Rockets Top 3 Free Agent Targets? | Did Stone Deserve Extension? (w/ Frank from Rockets Chop Shop)

Host Robert Land & Rockets Expert Frank with Rockets Chop Shop look at their Top 3 Rockets Free Agent Targets, wonder if Rafael Stone deserved a contract extension and parse at key points from the Stone & Udoka end of season press conference.
(:30) Was Rafael Stone Contract Extension Good Idea?
(2:03) Thoughts on Stone & Udoka end of season presser?
(5:00) #1 Offseason Free Agent Target (Frank & Robert)
(10:58) #2 Offseason Free Agent Target (Frank & Robert)
(15:45) #3 Offseason Fr ee Agent Target (Frank & Robert)
(20:17) Why can’t Rockets stand pat in offseason?
(25:34) Who’s Frank’s Rockets MVP?
(27:00) Rockets biggest team weakness?
(31:08) Who makes the NBA Final?

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[Music]
welcome to Houston sports talk with your
host Robert land thanks for checking in
the best Houston sports podcast and back
with me is Frank with rockets Chop Shop
check the Rockets Chop Shop YouTube
channel for all the great content over
there and it’s always great to see you
Frank mainly I I wanted to hit on our
top three offseason targets for the
Rockets but you and I haven’t spoken
since we found out about Rafel Stone’s
contract extension was that the right
move
um I would say it’s the no-brainer
whether it’s right or wrong it’s
relevant um I think uh the way I view it
I don’t think Rafel Stone has done
anything that warrants him being fired
because the expectations for the past
few years are for the team to be bad
right they were tanking so you can’t
really make a judgment either way and
even some of the mishaps a lot of the
the effects of some of the things that
he’s done you’re not going to really see
the outcome for a couple more years
there’s not enough evidence for him to
lose his job and to me it’s just like
filing your taxes you know if you have a
GM that’s um not doing anything that’s
egregious then you just extend them uh
now where I do stand on this I think
there’s two things I I would consider
number one him getting extension does
not mean that he isn’t still being uh
you know judged for his actions uh as
you guys know with uh front office
non-basketball players there’s no cap
space so a guy could get fired pretty
much at any time during his tenure uh as
a general manager or front office
executive and number two that um I think
it’s even more important is that it’s
not raell Stone and stepen Silas that
we’re expecting to change his team it’s
raell Stone and coach adoka and I think
that makes a big difference because I
feel like this my just my feeling from
when stepen silus was here I think Stone
all the reports of him being at practice
I feel like he saw things that were
wrong and he was overextending his skill
set to try to correct them and I think
that that’s what led to a lot of the the
bad things that came out now you have a
guy Oka who’s more uh commanding
presence he’s a a leader and is
organizing everything as it relates to
basketball where Stone can focus on his
actual job which is signing guys uh
getting the right targets that coach DOA
wants and getting these contracts
negotiated so in in that aspect I don’t
see a problem with it and I’m just
excited to see what they actually do
this summer did you hear anything that
caught your ear in stone and oka’s end
of season press conference maybe you
thought well that’s that’s kind of
interesting yeah I think uh the change
in tone from kind of being more
aggressive at the start of the year when
they talked about the future of the team
trying to improve it seemed like the
kind of when they asked him about what
do you think you need to get this summer
to improve the team and he said he loves
our team and he would like to bring the
team back that is a bit interesting uh
because I don’t think this same team
even if they had the same season next
year with everybody healthy the West is
so Dynamic and as you know Robert is a
longtime NBA fan no two seasons are the
same uh this whole thing could flip on a
headed with the drop of a dime so I do
think that saying you’re GNA bring your
team back and both him and Oka took that
approach I agree largely I I still think
that they need to be aggressive about
making moves on the peripherals to
improve the roster and I think that’s
what we’re going to discuss here in a
second but um I did notice that the kind
of the tone of we’re good and we’re
going to kind of stick to our guns I
agreee with that on 90% of the roster
especially our young core but I feel
they could improve
uh a lot of the bench and improve some
of those roster spots that are given to
guys that don’t play at all like ban so
um I just feel like if you want to make
a Deep Run in this West you’re going to
need at least 11 or 12 guys uh when you
factor in injuries and everything that
can actually be consistent NBA players
the one thing I did like about him
saying that is you know I I definitely
feel like that means we’re not going to
see you know them trading a couple of
the young core pieces right as a panic
move for some you know overpriced old
veteran that you know is not gonna be
able to do much in a couple of years
when some of these other young guys that
