Houston Rockets 2001-2002 Season: Struggle with Strides

Personnel Losses: Hakeem Olajuwon (Traded for Toronto’s 15th pick 1st round draft pick 2002), Shandon Anderson (Traded to New York for Glen Rice), Matt Bullard (signed as a free agent with Charlotte), Carlos Rogers (signed with Pacers as a free agent), Sean Colson, Anthony Miller.

Personnel Gains: Eddie Griffin (Traded to Rockets for the rights to Richard Jefferson, Jason Collins, and Brandon Armstrong), Glen Rice (From New York for Shandon Anderson) Kevin Willis (Traded by Bucks to Rockets for 2002 second round draft pick), Oscar Torres (signed as a free agent), Terence Morris (Traded from Atlanta to Houston for a future second round pick), Tierre Brown (Signed).

Injuries: Team Suffered injuries to 14 different players resulting in 304 manpower games lost. Starters Maurice Taylor and Glen Rice both suffered season ending injuries on top of Walt Williams and Steve Francis both missing time. The only player to play in every game was Guard Moochie Norris.

Record: 28-54  5th in Midwest Division

I. Season Overview

The 2001-2002 Houston Rockets could have been looked at 2 ways before the season. They could have been looked at as a team with a good young nucleus with the potential to be a playoff caliber team, or they could’ve been seen as a franchise on its way to a long spell of losing seasons. If one had to choose between these two extremities, the Rockets would have fallen more towards the latter choice. What ever happened to the championship days? Well, quite simply players grow old and every team at one point or another has to rebuild. This is the situation that the Rockets were faced with heading into the season.

After starting the season 7-5 the Rockets dropped 15 straight without Steve Francis. Cuttino Mobley played very well, but the Rockets missed getting Stevie Franchise’s almost guaranteed 20 points 7 boards 5 assists a game. With Francis out, shots were forced, team defense was bad and losses accumulated. When Steve Francis returned the team had only managed a measly two wins in his absence. Sadly, the Rockets had already managed to dig themselves into a hole they could not get out of no matter how many points Mobley and Francis scored. The serious lack of frontcourt help was the Rockets main problem. Some nights the leading rebounder would only end up with 6 or 7 boards. Of course it didn’t help at all that SF Glen Rice and PF (kind of) Maurice Taylor were hurt most of the year. Overall the season turned out to progress painfully game after game, but every once in a while you got a glimpse of how good the Houston Rockets could be. How the Rockets performed during the season though is not as important as what they do this offseason. The possible resigning of their franchise player Steve Francis and the owning the #1 pick in the draft are huge events in the Rockets future. The releasing or resigning of Kevin Willis and Walt Williams is a decision the Rockets brass is going to have to make. With the team not losing any players of real importance during the year and so far this offseason, the Rockets will be faced with the challenge of building upon the young core of talent already present. But how much can management do? The ridiculous contracts of Maurice Taylor and Glen Rice cut into the amount of moves management can make this year. The team is clearly in a rebuilding process and is expected to get even younger this offseason. Remember the last time the Rockets got the first pick? They got some guy named Olajuwon. For all Houston fans, lets hope they can get that lucky again.

II. Roster and Stats

Chicago was awarded a franchise on April 30 1966, and were the first expansion team to ever reach the playoffs in NBA history. The first Coach was Johnny "Red" Kerr, no relation to Steve Kerr who later played for the Bulls.

• G Cuttino Mobley: 21.7 PPG 4.1 RPG 2.5 APG 74 G 74 GS
• G Steve Francis: 21.6 PPG 7 RPG 6.4 APG 57 G 56 GS
• F Kenny Thomas: 14.1 PPG 7.2 RPG 1.9 APG 72 G 71 GS
• F Walt Williams 9.4 PPG 3.4 RPG 1.4 APG 48 G 25 GS
• F Eddie Griffin 8.8 PPG 5.7 RPG 1.8 APG 73 G 24 GS
• F Glen Rice 8.6 PPG 2.4 RPG 1.6 APG 20 G 20 GS
• G Moochie Norris 8.1 PPG 3 RPG 4.9 APG 82 G 26 GS
• C Kelvin Cato 6.6 PPG 7 RPG 1.2 BPG 75 G 73 GS
• C-F Kevin Willis 6.1 PPG 5.8 RPG .4 BPG 52 G 5 GS
• G-F Oscar Torres 6 PPG 1.9 RPG .6 APG 65 G 13 GS
• C Jason Collier 4.2 PPG 3.3 RPG .4 APG 25 G 2 GS
• F Terrence Morris 3.8 PPG 3.1 RPG .9 APG 68 G 12 GS
• G Tierre Brown 3.1 PPG 1.1 RPG 1.8 APG 40 G 1 GS
• F Dan Langhi 3.1 PPG 2.0 RPG .4 APG 34 G 8 GS

