Approaching the half point of our season and essentially one game from the play in spot we should make a push to make it in the top 10 seed. Yes, you could say we are ahead of schedule but only if you account total incompetence or plain sabotage by the front office that we’re a mediocre team after four years of tanking. Fact is that sitting at just below .500 we are still in the hunt for a playoff birth. The front office made it goal to suck for three straight seasons and now with a shot to make the fan base and players proud to be a part of a winning team we owe it to them to make moves to show the league we are back. I don’t care about development of players who WONT or can’t keep up. The time is NOW. We had 50 win teams that couldn’t make it in a strong west. We can make it in the weakest Western conference in memory. Make the trades we need to get it done!
It is not easy, lakers, utah, houston and gsw, 2 of these 4 teams will be successful, obviously the nba wants the lakers and gsw to be successful, but if there is an injury, a chance may arise. Houston is still a very young team, it is necessary to chase until the end, but it is difficult
rebuild is over... ya go balls to the wall going forward - period. its time to produce - at whatever rate u can... u dont have to do nothing stupid - we dont have a closing window or anything... but its all about making the team better - TODAY.
It is sports, we have no control over that........ The Schedule looks favorable but there are some mixed diffculties in there. Teams like the Suns and Jazz have turned it on.....
I meant the fans.....because the We could be viewed for the fans. Sitting ducks. But he is more likely talking about Front Office and ownership. I distance myself from actions of the FO......
Agreed that the team’s focus should be on winning and making the play-in. I’m all for making some deals to shore up some weaknesses. I don’t want to make deals that could hurt our long-term progression for a short term benefit. And I also don’t have much faith in our GM’s judgment. But yes, by all means, let’s get Ime what he needs: more shooting, an actual startable shooting guard, a good backup center (ala Camby or Deke or Asik). Let’s go!!!
There is not much out there even for the short haul......I mean those guys look okay but none of them have really stepped up big in Playoff games..... Siakam and Dejounte are the top prizes, even they have flaws and would take tons of assets.... Maybe should have browsed the International market before the season to find some hidden gems.
as long as we don't trade any of our first round picks, i'm down with it. We would be fools to trade that nets pick next year, only to watch it become a top 5 pick and an all-star. For what? to make the playoffs and lose? is it worth it? i don't think the rebuild is over.
Texans made the leap with Demeco and CJ Stroud. In those win loss prediction threads most folks were saying we should be happy with 32-34 wins, but I maintained that Stone needed to assemble a roster that won AT LEAST 40 games this season. I knew that most folks were lying to themselves by saying they’d be happy with that amount of wins because you have to watch a lot of losses to only win 32-34 games and people wouldn’t tolerate losing anymore. The vets added provided a floor while the young core should provide the ceiling. If we can’t win at least 40, it’s a bad sign meaning our recent draft picks more than likely aren’t those dudes we can build a franchise around. Sengun and Tari are on track, but I don’t know about Jabari and Jalen. I’m ready to move on from Jalen, and I hope we aren’t having the same conversation about Jabari next season. Also, with three years of tanking for high draft picks and using up $60M in cap space, there should be NO EXCUSES for Stone if he can’t assemble a roster capable of winning 40 games. Any average GM should be able to put together a roster that wins 40, so if we can’t reach that goal we need a new GM. We had a good start and now Stone needs to make some trades before the deadline to keep things on track.
https://bbs.clutchfans.net/threads/poll-how-many-games-does-this-team-win-next-season.320351/ According to this poll, the majority of voters had it at 33-36 W, and the next large percentage had it at 37-40 Wins (which is pretty on point)
You realize when the team started their rebuild we had Harden who wanted out, Cousins, Wood and Wall right? It's not like we were a championship team and the Fertita suddenly decided to tank for no reason. The team sucked, the window was closed and either it was getting Ben Simmons for a band aid solution or tanking. It was great Rox started to tank but even if they didn't they would still be bad since they'd be saddled with Simmons and John Wall contract. Rox would prob compete with Pistons for worst team ever the past 3 yrs. Now we got a bunch of 21 yr olds and rookies yet we are 0.500 in the freaking West. Only dummies will call this team mediocre. I don't even get the "we owe" part our players are all young or free agents we just signed why do we owe these guys anything? We just signed Jeff Green this season why do we owe him a play in when he hasn't been part of the rebuild? All the players and staff who been part of the losing got replaced or fired with the exception of Sengun and Jalen and I know how y'all love Jalen. As for the fans y'all have done nothing but complain and moan every year at the incompetence of the FO and ownership so I don't think there's anything owed to you guys either. It's not like y'all we're suffering and supporting the team like the Sixers fans during the Process it's been 3 yrs of complaining, moaning, groaning and toxicity so I doubt the FO has any gratitude for the fans.
Making the play-in is just the cherry on top, honestly. If we continue to hover around .500 I'll consider this a successful season either way. I think the focus needs to be on making sound long-term strategic decisions--we don't need to blow assets just to get knocked out in the play-in, or at best, lose in 4-5 games in the first round. As a fan, that is not something I'm overly excited about, I only really care about it insomuch as it gives our young guys a bit of playoff experience. I would like us to go get a backup center because I don't think that should cost a first-round draft pick (they should say no to any bench player trade that would). That doesn't hurt anything and will help the rest of the season at little cost. Any trade that costs real draft assets, I want it to be a guy we intend to be here really long-term. That means go young, ideally guys 25 and under, and certainly no older than age 26. I have no objection to spending assets trading for a guy like that, if he's a significant upgrade now and in the future. But we need to be careful and any trade needs to be made with an eye toward what's happening two or three years down the road, not just a short-term desperate overreach.
We will not make the play in unless the defense returns to early season form. But I definitely think the org and coaching staff are "going" for it.
Plenty of bench guys and 2nd rounders that can be packaged for help. We need shooters! Make something happen Stone!
I know folks are tired of hearing about Jalen, but he has been the weakest link in the starting lineup. If the Rockets are serious about squeezing out every win they can, either Jalen has to start playing better or he needs to be replaced with a better player. There isn't a playoff bound team that would be made better by inserting Jalen as he has been playing into their starting lineup (or even off the bench in some cases). In fact they'd all become worse. Fact is, the Rockets are not good enough everywhere else to overcome Jalen and still make the playoffs. They need at least a decent NBA player there to have a chance. Quickest path to improvement is replacing your weakest link.
I could be wrong but I get the feeling the organization isn’t hellbent on squeezing out every win possible they can this year. Think Jalen will continue to get his play time and any trade will likely be minor. If that means we make the playoff/play in cool. If not I think they will be ok with the improvement shown and the fact they have identified a foundational piece in Sengun.
Injuries affected this but - really good opponent shooting luck was a key component of the early seasn defense.
I'd love to make the play in/playoffs, but it shouldn't be the priority. Sacrificing future assets for win now moves would be a step backward. I don't want the front office to even consider moving picks. A three year playoff drought is nothing compared to other rebuilds. Even teams in major markets like the Lakers and Knicks have missed the playoffs 6-7 seasons in a row. Our draftees are 19-21 years old. Any progress should be celebrated and looked at with a long term perspective. OKC went 40-42 last season and have also had a three year playoff drought. They didn't make win now moves. In fact, they traded up in the 2023 draft. They're 2nd in the West today.
