25 replies to this topic

[Rahat Huq]

New post: http://www.red94.net...-success/10020/

[Freebird]

I think there isn't one answer for this question - just a number of smaller answers that contribute to the larger picture. I think the success criteria are:
1. Trading Martin, while maintaining the TOR pick.
2. Seeing mulitple rookies play well.
3. Having Lin show progress, rather than regressing to average.
4. Having Asik prove that numbers don't lie.

Honestly, meeting 3 of those criteria would be stupendious. Meeting 3 and still getting a lottery pick would pave the way for many future successes.

[Alituro]

Nice post and tough question. I think for this young squad to make the playoffs would mean we've achieved the highest level of success we could hope for. This would mean our rookies, sophomores and Asik and Lin became everything we would hope they'd be and became that quickly.

I really can't think of too many scenarios for this team this season that would make me consider it a failure, maybe even a tougher question. If Toronto emerged as anything more than a middling in the east then that would suck, but that is hardly under Rocket's control. If for some reason we packaged a few of our promising rookies for a 2nd tier star (Josh Smith) and as a result placed 8th or 9th in the West, then that'd be a failure in my eyes. Other than that, there's very little this team, as constructed now, could do next season that could have me consider it as big a failure as the previous 3 seasons.

[Stephen]

Making the Play-Offs:
A) Means it was a great season to watch
One or two of the kids exploded and several of the others did well
C) Experience,experience,experience. Granger of Indy said he didn't realize just how different the Play-Offs were and I want that to happen sooner for the kids than later.
D) Usually some role player has a great Series and gets a lot of recognition. Better assets Baby!
E) Validates the coaching staff. Would mean not only has the Front Office done their job,but so has the Coaching Staff. Means the team has a solid foundation they can build upon,instead of the possibility of having to tear it up again in another yr or two and start fresh.

As for my minimum hopes,the team stays competitive,the kids develop and show they belong in the NBA as rotation players at worst.

[Stephen]

Of the five players listed,Lamb and Motie have to show they are starter material. If they don't the Rockets are effed big time.
Of the other three I'd like one to surprise and show he's a solid rotation guy,w/the potential to be a starter or quality Sixth Man.(My guess is Jones will,but there's the whiff of tweener about him that I hope he can shake.)

I'm really interested in what happens w/Patterson this season. He looks to be the odd man out down the road.
If Motie is the future PF(even tho he's going to get a ton of minutes at C this season) and White or Jones emerges as the back-up PF,where does Pat fit? As a back-up C?
While Pat is the starting PF to start the season,if he's still the starter at the end of the season there it's either great news or really bad news.
Great because he had an awesome season and couldn't be replaced.
Bad because either Asik or Motie flamed out. If Asik,it means Motie was so good that the team decided Pat at PF and Motie at C was better than playing Motie and Asik.

[inpropagation]

I would be thrilled if they made the playoffs in the Western conference. I don't think they will, though (unless they make some splash trade next year and surge). That means winning at least 45 games? Not going to happen.

I like this team right now without having seen them play, but it kind of sucks knowing how tough the West is and they won't be able to limp into the 7th or 8th seed like some other mediocre team in the East. Golden State and Minnesota look to be better suitors than us...

[autoprt]

i think the year will be interesting and excited about the rookies. Jlin has been working hard on his game, shooting and conditioning because at times last year he looked like he would pass out understandably because he never really had to carry that many mins in a pro game over a period of time.

i think the rockets will surprise some teams that will take them lightly early in the year and if Jlin is healthy they will compete. Martin is important for the team because Jlin likes to drive and then kick to an open jumpshooter ideally needs someone who can consistently hit shots so why would we trade Martin?

With the rooks it can go either way as you have seen with the Wizards. The good thing is McHale will get them into good habits early and that will only go well as the season goes on.

[areteejay789]

I think the season will be a success if we either
A ) make the playoffs due to outstanding play from our youngsters, not from a trade (unless it is a bonafide superstar)
or
B ) get a top 3 pick, or two top 7 picks (through either trades, or lottery from raptors)
or
C ) have one of our youngsters be named an all star due to merit (not asian popularity)

[Cooper]

Get a top five pick or two top 10s
Get something decent out of Martin
Have Lin/Asik play well or get traded

[Johnny Rocket]

I second what many people have said--some combination of rookie breakouts, good seasons for Lin and Asik, and a good draft pick. We have two teams to cheer for every night--the Rockets and whoever the Raptors are playing.

One thing to add: continued progress by Parsons would be great to see. If he could become more of an offensive threat with improved three-point shooting and a post-up game, that would be a huge step forward for the franchise. He is already an above-average defender.

[Sir Thursday]

I'm VERY pessimistic about our team this season. I think it's totally unrealistic to even consider the possibility of us making the playoffs with the roster as it is. Here are the things I think would make this season a success:

- 25-30 wins (which means our young players will have stepped up to the plate)
- At least three players in the Rookie/Sophomore ASG (Parsons + 2 rookies?)
- Getting the roster into a state where it will be possible to add 1-2 rookies in the next draft without having to do all sorts of complicated roster shuffling. At the moment I'm imagining that means packaging Martin's expiring with one of our youngsters to bring back something good at the deadline.

