IMO try to get Howard 1st. It would probably cost Lamb among others but Howard is worth it if he's willing to committ long term. If unsuccessful, simply go young. Bynum I think does not fit well with Lin's game.
Also, I think even Morey and Alexander underrated Lin. Lin alone if not injuried can get this team to the playoffs. Let's not forget Lin's Linsanity lineup consisted of scrubs only and they went 8-1. The only thing it takes everyone is buying into Lin's system. The media and fans and basically everyone seriously underrated Lin and put him into the role of underdog, again.
Scola doesn't fit. I actually think less veterans would force Lin into a leadership role which would turn out better in the end than let Lin defer to the veterans.
Bynum in fact is a very good center. But he's quite slow footed. His game is like slow it down. dump it to him in the post in half court and let him go to work. I don't think his game mesh well with Lin's. I think Lin is better at an uptempo open court style, less as a spot up shooter playing off a big man. Howard IMO would be a better fit because plays pick and roll quite well and is also much better than Bynum at D and then initiate the fast break.
Have mentioned this before. If Howard comes to the Rockets, it won't be to fit with Lin and play Lin's style. The Rockets will be Howard's team, and Lin will have to play Howard's style.
Howard and Lin would be worse than Melo and Lin. At least with Melo, he already has a reputation as an unpopular, selfish isolation player who hasn't had any success in the playoffs. So the media and the fans are far more likely to be sympathetic to Lin in any dispute. Howard: totally different situation. No one is going to blame a center with borderline league MVP type talent for wanting to maximize his low post scoring opportunities, Howard is regarded as a decent passer for a center, and Howard has proven that a team built around him can win in the postseason. So if there is any dispute, the media and fans are going to be far more likely to back Howard. Take Kobe and Shaq back in the day ... though there were certainly plenty of reporters and fans who hated Shaq's guts, it was generally accepted that Kobe should have passed the ball to Shaq more. And Kobe wasn't even a point guard with the responsibility of running the offense and passing ... he was a shooting guard who technically had as much right to be trying to score as Shaq did.
So if you want Linsanity, better to root for the Lakers to get Bynum, who isn't Howard's equal in accomplishments or ability and thus isn't in position to demand his own team. He'd be far more likely to accept being #2 to Lin. As far as his not being as fast ... he is a big guy, 285 lbs. Maybe dropping 20-30 lbs would help that. But Bynum losing weight is far more likely to happen than Howard liking being #2 to Lin any more than Melo did. With all that Howard has accomplished in the NBA, I just can't picture him thinking "this Jeremy Lin is better than me" right now, and it will be a very long time before he even starts to entertain such notions. Shaq to this day still believes that he was better than Kobe.
Howard is better in the pick-n-roll than Bynum is right now. Either way, though, I think if you can get one of them, you've got to do it. They are the 2 best C's in the game right now. I just hope they keep Lamb and Motiejunas, though. Those two have a bright future and are easier to project than White and Jones, who are PF's but are tweeners somewhat.
We are talking past each other. The point isn't that Howard is better in the pick-n-roll than Bynum is right now. Someone who would be great at the pick and roll is LeBron James. The point is that if Howard goes to the Rockets, they won't be running an uptempo, pick and roll based Linsanity offense. They'd be running a halfcourt offense based on feeding the ball to Howard in the low post and kicking it back out for jumpshots and penetration just like they did in Orlando. The reason is that Howard would be regarded as the better and more proven player, and he would be (for the next 3 years anyway) by far the highest paid player, so the Rockets would build and coach the team around him.
But if you want Linsanity, get Bynum and tell him to lose weight and do other things to make him a more effective uptempo and pick-and-roll player. If the point of getting away from Melo and the Knicks was to preserve Linsanity, then getting Howard would put you right back in the same situation. Actually, it would be worse as A) the Rockets aren't as talented as the Knicks and B) the Rockets play in a much tougher conference, where making and advancing in the playoffs will be a lot tougher, even with Howard.
Houston has no chance of getting Dwight Howard or Andrew Bynum. The Orlando Magic have already decided to keep Howard and let him leave next year. End of discussion.