other guys you hope are your core are
ready to do something yeah I definitely
agree there and I think that that’s
that’s really the thing and I’m
wondering whether jaylen’s March was had
any impact on that change of philosophy
for them because regardless of what
people think about the reports on the
Brooklyn something happened there um the
Rockets were talking to teams about
making trades in the middle of the
Season which is different from what
they’re saying now so um I don’t know if
it’s a combination of just watching the
players develop over the over the course
of the season is it jaylen’s Outburst in
March is it um Shang goon’s uh kind of
season that kind of makes them second
have a second thoughts about being super
aggressive to me conventional wisdom
especially in the way the CBA said up
when we talked about this when the new
CBA came out the NBA is rewarding
building from internally now right when
you try to make these large trades for
Star players it really hamstrings your
ability to really construct a complete
team now you could get five-year
extensions to non-designated players
with um you know kind of doing away with
some of the um the rules about types of
players you could trade for um being
able to pay guys on a different scales
and still reward them for for guys that
you drafted I think all of that says
that we want you to build your talent
from in-house and for the Rockets they
have so many players that it makes sense
why not just see what happens you may
have a couple Allstars in this mix
hopefully we have a top 15 player in
this mix and what you don’t want to do
is make a like you said a Panet trate
and a guy ends up being a James Harden
where he ends up on another team
becoming an all-nba player because you
wanted to you know either go for a 48
win team and get a first second round
exit rather than trying to build this
thing out as in the long term yeah
absolutely agree with all that um let’s
move to offseason free agent targets and
I’ve got my own three names but my
personal philosophy with my list was to
make these as realistic as possible so
I’m not going to go with jokic Giannis
and Luca if you know what I mean uh you
and I haven’t discussed this in advance
Frank so it should be fun and we’ll see
if there’s any overlap who is your
number one target this offseason I I
don’t have a top Target but what I’m
going to do mine I’m going to start off
with um with tiers of players I’m going
to have a lower tier kind of a a bench
for sure bench Fringe like guy that just
adds value a middle tier player that I
think can start and then I’m going to
give you not the yic level but a good
player that I think if the Rockets
wanted to shake things up they can I’m
going to start lower first the first
player that I would like to uh you know
for the Rockets to look at is going to
be Jaylen Smith from the Indiana Pacers
um I think he’s only making like $4.5
million this year he has a player option
next year uh going into this summer so
he has a player option I feel like he’s
being under utiliz in Indiana and if you
guys know anything about Jaylen Smith he
plays a power forward Center super
athletic 40 uh 40% shooter on I think
about 2.8 attempts from three uh he can
play the small ball five and you don’t
lack rebounding your size um and you
know he is definitely an upgrade from
Jeff Green just because he’s just a
better athlete at this point in is he
can play longer and he’s young um so I
think uh Jaylen Smith adds depth to that
Center I’d said this on on our last
podcast on on the The Chop Shop when you
look at our the Rocket Center rotation
right now including bowan let’s add
bowan to it we have four of the same
type of centers they are all different
in different ways but uh schematically
typically when you look at them they’re
drop bigs you got shenon a drop big even
though you can move him around you have
U Stephen Adams um coming off injury who
was a drop big um you also have J
landale who is a drop big and then you
have ban who doesn’t play who’s a drop
big and for this roster I I know they
like playing small ball with Jabari I
would still want us to have on this
roster a a big man that could actually
protect the rim is able to be a lob
threat for our to have a different form
of spacing which is the vertical spacing
I think when OKO spoke in the press
conference about what he likes about you
know the way his offense Wass to looks
he used the word being versatile and I
think not having that archetype on the
roster does limit some of our
versatility and he’s spoken about this
in an article interview he did with
Kelly EO a while back about how they had
that vertical spacing with Robert
Williams over in in Boston and I think
so Jaylen Williams coming off of this
season he has he’s probably gonna Garner
a lot of attention in the NBA but I
would be willing to uh to be able to use
some money to try to get him somewhere
in that you know mid te contract uh and
try to work out something for him to get
him here for maybe a three plus one or
something like that because and he’s a
great defender so I I I really like him
yeah that’s a good under the radar
Jaylen Smith not a name that I Jaylen
Smith I think that’s I I thought about
