i would definately do this. kick our capspace down the road, get rid of kpj for more picks, and take a flier on ben simmons. maybe he can play small ball four.
Small Tidbit from Vicente / Spins Eastern Conference draft grades. They were speaking on Orlando's PG situation, Fultz, Suggs, Black....they fumbled the delivery, but suggested every team in the league should be calling about their PGs. They ultimately said (and again they fumbled the delivery): "Orlando should call up and offer Kenyon Martin Jr and a 1st for Suggs"
What if Ben says he just wants to sit at home like Wall did for us? And he wants to do this for 2 years?
Sacramento just dumped $25M of Richaun Holmes' dead money to Dallas, and the price was the #24 pick. So the current market price for salary dumps is 1 mid-to-late frp per $25M dumped. So Simmons' $78M should be 3 first round picks.
Ok but we already own all of Brooklyn's first round picks, right? Isn't this the only one they can trade?
Check his stats taking last year out of the equation. 54% of his time was at center the year prior. I think a front court with him and Jabari or Garuba isn’t the worst defensively. He’s a good floor spacing front court piece who can guard 3-5 with upside. Not bad off the bench. I’m so tired of hearing about positions in 2023. I do understand your point though.
That is tempting. It’s a No at first glance, but it could work out. The backfire possibility is high and would be quite damaging.
My Houston Kick the Can Plan V2: KPJ / Christopher for DeMar Derozan - 10.3m in Cap Space used KMJ / Tate for Kyle Lowry - 21.2m in Cap Space Used Sign Brook Lopez to a one year 35m deal. Lowry / Amen / TyTy / Nix Green / Whitmore Derozan / Eason Jabari / Garuba Lopez / Sengun Rockets will be competitive this year, and have a nice mix of vets and young guys. Rockets will have close to 100m next offseason to pursue a combo of OG, Siakim, Murray, Brown, KP, Sabonis, etc.
Damian Lillard is not happy about the Blazers drafting Scoot. You could see this coming a mile away. They are going to force him to request a trade. So, when that happens, are there any players you think we should try to poach in the aftermath? Jerami Grant may not be keen on sticking around, so he could be available. Would anyone care to take a stab at what the cost would be for the Rockets to grab Dame (even if you don’t want to go that route)?
Consolidate and kick the can to 2025FA. Garuba/Christopher/KMJ to Utah for a top 8 protected 1st. If it doesn’t convey in 2024, it rolls over to 2025 and 2026. Tate and TyTy to Miami for Duncan Robinson/Nikola Jovic/2026 FRP. FVV 2years 37 million per Brook Lopez 1 year 25 million Sengun/Lopez Smith/Eason/Jovic Eason/Robinson Green/KPJ/Whitmore FVV/Amen
Right now the Magic have Black, Cole Anthony, Suggs, and Fultz as point guards. Obviously, they cant all play. From what I hear Anthony is probably the one they're trying to move but if we can somehow pry Fultz, he'd be perfect for the veteran point guard playmaker type that were looking for on this team. Edit: somebody already mentioned the Magic but I think Fultz should be the target here.
Clutch: •(2:48) Amen was 4th (on his big board). Rockets didn’t view Scoot Henderson the way we do. That’s who I really wanted. Everything outside of Amen’s shooting has elite potential. The shooting is such a massive weakness. Hard to imagine it getting fixed in a year or two. Maybe Ben Sullivan can work some magic. Everything else — size, wingspan, athleticism, defensive potential, passing, feel for the game, work ethic, intelligence — there’s a lot of reasons to be excited. I think he’ll be really good. There is bust potential with the shooting factor. •(4:30) Rockets had Amen #2 on their board (didn’t know until the lottery or shortly after).; (Was that a consensus or just a few people?) Whatever the actual decision makers had it that way. Decision makers were Amen Thompson. That’s who they wanted. •(24:04) I don’t think the fan base fully understands that…they think “Hey, we got these 6-8 young guys, we’re gonna play them.” What they’re trying to do, they could fill 2-3 starting spots in free agency. Brook Lopez, if they get him, is probably gonna start. Dillon Brooks, if they get him, is probably gonna start. Fred VanVleet, if they get him, is going to start. •(25:17) I don’t think their free agent targets necessarily interfere with Jalen or Jabari. We’ll see. Maybe KPJ is a better option than Jalen and they start KPJ if they keep him. That’s not 100% either. The guys they’re targeting wouldn’t come here to be off the bench. They’re not going after DJ Augustin’s. They’re not looking for guys who’ve been in the league forever and can teach them how to pack their bags and go city to city. They’re looking for guys who can significantly contribute and teach these guys how to win and be part of a winning, cohesive team. • (29:35) I’m thinking the Rockets are planning on overpaying and doing shorter term deals, like a 2-year deal. That’s more hunch, some information, but that’s what I think they’re aiming for. They’re looking for guys who will legitimately contribute. •(31:07) They really value Dillon Brooks’ wing defense. I know. I’m not a Brooks fan or pushing the agenda. I’m telling you how they view it. •(33:50) (Potential Brook Lopez pursuit; Salman Ali very