III. Draft History: (1st picks only)

Bad Picks

• 1990: #12 Alec Kessler (woulda been better off with trebek)
• 1991: #20 John Turner (hmmm)
• 1998: #16 Bryce Drew (could turn out to be decent somewhere)
• 1998: #18 Misrad Turckan (who?)
• 2000: #9 Joel Pryzbilla (turned into Collier)

• 1992: #11 Robert Horry
• 1993: #24 Sam Cassell
• 1998: #14 Michael Dickerson
• 1999: #22 Kenny Thomas
• 2001: Richard Jefferson/Jason Collins/Brandon Armstrong (turned into Eddie Griffin)

IV. Players

Guards:

Steve Francis: $14,124,582 (Rookie Contract) '03 (Year becomes F.A.)

There’s not much you can say about Steve Francis that already hasn’t been said. His nickname says it all, as he truly is the Rockets franchise player. The young man out of Maryland, 6’3 Steve Francis is truly one of the most exciting players in the NBA today. His stats have steadily improved over his 3 years in the NBA, and with the improvement Francis has gained the respect of players and coaches all over the league with the possible exception of the team he burned, the Grizzlies. A threat to light you up for 30 points a game every time he steps foot on the court, Stevie Franchise demands respect from all defenders on the court at all times. The problem over the last couple of years though, has been the lack of support he has received. But, with Cuttino Mobley emerging as a strong player, some pressure has been taken off of the franchise. The giants of the Western Conference (Tim Duncan, Shaq, K.G., and Chris Webber) will no doubt continue their dominance, but will the guard play be what it once was? The eventual retirements of veterans Gary Payton and John Stockton, the absence of Jason Kidd, the demise of Terrell Brandon and Jason Williams and the possible departure of players like Nick Van Exel mean that the West will belong to the giants. This is not all bad though, because players like Steve Francis can dominate games because of the lack of players on every team who can guard him. There is relatively hardly anything left for Stevie to improve on. Steve Francis is a younger version of Jason Kidd, but with a more explosive game. For these two to be compared though, Francis must show he can provide the leadership Kidd does, and take his Houston Rockets to the promised land.
Things to Improve on: Steve Francis needs to take a break, rest his shoulder and get ready to play ball next season. One thing he needs to do is have an ego-check, and be prepared to play with whoever makes the team better. His game is all set, but his heart can still be questioned. Getting tougher mentally and physically is something the franchise needs to do. Oh yes, and take some Advil.

Moochie Norris: 22.7 Million contract ’07 (free agent)

Moochie “The Hair” Norris is most known by basketball fans for well, his hair. But there is more to the man then the fro or the rows. Moochie Norris is turning into a promising backup for Steve Francis and Cuttino Mobley. He stepped up this year in Stevie’s absence, averaging 8 points and 5 assists a game. Moochie is not the most well known player out there, he sneaked into the NBA through the CBA (thanks mostly to Rudy bringing him up). In the CBA he was a runner up for MVP in the year 2000, so the kid has shown he can ball and is not just a fluke. He hit some pretty big shots this year towards the ends of games, and gave Sportscenter anchors field days because of his ever-crazy hairstyles. Moochie is a qualified backup point who can also swing over to the 2 if the opposing teams 2 guard is small (Moochie is only 6’1). Moochie can give the Rockets 20 solid minutes off the bench, and is a strong 6th man for the rockets.
Things to improve on: If he could suddenly grow 5 inches that would be a good thing to improve on. Basically, he’s a midget and that will often get him in trouble with bigger more physical guards like Gary Payton. The whole backcourt of the Rockets is small though, and you can’t ask someone to grow… but you can ask them to hit the weight room a little harder and to work on their post defense and defense in general. An improvement in his outside shooting would be a nice extra as well, as it would draw defenders out and not let the defense pack it in against the slashing Francis.

