[ClutchFans] The Rockets sacrifice their future to get Russell Westbrook

Some of you say that Clutch wrote this with emotion over his eyes. I'd say that a lot of you are doing the same thing you accuse Clutch of, just to the opposite direction. You try to be optimistic just so that you don't feel down over this disappointing offseason.

Like I said earlier, I fear that Westbrook looks like those stars (Melo, Dwight) who have a grandeur delusion of themselves and refuse to admit their own limitations even when they are plain to everybody else.

But my greatest fear is what I may see five years from now. We may enter a dark age not unlike the late '99 early 2000s. By that time, we will hate Westbrook even more than we did Ryan Anderson. And we may not have Morey around to correct this mess.

 

we will have battier post-marley. aint worried.

the tillmens still worry me, however. would rather have dd at the helm than that family.

 

Always bothered me that clutch would post low blow snarky comments about WB on clutchfans/twitter
Its not his fault he was voted MVP and not Harden
I think it's a great move.. don't think so then look at how hard OKC will have to work to unload CP3
WB's a G. Karma's a B

 

Feel for you, Big Brother! @Clutch

Championship is a little too far away but I can see WB explode in some of the playoff games.

And I won't mock anyone, because on paper there are too many negatives for sure.

WB has become injury prone, not like CP3 but injury prone these past years.

I always said I liked WB's passion and no strip clubs unlike JH, being a family man.

 

We got 2 MVPs... Everyone talks about how CP3 is a smarter player and Russ isnt a winner. But Russ has been the second best player on way more successful teams then CP3 ever has.

Russ will bring an energy that we have been lacking since Pat Bev left and i hope since Harden and him go way back that will rub off on Harden.

 

Also, once we traded ryno the second unit was garbage bc CP3 was not able to get anyone a shot
This year one of the differences was that the second unit was the CP3 iso-show which did not work in the playoffs
Now we have a PG that can create his own offense, for more minutes, for more years, a legit superstar that can be traded for quality players.
The only question is him adjusting the offense to maximize efficiency ie PnR with tyson chandler, hitting open guys for 3's, playing off the ball w Harden.

To say that this is a huge downgrade is absolutely insulting, if you think it isn't emotional than you are seriously deceived.
Also if you think hating on a player that gives 110% year after year every game for a small market team, that has earned the respect of every player in the NBA, and earned the MVP is logical than you should look yourself in the mirror.

I for one will be happy we have a generational athlete diving for balls and playing his heart out for this team.

 

I feel the same way but I think Westbrook has 2 years left of great triple doubles, should be at least better than Melo and Dwight.

A lot will depend on Harden and how he adapts his game to his friend.

And the Rockets should focus on getting defending Forwards now.

I would rather have a total shooter like Van Vleet and a guy like Aaron Gordon over Russell WB.

 

Absolutely right.
What is this nonsense about the Rockets Sacrifice Future and Championship or Bust!
Give it a rest with these sensational headlines smh..

No. We sacrificed our future when we gave CP3 an untradeable contract and you should be kissing DM's feet that he was able to turn a negative into a positive, never in a million years would I think OKC would make that trade, they could have had 4 1st round picks and some young players for WB and shed major salary. Sam Presti honored his players wishes and we happened to be the team that benefited.

Stop putting all the onus on WB that he must deliver us a championship, we just swapped out one player for another, the team still has weaknesses that can and (hopefully) will be addressed by the GM and that is not WB's fault and he doesn't "owe" us anything to justify his presence on the team.

Those headlines are putting a target on WB's back and that's why half this board is calling you on your BS.

 

I don't understand why Morey would acquire a bad defensive player and a bad three point shooter. The pressure must have been on.

 

at the end of the day, Westbrook can take over a game and Paul can't. he may also play 10-15 more games per year.

yes, can't shoot. yes, bonehead plays. yes, inconsistent defense. but he's a better player than Paul. he got a lot more talent on the court. worth 2 late lotto picks to go all in right now.

 

While this take is definitely fair, I like the idea of forcing a championship or bust approach since this will definitely be that for Tilman. With Westbrook there's no in-between and Harden not working out with yet another star should be held against him. Now here's my take about it working out:

Barkley and others have said Westbrook should be more of a 2-guard, I actually think it's Harden who needs to adjust more and be off the ball. Harden wanted CP3 and didn't adjust, so the failure is definitely in part on Harden. Now he gets Westbrook and we expect him to change his game? Westbrook has to be looking at this like: "Harden, you wanted me and know my game so sacrifice is on you!" Westbrook has openly said he wouldn't change his game and he might actually be too stupid to diversify his game. Harden has shown to be capable so I rather Westbrook stay pretty much the energizer, crazy bunny he is and Harden change his. Agree with Clutch there and it makes perfect sense:

Harden can still bring the ball up, Westbrook can be the slasher and catch some alley-oops instead of camping out at the 3pt line. Westbrook can bring the ball up and for sure the defense will collapse or they'll get dunked on so Harden should learn to move off the ball and get some easy catch and shoot threes. Everyone has made excuses for Harden that he's had to work too hard on offense, well, here's his chance to decrease that work load. He's a very good 3pt shooter so he should benefit from Westbrook's skillset.

