Chris Paul and multiple draft picks traded for Russell Westbrook

Post #21 » by **Darthlukey** » Fri Jul 12, 2019 4:43 am

BallerTalk wrote:
Darthlukey wrote:
BallerTalk wrote:
I don't know if I'd call two picks "a lot".

The trade off here is the Rockets gave up the smarter player and better shooter on a slightly shorter deal for a younger, more athletic player that makes them a litter harder to guard in the new West.

The added incentive is that Harden likely was eager to have his friend join him in Houston and the Rockets were reportedly at (or near) the top of Westbrook's list. So it presented as an opportunity Houston had to take.

Two swaps as well. I mean, they may not convey, particularly the earlier one, but swaps good options to have. If they can swap out an LAC pick instead of OKC, then there may yet be value

Sure, swaps are always a great option to have rather than not but I don't put too much stock in them when the likelihood of them conveying is already slim given the history of how the Rocket have operated.

I certainly don't count them on par with actual draft picks.

Of course, that is a fair call. But its better than nothing at least

SunsRback4Good · Post #22 » by **SunsRback4Good** » Fri Jul 12, 2019 5:24 am

Now just need to sign Camelo in finalizing the " 3 headed monster". Team may have communications issues offensive on who handles the ball more but the talent alone cannot be overlooked.

BallerTalk · Post #23 » by **BallerTalk** » Fri Jul 12, 2019 5:27 am

red96 wrote:
BallerTalk wrote:
Spoiler:
ALL LIGHTWEIGHT ROCKETS FANS CAN LEAVE NOW!!!

Morey has given you your out.

As for those Die Hards....

Funny. But gosh doggit. I really don't know how to feel. This could crash and burn so bad, and everyone will say, what did we think was going to happen. I hope they, myself included are proven wrong. Russ and Harden will have to alter their games.

It definitely comes with risks.

Plus there are emotional entanglements for a lot of fans given the history of contentiousness between the fanbases of those two guys.
But this summer has made is abundantly clear that the West is going to be a veritable gauntlet. Adding Westbrook ups the Rockets profile and adds a dynamic that should make them much harder to guard.

It will be a process, but that is where D'Antoni has to earn his paycheck. Given his history of putting guys (especially guards) in position to do what they do best, I expect no less with Westbrook.

The biggest challenge, as you pointed out, may be for Russ and James to mold and adjust their games but still remain aggressive. Fortunately they have every incentive to make this work.

jameshardenmvb · Post #24 » by **jameshardenmvb** » Fri Jul 12, 2019 7:49 am

love the trade makes us better great time to be a rockets fan,i would like to see eric gordon + pj tucker trade for a good small forward or power forward

thekaoswithin · Post #25 » by **thekaoswithin** » Fri Jul 12, 2019 1:01 pm

Is this board active? What's the best place to go to discuss the team in depth

NetsWorld · Post #26 » by **NetsWorld** » Fri Jul 12, 2019 2:56 pm

This can work out and I am excited for Westbrook's change of scenery. Westbrook's game can finally evolve with a different coaching staff in place. He won't be averaging 20 pts a game this year with Harden running the ship. Less Harden ISOs coupled with drives and playing off the ball should help Harden. Westbrook just needs to buy into that system, he now has the same opportunity he had with OKC two years ago but with a better superstar and similar supporting cast in depth.

Post #27 » by **TMU** » Fri Jul 12, 2019 3:34 pm

thekaoswithin wrote:Is this board active? What's the best place to go to discuss the team in depth

This board is active. Come join the fun.

BallerTalk · Post #28 » by **BallerTalk** » Fri Jul 12, 2019 4:18 pm

KD35Netted wrote:This can work out and I am excited for Westbrook's change of scenery. Westbrook's game can finally evolve with a different coaching staff in place. He won't be averaging 20 pts a game this year with Harden running the ship. Less Harden ISOs coupled with drives and playing off the ball should help Harden. Westbrook just needs to buy into that system, he now has the same opportunity he had with OKC two years ago but with a better superstar and similar supporting cast in depth.

This is my greatest hope.

D'Antoni has a rep for helping guys play to their strengths and putting them in position to succeed.
Plus since James and Russ both chose to play together and helped construct this reunion they each have a deeply vested interest in its success.

Post #29 » by **ken6199** » Fri Jul 12, 2019 4:52 pm

BallerTalk wrote:
KD35Netted wrote:This can work out and I am excited for Westbrook's change of scenery. Westbrook's game can finally evolve with a different coaching staff in place. He won't be averaging 20 pts a game this year with Harden running the ship. Less Harden ISOs coupled with drives and playing off the ball should help Harden. Westbrook just needs to buy into that system, he now has the same opportunity he had with OKC two years ago but with a better superstar and similar supporting cast in depth.

This is my greatest hope.

D'Antoni has a rep for helping guys play to their strengths and putting them in position to succeed.
Plus since James and Russ both chose to play together and helped construct this reunion they each have a deeply vested interest in its success.

Even with Billy Donovan, if you recall January and Febuary this year when everyone was excited watching PG playing his career ball, Westbrook's solid play got overlooked by a lot. His statline were around 10/10/10 triple double, and he really set the scene for PG to finish most of the offense. This is what I want to see here in Houston.

Remember, CP3 while being a great ball handler who hardly makes a stupid decision, his biggest problem is also relying too much on slowing it down, taking his time to set things up. With the decline of his body, he also over relies on screener and pretty much a non-threat on transition offense. Westbrook on the other hand can still break down people, and (if not making silly decisions with 17 secs on the clock) will greatly speed up our slow-ass offense, and pretty much an unstoppable force in fast breaks.

