Rockets Soon to be One of the Youngest and Deepest Team in the NBA

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Created on Thursday, 21 June 2012 21:52

Last Updated on Thursday, 16 May 2013 07:51

Written by Travis Pulver

With the right picks in the coming draft and the right personnel decisions by general manager Daryl Morey the Rockets could end up being one of the youngest and more talented teams in the league with a post season spot theirs for the taking.

Of the players on the roster right now the Rockets only have three that have been in the league for a decade or more; at least one of those—if not all three—will likely not be on the roster next season.  

There have been rumors that the team is looking to trade Samuel Dalembert; he’ll probably be cut in order to gain salary cap space if not. Boykins was just an injury replacement anyway; he will not be back. Of the three, Marcus Camby could return in order to help develop whatever big man the team ends up drafting.

Next to Boykins, Dalembert, and Camby, Luis Scola is the oldest at 32 followed by Kevin Martin at 29. The average age of the team is just 25. Should the team make the right picks in the 2012 NBA Draft next Thursday that number could become even lower.

The Rockets have made it known that they are open to trading and moving up in the draft, but they really don’t need to this year. If they stay put with the No 14 and 16 picks the team could very well get exactly what it needs.

“The nice thing is that after maybe the first three-to-five guys, it’s pretty flat. We could easily get someone who we might rank six or seven at 14, just because it’s very unpredictable after the first three-to-five picks in this draft,” said Morey.

According to some of the many mock drafts that anyone with a computer is running these days Houston stands to pick up Connecticut’s Jeremy Lamb with the No 14 pick and Baylor’s Perry Jones III at No 16.

Lamb gives the Rockets a talented young player that can attack the basket or do plenty of damage on the perimeter to opponents. He may not be the best defender, but with his athleticism and speed that is something that can be developed. Since Kevin Martin has been injury prone and the situation with Kyle Lowry, Lamb could stand to see a lot of playing time real quick.

Perry Jones III had a solid two years in college averaging just under 14 points and a little over seven rebounds a game in each. The general belief when it comes to him is that he has yet to really tap into his full potential, and that whatever team drafts him will need the right coach and some patient veterans to help him along. He could get just that in Kevin McHale, Marcus Camby, and Luis Scola.

Of course until Anthony Davis is taken with the first pick next Thursday night all the talk will just be speculation. If that was worth anything than sports writers would be filthy rich!