dawson was thinking of a sign and trade concept with Wesley or Barry. Rumors have definitely been floating around. Just look at the thread about the Jimmy Jackson trade. Right now, all of it comes down to whether Dawson has some big master plan to massively overhaul this team. However, I do give him some credit since he got the McGrady trade to go through (although I would have liked it a whole lot more if we could have kept Mobley or Cato at least). It takes guts to completely turn your team from a eigth seed team into something possibly better or worse. If you had that trigger, would you pull it?
I hate to say it, but Vecsey is right in his assessment of the Rockets...when was the last time the Rockets made a good trade? I will agree the McGrady trade will benefit us in the end, but we cannot neglect others, particularly the ones Vecsey noted...What exactly are the Rockets trying to do? they have a plethora of combo guards and heartless interior players...wow, what a winning combination...if they dont step their game up, they will end up having to rebuild very quickly because they are taking on some lethargic salaries for players who are worthy of nothing more than the mere minimum...whats worse, is I dont see any quick solution in the near future...
I say trade, Charlie Ward (when he can play again) Wetherespoon, Padgett, Mo Taylor, Juwan Howard. Keep our 1-2 year players. That's are best thing of trading. Unless we trade...T-Mac Yao,Berry,Westley,Sura,Gaines,and Barrett. Who believe's we should trade the ones I've listed.
This is my categorization of the players on the Rockets --------------------- Franchise --------------------- -Yao Ming -Self explanatory -Tracy McGrady -Self explanatory --------------------- Long Term --------------------- -Andre Barret -Young guy, tremendous upside, all out athelete hes going to be here for a long time if he keeps improving. The big step here is to get him some playing time. --------------------- Short Term due to Age --------------------- -Jon Barry -Barry's old, and the Rockets seem to like him. Especially Van Gundy, starting him only a few days after he was acquired. I like his style, plays hard and is a threat on the perimeter. Barring some sort of trade I see Barry here up to his retirement, or age just doesnt allow him to perform to the level the Rockets need, but thats a couple years in the future. -Dikembe Mutombo -He's old, and all these years in the NBA may be getting to him. He's still a shot blocker, but nothing like he once was. I give him another year before the Rockets let him go or he retires. -Bobby Sura -Sura is 31. He's not going to be able to push the ball like he is for much longer. Due to his age and his inability to really solidify the point guard position to the point where there are no speculations on trades worries me. -Clarence Weatherspoon -Baby Barkley isnt a baby anymore, hes old, hes slow. I dont see him being moved unless he's included to make the salaries work. Hes a good player, strong and he hustles, but father time is catching up. ------------------------------------------ Extremely Short Term due to play/Contract ------------------------------------------ -Juwan Howard -Cant defend, cant rebound, takes too many shots and cant hit them consistently. Not to mention the huge contract. Its gonna be either Mo Taylor or Howard that gets the exit from Houston in the coming month. -Maurice Taylor -Same as Howard but younger, he takes perimeter shots that he cant make and gives off the impression that hes not giving it his all. Has the tendency to lose his mind on the court and make senseless mistakes. -Charlie Ward -Old, cant play at the level he once played, contract is going to be a pain, hes just downright useless right now. --------------------- On the Bubble Players --------------------- -Scott Padgett -hasnt played much this year, defensive boost, we'll have to see its all dependent on the play of Taylor and Howard -David Wesley -Well Wesley just got here, and hes not eligible to play yet. We'll have to see, his trade value is down right now, but if he gets them up, trigger happy CD might pull something. Not to mention he might fit poorly into Van Gundy's system. -Ryan Bowen -Hes older than Padgett, but he hustles. Hes really unmovable, but he might turn out to be one of those trade and drop players just to make the salaries work. It all depends on the play of the small forwards and whether or not the rockets get a deal and need to make some space. -Reece Gaines -Young guy, lots of upside, but hasnt anything more than a flash of his talent. Defensively he hustles and busts his ass to get to the ball, offensively hes a liability. If he can develop his shot to the point where he can knock down the open 3-pointer he may be able to fill the giagantic shoes Jim Jackson left.
LOL they been over paying players for a LONNNNGGGGG TIME, Matt Maloney was getting so much money, so was Cato.
