Addition by Omission – The most significant thing about Bill Simmons’ piece on the worst contracts in the NBA, is what is left out: you won’t find a single player from the Rockets’ roster on the list of the worst 30. Only one current player was mentioned in the article (aside from speculation about Harden deals that never happened), and that player was Expiring Contract Francisco Garcia:
There’s light at the end of the tunnel of salary hell for Corey Maggette’s expiring deal ($10.9 million), as well as the ones for Stephen Jackson ($10.1 million), Mo Williams ($8.5 million), Devin Harris ($8.5 million), Chris Kaman ($8 million), Beno Udrih ($7.8 million), DeSagana Diop ($7.4 million), Francisco Garcia ($6.1 million) and Luke Walton ($6.1 million). Only two expiring deals cracked our master list of top 30 atrocities (we’ll get to them).
And Garcia wasn’t on that master list.
One-on-One with T-Rob – ESPN’s Weekend Dime caught up with Thomas Robinson for a few questions. Nothing too groundbreaking here, but it does seem increasingly clear that he’s much more pleased to be in Houston than in Sacramento:
Q: It’s been such a crazy season in Sacramento. How jealous do you think some of those guys are that you were able to get out and go to a playoff team?
A: I’m not sure. I think they’re happy for me more than jealous. I never had problems with my teammates. I never had a problem there, period. It’s a business, and you’ve got to learn that as you go. Unfortunately, I learned that quicker than other people. You know that it’s a business, so you can’t take anything personally.
Q: Were you as surprised as some of us on the outside that the Kings drafted you in the first place when they already had DeMarcus Cousins?
A: Yeah, but like I said, I don’t care about it now. I’m just glad to be here. Whatever happens happens. It’s meant to be. … I think [Houston will be] really good for me.
Moreyball – Grantland’s Zach Lowe sat down for a fairly long talk with the Rockets’ GM at Sloan, and Morey gives a lot of insight into how far in advance trades start to take shape.
A couple notes:
1. Morey says the folks in the front office surprised themselves with the Thomas Robinson trade. That’s incredible considering what he says about conversations about potential trades going on for months or even years between teams.
2. He says Sacramento always drafts guys that the Rockets like. I find that interesting given the fact that we’ve seen a couple of their picks such as Cousins and Tyreke Evans thrive in their rookie seasons, but fail to develop in the Kings’ system. By contrast, Houston has taken second rounders such as Parsons and Budinger and turned them into rotation players. There’s on huge exception to this trend: Isaiah Thomas.
Almost Famous – BallerBall has a satirical article on the Not-So-Famous presentations at Sloan, including this one:
It Was Over When You Picked up the Phone – Daryl Morey, Sam Presti, and R.C. Buford give us an insider’s perspective on the inner workings of NBA trades while laughing maniacally at the other 27 NBA GM’s.
The flip side of that is when the other 27 GM’s watch Houston climb to no. 7 in Hollinger’s advanced-stat-based power rankings, yet still lose to bottom feeders like Phoenix.
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