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2018-19 Houston Rockets Thread of running it back (mainly)

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HtownHorn

HtownHorn 14,685

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27 minutes ago, LTtxfan said:

Funny you mention Batum..... just bought a ski resort with Tony Parker

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-nba-france-parker-idUSKCN1SJ2AN

 

Also a new article on Batum.....

https://www.atthehive.com/2019/5/13/18617845/charlotte-hornets-player-review-nicolas-batum-did-not-play-to-level-of-salary

He's never going to play up to that contract, because he's a good player paid at an AS level or better rate. But he is 6'8" can shoot the 3, rebound the basketball, and actually create offense, as he's had several season of nearly 6 assists per game. He at one point played defense at a very good level. He would likely be a better Ariza.

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A’Dam Psycho
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So this is the thread for sunshine pumpers that think they’re gonna win a title?

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goatsaag

goatsaag 279

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53 minutes ago, HtownHorn said:

I wonder if the Hornets lose Walker, if we could swing a Batum for Gordon and another piece deal. We might actually get a draft pick out of it, considering Batum still has $52M left on his contract. I also like Marvin Williams, and his contract is a near match for Gordon's, if he opts into his PO.

I like Batum for the Rockets (I really thought he should have been a target for a Ryan Anderson trade since Batum's contract is just as bad but a year longer) but there's no situation where the Rockets should be trading Gordon (much less anything extra) to get Batum.

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HtownHorn

HtownHorn 14,685

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30 minutes ago, goatsaag said:

I like Batum for the Rockets (I really thought he should have been a target for a Ryan Anderson trade since Batum's contract is just as bad but a year longer) but there's no situation where the Rockets should be trading Gordon (much less anything extra) to get Batum.

Yes, why would the Rockets want to get a better player than Gordon.

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mycox

mycox 582

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Tilman Fertitta determined to do ‘whatever it takes’ to improve Rockets

Spoiler

Though Tilman Fertitta’s message was clear that night — his feelings after the Rockets were eliminated in Game 6 by the Warriors were as clear as the night after the Rockets finished off the Jazz and he wrapped P.J. Tucker in a long embrace — Fertitta wanted to be sure one point was understood.

He was not, he said, emotional as his second season as Rockets owner ended before he believed it should. If he were, it could be interpreted that his sharp criticism, including a declaration that the loss was “unacceptable,” was no more than venting to release the frustration and disappointment.

When asked about the fallout from an “unacceptable” loss, Fertitta was far less specific. But every answer, he said, reflected not the emotions of the night, but the determination it inspires.

He said he would welcome the starting lineup back, but is open to a more dramatic retooling. He said he would not hesitate to spend into luxury tax territory, insisting again not just that he was willing last season, but that it can be a wise business expense. Though he plans to meet with Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni in the next few weeks, he said D’Antoni would be his coach next season, the last of D’Antoni’s four-year contract.

“Mike will be the coach next year,” Fertitta said. “He’s not a lame duck to me. That’s just a media term. That’s just a media buzzword.

“Mike is going to be 69 years old (next May) and Mike doesn’t know totally what he wants to do, yet. We’ll sit down with Mike in the next few weeks and talk with him. We’re more concerned with making our team better next year. Mike will be here. I like Mike. I think he’s a very good coach. Players like playing for him. I keep being told, free agents want to know who the owner is and they want to know who the coach is. Mike and I do well together. Hopefully, we’ll continue to win and Mike will be here for a long time.”

That, however, brings him back to the notion that losing to the Warriors in six games this season was unacceptable and what he can do about it. Every member of the Rockets' starting lineup is under contract, deals that push the Rockets past the salary cap with just those five players. Nenê is the only one reserve in the postseason rotation signed for next season.

 

Fertitta offered no specifics about what he has in mind, perhaps limited by NBA rules about naming players on other teams and a determination not to show his hand for competitive reasons. But he indicated that “run it back” is not a mindset heading into his second offseason.

“We put a team together that should have gotten to the Western Conference finals,” Fertitta said. “You can’t say ‘I’m going to go win the championship.’ Or, ‘I’m going to go win the Western Conference or Eastern.’ All you can do is put a team together to be one of the top four teams. Then … you need luck, from (avoiding) injuries to hitting a last-second shot. You want to always set yourself up to get to the conference finals.

“I’ve directed my people to get better next year — anything we can do, from ownership to conditioning and training, all the way to that level. If we can make our team better player-wise, we’re going to make our team better. If we can make our team better coaching-wise, we’ll make our team better.”

Asked if he believed D’Antoni is a championship coach, Fertitta said “We don’t know. We don’t know if I’m a championship owner.

 

“I do have a culture in my company. I have 25 VPs that have been with me 25 years. The culture of the company is when times are bad, we do better than everybody else. We survive tough times. And anybody that deals with us will tell you Tilman Fertitta companies have a different culture. You either love working for us or you don’t because we drive harder than other people. We’re not a lifestyle company. The Houston Rockets are not going to be a lifestyle team.