I'd say this trade is perfect since if it blows up in our faces, we can get some great returns for Westbrook and Harden:

@Clutch you do mean the whole thing as in Harden too right?

 

Clutch article is based on pure hatred, No mention of his Russell scoring skillset, fast break quickness, can play pick and roll, high motor which the team feeds off him is contagious, the bench players feed off his energy.

If Vernon Maxwell can play SG and win a Championship, Russell toughness, fighting the whole game, unlimited hustle playing every game with pride

What happened against the Warriors?

Draymond Green punked Clint Capela, James Harden repeatedly. No fight, killer instinct to win the series.

Chris Paul too distracted to argue with Scott Foster, Ken Mauer, James Harden.
Short tempered, rubs teammates the wrong way especially when Chris own performance is poor. 12 pts is pathetic 0-6 from 3 pt range pathetic

What will happen when Russell Westbrook gets angry and defends his teammates against Draymond. That's what Vernon Maxwell did.

Chris Paul can't score 30 ppg, the scoring load has been ridiculous for James Harden since he's been in Houston.

Dwight Howard had a surgical bad back, with one leg shorter than the other, and a torn ACL.
Dwight wasn't a All Star talent on the Rockets, with no moves in the post. Misses 50 games

Chris Paul reoccurring Knee issues, no knee tendons, bone on bone, then hamstrings. Misses 50 games in regular season.
Chris is out of prime, no quickness, overweight, hot temper, demotivated guys.

Russell Westbrook is the best All Star to pair with Harden, healthy, physically fit, younger, stronger, faster, high energy, high motor, motivates and compliments guys, emotional leader.

 

I am curious whether you were always a Russell guy or just because he is a Rocket now?

He doesn't get better IMO because he is Rocket, I always viewed him as PG13's or KD's sidekick.

 

Not me, I'm a realist to the point of being cynical by those that know me. Never have I ever read an editorial on par with this emotionally driven nonsense in my life. Tim Kawakami in the bay area is notorious at this drivel. Had, and still have, a large amount of respect for @Clutch over the years, but I'm calling a spade a spade here, sorry. After a few "silver lining" Twitter retractions, I think he has finally thought this through. But, my god, he has to be careful writing stuff like this considering a good amount of people (not all) on this forum are simply Rocket fanboys, hanging on his every word like he's a deity. I, for one, am not one of them. I too, fully understand the risks and rewards that come with Westbrook, but would never spin a potential franchise altering move as this disastrous to the masses. Negligent and subjectively misinformed. I'm simply disappointed, ban me if you need to.

 

a guys who averages a triple double for three consecutive years is no one's sidekick. He's a legit star.

 

I've had him on my fantasy team as a keeper for 8 years. I've followed him a long time. I'm not saying I was a Russell guy. I'm Luke warm on rus but I was cooling on Paul. there are pros and cons to both rus and Paul. I think rus has slightly more pros at this point. the main thing is actually playing 10-15 more games. that's huge. he'll make it impossible to double team James. he can takeover a game himself.

a lot of us are focused on the negatives of rus (poor shooting, bad passing, inconsistent defense) but we forget that moreyball is not just 3's, its layups and FTs as well. rus is excellent in the paint and at the rim. he's excellent at getting there. we now have two guys who can get to the line 10+ times a game. even tho rus can't hit his Fts, he and James will put opponents in foul trouble and in the bonus. this pairing puts more pressure on defenses than James/Paul did. yes we were already a top offense but rus can improve us there if he is used correctly rather than trying to turn him into an off ball shooter like Paul.

we have become too reliant on 3's only. russ will add a lot of paint scoring which will suck in the defense and open up better looks from 3. he also adds a fast break so we don't have to work so hard every possession. he balances out the offense in some ways which makes us a lot better... and did I mention he will play 10-15 more games than Paul?

defensively he isn't as good as Paul. we will have to work with that. however, he is a good one-possession defender, by which I mean in big moments he locks in to his defensive assignment and is very effective with his size, strength, and quickness. he just doesn't do that throughout the game.

although we needed to improve the defense more than the offense I think having an actual 1-2 punch makes us tougher to beat. we used to need James to be superhuman each game for us to win. not necessarily anymore. I also think our window is extended with rus being younger, our chemistry has improved since Brodie & The Beard are actually close friends off the court, and our ability to attract free agents (see chandler making his decision quickly after the trade) has improved since putting together a legit duo.

 

This is going to be the most exciting season in a looooonnnggggggggg time.

 

Anyone else on mobile having issues with the article? I can see it for 5 seconds then spam takes over.

 

2 years ago we won 65 games, had the best record in the league, the MVP, and got to game 7 of the WCF and only lost because of a hamstring and some rigging by the refs, without which we would have been the eventual champions. that wasn't exciting? or was 2 years a looooononnngggggg time ago to you?! lol