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發表於 2008-6-6 06:39 PM
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Brace yourselves, Rockets fans, for a summer without a splash
Brace yourselves, Rockets fans, for a summer without a splash
Daryl Morey is not by nature a do-nothing guy.
He took over as the Rockets general manager less than 13 months ago and spent his first summer on the job aggressively trying to upgrade the team.
Acquiring Luis Scola, who should have been the NBA Rookie of the Year, was a master stroke. Carl Landry looks like a second-round draft heist, and first-round pick Aaron Brooks just might yet prove to a boon to the Rockets' offense. Bringing in Steve Francis and Mike James to compete for a point guard job didn't work out so well, at least on paper, but Rafer Alston sure did show up at training camp ready to play.
Even when the Rockets were on their way to a 22-game winning streak, Morey wasn't afraid to make changes. Morey pulled off a trade deadline deal that sent Bonzi Wells and James to New Orleans for Bobby Jackson.
A season-ending stress fracture to Yao Ming ended up being more than the Rockets — upgrades and all — could over come. Look at the two teams still playing, and it's plain enough to see that the Rockets have some work to do get beyond being a nice 50-win team that goes quietly in the playoffs.
The Los Angeles Lakers have managed — through the greatest giveaway since FDR was in office — to fortify Kobe Bryant and Lamar Odom with Pao Gasol. The Celtics pulled off a couple deals last summer that gave them All-Stars Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to surround long-suffering Paul Pierce.
The Rockets have strength in a number of complementary players (Shane Battier, Alston, Scola, Landry) who can help a team win. They have weakness in the lack of a consistent third scoring threat who would make the Rockets three-dimensional. They're particularly interested in somebody who could provide offense and athleticism at shooting guard and small forward.
"We feel like we're a good player short of being where we want to be," Morey said. "We haven't really earned the right to start worrying about specific teams in the Western Conference and how we stack up against them. Until we've gone a little farther in the playoffs, we're just focusing on us getting better."
Rockets fans may not like some of what they're going to hear and read from Morey over the next several months. To hear Morey tell it, now would not be the time to start holding the breath waiting for the Rockets to make the sort of wow move that sends season-ticket sales soaring and has the talk shows and blogosphere buzzing.
Immediate help isn't likely to arrive in the person of the No. 25 overall pick. Morey is confident the Rockets can land a rotation player in that spot; it just might the rotation of the year after next, or the year after that, or the year after that.
Nor is the free-agent market likely to yield anybody who meaningfully alters the face of the team. Re-signing Landry won't leave the Rockets much below the luxury-tax level. Owner Leslie Alexander didn't get to live a life of luxury by paying a bunch of luxury taxes.
"We're probably going to have to upgrade through trade," Morey said, "as opposed to free agency."
Clutch City is teeming with unpaid GMs who would love to offer trade advice. Morey would like to assure one and all of those advisors that he is keeping his eyes and ears on the ready. At the same time, Morey offers this advice: ``Don't judge the team on Oct. 1.''
This past season drove home in away that others didn't that a team doesn't get extra credit for being off and running when the season starts. Morey is willing to sacrifice a little in October, November, December and January if that's what it takes to assemble the best team he can for April, May and June.
"As you can tell, the NBA regular season doesn't matter a whole lot," Morey said. "We've shown that with Yao, without McGrady, we can win. We've shown with McGrady, without Yao, we can win at a high rate -- 50 to 60 wins. We've shown with both of them, we're even better. We are focused pretty much only on what are weaknesses that will keep us from winning in the first round.''
Maybe Morey will find during the summer that Milwaukee Bucks are crazy enough to offer a bargain on Michael Redd. Maybe Morey can talk the Grizzlies into an act of generosity involving Mike Miller. Maybe Morey can swoop in on some other GM in a moment of weakness this summer.
Morey doesn't seem to think that would be the way to bet. And if there isn't a steal of deal in front of him, why not let the season play out a bit? The Rockets have enough talent to cruise through the first few months of the season on a playoff pace. The longer Morey waits, the longer some other team has to panic.
Patience could prove to be even more of a virtue than last summer's decisiveness.
``I think it's difficult,'' Morey said. ``But it's difficult for every team to get better. That's the job. We've got to work hard to get it done. At this time last year, it looked hard to improve the team and we managed to get a few things done that I think upgraded us materially. I think we've got the same challenge again. If the team doesn't improve, it won't be for lack of effort.''
Who out there would you like to see the Rockets pursue? Anybody who answers Kobe Bryant, LeBron James or Chris Paul goes to the back of the bus.
• • •
There's nothing quite like one of those grouchy ex-athletes who stubbornly cling to the notion everything was better back in the day.
The latest exhibit is Hall-of-Fame wannabe Jim Rice, who in this view is rightfully on the outside of Cooperstown looking in.
According to Rice, talent is so diluted in major-league baseball that Jon Papelbon is the only member of the Red Sox 2007 World Series who would replace a starter from the 1975 team that lost the World Series.
That's right. According to Rice, the 1975 Red Sox wouldn't have had room in the lineup for Manny Ramirez.
Or David Ortiz.
Or Josh Beckett.
Or Mike Lowell.
"The only one that would've made it, maybe (Jonathan) Papelbon," Rice said. "Because we had Dick Drago out there, Papelbon has a little more velocity than him."
Rice does deserve credit for railing about the ``Manny being Manny'' nonsense spouted by Red Sox Nation. Yes, Manny is one of the all-time great hitters. Manny also chooses to goldbrick his way through chunks of the season, and it's nauseating to hear people laugh it off as some endearing quirk.
"I'm tired of people saying, 'Manny being Manny,'" Rice said. "It's not like I'd take my 11-year old kid to go out and watch 'Manny being Manny,' that's not baseball. (Sunday) he hit home run 501, but, even though he hit 501 they still almost lost the game. Did you see those two plays he made out in left field? Now, do you want your kid to be 'Manny being Manny' missing those balls?"
• • •
Here's some advice that former Astro Morgan Ensberg, whom the Yankees designated for assignment, might want to heed.
Ensberg may have been well-intentioned in trying to play through a shoulder injury a couple years ago, but it has crippled his career.
• • •
Welcome to the world, Zeke Edward Battier. Shane and Heidi Battier's son arrived at 5:33 p.m. on Monday, weighing in at 8 pounds, 4 ounces. |
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