Houston Rockets In Desperate Need For A Second Playmaker

So this happened…

"“James [Harden] is pretty much everything on the team. If we stop him, we stop them.” – Chandler Parsons"

As blasphemous as this might have sounded at first, there definitely iz a certain element of truth in Chandler Parsons‘ pregame statement this past Wednesday in Houston.

It’s been tossed around endlessly this season: This offense doesn’t just run through James Harden, this offense IS James Harden. Without James Harden, it’s difficult to imagine where this team would be today as opposed to taking the best player out of another elite team. The entire offense centers around James Harden with the ball in his hand and his ability to attack the basket and his decision-making off the dribble.

This wasn’t exactly the case last year. If Harden was ever rendered ineffective, he wasn’t the end-all, be-all on the offensive end. The Rockets had Chandler Parsons and Jeremy Lin – two capable playmakers and ball handlers that took a lot of the pressure off of Harden. They were able to drive, make plays for others, and create their own shots if need be. This is one of the reason the Rockets were capable of producing the 2nd best offense in the league last year (107.7 points per game).

If you take a look at the roster today, the Rockets don’t have dynamic players like this today. Coach Kevin McHale said it best after a 95-92 loss to the Dallas Mavericks in the beginning of the season, “We don’t have a whole bunch of slashers…We lost a lot of slashers in the transition from last year’s team to this year’s team.”

Apr 6, 2014; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Rockets guard

Jeremy Lin

(7) drives to the basket during the second quarter against the Denver Nuggets at Toyota Center. Mandatory

Credit

: Andrew Richardson-USA TODAY Sports

The Rockets traded Jeremy Lin last year with the assurance of landing star power forward Chris Bosh. In a last-ditch effort to maintain cap flexibility the Rockets let Chandler Parsons walk to the Dallas Mavericks and picked up Trevor Ariza to a more cap-friendlier contract.

Jeremy Lin was huge for the Rockets. Never mind the costly late-game turnovers or the erratic shot selection at points, for the most part, Lin was a hell of a playmaker for Houston (Averaged 12.5 points per game and 4.1 assists per game off the bench). He had the ability to penetrate at will, find others on the perimeter or around he basket, and shoot the open 3-pointer at a decent enough clip (35.8% from downtown). He allowed James Harden to literally miss games without causing the Rockets to miss a beat offensively (Lin had the capability to play the shooting guard position).

He provided a spark off the bench equivalent to what Corey Brewer brings to the Rockets today but even better because he’s a much better passer than Brewer (Lin averaged 4.1 assists per game, Brewer averages 1.9) where as Brewer is usually on the receiving end of passes.

Apr 8, 2014; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Houston Rockets forward Chandler Parsons (25) dribbles the ball against the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center. Mandatory

Credit

: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Then there’s the touchy subject of Chandler Parsons. Trevor Ariza had been great for the Rockets thus far – he’s shut down opponents on the perimeter and is a big reason the Rockets currently have the 3rd best defense in the league. He’s also capable of hitting the open 3-pointer if need be, however, offensively, he’s no Chandler Parsons.

Parsons was a huge reason the Rockets had the 2nd best offense in the league last year. He could handle the ball effectively, he could create his own shot even better than Jeremy Lin, and he was arguably the 2nd best passer on the team (Parsons and Lin both averaged about 4 assists a game). Today, Josh Smith is probably the Rocket’s 2nd best passer which should tell you a lot. Like it or not, Chandler Parsons was a huge part of the Rockets’ identity last year on the offensive end and a much better playmaker than Trevor Ariza.

With all that being said, it’s unlikely GM Daryl Morey doesn’t notice the heavy load of playmaking James Harden has to carry and is probably going to make efforts to alleviate that load as best as possible by adding what the Rockets desperately need – a 2nd elite playmaker, preferably in the form of a star point guard.

Here we go again.

Feb 5, 2014; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Rockets shooting guard James Harden (13) guards Phoenix Suns shooting guard

Goran Dragic

(1) during the second half at the Toyota Center. Dragic leads his team with 23 points. The Rockets defeated the Suns 122-108. Mandatory

Credit

: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Yes, it is indeed February and with February comes possibly the most exciting time of the NBA season – the trade deadline. And with the deadline comes the rumors, the speculation, and the needs to be addressed.

With every trade deadline comes a very aggressive Daryl Morey. The infamous analytic approaches every deadline like it’s his last – always putting his chips on the table and letting teams know he’s itching to make a deal. This deadline is different for the Rockets however. Entering this deadline, Morey has already acquired two key rotation players in Corey Brewer and Josh Smith. Most GMs would call it a day just about now – Daryl Morey is not most GMs.

The Rockets certainly have the assets – a seemingly lottery bound Pelicans first round pick, expiring tradable contracts in Jason Terry and Corey Brewer, a slew of rotation players that don’t get enough playing time to be viable (Kostas Papanikolaou, Alexey Schved, etc..), and young talent that don’t get any playing time (Isaiah Canaan, Clint Capela, etc…). It’s only a matter of who the Rockets may be targeting.

To address this need of a 2nd playmaker, the Rockets would ideally go after a guy like Goran Dragic, who we’ve talked about extensively before, a guy like Ty Lawson (here), or a guy like Reggie Jackson.

It’s no secret the Houston Rockets have been going after Goran Dragic and it’s been quite apparent for some time. The fit is damn near perfect. It’s just a matter of if Phoenix believes an 8th seed playoff push is more valuable than anything Houston is wiling to offer them.

Nov 16, 2013; Houston, TX, USA; Denver Nuggets guard

Ty Lawson

(3) drives to the basket past Houston Rockets guard James Harden (13) during the second half at Toyota Center. The Rockets won 122-111. Mandatory

Credit

: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports

Ty Lawson is a new name being brought up in recent rumors. Going off of the move Denver has already made (trading Timothey Mozgov), it would seem to look like the Nuggets are doing what’s called in the NBA as a fire sale – cleaning salaries off the books and stockpiling on draft picks, young talents, and expiring contracts – all of which Houston has to offer. Lawson is a very talented point guard that can score off the dribble (16.5 PPG), facilitate at an elite level (9.9 APG), and shoot the 3-ball an an acceptable level (34.1%). He would be able to provide a very good fit in Houston and lift a significant amount of the offensive load off of Harden. It’s all a matter of if Denver is willing to move him or not.

Reggie Jackson is a rather unique name being brought up. He’s a young, talented point guard playing off the bench in Oklahoma City that can score and facilitate at a pretty decent rate (13.7 PPG and 4.1 APG). He’s also looking for max money and a chance to prove himself as a starter. Sound familiar to anybody? It is yet to be seen if Jackson is good enough to be a starter in this league, but it’s very clear that OKC is looking to move him (new acquisitions and Thunder’s history of being unwilling to pay the luxury tax should is what these rumors are being based on).

Wherever this playmaker comes from, the need for one in Houston is apparent, especially in games where James Harden is shut down (happens more than you think) or in a shooting slump and there is nobody around on the perimeter to step up and make the big plays while Harden is being neutralized.