What we have to realize - Alvarado was traded for Dalen Terry - an expiring contract that was immediately waived. No extra years. Ayo was traded for Leonard Miller, a vet minimum with a club option for next year - they can decline the option with no extra years Rob Dillingham is on a rookie deal with next year guaranteed and a club option for the following - he has still upside. White was traded for Collin Sexton who is a free agent at years end and Ousmane Dieng who was immediately rerouted to Milwaukee. What we had to offer was DFS and multiple years of his contract. Those players / contracts aren't remotely equal. They weren't taking DFS for XYZ for our 2nd round picks You probably had to give up Tari or 1st round picks since they are taking on money for multiple years. If that's the case, I can understand punting on the season.
Ol Patty has done some legendary things in his short front office career. He has worked with first ballot hall of fame players. Other hall of fame players. Drafted talent and waited for greatness to happen. Drafted talent and waited, and waited, and waited. I can only assume the NBA front office and his privilege lifestyle don’t coincide very well. The personal sacrifices are real.
This. Also, the Rockets are not overflowing with SRPs. Morey left the cupboards bare. Stone has been spending SRPs at about the same rate the Rockets are acquiring them under him, while accumulating FRPs at a pretty decent rate until the past year or so. I would have tried for someone that was a needle mover like Trey Murphy. Pretty sure the Rockets are betting on Reed long-term and don't want guys that make it difficult for Udoka to play Reed. I know we disagree on the last point and on how much it would help move the needle with FVV out. Rockets' long-term position is still very good, even though they don't have a Top 10 guy yet. I see the main lose for this season a FRP, though I think the Rockets could recoup that pick if they wanted.
The guys coming back were good. Alvarez could have been had for filler and a crummy frp. The acquiring teams could have released ‘Tate, Green, etc just as easily. Probably could have had Ayo with a frp as well. I’m glad they didn’t get Coby. Alvarez and/or Ayo could be a piece for this team going forward not just this year. We can’t get an all-star type player next year with DFS. Any trade for someone to make a big difference will cost one of Durant, FVV, Amen, Sengun, or Jabari combined with other assets. Ime will never trade FVV and I’m sure Durant is off the table as well. There was no reason to sit out this deadline. So what will we do in the off-season? Find someone similar to Ayo, Alvarez, or Coby with the MLE and bring back our saviors, FVV and Adams. Mark my words. I’ve hit on virtually every prediction I’ve made the last 2 years. This team is screwed as long as Ime is coach. He is calling the shots personnel wise and doesn’t have the ability to manage a game. He’s already laid out his big guys strategy. Look for a big dose of double bigs, walk it up, chunk it up and rebound next year.
LOL. Didn't you make a prediction that FVV would be the reason the Rockets didn't make the playoffs (or was it just lose homefield or Top 6 seed?) around New Year's last season? When FVV got hurt, Rockets went from 2nd seed to 5th or 6th. FVV got healthy, finished 2nd. When the Real Test followed by the real real test last season, I think you were well under what the Rockets' records would be during hard stretches. This season, you have to be giddy about predicting Tari and FVV's injuries right. Though, Rockets added Durant, and yet the Rockets are worse with a PG other than FVV this season.
You pretty much made my point for me: (and expiring) - the Rockets couldn't give that type of return. Tate & Green - you are sending out 2 dudes on minimum contracts to bring back 1, now you have only 13 players under contract and not enough cap space to fill the 14th (mandatory) roster spot. Your options there are Tari in a salary swap or DFS into someone's MLE. It's said that Tari was off limits (I wouldn't swap him for Alvarado either), so you are left with the DFS option and that probably costs you a premium of at least a FRP. First round picks don't grow on trees, not having picks one year brings the Stepien rule into effect. If the team is looking to make a trade for a big name, they can't afford to be giving up picks which prevent them from trading other / future picks. That crappy FRP is necessary in that case. No way I'd have given up a FRP for White or Alvarado. Maybe for Ayo but I need some assurance that he's willing to resign and for how much is also an issue. But if a trade for Ayo prevents me from making a big move in the offseason, I'm not doing it either. You guys gotta look at the big picture, not just the right now this instant and no one is giving you a useful player for our scraps, especially when they know you are desperate. Sometimes you just have to realize that it's not your time and don't do something that screws up your future plans.
How is the Alvarado package different than Tate and second round picks? Are you saying the talent gap between Dalen Terry and Jasean Tate is too big to overcome?
I don’t think your math is correct. Alvarado was making 4.5M. We were 1m under the 1st apron. Tate and Green combined at 4.6. We could have signed a minimum contract prorated for the season to make up the roster spot. We could’ve traded the 27 Phoenix pick or our own 30 or 31 pick without materialing effecting our ability to make other trades. It all comes down to the value you assign to those picks and to Alvarado. Ayo would’ve taken Tari and more, so probably not something you would want to do to enhance our chances this year. The 27 Phoenix pick would be too much for Alvarado, but I think the 30 or 31 (protected for 1-4 or such) could have got it done. I value Alvarado as a very good backup PG and a signable option next year for that function. I valued Alvarado because I think he would make the product on the court more competitive and entertaining. In my opinion, the trade for Durant and the extension of Ime, put us in basketball purgatory for this year and probably 2 more years. No way Stone trades his 2 time all-star whose drafting was the shining moment of his career thus far or 1st team defensive player with the upside of Amen Thompson. Trading Durant after him choosing us would be a huge PR hit. Ime will not allow FVV to be traded. We will sign someone of Alvarado’s ilk in the off-season, and herald the return of FVV and Adams as a successful off-season. Of course, that will allow us to hold onto all our future picks for a trade that will not materialize for a couple of years, if ever.
I foresee KD’s contract coming to term and him walking way to place of his choosing. We will then use the cap space on Amen & Reed. KD purpose is to show the team how to be successful. How to practice and develop your skills without taking way from the team. JSJ, Reed & Amen benefits most from the experiences. I truly believe and hope for a change in the coaching. The team is so talented and just rotting because they aren’t being utilized properly. Smith, Shepherd and Thompson would be near all stars to all stars if someone like Kerr (I hate him) were in charge. I will say this here and now Silas with the team we have now would be a better fit.
Yeah, the Rockets weren't serious about competing for a championship this year. I thought they would be since they traded for KD. Why they aren't I cant possibly imagine.
Then trade Tari **** I would trade Bari too neither of them are untradeable at this point in fact, Sengun is VERY close to being tradable too. Given how this season has looked, the only players who shouldn’t be traded and given time to prove themselves is Amen & Reed which is ironic because we need to improve and trade for someone in the position that they should be competent in.
As much as I was blinded with my rockets colored glasses, I don’t think this team is as talented as we keep giving them credit to be. This season is exposing that. sure a better coach could get MORE out of them and we definitely could make a championship especially given how the league looks this year. But two things can be true, Really look at our roster and ask yourself besides KD who do you ACTUALLY trust to give the ball to and then say go do your thing one on one and take over? Obvious answer is Sengun, but he’s proven to be passive and lack aggression consistently and his overall play & clutch has been inconsistent. after him we literally have NOONE you trust to go score and get a bucket on their own. The current makeup of the league for other teams is damn near the WHOLE team has shooters and scorers. It’s baffling how Ime & Stone crafted a roster that is literally the opposite of how even the average NBA team is put together nowdays.
