Alright guys, another seemingly thought out way of dumping our bad contracts and gaining expirings. For those still seeking 2010 free agency, this will automatically put us in contention for it without us losing too much in return. This will also fortify the Rockets frontline while waiting for Yao to return. Of course with any salary dump deal involving the Rockets, it'll involve T-mac being shipped out. Especially now since of his recent complaining about his role in the organization and how he'll fit in. So down to the actual trade.
Outgoing Kings:
Kenny Thomas
Andres Nocioni
Beno Udrih
Spencer Hawes
Outgoing Rockets:
Tracy McGrady
Carl Landry
Projected lineup for the Kings:
Evans
McGrady
Casspi/Greene
Landry
Thompson
Projected lineup for the Rockets:
Brooks
Ariza
Battier/Nocioni
Scola
Hawes/Hayes
Why the Kings do this:
Strictly to dump our longest contracts while still giving them a good home. This will put us right back in the 2010 FA and frees up the logjam at the 3. We can also buyout T-macs contract if we don't see a right fit and could comeout ahead without paying so much. This also rids ourself of Hawes inconsistent play while bringing in a scrappy 6'9 PF willing to bang and grab some rebounds.
Why they don't:
Simply T-mac may be too much drama and will only bring his baggage here. Also, we lose all of our veteran presence and "scrappiness" that has been keeping us viable these last 6-7 games. Plus, there's no guarentees with FA and we could just as well end up with nothing but at least free up 2 of our 4 longest contracts with nothing in return.
Why the Rockets do this:
Goodbye Tmac. Just returning value from a dried out superstar on his last leg (and back). Tmac has already created a rift between him and his head coach about the surgery situation, and now he can't even find his way back onto the court. At the age of 30, he'll simply be on the decline. I can't remember the last season he played where he didn't end up with an injury thrown in there. This also gives them Nocioni who will be another hard-nosed scrappy player to play alongside countryman Scola. A legitimate backup to Brooks with Beno, and a nice young replacement for Yao until he returns. This also gives them the option of two 7'0 centers when he comes back.
Why the Rockets don't:
Too many long contracts that don't necessarily push them over the threshold. Also, better value may be out there for Tmac. Losing Landry will be tough, as he was one of the few scoring punches off their thin bench. Plus, this will leave them with 2 extra players on their roster that they'll need to trim. (Not a fortunate situation when I believe everyone on their roster is a guarenteed contract).
The only thing I did was throw in the Hawes and Landry part. They could be taken away from this mix and still make the trade work. I figured I could try to get the Rockets a little bit more value in return with us sacrificing some of our youth. Landry is still young at 26 and could still work with the rebuild if he wanted to stay with us. Even with Martin returning, a lineup of:
Evans
Martin
McGrady
Landry
Thompson
will be scary on paper. I know we'll miss the veteran leadership of Beno and Nocioni, but I remember someone mentioning about it being better to trade a year early then trade a year too late. Both of these players are playing well now. It'll be us selling high, as this is the best we'll be seeing of these two players. We may lose Hawes, but if he isn't going to be our center of the future, then there isn't a point of him coming off the bench again. I'm sure there's more positives and negatives to be fleshed out here, but I need to run. I honestly like what we have going on right now and don't mind keeping those long contracts. This is a trade for those seeking the complete step to the rebuild and prepping us for another high draft pick plus a lot of salary cap space to sign a max player this offseason.
Outgoing Kings:
Kenny Thomas
Andres Nocioni
Beno Udrih
Spencer Hawes
Outgoing Rockets:
Tracy McGrady
Carl Landry
Projected lineup for the Kings:
Evans
McGrady
Casspi/Greene
Landry
Thompson
Projected lineup for the Rockets:
Brooks
Ariza
Battier/Nocioni
Scola
Hawes/Hayes
Why the Kings do this:
Strictly to dump our longest contracts while still giving them a good home. This will put us right back in the 2010 FA and frees up the logjam at the 3. We can also buyout T-macs contract if we don't see a right fit and could comeout ahead without paying so much. This also rids ourself of Hawes inconsistent play while bringing in a scrappy 6'9 PF willing to bang and grab some rebounds.
Why they don't:
Simply T-mac may be too much drama and will only bring his baggage here. Also, we lose all of our veteran presence and "scrappiness" that has been keeping us viable these last 6-7 games. Plus, there's no guarentees with FA and we could just as well end up with nothing but at least free up 2 of our 4 longest contracts with nothing in return.
Why the Rockets do this:
Goodbye Tmac. Just returning value from a dried out superstar on his last leg (and back). Tmac has already created a rift between him and his head coach about the surgery situation, and now he can't even find his way back onto the court. At the age of 30, he'll simply be on the decline. I can't remember the last season he played where he didn't end up with an injury thrown in there. This also gives them Nocioni who will be another hard-nosed scrappy player to play alongside countryman Scola. A legitimate backup to Brooks with Beno, and a nice young replacement for Yao until he returns. This also gives them the option of two 7'0 centers when he comes back.
Why the Rockets don't:
Too many long contracts that don't necessarily push them over the threshold. Also, better value may be out there for Tmac. Losing Landry will be tough, as he was one of the few scoring punches off their thin bench. Plus, this will leave them with 2 extra players on their roster that they'll need to trim. (Not a fortunate situation when I believe everyone on their roster is a guarenteed contract).
The only thing I did was throw in the Hawes and Landry part. They could be taken away from this mix and still make the trade work. I figured I could try to get the Rockets a little bit more value in return with us sacrificing some of our youth. Landry is still young at 26 and could still work with the rebuild if he wanted to stay with us. Even with Martin returning, a lineup of:
Evans
Martin
McGrady
Landry
Thompson
will be scary on paper. I know we'll miss the veteran leadership of Beno and Nocioni, but I remember someone mentioning about it being better to trade a year early then trade a year too late. Both of these players are playing well now. It'll be us selling high, as this is the best we'll be seeing of these two players. We may lose Hawes, but if he isn't going to be our center of the future, then there isn't a point of him coming off the bench again. I'm sure there's more positives and negatives to be fleshed out here, but I need to run. I honestly like what we have going on right now and don't mind keeping those long contracts. This is a trade for those seeking the complete step to the rebuild and prepping us for another high draft pick plus a lot of salary cap space to sign a max player this offseason.