Orlando will get about $20 million in cap space to let Dwight Howard walk. Which they can use to sign any free agent. This is a more reliable way of getting talent than the 1st Round draft picks and young players that other teams were offering.
The NBA has become a Win-Now-or-Die type of league, where teams don't have the patience to develop talent anymore, they want to win a Championship with star players.
Kevin Martin's huge contract is expiring and the Rockets have ~6M more in expiring/unguaranteed contracts to trade. So if they trade with Houston, Orlando gets $20M in cap space AND picks AND maybe a young talent (like Jones).
Orlando is posturing because they have no leverage. With Brooklyn resigning Lopez, Houston has the only good offer on the table, and the Magic need to drive up Dwight's price.
If I'm the Rockets, I don't even offer any of their rookies (Lamb, Motiejunas, Jones). Just the the 1st round picks + Martin + expirings + filler. Take it or leave it. If the Magic trade Dwight at the deadline, they'll get even less than they will now.
Hey ABC, The Magic "said" something to that effect but I don't believe that for a second. They just announced they are going to talk to him in person, that tells me they are grasping for one more straw. I think Dwight wants to go and I don't believe there is no chance for Rockets but we will see.
I don't see the point of getting Dwight unless he's going to stay with Houston, because Houston is not going to contend for a championship this year even with Dwight.
I'm not a fan of the drama and attitudes of both Dwight and Bynum, so I'd rather just see the Rockets stick with their high-potential young players. Heck, if Lin can lead a scrub Houston team to the Western Conf playoffs (even an 8th seed), he better get an MVP!
Jason Kidd (Suns to Nets), Steve Nash (Mavs to Suns), Chris Paul (Hornets to Clippers). These are franchise changing PGs. Next one hopefully is Jeremy Lin (Knicks to Rockets). Am I being too optimistic? ;-)
@Cara, Jeremy Lin is in fact a very infectious player. Not only does he make the other players look good, he makes them enjoy the game. I have never seen Tyson Chandler, Jared Jeffries, Landry Fields, Iman Shumpert have so much fun with multiple players (at the most 6 or 7) in double digits. Not only did the players have fun, so did the entire city. I am not from Houston but expect me to fill a seat on a few of his games.
Cara, you're not being optimistic ENOUGH. Jeremy Lin indeed is a franchise changer. More than you think.
Steve Nash, Jason Kidd, and Chris Paul did not go onto their new teams alone. Each one of them was accompanied by at least one big time veteran player. The only parallel was when Kidd was traded to the Suns that were like 0-15 at the time - he engineered a major league turnaround that was almost equivalent to the turnaround Jeremy Lin did with the Knicks.
Lin will walk onto a Rockets team that is completely gutted of veteran talent. The only veteran that is coming is Omer Asik, and he's been a bench player his whole career. He has less proven talent around him than Kidd did with the Suns.
With Dwight Howard, you run a major league risk of him tanking games and enjoying his stay on the injury list and poisoning the team chemistry in an effort to get retraded. Plus, he has more trouble scoring inside than people realize.
Andrew Bynum I am OK with. I consider him a better offensive center than Dwight Howard, especially with Lin feeding and with Kobe hogging. The only downside I see with Bynum is that it'll cost Houston's future to get him.
I still think the Rockets need another veteran seven footer who can play inside. Darko is #1 on my list, but there are others.
And what team would give up Howard or Bynum for what the Rockets have minus Lin and Lamb? Such a trade wouldn't benefit the Magic or Lakers. The Magic in particular would rather try to get a better deal trading Howard to a contender during the season, or just letting Howard walk and keeping their cap space to chase free agents. Losing Howard for nothing is bad, but taking on a bunch of contracts just so you can say that you didn't lose him for nothing is worse.
I thought the Rockets have a few compelling reasons that allow them to make a big time trade/aquisition. 1.) They have been collecting a bunch of trade picks for next year, 1st rounders (lottery) and 2nd rounders.
2.) They have at least 3 exceptional rookie prospects that I have been watching.. maybe more.
3.) Morey pretty much said they are going to add at least 1 more free agent, and they have the Cap space to make a big move.
I don't know if it will be DH or Bynum or ST with someone else or manybe none of the above. I actually like DH better than Bynum. Like everyone else I'm worried about DH drama but pick and rolls with Lin/DH is something I would love to see. We will see what happens it should be intresting.