much but let me get to mine there’s a
big separation between my number one
Target and my number two and three and
it’s because I’m so high on this guy my
number one he’s an unrestricted free
agent Malik
monk okay he’ll be in every conversation
for six man of the year he’s in his
prime age 26 which is a factor in all my
targets he’s clutch which I feel like I
need to emphasize a little bit he’s
clutch he’s not an elite three-point
shooter but he’s Rock Solid at
35.5% for his career and he could get
his own shot it’s not just he’s a spot
up guy but he can get his own shot his
assists have gone up every year this
past year he averaged five assists in 26
minutes he’s van vet insurance which to
me is what this team needs more than
anything
right now is they need somebody if van
vet goes down to be able to handle the
team a little bit and run some point
guard and do some backup point guard so
van vet is not in a in a Flatout Panic
to get back into the game because the
Rockets fall off with the three or four
minutes that he’s out um the kings are
up against the cap so I think you could
outbid them on this and I wouldn’t be
afraid to give them something in the low
20s we know the Rockets can get out of
23 million with landel Tate and Jeff
Green and I also think Frank that his
contract if you gave him a low 20s
contract even up into the mid 20s with
the new cap and it’s something that if
you needed to get out of it because the
young guys started to take off and
you’re starting to have to pay those I
don’t think it’s going to be a bad
contract because like I said he’s still
in his prime he’s still a young guy he’s
gonna age okay and and and that guy I
think is you see the Improvement year by
year that is a a name I have actually
thought about that but I would
disagreeing you on who insurance I see
him as Jaylen green Insurance yeah that
too I mean I I should have said that I
thought of that too because if if you
don’t like Jaylen after a year and you
sign him for that kind of contract he’s
somebody that can play guard for you and
if van even if Van Vleet leaves you know
you’ve got him you know amen Thompson if
he’s still not ready to play on ball you
know you can have him in the back court
and and I think that would be two guys
that would compliment Each Other Well in
Malik Monk and am man Thompson in the
back court I actually like that even if
Jaylen let’s say Jaylen does live up you
also have a scoring punch Off the Bench
um as you said he’s a guy that and this
is the role he’s playing currently in uh
in Sacramento him and Jaylen do have
very similar games um and and that gives
you that kind of a a combo of where you
have a dynamic score which in my opinion
we do lack players on our team that can
create their own shot you guys saw kind
of towards the end of the season when
the the the defense has got really
really good and we couldn’t get into
transition in the half court setting uh
if Jaylen was getting trapped you don’t
have a lot of other guys you can kick
the ball to you know Fred is good on the
catch and shoots but you don’t expect
Fred to be able to break down the
defense Malik can do that I actually do
like um do do like him and yeah 26 years
old I didn’t even know he was that young
he’s used to playing off of a a post
player um in sabonis so you can you know
the integration with the shanon offense
him coming off a dribble handoffs flying
down off of screens attacking finishing
and he’s a guy that is to me if you know
making a case for you addresses two
issues um he is a moving shooter which I
think is very important a guy that comes
off the screen and can get right into a
shot and he’s also a a good pick and
roll ball handler um so um uh that’s
that’s a good that’s a good one uh I’m
going to go up a tier on mine so Jaylen
Smith is my first one I’m going to go up
a tier a similar player to Malik monk
but more of a role player version I’m
going to go with kavus Caldwell Pope KTP
to me is a player that he is one of my
favorite three andd guards in the NBA I
think he is a consumate professional
this is a guy that you know exactly what
you’re getting every single year he is
so smart super high IQ makes the right
plays a good Defender a great defender
um great shooter great movement shooter
can make all the I mean he’s to me he’s
probably one of the most valuable
players in the league that’s a role
player if Denver is is stupid enough to
let him uh walk in free agency because
he does have a player option for $15
million next year I feel like he’s worth
way more than that I would gladly give
him Dylan Brook’s money so I’m gonna go
with kcp as my next guy if he does
dabble into free agency and uh rejects
his15 million player option next year
the rockets in my opinion should be
super aggressive in trying to land him
here in Houston because this is he’s a
two-time champion let me throw that in
there as well uh just more of the same
of what we added with Fred guys that are
winners and smart players you nailed it
and I did not have him in my three but I
had made a note at the end that he’s
somebody I wanted the only reason I
didn’t have him in my three is I I just
feel like he’s he’s going to be a little
bit harder and there’s going to be more