Cuttino Mobley: 31 million Free Agent in ’05 (Player opt out clause included)

Recently signed to a big 31 million-dollar deal, Cuttino Mobley is going nowhere. Or is he? With Jay Williams available, the Rockets could deal Mobley and replace him with Jay-Will. Francis strongly disagreed with that notion though, and we all know what happens when Stevie gets angry. So the team is probably going to leave it alone and keep team chemistry alive and keep Cuttino here for a while. Why would you want him gone anyway? 22 PPG last time I checked wasn’t too shabby. Cuttino Mobley has also recently emerged as a big time scorer at the 2. Combined with Steve Francis, they are arguably the best scoring backcourt in the league. Defensively though, they are not the best. 6’3 and 6’4 aren’t the typical sizes of NBA backcourts now days. But that aside, Cuttino Mobley is no doubt Steve Francis’s partner in crime. The two friends are an unstoppable duo. The rise in stats for Cuttino Mobley is partly attributed to the attention Steve Francis gets, but mostly to the amount of shots he gets a game. Mobley is a solid scorer who needs to develop the other aspects of his game to be a bigger contributor to the team. The 3 point shooting Mobley though appears to have his place locked down in the NBA as a pure scorer. He is arguably the best steal the Rockets have ever gotten in the draft, selecting him with the 41st pick in the second round.
Things to Improve On: Finding other ways to contribute than just scoring.

Oscar Torres: Minimum Salary’02 (free agent)

A 6’6 guard from Venezuela, Oscar was picked up during the season by the Rockets for the minimum. What a pickup it turned out to be. Getting Torres for the league minimum and having him score 6 points a game in limited action was definitely a plus for the Rockets. A free agent this year, if a backup guard isn’t selected in the draft, the Rockets should strongly consider resigning Oscar Torres.
Things to Improve On: Getting signed, and if he’s resigned, proving he’s got staying power.

Tierre Brown: Minimum Salary ’02 (free agent)

Another player like Torres, Tierre Brown stepped in for the Rockets and performed decently in his time. But how many guards does a team need? Only a rookie, look for the Rockets to not give up on their investment in Brown. He was a solid player in college, and must work hard on his game to be one here in the NBA.
Things to Improve on: Play summer ball, and show management that you can hang.

The strongest spots on the team, the place where not much management work is required, except resigning key players.

Forwards

Kenny Thomas: 4.2 Million (Rookie Contract) ’03 (free agent)

"Kenny who?" "Who in the world is Kenny Thomas?" This is the response I got when I talked to a couple of my basketball friends about the Rockets power forward. A quiet contributor night in and night out, Kenny Thomas was the 3rd leading scorer and leading rebounder on the team, despite only measuring up at 6’7. A power forward at 6’7? The Rockets are small enough, and now their power forward is only 6’7-245 pounds? Believe it. Believe that he’s the best low post player on the team. A true case of being a big man stuck in a little man’s body, Kenny Thomas quietly was a key factor to the degree of success the Rockets did have. A true power forward, Thomas did not make a 3 all year, but shot an outstanding 48% from the field. And, he is still young and should be a key factor in Houston’s rebuilding process. Although he had substantial minutes this year, how many minutes will he get next year due to the logjam at power forward? Money sucker Maurice Taylor and emerging star Eddie Griffin can seriously cut into Thomas’ time next year. But how bad is it that his time will be cut? Is he as good as the stats say, or is it because the rebounds had no one else to fall to. A pretty good player, who’s still young, but too one-dimensional. Could be replaced in the not too distant future by Eddie Griffin.
Things to Improve on: Jump shooting. I know its not his game, but to contend with those huge power forwards out there, he’s going to have to suck them out and hurt them with the jumper. Does a good job on D and crashes the boards well, but many others and me are still curious to see if he can really hang. Free throws need improvement as well. He needs to keep improving every aspect of his game.

