Here's the thing - I think Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey reads Ridiculous Upside.
Why, you ask?
Well, he seems to somehow know which players I like and then brings them to to the Rockets - Either he reads what I write or we both are really smart about basketball players. Actually it probably doesn't need to be either/or, does it?
Here are just a couple of examples (because I'm battling an illness and didn't feel like digging too far back into the archives):
On February 27th, I wrote that Will Conroy needs to be called up. Then, just two days later, the Houston Rockets called up Will Conroy.
On March 15th, I wrote that Alexander Johnson was the most NBA-ready big man in the D-League. Well, much to my (fake) surprise, Morey brought Johnson in for a tryout and then signed him a few days later.
And now yesterday, according the Houston Chronicle's Jonathan Feigen, the Rockets have decided to add Jordan Eglseder, Antonio Anderson and Ish Smith to their training camp roster.
You'll probably remember that I'm a big fan of Eglseder, dating back to when I discovered him on March 20, 2009. Then I wrote how I thought he was at least as good as Omar Samhan here and finally wrapped it up with my preview of the Detroit Pistons' Summer League roster before I made my pilgrimage to Vegas. Eglseder didn't make much of an impact in Vegas due to a lack of minutes and probably will have similar problems making the Rockets roster, but he's a solid training camp body who will probably be one of the top big men in the D-League next season.
As for Anderson, I actually was really high on him last year and then soured once the Rockets opted to call-up Garrett Temple when they needed a wing instead of the Memphis product. While it currently looks like that was a bad idea on my part, I like what Anderson brings to the table and this will probably guarantee that he'll play for the Rockets' D-League affiliate Rio Grande Valley Vipers again next season.
Ish Smith, well, I don't have as much pre-written love for him. Back in July in my Rockets' Summer League roster preview, I wrote that Smith could be a player that looks really good in Summer League, though, as his speed and ability to keep his team at a solid tempo could definitely help make him look good in what can typically be a helter skelter environment. I like his heart, but at his size (and with his struggles shooting and finishing), he's far from a lock to being an NBA player next year. Well, it turns out he did end up looking pretty solid in Summer League on his way to averaging 4.8 assists and just one turnover while playing less than 24 minutes for the Rockets' summer league entry. Oh, he also shot a pretty impressive 58% from the field.
I don't have high hopes for any of them making the Rockets roster, but all three are young guys that the Rockets are smart to give an extended look.
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