Rockets Press Conference

[Pelicans78]

Sorry, I'm late! I know this was scheduled for 3pm and no not 3pm Mountain Time zone.

Anyway, we've had a good run the last 3 seasons with three straight 50+ win seasons, two straight Midwest Divisional titles, and a Western Conference Finals in that span. This season, we hope to continue the trend of at least winning 50plus games and another divisional title, but do even better in the win column and hope to finally get a top seed in the West. We feel this is our deepest team ever and definitely think this is the best team we've fielded from top to bottom. This roster should allow us to sustain success over an 82 game season despite injuries which can occur from time to time.

Roster moves consisted of acquiring PG Jason Williams from the Spurs in a trade. He gives us a legit playmaker from the PG position which is something this team has lacked the last few seasons. Plus, he brings alot of past success with 3 Finals appearances (Cavs/Lakers) and one championship with the Lakers. We feel he will be a huge addition to this squad.

We also resigned Aaron Mckie, Samaki Walker, Todd MacCulloch, and of course Carmelo Anthony to a 5 year max contract.

With training camp complete, we are now going to announce the depth chart.

Starting Lineup

Center - Emeka Okafor. He is the two-time DPOY. Great shot blocker, strong rebounder. He increased his ball-handling for the 2nd straight season. He was F+ two years ago and now he's a D.

Power Forward - Joe Smith. He brings tremendous defense with an A rating. Solid scorer. We plan to train his rebounding.

Small Forward - Carmelo Anthony. Elite scorer. Improved his defense to a B. Happy to resign him to a 5 year deal. Primary scorer in the starting lineup.

Shooting guard - Manu Ginobili. He can score in the paint and on the perimeter. Great at steals. We plan to train his perimeter shooting.

Point Guard - Jason Williams. Great ball-handler. Will run the offense very well. Best playmaker the team has had since Sam Cassell in season 2. Great at steals as well. Very excited to have him.

BENCH

Al Jefferson - Reigning 6th man of the year. Will be the backup C/PF again. Elite inside scorer and improved his defense to a B-. Very encouraging. Will not be surprised if he ends up starting at either the center or PF spot. Offense will run through him when he comes in the game.

James Posey - Brings outside scoring with A- and overall defense at A. Will get heavy minutes against strong scoring SFs in this league. Will be the primary backup SF and the 3rd string SG.

Aaron McKie - He will be the backup SG. Was the starter at PG last season and did a solid job, but will be a better fit at his more natural position at the two. Excellent ball-handler for his position at a B+. Good defender at A- and strong outside shooter at B+. Could easily start at the SG spot on this team. He will be the 3rd string PG as well.

Shaun Livingston - He will be the backup PG this season. Has improved every season on the defensive end. He's up to a B+ now after starting at C+ in his rookie season. Strong play-maker as well with A- handling. We feel he is definitely good enough to start if needed.

Todd MacCulloch, Samaki Walker, Mikeal Pietrus/Alan Anderson will get minutes off the bench as 3rd stringers.

As far as gameplan. With Jason Williams and Shaun Livingston running the point, we feel we can slow down to a Normal pace after being mostly fast the last 3 seasons. We will trap normally due to guys like Manu and Williams being able to create steals. With our strong half-court defense, we will only press sometimes. Our offensive focus will be balanced with Jefferson scoring in the paint and Melo and Manu scoring from the perimeter.

Ready to take questions now. Thank you.

[TrayWithAnA]

Only a few years removed from your western conference championship guarantee, few teams have been as successful in the wins column as you have been. Do you count it a success? Is the western conference top seed really the goal for a team of this caliber? Shouldn't the focus be higher than that?

[Pelicans78]

Only a few years removed from your western conference championship guarantee, few teams have been as successful in the wins column as you have been. Do you count it a success? Is the western conference top seed really the goal for a team of this caliber? Shouldn't the focus be higher than that?

There's different degrees of success. You have regular season success and playoff success. The goals we stated were for regular season success. Obviously every team wants to be successful in the playoffs too, but its hard winning in general and maintaining consistency. So we're not going to look at every season as championship or bust. We want to win as much as we can, but its obviously takes alot to win a championship. Getting the right matchups, getting hot at the right time, staying healthy. We felt like the one season when we went to the WCFs was our weakest squad overall, but that team had the right combination to advance deep in the playoffs. In the end, we want to maintain a consistent contender from year to year and see what happens in the playoffs. I regret making past guarantees. I felt it put too much pressure on myself and the team overall. So we're just going to take it one step at a time and do the best we can.

[BeeBall Reasons]

Best Al. Jefferson, Harrington, or Capone?

Best Melo. Anthony or Fab?

[Pelicans78]

Best Al. Jefferson, Harrington, or Capone?

Best Melo. Anthony or Fab?

Best Al - Al Jazeera

Best Melo - Definitely Anthony..

[NOLa.]

Is this potentially the last season that your core stays intact with several key player's rookie contracts expiring, or will the Rockets continue going forward with their solid front court?

[Pelicans78]

Is this potentially the last season that your core stays intact with several key player's rookie contracts expiring, or will the Rockets continue going forward with their solid front court?

I don't believe so. We believe in this core long-term and they've improved each season while helping us win a lot of games. We kept Melo for a reason and I feel Okafor, Jefferson, and Livingston will be here long-term.