If we can tighten up our defense to create those transition baskets, we will see the best version of Westbrook.

NetsWorld · Post #30 » by **NetsWorld** » Fri Jul 12, 2019 5:40 pm

BallerTalk wrote:
KD35Netted wrote:This can work out and I am excited for Westbrook's change of scenery. Westbrook's game can finally evolve with a different coaching staff in place. He won't be averaging 20 pts a game this year with Harden running the ship. Less Harden ISOs coupled with drives and playing off the ball should help Harden. Westbrook just needs to buy into that system, he now has the same opportunity he had with OKC two years ago but with a better superstar and similar supporting cast in depth.

This is my greatest hope.

D'Antoni has a rep for helping guys play to their strengths and putting them in position to succeed.
Plus since James and Russ both chose to play together and helped construct this reunion they each have a deeply vested interest in its success.

If I were not a born again Net fan, I would certainly be rooting for the Rockets. I only chose to leave the Nets to root for OKC because of political reasons where the Brooklyn organization should not have stuck its nose in. However, because of my renewed faith in Marks and management, I will root for them again.

RaoulDuke79 · Post #31 » by **RaoulDuke79** » Fri Jul 12, 2019 5:59 pm

JustOneFix wrote:Nice picture! I just got home from the Ministry show in Budapest and found out that Russ was traded to Houston! What a coincidence,,,

Lucky! I had tickets to see them when they were touring Filth Pig but ended up unable to go, and I haven't ever got a chance to catch them since. I'm sure they're amazing live.

red96 · Post #32 » by **red96** » Fri Jul 12, 2019 6:25 pm

Cyberx--"Tillman pushed for this after speaking with JH. Tillman and his son wanted this trade and directed Morey to pull the trigger even though Morey wasn't fully in."

thekaoswithin · Post #33 » by **thekaoswithin** » Fri Jul 12, 2019 6:26 pm

TMU wrote:
thekaoswithin wrote:Is this board active? What's the best place to go to discuss the team in depth

This board is active. Come join the fun.

Can I get a breakdown of the team's strengths? I know the basics everyone does (shoot 3s, capela is lobs, eg is 3&d, tucker is 3%d, etc).

What are the intracacies of the way the team plays? Things that will allow Russ to thrive, things he will need to work on?

Is the offence heavy on off ball movement? That's Russ's second biggest weakness after his shooting.

My friend was telling me they like to pull 1 star out of the play then attack 4v4. Is that something you see continuing?

Thanks for educating me

Zack M · Post #34 » by **Zack M** » Fri Jul 12, 2019 6:54 pm

We all the know by the end it'll be the 'your turn my turn' iso offense.

BallerTalk · Post #35 » by **BallerTalk** » Fri Jul 12, 2019 8:08 pm

red96 wrote:Cyberx--"Tillman pushed for this after speaking with JH. Tillman and his son wanted this trade and directed Morey to pull the trigger even though Morey wasn't fully in."

Would any of that really be a surprise though?
I posted this last week:

BallerTalk wrote:
That said, I don't think the Rockets would have much interest in Westbrook. So if a deal were to come about both Harden and Russ would probably have to conspire and demand it from their respective teams, much like PG and Kawhi just did.
....

This is also why I say D'Antoni is going to get to earn his paycheck.
Adding Westbrook ups the team's talent profile and that was absolutely necessary to remain in the upper echelon of the new West.
Now it's up to the guy who gets paid to put it all together to...well, put it all together.

BallerTalk · Post #36 » by **BallerTalk** » Fri Jul 12, 2019 10:36 pm

Thought I'd post this here too:

Read on Twitter

reflex35 · Post #37 » by **reflex35** » Fri Jul 12, 2019 11:42 pm

Russ is a better player by a mile at the moment and Chris contract was probably the worst in the NBA, but this is not going to work.
Whatever stats tell you Paul was and is a better playmaker and shooter. He can as well play off the ball. And he now can be a lot slower due to his age but even now he is a better defender.

How it is going to work? James standing in the corner and WB being a primary decision maker and ball handler? Because it cannot work the other way around as Westbrook can't shoot...
Just because WB was averaging more assists than Paul for few years now does not mean that he is the playmaker Paul is.
We are talking about all time true point guard who can shoot, control tempo and if needed play off ball and a combo guard who is excellent is his own right but has inflated stats and needs ball in his hands...

The trade is ok, but Rockets need to move WB while they can and get someone who can co-exist with James better.
Offer a swap - WB for Jimmy. Heat will take it.

red96 · Post #38 » by **red96** » Sat Jul 13, 2019 12:26 am

Watch on YouTube

This is making me feel a little better, but we need a couple more moves to complete the team. Hopefully Russell is willing to adjust his shot selection. The Rockets can make him more efficient. Maybe Harden can teach him the "side step back".

Zack M · Post #39 » by **Zack M** » Sat Jul 13, 2019 2:08 pm

Fools saying CP3 is a far better 3pt shooter...when he averaged 27% from the 3pt line last playoffs.

reflex35 · Post #40 » by **reflex35** » Sat Jul 13, 2019 3:43 pm

Zack M wrote:Fools saying CP3 is a far better 3pt shooter...when he averaged 27% from the 3pt line last playoffs.

That might be a fair point, but let's not focus only on 3 point shooting and take a few games of one playoff run. There is midrange, there are free throws, etc. Catch and shoot, shoot of the dribble... like... Are you really saying that we can even compare CP3 and Westbrook in shooting ability?

We are not talking who is a better player in a vacuum right now, because I think it is pretty clear.