Walt Williams: 20 million ’02 (free agent)

Walt, Walt, Walt. Oh the glory days are diminishing. Walt is on the tail end of his 10-year career and his skills are slowly deteriorating. Walt is a special player. Throughout his career he’s never seen a rebound he liked despite being 6’8. Clearly a perimeter player, even in his old age Walt can still shoot the long ball, and chicks dig the long ball. Why don’t chicks dig defense? Well, Walt doesn’t dig it either. In fact he doesn’t play it. He refuses to. But hey, he can shoot 3’s really, really good. He’s a lifetime average 40% 3 point shooter, and not too bad of a scorer. He really stretches the D. Walt Williams is a true veteran, who probably won’t be resigned, but the Rockets wont miss him too much because he is not what they need at his position. There is really no playing time for him right now, and even if there was, injuries have plagued him lately.
Things To Improve On: I don’t know if you can teach and old dog too many tricks but if you can, teaching him some defense would be super.

Eddie Griffin: 9.4 million contract (rookie contract) ’05 (free agent)

Eddie Griffin is the real deal. Highly touted out of Seton Hall the 6’10 power forward is a shot-blocking machine. He is such a talent, that the Rockets felt he was worth 3 picks. Last year Eddie showed that he just might be worth it. A future franchise staple, Eddie Griffin did nothing but improve and prove that he is the real deal. He is a solid rebounder, a spectacular shot blocker and possesses a polished offensive game. Look for him to really improve. He could even be a regular starter next year, bringing much needed height and athleticism to the starting 5. With the logjam at PF, expect a possible switch to Small Forward for Eddie if that is not addressed in the draft…
Things to Improve on: Learn the NBA game, use your talent and dominate. Someone needs to tell him he can dominate, because the Rockets need him to.

Glen Rice: 36 million ’02 (free agent)

36 million? Is that how much 3 pointers cost these days. I feel like putting see Walt Williams but that wouldn’t be fair to Walt because he’s not an OVERPAID washed up 3 point shooter, just a washed up 3 point shooter. Glen Rice can still chip in, but how good is he for team chemistry? As of right now, he’s taking a younger player’s spot and hindering his development. Glen Rice had a great career, but he’s too fragile now. Expect him to get hurt and be out for a long time in some ridiculous fashion. He can still hit 3’s and is still a pretty good offensive weapon, but once again he is not what the Rockets need. If they could dump him they should.
Thing to Improve on: Take a veteran role and be a leader.

Maurice Taylor: 48.7 million ’07 (free agent)

What’s with these guys? Are the Rockets in love with soft forwards? He’s young (only been in league for 4 years) and actually has a pretty good body. But he’s a not a good defender, he’s soft, and doesn’t hit the boards. He’s a pretty skilled player but 48.7 million dollars is ridiculous. Seeing if he can recover from injury and live up to the cash money that was spent on him will be interesting. If not, someone will be there to replace him. If the Rockets could they’d dump his salary somewhere, but I’m not so sure anyone will take him. When the Point Guard is a better rebounder than the Power Forward, there is a problem.
Things to Improve on: Rebounding, defense and learning his role as a role player, not the star his salary suggests. Needs a strong season to prove he might be worth the cash, but mostly needs to hit the boards and be the frontcourt presence that the Rockets so desperately need.

Terrance Morris: 1.5 million ’04 (free agent)

Another Maryland Terrapin, the rookie Terrance Morris showed pretty good progress over the year. At 6’9 he’s a pretty solid rebounder and is one of the few forwards who can bang inside.  He's not too much of a scorer, only shot 38% from the field. A pretty good role player off the bench who should be able to contribute for the Rockets if he gets the playing time.
Things to Improve on: Just keep playing hard and hope the Rockets don’t draft any forwards.

Dan Langhi: Minimum Salary ’02 (free agent)

Will probably get let go to free up cap, Rockets are a projected 6.7 million over. Likely the Rockets will draft at least 1 forward, so Langhi just might be the odd man out. He’s not too bad of a player out of Vanderbilt. Just might be a victim of the Rockets releases. Not extremely athletic, and is only 220 pounds at 6’10. Very tall and skinny. Young though, so he might stick around.
Things to improve on: Getting signed.

The Rockets have an excess of Forwards who don’t rebound and only shoot 3’s. The Rockets need to pick up a tough small forward and have to part ways with some or one of those power forwards. Bad contracts are at this position, and out of any position, this one will require the most revamping.

