# State of the Houston Rockets



## mtlk (Apr 25, 2005)

> The 2009-2010 season is going to be a challenging one for the Houston Rockets. This time around, instead of holding their breath wondering when Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady will get injured, they're just going to start the season knowing it's unlikely either will be a factor at all. Yao Ming will miss the entire season following reconstructive foot surgery and McGrady is on the shelf for a yet unknown length of time recovering from microfracture knee surgery. But all is not lost, Rockets fans. The team has been here before, and they know how to cope without their two All-Stars.
> 
> The Rockets are not contenders by any stretch of the imagination, but they're a far cry from being a lottery team, too. With that in mind, we take a look at the state of the Rockets, who are still very much in the playoff picture.





> The Artest/Ariza Equation
> 
> Believe it or not, the organization sees Trevor Ariza as an upgrade, especially over the long term. Ariza is younger, has even more upside than we saw during his two years with the Lakers. Last season he put up near-career numbers across the board, with 8.9 points, 1.7 steals, 1.8 assists, and 4.3 rebounds per game. He added a three-point shot to his repertoire and became the Mario Elie/Jerome Kersey/Bruce Bowen type of difference-maker for a championship team. What's more, he's used to playing in a well-structured offense and understands how to contribute without needing the ball in his hands consistently. The Rockets believe he can score more if given the opportunity, and he won't take the ill-advised shots we saw Artest take so often outside of the flow of the overall offense. Artest averaged 17.1 points for Houston last season, but also shot 41% from the field. Ariza is a more efficient player, and still brings many of the defensive aspects that were Artest's strengths.





> Scola, Brooks, and Battier, Oh My!
> 
> People who automatically write off the Rockets because they'll be without Yao Ming for all or most of the 2009-2010 season haven't been paying much attention over the last two years. We're talking about the team that went on a 22-game winning streak to seasons ago despite losing Yao mid-way through the run. Sure, they had McGrady for that run, but they didn't have McGrady when Yao went down in their second round series with the Lakers in May. They lost Yao and went on to win two more games in that series before eventually succumbing to the eventual NBA Champions. A big part of that success was the play of Luis Scola, who took over the rebounding responsibilities and also opened up the paint for Aaron Brooks.
> 
> ...





> Summer League and Centers
> 
> The Rockets had a solid showing in Las Vegas, where they were a perfect 5-0 in summer league play. Chase Budinger was the real surprise for Houston, as he averaged a team-best 17.8 points and shot 68% from the field. He played the point, he played the two, he played the three, and he did well in all of those positions. We don't expect to see him running much point in the NBA, but it's interesting to note that he was able to do it at the summer league level. He won't average 17 points per game in real NBA play, but he will provide some scoring punch off the bench. Meanwhile, James White looked very much like a Rick Adelman type of player in Vegas. He's known as a solid defender and he was an important part of Houston holding opponents to a league-best 77.6 points per game. Jermaine Taylor even looked good in stretches, though the team is withholding judgment on what role he may have in 2009-10 until they see what he does over the next four months.
> 
> Most fans back in Houston were actually focused on the play of Joey Dorsey, who averaged 14.8 rebounds to lead the Vegas summer league, but also committed a bunch of fouls and struggled to score the ball. While the team was competing in Vegas they also acquired David Andersen, one of the better big men playing overseas. He's very much an Adelman type of big man, who can hit the jumper out to three-point land, but also passes well and is a willing rebounder. He's no Yao Ming, but he does help Houston fill the void.





> Trades Coming?
> 
> We're hearing a lot of talk about Houston being involved in various trade scenarios, but so far there hasn't been much truth to any of them.* A popular rumor recently had Shane Battier and Carl Landry heading out in a three-way deal with the Utah Jazz and Chicago Bulls, with Tyrus Thomas, Jerome James and Kyrylo Fesenko heading to Houston.* Fesenko is cheap, but also isn't ready to take on a major role in the NBA. James suffered a ruptured Achilles' tendon last season and it's being said he may never play again. So basically Houston trades Battier and Landry for Thomas, who is really just about the same player as Landry, minus Landry's winning personality. A source close to the situation in Houston said that deal was nowhere close to happening.
> 
> ...