“We’re here to win. We’re not here to be just OK and make it to the playoffs. We’re going to do whatever it takes to be a championship-style team every year. I will make moves to always extend our runway. I’m not a rebuilding guy to go collapse for three years to get draft picks. I want to keep us at as high a level as we can. I have a good management team. We’re in the city of Houston, which is soon to be the third-largest city in the United States so we should always attract our good share of free agents.

“Right now, the Houston Rockets as a brand are one of the top brands out there and we’re going to keep it that way.”

Fertitta strongly pushed back on the notion that he sought deals last season to get the Rockets out of paying a luxury tax, saying he never considered that an option and that he would always authorize spending that improves the roster. The Rockets last season traded their first-round pick in the deal that moved Brandon Knight and brought in Iman Shumpert, then dealt James Ennis III to move under the tax.

“Last year (getting under the luxury tax) was a fluke,” Fertitta said. “We were going to be in the (tax). It was an accident. I’m still trying to figure out how we got under. I was positive we were going to be in it by $11 million. But if I’m in the luxury tax, I expect us to win.

 

“I just want to win. I’m not going to be in the luxury tax and not be one of the top four or five teams in the NBA.”

In that sense, Fertitta considered the question about paying a tax irrelevant, considering it good business with returns that can exceed costs.

“I’m not going to let a few million dollars (determine decisions),” Fertitta said. “Going to that seventh game, even though it would have been there, we’d probably still make a million and a half because we get part of their gate. If we go to the Western Conference finals, it’s worth $10 to $15 million to us. I’m not worried about the luxury tax. And that’s not just $10 million; it’s the next year’s ticket renewals, the sponsorships, everything. If you are in the luxury tax and you’re winning, you’re going to be a more profitable team.”

He was more perturbed by a report from a SiriusXM NBA radio host during the season that he was “feverishly cutting costs” throughout the Rockets organization. He had called that report baseless at the time and went further this week.

 

“That’s the stupidest thing I ever heard,” Fertitta said. “I spend more money on little things than anybody else. I just bought us a brand-new 767 that we’re re-fitting right now. Everybody else just rents planes. I want our players on our plane. And it’s not a 757; it’s a 767.

“There has never been a layoff here. I just want to understand (staffing decisions). People love to build fiefdoms. The reason I’ve never gotten in trouble in tough times is because I run an efficient organization. The Houston Rockets are going to be an efficient organization.

“Anybody can have an opinion. You can say I’m a lousy owner. But don’t make a statement when you don’t have any (…) idea what you’re talking about. I spend money on things nobody would spend money on for the betterment of the team. We want to continue to upgrade to Toyota Center, just like we did this year. I’m trying to do major things that we might have to do over multiple offseasons to bring the fans even closer. That’s not easy, but I’m looking at all kinds of things. It’s a great facility, but I’m going to always upgrade.”

Upgrading his roster will be a challenge, but Fertitta called James Harden “a bull,” citing his work ethic and determination to play through injuries; said Chris Paul’s “savvy and intelligence” are overlooked; and said he would like to sign Eric Gordon to a long-term extension.

He was as clear about the traits he wants in his team and presumably will value in decision-making.

 

“I want us to be tough,” Fertitta said. “I never want to be soft. I don’t like soft ownership and I don’t like soft teams. That’s not my culture. I do want my players scrambling for a loose ball. I’ll set a hard pick in business. I’ll scramble on the floor for a ball in business. I expect them to do it on the court. I’m not saying they don’t. I have a very hard-playing team. But we’re never going to be soft.

“I know we have a team good enough to win 55 games, but that’s not good enough. We need to have a team we know we’ll get to the Western Conference finals. Then, you need a little luck to win a championship. We will do whatever it takes this offseason to improve ourselves.”

 

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UDontKnow

UDontKnow 10,446

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8 hours ago, Rockethorn1978 said:

Rockets fire Jeff Bzdelik??? Lol what? Didn’t we bring him back because our defense looked like Swiss cheese to start the year? Surely Morey doesn’t think he was the issue? What a dumb fucking move.

Context: https://abc13.com/sports/rockets-not-bringing-back-defensive-guru-bzdelik/5307244/

Yeah it doesn't make much sense. Bzdelik is a scapegoat for D'Antoni.

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goatsaag

goatsaag 279

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Bzdelik didn't get fired. He retired last year (pretty late into the offseason) and then was convinced to come back. His contract is over now and they have the entire offseason to find a replacement so he's able to just go back to retirement just like he wanted.

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CurlyDumps

CurlyDumps 4,473

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15 hours ago, goatsaag said:

Bzdelik didn't get fired. He retired last year (pretty late into the offseason) and then was convinced to come back. His contract is over now and they have the entire offseason to find a replacement so he's able to just go back to retirement just like he wanted.

That’s not how it was reported.  

Great look by Tilman.  Talks a big game about doing whatever it takes, then pushes Jeff B out the door the very next day.

