Kevin Love or LaMarcus Aldridge: Who’s the better fit for Houston Rockets?
By Jack Crosby
With rumors of the Rockets wanting in on Kevin Love and LaMarcus Aldridge, who would the better fit be?
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Two of the biggest names surrounding a lot of the NBA free agency talk this summer are Kevin Love and LaMarcus Aldridge. Virtually every team in the NBA, in some form or fashion, will take a look at both of these stars. But one team that we’ve learned of recently that’s more than intrigued by landing their services is none other than the Houston Rockets.
Now the chances of this NBA title-contending franchise landing both players in the free agency period might be slim and none, so the question must be begged: Which of these two young stars would be the better fit to take their talents to Houston for a potential title run?
Both players have their pros and cons that they bring to the court, but when the dust really settles in all of this, the Rockets need to make the bigger push to bring LaMarcus Aldridge to Houston.
When the 2015-16 NBA season starts, Aldridge will be 30 years old, and as we’ve seen from his performances the past few seasons, he’s clearly starting to make his mark as one of the best down-low scorers in the league. In 71 games played last season for the Trail Blazers, Aldridge averaged 23.4 points per game, which was a career high. That points per game averaged has only increased steadily since the 2012-13 season, a clear sign that there’s a bit more to come from a player that will just turn 30. This isn’t the NFL, Aldridge’s shelf life isn’t nearing culmination just yet.
Now, when you add in the scoring ability of Aldridge down low with that of Dwight Howard, then you factor in that James Harden guy, you have a dangerous mix, especially considering that this is a team that was sixth in the NBA last season at 103.9 points per game. A scoring presence like his in the paint — yikes.
Speaking of Dwight Howard, Aldridge also puts someone down low when he gets himself into foul trouble. As we learned this past postseason, Howard has a tendency to get himself put on the bench quite a lot because of the fouls, but with Aldridge manning things in that area, head coach Kevin McHale would be able to breathe a little easier.
Now as for Kevin Love, while he isn’t a bad option by any means, mixing him in with this group might not be the best choice. At times last year we saw that Love, when having to share the ball a little more than he was accustomed to in Minnesota, doesn’t always provide the best results. He seemed to struggle at times, and at others, just plain seemed lost. The Rockets have their deep-threat assassin in Harden, so there’s essentially no need to bring Love into the fold and potentially cause some ball-sharing issues out there beyond the line.
Plus, there’s the question of how healthy the shoulder may actually be. While Aldridge has dealt with some injuries in the past, he more than showed last year that he’s 100 percent and ready to provide for a contending team.
Bottom line is that the Rockets have been searching for a power forward the last few seasons that they can pair with Harden and Howard to create the perfect triple threat, and if anyone knows the damage that LaMarcus Aldridge can do, it’s the Houston Rockets. All they have to do is reminisce about this…
Yeah, that might help in dealing with those pesky NBA Champion Golden State Warriors.