Who the Houston Rockets really are?!

http://www.examiner.com/sports-in-houston/here-is-what-the-rockets-trades-really-mean

You will find no shortage of breakdowns and takes on the Rockets deals at the trade deadline. Statisical analysis, salary cap analysis, value analysis of draft picks, collection of future assets, etc.

This isn't about that. It's about the Rockets' place in the basketball world.

For the past few years, Rockets fans' mantra has been "In Morey We Trust." Daryl Morey has made a variety of bold moves, some successful, some not. When he first became GM, his charge was to put pieces around Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady that could win a championship. He added key pieces like Shane Battier and Ron Artest. But the unforeseen -- essentially career ending injuries to McGrady and Yao -- ended the championship dreams.

Last year, after McGrady's contract was finally shed, the charge became to collect trade assets to try to land a new impact player in hopes Yao Ming could stay healthy enough for another run.

Star after star changed teams. It wasn't for lack of trying, but the Rockets came up short. The "collection of assets" did not pay off. The Rockets simply didn't have enough to land the Carmelo Anthonys and Deron Williamses of the world.

The trades they did make -- acquiring Hasheem Thabeet, Goran Dragic and DeMarre Carroll plus a couple of draft picks for Shane Battier and Aaron Brooks -- two players who would not have been back next season -- don't mean much in tangible terms. The draft picks won't be in the lottery, which means more Patrick Patterson type selections. Carroll is a roster filler, Dragic is an OK backup at the point to replace Brooks, Thabeet is an enigma.

Thabeet was the No. 2 pick in the draft, and he's 7-3. He has also been a colossal bust. Maybe the Rockets can get something out of him, but then we thought the same thing about Jordan Hill.

Rockets fans have to not only adjust their expectations, but their understanding of what the Rockets are.

The Rockets have been so relevant for so long that its easy to forget how they got there; getting lucky with coin flips and lottery balls.

The Rockets got lucky to get Ralph Sampson and then Hakeem Olajuwon. It made them relevant for decades, even as injuries shortened Sampson's career. As Hakeem began to fade, the Rockets made bold moves, adding Charles Barkley, Scottie Pippen -- legitimate stars, even in the twilight of their careers. It kept them interesting.

They then made a bold move to get Steve Francis. Then they got lucky again to pull Yao. When Francis didn't work, they added McGrady. Even when they were missing the playoffs, there was hope. A buzz.

Even when they weren't making the playoffs, the Rockets were a team people talked about, and have been for the most part since the early 1980s. But the reality is they are not that anymore.

The Rockets have become like many other teams in the league -- they will have to get lucky again. Cleveland did with LeBron James, and got a seven-year run out of it. San Antonio did with first David Robinson and then Tim Duncan.

Unless you are the Lakers, Celtics, Knicks and now the Heat -- where you are a destination site for an NBA player -- getting star players, as simple as it sounds, comes down to luck.

Hitting on a draft pick. Lucking into a trade. That's what the Rockets are now.

It's been a terrific run, better than most franchises in the league.

The Rockets have finally been forced to admit they aren't good enough. They have to gamble and hope. Hope that Terrance Williams is better than he has been so far. That Thabeet might suddenly wake up and become worthy of the No. 2 pick. That one of the picks they have acquired might become an unsuspected superstar.

For the first time in forever, the Rockets have become sellers, not buyers. It's hard for Rockets fans to accept, because an entire generation of them has never had to deal with it. It has always about been trying to add big pieces.

But this is the right move. It is time to be sellers.

The hard part is this process is going to take a while. The Rockets won't be much better next season. They might not be the year after that, either. Rockets fans will have to be patient. It will be tough, because their expectations since the mid-90s have been that the Rockets are title contenders. They were lucky to get in that position, unlucky with the injuries.

There comes a time to start over. The Rockets had to take one more shot with Yao. Once he was injured, this was the only move left. If the Astros had come to this realization two years earlier, they would be back in the mix by now. As it is, they still have a ways to go.

So do the Rockets.

Rockets fans' trust in Morey must now go to a different level. It's not about building pieces around a championship team; now it's about rebuilding. And hoping to get lucky.

That's what these trades really mean, and that's what the Rockets really are.

And like it or not, it's the right thing.

* I think the article is right on the money. Thoughts?