Rockets Trade Deadline Day Recap

Or, "Thank God, We Can All Stop Pretending We Even Kind of Liked that Original Knicks Deal." In case you haven't heard (and if you haven't, and are still reading this blog, you're either very selective with your website choices or are my mother...hey mom), we just completed a three-team deal that sends Joey Dorsey and Carl Landry to the Kings and Tracy Mcgrady's corpse/expiring contract to the New York Knicks. Yes, this man is now referred to as Tracy Mcgrady's Expiring Corpse of a Contract. I know, I know, it's depressing to think about. I'll have a reflection on the T-Mac Era up a little later, but right now it's time to talk turkey. And by turkey, I mean trades. 

In exchange for our efforts (players), we receive Jordan Hill, Jared Jeffries, Kevin Martin, Hilton Armstrong and "draft considerations" from the Knicks in 2011 and 2012. I believe that means the right to swap picks in 2011 and their 2012 pick (with some protection), but I'll update when the details are released. 

My first reaction to this deal was, of course, that we were getting Kevin Martin. Which, by the way, I called the hell out of. This response was almost immediately followed by regret at the loss of Carl Landry, who truly had grown to be loved in Houston. In fact, I guess you could say he was be-loved. Yeah, you see what I did there. 

The implications of this deal are, in my mind, quite simple: we're going all in next season (the only moves we could possibly make would be resigning Scola and Lowry because of their Bird Rights or another trade) and if that doesn't work out, we have Battier and Yao coming off the books in 2011. Which, by no coincidence, is when we get the right to exchange picks with the Knicks. I've already outlined my views on the Knicks' picks, as I think they'll be making the playoff these next two seasons thanks to whatever free agent they're able to land, so I don't think the picks will be of as much value as if they were this season's, but the Knicks already let the Jazz steal, I mean have, their 2010 pick, so let's not cry over spilled milk. Or, in this case, wasted draft picks. For now, let's take a look at what we're getting. 

Kevin Martin - If you've never seen Kevin Martin play because he was rotting away on the Kings, you've been missing out. He's a natural scorer (with an unnatural shot), who puts points on the board in nearly every conceivable way. He's adept at slashing, gets to the foul line with ease (and makes his free throws, Trevor), is excellent at coming off screens for catch-and-shoot's and can spot up from three with the best of them. What's more is that he doesn't need the ball to score his points, and will be perfectly content with letting the ball-movement do the work for him. He'll love coming off screens and working on the weak-side for wide open jumpers, a staple of Adelman's offense. Oh, and what's more is that he's already familiar with Rick's offensive system, having played under him in Sacramento. 

My only concern is that the man is 6-7 and weighs only 185 pounds, which directly relates to his inability to play 62 games any of the past three years (including the current season, he's already missed too many games). If there's one NBA prototype that makes me cringe, it's dynamic scoring two-guards with seemingly chronic injury problems. But let's not dwell on the negatives right now. Can you win a title with Yao and Kevin Martin as your top two? I don't know. But won't it be fun as hell to watch those nights when Kevin puts up 47 on 22 shots? You're damn right it will.

As for this season, Martin gives us a legitimate go-to crunch time scorer (even more so than Landry was), as well as a better chance at making the playoffs. The real value of this deal will only be discerned next season, when we'll be true contenders, but as for now, let's sit back and watch one of the smoothest, deadliest players in the league do what he does best. 

Jared Jeffies - Not much to see here. Tall, athletic swingman, quality defender, probably not going to play much. And he expires in 2011, so he's not hurting our long term prospects. Here's an interesting True Hoop piece on him, he seems like the kind of player that would fit well with us.

Jordan Hill - I think he's probably the most intriguing part of the deal. We know what we're getting with Martin, but we have no idea what Hill can do. He was the eighth pick in the 2009 Draft but hasn't been able to find a way off the bench for the Knicks this season. He's far from a throw-in, and I think that Morey might be pegging him as a potential replacement for Landry. If anyone in this league has an eye for talent, it's our General Manager, and Hill, though a bit raw, definitely has the promise of a producer in the NBA. He'll most likely get minutes immediately, as we're currently lacking someone who can spell Scola for stretches, so we'll get to see more of him as the year progresses. Wow, that paragraph was a-littered with alliteration. Damn, now I'm just forcing it.

Draft Picks - New York Knick draft picks are always nice in theory, but you can't help but wonder how much better they'll be than ours these next two seasons. As I elucidated (what a word) earlier, they're probably making the playoffs these next two seasons with whatever free agents they're able to sign, so their picks might not be as high as we'd have liked, but if they manage to screw up this off-season and continue their incompetency for at least two more years, we'll be right here waiting.

Hilton Armstrong - The definition of add-in. He's been a bust since he entered the league, but he'll at least give us some size down low and a near-seven-footer to back up Yao. Hopefully, Morey's eye for talent saw something worthwhile in the ex-Hornet. 

Losing Carl Landry - I love Joey Dorsey. I do. But the real story of this deal is Mcgrady and Landry. I'm going to put up pieces on both of them, Landry after I can have some time to mentally process his loss and Mcgrady after I can figure out a way to articulate just how heartbreaking his tenure with the Rockets was. For now, suffice it to say that he will be missed. He applies to both, but more so this season to Landry.

All in all, not a bad trade in the slightest. We retooled for now and are set up nicely for rebuilding, if necessary, after 2011, so I think it's fair to give Mr. Morey an "A." We're only going to be able to really evaluate the deal next year, but at this moment I can't help but say that I'm definitely a fan of what we did. We play Indiana at home on Saturday, so hopefully this tides you over until then. And, as always, go Rockets.

Update: The picks we're getting will be the Knicks' in 2011 (top-pick protected) and in 2012 (top-five protected). Here's to two more sub-par years from the Knickerbockers!