moving pieces because I feel like if you
sign him you got to figure out somewhere
to dump Dylan Brooks money because I
think they’re very repetitive and and I
I just I think he’s just a huge upgrades
better Defender better shooter higher IQ
than Dylan Brooks like you said the
championship all the things that you
said I yeah I love him and and if they
could figure out a way to dump Dylan I
think that would be the best thing to
just switch him out with Dylan Brooks
and yeah I love kcp and boy if Denver
can’t figure out a way to do it yeah
that’s somebody you definitely want my
number two target is an unrestricted
free agent tus Jones I mean this is a
name we’ve talked about in the past and
to me this is a no-brainer I’m concerned
about the depth again behind van vet
he’s as solid as they come 39% from
three over his last three years 27 years
old again in his prime spent a ton of
time in a winning situation in Memphis
no idea what kind of situation he’s
going to look for but he’s definitely
worth a mid-level contract if it gets
anything beyond that if somebody’s like
Hey we’re gonna make you the starter
that Rockets can’t compete with if if
San Antonio comes in and says hey we’re
gonna make you a starter and you could
play with wemi we can’t compete but if
there’s a chance I would love to get him
on something like a mid level that’s a
great one a great one I think a lot of
rockets fans have been after tyus Jones
for the past few years um one of the
needs we have is a a secondary like you
said the fedan vet and insurance I think
we also need just a backup point guard
as much as I love a man I don’t think
he’s at the level yet where you can in
and guys when I talk about you people
that watch my channel know am man
Thompson to me is the top prospect the
Rockets have overall because he has the
IQ and the physical abilities that are
top right right because I love Shang
people accuse me of being a shenon Stan
uh shenon is not for his position he’s
not a physical dominant physically
dominant player am man Thompson is and
Men Thompson to me is just as smart on
both ends of the Court as shuna so
that’s why I have him ranked so high he
is not at the level where if the Rockets
do mean to make the playoffs next year
and I assume we will that you can trust
the man to run your sets in a playoff
setting and you can you guys go watch
the games now what teams do to
non-shooting guards that are going to be
on ball it’s going to be nasty so I
think his development long term is for
him to get there I love how they use
them this year um as a a screener a guy
that can cut from the corners a guy
that’s good on offense and rebounds
crashing the glass being able to do
multiple things on the court um but as
far as just a guy that I can just go to
bed at night saying that I have a backup
one and if Fred goes down he can run the
show I don’t think You’ have to get
creative to use it so that’s why I think
even with the men Thompson you still
need a a true point guard to back up
Fred because you need a guy that could
organize preferably shoot because the
better the shooter is at that point
guard you can play a man at the three or
the two and he he can still facilitate
as a ball handler uh so yeah I do love
that and um I think that should be a
target for the Rockets I kind of love
how to me a team as young as we are you
need to be deep and people always say
well were you gonna find The M you’re
gonna find minutes
because guys are going to get hurt
because certain combinations and
matchups are going to dictate that
certain guys play more so it’s not this
like rigid every player gets the same
minutes every game it’s going to be kind
of a give and take there might be games
where you have a TI Jones on the roster
and he has to play 30 minutes because of
whatever reasons because maybe it’s a
bad match up for cam or C you know or or
a men or somebody is dinged up so it’s
don’t look at it as we have nine guys
and they just have to plug in some guys
won’t play every night some guys will
only play 10 minutes 15 minutes some
matchups call First some guys get hurt
you want to go at least 11 to 12 of real
NBA talent to compete in the west
because these teams are coming there are
a lot of teams that aren’t in the
playoffs with us that to me are going to
be playoff teams next year so that’s a
great pick we see on your list or did
you have another guy who’s your I have
another guy and this is my uh obviously
I can’t leave without uh having
something the chat and the comments are
going to argue about this is my upper
echelon it’s not quite the Zion and Luca
level um but I’m gonna go with uh Paul
George Paul George is a player that I
have been infatuated with for some time
I really value his skill set he’s a very
unique player he’s a small forward you
know 6
can create he can score he can defend um
in in isolation and on the team he is
making currently right now he has a $48
million player option for next year and
this one will take some finessing for
the Rockets to be able to get a player
like that but to me the reason I like
Paul George because the position that
he’s gonna be taking is Dylan Brooks
right and and you can get him on a such
a contract to me that is front-loaded