It would have been nice especially both players have on court chemistry together already. They played the p & r well in that d league game before the winning streak. Too bad JJ got traded. They didn't get a chance.
And when Omar Samhan is healthy from his torn ACL, the Rockets should get him.
Omar Samhan was in the Rockets camp at the same time as Jeremy Lin. He looked in shape.
Omar Samhan was a better big man prospect than any big man in the 2010, 2011, or 2012 drafts.
I got flamed earlier this year for comparing Samhan to Rockets coach Kevin McHale. Yet Samhan was actually a BETTER college player than McHale was. McHale doesn't have a thing to teach Samhan about low post play.
Many have asked about Spike Lee. He has spoken.. http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2012/07/25/spike-lee-says-that-history-will-judge-jeremy-lin-and-knicks/
Being a KNICKS Fan for some time , Spike was a bit of disappointed with both parties but he can't blame Jeremy for not returning to Knicks and I think deep down he understand Jeremy position but not to say it out loud in order not to antagonism parties involve in this saga. I did response to this posting. No one has the right to pass judgment onto Jeremy, it will between God and himself when he is done in this world; nor anyone has the right to make all these character assassination for they have known Jeremy only couple of months. Their tongue is sharper than knife and it hurts with their poisonous pen.
IMO try to get Howard 1st. It would probably cost Lamb among others but Howard is worth it if he's willing to committ long term. If unsuccessful, simply go young. Bynum I think does not fit well with Lin's game.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I think even Morey and Alexander underrated Lin. Lin alone if not injuried can get this team to the playoffs. Let's not forget Lin's Linsanity lineup consisted of scrubs only and they went 8-1. The only thing it takes everyone is buying into Lin's system. The media and fans and basically everyone seriously underrated Lin and put him into the role of underdog, again.
Deletehttp://www.sheridanhoops.com/2012/07/23/scola-rockets-said-they-wanted-to-go-younger/
DeleteTrue, JLin could.
The Rockets should have kept Luis Scola. His veteran presence would have been valuable. This team needs some more veterans.
DeleteScola doesn't fit. I actually think less veterans would force Lin into a leadership role which would turn out better in the end than let Lin defer to the veterans.
DeleteBynum is still young, he is only 24 but I don't know much about how he plays so I don't know how he would fit into the roster as it is now.
DeleteBynum in fact is a very good center. But he's quite slow footed. His game is like slow it down. dump it to him in the post in half court and let him go to work. I don't think his game mesh well with Lin's. I think Lin is better at an uptempo open court style, less as a spot up shooter playing off a big man. Howard IMO would be a better fit because plays pick and roll quite well and is also much better than Bynum at D and then initiate the fast break.
Delete@Cara:
DeleteHave mentioned this before. If Howard comes to the Rockets, it won't be to fit with Lin and play Lin's style. The Rockets will be Howard's team, and Lin will have to play Howard's style.
Howard and Lin would be worse than Melo and Lin. At least with Melo, he already has a reputation as an unpopular, selfish isolation player who hasn't had any success in the playoffs. So the media and the fans are far more likely to be sympathetic to Lin in any dispute. Howard: totally different situation. No one is going to blame a center with borderline league MVP type talent for wanting to maximize his low post scoring opportunities, Howard is regarded as a decent passer for a center, and Howard has proven that a team built around him can win in the postseason. So if there is any dispute, the media and fans are going to be far more likely to back Howard. Take Kobe and Shaq back in the day ... though there were certainly plenty of reporters and fans who hated Shaq's guts, it was generally accepted that Kobe should have passed the ball to Shaq more. And Kobe wasn't even a point guard with the responsibility of running the offense and passing ... he was a shooting guard who technically had as much right to be trying to score as Shaq did.
So if you want Linsanity, better to root for the Lakers to get Bynum, who isn't Howard's equal in accomplishments or ability and thus isn't in position to demand his own team. He'd be far more likely to accept being #2 to Lin. As far as his not being as fast ... he is a big guy, 285 lbs. Maybe dropping 20-30 lbs would help that. But Bynum losing weight is far more likely to happen than Howard liking being #2 to Lin any more than Melo did. With all that Howard has accomplished in the NBA, I just can't picture him thinking "this Jeremy Lin is better than me" right now, and it will be a very long time before he even starts to entertain such notions. Shaq to this day still believes that he was better than Kobe.