upset, feels they’ve undercut Sengun every step of the way) I don’t know if I look at it as undercutting. I know Sengun fans think I hate him. I get it, it’s fine. I look at it as this is a meritocracy now. There’s certain elements of his game they’re concerned about. They want to see a strong work ethic and improvement in those areas. What Ime wants is he wants option. I don’t think they’re phasing Sengun out. If he shines and thrives, he’ll outshine Lopez eventually. He’s going to want the ability to play a center that is strong defensively, can shoot 3s and spread the floor. I look at it as I want to see Jalen, Jabari, Sengun outshine those guys. (Potential guys they bring in) Don’t hand it to them. Let them prove it. •(36:30) If they made any traction on a Zion deal, Sengun would have been in it for sure. •(36:40) There’s certain people, his fans and others, see him as a future star. Others who see significant weaknesses, we have to balance this out with other stuff. There’s strong voices in the Rockets brass that have that counter view. •(37:32) If Sengun is out there getting 35 minutes because Ime believes in him, that’ll change some of my views. Same with Jabari. If he’s not able to play Jabari, I’ll be like “OK, Jabari is not cutting it.” I’m not gonna blame Ime or call Ime the problem. He’s gonna do what’s best to win. I don’t think there’s any preconceived notions with the new voice in the locker room. •(38:37) Kelly Iko reported if they don’t Lopez, they’re gonna be targeting Capela or Turner. They’ve been looking at starting centers for awhile. I’ve known that for awhile as well. They are focused on getting a significant center. It’s been that way before Ime Udoka to be honest. •(40:39) Salman: Sengun’s had to continuously prove someone in the organization wrong. DH: That’s what they want. They want him to prove them wrong. I really do. The way it’s been described to me, they feel like he needs the coaching, he needs the push. •(41:22) I don’t think there’s anything stopping Sengun from starting. If he earns it, Ime will start Sengun. He probably has a way he likes to play. He’s gonna want a defensive center period. A significant one. •(42:35) I would stress this again, I would not get too wrapped up into the dollar amount if it’s an overpay. It’s how long. The length will matter. •(47:48) (Realistic chance of VanVleet?) To be honest, I feel pretty confident there’s a good chance and part of it is because they’ll probably have to overpay. Stone is a contract guy. He prides himself on value deals. Kevin Porter Jr., Jae’Sean Tate, KJ Martin…it’s gonna be tough to pull off but he’s still gonna be looking for that type of thing. In VanVleet’s case, it may require a significant overpay on a short-term deal. I don’t want to say it’s a done deal but assuming Harden isn’t coming back, I think the Rockets will do an all-out blitz for Fred VanVleet. •(50:13) My feeling is the Rockets had a line in the sand and it wasn’t enough for Harden. It could’ve been a 3-year, $90M deal, something in that range. I don’t know that for a fact but that’s what I’m gonna guess and wasn’t what he wanted. That’s my hunch right now and why it shifted. Let’s see what kind of contract he signs with Philly, if he goes back. •(51:42) This is me reading the tea leaves, it feels like Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks and Brook Lopez are 3 of the top targets. •(56:20) (Who are some guys you would target?) I’m definitely in the Harden camp. I think that ships gonna sail. I’m ok with Fred VanVleet. I don’t love it but see the merits of it. I see what they’re trying to do. Don’t fully agree with it. Dillon Brooks, I don’t want. I don’t feel like he’ll reign in his shots. I do agree he’s a good wing defender. Rockets believe he’s one of the best, if not the best. That will be a benefit but on the court, I have concerns about an inefficient guy who takes a lot of shots. He’s not as high on my list. The Brook Lopez thing, they absolutely need another option. Doesn’t have to be a starter over Sengun but you need a strong defensive option. Lopez with his defense and shooting would be a terrific get. VanVleet and Lopez would probably be high on my list, assuming Harden is not coming here. •(59:51) Cam Johnson, I would love to do that. My understanding is the Rockets think they’ll match. •(1:00:31) I would love to get Cam Johnson. I think the Rockets view it as if they were to get him, it’d be so high that it wouldn’t be the value contract they seek. •(1:02:05) (Trading Nets picks) I wouldn’t trade it unless it was a significant player. They have picks and could make some changes but right now, ESPN projects them to have the 9th pick. It should be a lottery pick. It needs to be a significant player or significant protection on that pick. •(1:03:50) (Players on the chopping block?) I think I tweeted Jalen, Jabari, KPJ, Tari, Sengun, Thompson, Whitmore, TyTy (as safe) and on the bubble, I think KJ Martin would probably get traded. Tate is on the bubble. Christopher definitely. Garuba is a maybe. He’ll have an opportunity to impress Ime. To answer your question, KJ, Tate, Christopher, possibly Usman, possibly TyTy.
Great, if you can get a pick for free you do it. Would depend on the protections though for me, if it’s unprotected it’s an A+++++, if it’s top 4 i still do it