ST

[blakecouey]

This year would be a success, if:
1. At LEAST 2 of our rookies show ability of a solid starter, or 1 becomes an all-star(or future all-star);
2. Lin and Asik don't fall flat on their faces, mostly for Lin as Asik has shown he can be a back up defensive center playing at a high level so he has value there for certain. Lin needs to return to his Linsanity statistics and maintain them all season.;
3. If we have a player get Rookie of the Year, or a player named to one of the First Teams(doubtful);

I don't think we have the ability to get to the playoffs, but obviously that would be a huge success and immediately pushes us to contention for a big name FA in the offseason.

Failures would be playing just good enough to wind up at the wrong side of the lottery.

[Johnny Rocket]

Blake--I disagree that "failure would be just good enough to wind up on the wrong side of the lottery." It is one thing to just miss the playoffs when playing lots of veterans like Scola, Dalembert, and Lee; it is quite another with a team comprised mostly of players under the age of 25. If we win 40 games, that means that several rookies have had great seasons, that Lin and Asik are really good, and that we be a player or two away with lots of cap room and lots of moveable assets. As Sir Thursday says, that scenario is pretty unrealistic (although I'm a tad more hopeful than he is), but I'd be very pleased to see it happen. If we got really luck, Tornoto would have a terrible year and we'd still get that high lottery pick.

[blakecouey]

But see if we get a low lottery by barely missing the post season, again, and toronto either keeps their pick this year or it too is a low lottery, then it is absolutely failure. At that point we significantly reduce our chances to draft a true game changer. Certainly we could try to package picks to move up, but we tried that this year and failed. I understand it means our rookies likely played very well, but without drafting that game changing superstar we are forced into either another bad year, or looking at free agency. We have all seen what were capable of in FA, a gimmick and a back up we can only hope pan out.

[Alituro]

But see if we get a low lottery by barely missing the post season, again, and toronto either keeps their pick this year or it too is a low lottery, then it is absolutely failure. At that point we significantly reduce our chances to draft a true game changer. Certainly we could try to package picks to move up, but we tried that this year and failed. I understand it means our rookies likely played very well, but without drafting that game changing superstar we are forced into either another bad year, or looking at free agency. We have all seen what were capable of in FA, a gimmick and a back up we can only hope pan out.

Totally agree with you here. In order to possibly make and pursue the postseason we'd have to start the season off through the first two months hitting quickly and maintaining around a .667 win percentage to even make that a possible goal (highly unlikely), no need to fool around and try and maintain around .500. Finishing in spots 9-11 in the west again would be disastrous. It is quite possible to see our rookies emerge as bonafides AND lose games too. For this young squad, wins are hardly the barometer for their progress. A classic case of having our cake and eating it too.

[tombrokeoff]

im going to keep it simple and say its a success if the rockets dont end up with the 14th pick again. although that would mean (barring any trades) that our young guys are playing well and meshing together, so it wouldnt be all doom and gloom. ok let me re-evaluate my answer. its a success if we jettison martin for something half decent in return (most likely a pick) and the toronto pick is a top 10 pick for us. where our pick lands doesnt really matter to me. i want these young guys to play good, so essentially, im rooting against a low pick of our own.

[feelingsupersonic]

I am pretty much in agreement with all that Sir Thursday wrote though I would just say instead of pessimism I just have really low expectations. I strongly believe there is no way the Rockets make the playoffs and I am okay with that. Above all I expect the team and especially the rookies to be extremely inconsistent. I just hope we get a handful of games where everybody is on the same page. Also, if we get players to buy in defensively then that would be a success that helps in the short term but also goes a long way to establishing an elite team culture.

[ale11]

The breakthrough of our rookies would be nicest thing that could happen for us this season, to know that Morey has been doing his homework nicely. On the other hand, my true hopes are that both Lin and Asik prove they are worth what Les is paying them.
If the rookies don't pan out this year, doesn't mean they won't do it ever, that would just be a plus, but I would be satisfied if Lin and Asik show some liability to be important pieces in the short future and become key players while landing a superstar (even if it is leveling up to become trading chips). Either one of those things, will prove that Morey isn't that incompetent and that we are going through the right path towards contention.
Result wise, I hope we land to 30 wins....it's a long shot, and it would benefit us to win a lot less to get a high pick, but we will all be more than thrilled if these guys finish 10th in the west as we are now, that would mean that we would only need two or three pieces and this roster's development to get where we all want to be.

[rocketrick]

The Rockets making the playoffs this year is unrealistic in my opinion. I would like to see certain players step up and become consistent starters or key bench players for us by the end of the season such that a solid rotation is established going into next season minus one or two new additions. There is going to be a lot of opportunity for our youngsters to prove themselves this year and based on which players rise to the top should impact which free agent players and draft picks to go after once the season is over (just how many more PF's do the Rockets need to draft?). In addition, this season should prove or disprove whether Kevin McHale is the right man to be the Rockets coach for the foreseeable future. Finally it would make for a successful season of sorts to win games against some of the elite teams this year as that will infuse much needed confidence in our youngsters ability to compete on the big stage. Are we going to be a running team for the most part or a defensive team with an offense that walks the ball up the court?

[rockets best fan]

playoffs? stop kidding yourselves. their will be no playoffs even if one or more of our rookies explode. rookies by nature are inconsistent. a good year to me is our young players developing, two or more showing star qualities the rest showing solid talent, a bad win/lose record/ high draft pick, the raptors having the #4 pick in the draft. lin and asik showing starter talent. that would be a steller year.