State Of The Houston Rockets - Post Trade Deadline

Many were disappointed Thursday afternoon when the Houston Rockets did not swing big before the 2:00 PM trade deadline. The Rockets ended up trading Alexey Shved and two second round picks to the New York Knicks for 37-year old point guard Pablo Prigioni. In a second deal, the Houston Rockets acquired young athletic prospect K.J. McDaniels for the price of another second round draft pick and reserve Isaiah Canaan.

Most people saw these deals go down Thursday afternoon and scratched their heads.

Where is that point guard the Houston Rockets desperately needed? Why in the world would Houston acquire a 37-year old whose numbers aren’t exactly jaw dropping? What purpose does K.J. McDaniels serve for this team when Houston already has athletic defensive minded wings in Trevor Ariza and Corey Brewer?

Let’s start with Pablo Prigioni. Obviously Prigioni isn’t the preferred starting point guard the Rockets would have preferred, but he does what the Rockets actually needed, playmaking. I wrote an article a while back claiming the Rockets needed another playmaker. A playmaker can come in all shapes and sizes and Prigioni is just that. A bonafide playmaker. While it’s not the sexiest pick up in the world, Prigioni filled the last gaping hole the Rockets had left.

Feb 21, 2015; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Rockets guard Pablo Prigioni (9) brings the ball up the court during the fourth quarter against the Toronto Raptors at Toyota Center. The Rockets defeated the Raptors 98-76. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Prigioni is a guy who’s excellent off the pick and roll, capable defender, great shooter (40.8% for his NBA career from downtown) and someone who can set others up on both offense and defense. He’s the traditional point guard – an extension of the coach on the floor. Other than James Harden, the Rockets have lacked that for some time. When James Harden sits, there is no direction on offense – no set plays and nobody that can direct others to where they need to be on the floor. It’s essentially a run-and-gun, and defense-driven offense when Harden sits. Prigioni gives that bench offense some much needed order and discipline among all the chaotic bursts of energy.

Now on to the K.J. McDaniels acquisition. McDaniels is a young, lengthy, and athletic freak of a wing player that could easily be mistaken for a young Trevor Ariza or Corey Brewer. He has all the makings for a great contributor for the Houston Rockets going forward. His leaping ability is off the charts, he has a great frame, his lateral quickness shows he has the potential to be a great defender, solid hands, and has all the tools to be a hell of a transition player. However, McDaniels is in every way still a prospect player. His game is very rough, his shooting could use a lot of work, and his basketball IQ leaves room to be desired.

While these moves may have been for the most part under the weather, they help tell us a bigger story – Daryl Morey’s plan to build a championship has come to fruition.

Jan 23, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Houston Rockets guard James Harden (13) celebrates after hitting the game winning shot at the buzzer against the Phoenix Suns at US Airways Center. The Rockets defeated the Suns 113-111. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

It’s no longer a plan anymore – it’s here. This is it. There are no longer any moves left on the table that can dramatically improve this roster without adding another star. However, that same logic applies to any and all championship rosters that have ever existed. The 41-18 Houston Rockets currently sit with the 3rd best record in the Western Conference with only 1.5 games separating them from the 2nd-seeded Memphis Grizzlies. They’ve managed to achieve this amazing record without Terrence Jones for nearly the entire season, Dwight Howard for a good chunk of the season, and even Patrick Beverley for stretches. James Harden is having the best season of his career, this Rockets’ bench is as good as it has ever been in years past, and aside from turnovers, this team has virtually no clear visible holes anymore. Daryl Morey knows there’s no time like the present to put your cards on the table and roll the dice on a championship.

How do we know this is the direction of the organization? As said earlier, this trade deadline speaks volumes and perfectly illustrates the position this franchise is in – a very nice and flexible one. Acquiring Prigioni demonstrates to us that this franchise is very much in “win now” mode as Prigioni is like the duct tape to the Houston Rocket’s playmaking problem. Acquiring McDaniels is like the franchise telling us “We want to stay on top of this mountain for a very long time” and doing that requires maintaining flexibility and acquiring young talent. This is a page right out of the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder’s textbook. How so? Let me explain.

This is the most well-rounded roster the Houston Rockets have ever put together, both from a talent standpoint and from an age perspective. Here’s the breakdown:

20-25 year olds:

James Harden, Kostas Papanikolaou, Terrence Jones, Donatas Motiejūnas, Nick Johnson, Clint Capela, and K.J. McDaniels

26-30 year olds:

Dwight Howard, Josh Smith, Patrick Beverley, Trevor Ariza, and Corey Brewer

30+ year olds:

Jason Terry, Joey Dorsey, and Pablo Prigioni

It’s very difficult to build a championship roster without either being too young to compete (Like the Oklahoma City Thunder that lost 4-1 in the Finals in 2012) or being too old to compete for a long time (like the Boston Celtics led by Kevin Garnett that only won 1 championship).

The Rockets have finally struck the perfect balance of future prospects, young talent, in-prime talent, and seasoned veterans that few have ever achieved. The San Antonio Spurs regime governed by R.C. Buford and Gregg Popovich managed to achieve this from 1999 to present time and acquired 5 NBA Championships in the process.

Also, as evident by the trade deadline acquisitions and the contract extension of Kevin McHale, there is finally some much needed stability in the organization. No rotation players were moved at the deadline and the Houston Rockets haven’t had a stable, long-reigning coach since Rudy Tomjanovich.

While Morey always looks to improve the roster, there doesn’t seem to be any sense of urgency to make any moves by the organization.

"“We feel pretty good about our acquisitions…We feel like we have a very deep team…Don’t really think anyone we want is likely to get waived at this point.” – GM Daryl Morey said on ESPN 97.5 Houston."

State Of The Houston Rockets – Post Trade Deadline

By Salman Ali | Mar 2, 2015