@Unknown,
DeleteHoward is better in the pick-n-roll than Bynum is right now. Either way, though, I think if you can get one of them, you've got to do it. They are the 2 best C's in the game right now. I just hope they keep Lamb and Motiejunas, though. Those two have a bright future and are easier to project than White and Jones, who are PF's but are tweeners somewhat.
@TVN:
DeleteWe are talking past each other. The point isn't that Howard is better in the pick-n-roll than Bynum is right now. Someone who would be great at the pick and roll is LeBron James. The point is that if Howard goes to the Rockets, they won't be running an uptempo, pick and roll based Linsanity offense. They'd be running a halfcourt offense based on feeding the ball to Howard in the low post and kicking it back out for jumpshots and penetration just like they did in Orlando. The reason is that Howard would be regarded as the better and more proven player, and he would be (for the next 3 years anyway) by far the highest paid player, so the Rockets would build and coach the team around him.
But if you want Linsanity, get Bynum and tell him to lose weight and do other things to make him a more effective uptempo and pick-and-roll player. If the point of getting away from Melo and the Knicks was to preserve Linsanity, then getting Howard would put you right back in the same situation. Actually, it would be worse as A) the Rockets aren't as talented as the Knicks and B) the Rockets play in a much tougher conference, where making and advancing in the playoffs will be a lot tougher, even with Howard.
Houston has no chance of getting Dwight Howard or Andrew Bynum. The Orlando Magic have already decided to keep Howard and let him leave next year. End of discussion.
ReplyDeleteThat's kind-a dumb ! You'd get nothing in return like that.
DeleteI think they will trade him eventually. They just are trying to maximize what they can get for him, a little game of hardball.
Orlando will get about $20 million in cap space to let Dwight Howard walk. Which they can use to sign any free agent. This is a more reliable way of getting talent than the 1st Round draft picks and young players that other teams were offering.
DeleteThe NBA has become a Win-Now-or-Die type of league, where teams don't have the patience to develop talent anymore, they want to win a Championship with star players.
Kevin Martin's huge contract is expiring and the Rockets have ~6M more in expiring/unguaranteed contracts to trade. So if they trade with Houston, Orlando gets $20M in cap space AND picks AND maybe a young talent (like Jones).
DeleteOrlando is posturing because they have no leverage. With Brooklyn resigning Lopez, Houston has the only good offer on the table, and the Magic need to drive up Dwight's price.
If I'm the Rockets, I don't even offer any of their rookies (Lamb, Motiejunas, Jones). Just the the 1st round picks + Martin + expirings + filler. Take it or leave it. If the Magic trade Dwight at the deadline, they'll get even less than they will now.
"Just the the 1st round picks + Martin + expirings + filler. Take it or leave it."
DeleteThe Magic would leave it and not give it a second thought.
Hey ABC, The Magic "said" something to that effect but I don't believe that for a second. They just announced they are going to talk to him in person, that tells me they are grasping for one more straw. I think Dwight wants to go and I don't believe there is no chance for Rockets but we will see.
DeleteI don't see the point of getting Dwight unless he's going to stay with Houston, because Houston is not going to contend for a championship this year even with Dwight.
ReplyDeleteI'm not a fan of the drama and attitudes of both Dwight and Bynum, so I'd rather just see the Rockets stick with their high-potential young players. Heck, if Lin can lead a scrub Houston team to the Western Conf playoffs (even an 8th seed), he better get an MVP!
Jason Kidd (Suns to Nets), Steve Nash (Mavs to Suns), Chris Paul (Hornets to Clippers). These are franchise changing PGs. Next one hopefully is Jeremy Lin (Knicks to Rockets). Am I being too optimistic? ;-)
Delete@Cara, Jeremy Lin is in fact a very infectious player. Not only does he make the other players look good, he makes them enjoy the game. I have never seen Tyson Chandler, Jared Jeffries, Landry Fields, Iman Shumpert have so much fun with multiple players (at the most 6 or 7) in double digits. Not only did the players have fun, so did the entire city. I am not from Houston but expect me to fill a seat on a few of his games.
