Man, I just don't know about unprotected picks and I love the player we're targeting here .... But to me, unprotected picks are nearly out of the question except for a true superstar like Ant or SGA. Murphy is a couple steps below that ..... and I'd want some protections - something like top 4 on the first and last and top 1 on the middle pick. And we still won't have a #1 to hitch our wagon to.
Jakučionis was the one guy I wanted in that draft .... Would be nice to have a guard rotation that wasn't comprised of midgets that can't score at the rim, can't play defense or are limited in some other way.
Rockets look like they're trying to win off the sum of their parts a la Detroit in the 2000's. Problem is Rasheed, Ben, Tayshaun, Rip and Chauncey are all better than everyone on the team outside of Durant. Rockets just don't have good enough personnel all the way around. It's like they're all B- players.
1) 3 team trade: HOU - TOR - LAC LAC: FVV (HOU) + DFS (HOU) + Steven Adams (HOU) + 2028 HOU FRP (top 5 protected) Clippers potentially open cap space so as to do a franchise reset. Pick up a FRP in a draft where they currently have none. Clips create a solid vet bench in one transaction. TOR: Capela (HO) + 2027 SRP (via HOU) Raps pick up some draft capital and front court depth for 3rd string players. HOU: Darius Garland (LAC) + Jordan Battle (TOR) + Sandro Mamukelashvili (TOR) 2) use NTMLE on Quentin Grimes (3 years, $45M / $14M - $15M - $16M) 3) re-sign Tari Eason for 4 years, $87M ($19.5M, $21M, $22.5M, $24M) TO on Year 3 / PO on Year 4 2026 - 2027 Houston Rockets Garland - Sheppard - Holiday Amen - Grimes - Thornton KD - Battle - ??? Bari - Tari - Unc Sengun -Mamukelashvili - Cluff Half-court: Garland - Grimes - Battle - KD - Sengun Run & Fun: Shep - Amen - Tari - Bari - Mamukelashvili
And that is precisely why I'd move any of them for the right deal - I'm not attached to any of these flawed players.