Centers

Kelvin Cato: 42 million plus contract ’06 (free agent)

Oh man. Kelvin Cato. Talk about a bad investment, this guy costs entirely too much to only get 7 points and 7 rebounds a game. He is probably the worst investment the Rockets brass has made in a while. But the good thing is he’s overpaid for a long time. But, wait, that still sucks. Don’t get me wrong though he has some talent. He just appears to not play hard all the time. He takes plays off and plays when he wants to. No big surprise he’s a former Blazer. He’s a pretty good rebounder and he tosses a lot of shots, but that’s where his abilities end. He is not a scoring threat, and giving him the ball in the post is a waste of time. He doesn’t look like he is developing any new skills, but would be a good backup center. But having him be a full time starter should be a last resort, and it has been lately. If they could package him in a trade deal with a draft pick to move down and get a good player, I’m sure the management would.
Things to Improve On: Offense, and heart.

Kevin Willis: 21 million total ’02 (free agent)

A rare sight in sports today, a large 7 footer with a career average of .5 blocks per game. He has a big body but is stuck with dinosaur arms, which make him an unknown defensive presence in the middle. 15,000 career point scorer who is still a pretty tough. A solid rebounder, Willis is a solid player who can be a good backup center. Sooner or later he will ride off into the sunset, but unfortunately if he doesn’t retire he’ll probably get cut.
Things to Improve on: Just teach these kids how to play in the NBA. 18 years in the NBA, and you learn a few things.

Jason Collier: 5.9 million contract ’04 (free agent)

Young and big. 7’0 tall and 260 pounds. He’s a big boy and that’s about all I can tell you because he hasn’t seen much action.
Things to Improve on: I haven’t seen him so I don’t know!

At center the Rockets are pretty weak. Cato might have to do as center for now, and the development of Collier will be big. Most likely the position will somehow be addressed through the draft or free agency. It seriously needs to be addressed or the Rockets will once again have one of the weakest frontcourts in the league.

V. Coaching/Management

Rudy Tomjanovich is a great coach who often goes unrecognized as one of the best in the league. Rudy is looking to win a championship in this decade, but is unfortunately in the middle of a rebuilding process. The front office has been hit or miss with their decisions on signing players, and they are going to need to hit when singing Francis. The front office has overpaid a couple players and needs to make up for it by making smart deals in the future. The team is a projected 6.9 million over, but with the probable release of Walt Williams and Kevin Willis this number should drop.

V. Team Needs (Scale of 1-10 10 being least needed 1 being most needed)

Point Guard: At this position the Rockets are pretty strong and have one of the best point guards and all around players in the league. Steve Francis and Moochie Norris are a solid 1-2 punch and there is not a whole lot of need to get a backup point guard. There is a little need maybe for another good point guard, just in case Steve Francis suffers through injuries next year like he did this year.
Ranking: 9

Shooting Guard: The Rockets have a solid 3-man rotation between Mobley, Norris, and Francis. Mobley out of anyone though has the least backup because Moochie is a little too short to play the 2. A good backup isn’t a big need as of right now with all the help the team needs up front. It wouldn’t be a bad call though to get Mobley a solid backup.
Ranking: 7

Small Forward: This is one of the teams’ biggest needs. Whether through free agency or the draft, Houston needs to get a starting small forward. Eddie Griffin might move over to small forward, but as of right now, injury prone Glen Rice is starting at SF. A young SF is probably the best way for the Rockets to go. At this spot they need a tough player who can hit the boards and is tenacious, but can also run the floor with Cuttino and Stevie. A good overall player is needed here.
Ranking: 5

Power Forward: The 3-headed monster, Eddie Griffin, Maurice Taylor and Kenny Thomas, is an interesting combo. This is a true case of the Rockets choosing quantity over quality. The Rockets need a strong player at PF, but with them already having 3, what sense would it make to have 4 Power Forwards and essentially only 2 Small Forwards (worth playing anyway). Especially since all 3 power forwards are better than any small forward on the team. Who gets time out of this trio? Expect Eddie Griffin to play some small forward as well as power forward, leaving Maurice Taylor and Kenny Thomas to share the majority of the time with Eddie Griffin playing both spots. This position is essentially pretty set player wise. The Rockets would like to get some better players here, but they will have to deal with the trio they have right now. Expect one of them to get traded or cut sometime in the near future with the progression of Eddie Griffin.
Ranking: 6

