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with that core they are good to finish 8th or 9th next year in the West- something to look forward to
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/21/sp...rockets&st=cse
Martin, 27, who was acquired from Sacramento last month, has averaged at least 20 points in each of the last four seasons. At his best, he has been compared to Richard Hamilton and Reggie Miller. He represents the best perimeter complement to Yao since McGrady started breaking down three years ago.
The Rockets showed their belief in Martin when they made him the centerpiece of a three-team deal involving McGrady. Houston could have kept McGrady, let his contract expire and become players in the free-agent bonanza this summer. But to clear maximum cap room probably would have required dumping Scola, Hayes, Carl Landry and Kyle Lowry.
Instead, Morey sent McGrady to the Knicks and Landry to Sacramento for Martin, Jordan Hill (the eighth pick in the 2009 draft), Jared Jeffries and the Knicks’ first-round picks in 2011 and 2012.
The deal eliminated the Rockets’ 2010 cap space, but Morey said it was the right move.
“We wanted to get someone who was a very good fit with Yao and someone significant going forward,” Morey said. “Kevin was that. For Kevin, we were willing to take ourselves out of the straight free-agent game.”
In Morey’s view, hoarding cap space to chase LeBron James and the other marquee free agents was a bad bet, given the crowded field of suitors. But he has not conceded the race entirely. Morey believes that several of the top free agents will ultimately change teams via sign-and-trade deals, and the Rockets with a deep reserve of young talent could be a player.
“We feel like in our situation we can outbid most of the teams out there in those kind of deals,” Morey said. “Whether we want to is a whole other matter. We do feel comfortable with this group and adding Yao Ming next year.”
Yao had his latest checkup about 10 days ago and received a positive report. The Rockets are also drawing optimism from the career path of Cleveland’s Zydrunas Ilgauskas, another giant with bad feet. Ilgauskas had the same operation earlier in his career but battled back and became an All-Star.
The Rockets became a feel-good story this season because of their selfless play and their largely anonymous lineup. But Morey knows well the limits of that formula.
“The reality is, you need a guy like Yao Ming to win the le,” he said. “We don’t have another way to acquire a guy as good as him. It makes sense no matter what the situation is for us to bet on that.”
with that core they are good to finish 8th or 9th next year in the West- something to look forward to
I guess they haven't learned their lesson.
Just wait till they get Joe Johnson and Chris Bosh with less than 5 million in cap room. They'll really be something.
i love how their "missing piece" is a guy who get hurt every year. They are the idiot who keeps sticking their finger in the light socket and can't figure out why they keep getting shocked....next year they will start off alright, Yao will get hurt, and next year at this time they will like their core with Yao coming back in 2011-12.....and then they will start out alright, Yao will get hurt and 2 years from today they will be saying "we like our core with Yao coming back in 2012-13"....and the trend will continue until Yao dies
yea, its hard to believe yao will ever be healthy for a full season + plus playoffs. his body just isnt made to take that kind of punishment.
Come on now, the Rockets will be fine. They have a really solid group of guys with Brooks, Martin, Scola, Lowry, Budinger and maybe even Jordan Hill. They need Yao to stay healthy which probably won't happen but worst case scenario is Yao retiring, and if that happens they get cap space and they can use it to their advantage. The Rockets seem to be in a good situation imho.
Yao needs to average less minutes than Duncan is now and not play on back to backs. Failing that, Houston probably won't make the playoffs which seems like their route now.
they will make the playoffs, they just wont get a le.
Exactly, he has one year left on his contract, if he doesn't stay healthy, then we move on, simple as that
Barring an unforseen collapse by the spurs in the last few games
i dont think les will ever give up on yao because hes a cash cow... as long as yao is in this league the rockets will try to keep him.
I think there's a lot of young players that Morey will use as trade bait to get another Center.
If the king doesn't win this year I'll talk to you in about 2020.
I like the core right now for the Rockets. Yao's health does seem to be the x-factor for them to even be in the conversation as a contender in the Western Conference, but it's certainly possible. They have nice depth at all their positions except center and even that position has some options with Hayes and Anderson. I know a lot of Rockets fans really like Aaron Brooks, but as well as he's played this season, I think it would help the team to upgrade the PG position, and their overall outlook would be even better. Only thing is I'm not sure what better PGs are available to do that.
So what? When you have a player like Yao, you build around him and try to win a le with him. Obvious they need him healthy to have a chance of winning the le and that seems improbable, but what's the alternative? They could trade Yao or let him expire, I guess, but then they wouldn't be even close of being contenders. The Rockets should go with Yao, Scola, Martin, Brooks, Battier, Ariza for the next 3 seasons. It's their best chance of winning a le and it's not even close.
good call!
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