[The Athletic] Rockets GM Rafael Stone on Houston rebuild: ‘This is not a job anyone can do perfectly’
Rafael Stone, unplugged, exclusive on @TheAthletic
A lengthy, wide-ranging interview with the Rockets GM on Houston’s rebuild, a summer of spending, young players with staying power, self-evaluation and much, much more. https://t.co/cnO8KO98Wy
— Kelly Iko (@KellyIko) February 23, 2023
by NoBarracuda199
10 Comments
Quit drafting guys that want to be the man. OKC has the best rebuild going right now. They draft players that love to share the rock, play defense, & play for eachother. And got their star in Shai to lead in scoring.
Nothing of value in this one as expected. I do miss Morey’s frankness with the fans. Stone is so noncommital, like he’s afraid to say anything and go back on it later.
Some notable questions/answers
> **Before the beginning of the season, I’d imagine there was some level of acknowledgment internally that this team would struggle. But did you envision anything close to this?**
> I don’t think we bothered to try and figure out what our struggles would look like — we just knew that it would be a struggle, and it has been. The pot of gold at the end of the rainbow is the development of our young guys. That’s what continues to give us hope, because we do think that we’ve seen improvement in almost all of them. And there’s a lot of time left in this year for them to really improve again — so that’s our focus. I think beyond just knowing the year was going to be hard, we probably didn’t spend a ton of time trying to figure out exactly how hard it would be.
.
> **Despite the record, what about the team’s play for the first two-thirds of the season has encouraged you? Alternatively, what has disappointed you? And what has intrigued you?**
> It’s not very linear. There was a stretch where we were really competitive — late November, early December — playing really well against good teams, that was good to see. We’ve been consistently a really good rebounding team. That’s good to know about this mix of guys, there’s actually something that they can do. And then a ton of stuff is TBD. We need to be a better shooting team, that’s obvious. Some of that just feels like it’s just confidence, guys knowing when their shots are coming and everything else. Hopefully, that’s one of the things that we see over the last 20 games or so, people starting to figure that out. I think we have a group that on an individual basis can shoot. How do we get that to translate more on the court? One of the things we talked about coming into the year was seeing what it would look like if we played through Alpe (Şengün) and as the seasons progressed, we’re able to see that a little bit. And I think that’s intriguing.
.
> **You’ve always maintained confidence in Stephen Silas, had numerous conversations over the past three years and seem to be on the same page. What are those talks like now? More of the same, figuring out the best course of action moving forward?**
> Yeah, it’s the same. Stephen’s a really smart guy who’s a really good human being and we want the same thing. The thing I try and do during the season is just be as helpful to him as possible. If he’s looking for ideas to give him 50. They might all be bad, but if I give him 50, maybe one is worth really exploring. And just to make sure I’m a resource. These seasons are really hard and really long — I just want to be as good a resource as I can.
.
> **What’s your macro view of the development of players like Jalen Green, Alperen Şengün, Jabari Smith Jr. and Kevin Porter Jr.?**
> From a macro perspective, I still feel good about all of them. There are certainly specific areas for each of our players where I wish they would have improved quicker, but they’re all improving. And with the guys who were with us last year, they’re all materially better than they were last year. That’s kind of why it’s so important to look at the big picture. It’s pretty easy to nitpick and wish that this area or that area or anything else. But we’re in a competitive field and you’re playing against people who are trying their hardest to make sure you don’t succeed. So you do have to kind of keep that in mind. I will say we’re very, very unsatisfied. So even though from a macro perspective we see the trends going in the right direction, we’re not at all satisfied that we’re there or even close to being there for any of our players. And it’s incumbent upon them and us to push them there for them to get way better. Way better, if our goal is to be a championship team and we want these guys to be a core part of it. This improvement has to continue and continue and continue. And the work ethic has to continue and continue to continue. And we’ve just started.
Nothing juicy in this article as exptected. Mostly typical corporate speak by Mr. Stone. If you want to read the whole thing, you can use [internet archive](https://archive.is/lqfgu) to bypass the paywall.
I could see stone getting replaced soon
Considering how this rebuild is actually structured it has gone pretty well. And has been meeting planned expectations.
The actual problems are just things they all will get better at as they gain more experience. This is a pretty good group of players, coaches, and staff. IF they have the fortitude to get over the hump, and can stand strong through this next transition stage.
They are at the tail end of the first stage and are about to really start the next stage next season. Which is the hardest segment for a lot of rebuilding teams. And this part over the next few years is what really separates the quality of rebuild. If they have the fortitude they can be a dynasty. If they are too hasty or foolish they can end up like the kings had been.
I don’t want fans really want him to say, again we weren’t supposed to be competitive this year. We want to tank as this is our last year own our own draft pick. Sure I would love to see more development but it’s tricky because too much development leads to wins which would ruin this painful season.
Stone has done a masterful job, so many people have struck out on top picks and it’s pretty clear Jalen will be a star. Sengun was an absolute steal and I believe Jabari will develop nicely.
Prior to this ducking awful run the rockets maintained a winning team that competed night in and night out. Pushed other teams to the max and couldn’t quite make it over the hump. This has been a pathetic excuse for a team and organization for a few years now and it sucks. Go stros!
Yes it is. See: Based Morey.