enough that it involves you parting ways
with Van vet after next season it
involves you moving off of Dylan Brooks
and a bunch of those Jeff Green you know
the the reason that stone which I give
him credit for structur the contracts of
Jeff Green lelle all the guys that we
got that when we were trying to get
Brook Lopez that failed all of those
guys are just inflated almost uh player
laundering they we just gave Jac landale
how much is Jack making $9 million let
me see Jeffrey makes 9.6 yeah it’s about
eight lelle is making eight and what NBA
is lelle getting eight so this is player
laundering that the Rockets did so to
get him you you would basically have to
do a signning trade with the Clippers
and they would get Dylan Brooks and
either could keep him and or they could
flip him or they could find another
reroute him or something with picks yeah
this would cost P this this will cost us
some picks but you know Paul George he
is you know lower 30s I think you think
about a team with Jaylen green with Fred
van Le Paul George Jabari Smith and Al
changon talk about the defense we
already a top 10 defense he was going to
opt out so why why why are picks
necessary oh okay yeah yeah you’re right
you’re right if they do a sign a trade I
thought they would sign him there yeah
if if if they do a sign and trade it’ll
be something and you just have to look
at the Clipper situation as we’re
talking right now they’re playing
winning right now but if they go out in
the first round which I’m kind of hoping
for then you kind of start wondering
about the extent of how long they’re
going to kawhai is hurt James Harden is
a free agent Russell Westbrook’s a free
agent Ty Lou already rumored that he
wants to be out of that situation so um
if the Rockets do want to make that big
splash that I’m sure Tillman would love
Paul George is at the tier of player
that you you don’t really he doesn’t get
in the way of any of the young guys
maybe except the tar een and possibly
cam but to me they’re so young that who
cares right you can still just play them
along and just see how it goes maybe you
get him for three years and with a with
a team option on the fourth that gives
you to me a leg up in the west where
it’s you need those type of players to
compete so that that is my controversial
uh guy is gonna be PG yeah he’s kind of
similar to I mean I love him but he’s
just very similar to some of the other
guys skill sets that you got that you’re
really hoping are going to do some stuff
um I went back and forth on my third
targ third target and I thought
seriously about bringing back Isaiah
hartenstein uh I’m not I’m not
discounting that period but uh he’s
become just such an elite defensive
player and he’s rest unrestricted and in
the heart of his prime the problem
is you need another team to take Stephen
Adams contract off your hands without
bringing any money back so if the Knicks
just feel like they’re going to lose
them or they can’t pay them enough money
and you can do a signning tra trade with
Stephen Adams but somehow you got to
work that out he’s a younger healthier
Stephen Adams is the way I look at him
um same way that we’re talking about kcp
as a better version of Dylan Brooks but
lots of moving parts so instead I just I
I simplified things buddy heal’s going
to get a lot of run as a three-point
Marksman in free agency but Doug mcder
will be cheaper and I think he’s going
to be the better value McDermot
excellent 41% career three-point Mark
spent a couple years under pop so Oka
and McDermot will speak the same
language there’s your
quintessential movement shooter Frank I
got him I got him for you that would be
actually yeah dougy mil mcbuckets I I
would not be mad at that and I think he
is the tier of the that’s who the level
of player I expect to Rockets probably
end up getting and to me that’s when I
say uh making improvements on the
peripherals that’s what I mean right
replacing a guy like boban or with a
Doug mcder a vet minimum guy that
actually brings you a real skill set
that may win you at one game or two in
the season there might be a game where
Doug gets hot and hits seven threes
right and that’s the difference between
you being a a eight seed or playing a
play so to me those are the things you
know you know I love the genian of the
world and the uh uh you know all these
guys that we have down on the but to me
the Jeff Green a holiday those type of
players should be the bonds where they
play in blowouts and things like that
Jeff Green did not come down here to be
a 25 minute per game back of five he is
on the tail end of his career he’s here
to be a mentor and a vet um he should
not have seen as many minutes as he did
but he ended up doing it and he you know
played serviceably but once again Robert
you think about the West this year right
teams that to me are gonna make a flip
Memphis I think Memphis is going to have
something to say about those playin
spots coming next year um I think San
Antonio um as bad as they are this year
W is really good guys if they make the
Right Moves this offseason they could be
in the playin as early as next year in
my opinion and those are two teams I
think that we’re going to be competing
for for those spots as well then you got