Dunc’d On podcast yesterday called bullshit on Tilman’s spiel about how he was not trying to avoid the luxury tax last season.

 Guy is looking more and more like a jerkoff.  Ugh.

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goatsaag

goatsaag 279

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45 minutes ago, CurlyDumps said:

That’s not how it was reported.  

Great look by Tilman.  Talks a big game about doing whatever it takes, then pushes Jeff B out the door the very next day.

I care about the reality of the situation much more than "how it was reported". He didn't get fired.

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goatsaag

goatsaag 279

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https://www.houstonchronicle.com/sports/rockets/article/Rockets-don-t-keep-their-defensive-coach-13856388.php

Quote

“Jeff’s contract was up; it will not be renewed,” Rockets general manager Daryl Morey said. “We’re looking for any way to improve. That goes for players, coaches, front office, everything.”

Morey said Bzdelik did a “fantastic” job.

Contract ending and not being renewed is not the same as being fired.

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UDontKnow

UDontKnow 10,446

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Jeff Bzedlik (defensive), Roy Rogers (defensive), and Irv Roland (player development) are not returning.

 

On another note, very sobering that Nick Nurse who won two titles with RGV, the Rockets' D-League team, is in the Finals with the Raptors. Why couldn't the Rockets have made him an assistant coach after 2013?

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Dutchrudder

Dutchrudder 11,139

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Jeff Bzedlik (defensive), Roy Rogers (defensive), and Irv Roland (player development) are not returning.
 
On another note, very sobering that Nick Nurse who won two titles with RGV, the Rockets' D-League team, is in the Finals with the Raptors. Why couldn't the Rockets have made him an assistant coach after 2013?
Not enough 3s. Do you even advanced stats bro?
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Rockethorn1978

Rockethorn1978 6,079

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On 5/25/2019 at 11:19 PM, UDontKnow said:

Jeff Bzedlik (defensive), Roy Rogers (defensive), and Irv Roland (player development) are not returning.

 

On another note, very sobering that Nick Nurse who won two titles with RGV, the Rockets' D-League team, is in the Finals with the Raptors. Why couldn't the Rockets have made him an assistant coach after 2013?

So the owner and the GM disagree? And it’s being leaked? I give morey another year tops if the relationship is strained already. 

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Bevo

Bevo 13,577

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35 minutes ago, Rockethorn1978 said:

So the owner and the GM disagree? And it’s being leaked? I give morey another year tops if the relationship is strained already. 

Plus, the whole premise is entirely stupid. You have questions about the head coach so you fire his assistants? To what end? Is his coaching ability going to get better with new assistants that he didn't want? I would guess that coaching would be much worse if the head coach has new reports who he doesn't want.

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Planet Houston

Planet Houston 4,930

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Posted (edited)

I was listening to sports radio this morning, and someone on 610 (not a host - can't remember who) was saying that a ton of shit is going to come out the next several months, and that there is all sorts of drama.  Sounds like a shitshow.  Woof.

Edit: Maybe it was Landry Locker given his Saturday tweet.

Edited by Planet Houston
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Dutchrudder

Dutchrudder 11,139

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1 hour ago, CurlyDumps said:

Maybe the Lakers will be desperate and dysfunctional enough to trade for Paul if they whiff on all the big time FA's.  

I really enjoyed having CP3 on the team last year, but this year he did fall off a bit too much. If any team is willing to eat his contract, I'll be happy to give them a few 1sts for their trouble. It would truly be amazing if the Lakers took him from us. 

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HtownHorn

HtownHorn 14,685

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5 hours ago, maninblack said:

Woj reporting everyone except Harden is available for the right deal.

Which they should do. They'd tried it twice, lost to the same team twice in 7 and 6 games. Paul has 1-2 seasons left where he is competent, Capella is unplayable against the Warriors, because he has no offensive game outside of dunks and rim runs. Though he tries hard on defense, switching him 35' away from the rim is fucking stupid when you are playing him with 4 other guards.

Rockets need more 6'7"+ players on the wings. They only had 2, and neither played much in the playoffs despite having good regular seasons with the Rockets.

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UDontKnow

UDontKnow 10,446

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1 hour ago, HoustonFrog said:

Looking like some major issues. Reporting that Mike D is likely out this summer or next summer, no contract extension.

Not this summer. Where did you see that?

It looks more like he'll coach out the rest of his contract (1 more season) before any further decision is made:

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/26857790/dantoni-ends-rockets-contract-talks

Given that D'Antoni doesn't seem to have taken the Rockets Game 6 series-ending loss at home to the Warriors very seriously, there should be no contract extensions. He's earned the right to finish out his contract though even though I don't want him coaching the Rockets anymore.

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APMP

APMP 688

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I hate the idea of a lame duck coach when there's at least talk of a possible roster overhaul. Not a great situation right now...players that don't buy in anymore can just get theirs and ride it out. In which case it's basically a lost season of Harden's prime.

 

 

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