The Pallilog
Rockets erase bad off-season with moves at deadline
Feb 8, 2019, 7:55 am
The Pallilog
The Rockets made no huge move before the NBA trade deadline, but the addition of Iman Shumpert should make them incrementally better. It was a great deadline for owner Tilman Fertitta's wallet, as General Manager Daryl Morey's finding a dumping ground for Brandon Knight and Marquese Chriss gets the Rockets out of luxury tax territory. To do so the Rockets did have to give up their first round draft pick and a future second rounder. They actually nudge back into luxury tax territory if they add any other players whose contracts are/were bought out. The Rockets have three available roster slots.
Giving away James Ennis to Philadelphia plays as a bit of a cheapo move, but Shumpert should be a bouncier more versatile defender who shoots three pointers at a similar level.
Morey has recovered nicely from his brutal offseason performance with the in-season additions of Austin Rivers, Kenneth Faried, and now Shumpert. But the misconstruction of the roster over the summer played a large role in the Rockets' lousy start which basically buried their hopes of again finishing atop the Western Conference.
Saturday's game vs. Oklahoma City is huge. The Rockets sit three games back of the Thunder for third in the West. Presuming Golden State finishes number one in the West, finishing third (or second for that matter) means avoiding the Warriors before the Western Conference Final. The Rockets final game of the regular season is at OKC. The season series stands 1-1.
Several teams who think of themselves as legit Finals threats made bigger moves than did the Rockets. Philadelphia trading for Tobias Harris, Milwaukee for Nikola Mirotic, and Toronto for Marc Gasol makes for a plausible argument that after the Warriors the next best four teams in the NBA are all Eastern Conference squads: Bucks, Raptors, Sixers, and Celtics.
The Miami Heat announced Monday that next month it will retire Chris Bosh's uniform number. Easy does it with any snickering, even though while Bosh's #1 will go to the rafters in Miami, he was never more than #3 on the totem pole during the Heat's four Finals appearances and two titles four year run spearheaded by LeBron James and Dwyane Wade.
Bosh pretty much has to be a Hall of Famer. Spending his entire playing career in the Eastern Conference no doubt helped Bosh on the accolades front, but do you know that he was an 11-time All Star? Clyde Drexler was a 10-time All Star, so was Paul Pierce. Scottie Pippen was a 7-time All Star, so was Tracy McGrady 7. Chris Bosh, 11.
From the what if department: what if Chris Bosh hadn't jilted the Rockets at the altar when he was a free agent in the summer of 2014. The Rockets thought they had created a big three, adding Bosh to James Harden and Dwight Howard. Then, having just lost LeBron James, Pat Riley blew the Rockets offer out of the water by 30 million dollars, as only the Heat could under NBA rules.
Without Bosh, the Rockets wound up going to the Western Conference Final in 2015, losing to the Warriors. With Bosh, could the Rockets have prevented the Golden State from winning its first title of its dynasty? Probably not. But we'll never know.
It's 22-1 for the Houston Cougars after their win Thursday night at Central Florida. Sunday afternoon should make for quite the atmosphere at the Fertitta Center as the Coogs play Cincinnati for the American Athletic Conference lead. Both teams are 9-1 in AAC play. UH has won seven straight games, UC has won eight straight. The Cougars are on the nation's longest homecourt winning roll with 31 consecutive wins. UH is currently ranked 12th in the nation, but numbers eight, nine, 10, and 11 have all lost this week meaning a win over the 25th ranked 20-3 Bearcats vaults the Cougars into the top 10, probably top eight.
The great Frank Robinson died this week at 83. An easy first ballot Hall of Famer, renowned as the first black manager ever in Major League Baseball, and yet still underappreciated among all-time greats. Robinson's aura suffered since he was a contemporary of Willie Mays and Hank Aaron. Robinson's greatest hitting season was greater than Hank or Willie's greatest. Robinson won the American League Triple Crown in 1966. He retired in fourth place on the career home run list (behind Aaron, Babe Ruth, and Mays). He's still the only player to win the Most Valuable Player Award in both leagues. Robinson was born in Beaumont, moved to Oakland California when young, and played on the same high school basketball team as Bill Russell.
Buzzer Beaters
1.The Super Bowl was no classic but wasn't awful. The outcome wasn't settled until the 59th minute. 2. A week from now Spring Training is underway! 3. Greatest athletes who attended the University of Cincinnati: Bronze-Tony Trabert Silver-Sandy Koufax Gold-Oscar Robertson
The Astros closed out their latest road trip with a winning record, a feat made more impressive considering the turbulence at the back of the rotation. Brandon Walter and Ryan Gusto both endured rough outings, with Walter in particular getting tagged hard. Still, Houston salvaged the finale, thanks largely to Mauricio Dubón’s breakout performance. The utilityman launched two home runs to power an offense that’s quietly been heating up for weeks.
But even with a solid finish, not everything is trending upward.
Josh Hader, who’s been one of the game’s most reliable closers this season, has begun to show signs of vulnerability. He’s allowed a home run in three of his last six outings. While his overall numbers remain strong, the long ball—a problem that plagued him last year—is starting to creep back into the picture.
As the Astros return home, the schedule offers no breather. They’ll face the Phillies and Cubs before a brief trip to Colorado to take on the struggling Rockies. After that comes a marquee series against the defending champion Dodgers in Los Angeles. With three of their next four opponents being legitimate World Series threats, the coming stretch looms large.
Can the bats keep pace?
If the last month is any indication, the Astros have reason to feel optimistic. Christian Walker has started to show signs of life after a quiet start to the season, hitting .260 with a .762 OPS and five home runs over the past 30 days. José Altuve has been scorching with a .302 average and .901 OPS in that span, while Jeremy Peña has taken things to another level, batting .384 with a 1.009 OPS.
As a team, the Astros rank 7th in OPS, 5th in runs, 3rd in batting average, and 7th in home runs over the last 30 days. It’s a surge that’s come at the right time—and one they’ll need to sustain.
The injury picture is also starting to shift in Houston’s favor.
Cristian Javier threw a 20-pitch live BP today in West Palm Beach. According to Joe Espada, he was up to 95 mph.
Luis Garcia should throw a live BP next week.
Spencer Arrighetti is still not throwing off a mound yet.
Yordan Alvarez has not resumed hitting.
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) June 20, 2025
Joe Espada told The Athletic's Chandler Rome that Christian Javier recently threw a live batting practice session, touching 95 mph as he continues his return from Tommy John surgery. JP France has thrown multiple live BPs and could be ready to help if things continue to progress with his shoulder. Luis Garcia, however, remains further away despite undergoing surgery more than two years ago. He's expected to throw a live BP this week.
Spencer Arrighetti (thumb) should be able to return in August, and Lance McCullers has resumed throwing and is currently on the 15-day IL with a foot sprain.
The Astros are winning. The offense is rolling. The reinforcements are on the way. But with a brutal stretch looming, the team’s margin for error is about to be put to the test.
There's so much more to cover! Don't miss the video below as we examine the topics above and much, much more!
The MLB season is finally upon us! Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday.
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