Houston Rockets: Markieff Morris would be a consolation in buyout market

The Houston Rockets are expected to target Markieff Morris in the buyout market but I think he’d be a consolation prize. Why? Let’s take a look into this.

The Houston Rockets were able to make a few waves before the trade deadline and were able to successfully flip Brandon Knight, Marquese Chriss and this year’s first-rounder to land Iman Shumpert which should be able to give this team a jolt defensively.

Shumpert actually looked quite promising in his debut against the Oklahoma City Thunder last Saturday during prime time but the rate that he picked up his personal fouls was alarming. I think that could be a matter of him not giving up on each play that he’s involved in but he’s certainly got to manage as I’m positive this team will need to use him down the stretch.

The Houston Rockets also shipped away forward James Ennis to the Phialdelphia 76ers for the swap rights on a second-round pick in 2021 which basically means that the franchise gave him away to get any relief from them being in luxury tax hell.

The franchise was able to successfully get off from under the $131 million line. With the team now having $121.4 million committed to contracts at this moment, this puts them $9.6 million below the line and they no longer have a bill for being above the line and being an offensive repeater.

I wish the moves that were made at the trade deadline were a lot more dynamite but Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey was able to masterfully follow the directives — likely by owner Tilman Feritta — to get the payroll under the tax line. Had they not made those moves, the team would’ve in upwards of $13 million or so for 2018-19.

So that’s one less thing that they have to worry about but how about improving this team for their playoff push?

The quick answer to that is the buyout market as it has been just as exciting as when NBA free agency opens up midsummer because there’s a bit of suspense of which players teams decide to buyout.

With changes to the collective bargaining agreement as of late, we’ve seen the proliferation of such a notion in the following weeks after the trade deadline.

I’ve already penned a piece on why Enes Kanter should be the top target for the Houston Rockets because he’s exactly what they need to solidify their front court. Because of future cap concerns, I don’t think it’s possible to keep Kanter — he’s only 26-years-old — but I’d be open to renting him for the remainder of the season to help this team get to the promised land of winning a championship.

That’s the guy I want.

But Markieff Morris is also available and is a likely target by the Houston Rockets to sign to a deal for the rest of the season. Morris was traded to the New Orleans Pelicans for forward Wesley Johnson and Pelicans have bought out the remaining $8.6 million of his four-year deal that expires this season.

I’ve been quite fond of Morris but I don’t think he’d be a guy that could put this team’s contention changes over the top. He’d be a solid complementary piece but they need pure dominance on the boards and I think he’d only provide marginal help for Clint Capela, who’s currently the team’s most dominant rebounding guy.

His 10.9 percent rebounding rate pales in comparison to Kanter’s 21.4 and Capela’s 20.6 percentage respectively.

Morris can be a solid defender but has had consistent struggles on that end and I think it will

More from House of Houston

continue if the team were to sign him. It’s possible that assistant coach/defensive coordinator Jeff Bzdelik could work his magic to get the best results out of him but that certainly remains to be seen.

Morris has been shooting three-pointers more frequently as of late as he’s three-point attempt rate has skyrocketed to 43.9 percent of his field goal attempts. Typically he’s average in the mid- to low-20s through his career. He’s averaging a career-high 1.4 makes and 4.2 attempts per game for a decent 33.3 percent clip on the season.

That certainly means I wouldn’t necessarily have him shoot the go-ahead on an out-of-bounds play with seconds to go in a tight situation but if he were open during the nuances of a game, I’d definitely pass it to him behind-the-arc.

I’m not looking for a project, I want a guy that will make an impact as soon as he enters the building, ready to go to work on the hardwood.

I’m afraid Morris is not that guy.

This is why I feel Morris would be more of a consolation prize rather than securing the big win in the buyout market. We’ll have to see how the Houston Rockets go but I know they can do better than Morris.

Next. Rockets: Five potential additions in the buyout market. dark

Morris, 29, averaged 11.5 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.8 assists while shooting 43.6 percent from the field and 78.1 from the charity stripe through 34 games — 15 starts — with the Wizards this season.

Home/Houston Rockets