No way I will trade Battier for that, my ideal trade is Battier for(Jerryd Bayless,Rudy Fernandez and Travis Outlaw) from Portland, we will need Battier leadership to bring up our younger players.

http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=13432


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## jdiggidy (Jun 21, 2003)

> Ariza is a long hustle defender that will struggle to score on a 'normal' team. I'm not saying that Ariza isn't necessarily worth his contract, but there's no way he'll ever be half the player that Artest is - he's just not talented enough. In my eyes, Ariza is the ideal replacement for Battier - a good player who does a little bit of everything reasonably well. Speaking of Battier, what exactly is Houston thinking? They're not a championship team as constructed unless Yao comes back. If Yao is forced to retire next year, Houston will wish they had moved Battier sooner. Battier's value will never be higher, so why not plug Ariza into Battier's spot at the 3 and use Battier and Landry (or even Hayes) to land a difference maker? Rip Hamilton is probably available and would make Houston a better team NOW - regardless of whether or not Yao comes back. Battier could also be used to pick up some nice young pieces from a team looking for some playoff veteran leadership. Atlanta and Portland would love to have Battier down the home stretch and they might trade some promising young players to get him. Bottom line: Ariza doesn't replace Artest, but he should be replacing Battier.


I actually thought this post from the comments section was pretty good. While I would hate to lose Battier/Lowry but, if it yielded Rip I would be fine with it. Trying to sign Andre Miller would've been a good try. Since Miller is in Portland, if Houston did make that trade with Detroit, I would then go out and sign a guy like Brevin Knight.

Do you think we could go after Sessions with our MLE?


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## Cornholio (Feb 13, 2005)

mtlk said:


> No way I will trade Battier for that, my ideal trade is Battier for(Jerryd Bayless,Rudy Fernandez and Travis Outlaw) from Portland, we will need Battier leadership to bring up our younger players.
> 
> http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=13432


That rumor was already denied by the Rockets. Link



jdiggidy said:


> I actually thought this post from the comments section was pretty good. While I would hate to lose Battier/Lowry but, if it yielded Rip I would be fine with it. Trying to sign Andre Miller would've been a good try. Since Miller is in Portland, if Houston did make that trade with Detroit, I would then go out and sign a guy like Brevin Knight.
> 
> Do you think we could go after Sessions with our MLE?


I don't understand why people think we need another PG. We're fine with Brooks and Lowry.


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## Cornholio (Feb 13, 2005)

> *Five teams that could be headed for a fall*
> 
> 1. Houston Rockets (53-29)
> 
> ...


http://www.nba.com/2009/news/features/john_schuhmann/07/29/072909schumann.fiveteams/index.html


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## Dean the Master (Feb 19, 2006)

They say you should always root for your team to win, but why waste another season if we are going to get another first round exit? I am not suggesting we tank this year and hopefully get #1 draft pick from the lottery. Thing is though, I believe this team is still good enough to win it all even without Yao. However, this would require T-Mac being a superstar on the court, not just a media attracting machine. He needs to step up and play. Hopefully when he comes back, he doesn't go out ever again.


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## jdiggidy (Jun 21, 2003)

How about Battier/Landry/Cook/Barry for RIP/Kwame.

This give us a one year rental on a center and possibly our starting SG for the next few years unless we sign Wade/Bosh or Joe Johnson/Bosh this offseason. This also rids us of two more contracts.

We need to resign Wafer now.

Your 2009-2010 Rockets

C - Brown/Anderson
PF - Scola/Hayes/Dorsey
SF - Ariza/Budinger/White
SG - Rip/Wafer/TMac(midseason)
PG - Brooks/Lowry

YOUR 2010-2011 ROCKETS (Please let me dream!)

C - YAO/?
PF - *BOSH*/Scola/?
SF - Ariza/Budinger/?
SG - *DWADE -or- JOE JOHNSON*/Rip
PG - Brooks/Lowry


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## Cornholio (Feb 13, 2005)

We'll probably have money for just one guy.


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