the usual cast Dallas uh New Orleans
coming back I think if the Golden State
finds somehow some way to conglomerate a
team around Steph Curry they’re going to
be in in the in the discussions as as
long as LeBron James breathes he’s going
to be in the discussions uh Minnesota’s
still there I mean the West is loaded
standing packed is not an option for the
Rockets even with internal development
guess what other teams get better too
OKC is going to get better we’re not the
only ones that are training guys
everybody trains everybody tries to
improve their roster so uh in this NBA
you just have to always keep moving and
finding ways to get an edge up on the
competition and I think that the Rockets
needs to do so by finding guys on the on
the edges like the Doug mcbuckets of the
world yeah so if you look at the three
that I chose I went with monk McDermot
and tyus Jones I don’t really feel like
it’s realistic MoneyWise to bring all
three of those guys in but I definitely
know you could get get two of those guys
I mean malink monk would be if if they
only got Malik monk I I would be
ecstatic of those three guys but you
know I would hope Malik Monk and maybe
one of those other two guys would be if
not you know mcder and tus Jones there’s
there’s nothing more realistic than that
I mean those guys are not going to stay
in the same situation that there are
right now so you know I really feel like
that’s got a shot I mean you know if you
could get a kcp though if you could
upgrade on Dylan Brooks to K to kcp if
you can upgrade and get a hartenstein
over Stephen Adams I mean oh my goodness
I mean that those are that those are
some major upgrades there are guys out
there this off season without getting a
superstar that they’re big deals I mean
these are big- time guys that could
really help and that really fit what the
Rockets are trying to do definitely true
and for the guys that I pick with Jaylen
Smith kcp and Paul George you can’t
bring out three obviously I think you
could the the to me the ideal would be
the two bottom guys the uh Jaylen Smith
and a guy like kcp those are realistic
it’s just a matter of the market and
whether they want to actually come to
Houston I think if those guys said I
want to go play in Houston Houston with
Coach adoka I think they can because you
look at the the team options the Rockets
have right now on the roster um you have
Jeff Green a $9.6 million team option Jo
landel that’s eight so that’s 18 million
right there um you also have J Shante
that’s seven um that’s 26 million right
there that should be enough to sign
those two guys and you’re not even
talking about Stephen Adams Adams’s
contract at that 12.6 million which is
great for uh to make trades if you
needed to it’s it’s realistic they can
do it the Paul George one I I think is a
little bit more farfetched honestly for
me a player of his caliber I think
possibly next year next off season not
this one coming up would be when the
rockets look to if we made the playin or
the playoffs this year and let’s say
we’re a first- round exit coming up then
you go get the Paul Jordan because that
may be the guy to push you to the second
or the Conference Finals and at that
point when you can appear in the first
round multiple years in a row all you
need and this is Daryl Mor’s philosophy
you just need the opportunities because
if you put yourself in the in the in
position to make the playoffs all it
takes is one run and you might find
yourself in the Conference Finals or the
finals so it’s about having those
opportunities and the best way to do
that is having the right Talent so I’m
with you I think making those moves on
the edges letting the young guys grow
and seeing what we do this year is the
best way to go and I’m going to see what
the Rockets do because they have a lot
of big decisions to make do you draft do
you not draft it’s gonna be interesting
summer yeah and that’s another piece
that you could be add adding to the
puzzle is just having another young guy
off the bench and he might not just like
cam Whitmore he might not matter the
first 20 or 30 games you have him in the
G league but maybe he can give you
something you know later in the in in
the season and also we talk about
movement Shooters there are a couple of
guys in the draft there’s a guy that’s
projected to be about where the Rockets
would pick if everything goes according
to hoil and they’re picking with that
Brooklyn pick at at number nine that you
know I think is I’m going to talk a
little bit about what one of your um
contributors to Rockets Job shot Cooper
Klein we’re going to go over some of the
the draft guys and I want to bring that
guy’s name into the mix I’m gonna do
that in the next few weeks but yeah
there’s definitely some options without
losing anything you know batting without
losing certain guys you know and only
real guys anybody’s talking about losing
in in some of these scenarios or the the
landels and the Jeff greens and and uh
jant Tate and you know and Dylan Brooks
let’s let’s throw that out there and I’m
going to say all the guys I brought in
you lose none of your core six it does
alter Fred’s contract in some point
because I feel like Fred’s that team
