Here is the deal: if our rookies turn out to be All Stars, I say this year. If they are "normal" rookies, I would say 2-5 years, depending on who stays, who goes, and who is added. In other words, I have no idea.
Jeremy Lamb = Reggie Miller Royce White = Charles Barkley Terrence Jones = A lesser Dwight Donatas Motiejunas = Arvydas Sabonis so yeah, we'll make the playoffs this year.
I must say, i am surprised and thrilled by the votes so far. There are more believers than i thought.
How about we put aside the Hall of Fame greats and just look at some more likely outcomes IF they succeed. Forget about the end of their careers and think back to the beginning(IF YOUR OLD ENOUGH)- Lin- Sam Cassel Lamb- Kerry Kittles T. Jones- Stacy Augmon Royce White- Clarence Weatherspoon Motiejunas- Toni Kukoc In the first two years of all those players careers they might not have made the playoffs, but that would have been a really fun team to watch. Thats probably what we can expect with this team.
I hope you guys are being sarcastic or something here.. It took Kevin Durant two years for his team to make the playoffs. The only reason we got close last year was largely due in part to the strong play of Lowry, Scola, and Dragic. I didn't really quite see Kevin Martin as a strong factor in that push. I like Lin, but I don't think he's enough to carry us into the playoffs. It's gonna be 2-3 years before we're relevant.
It's not out of the realm of possibility for this team make the playoffs this season. The starting 5 are better defensively than they were last season. Once the rookies get their chemistry going, the bench will end up being powerful offensively.
Scola lost a step last season. We're replacing him with Ppat who supposedly is healed from his ankle problems, and has been tearing it up in practice against Dmo, Jones, and White. Assuming Omer can stay out of foul trouble, our front court D will be better - possibly a lot better. Ppat's not the post player Scola is, but he brings other skills to the table (e.g. run/dunk). We had a good bench last year, but this year's is good too. They're just different. Our bench talent and upside is better this year, but last year's was skilled with considerable experience. What I believe will be significant is the bball IQ of our rookies. They're still going to have to become acclimated, but they're not dummies. They're more than just great athlete's. They know how to play the game.
Why is it that everyone on this forum has vilified Kevin Martin.... Lets not forget that he led the rockets in scoring last season.
I am 22 going on 23 so some of these guys I know by name but not by style of play. Also I was being intentionally over the top when i did my comparisons
Hard to say, but I think that people are underrating the current lineup. I expect Parsons to improve from last season, Lin to bring out the best in everybody (espicially K-Mart), PPatt to be improved, and Asik to give us a nice anchor on defense. Then theres the young guys. They all have so much potential, so if one or two are able to break out this year thats a huge addition for the team. Jeremy Lamb, Royce White, Terrence Jones, and Donatas Motiejunas all have potential, and if one of them has their breakout this year I could see the Rockets getting into the playoffs.
The only way the Rockets make the playoffs this season is if Morey can swing a trade for an all-star before the deadline. But with all the young talent on board, there are some bright years ahead, possibly as early as 2014.
Western Conference Playoff Predictions: 1. Lakers 2. Thunder 3. Clippers 4. Spurs 5. Nuggets 6. Grizzlies 7. ??? 8. ??? I feel like the last two spots will be between Houston, Utah, Portland, Minny, Dallas, and GSW. Western Conference is truly competitive.
Right?? I understand homeristic optimism, but get real everyone. This is a bottom-5 team in the West in '12-'13. No question. They'll surely be competitive, but playoffs?? I'd be surprised if they win more than 35 games. I say they'll be back in the playoffs in '13-'14, but that's assuming they make a trade, either in the offseason or before the '14 deadline to make a playoff push.
I say. OKC Spurs Lakers will be top three in that order. Clippers Nuggets Mavs Memphis will fight for the next four. Minny will be next. Finally, Houston Utah GSW fighting for 9th seed.
I understand the sarcasm. The folks who grew up watching basketball in the 90's should have a good idea of what those players were like coming out of college. I tried to find comparisons of current players, but its hard to do that since there really isn't much of a middle to upper middle class anymore in the NBA. Either your a superstar, or your trash. But for those who didnt grow up in the 90's, I would try to look up film on these guys if you can to see the comparisons at this point in their career. I think we are looking at pretty realistic comparisons. Kukoc & Kittles probably being the two closest comparisons to our rooks.