DeleteCara, you're not being optimistic ENOUGH.
DeleteJeremy Lin indeed is a franchise changer. More than you think.
Steve Nash, Jason Kidd, and Chris Paul did not go onto their new teams alone. Each one of them was accompanied by at least one big time veteran player. The only parallel was when Kidd was traded to the Suns that were like 0-15 at the time - he engineered a major league turnaround that was almost equivalent to the turnaround Jeremy Lin did with the Knicks.
Lin will walk onto a Rockets team that is completely gutted of veteran talent. The only veteran that is coming is Omer Asik, and he's been a bench player his whole career. He has less proven talent around him than Kidd did with the Suns.
Lin is the great new guard of the modern era.
With Dwight Howard, you run a major league risk of him tanking games and enjoying his stay on the injury list and poisoning the team chemistry in an effort to get retraded. Plus, he has more trouble scoring inside than people realize.
ReplyDeleteAndrew Bynum I am OK with. I consider him a better offensive center than Dwight Howard, especially with Lin feeding and with Kobe hogging. The only downside I see with Bynum is that it'll cost Houston's future to get him.
I still think the Rockets need another veteran seven footer who can play inside. Darko is #1 on my list, but there are others.
I think as long as they get to keep Lin and Lamb, and make everyone else available for Howard or Bynum, the future would still be bright.
DeleteBut the future won't be bright if the Rockets have to trade away their future 1st round draft picks AND their current rookies.
Delete@Cara:
DeleteAnd what team would give up Howard or Bynum for what the Rockets have minus Lin and Lamb? Such a trade wouldn't benefit the Magic or Lakers. The Magic in particular would rather try to get a better deal trading Howard to a contender during the season, or just letting Howard walk and keeping their cap space to chase free agents. Losing Howard for nothing is bad, but taking on a bunch of contracts just so you can say that you didn't lose him for nothing is worse.
I thought the Rockets have a few compelling reasons that allow them to make a big time trade/aquisition.
Delete1.) They have been collecting a bunch of trade picks for next year, 1st rounders (lottery) and 2nd rounders.
2.) They have at least 3 exceptional rookie prospects that I have been watching.. maybe more.
3.) Morey pretty much said they are going to add at least 1 more free agent, and they have the Cap space to make a big move.
I don't know if it will be DH or Bynum or ST with someone else or manybe none of the above. I actually like DH better than Bynum. Like everyone else I'm worried about DH drama but pick and rolls with Lin/DH is something I would love to see. We will see what happens it should be intresting.
The should have kept jerome jordan build him to b a good center along side with Lin
ReplyDeleteD12 too much drama!!!!!!!
DeleteIt would have been nice especially both players have on court chemistry together already. They played the p & r well in that d league game before the winning streak. Too bad JJ got traded. They didn't get a chance.
DeleteAnd when Omar Samhan is healthy from his torn ACL, the Rockets should get him.
ReplyDeleteOmar Samhan was in the Rockets camp at the same time as Jeremy Lin. He looked in shape.
Omar Samhan was a better big man prospect than any big man in the 2010, 2011, or 2012 drafts.
I got flamed earlier this year for comparing Samhan to Rockets coach Kevin McHale. Yet Samhan was actually a BETTER college player than McHale was. McHale doesn't have a thing to teach Samhan about low post play.
Many have asked about Spike Lee. He has spoken.. http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2012/07/25/spike-lee-says-that-history-will-judge-jeremy-lin-and-knicks/
ReplyDeleteBeing a KNICKS Fan for some time , Spike was a bit of disappointed with both parties but he can't blame Jeremy for not returning to Knicks and I think deep down he understand Jeremy position but not to say it out loud in order not to antagonism parties involve in this saga.
DeleteI did response to this posting. No one has the right to pass judgment onto Jeremy, it will between God and himself when he is done in this world; nor anyone has the right to make all these character assassination for they have known Jeremy only couple of months. Their tongue is sharper than knife and it hurts with their poisonous pen.
Jeremy's first day back in Houston.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.nba.com/rockets/video/jeremy-lin-behind-scenes