option for Fred is is reserved for a
star player and it’s you could either
pivot it towards a star player or you
could use it to kind of um sign some of
your guys that you have in house if they
did warrant getting the the U you know
the fun Max or whatever but you could
still give two Max contracts let’s say
assuming Jaylen and shenon have great
breakout years you could still give them
the rookie scale Maxes and still bring
in a third like a real regular max
player to your roster because you have
so many rookies that are contributors
right now um so it just it depends on
what the Rockets want to do I think that
the fact that once again the CBA
incentivizes developing from within the
question one thing I know you heard this
Robert when they asked forell Stone uh
do you think you keep all six without a
flinching or nothing this the first time
I’ve heard him answer something without
stuttering he said yes we can and and I
believe that they can because one not
everybody’s going to be a superstar
because they won’t have the opportunity
to become Superstars and number two is
that guys are going to fill their roles
and you can give them a 50 year and the
market can’t just a couple of quick
questions uh
you had Fred vanv as your Rocket’s most
valuable player that’s what that’s who I
had I assume that was Shang no no no
Shang gun is my most valuable player
yeah yeah I just yeah now we disagree I
understand I understand the argument for
Fred I think Fred’s value if it depends
on how you define value when it comes to
holistically on the team yes I think
Fred is value like on the court as an
organizer as the team captain the
defense his production yes but when it
comes to X and O’s I think Shang is is
for this season was the Rockets uh
Universe for most of the year yeah my my
argument was he helped unlock shanon
what he did on both sides of the floor
what he did off the court what he did as
a leader yeah the fact that he played
more games the fact that he was more
consistent on a night toight basis just
all of those factors that I play yeah if
if we were going by that definition yes
Fred Fred is the the most valuable
player on the Rockets because he
impacted more than shanon’s play he also
impacted J he transcended multiple
players and the culture of the team that
that’s a different to me that’s a
different thing when I think of value as
a players on basketball I’m thinking of
the construct of like X and o on offense
and defense and I think for a majority
of the Season till he got hurt Shang was
the fulm for a lot of things that the
Rockets did and to me he unlocked Fred
and allowed him to have one of his
better years a lot of those assists that
F Fred van Le gets love for I think a
huge majority of them are to Alon
changon so I think they they helped each
other out a lot this year but I’m not
arguing with anybody that that puts that
on Fred because I think he is that
important to the rocket the second thing
I want to ask you is are you going to
hold a ball handling or dribbling camp
for the Rockets play because if there’s
one thing that this team Deeds work on
so bad is these guys do not know how to
dribble the ball very well and it’s not
just am men although he’s number one on
the list for me there cam Whitmore needs
some work on it to a degree Jaylen green
needs some work on it to a degree we all
know tar had some issues at times when
he has played I mean this is a team full
of dribbling issues yeah uh it’s you
forgot Jabar a lot of these guys are
they were not drafted to be primary ball
handlers um I think oka’s offense does
force you to have to have that skill set
because you have to make decisions but
if you’re going to be at the high
ceiling that you can reach yeah yeah
obviously well men is no excuse like I
don’t understand why men doesn’t have
better handles it’s crazy like you’ve
been groomed to be a point guard like
what what are we doing here so uh
there’s no excuse for men Thomas he has
to his to me his Handles in a short term
are going to be more important than his
shooting because if he cannot handle the
ball um then it does really limit his
his ceiling as a player as much as Ben
Simmons got a lot of flack Ben Simmons
could he could Mo he could handle I mean
in the open court he looked like Magic
Johnson in some plays because he just
had such control of the the his ball
handling and the passing and for a non-
shooting primary ball handler if you’re
not gonna be able to shoot you got to be
elite as a as a you know Rondo you think
of Jason kid you think all these guys
these are Elite ball handlers and and
you cannot have that as a whole if you
can’t shoot then it really does limit
you uh for the rest of the guys yeah I
think jaylen’s made big strides in that
in his ability to dribble um I think a
lot of his stuff is strength I think
Jabari andari uh they definitely need to
at least be able to attack Closeouts
competently and dribble to the basket
without picking up their dribble I did
mention Jabari because I’ve already seen
him improve light years from just one
yeah but that’s coming from the basement
brother I mean you you coming from the
basement to the first floor then yeah it
looks good but we’re trying to get them