Center: This is probably the spot they need help at the most, but also the spot where its hardest to find help. I think teams need to understand that no one can stop Shaq, so trying to find someone who can is pointless. Kelvin Cato is decent, but can Collier be a good backup? There is too much risk in letting the center position rest in these two guys hands. Look for the Rockets to address their biggest need and pickup a center.
Ranking: 4


Summary: Overall, the Rockets have the same problem they did last year. They need even more frontcourt help. The backcourt is set for years, and to win the Rockets have to get some quality players up front. The two biggest needs are Small Forwards and Centers. And so with that I will look to address those problems in this draft. I’d also like to note that I hope I won’t disappoint longtime Rockets Usenet owner John Carter too much, and hope that I don’t ruin the draft too much by picking a surprise first pick. So with that, best of luck to the Rockets next year, because lord knows every team needs some.

VI. My selection

Marcus Haislip, 6'10", PF, Tennessee

I promised myself with the 15th pick I’d take the best athlete available and I think the Rockets will do that too. Haislip is the best athlete at this spot. He played center in college and just might be able to in the NBA as well. I feel Haislip is a good fit with the Rockets because he’s a big strong super athletic guy with shot blocking abilities. Some say Haislip reminds them of Marcus Camby, but how bad is Marcus Camby? Anyways, Haislip is a physical specimen that the Rockets need considering their lack of athletes at the Forward and Center positions. Haislip has been said to bench 400 pounds and have a 40’ vertical leap. At this spot in the draft, he was the best athlete, shot blocker, and maybe best all around defender available. Haislip has a whole lot of potential, and it would be up to the Rockets to utilize it. Would be a great fit with the Rockets.

VII. Other Players Considered

Melvin Ely 6’10 PF Fresno St.

Melvin Ely was pretty tough to pass on because scouts say he might actually be a true center. He, like Haislip is another big body who can block shots. Some knocks on him though his that he doesn’t play too hard all the time and does not have a real polished offensive game. Hmm a 6’10 PF/C who’s best feature is his shot blocking ability, doesn’t play hard all the time and has a decent offensive game with little rebounding abilities? Who does this remind you of? None other than Kelvin Cato, and another Kelvin Cato is not what the Rockets need. See the connection, Melvin- Kelvin, its scary isn’t it? All in all though, if Ely can pull together the pieces of his game he could turn out to be a pretty good basketball player at the NBA level.

Bostjan Nachbar 6-9 220 SF Benneton Treviso

Another seemingly pretty good player who could really rise on draft day. He has really sweet offensive game and appears to NBA ready. The thing that might scare the Rockets away is his contract with his Euro League team Benneton Treviso. On many mock drafts Nachbar is supposed to go at around the 15th pick to the Rockets. But how well does he fit? Sure he can stretch the defense and can hit jumper but what can be said about his defense and rebounding and toughness. The excess of soft, 3 point shooting forwards already present on the Rockets scared me away and might scare the Rockets brass away as well. With the probable drafting of Yao Ming and his contract problems etc. how can the Rockets really select another guy they might have to go through the same thing with?

Kareem Rush SG/SF 6’6 Missouri

Was not one of the biggest needs for the Rockets, so I didn’t spend too much time thinking about him. He’s a really good all around player who can really shoot the rock. Might not be too bad of a fit with the Rockets, as he is a big guard (something the Rockets don’t have) who might be able to play Small Forward. Should turn out to be a good player, if he can find his niche in the NBA. Needs to prove to teams he can step it up in the clutch.

VIII. Who the team will probably take

I’d say with the Rockets 2 picks, they’ll fill a spot with one pick and pick the best player with the other. I’d say Yao Ming will probably get taken with the first pick, but no one can really say for sure. The Rockets have two big gaps, Center and Small Forward, and will likely address them. A likely scenario though is a trade of their draft picks for a proven star. You never know with the NBA GM’s though. Expect the Rockets to not get a point guard and to bulk up down low.