Some thoughts after catching my breath from the deadline.... In spite of GS's presence everything IS geared toward the next 3-4 seasons. We want the option to go small (which we'll play exclusively this year), yes..but, to also have the ability to play more conventional ball. (ergo the attempt at DJ) It's a lot to do on the fly. (I know many will decry Tilman, and say it should have been possible this year) RoCo is a piece. Just like EG will be moved for a MAJOR piece in the offseason. While I support MDA, it will be easier, should he be removed to tack left.. And, of course, the Lakers are there. It's a tough match up for anyone, yet alone on the heels of the Kobe tragedy. With LBJ ( who I detest off the court), AD, and the League, we're all up against it this year. I'm not saying we don't have a chance this year, but it's obviously gonna be tough. I trust Daryl. In the meantime, Go Rockets and go smallball!
...and we'll all be eating crow when the master plan comes to fruition... Thanks... heard it before... smh.. and fk smallball...
"Everything is geared more towards next season". "We have great flexibility for next year". "We dodged the repeater. Next year we'll go into the tax" Heard it all plenty of times. We really still buying this spin? Hope you're right, but Tilman has proven he is not willing to spend.
I completely agree....they've been aiming for next year or the year after. We are two major pieces away and that's with keeping Gordon. Trading Gordon is probably a last resort regardless of all the fans who devalue him. He's not easily replaceable. Hopefully tilman will pay the tax and we can add a couple buyouts and get their bird rights.
If the Rockets are going ALL IN on small ball, certainly having a summer to adjust their roster to it is pivotal. (Then again, is small ball MDA? or Morey driven? Because MDA might not be here next year). That aside......just dream-casting a bit..... This summer, Eric Gordon + lottery protected 2022 FRP to the Suns for Kelly Oubre. (Suns were shopping him at the deadline, because he will be a UFA in 2021). Rockets would have to have an extension agreed upon on the trade so they have him locked in though. Then roll out a small ball lineup of Westbrook Harden Oubre Covington Tucker That lineup would be tough!
We've been told the reasoning for all of these mediocre moves has been to cash in on the here and now. To maximize Harden and Westbrooks window. Always being one piece away clashes with giving away all of your bench assets and picks, especially the move to waste a pick on Shumpert and let him walk, for example.
Need to up EG's value this season and further improve our front court depth and perimeter defense. River and Mclemore are adequate at guard positions.
Still believe that the future can be THIS season. Just a few more additions needed. Next season is another opportunity.
Oubre was always my hope for this team. It's been all about Covington, Oubre, Winslow and Otto Porter (lol maybe after his contract expires now) for the past two years. We got 1 of the 4. It's time for the second one. Sadly I didn't anticipate having to dump Capela to acquire them. Do you guys remember 2017/18? We started the year as a fast pace team that was running everyone off the court. We were succeeding and it was great. Then CP3 came back and things were still going smoothly but it didn't quite work as well. We morphed into a slow paced team that could dissect anyone. Harden has the ability to fit into any system. It's the superstar point guards he wishes to play with that require tweaks. This year we started as an iso heavy team that was trying to force the PNR and it wasn't working quite as well as it used to. Harden was on an all time tear and playing ISO made sense. Then one day. Harden starts to look human and he is unable to beat teams 5 on 1. Russ starts to look like the player we all wish he would be. A guy who knew his limitations and utilized his strengths. This is like Dwight never becoming a PNR player because he was a stubborn diva. Russ is a team player and was doing whatever the team asked of him. He was chunking up threes, limiting his mid range shots and going to the rim sporadically. Then all of a sudden as Harden started to wain, Russ was unable to carry the team on his own. Him and Clint weren't working and the paint was a mess. Russ was obviously told to get out of his head and quit playing how he thought the team wanted him to play and play how he thought he could help the most. Russ became an elite slasher and a bit of a volume mid range shooter. The team lost some games as Russ got integrated and then Clint got hurt and the open lane showed the team that they needed to morph if Russ was to stay here. So we have a reinvigorated Russ and a gimpy Harden right now. Let's hope both start peaking by the middle of March and we can make a real run. Harden needs a guy who can run the PNR with him on a regular basis while Russ sits. I do believe the team is waiting on someone in the buyout market who can fill that need this year in a better than average manner. I believe that Bruno is who they envision being that guy in the future. I believe everything is for this season and not the future right now but there wasn't a player who was available to provide what Clint did within the restraints of the luxury tax. DJ is a cute idea in theory but he wasn't coming, he was simply Tilman's out for being bombarded as a cheapskate. Dedmon would have been possible but Tilman wasn't paying the tax for him. I don't think I blame him on that, his contract sucks. We need flexibility. Richaun Holmes or Noel would have been nice but they clearly weren't available.
All of you that are frustrated. I get it. ME TOO! Heck, I threw a full fledged tantrum when we dealt Clint for RoCo.