to the upper rooms of ball handling for
their positions at least I think Jabar
has a long way to go on that if he wants
to reach the ceiling but yeah I think
shooting and ball handling is is gonna
be fundamental for our team the real
ceiling with Jabari though to me I mean
the only thing this guy turns into
something really special is the shot and
I you know I I am not buying that he’s
going to be anywhere close to the
three-point shooter an elite three-point
shooter than we thought just by watching
him on the free throw line I just I just
don’t buy it and everybody talks about
the fact that what kind of shots he’s
getting what he gets are open shots tons
of them tons of them when he’s shooting
he’s open when he’s shooting nobody is
blocking the shot because nobody can
it’s like every shot that he takes he
doesn’t have to worry about that because
he’s got that great High release and his
three point shooting is average but it’s
because nobody actually guards him most
of the time I he’s wide wide open they
don’t treat him like he’s a real threat
I think for Jabari his greatness will be
an a combination of being good at a lot
of little things I think he needs to be
a good enough shooter from the
three-point em midrange he needs to be a
good rebounder he needs to be a good
Defender um at least a decent like one
pass playmaker and I think in aggregate
when you combine all those things with
his length and hopefully the IQ
continues to progress upward then all in
combination he becomes a really valuable
player to have on your team I don’t see
him having this crazy like all NBA
superstar upside um but I think he can
be a really really good player almost
like the kcp but as a forward version a
guy that’s going to guard make all the
right plays that all the things you want
to say about these really good players
in the NBA so I think he’s shown strides
towards doing that um this season coming
from where he came from last season I
think the steps he’s taken this year as
a shooter compared to last year are huge
I think the ball handling has improved
like you said um I think the defense has
improved a lot compared to last year the
rebounding took a leap this year kind of
tailed off towards the end of the season
I I I think that as he grows and he’s
he’s not even fully developed yet as he
develops he’s still one of the younger
players in the league you will see the
value and just because I think one for
the fan base every one of these players
they they won’t all be Allstars and that
is perfectly fine that’s the only way
you keep them and and Jabari won’t have
the opportunity that shenon and Jaylen
had because that’s not his game so even
if he wanted to be an All-Star he
wouldn’t be because he wouldn’t even
have the shots or the ability to handle
the ball to even get to that level so he
needs to be elite at the little things
and I think that’s that’s where he’s
training towards and we hope he keeps
going you got the nuggets and the
Celtics in the
final uh nuggets the Celtics yeah I mean
that’s the easy pick if I had an upset
pick in each conference if Kawai was
healthy I would have said the Clippers
were upset to make it to the finals and
in the East I think I was leaning
towards Philly if uh embiid was fully
healthy and they had their full team
this year it seems like it’s going to
end up being Celtics nugets but you
never know injuries random things could
happen the series have not started yet
once all these teams have adjusted to
each other you will know by game three
and four uh who’s going to get swept is
this going seven um and what the real
things are so I don’t put too much stock
into game ones yeah the Celtics should
go six they should go 12 and0 in the
East and they should you know be in
their bathing suit at the pool waiting
for whoever comes out of the West and
the and and the blood bath and you know
maybe Denver gets you know flies through
I don’t see anybody else flying through
the west but maybe they fly through like
the do and you know maybe they don’t
have the advantage of the rest like the
Celtics you know might potentially have
but um yeah that yeah it’s hard for me
to imagine those two teams not there the
Mavericks are the one to me scary team
yeah because they really got it rolling
right now uh latest on Rockets Job Shop
yeah just we just had a new episode of
rockets talk Dro I think yesterday um
we’ll just try to fill in the offseason
with different things that happens
during the SE uh during the offseason uh
draft obviously would be coming up and
then free agency and then we’ll go
anything that comes out in the news
there we’ll be talking about it remind
everybody out there we want to hear from
you who who’s your Rockets free agent or
offseason Target let us know what you
think also don’t forget you know I’ve
got playlist for Houston sports history
on my channel so you can go watch old
interviews with you know Calvin Murphy
and Rodney McCrae and Robert Reed and
muchi Norris there’s all sorts of fun
interviews about klech City and all that
sort of stuff so go check that out but
uh thanks a lot Frank always good to
talk to you and um looking forward to
these playoffs man I can’t wait yes sir
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